21 day juice detox - day 18

I went into London today to catch up with my best friend Sophie. We haven't seen each other in ages. Sophie lives in West Hampstead so I grabbed the opportunity of heading into Camden to visit....Inspiral! Such a fantastic place, beautiful food and great music. If you haven't heard of Inspiral, it is a vegan cafe bar serving both cooked and raw vegan food, amazing raw cakes, truffles and chocolates, juices, smoothies, vegan hot drinks (yay, vegan chai latte!), and they also do organic beers and cocktails if you are a drinker. You may have heard of them from their lovely products that are available in health food shops, like their famous dehydrated superfood kale chips, and their gorgeous raw granolas.

I had a yummy hemp milk chai latte, a selection of salads (I think I had red cabbage, broccoli and cauliflower with a miso dressing, spiralised courgette and butternut squash with a goji berry and ginger dressing and seaweed salad), and I just couldn't resist trying their raw sunfood burger. Probably a bit heavy for me at the moment but it was worth it, sooo delicious. And, it felt so nice to have raw food prepared for me, as usually I am the one who does all the raw food, at home and at my retreats!

And here is the hemp milk chai latte with raw tiramisu (we shared this!)

Me about to dive in....YUM YUM!!

So I highly recommend a visit to Inspiral if you find yourself in the Camden area. So good!

Wishing you raw health and happiness,

Natalie. x

www.rawlifestylecoach.co.uk

21 day juice detox - day 17

Was working most of the morning on my computer then my lovely neighbour Paula popped in and invited Max and I out for a cuppa and playdate as she was looking after her granddaughter Jessica. We went to a lovely little farm shop and cafe near to where we live, it has a big outdoor play area for the kids with garden toys, climbing frame, swings and stuff like that. Max loves it there.

Then later on I made a really nice berry salad based on a delicious recipe from one of my favourite raw food blogs, Fragrant Vanilla Cake. Amy had created this beautiful dish with raspberry chia dressing. I didn't have any raspberries so I used strawberries and blueberries instead. And of course the nut cheese Amy included in her creation would be too heavy for me at the moment so I had it without. It was such a delicious combination of flavours and textures, especially for me transitioning back onto solid food again. A great dish to ease out of a fast with. I have never had a dressing using berries and chia like that but it was a winning combination.

Berry salad recipe:
1/2 bag spinach
1 little gem lettuce
Handful strawberries
Handful blueberries
Small handful alfalfa sprouts

Dressing:
1 1/2 cups strawberries and blueberries
2 tbsp soaked chia seeds
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 tbsp agave
2 tbsp olive oil
Pinch pink himalayan salt
A little pure water to thin if necessary

Blitz all the dressing ingredients in a blender until smooth. Mix the leaves and sprouts with some dressing so that it all gets coated. Top with berries and drizzle some extra dressing over the top.

I also made my spinachade recipe today, one of my favourite juices of all time.

Spinachade recipe:

8 apples

1 lemon (organic unwaxed)

1 bag (200g) spinach

Put an apple in the juicer followed by a handful of spinach and then another apple. Juice the lemon with the rind on, easier to do if cut in half and sandwiched in with the spinach. 

Wishing you raw health and happiness,

Natalie. x

www.rawlifestylecoach.co.uk

21 day juice detox - day 16

Had a very busy day filled with yoga today. Taught my lovely private client Cheryl this morning and then went for a hot yoga session at Serenity Hot Yoga in Dorking. Then had my Tuesday class to teach this evening. We were working on our hips today, and I think some of my students surprised themselves at the end seeing their legs wrapped in full lotus! Well done class!

I have my son Max's birthday barbeque this Saturday, so I have decided to start introducing solid foods slowly over the last few days of my detox in order to be able to make and eat some lovely celebration raw food dishes for the party, plus of course the special raw chocolate mousse cake I am planning to make! So I had some berries today to start the process slowly. After not eating for such a long period of time its really important to make the transition slow and simple for the body, otherwise you'll end up feeling very ill indeed. I must say it felt very strange to be chewing after all this time!!

My main juice today was a lovely sweet dark green concoction, I added in some chlorella to begin getting my system used to having protein again. It really filled me up as I'm not used to it anymore! Chlorella is a blue-green algae cultivated as a food because of its exceptional nutritional profile and its ability to chelate heavy metals such as mercury and lead out of the body. It is an excellent detox food, and also great after exercise as a recovery tonic. Its good for children as well.

Chlorella cleanser juice recipe:
5 apples
5 pears
1 bunch celery
1 cucumber
1/2 bag spinach
Chunk fresh ginger
Juice of 1 lime
1 tsp. chlorella

Juice everything sandwiching spinach between apples and pears. Pour into blender adding lime juice and chlorella and blitz to mix.

Wishing you raw health and happiness,

Natalie. x

www.rawlifestylecoach.co.uk

21 day juice detox - day 15

Monday Monday here again! Was really tired today from yesterday's fayre. Had my lovely tap dancing class at lunchtime and my energy levels picked up. Strange what stomping about and making a load of racket for an hour can do!

I had a delicious beetroot based juice today, I called it Beetroot Blast. I'm really loving beetroot in juices at the moment, I don't know if it's because of the blood purifying and detoxing effects, or the yummy sweet taste, or the beautiful rich purple colour. Probably all three! And purple is my favourite colour.

Beetroot blast juice recipe:
3 beetroots
1 bag (750g) carrots
5 pears
1/2 bag spinach
Chunk fresh ginger
Juice of 1 lime

Put it all through the juicer, sandwiching spinach between pears. Mix lime in the jug.

