When we purchased our Vitamix, it included a copy of “The Juice Bar”, which bills itself on having 80 recipes to boost health. Given that only about 15% of individuals eat the recommended serving of fruits and vegetables each day, adding a juice regime is an easy way to quickly boost that number. Studies show that people who eat plenty of fruits and vegetables have a lower risk of developing high blood pressure, heart disease, strokes, obesity, and some cancers.
The book is broken down into chapters on “Jump-start”, “Rehydrate”, “Energy”, “Health”, and “Detox”, after an introduction to juicing and how to properly prepare different fruits and vegetables. Some recipes require a juicer, but many can be prepared in a blender for a smoothie. While the recipes look amazing, the photography and tips are the real winner.
The book is available on Amazon, but today, you could win your own copy. Just fill out the Rafflecopter below.
It’s Day #3 of Shred10. This is usually the day when most people start feeling the detox and may actually feel a little sick. I’ve felt pretty good so far, and have actually been feel full on less food than usual. Here’s the recap of the Shred10 guidelines I am following.
Breakfast
This morning, I blended together unsweetened almond milk, strawberries, blackberries, and chia seeds with some ice for a refreshing smoothie.
Lunch
I had to take my son to the dentist this morning, so we stopped at Qdoba on the way home. I ordered the burrito bowl with brown rice, black beans, adobo chicken, salsa verde, and lettuce. It had been a long time since I was last at Qdoba, and they’ve added quite a few options to their menu. Many of which are quite healthy.
Snack/Dinner
Working from home today, my son wanted to make a smoothie with all the fruit we had on hand. So we blended unsweetened almond milk with Dutch Chocolate Juice Plus+ Complete, strawberries, chia seeds, blackberries, blueberries, and a whole banana.
My son didn’t drink much of his smoothie, so I saved his for later and drank it after our Family Fitness Night.
Family Fitness Night
I’m president of my church’s Ladies Club and we hosted a Family Fitness Night tonight at a local park. I led the kids in a warm up, helped demonstrate the obstacle course, and ran a game of nutrition red light green light. Instead of yelling red light or green light, I would shout out a healthy green light food or an unhealthy red light food. The kids had a fun time learning about new vegetables.
We also led the kids through a yoga story through the jungle and handed out jump ropes, bananas and apples.
Water
Even less water today. Something I need to focus on for sure.
Sleep/Movement
I met the 7 hour sleep goal again, but fell way short of my step goal. Working from home really takes me off my feet as I work at a large campus that requires a bit of walking to get to/from parking and around for meetings.
Conclusion
Nutritionally, I did pretty good today. Ate healthy meals, with lots of fruit. It’s tough to finish all meals before 6pm with a busy family and working full-time, but the key is to try and eat early enough that your body has time to start digestion. My focus tomorrow is WATER!
Over the next 10 days, I’ll be following the guidelines of the Shred10 program and sharing my journey here. What aspect of the program would be most difficult for you? For me, exercise will be a challenge since my husband is out of town and I have 2 small children. I also struggle to drink enough water, so I’ll be focusing on that aspect as well.
Breakfast
I prepared the Mango-chia overnight oatmeal from Sun Basket Sunday evening in preparation for Shred10 starting on Monday. The recipe used almond milk and gluten free oats, making it fit the Shred10 guidelines, and honey is any acceptable sweetener too. The recipe made 2 servings (picture shown is 2 servings – filling 1 pint sized mason jar).
I also started my day with the Juice Plus+ trio and Omega blend. I love how easy it is to get 30 fruits and vegetables, and start my day off nutritionally sound.
I also take the Doterra probiotic and TriEase, as seasonal allergens are on high right now in St Louis.
Lunch
I’m lucky to have access to an amazing cafeteria at work, with lots of healthy options. Today, I went with the salad bar and choose mixed greens with mushrooms, egg, broccoli, grilled chicken, and sunflower seeds.
It was hard for me to stay away from the cheese and roll, but I did it!
Snack/Dinner
I started drinking my 2 shakes around 3pm and continued working on them until the 6pm cutoff, counting as a snack and my dinner. I made my shakes at home before work and left in the fridge during the day. My favorite preparation is to shake the Juice Plus+ Complete powder with unsweetened almond milk and chia seeds. The chia seeds take on some of the milk and make the shake more like a milk shake. Delicious!
Water
I drank 60 oz, just short of my 70 oz goal. I like the Hydra Coach app to track my water. It breaks down your goal during the day, so you can see if you’re on track and will give you notifications if you’re falling behind.
Sleep / Movement
I use my Garmin Vivoactive to track my sleep and steps. I did very good on sleep, going to bed early Sunday night. But fell short of my step goal and didn’t do any organized fitness activity.
Conclusion
Day #1 went pretty well, just need to find a way to add more movement during the day.
