Sunday, March 15, 2015

Thought it wouldn't make a difference, now I don't ever want to be without it....


I wanted to write a note to share some info about a product I started taking about 6mos ago as an experiment. I started with a skeptical view, almost trying to prove that it wouldn’t make a difference, and ended up ordering it for my whole family.

Let me start from the beginning, and I will try to make it brief.

About 3yrs ago a friend introduced me to this cool aeroponic growing tower called the tower garden, and I was immediately impressed.  I believe whole-heartedly in eating plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables, especially greens and so I loved this product from the start, and still coveting getting one for myself.

In a nutshell- aeroponics is growing in mist and air without any soil. The tower garden is easy to plant, and self watering so you easily grow fresh vegetables and fruit right in your living room, or on your patio, or rooftop garden.

You have to see it for yourself, check it out here: http://clanphere.towergarden.com/

Anyway, it is super cool, and when I went to check out my friends tower garden she also talked to me about the company that makes/ sells them, and the primary product that they produce called Juice Plus.

Juice Plus is whole foods based nutrition in the form of capsules and gummies that contain 20+ different juice powders from fruit, vegetables, and grains.
I thought that it sounded pretty great- a supplement of sorts that is strictly food, and specifically fruit and vegetables (which we could all use more of).

As a health coach I always encourage people to add more fruits and vegetables to their diet, and this seemed like a good product, I was intrigued, but not sold on using it for myself.
I started asking around…. I have a lot of health-oriented friends, and I wanted to hear first hand from people who were taking it, and what they thought.

I got a lot of great feedback from people that were taking it every day, and heard about wonderful results that they noticed in their health since they started taking the Juice+ capsules.

Results were:
1. More energy
2. Better digestion
3. Clearer skin
4. Avoiding colds and other normal sicknesses
5. Improved physical endurance
6. Alleviated chronic health conditions

I also talked to people that had been able to get off or reduce medication, kids that were asthmatic that showed major improvement in breathing, and able to reduce inhaler use. All sounded great, but I still had a skeptical view, so I kept inquiring.

I found a handful of people that hadn’t noticed anything since they started taking it, but admittedly they all said that they were not consistent in taking it everyday as advised.

As a health coach I started having a lot of people asking me what I thought about Juice+, and although it sounded great, I had no first hand experience to give advice, and to be honest I wasn’t sure it was worth the additional monthly expense to find out.

About 6 months ago, I was actually given a 4-month supply and decided to do my own experiment to see first hand for myself.  From my inquires with others I knew that if I was going to take it then I had to follow the recommended amount for 4 months straight, and be consistent with taking it everyday to get accurate results.

I started taking the capsules and paid close attention to everything with my body. After about 2 weeks I noticed that my digestion was better, and my bowel movements were more consistent, and complete- I know TMI, but this is a very important part of a healthy body, so paying attention is important.

I did not change my eating habits through this time, just kept taking my daily Juice+ capsules and listening to my body.

After two months in we hit the cold season, and by this time I wasn’t noticing anything dramatic, but I wasn’t getting sick, or catching the colds that all those around me were suffering from.

For the most part we (my family) are all healthy and don’t usually get really sick, or out for many days when we are not feeling well, but we will consistently get the sinus congestion, cough/ normal cold each year.
I observed my boys getting the yearly lingering cough, clogged sinuses, and respiratory junk, but I was not. The only real difference was that I was taking Juice+, and they were not.

Over all, I felt good, but nothing exceptional or out of the ordinary, but keep in mind- I am a health coach doing her best to walk her talk, so my diet was already filled with whole / real food with lots of fruits and veggies, and hardly any processed/ artificial junk food.

At the end of 4 mos I started thinking about whether or not I would want to continue or if I would just go back to taking my regular supplements. When my supply ended I decided not to re-order, and see what happened with out it. It felt strange not taking it, it felt like my body was craving it, but I was determined to see it made a difference off it.

10 days off  Juice+, I got a headache, sinus infection, awful cough that lasted 2+ weeks, and felt run down and miserable. That is when I decided that it may not have helped me lose 10lbs, crave more vegetables but it surely had made a difference in my health, and I believed in it, and wanted my boys on it too.

That brings us to today- I just placed an order for all of us because I want my whole family to benefit. My kids eat well, but they could also use more fruits and veggies, and this is a super easy way to give them a little boost.

I think of it as an additional supplement, it hasn’t changed the amount of veggies I eat, or the times I juice (although it is much more affordable than juicing everyday).  I believe in prevention methods to keep us all healthy, out of the doctor’s office, and feeling great all year long. You can’t put a price tag on health, and I believe it made a difference.

They also have a great children’s health study where all kids ages 4-18 can get a free 4-year supply with their parent or grandparents order. My kids are both able to take the capsules, which is great, but they also have a gummy version for kids and adults that can’t swallow pills.  The capsules are my preferred product, however the gummies are far better than the other kids gummies on he market, as they are packed with real fruit and veggies, and a much better choice in my opinion.

I was just going to sign up to be a customer, and order the supplement, but because Lucas is not yet 4 or eligible for the health study I decided to sign up as a distributer so I could order stuff for him at wholesale price for him, and also be able to share with others a product that I believe in.

If you are interested in knowing more- let me know. You can also check out more about Juice Plus here : http://clanphere.juiceplus.com

They have other products like a products like a shake mix, and bars, but I haven’t really bothered with them yet, I’m just excited about the capsules, and can’t wait until my order gets here so we can all start taking it again.

xo
Courtney