Everything You Need to Know Before Starting a Juice Cleanse in 2020

Juice cleanses (along with fresh juices in general) have become a go-to for health nuts and normies alike. They’re taken up by many people looking to lose weight, but they’re most often used as a ‘reset’ button that detoxes the body. Some health geeks swear by juice cleanses after a long weekend or vacation of imbibing, or simply when you get that occasional sluggish, bloated feeling.

Juice cleanses are a new phenomenon, so a little skepticism is warranted if you haven’t done one yet. We’re here to help you fully understand this health trend and get you on track for a refreshing, health-boosting juice cleanse.

Benefits of Juice Cleanses

Most people who have embarked on a juice cleanse can attest to the benefits, but researchers seem to be finding more and more science behind these benefits. Here is the shortlist of juice cleanse benefits:

• More energy
• Better sleep
• Better digestive health
• Weight loss
• Heart health
• Better skin

These benefits are fairly wide-ranging, so let’s break them down a little bit.

The weight loss associated with juice cleanses is both straightforward and confusing. Obviously, you’ll probably be in a calorie deficit when you’re only consuming juices. However, juice cleanses can also be helpful with the mental side of weight loss, which is the real battle for many people looking to slim down. You’ll need to be tough with yourself, and you’ll need to cut out unhealthy junk food and sugar while doing the juice cleanse. After changing your habits with the cleanse, it might be easier to stay off the junk once you’re done.

The other primary benefit is improved digestive health, which might be the root of many other benefits. Juice cleanses give your gut and digestive tract a rest, which may heal and recharge the organs. This results in better vitamin and nutrient retention once the cleanse is over, providing energy, reducing acne and improving sleep.

How Juice Cleanses Work

Juice cleanses typically come in one, three, or seven-day packages, but go as high as 10-day package for real pros. Each day consists of several juices that are often tailored to different times of day (i.e. an energy-boosting blend for breakfast and a relaxing juice before bed). Some juice cleanse programs also suggest incorporating light vegetarian or vegan meals as well.

During a juice cleanse you should be limiting strenuous exercise and enjoying stress-free activities like nature walks, yoga, or writing. But before you jump headfirst into a juice cleanse, health experts suggest a period of preparation. After eating poorly, drinking alcohol, getting poor sleep, and being stressed, a sudden juice cleanse can be an uncomfortable shock to the body. An effective two-day preparation period and a gradual two-day finish not only makes the actual cleanse easier to handle but also much more effective.

For these two days on both ends of the juice cleanse, replace unhealthy foods, drinks and activities with healthy nutrition and light exercise. This means replacing animal products, alcohol, sugar and coffee with green tea, fruit, lentils and rice (click here for the full list). During these two days, you should also try to avoid stress as much as possible and get a good night’s sleep.

How to Pick a Juice Cleanse

There are now dozens of juice cleanse programs to choose from, so you’ll need to research a few before deciding. We’ve combed the web for some of the best juice cleanses, but there are still some decisions you’ll need to make before choosing.

The first choice is easy: how long do you want your juice to cleanse to be? The typical length is three days because it’s effective but not too challenging. One-day cleanses are great for beginners or anyone that just wants a quick detox, say, on a Saturday after a stressful week. Seven- and ten-day cleanses should only be used by people who’ve done a cleanse before.

You’ll also need to decide if you want ready-to-drink juices sent to your door or powder packets that you mix with water, orange juice or nut milk. There is also the option of a completely DIY juice recipe book. Powder packets and DIY options are usually cheaper and more convenient if you’re having juices while at work or on the road, but ready-to-drink juices make the whole process easier.

Ready to take the plunge? Here are the best juice cleanses to try right now.

1. Pressed Juicery Cleanse 2

BEST OVERALL

Pressed Juicery has become one of the biggest fresh juice brands in the country. They’ve been so successful because they make simple, healthy, and most importantly, tasty juices. This cleanse is their most popular because it’s effective for pros yet approachable enough for beginners. The cleanse consists of six juices per day that you drink every two hours. Each juice is made for a different time of day. This keeps your energy and mood as high as possible throughout the cleanse. And unlike most other cleanses, you can select how many days you want this one to last. Three days is an average cleanse, but definitely try five or even seven days if you’re up to it.

2. BluePrint 3-Day Holiday Detox

BEST FOR PROS

Blueprint provides a variety of juice cleanse kits tailored to your weight loss or fitness goal. All their juices are gluten-, dairy-, and sweetener-free, but they still taste good. Their offerings include easy three-day plans like the beach-day detox that’s great for beginners, as well as more advanced cleanses for seasoned juicers. The BluePrint site is also very helpful for getting tips and tricks to make your cleanse as effective as possible. BluePrint is consistently rated as one of the best juice cleanses. It may be more expensive than some of the other options on this list, but it’s a reputable company with great juice flavors and protein-rich drinks.

To get back on track after the holidays, we recommend the 3-Day Holiday Detox cleanse. For juicing beginner’s a seven- or 10-day cleanse can be hard to stick to, but a three-day cleanse is the perfect amount of time to reset your body with a super-injection of vitamins and superfoods.

3. Smart Cleanse One-Day Juice Cleanse

BEST BUDGET

Juice cleanses can get pricey, but there’s no need to fret if you’re detoxing on a budget. There are affordable cleanses out there, like this $25 one-day detox from Smart Cleanse. It comes with two packets of vanilla proteini for muscle maintenance and fat loss, two packets of pressed greens for energy, and a packet of pineapple chia cleanse for the colon. They come in a powder form that can be mixed with water, juice or nut milk, and make great on-the-go drinks for cleansing during work or daily errands. Take the packets throughout the day as recommended by the included guide, and if you’re new to cleansing, eat a clean meal for lunch as well.

