"If we're not willing to settle for junk living, we certainly shouldn't settle for junk food." - Sally Edwards

I have been considering the Blue Print juice cleanse for a few weeks now.  I've heard all kinds of wonderful things - it energizes and refreshes you, it "resets" your tastebuds, it gets you on the right track for a healthier lifestyle, etc. - but I've been on the fence due to the cost as much as the torture that seems to go hand in hand with consuming only liquids for three days straight.  That being said, after the gluttonous extravaganza that was our vacation I decided that there's no time like the present.

In preparation I tried to follow BluePrint's suggestion and ween myself off dairy, protein and caffeine.  This was made somewhat easier by some raw food blogs I found with helpful recipes for veggie/fruit packed meals, especially those espousing the values of the green shake.  It sounds gross, but, for the most part I liked starting my day with a green shake.

On day 1, I blended 2 cups spinach, 1 banana, 7 large strawberries, and 2 cups water.  The texture was somewhat grassy, but, it was pretty tasty.  The spinach has little to no taste so it just comes across as a muted strawberry/banana "shake."

On day 2, I blended 2 cups spinach, 2 small pears, a cup of blueberries, a handful of mint, and 2 cups water.  Aside from the texture issue, it was really good (I'm also a sucker for anything blueberry, pear, or mint so this was essentially my personal powerhouse of flavors).

I do not have as many great things about the shake on day 3.  I blended 2 cups spinach, 7 strawberries, 1 cup of blueberries, a handful of mint, and 2 cups water.  Unfortunately the berries and spinach, without another meatier fruit to balance out the textures, ended up having the most disgusting consistency.  I choked it back, but, it was difficult.

While the raw food blogs made my choice of fruit and veggie conscious preparatory food choices easier, the preparation took a real toll on me physically as I went through major withdrawal (I am assuming the withdrawal was primarily from caffeine, but I wonder if it could be from fatty, salty, delicious food too).  I had a slight headache days 1 and 2 of preparing, but, by day 3 I slipped into a full-on migraine.  I was pretty much incapacitated, and despite sleeping for almost 13 hours between day 3 of prep and day 1 of the cleanse, I still woke up on day 1 of the cleanse with a headache and feeling slightly nauseous.

Despite not feeling so hot, I started day 1 of the cleanse with a glass of hot water with lemon (per Blue Print's suggestion) and dove right into my juices.  Juice #1, the green juice, is horrible.  I seriously cannot emphasize how horrible this stuff is.  It tastes like salty, cucumbery, pickle juice.  Luckily Juice #2, the P.A.M. (pineapple, apple, and mint), is delicious.  Unluckily Juice #3 is a reprieve of the green juice.

By the time I finished Juice #3 I was incredibly nauseous and had another massive headache.  I was feeling a tad better after some advil and the yummy cayenne lemonade of Juice #4, until I cracked open Juice #5.  This beet juice concoction is just as gag worthy as the green juice.  All I could think the entire time I was forcing it back is "how am I going to drink this for two more days."  By the end of the day I was terrified of Juice #6.  Thankfully it tasted mostly like an eggnog-like shake, albeit with a sandy texture.

So, at the end of day 1 of the cleanse I had determined that the majority of the juices are terrible, and that I felt, on the whole, terrible.  That being said, while I did crave tasting something delicious and sitting down to enjoy a meal, I was never actually hungry the entire day (although it could be that I was just full of liquid as I followed every 16 ounce juice with at least a 12 ounce cup of water and sometimes multiple waters and/or mugs of hot herbal tea per Blue Print's instruction).

Day 2 was much better in that I was not at all nauseous and my headache was gone.  On the other hand, since I already knew what the juices would taste like I spent a good portion of my day dreading the green and beet juices - and they were even more cringe-worthy the second time around.  I tried putting them over ice but that just made it worse, psychologically speaking, as 16 ounces spans to 2 and a half glasses when you add ice.  I ended up plugging my nose and chugging, chasing each chug with a sip of hot lemon water.

At the end of day 2 I no longer felt hung over and I was only hungry for the hour or so after working out because I came home to B and his Thai takeout.

Day 3 I was feeling pretty good, I'd lost 5 pounds, and my skin was looking great.  On the downside the green and beet juices were even more terrible the third time around, and for the first time I was truly hungry for most of the day (I think it was mostly due to having started my day at 6am instead of 10am).

And now the million dollar question, would I do it again?  Probably not, unless I go on a serious bender or somehow get invited to next year's Oscars and need to lose 5 pounds fast, if for no other reason than I shudder at even the thought of ever having to drink those green and beet juices again.  That said, I am glad I did it because I do feel totally detoxed and like I've been re-wired to think about my foods from a 20% meat, 80% fruit and veggie platform.  We'll see how long it lasts...