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Hurdles, Juicing, Raw, Recipes, Vegan

Juice Challenge: Broken

I wanted to start off by saying happy motivation monday, and thank you to all of my new and “old” readers! I have no idea what happened last night, but my website went viral and I got THOUSANDS of views and a rush of emails in my inbox in a matter of minutes! I’m so happy that people like my blog enough to share it with others, it means so much to me!

I went to my friend Behnaz’s house yesterday for craft day and in her refrigerator among piles of healthy fruits & vegetables, was a carrot cake that she had made from scratch the night before. It was just sitting there staring at me with it’s cute decorative frosting carrots perfectly drawn on top. I just couldn’t resist a slice of her amazing cake. After all, it is a vegetable, right? After 5 days of my Juice Challenge, the fast was broken! Never fear, the juicing will continue with “A Juice A Day In May!”

I have a weakness for Behnaz’s cooking. She makes amazing Persian dishes from her family’s recipes and occasionally the most intricate and perfectly decorated cakes. I was worried about how my body would react to solid food after a 5 day liquid diet, but my tummy loved that little slice of heaven, and I’m glad I was able to enjoy it without the guilt of ending my juice challenge.

Later that evening, I sat down with my new Gingergrass & Lemon candle, From A to P juice, and new book Intuitive Eating, by Evelyn Tribole, MS, RD and Elyse Resch, MS, RD, FADA. I have had a few readers suggest this book to me, and have read countless reviews by other bloggers, so I thought it was about time to buy it.

This reminds me so much of my dear family friend Karen. If anyone had a problem or was searching for an answer for anything, she would have the perfect book for it! If Karen could see this blog, I’m sure she would have dropped this book off on my doorstep by now! Intuitive Eating offers a new eating approach to free yourself from food prison to help yourself become at peace with food to reach the weight you were meant to be. I’m not much of a reader, but I have become passionate about healthy living and how food can change our body & health, so this book looks very intriguing to me. I will be reading this book in my free time, and I’ll keep you guys posted on new things that I learn!

Question: Has anyone read Intuitive Eating before?

When my usual snack time came around, I experimented with a new juice to curb my cravings. Not to toot my own horn, but TOOT TOOT! This juice was AMAZING! New favorite for sure, and the color was absolutely gorgeous!


Rainbow Sherbet
serves 1

2 fuji apples
½ lime
¼ pineapple
¼ large cucumber

Extract your fresh juice over ice and enjoy cold.

I have noticed a huge change in my mood since starting my juice challenge, which is a big change from where I was last Monday after returning from San Francisco. I actually feel really happy today, and feel a lot healthier overall. Although I still get cravings for coffee, I feel like I have tons of energy from the micronutrient rich juices. I am thinking about sticking with a few juices throughout the day but want to start incorporating smoothies for a little while since the outcome has been pretty positive!

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Juicing, Raw, Recipes, Vegan

Juice Challenge: Day 5

Hola Conejitos!
Feliz Shrinko de Mayo!
 I hope everyone is celebrating with tons of raw heart healthy avos!

Now onto the Juicinggggg! Day 5 flew by!
I had so much fun playing with my new Breville juicer last night that I made a Shrinko de Mayo fiesta of rainbow juices! I loved ALL of my juices today! WOOOO!

Emotions & Hunger: Drinking only juice is getting progressively easier. Maybe because I jut got a new juicer and am so pumped to use it? I’ve been feeling great physically, and love not having to drink 2 cups of coffee to get through the day. I will definitely be incorporating juice in my regular diet because it makes me feel healthy and refreshed. I have also noticed that my skin has been more dewy and fresh than usual. All of these micronutrients I’ve been taking in seem to be helping!


