Juicing!

Why Juice?

Watch "Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead"--a documentary by Joe Cross.

http://www.fatsickandnearlydead.com/

It's available on netflix as well.

Watch as many food documentaries as possible to inform yourself.

Why should you juice? For health. For weight-loss. To get rid of prescription medications. To feel energized. To gain clarity. To purify and detox your body. To get to the bottom of your addiction to food and emotional eating. To put only healthy and natural foods in your body as opposed to processed goods.

Why do I juice? Energy levels out the roof. Self confidence rises. I lose extra weight and get a flat stomach. I like the taste. I can no longer eat processed foods without feeling sick or depressed. Ever since I've changed my eating habits to natural and unprocessed foods, I can't stomach processed/greasy/fatty goods. I want to prevent disease and feel confident to succeed in any area of life. To exert self discipline.

I started juicing a little less than a year ago. I've had a curiosity about vegetarian lifestyles and this fandangled fad called 'juicing.' I've also been curious about the food industry. I watched countless documentaries on the food industry, farms, animal farming, and addictions behind eating. I decided to go for it and change my eating habits. Late one night after work, I purchased a Jack Lalane Power Juicer from Wal-mart (about $100). It's been a good little machine. I upgraded a few days ago to the Omega VRT350 ($380) and love it even more than the Jack Lalane. It produces better juice, and I'll get to that later.

I did a raw food/paleo fast for 30 days around the month of august/september. This wasn't a juice fast, but just eating unprocessed foods. I had great success with it, losing upwards of 15 pounds and feeling so energized (check out my other notes here on facebook for details regarding paleo/raw and observations with that). If I wanted to really get to the nitty gritty, I would have gotten blood tests and taken body measurements rather than just focus on weight loss.

How did I know what to juice? I researched. Did a lot of it. I went to Barnes and Nobles to find books on juicing (and paleolithic diet recipes). The internet holds a vast wealth of information. Check forums and don't be afraid to ask. When it came down to shopping for veggies and fruits to juice, I just walked around the produce department of Safeway/King Soopers (not walmart unless I had to), and picked what looked good.

I started out with a lot of berries, pears, and apples in my juice. I then branched out into carrots and lettuce/kale. You can juice watermelons and cantelope even! Kiwis, grapes, beets, asparagus, you name it.

I experimented with my tastebuds and different ratios of fruits and veggies. I started out with a sweet tooth using mainly fruits but now try to stick with an even ratio of veggies and fruits to cut back on sugar content. I should be graduating to full on green juice (90% veggies, 10% fruits), but still can't bring myself to swallow such strong flavors.

What can you juice? Most everything. It'd be easier to mention what shouldn't be juiced.

Bananas, Avocados, Potatoes shouldn't be juiced. Really soft mushy fruits might clog up your juicer. Grapes are fine. Lettuce, parsley, tomatoes are fine. Kiwis are great.

What kind of juicer should I buy?!

http://www.bestjuicers.com/juicertypes.html

As I said, I started out with a $100 juicer from Walmart-- the Jack LaLane Power Juicer. It was easy to use, took a bit to clean, and got the job done. It is what is known as a Centrifugal juicer. This means that it operates at high RPMS, rotating very quickly shredding the fruits and veggies through a mesh strainer. What I've noticed with this juicer is that the juice and the foam-like substance separates very quickly, needing to be stirred and shaken nearly every sip. I also had to consume it withing 20 minutes of making it. The good thing about this one is that I could just shove fruits and veggies in large chunks down the chute---cut the apple into 3rds, leave the carrot whole, push whole celery and kale leaves and stalks down.

I upgraded to a $400 juicer, the Omega VRT350 from Bed Bath and Beyond. WORTH EVERY PENNY. This is what's known as a masticating juicer. This juicer works at a lower RPM and presses the veggies and fruits through a mesh screen, preserving more nutrients. The benefit of this type of juicer is not only the retention of more nutrients, but also that the juice lasts longer and I can make a big batch in the morning and drink it all through the day. The only issue I have with this one is that I have to prep the produce a bit more-- cut it into smaller chunks to feed it through the machine--cut an apple into 6 chunks, cut a carrot in half, then split it lengthwise into 4 smaller slices, chop my leafy greens, etc.

With my Jack LaLane juicer, I had to drink it immediately, as the nature of the juicing process it was under took away a lot of the nutrients, separating it and oxidizing it. My Omega juicer doesn't separate the juice nearly at all. This is good, because this means oxidation isn't happening, my juice is retaining nutrients, and I can drink it hours after I make it. No stirring or shaking necessary--it's all uniform juice and foam!

These might not sound like a big deal or make much of a difference to you if you've never tried it, but believe me, the masticating kind will produce a much higher quality of juice.

Do I have to go on a juice fast and avoid all other types of food?!

No! You can incorporate juicing into a healthy diet. Take a look at the paleolithic diet (fruits, veggies, nuts, and meat). By all means, you don't have to cut out processed foods cold turkey, although it sure makes you proud when you say you quit cold turkey.

SIDE EFFECTS! (Not for the queasy!)

In starting a juice fast or even in cutting out all processed foods, be prepared for the following side effects:

Diarrhea - Frequent trips to the bathroom in the beginning. Don't be scared. Your body is detoxing and is getting rid of all the waste left in your intestines after years of build up. Weight loss comes from the loss of this waste. ALSO note: be CAREFUL with how much celery and grapefruit you juice. These will keep you on the toilet all afternoon. I usually stick with just one stalk of celery per batch and notice no adverse affects. Go above one, beware. I haven't tried grapefruit again for fear of the results.

