It's All about jUice, 'bout the juice....no trouble!

This week I had the pleasure of not eating any food for three days and just drinking water and juices!

Sound horrendous? Well think again! The mastermind nutritionist behind All about jUice, Glasgow,  Natalie Blue kindly invited me to try their 3 day juice detox/cleanse and as someone who is health conscious I jumped at the chance to give it a go. 

What was involved?

I was prescribed 3 days of fresh juices (4 per day) made by the staff at All about jUice in their Dumbarton Rd shop, following a consultation with Natalie to ensure I was a candidate for doing the cleanse. Four different juices per day (to be consumed every 3-4 hours) and advice given via an information sheet on how to stay hydrated, what to expect from the process etc. 

How did it go?

Day One 

I woke up late. Not a good start to the week or the first day of juicing!

 Bit of a scunner when you wake up realising you're late AND you can't eat now for 3 days! That being said, I grabbed 3 of the juices from the fridge (brightly coloured and looking appetizing indeed) and set out on my first day as a detoxer. I took Natalie's advice and sipped on hot water (minus the lemon because annoyingly I'd forgotten to buy some!) on the drive to work and unexpectedly appeared to be upbeat despite not getting my morning caffeine fix! On arrival I opened up my first bottle of juice, richly green in colour, and I got the freshest, healthiest aroma instantly. Hints of kale, cucumber and ginger, the juice was tasty, filling and had a real zing to it. 

   As lunch time arrived I wasn't dreading 'eating' with my colleague as much as I'd feared. My second juice of the day was entirely different in colour and on my first taste was definitely a different combination than the first. Carrot, beetroot and possibly apple, this was another winner and filled me up, so much so, that I did struggle to finish it in our short lunch break. 

  The last two juices of the day were equally enjoyable, tasty and didn't leave me hungry, though I did however start to feel a little headachy and tired on the drive home (could have been the day's workload though!) and had to catnap on the sofa before hubby got home from work. This was to be expected and was explained in the information notes given, so I bowed down to it and slept it off. 

Day Two

A breeze! 4 lovely juices, some different to the previous day, with my favourite being the berry soya breakfast juice which I could have drank lashings of. No sign of headaches (I did try to drink more water than I would normally to avoid getting them) but the fatigue set in on the drive home again and another catnap was in order, this time on the living room floor where hubby found me. I went back out to work that evening, last juice of the day in hand and leisurely sipped it as I worked. I was more perturbed at not getting my cuppa that evening I have to say but food wise, I wasn't left craving anything terribly or seeing people's heads as chicken legs like in the old cartoons.

Day Three

Probably the toughest in terms of wanting food as in the back of my mind I felt like I was nearly done, even though I still had a full day of cleansing to go through. A little grumpier, a bit tired but certainly, I wasn't starving as the yummy juices were again filling. I enjoyed drinking each new flavour and felt a sense of accomplishment that I reached the third and final day. 

The Honest Bits

I do admit I was a little more irritable on occasions but nothing that anyone else would have noticed (I hope!). Yes, I did have a few moments of 'Mmmm, I could eat something!' but they weren't long lasting or too tempting to sway me.   I never had a terribly rumbly tummy nor did I have the muscle cramps that can be expected from detoxing. if anything, in terms of side effects, all I would say is I was a tad more tired than usual at the end of each day. Nothing 40 winks on the couch or an early night didn't sort out. I didn't threaten to eat anyone and I didn't dislike any of the juices! They were all really tasty! And that really was all I'd been worried about...not liking the juices. No chance of that here, as each All about jUice juice was delicious 

How Do I Feel?

Great! Personally I know the extra boost of vitamins will have been an added bonus to my normally healthy week. I usually get around 5-9 portions of fruit and veg a day but getting it in copious amounts through a juicing detox can only serve me well. Ditching any processed foods, caffeine and alike for a spell had been something I'd been wanting to do for a while to restart my system and give it a well-needed break. For all that I am a healthy eater who is mindful of what I put in my body, I do have my 'treats' sporadically throughout the week and my vice, coffee, daily. I don't drink alcohol though. 

