Holistically Katie

You’ve probably heard someone in your life before say, “I’m going on a 10 day juice detox.”

Or cleanse. Or diet. Whatever it may be called, these regimens are dangerous, and often leave people in a worse position than before they even started. Drinking only juice for 5 or more days is dangerous and a starvation diet. Juices are naturally low in calories, so someone who is consuming only juice all day long will only be able to take in about 600-800 calories for the whole day. And on top of being active and working out? Not a good combination. Doing something like this is more likely to lead you to binge on unhealthy junk food, because you’re starving to the point of not caring anymore about the diet. And trust me, it will happen. So what’s my opinion on juicing? Should you avoid it at all costs? No, absolutely not!

Freshly made juices can be a very healthy addition to a balanced diet…

but the key words here are addition and balanced. You should not be trying to survive on juices alone because your body will go into starvation mode and actually cling to fat. You will also end up being very moody and irritable simply because not enough calories are entering your body. I think it is fine to consume juices and smoothies and lots of fruits and veggies for up to 3 days (if for example, someone wants to “reset” their diet) but after that point, more hearty foods need to be added back in, so that you can maintain your muscle and well, your sanity. With all of that being said, I love to juice, especially from home. Investing in a juicer and making juice from home is actually going to be cheaper in the long run, so I highly recommend investing in a high quality juicer. This is the one I use. I usually will spend one day making all my juices (just because it is kind of a hassle and lots of clean up) and then store them in glass bottles to drink over the next few days. I highly recommend this method because you won’t have to deal with cleaning pulp out of a machine everyday (which can get very annoying and tedious).

Here are the recipes:

Green Beauty Juice (middle)

I like to call this my beauty juice because the spinach, carrots, oranges and mango are all very high in vitamin A, which is amazing for healthy glowing skin. Lemons are high in vitamin C, great for immunity, and turmeric is anti-inflammatory.

• 2 cups spinach
• 4-5 carrots
• Large navel orange (with skin cut off)
• Large yellow mango (with skin cut off)
• 1 inch turmeric root (or 1 teaspoon ground)
• Squeeze of lemon (you can also juice half of 1 whole lemon)

Watermelon Refresher Juice (left)

This juice is perfect if you just got out of yoga class or a long cardio session, and you need lots of hydration. Watermelon is 92 percent water (hence the name), so it is the best fruit to eat to replenish after you have lost a lot of water through sweating. Strawberries are also very high in water, and the lime adds a citrusy delicious touch to this juice.

• 1 cup strawberries
• 1 cup watermelon (cut into cubes)
• Squeeze of lime (you can also juice half of 1 whole lime)

Beet Detox Juice (right)

Beets are one of my favorite foods. I love their color and the benefits are endless. Beets are high in iron, which is critical for healthy blood circulation through the body. They are also known to increase endurance in athletes. Ginger is considered the best “detox” spice because it can help your gastrointestinal health by stimulating digestion and circulation which can cleanse waste-build up in the colon and liver.

• 1-2 beets (peeled)
• 3-4 carrots
• 1 inch ginger root
• Large navel orange (can substitute with 2 small apples)
• Squeeze of lemon

Instructions:

1. Wash and prep all veggies and fruits
2. Cut the fruits and veggies into pieces that will fit into the juicer
3. Add them in one by one to make each juice and watch the magic happen!

All of these are delicious and nutrient filled elixirs. Drink up!!!