I know—another juice cleanse. I’m spoiled. When I get the chance to review juice cleanses for the blog, it’s like being eight years old and opening up an American Girl Doll on Christmas morning (Samantha or Felicity, to be exact—I would not be that excited about Molly). As you all have I’m sure noticed by now, I love juicing. If I had the budget (or patience to make my own at home), I would absolutely do a three-day juice cleanse every month because I’ve never finished one without feeling amazing. This Ritual Wellness cleanse was no exception!

Ritual Wellness 3-Day Juice Cleanse: The Deets

I did the Seasonal Reset 3-Day Cleanse, which consists of six juices per day: three green juices, a seasonal watermelon berry juice, a spicy lemonade, and a “dessert” nut-based juice to end the day feeling full and satisfied. They’re 100% organic and cold-pressed. In addition to the six juices in the Reset, I opted to add in Shred, two extra juices each day to be consumed before and after workouts. I’ll go into details on that a little later. With Shred each day, the 3-day cleanse would be $270 ($216 without). Ritual Wellness is California-based, but ships nationwide.

I loved all the juices! The “dessert” juice was thicker than ones I’ve tried in the past so you really end the day feeling satisfied. The first day, I was almost too full after drinking it (but couldn’t stop, it’s too flippin’ tasty). Here’s what you drink each day (not including Shred):

• GREEN LEMON | Kale, romaine, spinach, celery, cucumber, green apple, lemon
• WATERMELON BERRY | Watermelon, coconut, apple, strawberry, lime
• GREEN GINGER | Kale, romaine, spinach, celery, cucumber, green apple, ginger
• SPICY LEMONADE | Lemon, cayenne, raw agave
• SWEET GREENS | Kale, romaine, spinach, celery, cucumber, green apple
• CASHEW CRUNCH | Cashew, filtered water, cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla, raw agave

What Makes This Cleanse Different: Shred

As I mentioned before, with Ritual Wellness, you have the option to add their Shred component to any cleanse. Shred is two extra juices, one to drink pre-workout and one post. I always workout during cleanses without an issue, but I was a little nervous this time around because I now teach spin, which requires a ton of energy for me. Taking spin classes is fine while juicing because you can just kinda sit in the back and pretend to turn up the resistance on your wheel if you’re tired (you know what I’m talking about, slackers!), but teaching is a whole other story. I felt a lot better about doing a cleanse knowing I’d have those extra juices each day.

PRE SHRED | The pre-workout Red Energy juice is beet, carrot, pear, apple and celery. If you like root veggies and beets, you’ll love it.

POST SHRED | The post-workout Almond Mylk juice is similar to the “dessert” juice in that it’s nut-based. Almonds, cinnamon, vanilla and raw agave—it’s heavenly. At 370 calories, it’s the most caloric of the juices, and really gives you that post-workout protein fuel you need.

My Experience

I actually didn’t end up drinking all 8 juices on any of the three days. Without the Shred juices, the cleanse comes out to 900 calories a day which is, of course, less than what’d I consume if normally eating. With Shred, it’s 1,470 calories a day, which is probably right around what I’d normally eat, depending on the day*. It actually worked out great because I had some leftover juices and was able to turn my 3-day cleanse into a 3 ½ day cleanse! You might be thinking why would you want to torture yourself like that, but honestly, when you finish a cleanse, all you want is more juice! It sounds crazy, but you’ve reset your eating habits and your body craves more of the good stuff.

*Just to clarify since I’ve gotten a few comments/questions about that calorie intake: I just mean that a 1,500(ish)-calorie day is not abnormal for me if eating regularly, unlike a 900-calorie day, which would never happen outside of a juice cleanse. Some days, especially super active days, I definitely eat more than that (2,000 cal range if I had to estimate–I never count). 

DAY 1 | The first day, I just drank the 6 core juices (no Shred). I never feel a lack of energy on day one, so even though I took a class at Btone, I knew I’d be fine without the pre and post-workout juices. 

DAY 2 | On the second day, my boyfriend and I did a lunch break Barry’s Bootcamp class. I had just drank juice 3 (Green Ginger), so I didn’t feel the need to have the Pre-Shred, but I brought the Post-Shred with me in my cooler bag and was pumped to drink it after the workout—I needed it.

DAY 3 | The last day was what I was nervous about: teaching spin on day 3 of a liquid diet. Eeek. I drank the Pre Shred half an hour before class as well as about 1/3 of the Post Shred just to be safe, and class went great! I did feel a little lightheaded afterwards, but I just drank the rest of my Post Shred, sat on the couch for a bit, and then was fine. Because I had added the Shred juices into the day, I ended up not drinking one of the green juices.

