Jugofresh - Open for Life - or 2pm, whichever comes first

Jugofresh is the newest and hottest thing among Miami Beach's smart set. It is a beautiful little organic juice bar that has taken design cues from the Cowshed, and hot yoga teacher customers from Whole Foods. It's a great place to go get juice on a fast, but in my case, I'm coming here to break it with one of their delicious "blended beverages".

But there are issues, there are.. rules. Essentially, they are the "Juice Nazis" of Miami Beach, and just like Seinfeld's original Soup Nazi, the lines are long, the rules are strict (no changes to juice recipes, cold-pressed never centrifuge!) and subjects willingly go back day after day until the last Gogi Lemonade or Mylk Shake is gone.  Which is around 2pm, when they close. I know, I know, 2pm?! But remember we're playing by their rules, not ours.

That said, they have already expanded their offerings beyond just juice to include some food. Raw, vegan food that is. See menu below:

Perhaps their indifference to walk-in customers has more to do with the fact that their core business is the juice cleansing clients, who get an entire day of juices for $75. These people take priority and have first dibs on the Allow Meow H2O. And personally knowing how much work it is to make juice I would say it's a pretty good deal if you've got the scratch.

devotees

Chia Seed Pudding

Sugar Sherm - my reward for making it 4 days!

from the outside

They deliver if you're on "the program"

4 Days of Just Juice - the recipes

My fridge during a cleanse

When I juice cleanse, I pull out my big Breville juicer and make all of my own juice and put them in assorted glass jars that I have on hand. I usually press enough for two days so I don't have to clean the juicer every day. (Lazy, I know.) I label them so I remember exactly what's in each one, I have to avoid cucumbers but they are valuable during a cleanse so I make them for Yannick. Here are some yummy new combinations that I came up with this time around.

Beet - Grapefruit

Honeydew-Ginger - Lemon- Parsley- Kale

Carrot-Ginger-Lemon

V8- Tomato, Celery, Cilantro, Basil, Parsley, Carrot, Lemon, Cucumber

Master Cleanse Water - Lemon, Cayenne, Honey

Juice Beet Greens by themselves and take with water for shot before a tastier juice, same with kale


Remember, the more sweet juices you have, the more blood sugar fluctuations the hungrier you'll be. If you want to stave off hunger while you're doing this, strain the juice (digestion shuts down when there is no food or fiber and you are less hungry), and stick with vegetable juices of the low sugar variety (that means limit carrot and beet and fruit juices!)

"Lunchbox" for Yannick complements of Blue Print Cleanse - use an ice pack

Secret Juice Bar Hidden in a Texaco

Yes, you read the headline right. In a total moment of serendipity (and I don't me the new ice cream place on Lincoln Road), I found a juice bar in the most unexpected place the very day before I started a juice cleanse.  It had to be fate, the gods giving this particular fast their seal of approval. Anyways, I was heading south on Alton Road, stuck in traffic when I noticed I was almost out of gas. Fortunatly there were two gas stations to my right. I picked the first, the slightly cheaper Texaco. You know, the one with the car wash. So as I'm pumping my gas I realize there is a carrot juice-slinging bunny taped to the pump advertising wheat grass shots, smoothies and fresh squeezed juice....inside.

As it turns out the owner of the Gourmet Carrot, which used to be downtown, and then on West Avenue, has opened up a little juice bar in the back of the gas station's convenience store. How very... convenient. This little perk definitely makes the case for making this gas station your gas station. Stopping for a delicious, healthy sandwich or fresh apple ginger juice kind of takes the sting out the annoying (and increasingly expensive) task of filling 'er up!

www.carrot-express.com 

Holy Detox! Juice Fasting My Way

Those who know me, know I've done lots and lots of cleanses, so people often ask me to send them an email of my program, which is derived from reading many of books on the subject, visits to serious health spas and some personal trial and error.

Early summer is a good time to start thinking about a cleanse- the social season is winding down in Miami, and up north, it's getting warm enough to tolerate it (cleansing is not recommended when it's really cold.) It will also help prepare your body for its debut after hibernation. So wipe your social schedule clean for a whole week, very hard for some of you, I know. If you don't live near a place that sells fresh squeezed vegetable juices, you'll probably have to buy a juicer. In Miami Beach, we have Apple a Day and now, Jugo Fresh. It's also advisable to start the cleanse with a new, clean toothbrush.

