The 2013 Dirty Dozen and Clean Fifteen:

Aside from the fact that juiced fruits and vegetables have very low calories and no fat, they are loaded with a variety of high quality vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and enzymes that help your body function at its best. Our bodies spend a good deal of time trying to repair, detoxify and protect cells. When we are undernourished our bodies go into protection mode and store fat for survival (yay, survival instincts, not). But, when your body is functioning at it’s at peak condition and being nourished it can focus energy on fat loss. Juicing delivers a concentrated health cocktail straight into your belly. No extra effort is needed to break down the juice and so it is absorbed quickly and starts working magic immediately.

Keys to weight-loss success while juicing:

Juice mostly vegetables and herbs while limiting fruit. Yes, fruit makes it taste so delicious and yummy! Yes, fruit sugar is better than refined table sugar… but it’s still sugar and will still cause spikes in your insulin and if your body cannot clear those sugars out they will convert to fat stores. Also, watch how many carrots you use, those sneaky guys have a lot of sugar too.

Save juicing fruits for before and/or after workouts. For the same principle as above, when you work out your body becomes primed for using glucose (sugar).

Skip snacking and start juicing. It seems that people always get hungry between meals. The solution to avoid noshing on things you probably shouldn’t be eating right before dinner is to juice up a big green glass of goodness. Hopefully the liquid will tide you over until your next meal or at least gets your brain thinking about health-conscious snacks.

Snack while juicing. Not on cheese and crackers or anything man made but on the vegetables you are getting ready to juice. Sometimes our brains like chewing and feeling food in our mouths and tummies, give it that satisfaction while nurturing you.

Healthy habits don’t end with juicing. Whether you are having 1 juice a day or 10, remember that beyond your green mason jar, you need to be eating healthy all day long. It kind of defeats the purpose of juicing for weight loss when you eat a big bowl of sugary cereal for breakfast, pizza for lunch and burgers and fries for dinner.

Fill up on fresh juice before meals or going out. Even though juice is digested quickly and doesn’t leave you full for long, your hunger may be quenched by the nutrients more than the feeling of full.

Vary you veggies. Two ways that this works: you don’t get bored and you get a variety of nutrients.

Add chia seeds, avocado, or oils. Healthy fats and fibers are not only good for you, but will keep you fuller longer. No one wants to diet, or live with someone who is dieting, who has a big hungry monster in their belly.

Create lasting healthy habits:

Remember, let juicing be your caveat for healthy living. If you are taking the time to wash, chop and juice fresh fruits and vegetables than you should be making time to prep and cook healthy homemade meals.

Some people start cold turkey with a juice fast. Others like to test the water with one, slowly adding more as they feel necessary. If you prefer to start with a balanced, nutrition-rich eating plan, you will find that having at least one glass of vegetable juice per day will make it easier to reach your weight loss goals in the long run. Try replacing your morning, afternoon, or before-bed snack with a juice and you are on your way! And remember, we are in this together.

Morning-time concoction:

• 1 beet
• 1 pink lady apple
• 1 small slice of ginger

Before dinner:

• 4 tomatoes
• 2 green onions
• ½ green pepper
• 2 carrots
• 2 celery ribs
• Handful of parsley
• Handful of cilantro
• 1 peeled lemon

Before bed:

• 2 cucumbers
• 4 romaine lettuce leaves
• Handful of mint
• (+lime if you want a mojito)

The content above was borrowed from https://www.facebook.com/VegetableJuicing. Encourage you to check out the page.

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Bananas contain three natural sugars – sucrose, fructose and glucose combined with fiber. A banana gives an instant, sustained and substantial boost of energy.

Research has proven that just two bananas provide enough energy for a strenuous 90-minute workout. No wonder the banana is the number one fruitwith the world’s leading athletes.

But energy isn’t the only way a banana can help us keep fit. It can also help overcome or prevent a substantial number of illnesses and conditions, making it a must to add to our daily diet.

DEPRESSION:
According to a recent survey undertaken by MIND amongst people suffering from depression, many felt much better after eating a banana. This is because bananas contain tryptophan, a type of protein that the body converts into serotonin, known to make you relax, improve your mood and generally make you feel happier.

PMS:
Forget the pills – eat a banana. The vitamin B6 it contains regulates blood glucose levels, which can affect your mood.

ANEMIA:
High in iron, bananas can stimulate the production of hemoglobin in the blood and so helps in cases of anemia.

BLOOD PRESSURE:
This unique tropical fruit is extremely high in potassium yet low in salt, making it perfect to beat blood pressure So much so, the US Food and Drug Administration has just allowed the banana industry to make official claims for the fruit’s ability to reduce the risk of blood pressure and stroke.

BRAIN POWER:
200 students at a Twickenham school ( England ) were helped through their exams this year by eating bananas at breakfast, break, and lunch in a bid to boost their brain power. Research has shown that the potassium-packed fruit can assist learning by making pupils more alert.

CONSTIPATION:
High in fiber, including bananas in the diet can help restore normal bowel action, helping to overcome the problem without resorting to laxatives.

HANGOVERS:
One of the quickest ways of curing a hangover is to make a banana milkshake, sweetened with honey. The banana calms the stomach and, with the help of the honey, builds up depleted blood sugar levels, while the milk soothes and re-hydrates your system.