Wishing you raw health and happiness,

Natalie. x

www.rawlifestylecoach.co.uk

21 day juice detox - day 14

Today I was exhibiting at the ABC Animal Sanctuary fund raising fayre. I had a stall and was selling raw chocolate bars, chocolate lollipops and chocolate making kits. The chocolate went down really well and I sold out. It was great to be supporting such a fantastic cause and giving people their first experience of healthy raw chocolate! Plus I got to meet Captain Jack Sparrow...another life goal ticked off the list!! (And he liked my chocolate!)

I made green juice to take with me and lots of snacks for Max to eat. To my delight there was a stall selling vintage clothing, so I spent a little of my profits on a beautiful handmade 60's maxi dress!

Green juice recipe:
1 bunch celery
1 cucumber
4 apples
4 pears
1 bag spinach
Chunk fresh ginger
Juice of 1 lime

Juice all the ingredients, sandwiching spinach between apples and pears. Mix with lime in the jug.

Wishing you raw health and happiness,

Natalie. x

www.rawlifestylecoach.co.uk

21 day juice detox - days 12 & 13

I've been so busy Friday and Saturday I haven't had time to write! Friday I taught an Intro to Raw Food at The Medicine Garden in Cobham, Surrey. The event was hosted by Ruth at The Larder which is the farm shop there. We had 8 clients and they all really enjoyed the food and the evening. We made almond milk, alligator smoothie, hazelnut, olive & red pepper pate that they ate with nori sheets, alfalfa sprouts, grated carrot and shredded spinach, courgette spaghetti with tomato sauce and chocolate brownies with fudgey chocolate icing! It was a bit strange for me not being able to sample the food as we went along, and I was very tempted by the brownies as they're my favourite!

Juice wise I didn't make anything new, just orange and wheatgrass juice. I was a bit naughty actually as I didn't have much time during the day as I was preparing for the workshop, so I only had that one juice. I did have some coconut water and herbal tea though, and lots of water.

Saturday I went to a hot yoga class at Serenity Hot Yoga in Dorking. Oh how I have missed my hot yoga! It was so great to be back! I really like the way they do it there, they use infra red heaters to heat the room so it doesn't feel as harsh as the other ones that I've been to which usually use blow heaters to heat up the room. It was the perfect temperature, hot enough to heat the muscles to help you stretch and make you sweat but not so hot you feel dizzy or lightheaded. Absolutely loved it! This is great for helping detox the body, exercise to get the lymph moving and heat to raise the circulation and induce sweating.

When I got home I made pineapple, raspberry and lime juice. I don't suggest juicing berries very often as they are very expensive and you don't get much juice out of them at all. But I had some raspberries and have been really missing their beautiful flavour so I made this juice, which was delicious!

Pineapple, raspberry and lime juice recipe:
1 pineapple
1 punnet raspberries
juice 1/2 lime

Juice pineapple on high, raspberries on low and mix with lime juice in the jug.

Then in the evening we went for dinner with some of David's family at his cousins house. We had pre warned them that I am fasting so I made a couple of flasks of juice to take with me. I also made some raw chocolate truffles for everyone to have after dinner.

I made the juice I had at Wagamamas last week, celery, apple, mint and lime. It didn't taste exactly like the one I had there as I wasn't sure of the proportions but it was still refreshing and delicious. As it went straight into flasks I didn't get a photo.

Celery, apple, mint and lime juice recipe:
1 bunch celery
4 apples
Juice of 1/2 lime
1/2 pack of mint

Juice celery and then apples, sandwiching mint between them. Mix with lime juice in the jug.

Wishing you raw health and happiness,

Natalie. x

www.rawlifestylecoach.co.uk

21 day juice detox - day 11

Wow...over half way now. Feeling really great today. My friend Deborah and I went to a networking meeting for people in the alternative/holistic industry and there was a fascinating talk about the benefits of including flax seeds and oil in your diet by Clare of Flax Farm www.flaxfarm.co.uk
Flax seeds:

• Are very low carb and GI
• Gluten free
• Have more omega 3 than fresh mackerel 
• Have more fibre than bran flakes
• Are a rich source of hormone balancing lignans
• Are rich in powerful antioxidants

Some of the health benefits of including flax in your diet are:

• Improved digestion
• Smooth radiant skin
• Balanced cholesterol
• Supple joints
• Healthy metabolism
• Increased immune function
• Balanced hormones
• Healthier gut bacteria
• Stabilised blood sugar levels
• Reduced inflammation in the body

I was in a rush this morning to get to the meeting and I didn't have time for scrubbing and peeling so I just made a big batch of orange and watermelon juice. I had half a watermelon in the fridge that was already washed and I put that through the juicer (rind on) and mixed it with the juice from 5 oranges. Because of the rind the colour doesn't look that great, it's a little dark and muddy (you obviously don't notice this when mixing it with a green blend). If this bothers you just juice the flesh of the melon and save the rind for your next green juice. Don't let looks deceive you though, it tasted gorgeous!

Going back to the flax, I always have a little jar of ground flax in the fridge for Max to sprinkle on his food. If you do this, make sure you only make small batches as it doesn't keep fresh for long, and always store in the fridge. Clare told us that children who have omega 3 in their diet have better concentration levels at school and less occurrence of ADD/ADHD. Today I made Max a half raw meal of pasta salad consisting of gluten free pasta, peas, broccoli (all cooked) and finely diced raw red pepper and cucumber with a raw creamy tomato sauce. He absolutely loves sprinkling the flax on his food himself, and as this was a tomatoey pasta dish I mixed some of the flax meal with some nutritional yeast (a vegan health food containing B vitamins, protein, minerals and trace elements, with a savoury cheesy flavour). He ended up eating most of his sprinkle mix with his spoon!

Wishing you raw health and happiness,

Natalie. x

www.rawlifestylecoach.co.uk