My favorite Juice Cleanse Recipes that make for a great juice cleanse and full body reset.
I'm a huge fan of juicing. I just love it!! And because so many of you have asked me to elaborate on it, I've decided to share what my juice cleanse look like from start to finish!
First and foremost let me say, I am not a nutritionist and I don't claim to know everything. I just know how my body reacts to juicing and it's nice to shed 5+ pounds when I'm feeling bloated and pudgy after some serious holiday indulgence. I also know it's not for everyone - so if you're totally anti-juicing, might I suggest you check out these healthy quinoa salads and acai bowls I've been whipping up!
Now that we've got that out of the way... here's the deal!
What does a juice cleanse do to your body?
As I mentioned above, I'm not a nutritionist so you should absolutely consult with one if needed. That said, my personal experience from juicing is as follows. The juices provide a mega dose of nutrients into my body which always makes me feel great. It allows my body to reset when it comes to digestion. The extra dose of vitamins boosts my immune system and gives me way more energy that usual.
How long should you do a juice cleanse?
It's totally up to you. I find that I get the best results when I juice for 3-4 days. You should keep in mind that on top of those 3-4 juicing days, there is a pre and post period that's very important. So if I'm juicing for 3 days, it really means the cleanse is 9 days... because of the 3 day pre cleanse and 3 day post cleanse schedule that I follow.
If you're new to juicing, I'd say start with a 3 day cleanse. They aren't easy - and you want to make sure you aren't going crazy all the time! So I vote for starting on the shorter side and seeing how your body reacts. And for sure, don't skip the pre and post cleanse - I've done it before and it's much harder without the pre/post schedule.
How do you prep for a juice cleanse?
I usually prep for 3 days leading up to the cleanse. I cut out basically everything except fruits and vegetables. I eat loaded salads with different veggies, drink boat loads of herbal tea, and hydrate with LARGE amounts of water to prepare myself. No meat, no cheese, no pasta... you get the idea.
What juicer do you use for a juice cleanse?
Let's talk equipment. I have the Breville Slow Juicer which I love. The Hurom is also AMAZING. I like the "slow" juicers because you actually extract more fiber and nutrients from the fruits and veggies which gives you more pulp and gives you a bit of a thicker juice and all that jazz aka more fiber!
What does a juice cleanse schedule look like?
During my 3-4 days of "juicing" I drink about 6 glasses of juice a day and 6 glasses of water. I make 3 kinds of juice and for lack of better names, I call them by color: Green Juice (3 glasses daily), Red Juice (1 glass daily), Orange Juice (2 glasses daily). And then I cap off the day with my strawberry almond milk.
So here's what a day would look like for me:
- 7:00 am wake up - drink some white ginger tea or hot lemon water
- 8:00 am - Green Juice #1 + Water
- 10:00 Orange Juice #1 + Water
- 12:00 Green Juice #2 + Water
- 2:00 Red Juice #1+ Water
- 4:00 Green Juice #3+ Water
- 6:00 Orange Juice #2+ Water
- 8:00 Strawberry Almond Milk and some more white ginger tea
- And that's about it. Then it's off to bed where my dreams are usually filled with food. Just kidding, kinda, not really. It's hard when I live in the food world not to dream about food!!
What do you eat after a juice cleanse?
Post juice cleanse I slowly work my body back onto normal food. I eat lots of raw veggies to start and then slowly work in fruits, fish, quinoa etc. I usually try to stay off of meat for a few more days because that's just how I roll.
How do you feel during a juice cleanse?
Day 1 is always the hardest for me because I am "head" hungry. Which basically means I think I'm hungry... but really I'm not. I'm just bored and want to eat. Truth is, I'm packing my body with so many micronutrients, it has plenty to run on. I just start day dreaming about grilled cheese sandwiches and then I go crazy. So if you're juicing, you should probably stay off the food section of Pinterest. 🙂
By day 2 I feel like a million bucks. I sleep better at night, wake up in the morning ready to go. (I literally jump out of bed and Thomas thinks I'm a crazy person) Okay and this might sound weird, but you actually see things more clearly. Not figuratively... I mean literally. Things are sharp and crisp and you're just ready to take on the day!
So... you might be wondering why I juice? Well, I love it. I do it about every 3-4 months as a way to re-set my body and let it rest. And have you guys ever seen that movie, Fat Sick and Nearly Dead? It's kinda life changing. I'd highly recommend it if you're into this kinda thing. It's super inspiring.
Alright. Ready for some recipes... I am going to give you recipes for all 4 of the liquids I drink during the cleanse. And each recipe is enough for 1 glass so if you're juicing in bulk every morning, multiply each recipe by however many juices you'll need that day!
