A lot of people are joining in on the bandwagon of juice cleansing or fasting. Mostly, they do this in an attempt to jumpstart a healthier lifestyle, while others do it to just join in on the chatter. Either way, juice fasting might just be the missing link to improving your gut health and starting your weight loss journey.
Of course, a prevalent question in your head might be–does juicing actually work? Is it actually a great way to kickstart a healthy lifestyle?
I’ve gathered the facts to give you the lowdown on how you can make the most out of a juice detox regimen.
Let’s start with a fact: Juicing removes most of the fiber from the fruit.
The World Health Organization recommends that adults take in no more than 30 grams of added sugar. Without the fiber, fruit juices are considered as free sugars–the equivalent of honey and other sweeteners that we add to our food.
With regular juice cleansing, your body absorbs more of these free sugars parading themselves as fruit juices more quickly. The result–sudden spikes in your blood sugar that may eventually be linked to type 2 diabetes.
Does this mean, then, that we’d all be better off in eating fruits rather than drinking them? While this may be true, there is also a way to get the most out of juicing. You see, with the right type of blender, you can make sure that you retain all the healthy benefits of the fruit.
With the right equipment and the correct method, you can reap all the benefits of a juice fast. Follow these tips to keep yourself healthy and happy even while detoxing.
Before you start juice fasting:
- It pays to consider what your goal is first. This will help you set more realistic expectations as you go through your juice detox.
- Comfort is vital–so it is advised that you perform your detox on a slow weekend at home.
While you do your juice fasting:
- Schedule your drinks so that you’ll be slipping away every two hours. Make sure that this falls under a timeframe of 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.
- Make sure that you’re drinking enough water (or tea) all throughout the day.
- You can sneak in some solids to give yourself more energy too. Don’t be too hard on yourself–a little solid food during a juice detox never did anyone any harm.
- Avoid strenuous activities during this time. When you are on a cleanse, your body will likely feel tired and “out-of-it.” So, do yourself a favor and keep the exercise minimal–a light stretching or yoga should do.
After your juice fasting:
- The first thing that you should remember after your juice cleanses is to slowly start introducing food back into your body. Eating a large meal right away might make you feel nauseous.
- After your juice cleanses, your body will be zinging with energy and all the toxins have hopefully been flushed out. Honor the commitment that you have made by resetting your diet and focusing on whole fruits and vegetables this time.
