JAZZED ON JUICE ASK THE EXPERT

Jackie Rueda OWNER, GREEN VIDA CO. greenvidacompany.com

If you’re looking for a way to shake off bad eating habits or just want to feel like you’re flushing your body with healthy nourishment, a day or three of juice cleansing may be for you. Jackie Rueda of Green Vida Co. explains what this real-food-focused Easton cafe offers and what their juice cleanse programs can do.

Juice Of Quality

Each of the 12-ounce bottles of Green Vida Co.’s small-batch juice is packed with at least two pounds of organic fruits and vegetables. And when they say organic, they mean it. “If we can’t get organic lemons, for example,” Rueda says, “we’re not subbing non-organic lemons.”

The produce is cold-pressed, preserving as much nutrient value as possible for their raw product. It has a shelf life of seven days, maximum, because nothing has been degraded through pasteurization. Bottles are glass, never plastic, and can be returned for sanitizing and reuse.

Why And When

Giving your digestive system a break from solid food and replacing all your meals with Green Vida’s juice-crammed elixirs, Rueda says, can boost the immune system and jumpstart metabolism by giving the body easy access to the vitamins and antioxidants found in fruit and vegetable juice.

There’s lots to celebrate in life, tons of restaurants to try and, of course, crammed schedules necessitating convenient yet unhealthy scarfing that becomes more of a habit than intended. However, if you come to find yourself in a cycle of overindulgence, a brief juice cleanse can shake you out of it.

“When people feel sluggish, dehydrated, tired, after the holidays or when they’ve been eating out too much,” Rueda says, “often that’s when they’ll do a cleanse.”

Customers have also told her they’re using the program to prepare for a vacation, so they’ll have a boost of energy and a clean slate for the fun ahead.

What To Expect

On a juice cleanse, your body gets all its nutrients through seven bottles of juice per day—some people can’t even drink it all—so it’s common to feel full just from the juice. However, it’s also normal to feel hungry, especially because the body expects solid food. “It’s more of a mind thing,” Rueda says, “that you’re craving food but not really hungry.”

Headaches are the most common challenge, which she says can be minimized by eating clean a few days ahead of your cleanse. Yoga or light movement is fine during the program, but your body won’t be getting the calories needed for heavy exertion.

The difference to the digestive system can sometimes mean things get much slower, or stimulated. “For me,” Rueda says, “an ideal situation would be that it does move things out, but I don’t think it’s like you have to clear your calendar.” Green Vida has a Friday pickup for those who want to orient their cleanse around the weekend, but some prefer doing it at work where they can stay busy and keep their minds off food.

GIVE IT A TRY!

You can buy and try Green Vida’s most popular juice and get the taste for it before committing to a cleanse:

• Green Detox contains cucumber, celery, romaine, kale, green apple, ginger and lemon.

• Also check out the Immune Cider, available year-round and packed with Fuji apples, oranges, turmeric and ginger root, and a spice mix of nutmeg, cloves and cinnamon.

“We never say push through it,” she stresses. “It’s supposed to make you feel good.” You know your body best and it won’t derail the benefits to have half an avocado, a little nut butter or some bone broth to see you through.

Mental Impact

Not only is the body jazzed to get juice, consider the mental impact.

“It sets you up for more positive changes,” Rueda says. “Whether it’s more water because you’ve been drinking so much during the program, or you’re craving a salad all of a sudden because the body likes all these fruits and vegetables.”

The juice cleanse can reignite a taste for fresh vegetables that helps future habits, with invigorating effects you’ll want to maintain. “Now that I feel refreshed, don’t have brain fog, don’t feel bloated,” Rueda suggests, “I’ll continue to eat well.”

It’s an investment of time, attention and money that will leave you more mindful of your body’s needs and processes.

Medicaldisclaimer:Thisinformationis notintendedorimpliedtobeasubstitute forprofessionalmedicaladvice,diagnosis ortreatmentandistobeusedforgeneral informationpurposesonly.

BY DAISY WILLIS | PHOTO BY MARCO CALDERON