blueprint juice cleanse.

i have always wanted to do a juice cleanse. not just for the health benefits, but also because, as someone with IBS, i wanted to know if it helped with symptoms.

there are several different types of juice cleanses out there, but during all the research, i found i felt most comfortable with blueprint cleanse. i appreciated the fact that their first level cleanse includes five different kinds of juices - not just one type of juice that you're drinking all day [aka super unhealthy]. and each juice contains a ton of different vitamins and nutrients. the green juice [which you drank twice a day] contains 6 pounds of leafy goodness - so that means fiber... and lots of it. their pineapple/apple juice gives you a boost of energy and antioxidants. the fourth juice, spicy lemonade, speeds up your metabolism. the beet juice contains lots of iron, and the cashew vanilla is a great source of magnesium and copper. i read that the nutrients from the juices go directly into your blood stream & get to your cells within ten to fifteen minutes - so your body doesn't have to digest anything. that's crazy!

when i decided to order from blueprint, i knew i could really only do a two day cleanse. there was no way i was going to try to do it at work, so i had to plan to do it on a weekend that i had off. and let's be real,  two days without food is enough. the three days before and after the cleanse are suppose to be diet-restricted, too. on day three you cut out meat; day two you cut out grains & dairy; day one you only eat fruits and vegetables - and vice-versa. 'day one' before and after the cleanse were the hardest for me. every single thing sounded and smelled delicious. my biggest cravings? cheese. and cinnamon raisin french toast. weird.

the juice cleanse itself:
the green juice was... interesting. it was really hard for me to drink the whole bottle, let alone two a day. but, it worked. it got a lot of crap out of my system [sorry, tmi]. the second juice [pineapple] was deeelish and gave me tons of energy. the fourth was strange. cayenne pepper? yikes. but i got used to it and didn't mind it after awhile. the fifth juice was AWFUL. to me, beets taste like dirt. something strange happened in between the fourth and fifth juices - i got extremely nauseous. both days, actually. i felt so bad the first day that i decided to email blueprint just to see if i was having a bad reaction. they never emailed me back, but about an 30/40 minutes later i started feeling better. adam thought that the spiciness and acidity affected me poorly, but we weren't positive. the last juice, cashew vanilla, was great. because it was the last bottle, it felt like dessert.

the after-effects:
on monday morning i felt great. clean, refreshed, but empty. i needed food. i stuck to my juice, fruit & veges, but cheated that night and had some brown rice. the beginning of that week i ate really well and kept drinking a ton of naked juice - not just because it's what i should have done, but because i actually wanted it. and that cheese craving? gone! but then friday & saturday came, and my diet went on the back burner. i had burgers, nachos, beer & an ice cream soda. not good. i definitely felt the repercussions today.

but the juice cleanse? totally worth it. i learned a lot about my body and started to think of food more as fuel. i now drink naked juice two or three times a day and have been making pineapple smoothies every morning before work. i also decided to budget in a blueprint cleanse every quarter in order to stay on track and consistent with my healthy regimen.

thinking of doing a juice cleanse? have any questions? email me! :)