Summer is here! Are you ready for a jump-start to your routine?
I live a relatively healthy lifestyle – I love spinning on my Peloton, HIIT classes with my girlfriends at Core Power Yoga, yoga and more. I’ll try almost anything once (I’ve even done a Flyo Fit class before!)

I try my best to work out 3-4 times a week and if I do more, I feel like a real-life superwoman! My eating choices are overall healthy as well, mostly unfortunately due to how picky I am… aside from my indulgence in vino 🙂 … I’m not usually one for fad diets, but for the purposes of this blog, I’m going to tell you about my recent 3-Day Juice Cleanse and why I’m the 3-Day Juice Cleanse’s biggest fan!

First thing’s first: What’s a Juice Cleanse?

Juice cleansing is a “detox” diet that can last from a few days to several weeks in which a person consumes only fruit and vegetable juices to obtain nutrition while otherwise abstaining from eating food. In my opinion, everyone needs a jump-start from time to time to reinvigorate something in their life – whether that be visiting a new place, trying a new food, attending an empowering conference, trying a new and exciting adventure or hobby, or simply taking time to relax, rejuvenate and breathe. I love jump-starting my metabolism and workout routine with 3-Day Juice Cleanses! Cleansing gives your body a rest from digestion, according to Livestrong. Our bodies are used to breaking down and digesting food all day, every day, for years and years. So once in a while, it’s nice to give your body a break by only consuming nutrient-rich fluids. Especially if you are a junk food junkie, a cleanse will help reset your system and flush out tons of toxins.

My go to: Pure Raw Juice, located locally here in Federal Hill! They produce Raw, Cold Pressed Juices with NO HPP. What does having “cold pressed juice” mean? Cold-pressed juice are made with a hydraulic press that uses thousands of pounds of pressure to extract the maximum amount of liquid from fresh fruits and vegetables. No additional heat or oxygen is used in the process, meaning that no nutrients are lost in the heat of traditional pasteurization.

I’ve done numerous cleanses in the past, and I’ve typically loved them. But, ain’t no thang like a juice cleanse thang! 😉 Aside from the obvious benefit of getting the ACTUAL suggested number of veggies per day (which most individuals do not), they also have varying other added benefits:

• Boosted Immunity
• Assist in Anti-Inflammatory
• Increase Energy Levels
• Detoxify Your Body: By drinking super-nutrient dense juices, you allow your body to have more of the resources it needs to support the phases of detoxification, and to remove the cumulative toxins stored in the body
• Aid in Weight Loss: Some weight loss throughout a juice cleanse is water weight, but some is fat. A juice cleanse (three days minimum) is a great way to jump start a diet. It not only helps control appetite and cravings, but is naturally lower in calories, while supplying the body with concentrated, beneficial, energizing and healing nutrients.
• Improve Skin, Eye and Hair Health: Carrots play a crucial role in helping to improve vision and promote healthier skin and hair.
  • “Carrots are rich in beta-carotene, which is converted into vitamin A in the liver. Vitamin A is transformed in the retina, to rhodopsin, a purple pigment necessary for night vision.
  • Vitamin A and antioxidants protect the skin from sun damage. Deficiencies of vitamin A cause dryness to the skin, hair and nails. Vitamin A prevents premature wrinkling, acne, dry skin, pigmentation, blemishes and uneven skin tone.”
    – says Care 2

• Anti-Aging Benefits: With kale being an anti-oxidant powerhouse, it helps your body to fight the harmful effects of oxidation.
  • Kale is also a great source of iron, calcium, and vitamins A, C, and K. Kale also has a surprising amount of omega-3 fatty acids, which are an important component of any anti-aging diet. (JustJuice.org)
  • Lemon is also a great way to boost your body’s pH to a more alkaline state. It also helps to detox your liver, and is great for helping the body cleanse itself. (JustJuice.org)

• Improve Mental Clarity: “Memory, mental clarity, and emotional stability can be greatly improved by consuming ginger. Memory loss can be a result of poor organ health or slow digestion and ginger helps with both of those issues. Memory is also associated with the purity of the blood which is improved by the increased digestive rate provided by ginger.”
  – says Health Remedies Journal

… and MORE!

