3-Day Juice Diet Plans

Normally, juicing is not a daily affair. What this means is that you do not have to do it every day. Some people even designate a specific day of the week when they will juice. For instance, it could be on a Sunday, when they will just stay at home. They make that day their "Detox" day. Nevertheless, it will require good juice diet plans.

However, there are some people who want to take their juicing diet to the higher level. Hence, instead of just one day, they want to extend it to three (3) days. Of course, if you are into this situation, you do not want to drink the same juice for the entire three (3) days, right? This is when having good juice diet plans would be vital and, in fact, necessary.

Reminders and Disclaimers

Before going to the suggested recipes for your 3-day Juice Diet Plans, there are important things that you need to be reminded about first. These are particularly about the following:

1. There is no way you will drastically lose weight in just three (3) days.
2. You need to get active and engage into physical activities.
3. Consider your activities and energy requirements.

Recommended 3-Day Juice Diet Plan

Upon waking up in the morning and before having your breakfast, it is recommended that you drink two (2) glasses of warm water first. This is to warm up your stomach. You might also want to add lemon or ginger in your water, but this is optional.

Breakfast: Carrot - Apple - Lemon Juice

It is true that you need to start your day with a heavy meal. However, this is not limited in eating bacon, hotdog, fried rice and the like. You can also do this by drinking carrot-based juices, for instance.

On your first day, put four (4) pieces of carrots, two (2) pieces of apples and one piece of lemon. On your second day, you might want to consider substituting the lemon with a small piece of ginger root. On the third day, you can add two (2) pieces of oranges and one beet with the carrots.

Morning Snack: For your morning snack, you can drink around 16 ounces of unflavoured coconut water. This will give you a good energy boost to withstand your daily activities.

Lunch: Garden Variety

GREEN IS IN, most especially when it comes to juice diet plans. Garden Variety is just one of the great recipes that you will surely love. To prepare this, you will need the following:

- 2 pcs. of apples
- 2 pcs. of cucumber
- 6 to 8 kale leaves
- A handful of parsley
- Beets (alternative: Australian Tuscan cabbage)

On your second and third days of juicing, you can have Green Lemonade and Mean Green juices, respectively. For the former, the ingredients are:

- 6 to 8 kale leaves (alternative: Australian Tuscan cabbage)
- 3 handfuls of spinach
- 1 pc. of green apple
- 1 pc. of cucumber
- 2 celery stalks
- 1 pc. of lemon

The following are the major ingredients of Mean Green juice:

- 6 kale leaves (alternative: Australian Tuscan cabbage)
- 1 pc. of cucumber
- 2 stalks of celery
- 1 pc. of green apple
- Half piece of lemon
- Lemon

Afternoon Snack: Watermelon Crush

Watermelon Crush is very easy to prepare. You can have it in just a few minutes. What you need are half watermelon and a piece of lime. You might also want to put a handful of basil leaves in order to add aroma and refreshing kick.

For your second and third days, you can prepare the Un-Beet-able and Sporty Spice red juices. For the first one, the following are the things that you will need:

- 1 pc. of apple
- 1 pc. of beet
- 3 pcs. of carrots
- Small ginger root
- 3 cups of green leaves (e.g. kale, spinach, collards or Swiss chard)

The recommended recipe for your third day afternoon snack is the Sporty Spice red juice, which is ideal to drink after your workout. To prepare this, you will need:

- 2 pcs. of beets
- 1 pc. of carrot
- 3 stalks of celery
- Half peeled lemon
- 1 pc. of peeled orange
- A handful of basil leaves

Dinner and Dessert: Purple Passion

Purple juices are great for desserts. However, they can serve as your dinner as well. For purple passion, you will only need three (3) things, which are purple, black or red grapes (around 30 pieces), a basket of blueberries and a handful of mint.

For the second and third days, Peach Pie Delight and Red-White-Blue Juices are suggested. You will need the following for the first one:

- 1 pc. of sweet potato
- 2 pcs. of pitted peaches
- 1 pc. of red apple
- A handful of blueberries
- Cinnamon

On the other hand, you will need a quarter of watermelon, two handfuls of blueberries and 6 to 8 leaves of kale for the third recipe for your dinner.

Bedtime: Before going to bed, you can drink a cup of herbal tea after having these great recipes for your juice diet plans.

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Exotic Fruit Juice Recipes for Weight Loss

Losing weight could be difficult and boring at times. This is especially when it comes to juicing. This is because you will be eating smoothies rather than those enticing and mouth-watering solid meals. However, you can be creative to make juice recipes for weight loss more fun. Why not juice exotic fruits, then?

