This week I’m embarking on a five day juice detox. Six juices a day, no food, just juice. Sounds extreme doesn’t it?!!! OK well maybe a little but I feel I need something like this to kick start my life in a healthier direction. These past six months of my life have been a roller-coaster, I’ve been in and out of hospital for neurological tests and the experience has been both mentally and physically draining and I’ve clocked up a lot of sofa hours! Needless to say all this resting has led to endless eating, picking at food, baking and turning into a crazy cat lady, thus making my bum huge and clothes all that much tighter.

I’m not doing this detox as a quick fix weight loss plan but as a way to hopefully feel a little bit better than I currently do now, structure my intake and then hopefully drop a few pounds. I’m thinking that once I do complete this epic juice challenge then I can continue and focus my energy into a healthier way of life. I’m actually excited but we’ll see how long this enthusiasm lasts but right now I feel pumped!!

The Juice detox I’ll be doing is by Soulmatefood.com named the Ultimate Juice Cleanse.

Pre detox freak outs

1– Scary reality check. Scales reached an all time high and my clothes no longer fit, how did this happen?

2– Question ; How much comfort food is too much comfort food?

– Answer about one and a half stone ago!

3– Can I really do this? Five days of juice no food! How crazy will I get?

4 – What if I don’t like the juices? too late.

Let’s see tomorrow ……..

 

DAY ONE

 

It’s finally arrived and I’m starving and also quite nervous about this challenge!

Thirty numbered bottle all lined up in my fridge, it took me about 10 seconds to crack open the first bottle, verdict, NICE!!! This looks promising. The hardest thing will be having to spread these out through the day, they look too tempting!

 

Juice One – Carrot, orange, ginger and Superfoods. Zingy and fresh.

Juice Two – Pineapple, banana and coconut. Again YUM!!!! This one is thicker so it’s more filling.

Juice Three – Antioxidant blend, cherries and mixed berries. Another slightly thick juice, sipping it this time to make it last.

Juice Four – Apple, beetroot and blackcurrant.  Earthy, I can really taste the beets! The initial taste is very raw but after a few sips it soon is balanced with a sweet apple and currant flavour.

Juice Five – Orange, mango and passion-fruit. I just wish I had more of this! The fact that each juice is so different in flavour makes this detox so much easier.

Juice Six – Strawberry, banana, grape and orange.  Thick like a smoothie and as tasty as the rest.

 

DAY TWO

Hungry hungry hippo. I think because I’m so used to eating lots so feels like quite a shock to the system.  Today was quite hard but I didn’t give up.

 

DAY THREE

Skin starting to feel fresher, eyes feel brighter. Still had the odd hunger pangs but the juices do fill me up for a little bit.  I didn’t quite realise how much I structure my day around food, this is a bit of a wake up call and I’m looking forward to the changes ahead.

 

DAY FOUR

I’m so glad I have made it this far, I feel a lot better than  yesterday! As I am quite restricted with my daily activity because of my head situation, I’m quite pleasantly surprised to have bursts of energy. I’m still very restricted with what I can do, day to day, as I’m suffering from neurological pressure  pains and exhaustion but with this detox any extra energy I can get is SUCH a bonus for me.

 

 DAY FIVE

It’s the last day!  Today I feel great, my skin feels fresh, my eyes feel bright and I am full of energy. Yes I am dreaming about what I will eat tomorrow and yes I have really missed my meals but I won’t go crazy. I don’t want to stop feeling this good, lets hope this is the start of a thinner healthier Hannah.

 

RESULTS

So the detox is over and it’s a good feeling. Not just because I get to eat solids again but my body feel fab, skin is smooth and fresh, even my eyes feel like they’ve been washed! I’m very much looking forward to taking on board what I have learnt from this experience and how I can feel so good with a little discipline.

I have lost 5lbs and I’m very happy about that, I still have a way to go and I don’t want to ruin the work that I’ve done so I need to careful in what I eat now. Soulmatefood have provided some kind words of advice on post detox diets that I will make sure I try and still too.

Was it hard? – For me yes, I eat a lot of food and generally comfort food so it was a shock. Each day did get easier and I’ve actually enjoyed it.

Would I do it again? – I think so, even though it was tough for me I think if I was healthy enough to be busy all day then it would be so much easier. I think it’s a perfect detox before a special occasion or pre- holiday prep.

If you’re thinking of taking on this challenge, I’d say, give it a go, nothing feels better than day four and five!!!