A Juice cleanse seems like a natural, healthy way to consume lots of fruits and vegetables while temporarily cutting out less-than-healthy foods from your diet. Is it though?
Juice cleansing entails consuming only fruit or vegetable juices for a set amount of time, typically between one and seven days, depending on the objective. In order to separate the juice from the pulp of the fruit and vegetable, juices are typically pressed.
Losing weight, removing “toxins” from the body, and resting the digestive system are typical motivations for juice cleanses. Even though fruits and vegetables do contain vital vitamins and nutrients, drinking only juice might not be as healthy as it seems.
Before we dive into the 7-day juice plan, let’s take a look at first the pros and cons of this type of diet plan so you can determine if it’s really for you.
Juice Cleansing to Remove Toxins
It may seem like a good idea to “detoxify” your digestive system by only consuming fruit and vegetable juices, especially if you’ve been eating a lot of junk food, drinking excessive amounts of alcohol, or feeling bloated or lethargic. But in addition to being false, the leading marketing claim that detox cleanses are “detoxifying” is also unsupported by any scientific research.
Juice cleanses fill your body with sugar, which Scripps Clinic Del Mar claims are anything but detoxifying.
Additionally, all that sugar interferes with how your body uses insulin and causes your blood pressure to spike and then drop quickly, which can give you a boost of energy but then make you feel even more exhausted.
Your body can process sugar more smoothly thanks to fibre. When a fruit or vegetable is juiced, the fibre is removed, leaving only the sugars and nutrients. Additionally, fibre gives your stool bulk to aid in the removal of waste from your body and to maintain healthy digestion.
Juice Cleansing and Weight Loss
Will a juice cleanse cause you to lose weight? Most likely, you are probably eating fewer calories than you would if you were eating your typical foods. In the first few days, you might lose weight quickly, but it won’t stay off.
According to Scripps Clinic Del Mar, the majority of the weight loss experienced during a juice fast will be transient until you resume eating solid foods. Juice cleanses can also slow your metabolism, which might result in weight gain once you resume eating normally.
While juice cleanses may help you get started on a weight loss programme, long-term lifestyle changes are necessary to keep the weight off. That entails altering your daily diet and engaging in consistent exercise. Juice cleansing for a day or two might inspire you to “reset” your eating patterns to be healthier, but don’t count on it to help you lose weight permanently.
Now that we’ve understood the pros and cons of juice cleansing, it’s time to look at the 7-day juice plan that provides you with yummy recipes each day that can encourage you to add more fruits and vegetables to your diet.
The 7-Day Juice Plan
When it comes to juices, you can always drink them any time of the day. Plus, they are a great addition to a healthy snack or breakfast. In this plan, take note that every recipe makes two 8- to 10-ounce servings of juice.
Green Juice for Day 1
The parsley and celery in this type of juice provide apigenin, a substance that, in accordance with Ohio State University research, encourages the death of cancerous cells.
Ingredients You Will Need:
- fresh parsley, half a cup
- spinach, 3 cups
- peeled half a lemon
- two medium pears, eighth
- 6 large celery stalks, trimmed
- ice cube (optional)
Directions
Step 1: Following the manufacturer’s instructions, run parsley, spinach, lemon, pears, and celery through a juicer in the specified order.
Step 2: If desired, put some ice in 2 glasses before adding the juice. Serve right away.
Tomato-Vegetable Juice for Day 2
People who regularly drank a glass of vegetable juice consumed twice as many vegetables as those who simply increased their vegetable intake.
Ingredients You Will Need:
- 1 cup romaine hearts, chopped
- 14 cup freshly chopped chives
- cut two large tomatoes into wedges
- 1/4 of a freshly seeded and stemmed jalapeno
- one large red bell pepper, eighths cut
- 2 large celery stalks, trimmed
- peel 1 medium carrot
- 1 cube of ice
Directions
Step 1: Working in this order, process lettuce, chives, tomatoes, jalapeno, bell pepper, celery and carrot through a juicer according to the manufacturer’s directions.
Step 2: Fill 2 glasses with ice, if desired, and pour the juice into the glasses. Serve immediately.
