Juice Cleanse 101

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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!

Juice Cleanse 101 from www.whatsgabycooking.com (@whatsgabycookin)

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 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.

Juice Cleanse 101 from www.whatsgabycooking.com (@whatsgabycookin)

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

5 from 6 votes
The 4 juices I love to drink when I'm juice cleansing!
Prep Time 5 mins
Cook Time 0 mins
Total Time 5 mins
Course Drinks
Cuisine American
Servings 1 person

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
  • 1/3 cup fresh pineapple chunks
  • 1/2 lemon, rind removed
  • 1-inch turmeric root

For the Strawberry Almond Milk

  • 1/2 cup unsalted raw almonds
  • 2 cups water
  • 1/2 tbsp agave nectar
  • 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 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.

Photo by Matt Armendariz / Food Styling by Adam Pearson / Recipe from What’s Gaby Cooking

321 Comments

  1. It’s pretty clear that I need my own Breville Juicer. I’d love to be able to create my own 3-day cleanse once in a while. Thanks for those recipes!!! So I’m on the 4th day right now of a 6-day juice cleanse. You would have totally laughed at me yesterday- I was filming the video trailer for my cookbook and had to pretend to be eating things that I was making all day long. It was hysterical. I actually took a bite of my red velvet cake and then had to spit it into a napkin, lol! I didn’t want to ruin my cleanse!! I totally agree that the pre and post are important. And I love the amazing feeling I have after a cleanse. Thanks to YOU for introducing me to cleansing in the first place 🙂

    1. rock on Lori!!! Love that you’re going strong!! And I’ve totally done the same thing for filming before! Hysterical 🙂

  2. Recently, I’ve been seeing a lot of posts on Facebook about people having success with juicing. I was just thinking to myself this morning… what kindof juices are they drinking?! I’ve tried many on the Williams-Sonoma website, but several of them are down right nasty. And others don’t really seem that healthy.

    Thanks for the step-by-step tutorial. I am going to give this a try. I’ll make sure I tell EVERYONE about it, so I get the full health benefits 🙂

    Brandon

    1. I usually make them in bulk and then keep them for 2 days max. Otherwise they get a little funky! 🙂

    2. just want to share. I juice and I use the vaccum sealer. mine has the jar sealer. mine keep for at least 5 days

  3. this is SUCH an awesome post, Gaby. I love how detailed it is and it really does uncover the truth about juicing and how to do it, etc. I’ve always been so curious about it and I really do want to try a pre-wedding cleanse. I’m going to have to make some of these juices from you and give it a shot! You’re such a trooper for being able to do 6 DAYS!!

  4. These look great! Unfortunately I don’t have a juicer and my budget definitely won’t allow for one right now. Can you think of an alternative? Would a blender work? Thanks!

    1. yes!! I exercise the whole time!! But I don’t go do crazy things like rock climb… more spinning and yoga etc 🙂

  5. I have never tried to juice but really want to. I ordered a 3 day Blue Print juice cleanse to do next week. If I like it I want to buy a juicer and make my own next time.,,and I will use your recipes 🙂

    1. I love blue print!! They cashew milk is soooooo good!! I always feel like it’s such a treat to drink that at the end of the day! Good luck! xo

  6. Such dedication! I loooove juicing but I’m not sure I have enough self control to do it as a cleanse haha One question, do you make the juice and drink it right away or do you make big batches and store it to drink over three days? I heard if you make bigger batches the juice can lose it’s nutrients after like an hour, do you know if that’s true??

    1. I juice every morning to make enough to last me through the day! I think it’s true that juices can lose some of their nutrients if they are sitting around for too long – but I find that just doing them each morning totally works!! And then I just store them in air tight containers until it’s time to drink!

  7. Gaby, I will juice every now and then when I felt it was time to clean the pipes and love the healthy feeling from it when I do. I am having surgery soon and plan to cleanse post-surgery and can’t wait to use your recipes! I am wondering if you could post some of your recipes for pre and post-cleanse? Thank you!

