Juicing on a Budget
The weigh-in was a success. I lost more than a pound since the weigh in yesterday which brings my total to almost 2 1/2 pounds lost.
I’ve been juicing like crazy and eating only mostly clean foods for 4 days and it is paying off.
If you would like to go back to be beginning here’s what you’ve missed:
- If Anyone’s Interested – The 5 Pound Problem & the Plan
- Day 1: 6 Reasons to Juice
- Day 2: Why Juice Instead of Smoothies
- Day 3: Juicing Helps & Tips – How to get the Most from Your Juice
- Day 4: Juicing for Disease Prevention & Cure
Day a couple of days on this 10 day project happened to fall on the weekend which is always a struggle for me. I can do great all week long but the weekend brings temptations, restaurants and lots of activities. These 3 items can be a recipe for disaster.
I navigated the weekend somewhat successfully with this strategy:
- Chill. It’s not the end of the world. Flexibility is key. I drank bunches of juice; at the same time, I ate with the family. I stuck to whole, clean foods (grilled meats, steamed veggies, homemade broths, etc.)
- Juice early & store them. Weekends are busy for us. I made my juices earlier than usual so I wouldn’t fall behind and run out of time. If I am in a hurry, juicing is the first thing to go.
JUICING ON A BUDGET
When people tell me that they don’t juice because the juicer is too expensive I always have the same response,
“The juicer is the cheap part.”
I juice for 6 people.
When you consider that one person is capable of drinking over 20 pounds of fruits and vegetables each day… juicing can get expensive pretty quickly.
The reality is that on normal days I am not consuming 20 pounds of produce. I usually only drink 2-3 juices each day but juicing does add to the weekly grocery budget.
How to Juice on a Budget
ONE: Don’t juice what you’ll eat.
I typically don’t put grapes, blueberries, cherries, blackberries, raspberries, mangoes, pomegranate or other pricey grocery items into my juice. My children (and I) will eat these all day long. I save the juicing for the foods that I have trouble getting my family to eat (like: kale, collards, beets, sweet potatoes, cucumbers, celery, limes, etc). I only add enough of the sweet goods to make the juice palatable (which is usually in the form of a Granny Smith Apple).
TWO: Juice what’s on sale.
All fresh produce has seasons and when you buy fruits during their season you’ll pay less. Additionally, eating foods in season usually means it has traveled less miles and is fresher.
THREE: Juice what you grow. Grow what you juice.
Gardening is the best way to save money on juicing. Many of my juice recipes are built around my garden. I grow beds of food that are just for my juice.
FOUR: Buy in Bulk.
At my local Farmer’s Market and Produce Stand there are always deals to grab. They need to sell yesterday’s strawberries, bruised apples and soft peaches. I can use all of these to make great juice. Don’t be afraid to ask if they have anything on sale or if they are willing to sell you a large quantity for a discount.
There are several markets near me who will sell carrots by the 50 pound bag and cucumbers by the bushel. This is a great way to buy produce for juicing.
FIVE: Add filtered water to your juice to stretch it.
I know folks who add water to their juice. I don’t do this. I would rather drink a smaller amount of juice packed with nutrition than water it down.
If you have a houseful of children and need to stretch the juice a bit farther, adding water will make sure everyone gets a glass.
SIX: Use simple recipes.
A member of my blog (learn more here) commented to me last week that she liked my juice recipes because they were less expensive than others she’s tried. We are a family of 6 on a budget, so my juices need to be affordable. I did not set out to create affordable juices, but my life necessitated it.
Juices don’t need to be expensive or fancy to be healthy. In Paula Black’s fight with advanced stage cancer she drank some of the simplest juices I’ve ever seen. And she beat cancer. Her main juice that she drank 8 times a day was Carrot-Apple Juice. Her recipe is: 5-8 carrots (depending on size) and 1 sweet apple. That’s it. Her other juice she drank often was her Lively-Green-Juice. The recipe is: 4 stalks celery, 4 leaves kale and 1 green apple. [Black, Paula. Life, Cancer & God. Black Eagle Publishing, Inc. 2014. pp 249]
DAYs 5 & 6:
Sunrise:
3 cups of coffee
Breakfast, Lunch & Snacks:
I made my juices early. I stuck with the 4 green juices & 2 orange/red juices that seem to keep me fed, energized and satisfied.
I snacked on stalks of celery & cucumbers. On day 5 I had a bowl of duck soup (homemade) for lunch.
DAY 5 Dinner Supper:
We had friends over for dinner and I cooked a feast. We ate Roast Beef dinner with onions & carrots. Mashed potatoes, green beans, buckets of gravy, a garden salad with tomatoes & onions, and homemade yeast rolls (with fresh-milled flour).
DAY 6 Dinner Supper:
Day 6 was DH & my 24 year anniversary. We celebrated with an evening out. I had surf and turf (steak and a gorgeous crab-cake) with a side of creamed spinach and a ceasar salad. It was amazing.
I’m sure the weigh-in will be a disaster tomorrow – but I promised I would weigh every day so I’ll be back on the scale no matter how much I’d like to avoid it. 🙂
XO,
Cj