Looking for more amazing breakfast ideas? Check out my 100 favorite breakfast recipes here
Juice Cleanse Recipes
Ingredients
For the Green Juice
- 3 leaves kale stem removed and roughly chopped
- 1 handful spinach leaves roughly chopped
- 1 cup chopped romaine lettuce
- 1 bunch parsley roughly chopped
- 1 cup chopped english cucumber
- 2 sticks celery roughly chopped
- 1 whole apple halved and seeds removed
- 1 inch fresh ginger
- 1 whole lemon rind removed
For the Red Juice
- 1 apple, quartered
- 2 red beets, quartered
- 3 large carrots
- 1 orange, rind removed
- 1-inch piece of ginger
- 1 handful fresh spinach
For the Orange Juice
- 9 larget carrots
- 1 orange, rind removed
- 1 apple, quartered
- ⅓ cup fresh pineapple chunks
- ½ lemon, rind removed
- 1-inch turmeric root
For the Strawberry Almond Milk
- ½ cup unsalted raw almonds
- 2 cups water
- ½ tablespoon agave nectar
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ vanilla bean, seeds removed
- 3 strawberries, hulled
Instructions
For the Green Juice
- Place ingredients for the green juice into a juicer and juice!
For the Red juice
- Place ingredients for the green juice into a juicer and juice!
For the Orange Juice
- Place ingredients for the green juice into a juicer and juice!
For the Strawberry Almond Milk
- Soak the almonds in some water for at least 2 hours
- Drain the almonds and combine them with 2 cups of water, agave nectar, cinnamon, vanilla bean and strawberries in a high powered blender and blend for about 2 minutes until very smooth. No need to strain.
Notes
Nutrition Information
Photo by Matt Armendariz / Food Styling by Adam Pearson / Recipe from What’s Gaby Cooking
Hi there,
Just started your cleanse today on Juice #3, thanks for posting the recipes! Quick question, what if you're not hungry the two hours between the juices, is it better to keep drinking them to get all the nutrients, or okay to skip?
So far, all the juices taste great!!
I skip sometimes for sure!! Just do what feels right for your body 🙂
Great recipes, but it would be helpful if you listed the volume per serving. We made the orange juice following your recipe and got ~600 mL. How many servings (or 'glasses') is that?
This may be a silly question, but would this cleanse be recommended for people of any size? I am a fairly petite person (about 110 lbs.) and am worried that this may be too much for me, as I'm not a huge eater to begin with.
Hi Amy! I'm not sure since I'm not a trained nutritionist - my best advice would be to work in a few juices a day and see how you feel before attempting a whole day of juicing!! Hope this helps 🙂
This is super awesome, thanks for sharing the step by step. I've been doing various cleanses for years and am starting one next week. And I love to incorporate a few days of juicing the middle, so this makes my life so much easier and less expensive! Making them is so much tastier too!
Etsy has sooooo many straws! Which ones do you recommend?
omg they are all amazing! It's like going down a rabbit hole when I order them. I don't think you can go wrong with any but these ones are so freaking cute: http://www.etsy.com/listing/150189698/strawberry-shortcake-party-straws-30?ref=shop_home_active
OMG adorable..........and will make drinking my smoothies so much fun! Do you ever order the BPA free ones? I would imagine the plastic ones would be a b---- to clean!
Gabby, I am so glad I found your website. All your juice recipes are delicious! Thank you! Jeanne Thomson
How long do you juice for? sorry if you already answered and missed it? I know you said you do it every 2 tp 3 months, but do you juice for a whole week?
thanks
Lo
nvm totally missed that section thanks.
HI Gaby, I love juicing and these recipes look delicious but I also worry about the left over pulp. Do use it for any other recipes or compost or do you just throw it away? It always seems like a such a waste to me but maybe there are no nutrients left in it anyway? Thanks for the help!
I compost it!!
Gaby I missed this post the first time around and I agree with everything you said and this is a great post! I have stopped buying cleanses and just do my own juicing and my juices fall into the green and/or pink/red/orange and then the creamywhite bedtime juice categories. Head hungry. That is such a perfect way to describe day 1. And yes to the pre-cleanse stuff. I tried to get off coffee AND do a cleanse at the same time about 2 yrs ago. I was literally going thru the worst caff withdrawals and was head hungry. Can you say hot mess so I've since learned to go into cleanses way more prepared and in a better place. Love love this post!
Can I ise a blender for all the juices?
absolutely!
I plan on trying this. When you say you do the cleanse for 5-6 days, do I do the juicing 5-6 and do 3 pre and 3 post pre days? This would be a total of 12 days? Right? Thank you for posting this.
yup! I usually do 2-3 days of pre, 5-6 days of juice, and then 2-3 days of post!! Good luck! Keep me posted
I like your idea of prepearing for juicing and exiting from it. Sure, it's not easy and not healthy to jump straight to juicing without preparation. That's why so many people give it up because of hunger breaks, headaches and various side effects. Exiting from juicing detox is also not less important than preparation. I agree with you, your mind is so clear and your body wants to fly after juicing. It's great! I like it also.
I'd like to try this but I don't have a juicer. Do you think blending would work as well?
yes! a blender would totally work!
Hey Gaby!
Just wondering what sort of meals to eat on the pre-cleanse? For lunch and dinner (without cheating with rice or pasta !) thanks!
I know this is a silly question, but where can I find those adorable straws?!
I also wanted to say thank you for the juicing info! I start my actual juicing on Sunday and am doing the Pre juice stuff beginning tomorrow! Fridge is all stocked up! Thanx again!
woot woot! good luck with the juice! The straws are just from Etsy! Search for cute straws and about 1 million options will show up and you can pick your fav colors and designs 🙂
Whoop! Thanx