I did it, I survived day 1!
After eating like everyday is my birthday for the past few weeks… well, months… Having a solid day of juice felt really nice!
Before I get into juicing, I wanted to say thank you to everyone who read, commented, emailed, facebooked, or tweeted me about my post yesterday. Sometimes it’s really hard to write posts like that, but since my blog is about honesty and developing a healthy relationship with food, I felt it was necessary to let you guys know how I was feeling. Body image is such a universal issue, yet so personal at the same time, and I know that a lot of people struggle with similar issues and I want everyone to know that they are not alone. Thank you so much for all of your comments, you have no idea how much they mean to me.
Last night I went to my friends Jason and Erica’s house and we got our juice on. I compiled a list of fruits and veggies that I wanted to experiment with, and then we were off to Whole Foods to get the goods. Whole Foods was probably not the best place to buy my produce price wise, but it’s easy for me to navigate and they always have kale! I am going to start by saying that even though juicing may be pricey (I will figure out how to get the cost down!) it sure makes grocery trips easy and stress free! No more roaming through the aisles, only the produce section! I did leave Whole Foods with a bag of chocolate chip cookies since I probably won’t be seeing those again for a while! We got back to the house and started juicing. Jason is a chef, so he definitely helped us to cut down our prep time! He was chopping apples like there was no tomorrow! I ended up with 6 bottles of 3 different fresh juices for the next day (May 1).
Rise & Shine
Makes 2 servings
1 large grapefruit
2 fuji apples
2 granny smith apples
2 cups of green seedless grapes
10 sprigs of Italian parsley
Beet It
makes 3 servings
10 carrots
2 red apples
1 large cucumber
1 large beet
2 stalks celery
1 inch fresh ginger
Green Machine
makes 1 serving
1 green apple
5 carrots
5 leafs dinosaur kale
1 cup spinach (packed)
½ cucumber
1 stalk celery
5 sprigs Italian parsley
Emotions: Day 1 was really exciting for me. I didn’t try any of my juices last night when I was preparing them so that I would be excited to drink them the next day. I woke up pumped to start the juice challenge and couldn’t wit to try each juice.
Hunger: I was busy all day today because my family and I went to watch our friend Javier perform on The Voice at WB. We were gone a majority of the day, so I didn’t have time to think about food or eat out of boredom. After the taping ended around 7 I started to get mildly hungry. We stopped by Panini for dinner but I stayed strong and sipped on green tea and a fresh juice.
Juice Critique:
Rise & Shine: Loved this juice. It was super energizing and the grapefruit gave it a nice punch. I’m thinking about adding some water to dilute the grapefruit next round, or maybe use a bit less.
Beet It: I’m obsessed with the color of this juice! I loved the first few sips, but had a hard time finishing the bottle near the end. It has a rather earthy taste to it from the beet. I think that next time I will use a smaller beet (mine was HUGE!) or add extra ginger. This one definitely needs some tweaking. Not my fav.
Green Machine: I surprisingly loved this juice. It smelled like straight up grass when I made it, but it tasted really fresh with a hint of sweet fro the apple! I may try adding some lemon next round. I will definitely be making more of this juice. Maybe I’ll swap it for the 3 Beet Its.
Throughout the day I also finished off 5 water bottles (so thirsty today!) and as we speak, I am sipping on a cup of organic Senna Leaf Tea to help with digestion, since juice contains no fiber.
So far, the juice challenge is a success! I’m taking it one day at a time, but I am feeling great and also very proud of myself for making it through dinner out with my family and not giving in. I’m excited for day 2, hopefully I will still be this pumped in the morning!
Kim
May 22, 2012 at 8:12 am (13 years ago)Where did you get the plastic bottles you used to store the juice?
Catherine
May 22, 2012 at 9:30 am (13 years ago)The bottles were from “Evolution” juices from Whole Foods. Similar to “Naked” juices. You could also use water bottles or mason jars to store your juice!
Ashton
May 22, 2012 at 2:49 pm (13 years ago)Me and my parents have been juicing for years and the only thing I will say is that what you juice loses potency after about 30 minutes. It is best to drink it fresh as possible.
