Juice diets (or juice fasting) are detoxification1 programs restricting the menu to vegetable and fruit juices and smoothies. There are many variants of these diets and most of them do not require following their plans word for word. As a rule, they last three – seven days. People go on a juice diet in order to purge away toxins2 from their bodies, though some of them may have spiritual or religious reasons.
Most juice diets do not provide strict plans, but suggest general recommendations and sample menus. First of all, you should drink fresh juices. So you will need a juicer. High-speed models are cheaper, but you should better buy a low-speed one, as it is better for juicing leafy greens. You can also make juice using your blender if you do not want to purchase a juicer. Just process the ingredients and separate the juice from the pulp using cheesecloth. Fresh juice should be drunk within one day.
One of the most popular diets of this type is The 7 Day Juice Fast Plan. It will help you if you need to get cleansed and lose several pounds. It provides the shopping list, special recipes and tips for dieters. You can choose from two meals for breakfasts, lunches and meals. It is recommended to drink from four to six juices during a day. You are allowed to make substitutions if you do not like a recipe.
The authors of this juice diet warn that you may experience strong cravings and even headaches, but after three – four days these problems will be gone and you will have much more energy.
Juice diets help to improve the metabolism3, cleanse the colon, rejuvenate the body, make the hair shining and the skin glowing, promote weight loss and give other health benefits.
Juice dieters may experience various side effects, such as low blood pressure, tiredness, headaches, hypoglycemia4, dizziness, etc.
When you do not eat solid foods, your body does not get fiber. So you may suffer from constipation. This is why many dieticians advise to drink healthy smoothies instead of juices.
You should stay away from juice diets if you have impaired immune system, chronic low blood pressure, cancer, kidney and liver diseases, and diabetes.
Children, pregnant women and nursing mothers should not go on a juice diet too.
Do not follow these programs for a long time and when you are done with your diet return to a healthy balanced eating plan.
You can use apples, pineapples, grapes, pears, raspberries, carrot, celery, beet, cabbage and many other fresh vegetables, berries and fruits to make juices and smoothies. Try mixing various ingredients.
You should drink at least sixteen ounces of pure water per day too.
You may add spices to your drinks.
Most juice diets suppose that you do not eat solid foods at all. Your meals should consist of vegetable and fruit juices. As a rule, salt is not allowed. Of course, alcohol is prohibited too.
Short-term juice diets are widely used for detoxifying the body and losing weight. If you want to purge your body and lose several pounds, you can try it too, but do not forget to consult your doctor first.
There are various juice diets for people who want to lose weight and get their bodies cleansed. Most of them require drinking fruit and vegetable juices as your only meals.
Below you will see a plan for a seven-day program. You do not have to follow it word for word but try to stick with the main recommendations.
Here they are:
Shopping List
You will need the following foods for this 7 day juice diet:
Buy only fresh foods and try to find organic products. You should better go to a grocery store twice during the program.
7 Day Juice Diet Menu
Here is the basic menu for this diet.
Remember that this is a sample plan. You may experiment with your menu and make your own juices. You are allowed to add mint, pepper, basil and other spices but never add salt.