Juicy!
Usually when I write abut anything juicy I’m talking about Juicy Couture but this particular time I’m writing about actual juice. I must apologize for the crappy instagram pic but I forgot to take a picture of my latest juicing venture before I devoured them. After posting that instagram pic I had a lot of ladies inquiring as to the pro’s and cons of my juicing adventure so I figured I would share. So here’s where it all started….
I’m going to Jamaica for Thanksgiving in less than a week and I am so excited! It’s the first time I’m going out of the country without family (yes at 33) so I want to make the most out of this trip. I.E. I want to eat, drink, be merry and look good in a bikini. What girl doesn’t right?
Now before this post turns into a body shaming thing it’s really not about that. I’m 5’3″ and 115 bls. Well actually I was 120 prior to the cleanse. And let me say this before I continue, there is NOTHING wrong with that! I just wanted to kick start a road back to a healthier me. If you follow this blog at all you know that 8 months ago I made the big move to Atlanta and started my new job at Power 96.1. I love my new job and adore my new city but my fitness routine has suffered immensely from this lifestyle change. My schedule is busier, I don’t have a gym membership yet, my running has been spotty at best and there’s the damn bagel Friday at work. Add to it that I’m a girl who loves craft beer, wine, cheese and brunches…. Stick a fork in me and my healthy ways are all but done.
So about a month ago I started going to hot yoga again. I’ve pretty disciplined with it going a few times a week which has been awesome, but it hasn’t been enough to make me feel healthy and strong. Plus my noshing habits have still been off. I mean I eat well at home but sometimes my schedule doesn’t allow that. I bring my own snacks to work but all too often there are clients bringing in subs, or cupcakes or ice cream for us to sample and talk about on air. I mean that’s fine once in a blue moon but when its on a regular basis it can be an issue for the chick that’s chillin’ with her gluten free sweet potatoes chips. You see that’s the thing, I never used to crave the crap as long as I had my own wholesome munchies on hand. Hence why I decided to do a juice cleanse. I wanted to restart my body. While doing some research on cleanses I read this one article that said “If you give your car and oil change when needed why don’t you do this for your body.” After reading that all systems were a go and I was ready for the go-go juice!
I chose to do a three day cleanse and there just so happened to be a place fdown the street from my apratment that provides cold pressed juices. It’s recommended that you do a 5-7 day juice cleanse but for me Rome wasn’t built in a day so I decided to start small. If you live in the Atlanta area you have to check out Kale Me Crazy. They’re juices were actually pretty tasty and you can order daily so if you decide you want to extend your cleanse another day you easily can.
Now on to the nitty gritty of the three days. I know your about to give me the “Pfffffffttttttt GURL BYE” when you read what I’m about to say….but it was honestly really easy. To me it was all about discipline. I hand to kind mind f*ck myself in a way. And by that I mean breaking the relationship I had with the act of chewing. If I was honest with myself I wasn’t actually hungry throughout the three days. i only craved food when I would smell it. You aren’t starving because your getting all of the daily nutrients you need. You drink a juice every two hours so it was similar to the eating schedule I already had. I just wasn’t chomping.
The only thing that I found a little bit of a struggle is the AFTER. The end of my cleanse came at the weekend. You know, the time you go to dinner with friends and go to brunch on Sunday. Even though your done juicing you can’t just jump back into gulping mimosas and bindging on eggs benedict. Well I mean you could but then your hard work would be for nothing and you would soon develop and intimate relationship with Mr. Potty. I read a few more articles on juicing and found that there are some strong emotional correlations that come along with juicing. Much like fasting in the bible. I honestly found this to be true for myself because even though I was breaking from all that I had known I felt centered, clear and productive when I wasn’t focusing on where my next meal topped off with a glass of Pinot Grigio was going to be. I had some good old self time that was as much needed as the kick start to my metabolism.
All in all I am super happy with my juicing journey. Dare I say that I may go back for the 5 day cleanse next time. Jamaica here I come!!!
