Even the best of health magazines and forums cannot rob Skeeter of her love for fresh, natural juices. Most health experts tell you to eat the whole fruit than squeezing out the juice. They have their reasons (fiber loss and so on) but Skeeter prefers to turn deaf. A hygienic juice bar round the corner? Count Skeets in! In the bits of Western and Southern India that Skeeter has visited, juices are fresh and aplenty, colas are less prevalent and seasonal fruits are a celebrity in their own right. And Skeeter’s take is that as long as it is not canned and tetra-packed and so on, is freshly squeezed and tastes good, well, go for it!
Cold pressed juices are a hit with overseas cousins going ga-ga over them. When Just Pressed offered Skeeter a sampler of Cold Pressed Craft juices that they bottle after juicing them in a Norwalk juicer, Skeeter agreed. Now Skeeter’s not used to fasting but the thought of giving her system a break with juices was tempting.
The cleanse
Skeeter started her day with warm honey, lemon water followed by SOAK. A green coloured juice, not very great to look at, it had the goodness of Pineapple, Celery, Cucumber, Spinach, Collard, Kale, Lemon, Ginger and Wheatgrass. Skeeter sipped it cautiously and found that the pineapple, cucumber, lemon and ginger gave it a kick and saved the day. For someone, who’s used to starting her day with milky tea this was quite a departure. The no-solids food plan needs a solid will power. Several times during the day, Skeeter would almost reach out for something or the other only to be reminded that she is off solids.
ACTIVE was similar minus Pineapple and Wheatgrass with the added freshness of Lettuce, Parsley and Cilantro. Both filled Skeeter up and put her off food too! Too much of green, healthy stuff does that to you Skeeter guesses.
PUMP, Skeeter’s favourite of all the juices, was made up of Coconut Water, Pineapple, Apple, Aloevera, Orange, Mint and Lemongrass. A very refreshing one this. Lifted Skeeter’s mood and spirited and gave her the energy to keep going with the cleanse.
JOLT was next. The kind of juice you’d have at a health bar. Carrot, Apple, Celery, Cucumber, Beetroot, Lemon and Spirulina were there in this bottle. If you are a health freak, this one will leave you happy and satiated.
BOUNCE made for a pre-dinner snack. It had Carrot, Orange, Apple, Pineapple, Lemon, Turmeric and Chia Seed. Bounce was good and had the sharpness of the fresh turmeric root. Something Skeeter is used to having all through winter.
By now Skeeter was used to a fasting body and mind. She could have really skipped CHARGE but then there were heaps of praises all over social networking sites and blogs for charge which is made up of Coconut Meat, Almond, Vanilla, Honey, Cashew, Cinnamon and Chia Seeds. It was filling and akin to a gluten free milk-shake spiked with cinnamon. A complete meal.
VERDICT: A very doable and delicious cleanse. The next day, Skeeter felt light and nice AND motivated enough to take this cleanse up once every now and then!
P.S.:The thing to be noted is that these bottles come with an expiry date (3-days) as they have no additives whatsoever, so do drink up maximum by the second day of receving your cleanse set. And Just Pressed can do custom juices as per your preference as well. All the best!
The only downpoint is the hefty pricing( which Skeeter guesses many may frown at): Rs 1600 for a one-day cleanse. But hey, you pay that kinda money (or more) for one meal at a restaurant eating unhealthy carb-laden food. Why not spend one such amount on your health?