Strawberry-Cucumber Juice for Day 3
Strawberries are the third-best food source of polyphenols, antioxidants believed to reduce the risk of cancer and heart disease, which Harvard researchers have shown help keep your teeth healthy.
Ingredients You Will Need:
- 6 hulled fresh strawberries
- 1 substantial cucumber, peeled and chopped
- 1 large red apple, eighths cut
- peel two medium carrots
- ice (optional)
Directions
Step 1: Following the manufacturer’s instructions, run strawberries, cucumber, apples, and carrots through a juicer in the specified order. (No juicer? Use a blender instead.)
Step 2: If desired, put some ice in 2 glasses before adding the juice. Serve right away.
Blueberry-Cabbage Power Juice for Day 4
This juice contains anthocyanins, an antioxidant that aids in maintaining memory function, thanks to the red cabbage and blueberries.
Ingredients You Will Need:
- 14 a medium-sized red cabbage, sliced
- Peel and cut into chunks 1 large cucumber
- fresh blueberries, 1 cup
- 8 eighths cut from 1 large apple
- ice cube (optional)
Directions
Step 1: Process the following ingredients in the manufacturer’s recommended order: apple, blueberries, cucumber, and cabbage.
Step 2: If desired, put ice in 2 glasses before adding the juice to the glasses. Serve instantly.
Spinach-Apple Juice for Day 5
This juice contains a healthy amount of vitamin K from spinach, which supports healthy bones.
Ingredients You Will Need:
- 2 cups of spinach
- Peeled and white pith-free half a grapefruit
- 2 green apples, eighths cut
- 1 inch of fresh ginger, peeled
- two large celery stalks
- Ice (optional)
Directions
Step 1: Juice spinach, grapefruit, apples, ginger, and celery in the following order, following the manufacturer’s instructions. (For a blender-only variation, use a juicer.)
Step 2: If desired, put some ice in 2 glasses before adding the juice. Serve right away.
Ginger-Beet Juice for Day 6
By increasing blood flow, which provides your muscles with the energy and oxygen they require, consuming beet juice before working out may increase your stamina.
Ingredients You Will Need:
- One medium orange, quartered and peeled
- 3 leaves of kale
- Cut one medium apple into wedges.
- Peel 1 medium carrot.
- Peeled and cut into wedges, 1 large beet
- 1 inch of fresh ginger, peeled
- An ice cube (optional)
Directions
Step 1: Process orange, kale, apple, carrot, beet, and ginger through a juicer in this order, following the manufacturer’s instructions. (No juicer? Refer to tip.)
Step 2: If desired, put some ice in 2 glasses before adding the juice. Serve right away.
Carrot-Orange Juice for Day 7
In comparison to those who drank a placebo, those who followed a high-fat meal with a vitamin-C-rich fruit juice (this one provides 66% of the daily value) had significantly lower blood levels of cholesterol and triglycerides.
Ingredients You Will Need:
- wedges cut from 1 medium yellow tomato
- one medium orange, quartered and peeled
- 1 medium apple, eighths cut out
- peel 4 large carrots
- an ice cube (optional)
Directions
Step 1: Follow the manufacturer’s instructions when juicing tomato, orange, apple, and carrots in that order.
Step 2: If desired, put some ice in 2 glasses before adding the juice. Serve right away.
Substitutes for Juice Cleansing
Keep the fibre in pressed juice rather than drinking it without the pulp. Vitamins, minerals, phytochemicals, and antioxidants are found in dietary fibre, which has also been linked to a lower risk of type 2 diabetes, colon cancer, and obesity.
Additionally, consuming whole grains and fruits and vegetables can actually aid in weight loss. Build your diet around whole foods and lean proteins if that is your goal. Avoid or limit the consumption of packaged, processed, or sugary foods and beverages that are high in calories and low in nutrients.
If you like the idea of drinking your fruits and vegetables, try making smoothies using kale or spinach mixed with berries, apples, bananas — whatever fruits you like. Unlike pressed juice, smoothies are made by blending ingredients and using whole fruits and vegetables.
You can also add extra protein to your smoothie by including Greek yoghurt or milk. You’ll get all of the nutrients of juicing the same ingredients, plus the benefits of fibre and more. And, you’ll feel fuller longer than if you drank juice alone.