For The Love Of Kale
makes 1 serving

5 carrots
2 small red apples
6 kale leafs

Spring Beet
makes 1 serving

6 carrots
1 fui apple
6 sprigs of parsley
1 small beet

From A to P
serves 1

1 apple
8 carrots
6 parsley sprigs

Sherbet Lemonade
makes 1 serving

2 golden delicious apples
1/2 lemon

Mean Green
makes 2 servings

6 Kale Leaves
1 Cucumber
4 Celery Stalks
2 Green Apples
1/2 Lemon
1 small piece of ginger

Juice Critique:
For The Love Of Kale: I had an overload of green juice in the past couple of days, so I wanted to make some sweeter juices that still incorporate veggies. I love the combination of apple & carrots. It was so sweet that I could’t even taste the kale!

Spring Beet: Ok you guys, I am trying so hard to use up the rest of the beets left in the fridge and well… I did it. The first beet drink that I actually liked! I started with my favorite new base of apples and carrots, and then added in some beet and parsley. It was sweet and fresh and I actually loved it! So glad I didn’t give up on the beets!

From A to P: Apples, carrots, & parsley oh my! my favorite sweet combo and some parsley, yummmm!

Sherbet Lemonade: DELICIOUS! I was so happy with the outcome of this one. It tasted like rainbow sherbet! This would make such a yummy summer cocktail over ice! R&R: Refreshing & Raw. Mmmm!

Mean Green: This is Joe Cross’ original juice from the film “Fat, Sick & Nearly Dead.” I had the same reaction that most taste testers had in the film: “This isn’t too bad!” Considering all of the greenery that is incorporated in this juice, I was worried, but the lemon, apple, and ginger added a great balance to the veggie taste. I’m not sure if I could drink this juice 6 times a day for 60 days like Joe, but I did like it!

Loved these juices so much, I cannot wait to make more!

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Juicing, Raw, Recipes, Vegan, Vegetarian

Juice Challenge: Day 3

I made it through day 3 of only juice!
I started running low on ingredients, so I only made 2 different juices today. I alternated between Shocking Green and Lean ‘N’ Green to keep from getting too bored.

I wanted to say thank you again to all of my readers. Each and every one of you keep me motived and so excited to blog everyday. Your emails and comments have been so inspiring and encouraging! I always try to email everyone back but I have actually had an overwhelming amount of emails in my inbox, so don’t think I am not responding! You guys know I can be quite chatty and I really like to take time to respond to my readers. I was so surprised the first time someone said that I inspired them because YOU guys inspire me!  I love hearing your stories, and opinions! Love you little bunnies!

Emotions: I did not sleep well at all last night. I couldn’t get comfy and then after I feel asleep I woke up a few times in the middle of the night with a full bladder. Is there such thing as too much water intake? I guess the 8 glasses of water, tea, and the addition of all of these h20 loaded veggie & fruit juices really adds up. I just keep thinking about all of the icky toxins flushing out of my body. This morning I stepped on the scale and was excited to see a 2lb loss which got me really excited for the day. I felt great throughout the day but later in the afternoon started having one of those sad moments again. I could not stop thinking about how I let myself overindulge and get to this not so comfy weight. I hate that these thoughts even cross my mind, when I am doing something proactive to change. I tried to distract myself and with my friend’s genius idea, started catching up on the past few episodes of New Girl that I had missed. I also made a trip to Barnes & Noble to find a new book to read during my down time.

I definitely feel less bloated, and am getting more motivated to stay on track with healthy eating once I am done cleansing. I am not sure how long I will juice, but a lot of people have raised concern that it is unhealthy for longer than 10 days. As usual, I started researching! Juice fasting is a controversial “crash diet” that is strongly recommended by some, and extremely discouraged by others. Both advocates and opponents of juice fasting agree that there are some significant pros and cons. A juice fast is a temporary diet that consists of only the juice from fresh fruits and vegetables. The idea is that by consuming nothing but juice, the body will cleanse itself of impurities, fat and toxins, resulting in weight loss. Juice fasting does not contain nearly enough protein or healthy fats to be considered a substantial diet, and I have to agree. So far I have felt more tired than usual, and there is no way that I could workout while continuing my cleanse. Although I agree that a long term juice fast is not ideal, I do like the idea of cleansing the body with pure micronutrients.

