Let’s be honest for a second. Most people would much rather have a quick-fix solution for weight loss than work for months or years to see the changes they want. And the juice cleanse is promoted as one of the best quick-fix weight-loss tools on the internet. So it’s only fitting that the question of whether or not to do a juice cleanse is a common one we hear from clients. Often, when our clients want to do a juice cleanse, they cite three common reasons as to why.
1. As a Tool for Fast Weight Loss
It seems logical, right? Drinking nothing but juice instead of food for 1-7 days should result in some staggering weight loss, yes?
And it does for most people. When you take out the kinds of foods you typically eat and replace them with a healthier liquid option, your digestive system has a heck of a lot less work to do. Add that to the fact that you’re probably consuming far fewer calories than usual, and it’s an obvious trail to fast weight loss.
But we all know that juice cleansing is temporary. So what happens when you return to normal eating? The quick answer is that most people regain the weight they lost, and possibly more.
The weight loss is short-lived because there wasn’t any change to eating habits, and once the cleanse is through, you’re probably going to be dying for an ooey-gooey slice of pizza. Before you know it, poof, the weight is back, and you’re back to where you started.
2. To Reset the Digestive System
Another common reason we hear for juice cleansing is that our client’s bodies are just feeling ready for a reset. But since juicing doesn’t have protein or fat, you may not be giving your digestive system the macronutrients it needs to truly reset to a healthier place. And that means an all-around better option may be looking at the foods in the juice and considering instead taking in those foods in their natural form.
3. To Detox From Toxic Food Choices
The sad truth is that the vast majority of foods we’re eating these days have the potential to be laden with pesticides, toxins, chemicals, and hormones. And doing an organic juice cleanse is undoubtedly a way to quickly remove those toxins from what you’re taking in and hopefully remove some from your body too.
But again, if you snap back to eating what you did before the cleanse, it was all in vain. Instead, look at your diet as a whole to figure out where the harmful stuff is coming from. If you assess your weekly menu from start to finish, it might become obvious what types of foods aren’t doing you any favors. Then, start stripping those away to create a healthier food base.
An Alternative to the Juice Cleanse
It seems like we’re sowing a common thread here: If you return to the same diet you had pre-juicing, you’re right back where you started. You’re immediately reintroducing the same things to your body again. So that means weight comes back on, you’re feeling sluggish, and the toxins you just got rid of are now back.
A better option for most people is to assess your diet as a whole. First, get to know the way your body feels after eating certain foods. Then, try to optimize your diet for peak performance.
That may mean you need to create a food journal and log everything you’re eating and how you feel throughout the day. This can help you draw correlations between mood changes and the meal you had prior. For example, if you feel sluggish every afternoon around 2 pm, look at what you’re eating at lunch. Are you getting enough nutrition, or is it primarily empty calories from processed or sugary foods?
The Last Word About Doing a Juice Cleanse
Once you take an objective look at what you’re eating through the lens of how you feel, you’re more likely to make permanent changes. And that means the weight loss, reset, and detox can be for the long-term, not for only the days of your juice cleanse.
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