What to Expect on a Juice Fast Day by Day: My 3 Day Juice Cleanse
Are you considering a juice cleanse? Here’s what to expect on a juice cleanse day by day, from a customer trying our three day Plenish Immunity Cleanse. Read on to discover her experience.
Before the cleanse
I’ve decided to do the three-day immunity cleanse for many reasons. Following a very long period of shielding during the pandemic, I’ve been left feeling a little sluggish and lacking energy. It’s easy to pick up a few bad habits when working from home, and I’ve been reaching for something processed and convenient a little too often. I thought a big hit of vitamins from fruits and vegetables might help with my energy levels and reset my eating pattern with the hope of eating less processed food afterwards. Opting for the immunity cleanse, added in extra shots of vitamins.
Having read up online, I’ve realised that I need to try and cut down on caffeine, alcohol and other baddies for a few days before the cleanse. Doing this before the cleanse apparently makes it much less likely that you will suffer a caffeine headache.
Day 1
The juices all arrived last night and are already in the fridge and numbered according to when I need to drink them. They arrived with a guide from Plenish that gives you a suggested cleanse schedule. It looks effortless to follow, and the instructions are straightforward, but the schedule suggests starting at 6 am with hot water and lemon. I’m not usually up by then, so I start a bit later at 7.30 am with the lemon water, and then the first juice at 8 am. I’m actually looking forward to not having to prepare a meal or think about cooking today – it’s a busy day at work, so it makes things simple. As all the juices are ready to go, I literally just have to follow the schedule and drink them. It’s super easy, and my schedule wouldn’t allow me to do the actual juicing myself.
My first juice is a Lift juice which contains pear and lots of leafy green vegetable goodness. I have to be honest; I found this quite hard to get down at 8 am. It tastes pleasant, but I don’t usually eat breakfast in the morning, and so it feels quite filling, and I feel a little nauseous. I drink half and then leave some of it and drink the rest about an hour later. I think I will adjust the schedule tomorrow to start everything a bit later. I also have a shot of Turmeric Defence which is spicy and orange and contains 100% of the B12 I need for the day.
My second juice is Fuel, and I find this one much easier to drink – it’s 96% vegetable juice, but it has a lovely zing of ginger and lime that make it refreshing. It’s 11 am now, and I feel full indeed, and I’m not ready for the midday juice. In fact, I’m strangely not hungry for lunch at all, and I would usually be ravenous at this point. This was unexpected as I imagined that I would be feeling very hungry but not feel too full to drink the juice. I go for a little walk at lunchtime to work up an appetite for juice 3.
My third juice is Shield which is my favourite so far, and it’s full of carrots, apples, lemon and ginger. It feels refreshing and wholesome. I follow it with a Ginger Immunity shot which has a fiery little after kick. I honestly feel so full after this I have no desire to eat or drink anything at all. During the afternoon, I do start feeling quite cold though, and I’ve got a slight headache. I’ve also started to feel quite tired by 4 pm. I read in the accompanying manual that this is a normal side effect of cleansing. Your body can create heat by digesting food and can sometimes feel chilly when you aren’t eating. I’m not doing anything much that evening, and I’m glad I don’t have any plans.
I’m glad I have cleared my social diary for the period of the cleanse, as I just feel like having a nap. Juice 4 is Kick, and this helps to pick me up. I am a little bit behind schedule on the juices, so I think I should have taken in more calories at this point. I drink my fifth juice of the day, which is Fuel again, at 6 pm, and a Berry Gut Health shot, which supports you with healthy bacteria.
I stay up to drink the final juice of the day, which is Savour, this is yummy, but I feel so tired that not long after I drink it, I decide to head up to bed very early. I feel exhausted, and I avoid my usual workout tonight as I am so tired.
Day 2
I have had a very deep and calm sleep, I usually wake up at least once during the night, so this is great news for me. I feel a lot more energetic in the morning. I’ve actually slept in until 8, so I’ve decided just to start the schedule later today. I have hot water with lemon at 8 and the first juice of the day at 9. I’m feeling very bright and bubbly. I don’t think I drank enough water yesterday, so I fill up some bottles so that I can keep track. The juices seem a lot easier to get down today, and the morning flies past. (I do need several bathroom trips, so I’m glad I’m at home doing this.)
I have another walk at lunchtime and drink juice 3 at about 2 pm again. I’m not hungry at all and feel full still, but I am starting to fantasise about solid food and weirdly can’t stop thinking about crisps. I have herbal tea, resist crisps and eat three grapes. The grapes are not strictly allowed on the cleanse, but I think it’s better than reaching for something unhealthy. As I’m eating them, I realise that I’m definitely not hungry, and it’s the thought of food I’m missing. However, I complete the day quite easily without eating anything else. I’ve got more energy in the evening and do lots of cleaning and some yoga. My body feels like it is cleansing; my stomach feels less bloated and is noticeably flatter. The scales show I have lost 2lb in weight already, which is a bonus side effect. I enjoy Savour, my last drink of the day and have energy left to clean the house after drinking it today.
Day 3
The cleanse feels so much easier today and the morning goes by without me really thinking about food and just drinking the juices to the new later schedule. I’m finding the juices much easier to drink today, too, and I feel like I’ve got lots of energy.
I take the dog for a long walk at lunchtime and think about what I’ll eat tomorrow when I can eat solid food again. I’m really looking forward to eating full meals but already feel like I want to make healthier choices and am now thinking about filling my day with vegetables and salads. I feel like my body has really appreciated all the nutrients as there are so many vegetables, vitamins and minerals in the shots and juices. I’m also feeling quite proud of myself for only straying off the schedule with grapes despite hankering after less healthy things. I’m also 3lb lighter on the scales than I was three days ago, which is an added bonus. We have visitors on Friday who tell me my skin is glowing, which is rather lovely.
After the cleanse
I am feeling quite healthy and much more lively, and it’s a feeling I want to hold on to. I definitely feel like I want to keep nourishing my body. It’s been a strange feeling not to be really hungry for the last three days, and I can only think it’s because I had so many vitamins and nutrients from the organic juices, so I’m going to make sure I keep lots of plants in my diet going forward. I think sometimes it would be easier to drink the nutrients due to my busy schedule. It’s just much easier to drink green juice to get my daily quota of vegetables. I really liked the Fuel juice and will incorporate it into my diet on a regular basis. I think it will make me less hungry and less likely to reach for an unhealthy snack.
Discover more about the Plenish Immunity Cleanse. Have you tried one of our cleanses? Let us know your results on Instagram at @plenishdrinks using #Plenish.