The reasons for adopting a raw food lifestyle are numerous. For some, it is the best for detoxification, while others turn to raw food after many failed diet plans. A few turn to a juice fast to experience lightness of body and feeling. The rest are simply curious.

Whatever reasons you might have to try a juice cleanse, three things will definitely happen for you: You will 1) lose weight; 2) look better; and 3) feel better.

Suzie, a 35-year-old career woman, came to me three years ago, desperately needing guidance—and desperately overweight. Being a workaholic, her meals were irregular, and whenever she sat down to eat, her food choices were all high fat and high sugar.

Worst of all, there was no time for exercise! Correction, she never made time for exercise, because it was not a priority to her.

So, what was so wrong with this picture? Everything.

But what is right about it is that Suzie knew there was a problem, and stopped being in denial about her situation. The best part about the whole scenario is that she decided to take charge of her life.

My only advice to her was simple. Enhance a wellness lifestyle—eat and drink healthy, hydrate well with water, exercise, get seven to eight hours of sleep, manage stress, supplement with vitamins and minerals. The very first step—while being the most challenging because old habits must be replaced with new ones—was to go juicing every day.

Get started

1. Buy a reliable juicer. The best is a slow juicer, one which only presses the ingredients and doesn’t expose it to heat. Enzymes contained in fruits and vegetables are sensitive to heat. The result is a severe loss of enzyme power. Hurom, made in Korea, seems, by far, the only one of its kind using a low 45 revolutions per minute (rpm) speed to ensure enzyme integrity. Existing brands today have an rpm of 100 or over. Take on the juicing regimen. Beginners can start with one full glass of fresh juice at breakfast. With the right combination of green juicing, you will not have hunger pangs. Health enthusiasts enjoy juicing up to three times a day. The more live enzymes you drink, the slower the aging process. Therefore, juice up to stay young.
2. Good carbs, zero carbohydrates at night. During the day, eat only multi-grain breads/pastas. Remove the whites—white bread/rice/crackers/noodles.
3. Exercise 30 minutes daily. Brisk walking is the easiest to do. Avoid the sunlight from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
4. Zero sweets from sundown until bedtime. Eat half of your dessert only after a meal. Never make your dessert your meal or snack. Remember: sugar = fat

Juicing for healing

Here are different and delicious combinations of fruits and vegetables to address several minor ailments.

1. Energy: pineapple and malunggay (put only a tiny portion of malunggay because it is potent).
2. Blood cleanser: beetroot/sugar beets, carrots
3. Iron boost: leafy greens, broccoli, green apple, green grapes, cucumber, malunggay or ampalaya (bitter gourd)
4. Immune boost: strawberries, bananas
5. Wake-up call: red apple, ginger (small portion)
6. Skin beauty: guava, green apple, lemon
7. Quick upper: coconut water, ginger, honey

The portions are up to you. And that is the creative plus of juicing—you can make your own concoction! Just stick to the basics.

The standard carrot-apple mixture isn’t the only kind you should drink. Throw in as many greens and root crops like raw sweet potato and singkamas, too.

Raw beauty scrub

When you juice, the fiber of the vegetable or fruit is discarded. You have the option to add a little on to your juice or turn it into a body scrub.

Take 1 cup of fiber and mix it with 2 teaspoon of virgin coconut oil and 1 tsp of sugar. The result: a natural raw food scrub.

Rub gently all over your face and body, until your skin turns pinkish. Rinse after.

This week’s affirmation: “I am perfection in progress!”

Love and light!

E-mail the columnist at coryquirino1@yahoo.com.