Day 1 - Eat raw, light foods. Whole fruits, salads, nuts and anything else that is raw and vegan. This facilitates and prepares you for the cleanse.

Day 2 - Begin program

8am  Kyo Greens - I have this every morning. It is an important green juice to begin with and you buy it powdered and make it yourself. (powdered barley grass, wheat grass, FOS and chlorella)

9am - breakfast juice:  beet, carrot, ginger  (try fresh grapefruit too)

11am - herbal tea of your choosing (Yogi Tea make a good one called Peach Detox)

12:30pm - lunch juice: celery, carrot, tomato, lemon, garlic, parsley, cilantro (kinda like a raw V-8)

3pm- afternoon snack juice: apple, cucumber, lemon

6pm - dinner juice: try a yucky kale shot followed by a tastier juice (honeydew and parsley with lemon)

or have more Kyo Greens  - on day 3 try to add a tablespoon of flax seed or raw coconut oil

9pm supper -  miso soup made with purified water, white mellow miso paste and a tsp of Bragg's Amino Acids. (You'll be really looking forward to this after all the sweet juice and the aminos are important.)

 before bed: Linden tea steeped with Senna tea   **the linden tea will help you sleep, which may not come easily. The senna tea will allow you to have a bowel movement in the morning. This is very important as you'll be releasing a lot of toxins you don't want your colon to reabsorb. Because you're not eating fiber or solid food, the elimination process would normally and you don't want it to until it's all out (usually after 4-6 days). Some people go and get colonics to get a true, true cleanse, but you have to be cautious to get a good practitioner and there are a few risks. If you do this - follow with probiotics.

Day 3-6 will follow the same arc. I usually plan on 4 days of juicing and extend it if I'm in the mood.

important tips

*Get a massage on day 2, 3 or 4 (or all of them)

*You can choose whatever juices sound good, as long as they are mostly vegetable and not sweet fruit (these aren't great for the cleanse and will make you hungrier)

*Having any fiber at all will start the digestive process and make you hungrier

*Take it easy, do light exercise like walking or gentle bike rides. The beach is a nice place to go during a cleanse.

*Stay away from restaurants and places that have food, don't watch tv - the commercials are killer.

*The first 2 days are the hardest. By day 3 or 4 the hardest part is over, so if you can, keep going.

*I drink juice whenever I get hungry, so I'm never too hungry when I do this.

*Try to take a sauna, or long, hot bath with Epsom salts every day. Sweating will provide another route for the toxins to leave the body. Careful not to over do it though and always get out of a hot bath slowly.

*Yoga is good too as is making sure you breath deeply. The lungs / breath are another route that toxins leave the body.

*Don't use chemical / commercial perfumes during the cleanse.

*flu-like symptoms, including a headache, are called a 'healing crisis' this means you are coming into contact with some of the toxins your body is pushing out. Drink more water, it will pass. 

*It's not that hard to do the cleanse when you are working, just begin on the weekend so that Monday is day 2 or 3. Bring juice in glass jars in a little cool pack. You may find yourself with more or less energy at times, but you'll be focused and the distraction makes the time fly by --  unless you have a boring job where you usually snack a lot to keep yourself entertained. Then you really need this cleanse and a little extra willpower!

*Read about cleansing. My favorite book is Juice Fasting & Detoxification by Steve Meyerowitz. Reading about what it does for you makes it more interesting and strengthens your resolve.

*A true cleanse can take up to 30 days and many interesting, unusual stages will be reached. If you do a longer cleanse, you will stop taking senna tea by day 6 or so.. you won't have much left. Make sure you continue medications too.

*Feeling competitive? Do it with a friend - Yannick did this last October and made it for 16 days, felt great and lost more than 10 pounds.

Coming off the cleans correctly is important. Regular food will make you ill. The first food you should eat would be a banana, or avocado. Try to subsist on whole fruits and light salads for a few days supplemented with nuts. This will continue the cleanse a bit while transitioning you back to the real world. Keep avoiding coffee and alcohol for as long as possible. You may find you don't need the caffeine anymore!

 

**Legal disclaimer goes here. If you have any medical conditions see your doctor before starting a serious cleanse. For healthy individuals this cleanse should be purely beneficial, but if any conditions arise, related or unrelated to the cleanse, consult a medical professional,