This was the first time I tried a cleanse. It’s all the craze now and I wanted to see what the hype was about. I planned on doing it after the holidays (i.e., binge eating), but that didn’t happen. Oh well, better late than never, right?
I know that there are lots of recipes out there that allow you to juice yourself as a DIY cleanse. But I knew that I would be too lazy to do it myself (oh, the irony). So I opted to have someone else do it for me and went with Juice Crafters based on the recommendation of a friend. I did the Master Cleanse which is basically a 3-day cleanse for beginners. I started on a Saturday, thinking that it would be easier to do on the weekend rather than at work, but I think it was actually harder. It seemed like I was around tempting food all weekend long and it took a lot of restraint on my part not to eat.
Ok, so the details on the cleanse. You drink eight, 16-oz bottles a day, about every 2-hours, in the order written on the card: (1) Greenest; (2) Cleaner; (3) Rootier; (4) Alkaline Tonic; (5) Cleaner (again); (6) Cleanse Guru; (7) Almond Nut Milk; and (8) Aloe Vera H20.
Greenest is a mix of spinach, kale, romaine, cucumber, parsley, celery, lemon, apple and ginger. I surprisingly liked this one despite all the veggies in it. The benefits of the bottle are listed on the side (apologies for some of these photos, they’re blurry, I know).
Cleaner is pineapple, apple and mint. This was my favorite one, so I didn’t mind having to drink it twice a day.
Rootier is beet, apple, lemon and ginger. As the name implies, it does have a “rooty” taste to it. But it isn’t bad.
Alkaline Tonic: apple, lemon, ginger and cayenne pepper. I actually liked the slight kick of the cayenne pepper.
Cleanse Guru: cucumber, pineapple, coconut water. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with this one, but I just wasn’t that excited about it.
Almond Nut Milk contains almonds, dates, vanilla bean, sea salt and water. I thought this was going to be my favorite one, but I wasn’t that crazy about this one, either.
Aloe Vera H20: pure aloe vera and filtered water. Honestly, it mostly tasted like water to me.
Overall, I appreciated that none of the juices were gross, because I was bracing myself for that; they’re actually pretty good and I didn’t have any issues stomaching them.
I did have a slight headache on Day 2, and felt a little “foggy” on Day 3. I didn’t feel like I needed water in between the bottles until Day 3 (maybe that was my mistake to begin with).
Now for the real reason people voluntarily choose to forego food for 3 days: the results. After Day 1, I lost 1.4 pounds. After Day 2, I lost 1.7 pounds, and after Day 3, I lost another .5 pounds, for a total of 3.6 pounds. According to Juice Crafters’ website, the main purpose of juicing isn’t to lose weight, but to basically feel your best. I certainly didn’t mind seeing the number on the scale continue to decrease, even if it is mostly water weight.
Aside from the “weight loss,” I do feel like I’m making wiser food choices, and don’t feel the urge to binge eat. I also haven’t been tempted by sweets (my ultimate weakness)… at least, not yet.
So would I do it again? They don’t recommend juicing more than once a month, but I don’t think I’ll be planning on a March cleanse. It’s something I may do every so often, say, every 6 months. But I may try a DIY cleanse next time. Any recommendations?
Thanks for stopping by!
Mary-Katherine says
i am so glad that it went well for you since i am starting mine now and though actually really excited, still a little nervous. i posted a link to the one i am doing in my post today; it is a DIY of the popular blueprintcleanse and it is costing me about $55 plus the juicer which i found for $30!
xo mk
thegoldhattedlover.blogspot.com
Unknown says
This cleanse sounds interesting! The flavors are different! If you want to try one where you make your own juice, try the Dr. Oz cleanse. You also eat one meal a day with that one which prevents that light headedness that you were talking about. But the pre-made juices are so convenient!
Sweet September says
The cost is awesome! And where did you find your juicer? I need one. Can't wait to read about your experience
Sweet September says
I'll take a look at the Dr. Oz one- the fact that you can eat is awesome. It took A LOT of self-control on my part to not eat.