Juice Cleanse: Starting the New Year Right
Juicing is an excellent way to detox from the excesses of the holiday season and start the new year healthy and light.
January is the perfect time to reset your eating habits after a season typically filled with indulgence. Replacing either breakfast and lunch, or breakfast and dinner, with freshly pressed juice is an easy way to get back your energy and clarify your system. My favorite juice this time of year is made with two rosy apples (not green), one red cabbage, one lemon (preferably Meyer) and an inch of fresh ginger or fresh turmeric root. Make sure to peel the yellow zest off of the lemon before juicing it, but try to keep on as much of the white pith as you can, as it contains a great deal of nutrition. If you don’t like the kick of ginger, turmeric root is an excellent, more mellow alternative that offers amazing health benefits. If you can’t stand the flavor of either of these, then just omit them. Be sure to wash all your fruits and veggies before juicing them, and of course, always buy organically raised produce, or grow it yourself. The juice tastes great cold, so drink your morning juice fresh out of the press, and then store the rest in a glass container in the fridge for later. Make sure to shake it well before drinking, as the juice will settle and separate. If the juice is too concentrated, you can mix it with some water and ice. This recipe provides two modest servings for one person, perfect for one day. Make your juice fresh every morning or evening for the best effect. The key to drinking fresh vegetable and fruit juices in place of a meal is to not eat a lot of carbohydrates when you do eat a meal. If you are eating a lot of starchy or sweet foods, drinking juice may make your unstable blood sugar more noticeable. When you are eating your daily meal, whether that is lunch or dinner, eat healthy food! If you find yourself using your virtuous juice drinking to justify overeating or eating indulgent foods at mealtime, stop it. You are not doing yourself any favors. Eat nourishing, wholesome meals, skip the sugar entirely, and enjoy fresh juice in place of a meal or two.You can try this on weekdays for the month of January, and let yourself enjoy the weekends however you like. After a month, you’ll find yourself lighter, calmer and less distracted by food.
Happy New Year! Click here for more juicing recipes Detox teas