  

The last two days I have felt more alert for sure and that sense of accomplishment that started to creep in on the third day has only increased. I'm pretty chuffed that I saw it through and didn't cave when hubby cooked Super Noddles on Wednesday night. There was no real huge struggle in it for me but I appreciate everyone will deal with it in their own way and come up against hurdles. 

 As I lead a relatively healthy lifestyle some may wonder why I bothered to do the detox in the first place. Are the results dramatic enough to merit the, what some may deem, extreme sacrifice of giving up food for 3 days. Well I'd say, I don't know, as everyone embarking on a juice detox will no doubt have different goals, expectations etc. This is where the expert that is Natalie comes in. The initial consultation prior to any sort of cleanse or detox will determine if it's right for each person and the proper advice, including to consult your doctor beforehand, are set to ensure your experience is a safe and enjoyable one.  Natalie will ensure you're supported throughout the 3 days and your specific needs are adhered to (allergies etc) so no need to worry. In terms of weight loss, I lost a substantial amount actually. 6lbs in 3 days but have already put some of that back on from starting, albeit healthily, to eat again. i wasn't doing it to lose weight, although it was a given as you're likely to lose something when you're not eating for 3 days. The objective behind a detox is to rid your body of impurities and give it and your mind that reboot or kick start it's craving. It then should encourage you to start or continue to eat healthily. And sometimes we all need that little kick up the bahookie eh?! 

For me a huge plus point was that this juice detox was hassle free. When hubby and I attempted a DIY juicing cleanse a while back, we caved through sheer exhaustion caused by the relentless, monotony of juicing all the fruit and veg ourselves. It's phenomenal how many bloomin' carrots and apples are needed to fill a glass and Rob and I were completely  and utterly fed up with the, what felt like, hourly run to Aldi and the bomb site that had in fact become our kitchen by day two. All about jUice takes all that away from you. No fuss, no mess...no trouble! It reminds me of the Father Ted episode where Mrs Doyle 'likes the misery of making tea'......at All about jUice, they'll be your Mrs Doyle! 

So in conclusion......

Did they taste good?                                      YES, they sure did!

Did I manage three days relatively easily?        YES I did. No biggy really! 

Did I feel good afterwards?                            YES  and I still do. In body and mind.

Would I do it again?                                       YES definitely!

A huge thank you to the Team and especially Natalie at All about jUice!! If anyone has questions for Natalie do not hesitate to contact her, she'd be thrilled to hear from you and to help! 

Check them out on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter too! 

 

 

Review: Jillian Michaels' "Maximise Your Life" Event

Mimi here!

Been a bit absent of late...my apologies! Work and general life has been very hectic, but oor Weesse has been keeping you all entertained with some FABBY blog posts #siblinglove. 

So, it's true...I am a gym nut. I love me some exercise. I also love ANYTHING to do with health and nutrition. I am *that* person you see in the supermarket reading the back of the box/packet/tin of everything I pick up. I am *that* person who checks MyFitnessPal before lunch to see what of my options are the most nutritious. and yes, I am *that* person who knows the calorie and nutritional content of many a food off the top of her head! 

*Not me, but it could be. Image from http://www.sheknows.com/

So, if there is ever a weight loss/exercise/transformative programme on TV, you can bet I'll be watching it. I am a huge fan of the USA version of The Biggest Loser, and any other fan will tell you that the most exciting part of that show is ANYTHING involving either of the main trainers Bob Harper and Jillian Michaels. Which leads me nicely onto an event I attended with fellow Kennedy Cupcake Carol on Sunday night!

Jillian Michaels, is one of the world's leading health and wellness experts. Her "Maximimise Your Life" tour has come to the UK for the first time ever...and I was at the first show in Glasgow! Her website states that "In this intimate and uniquely personal experience, Jillian shows you how to harness your potential, kick-start your goals and live an exceptional life, sharing her keys to health, success and happiness. No hype, no false promises: just results". 

Carol and I were both really looking forward to this event. I knew JM mainly from The Biggest Loser (but also from her really quite brilliant workout video 30 Day Shred) whereas Carol knew her mainly from her videos. for anyone that doesn't know much about JM, she has an infamous no nonsense approach to health and fitness. Don't expect any (no pun intended) sugar-coated advice. This is real. Hard. Stuff. And...it works. 

