04/08/20

Got Juice? My secret to glowy skin + a healthy life!

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Hi friends! I hope you’re all staying healthy and happy in your homes right now. I included cold-press green juices to my eating routine about three months ago and have never looked back. LIFE CHANGING! If you follow me on the gram, you know the whole fam (except for Sophia) love and drink these daily dose happiness with me, so I wanted to share them with YOU!

My main source for research as well as a change in my lifestyle and eating habits comes from Kris Carr’s Crazy Sexy Diet book. As a fellow cancer survivor, I wanted to find natural ways to keep the cancer from coming back. Reduce inflammation and detox my body as well as introduce them to my family as a prevention from food-related diseases.

After many repeated questions and because I think this time more than ever calls for healthy habits that we can form while staying home I’ll go over months of reading, research and yummy recipes in a short, condensed post to get you started!!

Juicin’ Benefits:

Since I couldn’t possibly put it into better words I snapped a pic on Kris’ words in the hopes that it will inspire you as much as inspired me!

Crazy Sexy Diet Book

PS: And this is a big PS, I added juices to my daily life in addition to eating solid foods, lots of it. I drink a glass while fasted mid-morning to awaken my body and sometimes as an afternoon pick me up!

Types Of Juicer:

Turns out there mainly are three types of juicers that can fit different lifestyles and budgets. Centrifugal, masticating and twin gear. TIP: if you can’t afford or don’t want another big piece of equipment in your kitchen just use a blender and a strainer!

Centrifugal

Pros: Fast spinning, easy to use and less expensive. They have a wider mouth, therefore, less time prepping your fruit and veggies. Cons: grating and fast-spinning of centrifugal juicers use heat to juice causing fast oxidation and loss of enzyme + nutrients. This basically means your juice will lose a bit of nutritional value and you can’t save it for later. It’s great for the occasional juicers.

Masticating

Pros: Extract more juice since they operate at a slower speed. It’s a true cold press juice meaning they keep all the nutritional value enzymes included! Less foam and longer fridge time )in a sealed mason jar for up to a day or so. You can make nut butters, nut milk, and pasta with these machines! Cons: More expensive than centrifugal juicers. More prep time as veggies and fruit need to be cut into small pieces to fit the mouth. Slower to juice requires a bit more time. All of these take about the same amount of time to clean FYI.

This type is the one I own and have used a ton. The main thing to think about is how passionate are you about including cold-press juices into your routine. Do you purchase cold press juices at the store? (sadly they lose a ton of their nutritional value just by being packed and transported, plus these guys can cost up to $20 per bottle depending on the quality of the juice!). If so you might want to invest in this!

Twin Gear

About the same pros and cons as their masticating brother! These give you the biggest bang fr your buck. You can make in a bunch and store the juice for up to 72hrs, although according to my research they’re best if consumed within 24-48hrs. They also make nut butters, milk, pasta, and even ice cream!

Ingredients

A good rule of thumb according to Kris is a 3:1 ratio, 3 veggies to 1 piece of fruit. Experiment! Add a bit more fruit if you need to get your taste buds used to the goodness. I had some major fails but drank them all (sometimes by myself, cause no one else went for it), but I finally developed a few favorites that have a great variety of leafy greens, veggies, and fruits.

Green Juice Ingredients

I always use a leafy green as a base such as kale, spinach, and collard greens, and half a lemon. Celery and/or cucumber stretch your juice since they’re watery! Carrots, beets, and broccoli have an earthy taste, I didn’t care for broccoli. Peppers add a sweetness to juice without to much sugar content. Ginger root and mint leaves are great for taste and jalapeños will kick up a notch!

My usual fruit is apple, but I love oranges and kiwi. Pineapple and watermelon are also amazing when in season.

Feel free to use any combination of leaves you have on hand, collard greens are my favorite but mix things up. Drinking the same stuff every day won’t expose you to all the vitamins our bodies need to thrive!

Hydration Tonic + Detox

3 collard green leaves

Half a cucumber (if organic or English cucumber you can juice it with skin, if not peel it!)

Half a lemon

1″ or less of ginger root

6 mint leaves

1 small apple

Optional: coconut water

Detox #2

3-4 leaves Collard Greens (can be subbed for Kale or Spinach)

2 slices of pineapple

6 mint leaves

3-4 stalks of celery

half a lemon

Metabolism Booster + Vitamin load

This one comes from my favorite place to brunch in town The Garden Table. It’s called Hoosier Heater!

1 medium apple

a handful of cilantro (I’ve used parsley as well and it worked fine!)

3 kale leaves

1″ jalapeño (or more with less seeds)

1 orange

half a lime

1 cup of spinach

Post-Workout

This one is a little sugar load but the type of sugar our body craves and it’s best as a post-workout when your body is burning through everything!

1 beet

2 carrots

1 orange

Water

Immune System Booster

1 cup of spinach

1 orange

2 stalks of celery

1″ ginger root

Green Juice Ingredients

TIP1: add any kind of raw veggies you have in your fridge and love, only by trying new things you’ll find the ones you love the most. I know what to avoid on mine now by trying them. Also, feel free to add coconut water or plain water to stretch your juice!

TIP2: add cinnamon or turmeric to get a metabolism booster, or avocado or bananas for meal replacements and a more filling juice (blended) protein powders are best in smoothies.

Like Kris suggested, pour your juice in a mug or glass of wine to make the transition a bit easier! Make it fun and eventful, you’re taking care of yourself!!!

Green juice and vitamins

I take my daily multi with my juice in the morning that way I won’t forget. I love Ritual vegan vitamins that support a meatless diet. Try it HERE and use code DIARIES to get 10% off your first three months delivery!

Store – if you must

Green Juice stored in mason jars

Only recently I started to store my juices and it has not only saved me time in the morning I also look forward to grabbing a little jar right after my matcha tea! The biggest thing to keep in mind is to store in the coldest place of your fridge with a sealed top for maximum preservation of nutrients. Drink them within the next 48hrs (is using masticating or twin gear juicers)

I could go on for hours on how much I love juicin’ but that is the job of an expert. I’m just an enthusiast who has seen a new glow on her skin and no afternoon crashes. For more, do yourself a favor and read Kris’ book. This is not a diet but a lifestyle and your body and mind will thank you for that!

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