Cleansing with Just Organic Juices and a Juice Cleanse GIVEAWAY!

Outdoor Sports Guide recently began partnered with Just Organic Juices, a local SLC-based company that delivers fresh, organic juice to your door on a daily, weekly, biweekly, monthly, or one-time schedule. They are Utah's only USDA-certified organic juicer and they juice every day to ensure your order is fresh when you receive it!

Just Organic Juices sells juice a-la-carte online or you can choose their one-, three-, or five-day cleanse. All juices are delivered for free to your home and office if you reside in or near Salt Lake. JOJ invited me to take one of their organic juice cleanses for a test drive and I was eager to try it out! Since I have tried other cleanses in the past, I elected to try the five-day cleanse to maximize my results.

I began my cleanse the day after returning from a four-day vacation to Seattle and Victoria during which I consumed a steady diet of coffee and chocolate. I knew that falling off the health wagon all weekend would not make the cleanse easier, but I was determined to start on Tuesday. The juice delivery came late Monday night and I ate a big dinner, knowing I wouldn't be having solid food again for a few days.

How It Works
The cleanse system is simple to follow. Each day you drink six bottles of juice while consuming water and organic herbal tea if you like. The bottles are numbered and you need to drink them in sequential order to  get the full benefit. Drink each bottle about 2-3 hours apart and drink water along the way. You will drink the same series for every day you cleanse.

Bottle 1: Green Envy- Spinach, cucumber, parsley, celery, dandelion, apple, pear, lemon, ginger: I must have been highly toxic because I felt a bit sick after drinking this. I soon started feeling better though and completed a few hours at work before moving on to Bottle 2. The rest of the cleanse I really enjoyed drinking this juice.

Bottle 2: LemonAID- Lemons, water, cayenne pepper, and agave: This light, refreshing drink was delicious! If you know much about the lemon water cleanse, people subsist on this combo (with maple syrup) for days or weeks at a time. I am NOT one of those people, but I really enjoyed the taste and felt energized after drinking it.

Bottle 3: chloroFEELgood-Spinach, romaine lettuce, parsley, kale, green apple: This juice had my least favorite flavor, but how can you possibly make this combination tasty?  The chlorophyll molecules are similar to human blood, which is why these foods are called blood builders. This drink is designed to boost energy while detoxifying and the fiber helps remove toxins from your body. I got a headache soon after drinking this the first time. (I'm guessing from the caffeine detox.)

Bottle 4: Coconut Water-Young coconut water: I drink coconut water all the time, but I have never had one that tastes as great as this! It has a strong coconut flavor without being too sweet. The high electrolytes made it perfect to drink before my p.m. yoga class. (Intense exercise is not advised on the juice cleanse, but yoga and pilates are recommended.)

Bottle 5: BEET-It-Carrot, apple, beet, lemon, ginger: I like the flavor of beets, but this juice wowed me! I was kinda sad when I finished drinking the bottle. Not only does it taste great, it has great health and detoxification benefits. Beet juice can increase energy, help protect you from heart disease and cancer, and cleanse the liver.

Bottle 6: Almond Delight-raw almonds, filtered water, cinnamon, agave: My favorite drink of the cleanse! This creamy, dessert-like treat is a great way to end the evening. It tasted like rice pudding in liquid form and I savored every creamy drop. If you continue intense athletic pursuits during your cleanse, add an extra of these to your order. Each bottle contains 430 calories and 16g of protein. I wouldn't drink these every day because of the high fat content, but they keep you nourished during a cleanse and are an all-natural way to recover after workouts.

First day of cleanse

My Cleanse Experience
On Day 1, my head throbbed so much that I went to bed early. If you read Just Organic Juice's website, you'll see that reactions like these are common in the early stages of cleansing. On Day 2, I had no negative reactions and actually began to feel the brain fog lift and my energy return.

On Day 3 I cheated a little. I had brought a delicious, perfectly ripe pear that I'd bought in Seattle home with me. I knew if I didn't eat it today it would go bad. So I peeled it and ate it as a lunchtime treat. I can honestly say that I don't really feel hungry today and am looking forward to my favorite juices tonight. I feel energized and my mind seems a lot clearer too.

Day 4 and 5 went well and my primary side effect was feeling really cold all day! On Day 5 I decided to do a Body Pump workout class, so I added in an extra Cacao Almond Milk (so amazing) and a wheat grass shot to my order. So glad to have both on that day! I needed it.

I missed eating solid food on the cleanse, but didn't feel hungry almost at all. However, now that I am back on regular food I feel much warmer!

End of fourth day of cleanse

After five days of continuous cleansing I did a final weigh in on the scale. I lost 7.5 pounds, almost a whole size in pants, and many inches off my legs and waist. I have also noticed that even my face seems thinner. Overall, I enjoyed the cleanse and felt like it was a great way to get nutrition back into my body before the chaos of the holidays truly begins.

If it's your first time cleansing, I would recommend going no longer than a three-day because the five-day is very challenging. That said, most of the challenge is mental and comes from trying to avoid food and eating situations in general. The per-day cost for a cleanse is a bit expensive, but remember that that you will not be needing to buy food or groceries the whole time you are on it! A one-day cleanse is $60, three days $180, and five days $300.

For the holidays, Just Organic Juices is offering 10% off gift cards. This is a great time to buy if you need a gift for someone! Below you can also enter to win a three-day Just Organic Juice Cleanse!

Win a Juice Cleanse from Just Organic Juices!
Are you ready to try a Just Organic Juices cleanse for yourself? Enter our giveaway below. You can earn extra entries too! This giveaway is open to residents of the Salt Lake and Park City areas, as the juice is delivered fresh to your home. If you live in another part of Utah and want to pick up the juice at their Salt Lake store, that is fine too!

You MUST leave a comment on the blog and become our fan on Facebook below to be entered to win in this giveaway. Clicking that you commented and not commenting will disqualify your entry. All the other entries are optional, but the first two are required. 

Winner will be selected on Tuesday, December 18, 2012.


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