The "Juice" on Juices

With more and more juice shops popping up, you may be asking yourself whether or not to try a "juice diet." Here the bottom line...Juices are EXCELLENT and delicious ways to fit in your daily servings of fruits and veggies (and the vitamins are also more easily absorbed into your body when consuming a juice), but I would not recommend a full on, 24/7, juice diet. Our bodies are built to break down food. The famous saying, "if you don't use it, you lose it," relates to our digestive systems as well. You need daily sources of fiber and structure for your body to break down so that it can stay revved up. 

But with that being said, I do love a good juice! I would even go as far to say "a juice a day will keep the doctor away." ;) Just make sure you don't fall into the "juice diet trap."

If you like juices, I would recommend buying your very own juicer. I have the Omega J8006 juicer and I absolutely love it. Its also cheaper in the long run (custom juice shops are expensive), and you have the freedom to be creative with your flavors. If you decide to purchase a juicer, be sure to get a "masticating" juicer and not a "centrifuge" one. The masticating juicers grind the fruits/vegetables slower so that more nutrients are extracted.

Below is my favorite recipe that I've come up with:

3 red apples
1 whole pineapple
2 oranges
3 beets
1 teaspoon lemon juice

The lovely dark red color is a sign of powerful antioxidants!