Hunger: I am really surprised that I haven’t felt actual hunger in-between juices. If I am “hungry” it’s my mind craving food, but not actual physical hunger. I am craving a bite of actual fruit, but am staying strong and sticking with juice! I have to say that my worst withdrawal and strongest craving is for coffee. I am really surprised that I haven’t gotten headaches from the caffeine withdrawal yet, but I’m not complaining! The last time I gave up coffee I was miserable!


Shocking Green
makes 3 servings

3 green apples
10 stalks celery
1 large cucumber
14 sprigs of Italian parsley
10 dinosaur kale leaves
2 inch knob of ginger

Lean ‘N’ Green
makes 3 servings

1 head romaine
8 dinosaur kale leaves
6 stalks celery
1 large cucumber
8 carrots
1 lemon

Juice Critique:
Shocking Green: I think I may have added a tad too much ginger to this one, because I was a bit… shocked after my first sip. The ginger was a nice change compared to the usual green juices. Plus ginger has great nutritional benefits, so I’ll take it! I may use a bit less next round though.

Lean ‘N’ Green:  Mmmm this one tasted nice and fresh. The lemon definitely helped to cut out the bitterness of the kale. I’m starting to really love the green juices, especially with carrots! I’m really like these more than beet juices! Plus I am actually starting to enjoy the taste of celery!

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Juicing, Raw, Recipes

Juice Challenge: Day 2

Day 2: COMPLETE!
Wow this is definitely a mental challenge!

Emotions: I woke up excited to try all of my new juices, and was even more excited after I stepped on the scale and lost 3lbs of bloat! I felt refreshed and had energy until about 3pm, and then fell asleep on my friend’s couch for 2 hours. I am a huge coffee addict, and I think skipping my morning, and afternoon cup o’ joe is what’s been the hardest so far. I am hoping that the coffee withdrawals will go away and I will be able to get energy from juice alone!

Hunger: The morning started off great after my “breakfast juice” and I didn’t really feel hungry in-between juices until after dinner. For some reason around 8pm is my snack time. Weather I am hungry or not, I want something to eat. Instead of caving in and reaching for the candy, I made a nice hot cup of Senna tea with a couple drops of stevia. No crazy headaches or insane hunger…yet! I never really realized how much I snacked and chewed on treats until now! Mind over matter…

I have been trying to get ahold of Joe The Juicer’s recipe from Fat, Sick, & Nearly Dead but his recipe website has been under maintenance for the past 3 days… how convenient!

Green Machine:
makes 2 servings

2 green apples
10 carrots
10 leafs dinosaur kale
2 cup spinach (packed)
1 cucumber
2 stalk celery
10 sprigs Italian parsley

Candied Carrot
serves 1 

5 carrots
2 apples
1 orange

Sweet Beet
makes 3 servings

15 carrots
10 sprigs Italian parsley
4 stalks of celery
2 small beets
3 cups spinach (packed)
2 oranges

Juice Critique:
Green Machine: I loved this juice so much yesterday, I doubled the recipe and had 2 today! Don’t let the grass like smell fool you, this one is a tasty way to get in your greens!

Candied Carrot: I don’t know how this keeps happening, but the juices that I make the most of, I don’t end up loving… and the ones that end up with 1 serving are amazing and I want more! I’m in loveee with Candied Carrot. It really does taste like candy compared to the other juices. It’s sweet and super satisfying! Definitely making multiples of this!

Sweet Beet: I give up on the beets. I just cannot do it! I love beets in salads and with cheese, but as juice, they taste like dirt. I had a really hard time getting this one down… It tasted like earth. And of course I ended up with 3 of them!

Keeping up with my water intake and staying strong! Juice, juice, juice!

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Juicing, Raw, Recipes, Vegan, Vegetarian

Juice Challenge: Day 1

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!

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