Fatigue - You'll feel tired and lethargic. This is a part of the detoxing process. It shouldn't last for too long, depending on how bad your eating habits were in the past.

Headaches - from cravings, detoxing, stress, etc. They go away.

Cravings - You'll crave everything under the sun. You'll feel like you're starving and MUST have a slice of pizza or a hamburger. Push through them. It's mental. Don't cheat. If you have to cheat, do it with gluten free things, as gluten reaks havok on your digestive system. Cravings go away after about a week, in my experience.

Odd breath or body odor - This is from the toxins leaving your body. It's normal. It passes.

Energy levels - As I mentioned, you'll feel fatigued initially but that will pass. You'll start feeling energized and have clarity of thought. It's the coolest feeling! You'll feel like you're superman-- colors are brighter, you can mentally absorb more information and take in more stimulations. You'll wake up ready to face the day with a smiling face full of vibrancy. Trust me.

Confidence - Along with juicing, you'll lose extra weight and feel sexy and strong. You'll have confidence.

I have some tips listed below from a site, but here's some basics.

-Peel oranges/cuties. some people don't peel lemons to retain nutrition. meh. your call.

-Cut off ends of carrots.

-Core and de-seed apples. Some people don't, but I always did to avoid knicks and dings on my juicer--that, and arsenic traces are in apple seeds.

-Wash leafy greens and cucumbers thoroughly. There's waxy solution and pesticides that can linger on those types of veggies.

-Trim tops from strawberries. de-seed cherries.

Some of my recipes that I use are below. I often just throw together what sounds good and what I like and adjust if necessary. I've heard of some V8 recipes, but haven't tried them yet.

Basic Juice

8 carrots

4 strawberries

1 red bell pepper

5 stalks/leaves kale

1 celery stalk

1 gala apple

2 large oranges

4 kiwis (with skin)

Juice.

Makes a 4 cup amount. (usually lasts me for one meal)

Basic Juice Expanded

3 Large Oranges

2 Gala Apples

8 Large Carrots

1 Stalk Celery

1 Red Pepper

10 Strawberries

8 Kale leaves

5 Kiwis (Skin on)

Feed into your juicer.

Makes 8 cups (2 meals)

Simple Carrot and Apple Juice

4 carrots

2 apples

Juice.

Carrot, Apple, Pear, and Orange Juice

6 carrots,

2 apples

2 pears

1 orange.

Juice.

A mainstay before I started introducing romaine lettuce and kale was apple and pear juice. Now, it's too sweet for my taste.

Apple and Pear Juice

Equal parts apple and pear.

Juice.

Fresh Raw V8 Juice Recipe- (I haven't tried it, but sounds good).

Juice all the vegetables using your juicer, and enjoy as is, chilled, or with ice. If you like a more tangy taste, add some chili pepper and/or salt (optional).

3 large tomatoes

3 stalks celery

5 carrots (medium sized)

1 small beet

1/4 head fresh cabbage

1-2 bell pepper (red or green, or both)

2 cups spinach

2-3 kale leaves

1/4 sweet onion

1/2 clove garlic (optional)

This recipe is for raw juice, with all the ingredients in their raw state – with all the live enzymes and nutrients. However, because it’s all-raw, it will taste differently from the “real thing”. The reason being the real V8 is cooked plus has some other added ingredients to make it taste certain way.

If you are looking for a taste more resembling the store-bought recipe, you can optionally substitute half or all of your tomatoes with either stewed tomatoes or tomato sauce for pasta.

(http://www.bestjuicerrecipes.com/fresh-v8-juice-recipe/)

TIPS:

Juicing Recipes Guidelines

1. Wash produce before juicing. If you do not use organic produce you may want to wash them using a non-toxic, biodegradable cleaner. Check at your local health food store.

2. Leafy greens, parsley, wheat grass and sprouts should be bunched up and pushed through your juicer with a carrot or the plunger.

3. When juicing oranges or grapefruit always peel the skin off but leave the pith on (white soft layer between peel and the fruit) to get all the vitamins.

All other fruits such as lemons, limes, pineapples, apples, pears, watermelons, etc can be juiced with the skin or rime.

4. Trim off the ends and tips of carrots before juicing.

5. Most cucumbers you buy at the supermarket have a wax solution on them. I recommend peeling the skin before juicing.

6. Beets, leafy greens, parsley, and wheat grass are very potent and taste “strong”. Make sure you dilute these with carrot and, or apple juice. So for every glass of juice you make, ¼ should be green juice or beet juice and the other ¾ should be carrot or, and apple juice.

7. Remove the stones of fruits such as peaches and cherries before juicing. Most of the time I juice apples I do not remove the seeds. ( I do to protect my juicer from getting to many knicks or dings).

8. Apples seeds are toxic. Your body is well-equipped to detoxify small quantities however it is recommended that you remove apple seeds before juicing.

9. Check your produce before juicing. Trim away any discolored or bruised sections.

10. Try to consume juice right after you make them so that you keep nutrient loss at a minimum.

(http://www.healthy-eating-habit.com/Juicingrecipes.html)

More Juicing Recipes:

http://juicerrecipesnow.com/

http://juicerrecipesnow.com/15/

http://www.fernsnutrition.com/juicer_recipes.htm

http://www.healthy-eating-habit.com/Juicingrecipes.html

http://zestycook.com/the-power-of-juice-juicer-recipes/