Catherine
May 22, 2012 at 6:03 pm (13 years ago)This is a great point! Thanks Ashton!
Amanda
June 14, 2012 at 10:07 am (13 years ago)Hi!
I absolutely love your blog…you have me hooked! I have been in a bit of a slump myself, losing 44 lbs and then just hit a plateau because I eat well and then think I can have a cheat day…which then just leads to many more! Anyway, I am curious about your Juice Challenge. I would love to try this but was wondering how many bottles to drink each day? Does it matter? Or should I stick to the amount of servings for each juice you have listed? Thank you!! <3
Catherine
June 14, 2012 at 10:46 am (13 years ago)Hi Amanda! Congratulations on losing 44 lbs! WOW that is amazing, you should be so proud! Juice cleanses can be great to get yourself back on track but they are definitely a challenge. You can go to http://www.jointhereboot.com/ (website created by Joe Cross from Fat, Sick & Nearly Dead) and see some guidelines for how much juice you should be drinking per day 🙂 Health & Happiness xo
Christa
June 18, 2012 at 3:11 pm (13 years ago)Greetings! I am new to your blog and absolutely love it! So inspiring! Just curious, did you use your vitamix or an actual juicer for these juices?
Catherine
June 18, 2012 at 4:54 pm (13 years ago)Hi Christa! I used a Breville juicer for all of my juices!
Jennifer
July 3, 2012 at 5:34 am (13 years ago)I have been a juicer for almost 2 yrs now. I have read multiple times that you cannot store fresh juice for more than 4 hours. It must be stored in a glass container with as little air as possible. After 4 hours the nutrients and minerals have depleted and you may be drinking sugar water. Does anyone know this to be untrue? I hope so because storing my juices would make my days SO much easier! 🙂
Catherine
July 3, 2012 at 11:23 am (13 years ago)Hi Jennifer, I have heard similar things and am not exactly sure what the real answer is! There are so many of companies that make fresh juice cleanses and they are stored in glass bottles for days before you actually get them! Makes me think… I need to find out how long they actually last! Health & Happiness xo
Laurie
July 4, 2012 at 4:09 pm (12 years ago)Hi Catherine,
I see you used the Breville juicer for this, but I’m pretty sure I read that you also have a Vitamix? What made you decide to invest in the juicer in addition to the Vitamix for this? Thanks!!
Catherine
July 4, 2012 at 9:38 pm (12 years ago)Hi laurie! I use my Vitamix for just about everything, but I bought a juicer because it extracts much more juice vs using a blender and nut milk bag to strain it. I have saved money on produce using a high powered juicer 🙂
Kate Otis
July 5, 2012 at 1:33 pm (12 years ago)Being a beginner to juice myself, I researched ways to keep the juice fresher longer because I don’t have the time to juice daily or even weekly! I bought these Tovolo ice cube trays for my sons baby food purees, and gave those a try. I poured my green juice in, froze them, popped the cubes out, and stored them in a freezer-safe bag. I take two out, and when melted I have a ice cold FRESH tasting juice.
Catherine
July 5, 2012 at 2:04 pm (12 years ago)That is an excellent idea Kate! I definitely need to give that a try! I made healthy ice cream in a similar way (making the contents into ice cubes!) I cannot wait to post that recipe, you will love it! xo
Stephanie
July 8, 2012 at 11:09 am (12 years ago)How many ounces are each of the juices you drink?
Catherine
July 8, 2012 at 11:13 am (12 years ago)My juices turned out to be about 16oz each!
Stephanie
July 8, 2012 at 6:50 pm (12 years ago)Awesome, Thank you so much for an AMAZING website.. I’m going to start my 5 day juice “challenge” tomorrow. I am VERY excited. I bought a juicer today and even got my boyfriend in the kitchen with me!!
You are such an inspiration!! I’m trying to lose about 45 pounds and after I’ve studied your blog for the last week or so, I realized it IS possible to do it naturally and the RIGHT way!!
