Urban Remedy | A remedy for the urbanite

I am a small girl with a BIG appetite. Weight wasn't my problem for the first 20 years of my existence, I didn't care about what I was eating because I was still slim no matter what. I was totally alright until I finished my degree, started working night shift where, to fight sleep deprivation, I'd binge and would always have a snack on my desk. A (rather long) hiatus in dancing didn't help and a medical condition PCOS (Polycystic ovarian syndrome, a hormonal condition) made it worse. I got back on track when I finally decided to be active again in dancing and joined fun runs, which at that time was becoming a thing in the Philippines.

Fast forward to my days in Sydney, I can maintain 44 kilograms in my 152 cm height. The only challenge is when I'm on holiday. I tend to let loose when I'm on vacation because where's the fun if you have restrictions in what you eat? Though I seem to get back in shape after a holiday by doing strenuous exercise and healthy eating (by healthy I mean no sweets, soda and just a bit of rice - know that no Filipino could ever survive without rice so this is a real big sacrifice) I find it really challenging to lose the 7 kilos I gained from all the holidays the past 6 months. I spent 6 weeks doing an eating spree in the Philippines in December, I haven't lost all the 5 kilos I gained when 6 weeks after I went to a 'dream come true' holiday in Maldives.Four weeks after the company had to send me for a 2 week business trip to the Philippines and while it was a work travel I couldn't help myself but scoff all the Filipino dishes I've missed. I only came back to Sydney after that because my holiday in Japan was booked from there and then my scoffing continued with udon, tempura, tendon, ramen and all Japanese food you can think of, they were just all worth the extra kilo! When I got back to Sydney in May, the first thing on my mind is crunch time -I've got to get back to losing all the extra baggage in my arms, face and stomach but it's easier said than done. I went back to gym as soon as I got back but for some reason I couldn't let go of the sweets. Everyday in Japan, I would eat a box of Meiji  Almonds and another box for Macadamia and it only took me less than a week to finish the other boxes I brought with me from the Meiji land. I think the sweet tooth was really activated because even when I got back I was still eating chocies - (Cadbury) Picnic and Snickers this time.

The Sweet Culprit

It took me two weeks to get awakened by the weighing scale at the gym. I was doing tabata (high intensity interval training), Zumba and yoga but my weight was still the same. I would have expected to lose a kilo or two already based on my previous workout experience. I knew I had to do something; I was doing the exercise but not the healthy- eating part so the former was only helping me maintain the current weight and not doing my goal of shedding off some fats. I needed a kick-start and my research led me into doing a detox. I was a bit hesitant at first  because I couldn't imagine starving myself by just having a fluid intake all day. But I knew I had to. And looking at the benefits of detox cleansing, I knew it was what I needed to get going.

After reading all the FAQs, I knew I was ready but had to do it the week after another
(http://www.urbanremedy.com.au/FAQs/aboutcleansing/tabid/70/Default.aspx) work trip in Brisbane (thought that was my last hurrah before my juice cleansing). I ordered my one day set of juice cleansing on a Thursday for a Monday delivery - brand new week, brand new start. Delivery was said to be between 4 to 8pm but since I had it delivered at work, I got it by 2pm.

My kick-start box

There are 3 different levels of juice cleanse, I chose level 1 as it is recommended for first timers. Level 1 comes with 6 bottles of juice with a total of 958 calories - 151g healthy carbs, 23g lean protein and 22g good fats and all juices are free from gluten, wheat, yeast, dairy and refined sugar.

I started my juice cleanse the following day. The recommended intake time of juice#1 is 7am and 2-3 hours after for the next one. I normally have my brekky 9am at work so I still followed my normal routine.

My juice#1 is the Energising Smoothie - it's banana, mango, spinach, chia, goji and water. I honestly thought this would be the worst drink because it's green and the colour perceives a veggie drink (and I don't eat green leafy vegetables) but I was wrong! It was actually so good I can drink 5 more bottles of this for the day. Although this is just my second favourite, read some more for my favourite drink!

Energising Smoothie

Juice#2 is Metabolism Booster - lemon, cayenne, stevia and water, I took it around 1130am and I was fine, I wasn't hungry but I had gone to the toilet to pee thrice after the first 2 bottles. I guess it was really flushing out the toxins in my body, which is a very good thing. This juice is probably my least favourite because of the cayenne, it had a strong taste my  mind tells me it's spicy but it's not. It's a bit strange but I was focused on my cleansing - I know cayenne is part of the ingredients for a reason, either to balance the nutrients intake or to add flavour to the drink.

Metabolism Booster - can drink hot or cold

Juice#3 is fat buster - another favourite. It's apple, mint and pineapple. I was sipping my lunch while seated across my partner stuffing his stomach with a box of Hawaiian pizza from Pizza Hut. I was still fine, a bit lightheaded but I knew it was all in the mind. In diets and detox like this, the mind plays an important part.

Fat Buster

In between juice#3 and #4 was the most challenging. It was mid afternoon and my mind was busy thinking of all the food that I wanted to eat. The following day I found a note written on my sticky note some time between juice#3 and 4 that says " what are you doing to yourself? sure you gained weight but you are not fat! stop starving yourself!". I just laughed at it then deleted. I wasn't doing this to lose weight (although you can really lose weight with juice cleansing because your intake is less than the normal and the removed toxins means healthier body), I was doing it to give my body a rest from all the unhealthy stuff I digested the past several months. I knew it will pay off.


 Juice#4 is Digestion Enhancer - it's made of lemon, lime, ginger, stevia and water. It's similar to juice#3 but instead of cayenne it was the ginger that dominated the taste of the drink. It was still good but, and this time I've already calmed my mind and it was now more at peace with my juice cleansing.

Digestion Enhancer

Juice#5 is Zingy Uplifter - it's orange, carrot, lemon and ginger. This was my dinner; I liked the orange, carrot and lemon part, I am not really a fan of ginger but reckon taste was alright. I was finishing the day and that was what's important.

Zingy Uplifter

Juice#6 is my juice no. 1, my favourite! It's made of banana, almonds, cacao, chia and water and I took it 2 hours before bedtime. I like the combination of banana, cacao and almonds, it's just the perfect drink!

Calming Smoothie

I feel light and accomplished by the end of my cleanse. The following day I became more conscious of what I am eating and the cleanse has brought me some magical way to stop craving sweets - it could be because I thought it'd be a waste to do a cleanse and get back to my old habit after or could also be my body has quickly adapted to my 40 hour diet; either way I think the juice cleansing served its purpose - to give me a kick-start to a healthy diet.

When I weighed by the end of that week I lost 2 kilos. I cannot say for certain that it was solely because of the juice cleansing but it definitely helped. As they say, a healthier lifestyle is 70% healthy diet and 30% regular exercise - I am well adequate with the latter, juice cleansing gave me a good start in achieving a healthy diet.

Am I going to do the juice cleansing again? YES (maybe level 2 this time) and I recommend that you do too!

~if you are following a budget and have the time, you may make your own juice cleanse. There's heaps of websites that offer free juice cleanse recipes like http://www.rawjuicecleanserecipes.com/. I like urban remedy because since I'm a novice in juice cleansing, I want to make sure I am still getting all the nutrients I need while doing it. Happy cleansing!

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URBAN REMEDY
www.urbanremedy.com.au/