POST-CLEANSE | Because I had a green juice, two beet juices and a nut milk leftover, I extended the cleanse into the next day, drinking the juices and then in the afternoon adding in some fruit and a couple salads. It was the perfect ease back into normal eating!

As has been my experience with cleanses in the past, afterwards my skin was clearer (tons of nutrients + tons of water = radiant skin) and I had no cravings for junky and sugary foods—not even cake pops from Starbucks, to which I am literally addicted. In general, drinking enough water is something I really need to be better about, and the cleanse definitely got me on track with that (you drink water between each of your juices).

A big thanks to Ritual Wellness for three days of organic goodness—and a break from cooking and washing dishes!

If you follow me on Instagram, you might already know that I did a three-day juice cleanse last week. My friend Rebecca from The Ripe Stuff asked if I wanted to try one out, and since (as you’ve probably noticed) I’m a huge fan of juice, I was eager to take her up on the offer. Every once in a while, it’s nice to give your digestive system a break, hit the reset button, and let your body balance itself out. I’ve done a few juice cleanses and always feel amazing afterwards—this one was no exception!

In addition to their signature cleanses, The Ripe Stuff offers a seasonal cleanse that incorporates some in-season produce and changes every three months. For summer, they have the Beet the Heat cleanse, and as soon as I saw watermelon-mint juice on the menu I was sold!

Here’s what the six juices each day were:

All the juices were delicious! Green juice is my jam so those two were probably my favorite, but the watermelon-mint was a real treat, too. And I loved that there was so much variety—two green, an earthy beet juice, a sweet watermelon drink, a fiery cayenne lemonade, and a satisfying cashew drink to finish the day.

How I Felt during the Cleanse

I had a ton of energy throughout the cleanse and was able to workout each day. A few days prior, I stopped drinking coffee so that I could get the caffeine withdrawal headaches/sluggishness out of the way—something I highly recommend you do before any cleanse. On day one I went for a short run and did a 15-minute HIIT workout in my living room (I’m posting it to the blog later this week!). On day two, I took it easier and hit up a yoga class. On day three, I did a class at Btone in the morning and then was invited to a free indoor cycling class at SoulCycle that night on behalf of Women’s Health Magazine and Birchbox. I was surprised I had enough energy for a double-session workout day, but I felt great!

I was only hungry for a little while the first day, and I think it was probably because I ate a big dinner the night before my cleanse—something I wouldn’t recommend. It was a healthy dinner, but I ate a lot. Whoopsies. Other than that, I wasn’t hungry, and the heavier cashew drink helped me go to bed satisfied each night.

How I Felt after the Cleanse

My favorite thing about juice cleanses is how any cravings for unhealthy foods I may have had are totally gone by the end. You wake up the next morning and just want more juice! There’s a heightened awareness of what you’re putting into your body, and the next couple days, I pretty much just wanted smoothies, juice, veggies, fruits and nuts. When the weekend hit, I added in eggs and some bread…and, ok, beer…but all in all, I’m still eating super healthy. And I haven’t had any coffee since before the cleanse! I don’t think there’s anything wrong with coffee necessarily, but I don’t think you should be dependant on something to feel awake in the morning. I go through no-coffee phases a lot, so we’ll see how long this one lasts.

As a result of no coffee and habitually drinking a ton of liquids for three days, I’ve found myself drinking a ton of water since the cleanse, which is great because it’s something I often neglect. Three days of juice + lots of water = clearer skin! The little bumps around my chin look so much better.

The number one question I get asked about juice cleanses is weight loss. I don’t weight myself, but I definitely looked a little thinner after the juice cleanse. How much of it is “real” weight and how much of it is water weight and bloat? I don’t know, and it doesn’t really matter to me—that’s not why I do juice cleanses. When you take three days off from digestion, your body can direct its energy to repair. Cleanses flush out and repair the bad, while helping you kickstart a healthy routine. It’s like hitting the reset button. And anyone who ever owned a Nintendo64 knows how essential a reset button can be from time to time.

More About The Ripe Stuff

The Ripe Stuff is a local company, and is delivered throughout the Boston area Sunday through Tuesday. I decided on a Sunday delivery so that I could start my cleanse on Monday morning. The produce used is locally sourced and hydraulically pressed. For any Boston readers, I’d highly recommend The Ripe Stuff! You can get 1, 2 or 3-day cleanses, as well as a-la-carte juices. Check The Ripe Stuff out online HERE to order and see their other juice and cleanse options.