2 Day Juice Cleanse

Last weekend, I completed a 2 day juice cleanse.

I have never done anything like this before. I know there are strong opinions on both sides about cleanses and fasts, and although I am not sure if I could ever do something for an extended period of time, I wanted to try something for a short period of time. For virtually the whole month of June, I have been celebrating summer. Vacations, day trips and basking in the amazingness of not having to work have taken their toll, too many drinks and too much delicious food have not made my digestive system happy and I wanted to give it a bit of a break, plus a boost of alkalizing goodness.

I did a modified version of Dr. Oz’ 3 Day Juice Cleanse.

via

Actually, 2 weeks ago, I first tried it for one day, to see if I could handle it (I was pretty apprehensive). I loved it so much that I went for 2 days this time and I may brave the 3 days next week, when I am back from Portland.

I started off in the morning with the apple carrot ginger juice (all ingredients shown made enough for 2 people).

This is one of my favorites, I love the kick that the ginger adds in.

When I started to feel hungry in the afternoon, I drank my second juice. I tried to let my  hunger guide when I drank my juices, as opposed to a certain time of day.

The second juice had contained: 1 bunch of kale, 1 bunch of celery, 1 lemon peeled, 2 cucumbers, 1/2 bunch of parsley, 4 apples, 1 piece of ginger.

This one was very refreshing and green tasting! Juices are pretty easy to take on the go with you, as I did with this one, while reading in the park.

The last juice of the day contained: 1 bunch of swiss chard, 6 oranges peeled, 2 cucumbers,  1 bunch of kale, 1 bunch of celery. This one had a nice citrus taste, because of all the yummy oranges. I drank this one down immediately after leaving my yoga studio.

In between juices, I also drank ginger or mint tea and coconut water.

I did not feel true hunger, until the end of the last day. This really surprised me, I thought I would be starving without solid foods. I also thought I would be weak and sluggish, when the opposite turned out to be true. I felt more energetic and lively, even during HOT (So Cal is having a crazy heat wave right now!) yoga classes, I never felt light headed or nauseous like I normally do when it is too hot.

This was a very eye opening experience for me. I discovered:

• My “hunger” is mostly psychological. I see food and think that I am hungry and have to eat.
• I ate waaaaay more than I need to. I was able to sustain just fine on 3 juices/day. Although I know this is not adequate on a long-term basis, it showed me that I eat way more than necessary to sustain my active lifestyle.
• Yoga was much easier.  I thought I would lack energy or feel light headed, but I actually felt my focus sharpen, I was able to get into the class faster and was more focused on my breathe. I have a confession: I normally think about food for the majority of time during yoga classes, or throughout runs. Some of my most creative recipes have come from these times, but it just shows how focused my mind is on food!
• My skin looked better, by the end of the 2nd day. I can always tell what is going on with me, by my face. If I have been eating poorly, my skin looks dehydrated and sallow. In just 2 days, I looked much more hydrated and vibrant.

I surprised myself with how much I enjoyed this cleanse. I did not think I would do well without eating any solid food, and I was surprised how satiated I felt, with juice alone. I think I may try to go for the 3 days next time.

Have you ever done a juice cleanse, or any other type of cleanse? What did you think about it?