    1. Hey Theresa!

      Good luck with surgery first of all!

      And yes – I’ll be posting a BUNCH of the healthy recipes in the coming weeks. A lot of them already live in the “healthy/figure friendly” section on my recipe index… but I’ve got more coming for SURE!!

      XO

    2. Thanks! I noticed your healthy recipes after I sent my comment. I am so excited to start making your dishes! I love your site- Thank you for sharing such wonderful creative good food!

    3. These look amazing. Any chance you could put up a grocery list for three days juicing with these juices??
      Thanks for the recipes and being so open to sharing your skills and experiences.
      Kaz

    1. I usually keep most of it off! Like if I loose 6 lbs… I only gain 1 back usually. But I’m also eating much “cleaner” post cleanse too!

  8. I’m curious to know why you don’t juice everyday….. I wonder if juicing and eating normal health food everyday would give me the same results. And if juicing gives you so much energy and clarity, why don’t you drink everyday?

    1. Hey Paola!

      I love juicing, and I do usually make a green juice once a day… but I also love eating, so I like to incorporate the two!

  9. Soo….what does day 1-3 and 6-9 of pre and post look like? I need to do this and i love juicing! And I need a serious cleanse after the holidays and a month of travel. I drink detox tea and hot water with lemon….but need a week of a cleanse! Tips welcome 🙂

    1. I do all fruits and veggies for pre and post! no booze, caffeine or sugar! Or meat 🙂 So just lots of salads, green tea, and fruits!

  10. Wow. Now that I’ve done the three day cleanse I can see what you’re talking about. I think just jumping into the cleanse (which I did) was pretty intense and I’ll make sure to do the pre-game warm up next time. Thanks for the great recipes! Time to start saving up for a juicer!

    1. I just watched Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead. I am pre-diabetic and already on Metformin. I need to drop 200 pounds so I decided to jump in and try this juice cleanse.

      I do wish I had found YOUR site before I started the 3-day cleanse this week! I’m on the first day still (and all 3 days of juices made up already) and I did NOT to a pre-warmup so I’m a little nervous about what might happen. 🙁 Guess I’ll tough it out though as I have no choice now. But if I make it through this 3 days alive (haha) I will definitely try some of your recipes and to the pre- and post-cleanses as well. That makes logical sense…just wish I had thought of it yesterday. lol

  11. Gaby this is super inspiring and helpful… I’ve just started my first three day juice fast, not easy but I am sure it’ll be worthy

  12. I’m new to juicing- but I just got the Breville slow juicer! Do you make a larger batch to drink for the day or do you make a new drink each time? I work and go to school currently- so making a new drink every few hours doesn’t seem possible. Thanks 😉

    1. I made big batches at the beginning of each day!! That way I only have to clean the juicer once 🙂 Have fun juicing!!

    1. Hi Mary! You can totally use your vitamix but it will be more like a smoothie! Still equally as delicious – but it won’t be just juice. Which actually means you’ll be getting more fiber which is great!

  13. Making my list of veggies and wondering if you use raw beets oppose to cooked? I suppose it wouldnt be easy juicing cooked beets? 🙂

    1. raw beets 🙂 Nothing is cooked so you keep all the nutrients in tact! Happy juicing! if you have any other questions – don’t hesitate to email!!

  14. I went to a few different produce stores and didn’t have any luck finding Turmeric root and found the powder instead. Any suggestions for a substitute or can I just give the drink a dash of Turmeric? 😉

  15. I have a question: I have a blender only, and no juicer. Is it still a ‘cleanse’ if it’s just straight-up the whole vegetables blended together into like a smoothie? I feel like it might be equivalent because of the extra nutrients, fiber, etc., but wondered what you thought.
    Awesome recipes, by the way! On my second day of drinking them as smoothies and they’re fantastic. I love the green one 🙂

    1. Hey Molly! It’s totally still a cleanse if you use a blender rather than a juicer! I think that’s actually better because you are getting more fiber as you said. Glad to hear that you’re loving it!! I bet you feel great 🙂

  16. Starting the pre-cleanse today and I can’t wait to follow your juicing plan! I loved fat, sick and nearly dead and ended up here after a quick google search!