Carol and I went for a GORGEOUS yet quick dinner at La Rotunda, just next to the "Armadillo" venue in Glasgow. Carol opted for a salad with red onion relish and baked goat's cheese, while I chose pan fried fillet of salmon, Mediterranean veg and baby potatoes. I did take pictures but I think we all know what a salad and some salmon looks like. If not you've clearly not been for dinner at my house #staplediet. 

The event doors were opening at 6:30pm, so Carol and I scoffed our 1 course and made may to the venue.

 

HOWEVER for whatever reason the doors didn't technically open at 6:30pm. Or 7pm. Or 7:30pm. No joke. Unfortunately we were waiting in the foyer for quite some time, lamenting our starters we could have had but didn't. When it comes to food, I MOURN for the meals I have missed out on!

ANYWAYS, after being seating in our original seats, we were kindly offered seats closer to the front due to the event not being sold out. RESULT. The talk eventually started at 8:10pm (which, to be honest was a bit late) but we were seated and we were excited about what the event would hold.

What followed was a 2 hour long talk split into 3 main sections:

• Food
• Exercise
• The Self

Being interested in health and being a fitness instructor, and Carol being a Personal Trainer, there was a lot of the first 2 sections that was already known to use. HOWEVER there were a few tit-bits that were actually extremely useful to us. The final section of the talk was extremely insightful in how to motivate, visualise goals and make them a reality. What follows below is a sort of whistle-stop tour of the main details I took from it, and what I think we could all use in our daily lives. I have applied everything I have written to weight loss and health, but the tips in the third section can be applied to ANY goal you might have in life. 

1. Fuel your body and mind. Eat real food...and if you want a treat? Make sure it's only 20% of the time. Know what to AVOID. Jillian also gave us a list of 10 Additives to AVOID. You can find them, and other tools, at http://www.jillianmichaelslive.com/myl-tools/. (There are obviously more detailed nutritional approaches to take if you need to but I'm not a nutritionist so will not be giving out that advice). 

Jillian highlighted that those interested in losing fat would benefit from knowing a few key figures (you can get calculators for the first 2 by Googling them):

• What is your BMR (the calories your body burns just LIVING)
• What is your AMR (the calories your body burns LIVING and WORKING)
• Know what calorie level you SHOULDN'T go under (men = 1600, women 1200) 

Provided you don't go below your lower calorie limit, if you ensure you have a 500 calorie per day deficit (through reducing food and through exercise), this should lead to a 1lb weight loss per week. If you don't wanna lose weight, don't go above your AMR. It's all in the math (which for me is a bummer because I still use my fingers to count). 

Got that? GOOD. 

2. Next on the list is to move. Doesn't have to be much. Just get your heart rate up. Get a sweat on. Go for a brisk walk. Run up and down your stairs. Do star jumps. Walk your dog. Dance in your pants in the house. COME TO A ZUMBA FITNESS CLASS (totes not biased). She gave us some other sums about calculating your the beats per minute your heart should reach for fat burn. These can be found quite easily by Googling something like "target heart rate for exercise". 

Got that? GREAT.

3. Lastly, we discussed goals and self improvement. Jillian proposed that if getting "healthy" is so easy...then why is it so HARD?! If losing weight is just 500 calorie deficit per day for 1lb weight loss per week while avoiding 10 main additives  then WHY do 95% of those who lose weight gain it back? It's not like people don't want to lose weight. Have you ever said or felt any of these things?:

"I'll start exercising once I'm fitter." 

"I'll go to the gym / a class once I'm smaller." 

"I'll feel better about myself once I've got healthier".

Fitter. Healthier. Smaller.

****What does that even MEAN?***** What does health, fitness or size even look like? 

Jillian encouraged us to be specific about our goals and to manage them in chunks. It was more productive to have a larger goal with smaller milestones, than 1 single massive overarching goal upon which you rested on all your hopes and dreams. Day by day, minute by minute results that you can congratulate yourself on when you reach them. Give your intentions some PERSPECTIVE and some ACTION. Ensure that every choice you make every day is CONTRIBUTING towards those goals.

So if we have all these small and large goals, why is it so hard to us to attain any goal and maintain that success? 