4. Super Detox ME 1-Day Hybrid Cleanse

BEST ONE-DAY CLEANSE

One-day cleanses are great if you’re too busy to take on a three- to seven-day cleanse. These flash-cleanses are ideal for, say, flushing out the weekend’s toxins on Sunday and get energized for the week ahead. Our favorite one-day cleanse is this Super Detox Me cleanse from Lemonkind. The day consists of six juices and two superfood snacks, keeping you satiated and energized. This manageable approach makes it great for first-time juicers and casual dieters. And best of all, this cleanse won’t make you run to the restroom constantly.

5. Cleanse On The Go 3-day Detox

BEST FOR TRAVEL

Another great powder detox is this one from Cleanse On The Go. It’s well-priced ($70 for a full three-day cleanse), and includes 21 packets of instant juice. Over the three-day period, you’ll drink seven juices a day that detox and naturally provide energy to get you through the process. The package comes highly-rated on Amazon as well, with cleansers loving the easy-to-use packets and weight-cutting results. This makes it a great option for cleansing while traveling, commuting or anyone who will be out and about during the three days.

6. Juice From the Raw

BEST FOR BEGINNERS

Juice From the Raw is a highly-rated option for a three-day package with great reviews on Amazon. You get 18 bottles of high-quality cold-pressed juices — each specifically made for a different step of your juice cleanse plan. The packs come in a few variations for different levels of expertise, including beginner cleanses that even incorporate a little real food (don’t worry, it’s not cheating). This allows you to tailor the experience to your personal detoxing capabilities, which is key as some people shoot too high and end up having an uncomfortable, ineffective cleanse their first time around.

7. Raw Generation

BEST FOR WEIGHT LOSS

Raw Generation does things a little differently, allowing you to subscribe to their juices. It’s the best option for people focused on weight loss, as Raw Generation also provides a helpful guide for using juice to lose weight. Their website offers two cleanses: one for straightforward weight loss and another that features protein which supports supplemental exercise while you’re on the cleanse. They both come highly-rated, especially the original weight loss cleanse.

 

8. Lemonkind 3-Day Cleanse

BEST SUPERFOODS

This cleanse from Lemonkind boasts a hefty serving of different superfoods in each juice. The pack comes with five different juices that each contain a different superfood, including turmeric, chia seeds, chlorella, green tea and acerola. These superfoods ensure that you get proper nutrition for energy and focus while doing a cleanse, making it easier to continue working and going about your daily routine.

9. 10-Day Green Smoothie Cleanse

BEST DIY

One of the healthiest (and most affordable) ways to nail a juice cleanse is by making your own smoothies at home. This book offers detailed instructions for shopping, making the smoothies and properly consuming them. The cleanse is one of the most intense at 10 days long, but because you’re using fresh ingredients, you’ll get slightly more nutrients. And with this cleanse the payoff is big, as you should lose 10-15 pounds in just 10 days. We were skeptical of this claim at first, but the book’s almost 10,000 reviews and a 4.7/5 star rating should help put you at ease. If you love smoothies and green tea, this may be the DIY juice cleanse you’ve been looking for.

10. Pressed Juicery Detox Half-Day Fast

BEST FOR INTERMITTENT FASTING

Intermittent fasting has skyrocketed in popularity recently, and for good reason. It’s an effective weight loss strategy, and adding a half-day juice cleanse to your fast might make it even better. That’s why Pressed Juicery offers this half-day cleanse with four juices and a wellness shot. Drink one of the juices every two hours to replace breakfast and lunch, and then eat a lean dinner with plenty of protein and healthy fats to finish off the day.

11. Raw Foundation 3 Day Juice Cleanse Detox

BEST POWDER

This three-day cleanse from Raw Foundation utilizes powder packets (like a few of our picks). The cleanse consists of 24 packets that come in four varieties: greens, berry blast, citrus kick and protina. Protina is the real star of Raw Foundations cleanse with seven grams of protein. Like all powder juice cleanses, Raw Foundation’s detox is very easy to use and ideal for anyone on-the-go. They also use monk fruit extract as a clever sugar substitute that should keep you away from the cookie jar at night.

12. Lemonkind Metabolism Booster 3 Day Hybrid Cleanse

BEST JUICE AND SNACK CLEANSE

We understand. Nothing but juice for three days is hard. Lemonkind makes the process much easier with this three-day cleanse by including a superfruit snack box that’s designed to make the cleanse more effective — not to mention easier. This snack box consists of semi-dehydrated pineapple, apricot and apple. Snack on them throughout the cleanse, or keep them aside as an emergency if you get too hungry.

13. BluePrint 3-Day Beach-Ready Detox

BEST FOR BLOATING

That gross feeling of bloating is one of the most common reasons why people seek out a juice cleanse. This three-day cleanse from BluePrint is geared towards attacking that very feeling. As the name suggests, it’ll make you ready to don a swimsuit at the beach this summer. The package comes with 12 juices, three vinegar tonics and three small yet powerful SuperBoosters. You’ll drink six juices a day, and as with all of BluePrints products, you can rest assured that you’re getting premium, tasty juices that don’t contain any gluten, sweeteners or dairy.