My most recent juice cleanse from Pure Raw Juice, was their Traditional Cleanse Option. This required I drink a series of seven juices + (1) Fire Cider Powershot each day:

The traditional cleanse is made of:

(2) RX Green
(Cucumber, Green Apple, Kale, Celery, Romaine, Parsley, Lemon, and Ginger Root)

(1) Rehydrate
(Young Thai Coconut Water, Cucumber, Pineapple, Kale)

(1) Heart Beet
(Apple, Beet, Carrot, Celery, Lemon, and Ginger Root)

(1) Orange Glow
(Carrot, Orange, Green Apple, Lemon, and Ginger Root)

(1) Lemon Ginger-Aid
(Ginger Root, Lemon, and filtered Water)

(1) Homemade Cashew Mylk
(Raw Cashews, Honey, Cinnamon, Sea Salt, and Filtered Water)

(1) Flu Shot (Powershot)
(Ginger, Cayenne Pepper, Raw Honey, Lemon)

Going into it, I get the anxious last minute cravings. I want to eat more than ever. But, costing roughly $175 for the 3-days ($58/day), I don’t want to ruin it. I want to give it my all, one-hundred percent and I remind myself this cleanse is fresh, made locally and MUCH cheaper than other alternatives I’ve investigated in the past.  I’m excited to get started!!

At 8:30 AM, my cleansing journey began.

Day 1:
How I felt:
I’m eager, excited, refreshed and reinvigorated to get this going! The first juice was absolutely delicious and I’m feeling hopeful for today and the next two! Nervous of feeling exhausted, I skipped my usual workout today and took my two puppies on a few long walks instead. After some laundry and finishing off my last juice a few hours before bedtime, I left enough room to sleep through the night without the obvious disturbances of drinking fluids all day.

The biggest obstacle:
All the juices are especially tasty, but I’m least a fan of the beet juice. Beets are great for you! But, this one in particular has a more bitter and acidic taste and it takes a while for me to get through that one. I guess it work well in the sense that it’s halfway through the series as juice number four.

The good news:
After each juice, I was left feeling full and not hungry like I assumed I would feel by forgoing food. My stomach hasn’t growled once and the day seemed to go by fast! I’m feeling motivated and energized.

Day 2:
How I felt:
I’m lethargic today. Weakening in energy and just overall … bleh. I like the juices, so I want to keep going, but it’s a little more of a struggle today. I’m a little more irritable and moody than usual. I.e. all I want to do is chomp down on something crunchy. I miss the oral fixation of eating food! But, today I know much better how to pace out my juices. I also know that Instagram is a BAD idea – there’s so many delicious food photos on there!! Talk about absolute torture: cheesy pizza, fresh poke bowls, steamed seafood, avocado toast… the list goes on.

The biggest obstacle:
I’m starting to feel very bloated (which is totally natural at this stage of the cleanse as you rid your body of toxins). Although exercise is somewhat discouraged against, I know through my previous experiences, light exercise does help with how I’m feeling and can help me get that little extra burst I need.

The good news:
My light workout (only 30-minutes) made me feel great! I did a little extra cleaning around the house with my newly earned energy and am looking forward to the final stretch tomorrow!

Day 3:
How I felt:
WOO HOOOOO I feel AWESOME! I feel lighter, my stomach is noticeably flatter and I’m craving my first juice of the day. I have the most energy I’ve had since I started and am kind of bummed it’s coming to an end at today’s end. I’m super close to extending my cleanse another 2-days.

The biggest obstacle:
I don’t have one! We have dinner plans with friends on Thursday evening; otherwise, I would definitely continue doing this another few days!

The good news:
3 Days, to me, really is the perfect, quick, gut clearing time for a cleanse! No unhealthy eating, no toxins, no alcohol and no stress of decisions, meal planning or worries! Plus, 3 days also doesn’t impact the number of days I’m able to work out in a given week all that much.

In a nutshell – I’m sure some of you reading this, if you got this far ;), are wondering if a juice cleanse is right for you. And my answer is: it is one-hundred percent, wholeheartedly, entirely up to you. What’s right for one person isn’t always right or fitting for the next. But, I hope my experience helps you decide one way versus the other – I say you go out on a limb and try it… Hey, you only live once, right? 🙂

A few things to note:

• Longer Fasts Preferable. A longer fast is preferable to a short one. Although for a beginner, the first juice fast should be about one to five days to start with. Do not attempt to fast longer unless you are familiar with, and understand juice fasting.
• Cleansing is not a solution for long term weight loss. You may notice some weight, possibly water weight, possibly both, shed during your cleanse. But, pleaseee do not let this be your motivation. Most, if not all, can likely return post cleanse if you’re not maintaining a healthy eating and fitness lifestyle. If you’re looking for somewhere to start with getting healthy and starting a new routine, I absolutely LOVE the free workouts and blogs from Tone It Up! Ton It Up is two girls leading an awesome fitness community with tons of guidance on daily workouts, healthy recipes and easy-to-get-going routines!
• Cleanses can be pricey. Ranging from $45+/day, a cleanse is something you’ll want to plan, and save, for.

Have you ever tried a juice cleanse? If you have, what was your experience? If not, is it something you would be willing to try?

Leave your stories, reviews, and experiences below. I’d love to see what you guys have to say!

xoxo
Brittany