The NutriBullet detox diet review
I've never been someone who's been into the latest health food craze. I hardly go to the gym and frankly, I'm not convinced I believe in the whole "juicing" thing - if you want the nutrients out of a carrot you need the fibre, right? Not just the water that's squeezed out of it so surely just eat the damn thing.
But, when my editor told me about just how good the Duchess of Cambridge's "secret weapon", the NutriBullet, really was, I thought I'd experiment.
The USP of the NutriBullet is that it doesn't juice, instead it blends fruits and vegetables so that you digest the skins, (which are often the most virtuous parts) as well as the flesh and water. The blades are also powerful enough to grind nuts and seeds, meaning you can add different vitamins, minerals and food groups into the mix. As a NutriBullet rule, all blends must have at least 50% leafy greens (namely Swiss chard, spinach, kale etc.) which means that your fruit sugars are always balanced out.
I decided that I wouldn't do a full "detox" (under no circumstances do I want to miss out on coffee for five whole days) but I would embark on the introductory five-day NUTRi plan to see what incorporating juices alongside my normal diet would do. If I wasn't cutting out wine and the likes, would I still get the benefits of the NutriBullet juices? With a kind of NutriBullet-plan-for-the-normal-woman in mind, I settled on two juices a day. One juice replaced breakfast and then the other I had alongside lunch and ate dinner as normal.
The team at NutriBullet sent me 10 recipes to try over my five-day haul. Each was designed to target a specific area; for better skin, for antioxidants, for weight management, for better immunity, you get the drift…
Throughout the week I kept a diary of what blend I drank, including the ingredients, how full I felt and how enjoyable they were. This is listed in the gallery below.
If you haven't got a huge amount of disposable income, getting your NutriBullet ingredients is expensive - especially as the health food supplements, seeds etc. are all on top of the food you need to buy for your normal meals. Sure, once you've got your health food kit (matcha powder, chai seeds, supergreen powder etc.), costing around £50 without the fruit and vegetables, it will last you up to three months, but it's not realistic for those strapped for cash to have two NutriBullet recipe juices a day.
The financial plus point is that the NutriBullet costs under £100. Think of it like this. It's essentially a really, really good blender and if you were looking to buy one of those, you'd be looking at a lot more than that.
When purchasing a food machine, I HAVE to make sure that cleaning it is super quick and pain-free. I cannot explain to you how easy it is cleaning the NutriBullet, you literally just clean a cup. Not only is this a winner in the hygiene department BUT I'm open to "whizzing" something up, even if I'm in a rush (which, by the way, I always am) as it takes all of about two seconds to do.
Yes, some of the recipes have been unpalatable to say the least, but I've enjoyed following the NutriBullet plan. It's easy, you can choose just to follow the recipes you like, including your own, and by incorporating juices into my diet, I've noticed that I'm less tired, my skin is less dry and I've made more healthy choices. Of course, I have no idea if the antioxidants have had an impact but, something's better!
A downside is the time it takes to make the juices if following the recommended recipes for a beginner. However I can only imagine as you find the ones you like, you'll end up knowing them off by heart which will make the whole process a lot speedier.
Despite not doing it for weight loss, I feel a lot less bloated and, strangely, lighter. Sure, that could just be because I know I'm doing something proactive but, all that matters is how you feel, right?
Pick around six recipes you'll stick to and rotate them. The problem with doing something like 10 different recipes over five days is that only one of them may contain kale, only one of them may contain raspberries and only one of them may contain melon. You can't buy kale by the leaf, or raspberry by the raspberry or melon by the slice which means by the end of the five days, it's all off and food waste is at an all-time-high. By picking a few of what you like, it's likely to contain at least some of the same ingredients which means you maximise the food usage.
Start off using spinach as your green base. I've always eaten a lot of kale and chard but having it raw in a juice is a different ball game. If you don't work up slowly to it, you'll risk being put off.
If you really hate the taste of something, don't be afraid to veer off the set recipes. Always replace greens with greens and fruits with fruits so the balance is maintained but you can play things up. It's better to ban some blends than quit all together.
I spoke to Arabella Arkwright, professional nutritionist and co-founder of Piccolo Plates, to ask her advice on the benefits of juicing and the best way to incorporate it into your lifestyle:
"Juicing with recipes that includes portions of vegetables as well as fruit can have significant health benefits, as it means that individuals may find it easier to hit recommended targets of between 6-8 vegetables a day. Through juicing, whilst also keeping some of the pulp in the recipe, you can consume an optimum amount of vegetables in an efficient manner as well as a variety.
By extracting the liquid that contains high concentrations of vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients from fresh and organic fruit and vegetables, juicing, can be a natural way for the body to absorb optimum values and receive a burst of nutrients. However it is not a substitute for eating as you do lose some of the complex fibres so as long as you are juicing in combination with a healthy diet is a very effective and fun way to consume the right foods that are only ever beneficial to long term health and longevity."
NutriBullet: 8/10
Cost for the food, supplements, seeds, nuts and liquids: £94.45. I shopped at Sainsbury's, Tesco and Holland & Barrett.