The answer? FEAR. "What if I fail? What if it doesn't work? What if I feel worse? What if it's too hard?" Or, sometimes, more scarily...WHAT IF I SUCCEED?

It is never a question of CAN you do it, it was a question of WILL you. 

If you need motivation-Look inside of yourself. Look at your specific goals. LIVE THEM in your head. Same with your moments of hesitation. About to make a decision that isn't going to get you to your goal? LIVE IT. Stop and THINK about it. LIVE IT in that moment before you live it for real. Breathe. Make a different decision. Then do a happy dance cause you rock.

And if you do something you regret? If you fail? If it doesn't work? Learn from it. Get back up. Do it again, but differently. You did something, you learned from it, you moved on. HOW GOOD ARE YOU?

NONE OF THIS will do you any good unless you truly believe you deserve to reach your goals. Don't go on a mission to get healthy because you're "not good enough" as you are. Because you "need to be better". Do it BECAUSE you ARE good enough and you deserve to live a better life than one filled with discontent, illness, aches, pains, money worries, anxiety, feelings of guilt, inadequacy, WHATEVER. Enlist the help of a friend, someone you trust, or someone else with similar goals. Congratulate each other. Encourage each other. LIFT each other. And importantly, lift yourselves.But no one can believe in you if you don't believe in yourself. 

Got that? FABULOUS.

Ooft. Anybody else squished under the sheer WEIGHT or the awesomeness in that advice?

Anyways, Carol and I left the event feeling positively motivated. So much so that I have been following Jillian's nutritional advice and it's working for me. We got the (later than expected due to the later than expected start time) train home with scores of Slipknot fans (nope, Slipknot fans are not generally really into their kale, Pilates and motivational speaking...the band were playing next door in the Hydro). 

I suppose the only potential challenge particularly to the advice contained within the third section of the talk is, well, how REALISTIC is all this? We can't ALL be skinny billionnaires. We can't all give up our "mundane" jobs (speak for yourself, I like mine!) and become Martha Stewart-esque characters who go about driving top of the range cars bought  via our successful business selling books on knitting, working from home (part-time) in our 5 bedroom detatched beach house with our 3 perfect kids, our significant other and a labrador, taking long weekends doing downward dogs at sunrise. We have bills to pay. Doctors appointments to make. Tax returns to fill. Meals to cook. Sinks to unblock. Traffic to sit in. Arguments to have. Tears to cry. Necessary evils of life. 

I don't really think that's what it's about though. You can still hate your job and be earning shed loads of cash. You can LOVE your job and be earning buttons. I think the main message was that success looks very different for everyone, and whatever your "success" looks like, whatever that photo finish is, you have to run with it and make the choices to get there. Nothing happens by accident, and we are just about exactly where we have chosen to be in life, with the exception of those unfortunate tragedies that occur in our family and personal lives and are genuinely out with our control.

Now, what choice will you make next? 

Yup, I've Lost Weight!

Yup I'm a slightly slimmer version of me. 

It was through choice(& effort) & not because I had an issue with what weight I actually was (as I've never been one to weigh myself regularly), nor was it anything to do with being unhappy with my clothing size.  I've been comfortable with being mostly a 10-12 (my JLo booty sometimes needing even more room!) for the last few years. No biggy really... it was a case of, you just feel you could do with shifting a lil' bit of padding and you make the effort to do so.   I felt it had crept on gradually & was needing the heave ho, especially with a swimwear kinda holiday on the cards. 

 Hubby had also been keen to lose a bit of weight but was not so enamoured by the thought of  attending a class (for various reasons) which I could totally understand. Having taught a weekly dance class to a marvellous Weight Watchers group in Cumnock near Ayr , I'd heard great things & seen the amazing transformations of so many of my participants that it seemed the obvious choice. With the app being the affordable & best option for us both, we joined then navigated our way through the it, figuring out what our weekly points allowed us to munch on.....which we discovered was everything and anything really (you just gotta 'point it')'!! 

Using the app & following the ProPoints system has been a walk in the park...a breeze...an absolute doddle! Each day you type in what you've eaten (1000s of brand name products are uploaded in to the site for you to find and choose from) & you can see your remaining daily allowance, as well as your weekly points. So there's no way to lose track of what you've eaten! Of course you can also use it to make healthy, informed choices too. If you fancy something but not sure how many points it is, you simply type it in & it'll bring up the value....then it's down to you to decide if it's worth it to dive in or opt for something lower in points!  