    Can’t wait 🙂

  17. Do you work while you do the juice fast? I work crazy hours and am trying to figure out how I can balance juicing and keeping up my energy with 12 hour shifts… Any advice?

    1. Hi Charisa,

      Yes, I work while juicing. I usually start my cleanses on Saturday so I have 2 days to be at home before going back to work on Monday!

      And the juice actually gives you a lot of energy 🙂 Sometimes if my energy is super low at work, I’ll snack on some celery 🙂

      Hope this helps!

  18. Hey! I’m planning to follow your plan next week. Super excited to try your Almond Milk recipe. Do you happen to know the daily calorie count on this plan?

  19. HI! I was so excited to find your juice plan. I am planning to do a juice cleanse next week. Really excited to try out the almond milk. Yum! One question, roughly how many calories a day do you intake on this plan?

  20. Hi there! i was just wondering how expensive all of these ingredients will be? would you say you spend more or save more when you cleanse? thanks!

    1. Soooooo I think I spend less in groceries… maybe $40 a day? But I do spend a lot of time cleaning the juicer… which is painful, but what can ya do! It also depends if I can get things at my farmers market since that’s cheaper than the regular grocery store. But a cleanse in LA is about $70 a day, so I’m saving some money by juicing at home!

  21. I cook for my whole family, 3 meals per day for everyone. My husband works long hours and my kids are not old enough to make their own meals. I’m worried that I won’t have the willpower to stick with it while I am preparing all that yummy food for everyone else. Any tips for staying on course?

    1. Hi Lori! What if you made some dishes ahead of time and kept them in the freezer? That way you could just pull them out, pop them in the oven, and you dont have to cook them for the few days you’re juicing? That’s what I’d do 🙂

  22. Gaby, I am new to your site and just love your insights and commentary. I see you are using the new Breville vertical juicer and just wanted to comment that their are also multi-purpose juicer options that offer the slow juicing abilities and can do nut butters and baby food! Check out the Omega Nutrition Center juicers, not too spendy and they look nice too!

  23. Hi Gaby,

    I am totally new to juicing although I have been on a few water fasts before. I really love your article and would like to thank you so much for it. Your recipes sound so delicious, I have finally decided to start a 6 days juicing (plus preparation of course) but I just have a quick question. I understand that your juices are mainly sweet and cold(right)? How would you recommand to go about juicing some vegs with hot water to make it more like a soup, at least for 2 or 3 of the meals? It’s just for the salt craving people like me… 6 days of sweet juices can be a bit long…
    Waiting to read your reply 🙂

    1. Hi Dee,

      I’ve never tried making the juices more soupy – and yes they are all cold. I think the only thing I can see with the hot juices is that steaming or simmering the veggies kills some of the nutrients – but that said – I still think it would work for juicing! I say give it a go! Let me know for sure 🙂

      Hope this helps!

  24. Hi Gaby,
    Just wondering if it’s ok to add tofu or any other protein source to the juices? If so, will they still be effective for a cleanse? Thanks!

    1. Hi Dawn,

      hmmmm that’s a good question. I’m not sure. I’ve never tried it or see it with protein – so my guess it that would alter the results. I’ll ask around and see if I can get an answer!

  25. Hello! How do I add beets to the juice? They are tough to cut raw, should they first be boiled? Also I work out pretty hard at the gym, should I do lighter workouts so as not to faint or you think I will be just fine? Thanks!!

    1. Hi Jen – just chop up the raw beets and add them to the juicer!!

      I usually decrease the intensity of my workout during a cleanse so I don’t over-do it! But you’ll know what feels best for your body – so I’d just trust yourself! Good luck~

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