Keep the GREAT recipes and ideas coming!! Your little bunnies truly appreciate it!!!!!!
Catherine
July 8, 2012 at 11:24 pm (12 years ago)Thank you Stephanie! I’m so happy you found my blog and I cannot wait to hear about your success! xo
Brittany
July 8, 2012 at 5:30 pm (12 years ago)at my farmers market there are a few farmers that let you buy “shares”. For a set price, I can just show up each saturday and he will have a box full of what I want ready!
Astra
August 8, 2012 at 6:18 pm (12 years ago)Bunny,
I love this site, will be my new obsession as I just watched Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead this weekend and my bf and I have been juicing this week after getting the Brevell in the mail…LOVE. So excited to see more from you and I think your recipes look great for supporting me after our juice challenge. Someone pinned your black-bean lettuce wraps and that had me hooked! I think you can almost turn ANYTHING into a lettuce wrap, so fresh and tasty and gives that nice crunch you want in a meal. You should really look into compiling and writing a book.
Catherine
August 8, 2012 at 7:57 pm (12 years ago)Hi Astra! Isn’t that movie inspiring?! Joe Cross is fantastic! Thank you so much for the kind words, I am so happy that you found my blog and cannot wait to hear about your success! Health & Happiness xo
Christine
August 15, 2012 at 11:30 pm (12 years ago)when you make the juices, do they instantly spoil because they are fresh or can you leave them in the fridge and drink it the next day?
Catherine
August 16, 2012 at 1:38 am (12 years ago)Hi Christine! I made my juices in the morning and sometimes at night and refrigerated them throughout the day. A lot of people argue that you cannot store juices because they quickly lose their nutritional value due to oxidation, but they can last up to 48 hours in the refrigerator if you store them correctly. Here are some instructions from another website on how to store your juices!
“If you want to prepare your juices ahead of time store them in mason jars. Mason jars allow you to get the least amount of oxygen sitting with your juice, allowing it to stay fresher, longer.
Place the mason jar in a large bowl to catch spill over. Fill the jars to the very top, so they’re about to spill over. Using a screw cap style lid, lightly place the flat portion of the lid on the mason jar; be sure not to press down too firmly or you’ll hear a popping noise from the flat lid. This will trap too much air inside and spoil your juice. Screw on the mason ring and wipe off juice before placing it in the fridge.
Store in the fridge for 1-2 days.” -Leanne Vogel
Lilly
August 30, 2012 at 5:25 pm (12 years ago)I would love to start the challenge but don’t own a juicer, just a regular stick blender.
Will that be good enough? I’m assuming maybe not? :-/
TERE
September 11, 2012 at 9:18 pm (12 years ago)Hi I love your blog Thank you for writing with so much honesty about your journey! I really enjoy reading it… I just got my Breville Juicer!! And starting juicing right away! but I have been getting headaches… do you know why is this or how to prevent them ?
Grece
March 20, 2013 at 3:17 pm (12 years ago)Hi, I have a doubt juices that have more than one serving I can do with them?
Adri Carmona
April 16, 2013 at 2:31 pm (12 years ago)In what order did you drink these juices?
Angella Pizzo
February 10, 2014 at 7:57 am (11 years ago)Hi Catherine,
Im gonna start a juicing challenge of my own, just to jump start my getting back on track and a weight loss goal of 15-20 lbs (1 lb at a time right?!) im a busy work at home office-mom of 2 and working out is hard to do during the school year so of course i packeted on some pounds this winter (i live in michigan…enough said right). my question is…im a big sweet freak (especially when its that time of the month) so what juice would be good for a sweet treat but wont impede for sleep too and possibly could have some type of chocolate in it….maybe then not so much a juice then, maybe smoothie?
Catherine
February 11, 2014 at 12:40 pm (11 years ago)Hi Angella! I get a crazy sweet tooth at times too! You could totally make a berry and banana smoothie and throw some cocoa powder and vanilla in the mix! The thicker the smoothie, the more rich and indulgent it will taste : )