We began our weight loss journey June 4th & within that 4 months of sticking to the program & enjoying regular exercise (I have an active job) I have lost 1 stone 6lbs thus far!  It's been a steady, gradual process with some weeks there being no weight loss at all. 

So what does a typical day look like for me? Firstly I'd like to point out that these are my preferences & that the program offers variety....I'm just a creature of habit most of the time & enjoy certain food groups over others. 

Brekkie? 

Crumpets have become my staple diet. They are low in points, filling and go with almost anything.  Can't even imagine how many of them I've eaten since we started the diet!  I quite often have mashed-up,  heated banana over them. Could literally live on that. It's soooo yummy! Eggs are a fave too and I usually boil an egg the night before to ensure I get that protein fix first thing. 

Lunch? 

Tends to be either tuna or chicken breast with heaps of salad. Low points, mega filling (haven't imputed my spinach leaves below but believe me, they're always there). I've seen myself add all sorts of veg too. Whatever we have that's zero points & will fill out my lunch goes in. Spring onions, broccoli, peas.... My tub is always brimming with greenery! 

Dinner?

We are enjoying the foods we ate before (mainly)but have adjusted portion sizes and thought twice about a jarred sauce, opting to make our own to allow us to control the calorie intake. Chicken fajitas, burgers, stir fries, curries.....we enjoy a varied and tasty diet. Will be posting a few recipes soon!

  My current daily allowance is 26 points which I ALWAYS eat. Rob on the other hand, has a much higher point allowance than me (men get more and it also differs depending on weight) and almost NEVER eats his full allowance. He annoyingly updates me every evening after dinner, when I've only got 2 points or so left, that he has something like 26 left....26 left??!!! He's eaten all day and is still left with the amount of points I get in a whole day! What the actual....?? He apparently should be trying to eat all his points each day but he finds it virtually impossible. He snacks on fruit mainly at work which has a zero points value so he doesn't clock up points during the day. We also both have 49 'weeklies' which you can tap into if you'd like to have that dessert or that glass of wine. Some days I find myself going over my daily 26 by a few points so this is where the weeklies come in to play and I don't feel too guilty about stretching out my allowance. I rarely eat even half of my weeklies but I know they're always there in case of scran emergencies! Oh yeah, we all have 'em! Birthday cake is of course a must-have! 

 My diet hasn't changed much to be honest. I was a healthy eater beforehand with a very balanced diet. What I would say has been the magic ingredient for me with Weight Watchers is the weighing and measuring of my food. Portion control is the key! Yes fruit and veg are 'free foods' so they require no measuring at all but my meat, dairy, carbs etc are weighed (or their weight checked on the packets) before consumption. Cooking or preparing food for two often left us in a scenario where we were overeating at dinner time in an attempt not to 'waste food'. Of course we could have cut down the portions and used the leftovers another day but we weren't....we were just eating them unnecessarily. Filling up on veg and fruit now allows us to eat plenty of the good stuff and manage everything else better than ever before. Tonnes of salad with a burger means I don't need potato wedges with it. Heaps of veg in a casserole means one chicken breast each is plenty for us. Swapping rice for grated cauliflower allows us to eat a heaped plateful without the bloated tummy and the carb overload! It's not rocket science but it kinda feels like it.

  As someone who ate healthily I wasn't convinced that the diet would work for me. I thought any weight loss would only be in high intensity workouts, which sadly (due to my work load,  I don't always have time for. I love exercise, it's my job to be active but because of the regularity of my daily 'workouts', my body expects that level of cardio and needs something far more intense to have an effect.  I was convinced that I didn't have much to change diet wise and yes, that was partly true but a few tweaks have made all the difference surprisingly.....1 stone 6 lbs to be exact! 

I'm down a dress size. I feel great. I'm never hungry. I have stacks of energy. I'm not bored as I can eat anything. It's given me the boost I needed mentality as well as physically. Result, I say! 

I'll keep y'all posted on our weight loss adventures and will be sure to post some recipes too. 

Over and out,

Weesse x