There are lots of exotic fruits that you might not have heard of yet. So, why not try them out? Some of these are the following recipes:

Refreshing Tropical Paradise

Dieting does not have to be harsh. Why not enjoy it with a refreshing tropical paradise? What you will need are:

- ½ pineapple
- 2 pieces of oranges
- 1 piece of mango

First, cut in half the pineapple and remove its core. Peel the mango, then cut its flesh from its seed. Squeeze the two (2) pieces of oranges into the blender, then put the other fruits. Finally, add some ice before blending it for a minute or two, depending on how fine you want its texture to be.

Kiwi Colada

Most people have not heard of Kiwi Colada before. However, it is, in fact, a popular recipe for weight loss. Adding coconut oil to it makes the drink a very good source of antioxidants and energy. Flax seeds give a great blend, aside from being a good source of Omega 3. Cranberry is the main source of vitamins in the juice, while blending deliciously with pineapple. The following are the ingredients:

- 1 cup of coconut milk
- ½ piece of kiwi
- 2 tablespoons of coconut oil
- ½ cup of pineapple (preferably, frozen)
- 1 tablespoon of ground flax seeds

Mexican Limeade

Avocado is a fantastic fruit to add to juice recipes for weight loss, most especially if you want it extra creamy. The ingredients include the following:

- 1 piece of avocado
- 6 pieces of limes
- 2 tablespoons of sugar (you may use honey as an alternative)

Passionate Berry Juice

Passion fruit is not usually served on the table for desserts. However, it is, in fact, abundant all over the world, especially in Mexico. If you want something tropical to drink and break the sourness of common weight loss juices, this Passionate Berry juice would be perfect. The honey would bring the sweetness out of its ingredients. What you need are the following ingredients:

- 2 pieces of passion fruits (this fruit is called "maracuya" in Mexico)
- ½ cup of raspberries
- ¼ cup of strawberries
- ¼ cup of shredded coconut
- 2 cups of soy milk
- ¼ cup of pecan nuts
- 1 tablespoon of honey

Green Mango Gurt

This usually sounds weird to many people. However, it is a great green smoothie that you can drink for your lunch or even dinner. Aside from its creamy texture, it is also rich in vitamins and nutrients, but with minimal amount of calories. To prepare this, you will need:

- 2 cups of yoghurt (preferably unsweetened)
- 1 piece of green mango
- A handful of spinach
- 2 tablespoons of honey

Put all the ingredients in the blender, then add some water and ice to make it even creamier.

Breakfast Smoothie

We know that breakfast is a very important meal since it shall give you the right amount of energy throughout the day or until lunch, at the very least. The limes in it make the juice a healthy option to alkalize your body. This consequently makes you achieve optimal health benefits. The chia seeds are good source of dietary fiber too, which is important in making you full, at least, until your lunch time. All in all, this drink will give you 300 calories, which is perfect to start your day, combined with the refreshing taste of combined orange, strawberry and banana in one juice.

To have this, you will need:

- 1 cup of orange juice (avoid concentrates)
- ½ cup of strawberry (preferably frozen)
- ½ piece of banana (preferably frozen)
- Juice from ½ piece of lime
- 2 tablespoons of chia seeds

Energy Drink from Cherry Berry

When searching for juice recipes for weight loss, considering your energy requirements is extremely crucial. This is because people are worried whether they could withstand their daily activities by just taking juice throughout the day. It is a good thing that there are recipes that can make you lose weight while providing you enough energy at the same time. Cherry Berry juice does that. The following are the ingredients that you will need:

- 1 cup of juice from blueberries (avoid concentrate)
- ½ cup of cherries (preferably frozen)
- ½ cup of mixed berries like raspberry, strawberry and blackberry (preferably frozen)
- 1 tablespoon of chia seeds

Moreover, being filled with different kinds of berries, this juice is packed with antioxidants.

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10 Years As a Personal Trainer

It has been ten years since I graduated from the University of Victoria with my Kinesiology degree, and started my career as a health and fitness coach. Needless to say, a lot has changed in ten years. Trends have come and gone, new research has challenged my beliefs, and perhaps I've learned the most from my clients' experience. In the past ten years, I have changed some of my own habits, as well as the ways I help clients.

I will share six lessons that I have learned since starting my career as a personal trainer, and how you can apply these lessons I learned, to improve your own health. I will share the first three lessons in this article, and the next three in my next article.

