Thrifty Thursdays: 3 Day, DIY Juice Cleanse

As a thrifty shopper, I am often searching apps such as Living Social, Gilt City, & Groupon for a good, local deal. Lately, it seems that every single app is featuring some sort of Juice Cleanse. Juice cleanses can be a good way to begin a New and healthier year. Many benefits include:

• Losing the bloat
• Boost mental clarity & energy
• Improve the condition of your skin
• Remove toxins from the body

In terms of toxins, we consume many chemicals from our food, water, and air each day. From the artificial flavoring in our food products to the chlorine in our water to the carbon monoxide in our air, toxins "build up" in our body, which can cause a weakened immune system, as well create the bloat we feel. While our liver, kidney, and colon are all supposed to rid our body's of toxins, hazards of modern life such as neon colored food products and genetically enlarged produce have had taken major tolls on our bodies. Therefore, I believe that a juice cleanse, on the 1-3 day spectrum are a great way to provide an "extra boost" to filter and expel the toxins. However, ordering a juice cleanse online can often mean a large break between when the juices were made and when the products are delivered. And so in order to preserve the juices, additives are sometimes included. In addition, a juice cleanse online, even with a discount for 3 days, can still be quite steep.

And so I began to research a healthy & beneficial, DIY juice cleanse. As such, I stumbled across the blog A Good Hue written by Amanda Goodhue. A Good Hue is a blog that shares posts on life, style, beauty, and recipes. For more about Amanda and her blog: click here.

On her blog, Amanda featured a 3 Day, DIY Juice cleanse. The 3 day cleanse offered 6 drinks a day for 3 days. The recipes looked tasty, and I was especially impressed by the dessert one which included ground up cashews for filling protein and fat.  Once I had decided that I was going to commit to the 3 days, I printed off my grocery list & headed off to grab my ingredients.

And after spending $60, or $20 a day, I was happy with my thrifty find!

Below are a list of Amanda's recipes, as well as your Thursday dose of inspiration. You can also do this as a 1-Day Juice Cleanse, which my friend Jackie tried. She also felt less bloated after doing the cleanse.

Thanks Amanda for the Thrifty DIY, Juice Cleanse! I think this is something I would do 2-3 times a year, as a way to get back on track with my healthy lifestyle. Having a flatter stomach has made me a little more aware of what I am ingesting, as well as motivated me to eat more greens and workout a little more. In addition, I have continued to drink the lemonade drink as part of my daily regimen.

And now for Thursday's dose of inspiration...

Create a Thrifty Thursday everyone! 

*To find out more about Amanda's Juice Cleanse, head over to the "A Good Hue" blog. 

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Tone it Tuesdays: The 8 Essential Steps for Living a Healthy Lifestyle

With the New Year, we awake from our food comas having overindulged in holiday sweets & treats. We feel more ready than ever to remove those clothes hanging from our treadmills and lace-up our new pair of sneakers. Yet, with the introduction of extremely strict meal plans and intense workouts into our routines, we go from one form of overindulgent extremeness to another. And, just like the holidays, there comes a time in which we feel “burnt out.” We hit that point where we've had enough. 

We’re overspent, both physically and mentally, and so we shift back from the winter health phase into the food phase again. Ready to indulge in the upcoming Valentine's Day chocolates; only to shift back to the health phase again, as preparation for our spring vacations. Like a never-ending, game of ping-pong, we go back and forth between the two forms of extreme. 

Marketing campaigns recognize this vulnerability and quickly time their ads accordingly. For example, the big discount chains adorn their shelves with alluring, Christmas-themed cookies and candies, as preparation for Christmas time. Yet, when we return in January to those same stores, the shelves have been restocked with workout tanks, water bottles, and even “healthy” cookies.

Rather than following a “quick fix diet” or participating in the latest workout fad, I encourage you to finally finish the ping-pong game and simply follow a healthy lifestyle. Call me crazy, but I believe that life is meant to be lived, rather than endured. 

 By “toning up” a little more each week, you will create a healthy body that feels good both on the inside and out.  And so it is with great pleasure that I kickoff the first of the Tone Up Tuesday series with the 8 essential steps you need to know for beginning (and maintaining) a healthy lifestyle.

 I want you to feel like you can go on vacation and not panic that you couldn't transport your kitchen and gym with you. Read and follow these 8 steps with you often for the next week. Pin it, snap a picture, whatever you need to do. Soon, they will become healthy habits. Then we will meet back here next Tuesday to expand a little more on the workout portion of the plan. Until then, here your dose of inspiration to keep you feeling motivated.  

Photo Courtesy  of: Kristin Haus
Brown County State Park
Nashville, IN

Create a great and "Toned-Up" Tuesday!

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