FAQ
Q: Can I exercise while on the Juice Cleanse?
Exercise is an essential ingredient throughout the cleanse. 30-40 minutes of low intensity exercise is recommended daily. Walking in the sunshine is best! Exercise will keep the bowel moving and enhance the removal of toxins. Stretching, deep breathing, rebounding on a mini trampoline and therapeutic massages will further assist in flushing out the metabolic wastes from the lymph and cells.
I strongly suggest avoiding intense physical activity such running, heavy weights and high-impact aerobic exercise during the juice cleanse, even if you do feel very energetic. Instead, store your energy and save it for your body’s reserves to aid in the detoxification process.
Can I have anything else in addition to the juice?
The purpose of the juice cleanse is to detoxify and restore your body. The juice is absorbed directly into the blood, therefore giving your digestive system a well deserved rest. As soon as you start putting ‘clogging’ foods into your body throughout the cleanse, the benefits and results will be diminished.
Please keep in mind you can have unlimited juice and filtered water.
Krishna and I did include some additional items on top of the juice and water to help with food cravings and our human need for variety. These extra items will be added to ‘Optional’ and ‘Emergency Meal’ section of www.lookgoodraw.com shortly.
How much weight will I lose?
The weight you lose during the ‘14 Day Juice Cleanse Challenge’ depends a lot on your starting weight. The more overweight you are, the more weight you will lose. As a general guide people lose 10% of their starting weight over the 14 days.
Krishna (my partner) weighed 104.5kg before the juice cleanse and by day 14 he weighed 94kg, a weight loss of 9.3kg or 9%. I am the same height as Krishna (actually technically, 1cm taller hehe!) and started the cleanse at 66kg and weighed 59kg by day 14, a 8kg or 10.6% reduction. I attribute my victory to daily 40 minutes walks, compared to Krishna who only managed 4 walks during the 14 days.
Q: Will I be tired or weak?
A: Energy levels will vary greatly between individuals. Most people will experience a surge of energy after day 3 as the body switches from burning predominantly sugar and stored sugar (glycogen) to burning fat. Others however may experience periods of low energy, as the body turns its energy inwards to heal itself. Short periods of flu-like symptoms / moderate fever may occur during the cleanse, this an important part of the detoxification process.
Q: Should I continue with my medication and/or supplements?
A: Yes, unless otherwise advised in consultation with your Doctor.
Q: How much juice should I drink?
A: Drink as much juice as you like. The minimium amount of juice you should have over a 24hour period is 1 litre.
Q: What happens if I get hungry during the cleanse?
Often our brain tells us or makes us feel that we are hungry, in fact often we are either dehydrated or emotionally hungry or both! From experience the sensation of hunger drops off considerably after day three as the bodies energy system switches from burning predominately sugar and carbohydrate into a burning fat. If you feel ‘hungry’ at any stage during the cleanse try the following:
- Drink more juice or water. Wait 15 minutes to see if hunger sensation subsides.
- Identify if your experiencing physical or emotional hunger. We often eat to change our emotional state. So change your focus for 15 minutes, for example go for a walk, call a friend, take a bath. This cleanse is an exercise in learning to deal with your emotions in way that doesn’t involve consuming food and beverages.
- If you’re still hungry and it feels like stomach is ‘eating itself’ then emergency meal to the rescue!!! Please refer to ‘emergency meal’ in the ‘Juice Cleanse’ section.
Q: Can I prepare my juices in advance?
Drinking the juice as soon as it comes out of the juice extractor in order to get maximum nourishment is best! However, If you wish to prepare it in advance, you can refrigerate the juice immediately in an airtight bottle making sure you fill it to the brim, as this will reduce the expose of the juice to air and therefore help maintain the juice quality. This will keep for a few hours if you’re using a centrifugal juicer and up to 48 hours if using a juicer with a cold press action (For example; Oscar 900 Vitalmax)
Freezing the juice quickly after it’s prepared is also a good way to maintain the nutritional quality of the juice. This will allow you to take the juice with you on a trip and or to work. The quality of the juice stays reasonably stable for up to a month in its frozen state. You might like to prepare your juices for the week all on one day and then simply take them out of the freezer as required!
Q: What do you do with the left over fruit and vegetable fiber/pulp?
A: There are many different things you can do. Leftover pulp makes an excellent compost for your garden and plants. You can use it as a base for pasta sauces, soup, fruit cakes and even jam. You can use it as a supplementary feed for your dogs and other pets.
