Juicing tips and tricks for beginners

Are you looking for juicing tips and tricks? Do you make homemade juice or have a juicing regimen? I’ve been wanting to get into juicing. It seems like a healthy and delicious way to consume more fruits and veggies.

Well guess what?! A new member has been introduced to our appliance family… a juicer (squeals of delight).

As I’ve been experimenting with juicing, I thought I would share a little bit about my juicing journey thus far, as well as share some of my juicing tips and tricks.

Before I start, I have to share a funny story with you…
My husband has told me several times that I need to come up with a new term for our new juicing activity because apparently juicing means taking steroids?! Who knew?!

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However, I have bucked his suggestion because one look at my scrawny arms and chicken legs and you will make at least one of these two assumptions:

• There’s no way I ever have or would ever take steroids.
• I have probably never lifted weights.

Juicing Tips and Tricks

So you want to try juicing? If you’re new to juicing or haven’t tried it much, here are a few juicing tips and tricks I learned while making fresh juice for myself.

Don’t go overboard

No matter how excited you are about your new juicer, don’t go overboard! I learned this the hard way on my first day of juicing. I got nauseated from my baby kale, spinach, apple, kiwi, lemon, flax seed combo. It’s crazy, I know… I mean I felt SICK. I seriously felt nauseated all afternoon and evening.

Apparently when you first start juicing, some people react this way. It’s a lot of pure nutrients all at once and some vegetables/seeds (such as kale, beets, and flax) are more challenging to process. Some tips I discovered to avoid such a juicing catastrophe is to add a bit of ginger to your blend and to start with a 50/50 blend of juice and water. After a few days of success, increase to 75/25 blend. After a few more days of success, increase to a 100 juice blend.

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Prepare your produce ahead of time

If you want this healthy habit to stick, it’s best to make it as easy and accessible as possible. Thoroughly wash your produce and store it in your fridge. If it’s possible, pre-cut your produce too (carrots, melon, beets, pineapple, etc.). Store your cut produce in jars or Ziploc bags in your fridge.

What types of fruits and vegetables should you juice?

Seriously. You are juicing these fruits and vegetables without altering their chemistry at all. Do you want to main-line toxins and pesticides into your body? I don’t think so. If you don’t buy organic all the time, make sure that you are buying organic for the fruits and veggies you are juicing.

Make it routine

Find a time that juicing works for you and make it part of your routine. I have my juice first thing in the morning and as an afternoon snack. Both of these times my children are resting so I have the time to juice and enjoy.

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Clean your juicer immediately

Don’t let your juicer sit with all that gunk and crud on it. As soon as you drink your juice, clean your juicer. This is why having a routine is so important. I love my juicer because it’s compact and REALLY easy to clean.

How long does freshly squeezed juice last?

I’ve read in numerous places that the juice starts to lose it’s nutrients after being room temperature for 15 minutes. Juice and drink as soon as possible. If you can’t drink immediately. Place in an airtight jar and store in the fridge as soon as it’s made. Store juice for only 24 hours.

Make it pretty

Not many people want to drink a muddy greenish/grey beverage. Try to make your juices appealing by using fruits and veggies that will result in attractive looking colours. Presentation matters (and does slightly affect the way your taste buds will receive the juice).

That’s it (so far). If I come up with any more tips and tricks, I’ll make sure to let you know. Do you make your own juice? I would love to hear your thoughts, tips, and/or advice.

I recently read through my New Year's resolutions from earlier this year and was happy to see that I had achieved most of them.
But it was the heading at the top that make me chuckle. It said "The Year of Juicing," and so far, 2012 has been 100% that.
Juicing was initially an easy way to eat healthier, but it ended up being a catalyst to changing the rest of my bad habits. My quality of sleep has improved and I have such an abundance of energy compared to in the past.

Sounds good, right? If you are new to juicing there are some basic that you need to understand to get you started.

Why should I juice?

Juicing is an easy way to get your recommended fruit and (especially) vegetable intake. Few people would eat carrots, beets, celery, spinach, pomegranate and apple (my big RED juice) within their day, so this is a great way to not only have the nutrients from the vegetables and fruits, but it's also so much easier for your body to absorb all of the goodness.

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Another question I often get asked is, why not just eat it?
The first thing I say is, well, do you eat all of this? Generally, the answer is no. Juicing allows you to experiment with a wide range of food not typically eaten at the dinner table. Also, juicing essentially pre-digests the fruit/vegetables for you allowing the nutrients to be absorbed much easier. When juicing beetroot, I have never noticed red in my stool (unlike when I eat it). The nutrients stay within my body and don't get flushed down the toilet with the fiber.

What juicer do I buy?

Well the answer to this depends on many things like budget, space, why you are juicing, etc.

Juicers can be broken down as follows;

Centrifugal: These are commonly seen at Juice bars and use a high-speed rotating blade to cut the fruits and vegetables. This action oxidizes the juice, which alters the nutrients left in the liquid you drink. Centrifugal juicers are generally priced lower, but extract less juice from the pulp compared to other juicers mentioned below.

Single & Double Auger Juicers, Masticating & Cold Press: These juicers crush or squeeze the juice out of the fruits and vegetable at a much slower rate than the centrifugal juicer.

This means there is less oxidization and more nutrients are extracted. If nutritious juice is what you are after, I'd recommend these types over the centrifugal juicer.

Personally, when I first started juicing, I looked at the prices and thought, how can I spend so much money on another appliance? If you are a first time juicer, I suggest buying a Single or Double Auger, Masticating or Cold Press Juicer that is as close to or within your budget. Use this juicer and work out whether or not you are committed to juicing long-term before forking out for a better and therefore more expensive juicer. I initially got a $300 juicer and used it so much, it wore out/died within six months . . . for me my new juicer is well worth the investment.