I heard the ping-pong of my Whatsapp messages coming in…
I knew it was Danielle because she always message me during the day! Usually it is: What are you doing? or asking me to run an errand. However, today it was totally different!
‘Have you got a juicer? I know you always have electrical equipment that you do not use in the garage! If not, how much should I spend on a decent one?’
I read the message quickly and responded… ‘I have a vitamix’.
‘No mum! I do not want a blender… I need a juicer!’
‘Okay!.. I am sorry… Why?’
I then told her that I have a small citrus juicer, but it was nothing powerful. Then to my absolute astonishment she responded…’I am going on a 7 day juice cleanse… I am not allowed anything but freshly made juice’
‘Really? That sounds a bit drastic’ I replied.
She told me that her personal trainer said that although she had already lost 1.5 Stone, she had a problem with her digestion and so she could not get the flat stomach that she so desperately wanted. ‘The juice cleanse will help to regulate my digestion and also detox my body at the same time.’
I listened to her in amazement, she was going to try another diet! I always try to be supportive in every way and so I am often the first person she talks to about anything. She also said that after the juice cleanse, she was going to go on a Ketogenic diet… I was not sure about the value of a high fat diet?.. The juice cleanse was definitely healthier in my view!
She sent me a link that night because she wanted me to watch a documentary called ‘Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead’ – by an Australian stock broker called Jo Cross
This documentary was very informative and Joe Cross himself was a testament to the effectiveness of the juice cleanse.
I was totally fascinated! According to this documentary, Joe Cross was a typical overweight persona who was suffering from ill health because of over indulgence and bad lifestyle choices. He had a chronic skin disease – Chronic Urticaria – This is an auto-immune condition which causes rash to pop up all over the body – This is also very itchy and difficult to live with on a day to day basis.
Joe spent his thirties trying traditional and non traditional medicines but nobody was able to treat his condition effectively. Since Joe smoked, consumed alcohol regularly and had a diet that consisted mainly of processed foods, he was totally convinced that his condition had a lot to do with his lifestyle. He was 22 stone and was taking a cocktail of drugs to control his Urticaria. However, this only made it tolerable but it was not a solution and he finally realised that he had to take matters into his own hands if he wanted to be alive in a few years…
Joe decided to change his lifestyle completely. Since his diet was a contributory factor to his illness, he realised that he had to take very drastic action:- He decided to go back to nature and to detox his body. He took the courageous decision to live on only vegetable and fruit juice for 60 days! He did not know what the end result would be but he had to try something different.
Joe bought himself a Juicer and started juicing vegetables and fruits. He ate nothing else for 60 days. He documented his journey and after 14 days, his Urticaria started to improve and he was also losing weight and feeling more energised. After 60 days, Joe’s skin condition had cleared up completely and he felt like a different person. He went from 310lbs to 240lbs in 3 months – 22 stone to 15 stones.
Now, Joe Cross goes around the world with his testimonials and his juicers, he has a large following of converts, including my daughter!
Thus, we went on Amazon and looked at numerous Centrifugal juicers and slow masticating juicers! We read many reviews and then eventually decided to buy a Vonchef 990 W whole fruit juicer. This was very powerful and it was also reasonably priced and very robust.
After five days of juicing kale, carrots, spinach, parsley, cucumbers, peppers, apples, pears, plums, lemons, avocado, ginger, beetroot and grapes in various combinations, she lost 7lbs in 5 days!
She consumed approximately 500ml of juice 5 times daily and drank a lot of water and tea. Day one was a challenge, day two – more difficult because she began to get dreadful headaches. Day 3 was absolutely horrendous, she had headaches, nausea, she felt weak, and physically sick. By the end of the day she was so unwell that they had to send her home from the office. Day four was better, she began to feel energised! By day 5 she was absolutely fine and was able to train normally in the gym. Her stomach had flattened too and she was very happy. (You could also see that she had lost weight). At the end of day five, she was weighed and she had lost 7lbs in five days.
After she told me that she was going to do the juice cleanse, I did some research of my own. I found a lot of information on juicing and The Juice Master, Jason Vole, explained that once the body started to get raw ‘live’ nutrients in a liquid form it begins to be truly fed on a cellular level. So although you consume less, you are being fed more.
It has been two weeks since she started juicing and she is still having one juice meal per day. However, now she is trying to eat a ‘No Carb diet’. She is eating all her meals in a eight hour time frame and is fasting for 12 hours to allow her digestive system to rest. This regime seems to be working for her! She has lost a dress size and she looks amazing. She has more energy and the most important thing is that she is so much happier with the way she looks. I am happy because she is happy. The juice cleanse may not be for everyone, but it is definitely worth a try if you have tried everything else and failed. It is certainly a good way to kick start your system if you want to lose weight too. Juices are packed full of antioxidants – Juices speed up your metabolic rate, reduce cravings and clear out toxins. Juicing also improves your complexion and gives you that youthful glow everyone seems to desire.
Empty Nest Together 