1. Starting a diet or exercise program only to lose weight is a sure-fire way to lose motivation. People either want to move away from something negative, or toward something positive. Many, I'd even say, most, people start an exercise program because they want to move away from their current state of health. They are unhappy with their appearance. Many have focused on family or career and are disappointed that they let their body go. The dissatisfaction with oneself is a good reason to start, but won't be enough to keep going and to make a lasting change. The first reason is that as soon as some of the negative feeling passes, (perhaps you lose a few pounds), the pressure to stick with the program lessens. You may relax a little and can easily slip into old habits. The second reason is the scale may not move, or move as quickly as you want it to. Imagine sticking perfectly to a program, and two weeks later on your weigh in you are exactly the same weight? Chances are you, you would feel defeated, and think 'what's the point?'.

Take Action: First, make a list of all the positive advantages of sticking to a healthy eating and exercise program. Perhaps you want to have more energy, or want to be a good role model for your kids. Read the list daily to remind yourself why you are on this journey. Second, redefine success. Create action-orientated measures of success instead of a number on the scale. For example, success could be walking three days per week, or planning your meals each week.

2. What you eat isn't as important as why you eat. Ten years ago I understood that nutrition was an important part of how one looks and feels. I did believe, however, that the path to success was as simple as drawing up a plan of how many calories to eat, what type of foods, and what foods to avoid. I quickly learned that most people's problem with food was not due to lack of knowledge, but because their eating decisions were dictated by emotions. We eat when we're tired, bored, stressed, happy, when we need love and connection, because we are putting off doing something that we don't really want to do.

Take Action: Emotional eating is a topic that is too big to tackle in a paragraph, or even an entire article. You can start, however, by becoming aware of your emotions. Before you eat, ask yourself the simple question "Am I hungry?". If the answer is no, and you're still wanting to eat, you need something else. A worthwhile resource on emotional eating is "Eat what you love, love what you eat" by Michelle May.

3. Exercise is not the answer to weight loss. I used to think that if someone wanted to lose weight, they just needed to workout more. While this idea is sound in theory, it often doesn't work out in real life. While exercise is important in weight loss and weight maintenance, but not necessarily because of its calorie burning effect. For example, exercise improves mood and overall sense of wellbeing, giving you energy and stamina to make other healthier choices. Strength training build muscle, which improves body composition and helps to maintain your metabolism while you lose weight. Exercise helps you sleep better. Sleep deprivation interferes with appetite-suppressing hormones, increases stress hormone levels, and decreases a person's glucose tolerance, all of which may contribute to weight gain. Another way sleep loss may help pile on the pounds: late-night munching. Exercise helps to manage stress; stress hormones are linked to increased abdominal fat. Exercise improves creativity, memory, and mental acuity. Exercise just simply feels good.

Take Action: Similar number one on my list, focus on the positive benefits of exercise rather than a means to burn calories or lose weight.

In my next article I'm going to share with you three more things I've learned, including a bit about fat and how you should spend your time at the gym.

Tanja Shaw is the owner of Ascend Fitness Inc., a private training studio. Tanja and her team of expert fitness professionals work to inspire and educate Chilliwack residents to make positive and power changes in their lives through physical fitness and sound nutrition. For more fitness tips go to http://www.ascendfitnesscoaching.com.

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Functional Training: Top 5 Mistakes

"Functional Training" has been a hot buzz phrase in the fitness industry for more than the past decade. While there are many fitness enthusiasts and professionals effectively executing this type of training, there are a still a handful of mistakes being made by beginners and uninformed professionals.

The first order of business is to clarify the definition of "functional training". Generally functional training focuses on developing better movement skills vs. training primary to improve cosmetic appearance. The best way to further define functional training is to answer the question "functional for what?' Training for swimming, running or horseback riding all require different training exercises to serve these different functions. There are, however, certain commonalities such as developing better core strength and stability that will improve performance across all functional activities.

Here are 5 functional training mistakes and how to correct them:

1. Unclear goal - Before designing your training program you should establish and define a clear set of goals you hope to achieve. The more specific your goals, the better you will be able to design your training to achieve them. If your goals are simply to lose some weight and feel good, examine your lifestyle and the activities you like most to further clarify your goals. For example, if you spend many hours sitting at your desk working on your computer, exercises to strengthen you postural muscles and open your shoulders will help you feel better.

2. Adding too much variety and complexity without mastering the basics - Sometimes the basics can seem boring and people want to spice things up. This can lead to a breakdown in sound body mechanics and technique that can lead to injury and sub optimized performance. Taking the time to train your core with simple exercises such as a prone plank will build a solid base that will allow you to perform more advanced exercises and progressions with better results in the long run.

3. Not enough focus on the actual functional activity itself - If you have a sport specific goal, make sure you are getting enough time practicing that specific activity. Every sport has specific demands unique to that sport that require practice. Your training in the gym should be geared to compliment your sport, not take priority over the actual sport itself.

