I Tried a 2 Day Juice Cleanse and Here’s What Happened
I decided to ditch alcohol. For good. I will talk about this more in another blog post later on, but for now, I wanted to give my body a true reset from the alcohol, processed foods, stress, and environmental toxins that have been plaguing it for months. I know my body has taken a beating because I wake up after 10 hours of rest feeling sluggish and fatigued. I knew I HAD to make a change and do something.
Why a juice cleanse? Isn’t that a fad, you may ask? Well, it depends on how you look at it. Many turn to cleanses as a “quick fix” for weightloss and this is not a cure for that. Sure, you will lose a few pounds, but it will only be water weight which is likely to come back. I chose a juice cleanse because it:
- Activates ancient epigenetic survival circuitry. After 2 or 3 days or caloric restriction, these ancient pathways switch on within us. Something called the mTOR pathway becomes inhibited and a process called autophagy takes place. Putting your body’s cells in a state of autophagy has numerous benefits linked to overall health and longevity. It promotes the regulation of mitochondrial production (energy), protects the nervous system, clears our cellular waste, reduces the risk of certain diseases, and slows down the biological process of aging.
- Gives your body a break from processing foods. Most people eat 3 meals a day with snacks in between which means our bodies are constantly working trying to break all of that down. Most of us eat more than we actually should which puts a load of stress onto our bodies. We typically cook our foods using dry or high heat which is called Advanced Glycation End Products. AGEs have been well studied to be a driver of aging and many well known diseases and our bodies can only process a certain level at a time. Taking a break from food-especially cooked food-gives your body time to focus and repair itself.
- Resets your body’s habitual appetite and cravings. Your current eating routine is a habit. If you wake up and eat breakfast at 7am, your body will get to know this and crave food at that exact time every single day. Cravings arise from the foods that we routinely each everyday, health or not. Cleansing gives you a chance to get rid of any bad habits. It will break your current routine and allow you to mindfully create healthier eating habits. This is one reason why I wanted to cleanse after stopping alcohol. Alcohol was my habit and I craved it-so now I get to break that and start over with this two day juice cleanse. Cleansing can aid in the mindful formation of positive habits in your diet that can ultimately lead to healthier cravings and reduced appetites.
I chose the Raw Juicery company-I am not sponsored by them. There are sooo many juice companies with cleanses you can buy and get sent straight to your door. I read some reviews and just chose one on a whim because the drinks included looks to be right up my alley. They offered a 2 or 3 day and I chose 2 days so this is what I did:
8:00 AM. The first juice of the day is celery juice with lemon. Celery is a natural diuretic that helps with constipation, inflammation, and puffiness. Celery juice also helps raise stomach acid, which is necessary to help break down food, especially protein. I was a little afraid to drink this at first because the thought of celery juice sounds yucky, but it was actually okay!
10:00 AM. The second juice of the day is the Master Cleanse which contains pineapple, turmeric, lemon, dandelion, cayenne, and maitake mushroom. This one tasted good and spicy! Cayenne works wonders for the metabolism while dandelion is a natural diuretic. Turmeric is a potent anti-inflammatory and antioxidant and may also help improve symptoms of depression and arthritis. Maitake mushroom is used to treat cancer and also to relieve some of the side effects of chemical treatment (chemotherapy) for cancer. As you can see, all of the ingredients together make the perfect drink which is why I feel its called the “Master Cleanse.”
12:00 PM. The third juice of the day is the G-3 juice and its a green juice containing cucumber, celery, kale, spinach, romaine, lemon, and blue-green algae. We know greens are packed with vitamins, minerals, and nutrients, but you might be unfamiliar with the blue-green algae. It is good for seasonal allergies, ADHD, twitching of the eyelids, high cholesterol, and even diabetes.
2:00 PM. The fourth juice of the day is called After Math and it contains grapefruit, ginger, aloe, burdock root, basil oil, and milk thistle. Milk thistle is known to be a great liver detoxifier while burdock root is similar to turmeric, beneficial for inflammation, purifying blood, and treating/precenting infections and cancer. By this time, I was really craving real good, but I kept pushing on. The basil oil was very apparent when drinking!
4:00 PM. The fifth juice of the day is called Tropic Thunder which is another green juice containing pineapple, kale, romaine, apple, lemon, and mint. This green juice was more up my alley because it was sweeter and fruitier! I really liked the hint of mint in it which I felt invigorated me to get through the rest of the day.
6:00 PM. The sixth juice of the day is called Red Cure which is a red juice containing cucumber, apple, beet, extra ginger, lemon, and cilantro. This one was spicy-sweet and was somewhat more filling to me than the other juices.
8:00 PM. The last juice of the day is called Chill Pill and it contains pineapple, lemon, butterfly pea flower, chamomile, schisandra, ashwagandha, vanilla, coconut nectar, and vegan probiotic. I did feel very relaxed while drinking this! So much so, that I started getting super sleepy and slept like a rock thanks to the Chamomile. Schisandra and Ashwagandha are also known for combatting stress which promotes relaxation. It definitely had a vanilla flavor to it!
Day one was hard. I was literally craving foods that I never even eat… I saw a commercial for KFC’s new chicken sandwhich and I never wanted a sandwich so badly! I also wanted korean food, sushi, Chickfila, crawfish, and all kinds of other things that I obviously could not eat. Today, I learned just how much we rely on and think about FOOD. We are a slave to food. I mean, I am guilty of eating breakfast and already dreaming of what to eat for dinner. Today, I learned to break that strong connection and to gain willpower to control myself and to reset myself for a better relationship with the foods that I eat.
On day two of my cleanse, I ran through the whole schedule again, consuming every juice I just listed at the appropriate times. I ended up waking up at 5:30am this morning on my own which was neat because I usually sleep in until 8am, feeling sluggish upon waking up, By day two, I noticed I was not AS hungy as I had been nor was I craving everything beneath the sun. I was able to finish out the day, no problems at all. I had more energy than usual and the bloating was starting to go away.
Final thoughts: The cleanse was definitely something that I needed to do, no doubt. Although I craved foods, I did not really crave alcohol any. Instead, I just wanted to EAT which I think is a WIN in my book. I realized and dreamt about all of the yummy foods I could indulge in later instead of drinking. I only lost a few pounds, but it is WATER WEIGHT and will come back on within the next few days which is normal. I would suggest a cleanse to anyone who is wanting to reset their bodies, get rid of cravings, and to reboot their energy. I will definitely be doing this again!
Your trainer and friend,
