How To Do a Juice Cleanse

Why Do a Juice Cleanse?

There are many reasons why juice cleansing has become so popular over the last few years! As we know, our body is actually cleansing and detoxing every day on its own, however, sometimes we just need a little push, by including foods that fuel our body so it can do these processes on its own. Here are a few reasons why juicing and cleansing may be perfect for you. Remember to please consult your nutritionist before doing a cleanse. 

• You need an energy reboot and are just feeling “blah”
• You need a digestive reset
• You want to boost your vitamin and mineral intake
• You want to get back into healthy eating, but just can’t cut the sugar!
• Doing a cleanse may be perfect for those days when you are just “too busy to eat”. Just make sure to hydrate and take care of your body during this time.
• Please don’t do a cleanse to “lose weight”. You will not magically lose unhealthy weight by doing a juice cleanse, so please don’t do a cleanse with your main goal being to lose weight. I know many people who do cleanses but will still drink alcohol during this time – it just doesn’t make sense! Do a cleanse for the right reasons, with love and respect for your body. Eating a clean, plant-based balanced diet + self-care + daily movement will bring you to your healthiest weight.

My Tips for Juice Cleansing

• Drinks tons of water! This is very important because our bodies can become quite dehydrated while we are cleansing. Not only will this keep energy levels up, but it will also help flush unwanted toxins from your body and keep hunger at bay. Add lemon or lime wedges to keep it interesting. I recommend drinking filtered water. We want to be avoiding all excess nasties, like chlorine from our tap water, especially while we are gently resetting our digestive system.
• Drink your juices in a timely manner throughout the day, every 1-2 hours to keep your energy levels up. Pick juices that are packed with veggies + some fruit to ensure enough carbohydrates for your body to function.
• Listen to your body. If you feel like you really really need to eat something, that’s OK. I recommend sticking to foods like cucumber sticks, adding chia seeds to your juice, eating a handful of raw almonds or pumpkin seeds. You can also make your own nut milk as a back-up in case you get super hungry later in the day.
• Avoid coffee at all costs! I recommend drinking herbal tea instead – caffeine can be the devil and totally put you off track during your cleanse, not to mention send your body into digestive shock! I recommend matcha tea instead of coffee.
• Most of all, enjoy it! Enjoy these beautiful juices that have been designed for optimal health + nourishment, packed with foods that will do amazing things for your body. Maybe try researching each ingredient in your juice to keep you motivated and inspired. Have a connection with your juice!

How to Spend Your Days Cleansing

• Spend your day as you normally would, but be mindful of your energy output.
• Stick to relaxing practices like yoga and meditation.
• Do something nice for yourself and your body: go for a massage, book in a pedicure, do an at-home facial, go to the sauna
• Do something active: go for an easy walk outside, some stretching at home, a Hatha yoga class, borrow a friend’s dog and take it for a walk!
• Cleanse your body: try dry brushing, taking an Epsom salt bath, use your diffuser with some lavender essential oil.
• Get creative: colour a mandala, organise your closet, make a vision board
• I drink organic herbal tea when I am cleansing, it might be nice to grab a friend and head to your favourite coffee shop for a cup.
• Keep busy or you might get bored and start eating!

What to Expect

• You might get hungry during your normal eating times. Don’t restrict yourself, use my tips from above and listen to your body.
• A digestion reset! Cleansing with juice and water can have an amazing benefit for our stressed-out digestive systems. This gives our digestive system a break to heal and recover from processed and heavy foods, toxic pesticides and hormones. You may notice more frequent bowel movements, this is your body’s natural way of eliminating unwanted nasties in our body.
• Your body is cleansing heavily, so you may feel fatigued. Many people actually feel quite the opposite – a huge burst of energy, but this usually doesn’t come until you’ve been cleansing for more than 2 days. Napping is considered a sport.
• You may not be able to finish all of the juices. That’s okay, simply finish what you can but continue to drink tons of water (I’m talking at least 2 litres during the day) and finish them the next day.

Before & After

• You can help your digestion in the months before you do a cleanse by eating mostly plant-based (these foods are easiest to digest), include naturally fermented products in your diet such as raw sauerkraut, true miso paste, etc., taking a good quality probiotic and by eating lighter foods close to your cleanse dates, such as raw salads, healing veggie soups and avoiding all dairy, wheat, meats and animal proteins. Include lots of vegetables, in-season fruits (low sugar fruits are better during cleanse time) and healthy fats like avocado, some nuts and seeds, whole grains, and clean protein like lentils and quinoa. I recommend blending up tons of smoothies the week before and after your cleanse – smoothies give your digestion somewhat of a break and are packed with goodness that will heal your digestion. Stick to smoothies packed with veggies, frozen berries and citrus, leafy greens and healthy fats.
• After a cleanse, it is easy to quickly eat the first thing you see – trust me, I’ve gone from green juice to pizza in seconds, but tell your friends and family that you need to stick to these rules or your digestive system will be in shock. Start easing your way out of your cleanse (even if its just a 1 day!) by starting with a fruit bowl or green smoothie in the morning, a salad for lunch (here you can add some quinoa and seeds if you feel like you need protein), raw & then soaked nuts and seeds or apple slices with raw almond butter as a snack. Coconut yoghurt with no added sugars or additives is a good snack option too, as it is packed with probiotics and healthy fats which help to heal your digestive tract. For dinner, I recommend steamed veggies or yams, with lemon juice and tahini. 

Although juice cleanses and including juice in your diet is amazing, it may not be right for everyone. Please consult your naturopathic doctor/physician or one of The Juicery Co.’s team members before you do a cleanse. You can purchase your own cleanse here. This post was made possible thanks to The Juicery Co. – thank you for supporting companies that support The Pure Life!

If you have any more questions about juice, cleansing in general or anything at all please don’t hesitate to leave a comment or send me a message and I’ll get back to you!

Love, Sisley