JJ Smith and Daily Harvest Review
If you know me, you know I am willing to try nearly anything new whether its healthy eating subscriptions like Home Chef, juice cleanses like JuJu’s cleanse, or innovative, cosmetic procedures like Botox or Coolsculpting.
Every quarter, I attempt to detox and cleanse. Usually for vanity reasons and more importantly, my health (at least that’s what I like to tell myself… it’s definitely more about vanity LOL!).
A while ago, I was introduced to JJ Smith’s 10-day cleanse. My first attempt at doing it was a struggle but was amazing. My energy was restored, I was no longer sluggish, I could focus better, and I wasn’t bloated. I didn’t lose much weight though,which sucked but it was fine. For the last 3 years, I’d use this 10-day cleanse once a quarter to jump-start my metabolism and detox. There were two problems though: 1. I would have to go to the grocery store twice a week to ensure the ingredients were fresh. This was difficult as a full-time and part-time employee and student. 2. My smoothies never blended to the perfect consistency. They were always too watery, too thick, or the flavor was off. I would alternate between ice, water, almond milk, changing the amounts, etc. and I could never get it right. For the smoothie recipes I disliked, the consistency made them difficult to consume.
This black woman created a cleanse that restored me, provided me with all the nutrients I needed, and didn’t leave me starving. Eventually, I graduated to her Green Smoothies for Life 30-day cleanse (modified) which was full of healthy recipes and even more smoothie recipes tailored to areas you needed to improve such as immunity, digestion, skin, etc. This was more up my alley. I am very specific and like to focus on key areas of development. After doing this cleanse multiple times, I still couldn’t get my consistency right. And in 3 years, with technology making everything more convenient, going to the store to buy ingredients for the smoothies I couldn’t thoroughly enjoy, just wasn’t feasible anymore with my schedule or taste buds. I decided to explore new options, but I am so grateful to JJ Smith for a lot a reasons. With her instruction, I learned how to eat clean and for the first time, I knew what it was like to actually feel healthy. Each morning on the cleanse, I woke up refreshed and I learned natural methods I can employ everyday to relieve constipation, resolve bloating, and what foods I could eat to change my mood and energy, avoiding my beloved stress foods: pizza, fries, or a fish plate (it’s a St. Louis thing!).
As January 2020 was approaching, I began to set my goals for the upcoming year which always include health and fitness goals. I began researching new recipes and methods I could integrate. As I mentioned earlier, cleanses always had great health consequences but I was not losing weight and I was committed to this goal this year. I have maintained a healthy 150 lbs for 5 years but my goal is a healthy 135 especially given my height (Gabby Union inspired! Sis is old as shit and you would think she’s 25)! I planned to restrict my diet further so I could lose weight and tone with my workouts. With today’s tech, you know you’ll have conversations and your social media accounts begin generating ads tailored your discussions, which is so creepy but sometimes helpful and luckily for me, Daily Harvest came across my phone screen and TV commercial—the Feds stay watching!!! After reading further, I decided I would integrate Daily Harvest into my cleanse routine to replace JJ’s smoothies and supplement JJ’s daily cleansing methods, snack ideas, and dinner recipes.
Daily Harvest smoothies are low-calorie, gluten-free, vegan, organic recipes. And the best part, they are already prepared with the correct quantity of ingredients and come packaged and frozen to your door! All you have to do is put them in the freezer and when you’re ready, remove the lid, add your liquid, and blend. It literally takes about 5-7 minutes of your morning routine. As Daily Harvest says, “One-step prep,” and its so true! And guess what y’all, it blends to the PERFECT consistency, EVERYTIME! Another bonus, the cup the ingredients come in has a lid, just insert a straw and you’re good to go! I also loved that much like JJ’s, the smoothies are tailored to areas you want to target: beauty, anti-inflammatory, immunity boosting, stress-relief, workout recovery, digestive support, and others. I coupled my smoothies with my breakfast of 2 hard-boiled eggs and granola and my lunch, which was usually a small salad or soup. Originally, I thought this might work as meal replacement since I eat a relatively light breakfast and lunch but don’t do that or you’ll be starving! The flavors are good too! As a rule of thumb from JJ, I always chew my smoothies to maximize nutrient absorption.
Daily Harvest is a subscription so if you don’t like those services, I wouldn’t recommend it. It may be considered expensive to some for a smoothie, usually about $6.99/cup, comparable to places like Smoothie King, and there are subscription options. You can do a weekly or monthly subscription so while it is a financial commitment, it’s worth it for your body and with the options, you can figure out the best to integrate it for you. Also, like other subscription-based services, you can cancel and skip the month so if it isn’t in your budget for the month that’s fine! Also I have a code to give you $25 off your first order!
Now about these flavors, I have a couple of favorites: Mango Greens, Greens, Strawberry Peach, Pineapple Matcha, and Chocolate Blueberry for my post workout! These are so bomb! I would tread lightly with Watermelon Dragon Fruit: it’s bit much and kind of bland.—my least favorite. As JJ recommends in her smoothie cleanse, you can add a natural, no calorie sweetener like Stevia if smoothies taste a bit bland. Each Daily Harvest smoothie contain superfoods, everything you need to make you feel good, help you live better, and are nutritionally dense.
As with any cleanse or diet change, there will be challenges. So whatever you choose, have an open mind, embrace the challenge, and enjoy the benefits. Focus on getting healthy, expects cravings, and usually some fatigue to start but you will adjust. As your body begins to flush and replace all the bad with good, you will start to feel better and learn to incorporate more healthy options into your regular diet over time. Give them a try and let me know what you think!!!
XOXO,
Stina 💛