Cost of NutriBullet: £89.99
Follow Alice Howarth on Twitter: @alicejrhowarth
Monday
Juice 1: Toxic Cleansing Blast
Recipe: 2 handfuls spinach, 1 medium pear, 1 banana, 1 apple, 1 cup pineapple, 10 walnuts, fill to the max line with coconut water
Taste? Erm, delicious. I could get used to this juice thing! It's light, palatable and feels healthy to drink.
Fullness? Well, I don't feel stuffed but I do feel satisfied.
Fullness after three hours? Still satisfied.
Feeling? Virtuous, it may be because it's my first one but I genuinely feel good.
Juice 2: Antioxidant
Recipe: ½ tall cup spinach, 1 banana, 1 cup blueberries, 1 teaspoon cacao, ½ cup mango, dash of cinnamon, fill to the max line with almond milk
Taste? Delicious but way too rich for lunchtime. This is exactly the kind of thing health bunnies would advise as a "pudding replacement" (two words that should not be said in the same breath) BUT after tasting it, I'm kind of onboard...
Fullness? It's pretty surprising how full a "juice" will make you.
Fullness after three hours? Still full.
Feeling? Thicker and on the spicy side. May have to get used to it but could come around.
Tuesday
Juice 1: Better Skin
Recipe: 1 handful of spinach, ¼ cucumber, ¼ avocado, ½ inch ginger, 1 tbs honey, 1 cup of almond milk
Taste? Good. It tasted creamy with the combination of almond milk and avocado but the ginger and honey give it a good edge.
Fullness? Sated.
Fullness after three hours? I could eat but I can equally hold out until lunch.
Feeling? Thick but very drinkable.
Juice 2: Citrus Immune Boost
Recipe: 1 handful spinach, ½ cup frozen mango, ½ cup frozen pineapple, ½ cup carrots, ¼ inch of turmeric, ½ inch of ginger, ½ lemon juiced, 1 orange juiced, 1 cup of water, 1 tbs hemp seed
Taste? Good God, using frozen fruit is the dream. This feels healthy, the hemp seeds provide a little crunch but the best bit is how chilled it is.
Fullness after three hours? Not full but fine.
Feeling? So far, so good when it comes to a NutriBullet lifestyle
Wednesday
Juice 1: Free Radical Fighter
Recipe: 2 handfuls of Swiss chard, ½ banana, 1 cup of raspberries, 10 almonds, 1 tbs cacao powder, fill to the max line with water
Taste? I know this is really healthy but having stepped it up from spinach to Swiss chard (thicker and stronger) I'm finding this quite hard to drink. I thought the fusion of banana and raspberries would make it delicious but I'm just not feeling it (I did finish it though, forcefully).
Fullness? It's so thick, it would be hard not to feel full.
Fullness after three hours? Still full, still tasting it in my mouth...
Feeling? It's going to take a while to get used to the bitterness of "serious greens", as the NutriBullet team have christened basically anything that's not spinach...
Juice 2: Life Booster
Recipe: 2 handfuls of kale, ½ pitted peach, ½ cup of strawberries, ½ avocado, 10 walnut halves, 1 tbs chia seeds, 1 tbs goji berries, fill to the max line with water
Taste? Better than this morning, if a little on the bitter side again.
Fullness? Full, it could still be from my morning one.
Fullness after three hours? Yep, I'm doing fine on the hunger side of things.
Feeling? Well, kale is a lot nicer than Swiss chard but I do miss spinach...
Thursday
Juice 1: Hormone Balance
Recipe: 2 handfuls of butterhead lettuce, ½ pitted peach, ½ cup blueberries, 3 Brazil nuts, 1 tsp maca powder (I replaced with Spirulina powder), fill to the max line with water
Taste? Why can I never taste the peach in these drinks?
Fullness? Could probably eat a meal alongside this, would perhaps work better as a drink with lunch.
Fullness after three hours? I need lunch.
Feeling? I'm putting some seriously good things in my body
*note, there are different Hormone Balance recipes for men and women because, we are, in fact, different.
Juice 2: Fountain of Youth
Recipe: 2 handfuls of spinach, ½ cup of red grapes, ½ cup raspberries, 10 almonds, 1 tsp maca powder (I replaced with Spirulina powder)
Taste? Excellent to be back with my trusty spinach, good taste all round
Fullness? Full.
Fullness after three hours? By no means starving but I'm ready for something that's not liquid.
Feeling? That I am, in fact, feeling pretty good on these juices.
Friday
Juice 1: Longevity Elixar
Recipe: 2 handfuls romaine, ½ avocado, 1 cucumber, 1 cup cantaloupe, 12 cashews, 1 mint leaf, fill to the max line with water
Taste? I like this one, I like the added mint and the freshness of the cucumber. There's enough of it in this to really taste it.
Fullness? Full but because it's a largely water based recipe I worry I won't be for long…
Fullness after three hours? Where's lunch?
Feeling? I was right all along, anything with avocado in it is a winner however save this one to drink alongside a meal.
Juice 2: Weightloss Berry Blast
Recipe: 2 handfuls of kale, ½ pitted peach, 1 cup of blueberries, ½ cucumber, 1 tbs of hemp seeds, 1 tbs of chai seeds, fill to the max line with coconut water
Taste? YUM.
Fullness? Using coconut water instead of water is surprisingly much more effective when it comes to filling oneself up!
Fullness after three hours? I'm good.
Feeling? Like I'll be using this recipe over and over again.
