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Introduction to Green Smoothies

Written by on July 11, 2009 · Leave a Comment

With the advent of high powered blenders and a more health conscious society the idea of making smoothies at home instead of paying the very expensive prices for smoothie bar smoothies and juices has become quite popular. An even newer trend is the wonderful creation of what many call green smoothies, these little wonder elixirs allow for ALL the beneficial ingredients that make up the fruit and leafy greens to be consumed whole and as a result, are one of the best sources of natural fat burning foods. There is a debate within the health community whether a person should juice or blend and I’ve struggled with that question too when I started out. The answer I came to was both had their place and if you can do both regularly if not daily you’ll get the benefits from each wonderful source of vitamins and nutrients. In future articles ill detail the differences both subtle and obvious between blending and juicing but for now I’ll extol the virtues of smoothies, particularly, green smoothies, and how they too allow for a Total Cleanse and detoxify the body.

First and foremost and it’s something I’ll likely get into in a separate article because there’s so much to praise about it, the best blender for blending is the Total Blender by BlendTec. This appliance as of this writing is about 400$ but is worth every penny as it makes the smoothies effortlessly, is an easy cleanup, and is very durable.

Fruits if juiced too much can be too much sugar for the body to take in one shot and can be very detrimental to one’s health if done regularly due to said sugar, but at the same time you want to mask the often times unpleasant taste of the low sugar veggie juice. In this case you want to make a smoothie instead, this allows for the full nutritional value of berries and other fruits to be consumed while also incorporating lots of leafy greens like wheatgrass (which are not technically veggies) that can be mixed with anything (unlike actual veggies including starches like carrots or other types as well which have a tendency not to play nice when digested at the same time with fruits as a whole food albeit blended food). These are famously known as the green smoothies and there are many great recipes out there ill detail in another article. These taste amazing as well just for a healthy treat.

One of the greatest benefits of any smoothie but particularly green smoothies is due to the fiber content (very dense in leafy greens) which regulates all the sugar in the blended fruit that ends up missing in the juiced drinks. This fiber also helps in digestion and getting your regular does of 25-30 grams of fiber per day, which in turn can also help boost your overall fat burning capabilities by speeding up your metabolism. As a result, it is really one one of the best natural weight loss solutions out there. Please look forward to more information on these wonderful creations and stay in good health!

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The Basic Core Total Cleanse and Juice Fast Guide: Day 3

Written by on July 11, 2009 · Leave a Comment

I hope you guys are starting to see the benefits of the total cleanse, your urine should be light yellow and much clearer then before; you should not be having much of any bowel movements. And your likely feeling a lot lighter-and you should be, you’ve removed a lot of waste and toxins and your liver is crying for joy.  Hopefully you have kept up with your water intake of 4-6 liters a day and your keeping steady with the juices, it’s almost over, and if you have taken wheatgrass at all during the total cleanse you should be noticing the wheatgrass benefits to your overall lighter feeling as well. Now I personally detox every so often although I have no set pattern it’s just generally when I’m feeling regularly lethargic and generally unhealthy.

When you have reached the end of the third day and you’re feeling oh so hungry I want you to resist temptation and figure you can snack a little early, please don’t you need another full night of rest on an empty but cleansed body. I know it can be tempting as I’ve gone for over a week with some of my fasts.

Now once you have awoken and you’re starting on day 4 you can eat solid food again yes, I know you want to do a dance in celebration, it’s perfectly OK. But please resist the urge to gorge and eat fatty and rich foods, your body has not eaten anything for 3 and half days and you will do harm to yourself and also ruin the total cleanse and all your hard work if you do this. For breakfast you should have a whole grain bagel or a small serving of organic whole grain oatmeal or cereal (no fatty milk) along with a slice of fruit preferably melon or banana for the potassium. For lunch you should have a salad with organic vinaigrette based dressings (please check ingredients, avoid the typical corn syrup “natural flavors” phony dressings out there.) you can also have a fruit salad as well either for lunch or as a snack so you can continue to enjoy the benefits of eating healthy.

Consume nuts at some point in the day peanuts or almonds (small handfuls, that’s it) for protein. For dinner keep it light please your body needs to slowly adapt to eating again.  My recommendation would to have some small amount of WHOLE GRAIN pasta with real organic tomato sauce or some fish lightly flavored with lemon and garlic so you can get your healthy fats. You need to eat reasonably the following days if you intend to get the most out of your juice fast but eventually your body does get invaded with toxins again even if your diet is perfect so it’s needed every once in awhile. And remember always- ALWAYS drink plenty of water no matter what, 2-4 liters a day for women and 4-6 for men. In following articles I’ll detail eating plans and general tips and advice for food and products that will benefit you in your plan to have a clean body and healthy life.

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The Basic Core Total Cleanse and Juice Fast Guide: Day 2

Written by on July 11, 2009 · Leave a Comment

On day two you should really be starting to feel the effects of the total cleanse. Be sure to shower regularly as a vast amount of the toxins will sweat out through your pores, and you don’t want them lingering as it’s not healthy and can often smell offensive. Continue with the juicing regime I outlined in the prior article The Basic Core cleanse and Juice Fast Guide: Day 1. Be sure not exercise too strenuously as your body is not in a condition for it, but do be sure to get a minimal amount of cardio throughout the fast so that the blood flow is pumping properly and carrying out all those toxins to the various parts of your body to expel.

Now let me Elaborate why I recommended the juices I did. These are not frivolous choices given without care- they were selected for a reason and for optimum cleansing. Let’s start with…..

Beet juice: The beet juice is considered as one of the best vegetable juices for detox cleansing. It is a rich source of natural sugar. It contains sodium, potassium, phosphorus, calcium, sulfur, chlorine, iodine, iron, copper, and vitamin B1, B2, C and P. This juice is rich in easily digestible carbohydrates, but the calorie content is low. The protein factors or amino acids are good in both quality and quantity. Beets also have great healing qualities as well, and have therapeutic value. They have properties to clean the kidneys and gall bladder (which help detox the body). Being rich in alkaline elements, potassium, calcium, magnesium and iron, they are useful in combating acidosis and aid the natural processes of elimination.

Cucumber Juice: Cucumber is well known for its healing and diuretic properties. It’s a great source of Copper, Chlorine, Folate (folic acid), Magnesium, Vitamins B6, K, & C, Potassium, Panthothemic acid, Phosphorus, Thiamin, and Sulfur. Cucumber peel itself is rich in vitamin A as well (hence making your own juice is more potent). Cucumber juice has a tendency to increase its own potency and the potency of other veggie juices when mixed so not only does it act as a diuretic because its 90% water but it also increases the strength of the other veggie juice. (Did I mention it’s great for the skin?

Carrot Juice: Carrot juice is the most powerful veggie juice there is next to wheat grass, and thankfully is one of the most plentiful even bottled for those of you without access to a juicer. Carrot juice is one of the richest sources of vitamin A that can be used in the daily diet. It also ranks high as a source of the other anti aging vitamins, especially those of the B complex. Its mineral content is equally rich, and includes calcium, copper, magnesium, potassium, sodium, phosphorus, chlorine, sulfur, and iron. The vitamin A content of carrot juice helps to strengthen the eyes and is essential in keeping healthy condition the mucous membranes which line all the cavities of the body, as well as strengthening the bones teeth and tissues of the body among its many other benefits.

The next article will be on how to conduct your final day of fasting and beyond.

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