I have owned a juicer for 10 months now. We had been wanting one but it wasn't a priority until we learned that adding juicing into your daily life helps you be more successful in weight loss. I started juicing 5 days a week. I like to juice first thing in the morning. Later I add a protein snack to keep me going all morning. I LOVE it. I have lost 8 lbs and have kept it off-- even through I had some heart issues that meant I couldn't exercise for a many of those months. And to be honest, I haven't exercised much at all looking over these last 10 months. There were 2 months in there I exercised regularly-- to see if exercise would actually help heal my heart. I have learned a few things about juicing and I though I would share.
*Keep it simple. Juicing too many items makes it taste not so pleasant. I like to pick 2 main veggies and add an apple (I like green apples) or half a lemon (without the rind).
*Juicing cucumbers or celery adds lots of juice which is good. Celery is a bit bitter and to be honest I hated it at first, but it has grown on me and I enjoy it. Cucumber should be peeled if not organic.
*Celery is amazing. It lowers blood pressure. It helps those who get constipated and keeps you more regular. It does that by relaxing the nerves associated with it-- it relaxes and does not stimulate. But if you have low blood pressure-- beware. That is me-- I would get dizzy when I added celery due to too low of blood pressure. How low is low? 100 or less / 60.
*Beet juice is surprisingly earthy and delicious. I hate eating beets and I have tried them many way and juicing is the only way I like them. They are good for iron and building up healthy blood. They are also amazing at healing the liver and gall bladder.
*Kale is good for many things that I can't seem to remember, but one thing I will not forget is that it is good for the lungs- and right now that is great for me since I have bronchitis.
*Drink the juice quickly after juicing for best results. Drink on an empty stomach and don't eat other food for 30 minutes. That way your body has an easy time absorbing all the wonderful vitamins and minerals easily and put them to good use.
*Many people think juicing is not as healthy as eating the whole food-- fiber and all. Even though fiber is important, realistically it is almost impossible to eat all the servings of fruits and veggies we need daily. This allows you to get all of those servings in easily. It gives your body THE best source of vitamins and minerals in a very easy to digest form.
*Juice organic foods as often as you can. I only do organic beets as I got sick because of pesticides for juicing conventional beets. You can peel beets but what a mess! So buy good quality organic when you can. Many items can be peeled if you don't have good quality organic or can't afford it.
*Juicing regularly takes up LOTS of room in the fridge. We now have a fridge in our garage that is mostly full of juicing produce.
*I get organic carrots in huge bags at Costco for cheap. :)
*Grow as much as you can. This way you can save money and have control of the quality of the produce. I loved to juice fresh Swiss chard last summer that we grew. This summer I am growing many more items to juice.
*Spinach is hard to juice. If I want to include spinach I add it in a blender. I juice the other produce and then put it in a blender with the spinach.
*Bananas don't juice. Neither do avocados or egg plant. Add them in a blender if wanted. I have not added avocados or egg plant so I can't tell you if it is good or not.
*Fresh Pineapple is a great way to add natural enzymes which help in digesting all food.
*Watch Fat Sick and Nearly Dead. It just may change your life.