Thursday evening, my friend Sherry hosted a Taste of the Shred event, to highlight food that is approved during Shred10 (see my post here for more information on the Shred10 program). She asked each guest to bring a dish that fulfilled the Shred10 guidelines of no dairy, no gluten, no added sugars, no caffeine, no processed foods, and no alcohol. We had a large spread of fresh fruits, vegetables, and prepared dishes.
As people gathered, we snacked on hummus with gluten-free crackers and asparagus, and grapes. Sherry had prepared a beautiful lemon-lime infused water, along with a decaf peppermint tea.
Many children were in attendance as well, and they enjoyed snacking on the Juice Plus+ gummy chewables.
One of my favorite dishes was a mixed greens salad with a variety of toppings to choose from, including peas, sunflower seeds, mushrooms, white beans, tomatoes, walnuts, and radishes. Sherry also made a homemade dressing of vinegar, olive oil, and honey. Most store-bought dressings have added sugars, which we are avoiding during the Shred10. If you haven’t tried making your own dressing yet, it’s very easy. Sherry learned her recipe directly from the White House chef and it is delicious.
Other popular dishes were a butternut squash dish baked with onions and tomatoes, a Mexican fruit salad (recipe here), and Chocolate Complete Energy Balls.
Juice Plus+ Chocolate Complete can be purchased here.
After enjoying dinner, we all went around the table introducing ourselves and sharing our health goals. Many people were looking for improved health and more energy. It was a great variety of guests and an event that we plan to host monthly during the week prior to each new Shred10.
Stay tuned for my posts sharing my journey on this month’s shred.
Juice Plus+ is a whole food-based nutrition system that helps you bridge the gap between what you should eat and what you actually eat. Made from juice powder concentrates from 30 different fruits, veggies, and grains, Juice Plus+ is simple, easy and available in both capsule and gummy chewable form. Not a multivitamin, medicine, treatment or cure for any disease, Juice Plus+ is made from quality ingredients carefully monitored from farm to capsule to provide natural nutrients your body needs to be at its best.
Watch this video for a short introduction.
Ingredients
Juice Plus+ is made up of thirty raw, vine-ripened fruits, veggies, and grains in capsules or chewables. It’s juicing made easy! You get all the health benefits of juicing without all the mess and yucky taste. Don’t like to swallow capsules? Simply open the capsules and pour the powder contents directly into a smoothie or yogurt.
Did you know that the current dietary recommendation is to consume between 12-15 fruits and vegetables EVERY DAY?
How We Source
The Juice Plus+ farmers grow the produce used, both sustainably and with incredibly high standards. The produce is grown to the peak of ripeness which yields the highest possible nutrient content. This makes a huge difference over the average produce you find at your local grocery store.
Due to transit times from farm to store, most produce you find was picked well before ripening. And although produce can ripen during transit, it doesn’t produce any more nutrients during that time. That’s why vine ripened is so important!
Take a look at this video of actual Juice Plus+ farmers.
In addition, each Juice Plus+ product is NSF certified, a rare standard of product testing. That means that a third party company randomly tests the products in 2 areas:
The products have to contain what is on the label
They are stringently tested for heavy metals, mold, and bacteria
Research
Juice Plus+ is the most researched nutritional product in the world. For over 20 years, Juice Plus+ has been researched all over the world at the most prestigious hospitals and universities.
Other Options
Juice Plus+ Complete
Juice Plus+ Complete Shakes are one of the easiest and tastiest ways to get healthier all while saving time and money. The simple and nutritious powdered shake mix can be blended with plant milk or even water. It’s low fat, low sugar, low glycemic, gluten free, vegan and made of 100% non-GMO plants. It has 13 grams of Protein, 8 grams of fiber and wonderful ingredients. Available in Dutch Chocolate and French Vanilla.
Omega
Our newest product is the Juice Plus+ Omega Blend, a plant-based, full spectrum omega blend containing omegas 3 (extracted from algae, not fish = no fishy aftertaste), 5, 6, 7, and 9 fatty acids, fully balanced as they are in nature and cold pressed in a vegetarian capsule to preserve the nutritional quality and integrity of the plant oils.
Get Started with Juice Plus+
We can’t wait for you to dive in on your Juice Plus+ Journey. Get ready for a new and easy way to fill you and your family’s body with total body nutrition.
And now thanks to the Family Health Study program, children ages 4-18, plus college students up to age 26, get Juice Plus+ for free with an adult order.
Just pay shipping!
If you are ready to start you and your family on Juice Plus+, place your order directly at Juice Plus+ or call Rachel at 314.496.8303.
Watch what one mom has to say…
Spread the Word
Can’t get enough of Juice Plus+? Share us with loved ones or host a Facebook event and earn an opportunity to receive $200!
We are also looking for others to join our mission of ‘Inspiring Healthy Living Around the World’. For just $50, you can start your own Virtual Franchise.
There is no inventory to carry and no quotas to meet.
Check out this amazing video of why we share Juice Plus+ with everyone we love and care about!