4. Mimicking others - You often see people in the gym doing advanced or complex exercises that may not be suitable for you. Stick to your goals and only do what is appropriate for you given your current fitness level. Getting ahead of yourself trying to do what someone else can do will not get you as far and can lead to injury.

5. Avoiding "meat and potato" exercises - Some people ignore functional exercises such as squats and dead lifts believing that these exercises do not fit their definition of functional training. While some people may have limitations that prevent them from heavily loading these exercises or force them to modify range of motion, squats and dead lifts build a strong functional base for better ground based movements. The amount of emphasis on these exercises can vary depending on the functional objectives - swimmers would generally focus less on squats and dead lifts than runners for example. However, working to improve your body weight squat is one of the best functional exercises for anyone (even swimmers have to perform ground based movements such as walking to the pool and lifting things up and carrying them). Make it a point to improve your squat and everything else will get better.

Keep these 5 Mistakes in mind when you embark on your functional training quest.

If you're interested in learning more about proper body mechanics or functional training visit http://www.weckmethod.com for articles, videos, and additional resources.

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11 Ways to Make Your Life More Active

Life can get hectic at times so it may be difficult to get a full blown workout in every single day but there are plenty of little ways you can stay active in everyday life. Even if you are not breaking a sweat, there are still great benefits to getting some extra movement in.

1. Workout at work

Working out at work can be a great way to help energize yourself throughout the work day. Even these micro-workouts can elevate the heart-rate a bit and serve as minor cardio. Besides the exercises we've detailed in that post there are many other ways you can get some exercise during your 8 hour day.

1. Take the stairs as often as you can

2. Instead of driving to lunch, take a walk with some coworkers and maybe even have some quality bonding time.

3. If you find yourself constantly using your phone to page your coworkers, try walking to their physical offices instead. Unless the matter is extremely time sensitive, then you should probably stick with using the phone.

4. Encourage social sporting outings after work and maybe even form a team. Or have sporting competitions between departments.

5. If your commute is short enough, you can even ride a bike to work. On that note,

2. Ride your bike

If you do not have a bicycle, it is well worth it to invest in one. Try to ride is everywhere whenever possible.

3. Let the remote collect dust

Even during your relaxation time, you can find a way to get a little more movement by getting off the couch and manually changing the channels. This also prevents soreness and dangerous conditions which may arise from sitting still for an extended period of time.

4. Clean the house

This piece of advice offers you two great benefits. First, you can easily work up a sweat cleaning up your house by intensely vacuuming or taking mopping to the extreme. The second benefit is that your house will be clean.

5. Find an active hobby

It doesn't have to be a sport, but sports are a great and fun way to get into shape and stay active. Other active hobbies include carpentry, gardening, wood chopping, biking and many more.

6. Find someone who is active and tag along with them (or make someone active)

Workout partners are the best.Being active is always more fun when you have someone to socialize with and you can hold each other accountable. You can also take your dogs for walks. Dogs are generally always up to be more active.

7. Stand up at work or just whenever possible

As stated before, sitting down can negatively impact health, so if possible, standing at work can help you feel better and more energized throughout the day. There has also been an increase in popularity recently for the desk treadmills. While the technology isn't quite there yet, standing at work can still help you be a little more active.

8. Dance

Whether it's at a club or just in your living room, dancing can be an awesome way to burn a few calories. If you have a significant other, take them out to swing dancing or salsa or any of the other festive dances out there. If you don't have a significant other, there is no shame in dancing alone. Everyone does it.

9. Go shopping

Not online shopping, that doesn't count. Walking around the mall at a brisk pace can also be a way to move around in a fun environment. Malls are especially great during hot days since they're air conditioned. Just make sure to keep your credit card at home so you don't get too tempted by all the goodies.

10. Park far away

When you're at the mall or anywhere else, try to park a good distance away in order to squeeze in a little more fitness time. Avoid parking a great distance away at night though. That may be harmful.

11. Exercise while doing other stuff

Multitasking is highly recommended if you're too ridiculously busy to work out all the time.

1. Do wall-sits while brushing your teeth

2. Work while sitting on an exercise ball. Trying to stabilize yourself will work out your core muscles.

3. Ride a stationary bike while reading

4. Ride a stationary bike while watching television

5. Ride a stationary bike while contemplating the true meaning of life

6. Do calf-lifts while standing in line

The possibilities are endless. There are always ways to make everything a little more active. You just have to get creative.

When do you do have time for a workout, visit our site at http://fitnessequipmentprofessionals.com. We sell used treadmills, ellipticals, exercise bikes, strength machines and much more from the top brands in fitness. We have a 50,000 sq ft warehouse located in Santa Ana (the heart of Orange County) and we deliver worldwide. Our gym equipment is up to 70% off MSRP so visit us today!

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