So today I am doing a raw cleanse through Juice Generation. The cleanse involved 3 juices, 1 entree, 1 snack, 1 dessert. By eating/drinking every 2 hours, I feel full but not ravenous and I am cleaning my body of toxins and filling it with fresh vegetables, juice and raw food. My menu is below! I love all of the drinks at juice generation and the raw food is delicious. I usually eat the Cashew Ravioli for lunch on its own so today I decided to try a new entree! The juices are cold pressed which means not a lot of heat is used in the juicing process - this ensures that you are getting the most juice possible from the fruits and vegetables and also most of the nutrients remain intact.
It is expensive though and now that Ryan and I have a full fridge of juicing vegetables and fruits, I would rather cleanse with fresh juice made at home, but this cleanse was a last minute decision and one I really enjoy doing. I have tried Organic Avenue and find their juices intolerable. They are bitter and hard to finish. I find myself angry for spending so much money on a juice I barely finish. But the juices at Juice Generation are sweet, unique, colorful and keep me full all day without any headaches or stomach pains. I choose to incorporate raw food into my cleanse because I don't like 6 juices in a day - I feel great for 24 ours but wake up feeling weak and hungry. The next day, I usually over eat to compensate for the lack of eating I did during the cleanse. By incorporating food into my cleanse, I keep myself full and satisfied. I also love ending the day with a sweet chia, fruit dessert! I have made chia pudding at home before (I will do that this weekend and post the recipe) and it is such a filling dessert and with a little chocolate added to it, my sweet tooth is always satisfied! If I were to do a second day of cleanse, it would be very easy to do a full juice cleanse after having done a raw cleanse because my body has been cleared of toxins and has already experienced meals being replaced with juice.
Juice #1 (9am): Hail to the Kale (Kale, Watermelon, Apple, Lemon)
Juice #2 (11am): Daily Detox (Carrot, Cucumber, Lemon, Apple, Ginger)
Entree (1pm): Young Coconut Pad Thai (Cocount, Pepper, Carrot, Cabbage, Onion, Scallion, Jalapeno, Sesame Seeds, Cilantro, Lime, Almond Butter, Ginger, Wheat-free Tamari, Raw Agave, Garlic, Cayenne, Almonds, Chili Flakes)
Juice #3 (3pm): Very Veggie (Apple, Beet, Carrot, Lemon, Spinach, Tumeric)
Snack (5pm): Zucchini Linguine (Zucchini, Sun-dried-Tomato, Parsley, Oregano, Thyme, Garlic, Onion, Olive Oil, Lemon, Raw Agave, Chili Flakes, Tomato, Basil, Hemp Seeds, Pine Nuts)
Dessert (6pm): Seasonal Fruit Tart (Thai Coconut, Almonds, Cashews, Dates, Raw Agave, Vanilla Bean, Lemon, Sea Salt, Strawberries, Blueberries)
Hail to Kale is green and sweet. The watermelon perfectly compliments the bitterness of kale. I could drink this all day, everyday. It is my favorite! It is great starting the day with a light green juice. It is not thick so I always have to remind myself to sip it slowly over the course of 1-2 hours and supplement it with water to keep me fuller longer.
Daily Detox is orange and a bit thicker and has a tangier taste (from the carrots and ginger). It is more filling than the first juice, so it really helps get through the second hour of juicing before having the entree (or snack if you aren't that hungry by lunch time). Keep drinking water and you will be fine for a couple of hours!
Very Veggie is a deep beautiful red (beets) and is the thickest of all the juice. I like to drink this one in the afternoon because by 3pm, that's when I begin grazing and get my sugar rush and crash. 3pm is when the work day has slowed, I realize I won't be eating again until I get home and my body panics and gets very hungry, even if I know I am not. The thickness and heaviness of the apples, beets and carrots make this drink filling and satisfying. The added benefit of turmeric (an antioxidant to support immune health, clear skin, healthy blood flow, and joint health) and the iron from the spinach make this a juice I feel really good to be drinking. I feel like I am feeding my body everything it needs without any of the chemicals or processed foods!
I purchased the Juice Generation recipe book so that Ryan and I can make all of these juices at home as well as some of the raw foods like Acai bowls! I love the way eating and drinking clean and fresh foods makes me feel. I hate feeling like I have given up on my body because then my mind is slower, my focus is off and I feel less determined to get back on track. One day of bad eating should feel indulgent, but it should not be rewarded with a second day of bad eating. Get back on track and reward yourself by treating your body right.
