Fasting generally means that you are abstaining from food, thus denying your body any form of nutrition. All the juices in this diet are full of vital nutrients that support your system and supply sufficient calories to provide your body with enough energy to maintain your daily commitments. They also taste fantastic, so you’re not exactly depriving yourself.
The main benefits are the high vitamin and mineral content and the presence of essential phytonutrients and amino acids that ensure optimum health. They also contain vital enzymes that are responsible for digestion and absorption of food into your body, converting foods into body tissue and enabling the production of energy. Without such enzymes your metabolism cannot function at its optimal rate. Enzymes cannot exist at temperatures higher than 114˚C (237˚F), so cooking destroys many of these important nutrients.
The single most effective way to take in as many of these enzymes as possible is to eat the majority of your fruits and vegetables raw.
Have you ever tried to eat a whole bag of carrots? Juicing good-quality fresh fruits and vegetables gives you a super boost of nutrients that are easily assimilated by the body as you have taken away the majority of the fibre that slows down this process. By treating your body to these highly nutritious cocktails, you will feel more satisfied for longer than you would if you had eaten, say, a chocolate bar high in refined sugar and unhealthy fats, that will leave your body craving for more after the initial sugar rush has worn off.
Of course we need fibre and you will be taking in fibre on the seven-day plan: firstly in the form of soluble fibre that juicing doesn’t remove; and secondly, in the recommended daily fibre supplement through flax seeds and psyllium husks. This is more effective as the essential nutrients are separate from the fibre source and remain immediately available to nourish the tissues and cells of the body.
Many commercially available juices and smoothies have been diluted with water, heat-treated and may contain additives to prolong their shelf life, thus minimizing their nutritional benefit. It is best to make your own or go to a juice bar where juices can be made to your specification with fresh ingredients right there in front of you. Alternatively, if you are stuck, seek out good-quality juices and smoothies from the chiller cabinet.
Remember that this is a seven-day plan; on a more long-term basis, supplementing a healthy diet with freshly squeezed juices and smoothies will ensure you receive your daily minimum quota of five portions of fruit and vegetables and help provide all the key nutrients you need for maintaining vibrant health.