I know what you’re thinking: “Another juice cleanse?!?”. And yes, alas, it is another article about juice cleanses, or rather, one specifically. My juice cleanse experience. There are so many articles out there about the benefits and pros of undergoing an “All Juice Diet”, but how often do you get to read an article which describes exactly how these cleanses go? How hard it really is to say goodbye to solid food for a few days in order to gain some sort of physical “superpowers”? Well, I tried an “All Juice Diet” for you, and documented every part of the experience so you could make the educated decision on whether trying one would be worth it for you.
The company I decided to buy my cleanse from was local to my hometown and very well-known and respected in the health and fitness community around it. I felt I was in good hands. So, one Saturday I ordered a 4 day cleanse consisting of 5 raw juices a day and said farewell to solid food for a full 96 hours. Here’s what I learned.
Waking up at 9am on day 1 of the cleanse I was definitely excited and feeling good. Not being much of a breakfast person, I hardly noticed not eating breakfast as I casually sipped my first juice of the day, “Green Immunity” (kale, cucumber, green apple, cayenne, turmeric). It was a Saturday and my plans didn’t include much else than running a few errands and chilling out with a friend on the couch all day. I was ready to slay this detox.
It was around 1 pm and after finishing my chores I couldn’t deny I was feeling the hunger. At this point I’ve had my second juice of the day, “Rise Up” (red apple, grapefruit, fennel, ginger) but could tell my body was craving something solid to digest. Not to mention missing its little buddy named Caffein. However, I persevered and focused on the next 3 juices I could drink next.
Fast forward to 5pm, I’ve consumed my third juice of the day and am feeling slightly woozy at the thought that my best friend Maggie is sitting across from me munching on a delicious looking burrito bowl I know I can’t even take a bite of. Sheesh, this thing was way, way harder when someone’s sitting across from you practically flaunting delicious, solid food in your face. Breath. Just breath. I started drinking my fourth juice “Green Apple Chia”(green apple, aloe juice, chia, kale) to ignore the churning I could feel in my stomach.
11pm and I’m was about to drink my last juice before bed “Heart Beet” (beets, orange, carrot, apple, ginger). This was definitely a hard day to get through. Harder than I thought for sure. It’s hard to focus on anything else when you’re hungry. It’s also hard get the energy to do anything when you’re body is running on liquid nutrients only. I was hoping that the next day would be a lot easier, or else I wasn’t sure I could do this thing after all.
Waking up on day 2 only three words pounded in my head. I. Need. Food. The juice flavour repeat daily so I knew exactly what to expect from now on. Only, as my hunger grew, my excitement towards these once oh-so-yummy juice flavours waned drastically. I’d rather a bagel smothered in cream cheese. Or better yet an Eggs Benny. No! Do not think about food. This was my mantra all throughout the day.
By 1pm on day 2, right around the time that I have my second coffee of the day, my body is dragging. I did not realize how dependent I was on my daily caffeine fix. I was kind of shocked. I could tell this was going to be an even longer day than the last.
What did help me though was a hack that I had forgotten I read on the juice company’s website. It said to drink as much water and herbal teas between juice meals as possible, something I totally neglected the day before. Staying hydrated and triking my stomach into thinking it was more full than it really was by chugging even more liquid actually helped a lot. I still missed solid food so much that I could cry, but still, better than nothing. I was determined to not give up on this challenge.
Waking up on day 3 was…alarming. My body had gotten to the point where its hunger was now just a dull emptiness in my stomach, thank god. Except now my face had 4 new breakouts and my stomach was more bloated than any PMS symptom, ever. The juice company warned me about this, but of course, it barely registered until now. This was my body expelling all it’s toxins as much as possible. I guess the constant peeing over the past 2 days wasn’t enough, now it needed a few breakouts to go with it. I’ll admit, at this point, I almost caved in. Mopey and stressed about my physical stated and outright exhausted from not having solid food made it all seem not even worth it anymore. I had made it this far though, my sacrifice of 3 non-food days could not end up futile. And so I reached for my next juice.
Waking up on day 4 was…different. The easiest day yet. I couldn’t believe it. Had I mastered the art of cleansing? Was I becoming a juice God? I woke up feeling energized, happy, clear-headed and so, so light. Like I had lost 10 pounds in my sleep, all my bloating from the day earlier had vanished. And my skin! My normally so-so, semi-problematic skin was glowing. Like. from within. The breakouts from the day before had cleared up and was it just me but did my hair look…shinier too? In just a few days? I couldn’t believe it. I was rejuvenated, feeling like a new person. It felt really, really great. This juice cleanse was definitely not so bad after all, if this was the outcome. I almost didn’t want it to end. I didn’t even crave coffee once on my lasts day of the cleanse. I happily sipped my remaining 5 juices.
Waking up the next day I felt so great, I almost didn’t want to ruin how good I felt by eating anything at all. Let me just drink juice forever and have perfect skin and energy just as long! Though alas, I started light and had a yoghurt fruit bowl for breakfast. And it was the best thing I had ever tasted. This cleanse definitely made me appreciate food more. I would be alright after all.
Worth it? Totally. Was it by far one of the hardest diet fads that I’ve ever tried? Without a doubt. Would I try it again? Maybe, like if Sports Illustrated called and told me they needed a fill-in model, ASAP. This all juice diet took more self-discipline than I even thought I had to begin with. Which adds to the whole worth of the experience; not only did I do something apparently great for my body, but I overcame a challenge that taught me a little about how much I can accomplish if I really try. And also how much I truly love food. Delicious (solid) food.
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