HEARTBURN:
Bananas have a natural antacid effect in the body, so if you suffer from heartburn, try eating a banana for soothing relief.

MORNING SICKNESS:
Snacking on bananas between meals helps to keep blood sugar levels up and avoid morning sickness.

MOSQUITO BITES:
Before reaching for the insect bite cream, try rubbing the affected area with the inside of a banana skin. Many people find it amazingly successful at reducing swelling and irritation.

NERVES:
Bananas are high in B vitamins that help calm the nervous system..

Overweight and at work? Studies at the Institute of Psychology in Austria found pressure at work leads to gorging on comfort food like chocolate and chips. Looking at 5,000 hospital patients, researchers found the most obese were more likely to be in high-pressure jobs. The report concluded that, to avoid panic-induced food cravings, we need to control our blood sugar levels by snacking on high carbohydrate foods every two hours to keep levels steady.

ULCERS:
The banana is used as the dietary food against intestinal disorders because of its soft texture and smoothness. It is the only raw fruit that can be eaten without distress in over-chroniclercases. It also neutralizes over-acidity and reduces irritation by coating the lining of the stomach.

TEMPERATURE CONTROL:
Many other cultures see bananas as a ‘cooling’ fruit that can lower both the physical and emotional temperature of expectant mothers. In Thailand , for example, pregnant women eat bananas to ensure their baby is born with a cool temperature.

So, a banana really is a natural remedy for many ills. When you compare it to an apple, it has FOUR TIMES the protein, TWICE the carbohydrate, THREE TIMES the phosphorus, five times the vitamin A and iron, and twice the other vitamins and minerals.. It is also rich in potassium and is one of the best value foods around So maybe its time to change that well-known phrase so that we say, ‘A BANANA a day keeps the doctor away!’

[Note: The content for this specific blog post was copied from https://www.facebook.com/VegetableJuicing. Great page and encourage you to also follow it.]

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Here are seven health benefits of quinoa:

1. Quinoa is one of the most protein-rich foods we can eat. It is a complete protein containing all nine essential amino acids.

2. Quinoa contains almost twice as much fiber as most other grains. Fiber is most widely known to relieve constipation. It also helps to prevent heart disease by reducing high blood pressure and diabetes. Fiber lowers cholesterol and glucose levels, may lower your risk of developing hemorrhoids and may help you to lose weight as it takes a longer time to chew than does other foods because it makes you feel fuller for longer and is less “energy dense” which means it has fewer calories for the same volume of food.

3. Quinoa contains Iron. Iron helps keep our red blood cells healthy and is the basis of hemoglobin formation. Iron carries oxygen from one cell to another and supplies oxygen to our muscles to aid in their contraction. Iron also increases brain function because the brain takes in about 20% of our blood oxygen. There are many benefits of iron some more of which include neurotransmitter synthesis, regulation of body temperature, aids enzyme activity and energy metabolism.

4. Quinoa contains lysine. Lysine is mainly essential for tissue growth and repair.

5. Quinoa is rich in magnesium. Magnesium helps to relax blood vessels and thereby to alleviate migraines. Magnesium also may reduce Type 2 diabetes by promoting healthy blood sugar control. Other health benefits of magnesium include transmission of nerve impulses, body temperature regulation, detoxification, energy production, and the formation of healthy bones and teeth.

6. Quinoa is high in Riboflavin (B2). B2 improves energy metabolism within brain and muscle cells and is known to help create proper energy production in cells.

7. Quinoa has a high content of manganese. Manganese is an antioxidant, which helps to prevent damage of mitochondria during energy production as well as to protect red blood cells and other cells from injury by free radicals.

So where do we get this much needed fuel if it didn’t at one point have a heart beat?

Answer is here in this great article on protein alternatives from UW-Madison. I personally didn’t know there were so many!

Click here to open the pdf.

Next question is “how much protein do I need?”

There are some pretty long-winded answers to this question based on age, gender, and fitness level, but here’s a good visual for you to adhere too – with protein taking up 1/4 or less of your plate.

My favorite protein source is quinoa. Here’s a new favorite quinoa salad recipe of mine for you to try.

To make my life easier (since January is also the time when we make excuses and back out of our resolutions), I prepped all of the ingredients at once and used gallons baggies to store each juice’s ingredients. When I first learned of this approach, thought it was a bit crazy, but when I think through the time savings and the removal of excuses, it made total sense. Next time, may even invite some pals over for us all to prep our juices together – gives a whole new meaning to “LEAN assembly line”.

Here’s the recipe. Would love to hear what you think of it and any benefits you have seen.

Use romaine, red leaf lettuce, endive, escarole, two to three leaves of red cabbage, young inner beet tops, Swiss chard, a quarter of a small green pepper and watercress. Add one medium apple when grinding. Get as many of these ingredients as possible. If not able to find all of these organic items, do NOT use substitutes, such as spinach or celery. Put into your juicer. After which, for an additional benefit, add some ground* chia or flaxseeds and drink immediately since the enzymes will die quickly.

*Tip: Buy whole seeds and have a dedicated coffee grinder to grind them. No need to spend 4 times more for already ground seeds. Plus, then they will be fresher .