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Jus Cleanse Bandwagon

I admit it, after much consternation I jumped on the Jus cleanse bandwagon.  After struggling to lose both the Norway and Hurricane Irma weight, I figured why not try it.  I researched several cleanses.  I quickly realized that I would need a cleanse with more than just juice if i was going to be successful.  Fortunately, I found a cleanse on Groupon from a reputable company with tons of good reviews.  It was reassuring to see numerous people write that they didn’t feel hungry or fatigued while on the cleanse.

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Consequently, I bought a 3 day cleanse from Jus By Julie.  The cleanse itself was came with nine juice and nine soups.  The juices were Sweet Spin Juice (kale, spinach, pineapple, rice milk and mango), Spicy Pomegranate (think master cleanse with pomegranate), and Berry Chia.   I enjoyed each of the juices including the Spicy Pomegranate.  These juices are blended not cold pressed, so there is considerable pulp in some of them.  I don’t mind pulp, but if you’re not a pulp person these juices probably aren’t for you.

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In addition to the juices, the cleanse came with 9 different soups.  There’s too many to name here, but some of my favorites were: split pea, carrot ginger, red lentil, coconut pumpkin bisque and the detox broth.  Each of the soups, like the juices, is vegan, gluten free, kosher, non-GMO and dairy free.  If you have sensitivities to any of the aforementioned items, this cleanse will be perfect for you.  While the soups have no dairy, gluten or animal products, what they do have is a lot of good flavor.  I was honestly impressed with the quality and flavor of all nine of the soups.

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Was I hungry on the cleanse?  Absolutely, but I’m always hungry.  I could eat sixty four Thanksgiving dinners still be hungry.   At the end of each night, I was hungry, but I wasn’t dying from hunger.  In fact, I had expected to be much hungrier at the end of the day.  From a calories perspective, it wasn’t super low calorie, which is good.   I felt it kept my calories at a safe level without being too high or too low.  Unquestionably, the most surprising aspect of the cleanse was how I felt on the cleanse.  Surprisingly,  the cleanse left me feeling energetic and amazing.  While teaching Zumba on the cleanse, I felt great and full of energy.  This was a truly pleasant surprise.

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Confession time.  The cleanse directions state that  you’ are to give up solid foods and coffee creamer while on the program.  I have no problem with the food, but admittedly I couldn’t give up my Dunkin.  Nonetheless, the cleanse was still effective for me even as I continued to drink my cream laden coffee.   I know there’s a cacophony of differing opinions on cleanses, which makes it difficult to truly evaluate their worth.    However, at the end of the three days, I was down four pounds and feeling fantastic.  It is definitely something I will buy again and something I’d recommend trying.

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Where can you buy it?  The best option is via Groupon as it sells it for $59 plus shipping vs. the list price of $125 on Jus By Julie’s website.  They ship the juices and soup to you frozen at a cost of $20.  Jus By Juile packs their products into a Styrofoam cooler with a generous amount of ice packs.  I was impressed that the cleanse survived being delivered to sunny South Florida in the early October heat.

Groupon: click here
Jus by Julie: click here

 

 

Affiliate disclosure: Some of the links of this site are affiliate links, meaning at no additional cost to you, I will earning a commission if you click through and purchase.

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Simple Saturday

Today was a nice, simple Saturday.   I was beyond exhausted after the craziness of Irma and work.   I ran a little over three miles last night, which marked the 5th straight day of running for the Piggie and I.  We haven’t ran outside since before our Norway trip, so it’s been a bit taxing for me as we recreate our running habit.  Like many in S. Florida, I’ve been fighting off a cold/sinus bug since the storm.  Consequently, I slept like a baby until almost 11:00 am and it felt amazeballs.  My sinuses, however, do not feel amazeballs.  giphy (19)giphy (20)

I had the distinct honor and privilege of grocery shopping once I finally got out of bed.  I’m not even being sarcastic here.  I got to have a normal, sort of, Target run today.  This trip wasn’t an emergency hurricane sustenance run, but a get our normal Target stuff run.  Except it wasn’t our normal Target run because they still haven’t been able to restock their perishables fully.  I got as much as I could at Target, and more (thanks Target), but have to make a trip to Publix and BJ’s to get  our perishables.

