FranniePantz: Dear Frannie Friday--JUS by Julie Review

I mentioned last week that I was going to go on a juice cleanse. Well I didn't get a chance to start it until this week. While it is important to note that I was not contacted or compensated by JUS by Julie to do this review, I am going to let you guys know about my experience because, well, I do what I want.

Ordering

I'll start by saying that I was initially disappointed by the ordering of this product. I did a lot of research on juice cleanses and this one had good product reviews and in one of the comments someone had mentioned using a Groupon. And, of course, Patrick had told me to download the Groupon app, so I checked it out. Well the three day juice cleanses cost $150. With the Groupon, though, the three day juice cleanse was $99. Deal right? Well kind of. Because the Groupon does not include shipping. And JUS by Julie requires next day shipping because of their fresh product. But they won't just ship it out the day after you order it. And the price for next day shipping was $55. So it was a wash price wise and I ordered this product on June 16th and it was delivered on June 25th. So more than a week from ordering to delivery even though you have to pay the super high shipping cost.

Hunger

Let me preface this section by saying that I really don't have a big appetite in general. In fact, I usually don't even end up eating during the day until about 2:00 p.m. and that is mainly because I am just so slammed busy until then and I don't take a lunch break at work because I am part time. So I am used to skipping breakfast, having a late lunch and then eating dinner. So really it was hard for me to actually keep up with the juices. You are supposed to drink 6 of the juices in a day--one every two hours. That was overwhelming for me, but I did pretty good with it. They say to drink a juice if you feel hungry and I did and my hunger was generally sustained.

I genuinely missed eating. I was never really starving or crazy hungry, but I definitely craved actual food and cooking and chewing and the taste of food. Let me also say that the information packet that came with the juices stated that you could and should integrate some raw or steamed vegetables while you were on the juice cleanse, but I opted not to just because I never got to that really weakening, unstable state of hunger. The first day was really easy. But the second day, I was ready to seriously give up. I was over juice and really wanted food--ANY food. I will say that I never eat boxed macaroni and cheese as I always make my own, but I really wanted some. Or McNuggets which I probably have not had since I was 8 years old. Or basically anything that I could taste and chew that was warm and seasoned. The third day was back to being a breeze and I was not hungry at all--but still really psyched to EAT SOMETHING.

Energy

I was absolutely exhausted during the first two days. A lack of caffeine and sugar and food really wore me down more than I expected. I was D.O.A. as soon as Reilly went to sleep. But on the third day, I had a ton of energy! I am not sure if that was from all the extra sleep that I got or the natural ingredients going into my body, but I definitely felt a charge and change in energy on the third day.

Taste

Ok guys. Time to get real. JUS by Julie comes with several flavors of juices and they are each clearly marked for when you are supposed to have them throughout the day. Some were good and some were wretched. Here are my reviews on the tastes:

Morning Glory
Romaine, Celery, Spinach, Kale, Apple, Banana, Strawberry, H2O

Every morning started with this drink and I absolutely HATED IT!!!! It literally tasted like a loooooooong wheatgrass shot (if you've ever had one of those). It had a sweet aftertaste, but it was not enough to cover what tasted like lawn mulch. It took me four hours to choke down on the first day, I gagged so much that I only drank 2/3 on the second day and I skipped it all together on the third day.

Spicy Lemonade
Lemon, Maple Syrup, Cayenne Pepper, H2O

I loved this juice. It was definitely tart and you could definitely taste the spice of the cayenne, but genuinely it was just like the name . . . a spicy lemonade. I gave Kaden (my 14 year old lemonade addict) a sip and he also liked it.

Sweet Spin
Spincah, Kale, Pineapple, Banana, Mango, H2O

I also liked this drink! Patrick and I used to make a similar juice. You definitely get the green-y-ness (?) of the spinach, but the pineapple and mango kick up the sweet factor.

Chia Berry
Strawberry, Chia Seeds, Lemon, Pomegranate, H2O

Not a fan. It tasted like a cranberry vodka--the cheap kind that I would get on nickel drink night in my early 20's. Skip.

Choco-Nana
Bananas, Chocolate, Strawberry, H20

This has chocolate in it. Need I say more? To die for. Loved it, loved it.

Xtreme Greens
Kale, Spinach, Lime, Pineapple, Orange, Hemp Seeds, H20

I was so nervous about this drink (PTSD from Morning Glory), but it was SO GOOD. It was just the right amount of sweet. There were three of these--the last juice to drink on each of the three nights. Since I didn't get to it on the first or second night (literally fell asleep with the #5 juices in my hand both nights), I opted to substitute it out for the Morning Glory on the third day. I am glad that I saved them and I plan to have the other two for breakfast this week. Yummy!

Spicy Pomegranate
Pomegranate, Lemon, Maple Syrup, Cayenne Pepper, H20

Much like the Spicy Lemonade, I loved this juice. It was a spicy fruity drink and I could've drank 100 of them.

Acai Blend
Acai Berries, Strawberries, Banana, H20

This was a really fruity drink. I liked it though it was a little bit tart for my liking. Not bad.

Not So Chunky
Peanut Butter, Banana, H20

I really had my hopes set high on this one as the name reminded me of the Chunky Monkey drink that my bestie used to get at Jamba Juice. But no. Ooooooh no. It did not taste like that. At first you think--banana and peanut butter, what could go wrong? A lot apparently. It had this really strong chemically kind of taste. It is hard to describe other than it tasted like stinging. I don't know. All I know was that it was bad. And I left it on the counter for a bit and it started oozing out of the bottle so I threw it out about 1/4 way in.

Island Coconut
Coconut Meat, Date, Cinnamon, H20

Weight

Now obviously I was only on this cleanse for three days, so no significant expectations were had. AND the information packet clearly stated that a cleanse should never just be a weight loss program, although it can be a side effect. I did, however, lose six pounds. Now I am no fool. I know this will take some serious maintaining to keep off and I plan to eat healthier and do a Whole30 coming up in a few weeks too.

All in all, this juice cleanse was worth it for the most part. At times frustrating and definitely a challenge, but it was worth it. It taught me discipline (I really do need to be better about eating breakfast and having healthy snacks between meals) and gave my body the kick in the ass it needed to really want to eat healthier.

But for now . . . I may indulge in a chicken club lettuce wrap.