Drinking Your Colors; The Juice Feast

It has definitely been a cruel winter for us New Yorkers. Widely referred to as the "Polar Vortex", it seemed that between obscene blizzards and excruciatingly cold winds, we could never really catch a break. With the start of Spring, one could only hope that the above freezing temperatures we've recently been graced with are not just an elongated April Fools joke. Although, warm weather does come with  some sacrifice. Specifically, the necessary abandonment of our comfortable, heavy jackets, thick tights, and snow boots. Soon enough it will be time to show off our pale arms and legs again. The thought scares me and I know I'm not the only girl worrying about what happened to her former bikini body during the Snowpocalypse. So, while the weather is still cool enough I contacted my friend Terri Green, who lives in the always warm and sunny, Los Angeles, and begged her for diet advice.

For as long as I've known her, Terri has always taken great care of her health. She would share her diet and work out tips via social media, her friends taking note and eventually seeking her advice. After what felt like the saddest weigh in after the holidays, I spoke with her on the phone and for about an hour she bestowed upon me much of her health knowledge. Having a genuine interest in health and fitness, Terri has self educated herself and along the way has been able to stay on a healthy vegan diet. After much of her friends like me, have insisted she started a blog The Banana Chronicles were born. Although she shares a variety of different recipes, her most popular happen to be of the healthy juices she makes.

Inspired by her flavorful and colorful juices, I took it upon myself to try it out. I got a brand new Juicepresso, which I believe is perfect for anyone new to juicing. It's incredibly easy to put together and clean, works quietly, and effectively. My first juice was a mixture of watermelon, apples, oranges and strawberries. Like Terri often does, I took some of the resulting pulp and mixed it into the juice for a hearty and filling beverage. If you're not so tech/machine savvy like me, I think the Juicepresso would be the best machine for you to use. Your roommates will also be grateful for it's lack of noise and mess making. It's an overall win.

After my first juicing experience I still felt like needed to know more. Luckily, Terri agreed to share some of her wisdom with me and A Hit of Sarah readers. See the post below and make sure to check out The Banana Chronicles and follow on facebook, instagram, and twitter.

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When I first decided to start blogging, my friend Sarah was the first person I reached out to for advice. Although we talk about separate topics, coming together in the blogging community to collaborate is always fun and I am very happy to write this post for A Hit of Sarah! One of my biggest passions is juicing and I honestly feel that it has changed my life in such positive ways both physically and mentally.

For me, drinking fresh organic juices is like taking a daily multivitamin. I feel no need to take over the counter supplements. I mix and match different fruits and vegetables to ensure I get a well-rounded spectrum of nutrients, which I like to call “drinking your colors”. Every color that you see on fruits and vegetables are different essential nutrients that your body needs, so it’s important to change it up every couple of days.

Let’s talk about the benefits of juicing: clearer skin, mental clarity, brighter eyes, stronger nails and hair, and the added bonus: dropping a few pounds, as I did on my 21 day juice cleanse. Juicing is therapeutic and very rewarding for me – I love when friends reach out to me for advice and successfully start a juice journey of their own!

Some basic tips on how to start juicing:

• Learn your produce – always try to shop organic
• Less is more – although an acquired taste, use more vegetables over fruits with a 70:30 ratio
• Thoroughly wash your produce
• Save time by preparing your fruit and vegetables the night before
• Depending on the juicer, juices can last up to 24 hours when sealed
• Try to drink one green juice daily

Basic Green Juice
Always try to cover the areas of sweet, neutral and bold:

• 2 gala apples
• 3 Persian cucumbers
• 1 Romaine head
• 3-4 stalks of celery
• Thumb of ginger
• Squeeze lemon juice

Taking care of your body by providing it with the best quality fuel is essential to leading a healthy life. I encourage you to try juicing and incorporating more live, water dense foods into your diet. Juicing questions or comments? Connect with me via social media or at www.thebananachronicles.com!

Photos via: Terri Green & Juicepresso