I was loving my newly found freedom to be out and about..   After being caged up for the weekend, which felt like years, it was awesome to be out and about.   I made a Kohl’s run.  I had to pick up some new sheets for our bed.  There is nothing more tedious or boring than shopping for sheets.  In addition, to the boring sheets I had to buy I had to pick up some casual shoes with better support for my foot.  Who knows what I did to it, but it hurt like a mother pucker this morning. I obviously had to buy a pair in both black and brown.  A girl has to have options.  Nevertheless, it should be an interesting run tomorrow….

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Dinner tonight came courtesy of Goalielocks, who found a recipe for cheeseburgers made from chuck roast online.  Goalielocks cut up the chuck roast, grounded it up and formed the patties.  I have to say I was impressed with his ingenuity and his drive to make these tasty and flavorful burgers.  Moreover, I’m happy to see another one of my boy’s cooking independently – their wives will thank me later.   As for the burger, it was delicious.  Goalielocks really impressed me with his culinary skills, however, it looks like a burger bomb went off in my kitchen.  Baby steps….. 

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The Trouble With Travel

The trouble with travel is hockey is trying to maintain healthy eating habits when the majority of your weeknights are spent at the rink and your weekends are spent driving across the state to other rinks.  Hockey season doesn’t have to be a diet killer if you’re well prepared.  Just like you would take the time to prep our meals for the work week, you have to take the time to prep your snacks  and meals for the road.

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After hundreds of miles on the road, the ease and quickness of fast food is alluring.  If, however, you’ve planned ahead and prepped your snacks and meals for the road, it is easy to drive by or skip out on the fast food.  Removing the temptation and not wanting to waste food will go a long way to keeping you on the diet wagon.

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Here are some great ideas for healthy snacks and easy meals for the road.

  • Almonds
  • Peanuts
  • Stringed Cheese
  • Apples or apple slices
  • Peanut butter or almond butter
  • Oranges – clementine’s are perfect for road trips as they are very easy to peel
  • Berries
  • Grapes
  • Popcorn
  • Baby carrots
  • Protein Shakes
  • Protein bars
  • Granola bars
  • Yogurt
  • Hard boiled eggs
  • Celery sticks

If you carpool with other families, be sure your snacks align with any food allergies that may be present in your carpool group.

These snacks are easy, convenient, healthy and relatively inexpensive especially when compared to the cost of eating at a restaurant every trip.  For tips on how to indulge in an adult beverage or two without calling your waistline, see my tasty, but light on calories recommendations here.

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Finding Balance

We all have an Achilles heel that can trip us up as we pursue our fitness and health goals.  Sometimes, it is only a minor slip up that causes our healthy habits to start to taper off.  If you’re like me, a cheat meal can easily converts into a cheat week.

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So how do we stay the course without driving ourselves nutty?

  • Allow yourself latitude to miss a workout or eat a treat. It’s okay to not be perfect.
  • Don’t cut out whole food groups completely. Ditching carbs is certainly effective, but not practical long term.
  • Don’t give up everything you like. I can give up almost everything, but don’t make me give up or change my coffee!
  • Have a battle buddy.  Together you can keep each other on track and disciplined.
  • Sign up for a race or event, so you have a milestone to work towards.
  • Practice yoga, it will reduce stress (and stress hormones) and help you avoid injury by keeping you flexible.

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These are just a few tips you can use to taper off your unhealthy habits and convert them into healthy habits and on your way to a healthier lifestyle.

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A Harsh Reality of Adulting

One of the cruelest realities of adulting, by far, is portion control. Who knew that as a women as soon as you turned 25, your metabolism would start slowing to a crawl? That burger you could eat once eat without even thinking about soon gives you pause. The large plate of spaghetti you once ate, turned into a medium plate, at 30 it turned into a small plate and at 35 it turned into a plate of carbless noodles. Doesn’t that sound appetizing?
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Seriously consider the portions you get at a restaurant. Some our 2-4 times the recommended serving size. Depending on the day and the discipline level, this may work for you. As one meal could turn into 3-4 meals that wouldn’t entirely kill your waistline. On a bad day, it could undo weeks of disciplined eating and hard work at the gym.

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If you look at your diet and you’ve cut a lot of the junk out but still aren’t losing weight, take a look at your portions. Many of us eat pretty healthy, but portion control can trip you up. Even if you only eat healthy fats like almonds or avocados to excess, the end result will be the same. You’ll gain weight as your calorie intake exceeds the calorie intake. One of the best ways I have found to counter this is by tracking what I eat and holding myself accountable. My kitchen scale, measuring spoons and cups are my best friends in maintaining healthy portions.