Juice Cleansing That Works Part II: The 24 Hour Juice Fast

24 Hour Juice Fast

What’s a Juice Fast? Simply, a juice fast is abstaining from all solid food and drinking mainly fresh fruit and vegetable juice (juice feast). We’re talking about our juice that we make at home with a juicer. The juices bought in stores do not qualify here (tough huh?).  We want to use organic fruits and vegetables if possible, but if you don’t have access to organic (like me), then what you can get at a farmers market or your local grocery store will do just fine. Very Important: Wash everything thoroughly. Did you know instead of using a store-bought vegetable wash you can use sea salt or food-grade hydrogen peroxide in a sink full of water? Just get some and follow the directions on the package.

We’ll be drinking plenty of purified or filtered water on this juice fast. On a 24 hour juice fast there’s not a lot to prepare for. Just get a few recipes (see suggestions below) and go to the store to buy your produce. Doing your fast on the weekend (or your day off), is probably the best time to do it. That’s when I do mine. So, to the store, back home again and then get psyched up for the juice fast. This is going to be GREAT!

On the day of the fast (Saturday for me) I get up at 6:00 AM and have a tall glass (16 oz.) of purified water. Then I sip some herbal tea. I do my morning meditation and some readings. I’m mentally prepared for the juice fast, because I’ve been thinking about it days beforehand. I know I’m going to have an exciting day. I head to the kitchen and get my produce out for juicing. My juicer is always ready to go. I juice enough for the day and I use large mason jars (32 oz.) to store the surplus of juice in. If you’re going to be at home all day you may choose to juice 2, 3 or even 4 times. It’s up to you. I always enjoy the juice better when it’s fresh, but for convenience sake I’ll store it in mason jars for up to 24 hours.

As I’m juicing I sample it, just to be sure I’m on track and it tastes great. I have my first glass of juice (diluted fruit) just after I’ve finished cleaning up from my morning routine. I like to use sparkling water to dilute my fruit juice. You can drink as much vegetable (green) juice as you like and as often as you like during this particular juice fast. When I drink fruit juice it’s diluted and I limit myself to smaller volumes of it. My juice glasses (small mason jars) hold 16 oz.’s.

In the morning my juice preparation takes 20 or 40 minutes to do everything, including clean up, seal and store the extra juice. Then I can relax.

I’ll have another glass of juice (vegetable or diluted fruit) just before noon and then some more juice (vegetable) midday. I drink water all day long, sometimes with a wedge of lemon or lime. Try to get two to two and a half quarts of water in addition to your juice. The more water you consume, the easier it is for your body to flush away the waste.

I drink another glass of juice (vegetable) for dinner and if I feel like it, more vegetable juice in the evening, but no later than about 7:00 PM. All day long I have fresh fruit or vegetable juice, water, water with lemon or lime and herbal tea. By 10:00 PM I’m ready to retire. You’ll be surprised how satisfying fresh fruit and vegetable juice is. Believe me, you won’t go hungry! Remember, with this juice fast you can drink as much vegetable (green) juice as you like and as often as you like.

On the next (and last) post in this series we’ll discuss more about the benefits of a 24 hour juice fast and 3 day cleanse. In addition, I’ll tell you my secret to successful cleansing. Do you have any tips to share? We would love to hear from you. Please feel free to comment below. Have fun and Juice On! Thanks for reading.

Resources:
Juicing, Fasting, and Detoxing for Life: Unleash the Healing Power of Fresh Juices and Cleansing Diets

Healthy Healing: A Guide to Self-Healing for Everyone, 12th Edition

FREE Juice Suggestion Software – Juice Recipes

Important Note: If you’re diabetic, hypoglycemic, anemic, taking medication or have any serious health problems, please consult a health professional before trying a juice fast.