Anybody ever done a juice cleanse?

lv2011

What kind of madness have I signed myself up for? My sister really wants to lose weight and she's starting with a juice cleanse. She's been struggling with her body image for a long time, so I said I'd go through it with her for moral support.

Today was day 1. HOW DOES ANYONE DRINK THAT MUCH LIQUID IN 1 DAY?!?! I know a person is supposed to get about 8 glasses/day, but I've never been able to drink that much. And I had to cave and have a banana at 3:30 when the hunger issue became intense.

This is nuts. 3-7 days of only water, 100% juice, and veggie broth, with raw fruits and vegetables if necessary to stave off dizziness.

Anyone have any tips for me? What can I expect out of this?

mlperkins12

I did a 3 day juice cleanse last week and it didn't seem to hard.  You can consume 2 to 3 liters of juice based on your needs.  Those new to juicing typically consume more at first and less as their body adjusts.  Despite drinking juice I found myself being VERY thirsty and drank a lot of water to supplement the juice.  I didn't do any solid foods or broth on mine, but it was very effective and I felt great afterwards.  The juicing process is a lot of work, I'd encourage you to stock up on the fruits and veggies ahead of time so they are ready to go when you feel hungry.  There is conflicting advice on this but I made my juices the night before to take to work and prepare for breakfast.  I stored them in air tight containiers and had by breakfast/lunch ready so my morning routine didn't change.  You have to adapt it to your own lifestyle. 

Ali092011

The closest I've ever been to a "juice" cleanse was eating solely raw fruits and veggies for a week. It was difficult, but I did it at a time when I had nothing stressful going on and was basically alone the whole time (I was dog-sitting at a friend's house). I don't think I would be able to handle it this close to the wedding--I am trying to eat lots of produce for my skin, but I still need carbs. Good luck!

lv2011

Well, I have a question. If I make a smoothy out of banana, strawberry, plain natural yogurt, and orange juice, does that count? Is it still in the healthy juice category? I could easily drink 1 of those and be good for hours because of the thickness of it. But to just drink glass after glass of water/ juice is going to drive me nuts. And does milk count as a healthy beverage?

And I take a naturemade multi-vitamin every day. With no food, isn't it going to upset my stomach?

I'm starting to feel like i'm crazy for having said "yes".

Fi and daughter are having pizza for dinner tonight. I have a feeling I'm going to be scowling at them while they eat

mlperkins12

Technically a juice cleanse omits everything that is not a fruit or vegetable.  Dairy would not be allowed, but you have to do what is right for you.  I don't take a multi-vitamin so I'm not sure if that would effect you.

While dinner is going on I'd encourage you to go for a walk or run errands to take yourself out of that situation.  I think being around it woudl be too diffiuclt this early.

LadyElite

I have but it wasn't too much of a stretch for me as I am a pescatarian.

My question to you is: why are you doing a juice fast now? Aren't you afraid that you're going to lose too much weight? I was scheduled to do a 10 day fast until the alterations lady told me not to lose or gain any weight so I'll wait until after we get back from our honeymoon.

lv2011

Like I said, I agreed to do it as moral support for my sister. I don't need to lose weight at all (117lbs). I figure for me, it's more of a post-kidney infection boost since I couldn't finish taking the meds they gave me due to allergic reaction. I feel fine, but I want to make sure it's all healthy in there. Even if I lost actual weight, my bone structure is such that my dress size won't change, and I won't need additional alterations.

I may cheat a bit and make sure I get dairy in there. I don't think I could go without calcium and vitamin d, even if it is in the multi-vitamin.

Ali092011

Multivitamins definitely upset my stomach if I take them without having eaten recently. But everyone is different, and there are lots of things that I can't take without food.

Like mlperkins said, technically you're supposed to omit dairy in most cleanses, but if you feel you need it, I've heard that yogurt is the "cleanest" thing to have.

I think you'll lose water weight if anything, which you'll gain back when you start to eat normally again. You shouldn't change a size or anything as long as you don't do this long term. It's mostly just for health benefits.