BPC review

so this past week, t and i decided to partake in a little experiment. we both hadn't been eating great and were looking to re-set our system a bit. we decided that we wanted to complete the blue print cleanse, which is a three day, all juice cleanse. i have actually done it before and didn't really like it all that much the first time but i decided to try it again.  t had never done it and i also thought it would be fun to try to do together. we ordered from their website (blueprint cleanse.com) and selected the 3 day cleanse. we had it delivered to our apartment (with no fee) on monday night. you can select a time frame you would like it delivered in (like furniture!) we selected 7:00-9:30 and it arrived at right about 7:30. each of us got a full box of juice and they included mini cooler packs to keep it cool during the drip. our fridge ended up looking like this

i think this was actually 1 day in, but you see what i mean. there are 6 juices per day, and three levels of the cleanse. we chose level one (renovation) which includes 2 green juices, 1 pineapple mint, 1 spicy lemonade, 1 beet juice and 1 cashew milk. 

each day you start with the green juice. on the first day, i didn't think it was that bad and actually thought it was much better than i had remembered. by day three though, it's really not something you want to have ever again. you need to make sure it is COLD too, otherwise, it's impossible to get down. 

the first day i felt AWFUL, but this is to be expected. i am a total caffeine lover, so it was really hard not to make my morning stop at starbucks, or make my coffee at home. i had a headache by around 9:30. i was kind of hungry throughout the day, but never unmanageable hunger. you are pretty much drinking a juice every 2 hours, so you are getting enough calories to feel decently. after the green juice you have a pineapple mint juice which is delicious and i would drink it on his own. you then go for another green, a spicy lemonade and then beet. the beet is pretty awful. it tastes like dirt. BLECH. 

after the beet comes the cashew milk. if you have done the cleanse before, you know that the cashew milk is amazing and it's something to look forward to. it's also calorie dense considering the other juices (about 300 calories) so it gives you enough at the end of the day to feel okay. i went to bed on the first day feeling okay, mostly just feeling overwhelmed that there were 2 days left. 

day 2 was MUCH better. i felt great. no headache, a lot of energy, really good. t on the other hand was DYING. i honestly think for him, it was far too few calories (he probably normally has 3,000 a day) to feel good. he was hungry all the time. i really never felt hungry, i just wanted to eat. i drank 2 cups of tea also (with no sweetener) in between teas on day 2, which is allowed. 

jasmine tea is my favorrritteee

i even had enough energy for soul cycle on the evening of day 2. day 2 was actually the best for me i'd say. i felt great, had a ton of energy and was fine to exercise. i headed to soul, had a great class, and came home afterwards bouncing around and i didn't even mind! (how!?!?) drinking the beet juice.  but it's hard to say whether i was pumped up because of soul or the cleanse..i am leaning towards soul ;)

day 3 was fine. i felt i had less energy, but still okay. the green juices were tough to get down, and i was just ready to be done. however, i have to say, i would drink the pineapple mint juice regularly and obviously same with the cashew milk. both are delicious, and are actually sold on their own at whole foods if you have any interest in trying any of them. at the end of day 3, i still wasn't hungry, but was ready to CHEW. they recommend chewing your juices..but umm..i don't know how to chew liquid? i also went to the dentist at the end of day 3, and maybe this is TMI, but when you do the cleanse your teeth start to feel dirty, even if they aren't. i think eating (duh) is a natural tooth brush! so i was kind of worried they were going to tell me my teeth were rotting or had turned green permanently. but they didn't. they did tell me i have to get my wisdom teeth out though. BOO. 

after i was done with the cleanse (on Friday). i felt good, i didn't wake up ravenously hungry..and i wasn't craving bad food or anything like that, just nutrients. more than anything, i just wanted coffee the entire time i was on the cleanse. that was the first thing that crossed my mind on friday morning. 

coffee is my boyfriend!

 t had joked that he was going to wake up at 12:01 on Friday morning and go find something to eat, but even he didn't do that. he tried to eat an omelette on Friday morning and could only eat half, which is shocking for him. i had an apple and some PB and then headed to soul cycle. i still wasn't really hungry and had a bit more fruit for breakfast. by lunch time i was starting to get reaaaalllly hungry. i had a salad with grilled chicken at lunch and amazingly, avoided the bread basket. however, this lunch did NOT sit well with me. BPC recommends you ease back into solid food to prevent this from happening..but..oops..i didn't listen. lesson learned. 

overall, i actually lost 5 lbs on the cleanse (which wasn't the goal, but it was interesting to see). however, i'm back 1.5 pounds this morning (saturday), so i'm sure it was all water weight. 

would i recommend this to other people? Definitely! more than anything, it is an interesting practice in self control and discipline. i do think you get a ton of nutrients and probably more than a normal day for some people in the juices. does it make you feel like a super star with clear, beautiful skin who could go out and run 18 miles no problem? no. but it does make you feel good, and i think it does re-set your system a lot. makes you crave healthy foods and sometimes, you just need that! 

let me know if you have any questions about BPC. sorry this is so long, but there is a lot to stay!