To Juice, or Not to Juice? Blending vs Juicing – Which is better?

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To juice, or not to juice?

That is the question. And it’s a question that comes with a surprisingly easy answer: DON’T!

WHAT?! Does that mean I’m telling you fruit and vegetable juices are UNHEALTHY? Of course not! I’m just saying don’t throw out all that fiber! And that’s wherein lies the difference between “juicing” and “blending.” You may have heard of “whole food juicing” – this is juicing while keeping the fiber intact in the juice. It’s true the product of either a juicer or a blender will be packed full of valuable nutrients, so long as the fruits, vegetables and nuts you started with are healthy, fresh, and preferably locally and organically grown. But one thing that’s lacking in most of our American diets is fiber. And that’s where blenders provide many benefits that juicers cannot.

The Importance of Fiber

Let’s back up. We’re all familiar with the idea of making smoothies and “health shakes” and other delightful drinks (maybe even a daiquiri on the weekend?) by throwing a bunch of fruits, vegetables and nuts and mashing the heck out of ‘em in a blender – and with how versatile and delicious the drinks that come out of them can be. But there are juicers and there are blenders, and the importance is greater than you’d expect. That difference comes down to one simple word: fiber. Juicers get rid of the fiber. Blenders hold onto it. So let’s take a closer look…

So what’s the big deal with fiber?

Remember the old cereal commercial where there’s a guy at the breakfast table, and that disembodied commercial guy voice explains how much of the competitor’s cereal he’d have to eat if he wanted to get the fiber of just ONE BOWL of what they were selling? And that’s because, (and I can’t say this enough), FIBER IS GOOD FOR YOU! It’s worth paying for even, and if you’re like most people, you may well not be getting enough of it, so the last thing you should think of would be throwing it away when you already have it! The fiber that is added into processed food is not always beneficial to the health, and the people behind that commercial food are trying to make the biggest profit from the smallest investment – which pretty much guarantees they will use the lowest quality added fiber.

Fiber should come from fruits and vegetables. Nature knows much better than we do how to put together a perfect nutritional package. The benefits of fiber represent a tremendous and far-reaching impact in many aspects of our health. Did you know…

Getting more fiber will help you:

– Lose weight
– Lower cholesterol
– Balance blood sugar
– Prevent cancer
– Prevent diabetes
– Improve intestinal health
– Stay fuller and satiated for a longer time
– Clean the body from the inside out

Don’t Throw Out a Good Thing!

So here we are, back with our original question- to juice, or not to juice? We have the option of choosing a juicer or a blender. Both pack nutritional benefits. Both machines make delicious beverages. But take another look at all those wonderful health benefits above from fiber.

When you make juice, you’re basically throwing out all these health benefits! Not only that, but you’re missing out on the creamier, more filling, more satisfying texture of a fiber-rich smoothie. A smoothie made with a high quality blender is just about as good as it gets, if you ask me. And what about the work involved in throwing it out? It means tedious time spent cleaning filters and screens in order to trash some of the best parts of the plant! Imagine all the sun’s energy that went into making that big leaf of kale or plump orange carrot, just to be tossed into the compost heap! Personally, I’d rather drink it up.

The added fiber will not only help make you feel fuller, longer, but will slow down the rate at which you absorb the natural sugars in fruit. And slower absorption means more sustained energy, which means you can use that energy to feel healthy and vibrant, instead of the alternative: adding it to your waistline. It’s not just the number of calories we get, it’s how we get them and what else we get with them that effects both how we feel and what our body does with the energy.

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When we take in sugar- even natural sugar like fruit juice, if we don’t have enough fiber along with it, it means our bodies are getting more energy than they need at that moment, so the excess is shuttled off to… you guessed it… Fat cells. And once it’s there, it’s much harder to get back out (as well all know!). But if we have that same amount of sugar, but combine it with plenty of fiber in a blender, it sloooooows the absorption of the sugar, and lets our body keep up with burning it- translating to a healthy feeling of energy, and, well, more confidence when we don our swimsuits!

The same reason fiber keeps off the pounds is the reason it prevents diabetes- think “slow carb” instead of “low carb.” The spike in blood sugar is what results in insulin resistance, which leads to obesity and Type II Diabetes. And Mother Nature gave us the solution to the problem right there along with all those wonderful vitamins and anti-oxidants- that’s right: fiber!

There are other advantages to using blenders over juicers. They are easier to clean up, they produce much more delicious liquid compared to juicers when looking at pound per pound yield from produce. Think about it- when you use a juicer instead of a blender, it’s basically taking perfectly good food and throwing it in the trash! I know my mom raised me better than that. Money doesn’t grow on trees, after all! If you took the time and effort to make a delicious casserole or lasagna, would you pull it out of the oven and turn straight to the trash can to throw a third of it out? I doubt it. So why would you do that to your vegetables?

The benefits of that fiber go on and on. As mentioned earlier, the fiber in blended fruit and vegetable drinks will help reduce your risk of all sorts of cancers, including breast and ovarian cancers, as well as cancers of the esophagus, stomach, and small intestine. Fiber helps to sweep up the junk leftover after eating too much of the traditionally over-processed food that makes up all too much of the American diet. So again,there are countless advantages to blending over juicing.! With all the effort out there trying to cure cancer, why would we throw out something already proven to prevent it?

Quality Counts

There are many options out there for blenders, starting at that beat up, dusty old thing you may have seen at the thrift store for just a couple bucks. But it doesn’t take long to figure out that you’ll get what you pay for. Take these old blenders apart and you’ll find they’re almost impossible to clean- and often haven’t been, for years, or maybe even decades. Remove one of the tired old rubber gaskets and you’ll see a scummy layer of what scientists call a “bio film.” Gross!

Low end blenders are LOUD, which is the same problem with juicers. Ever try to make your morning smoothie while the rest of the household is asleep? This is a great reason to go with a Vitamix or Blendtec blender. Low end blenders add air and can oxidize the ingredients. This is exactly what you want to avoid when you are trying to create health through nutrition.

The most important feature in a blender is whether it actually blends, and low end blenders often don’t. They leave you with a chunky mixture even if what you put in them is easy to blend. A Vitamix or Blendtec blender can handle much tougher plant material than a low end blender, and will leave you with a very smooth consistency. You can also use a Vitamix or Blendtec to make soups heated simply using the friction of the blender – you just put your ingredients in and let it blend and it warms up all by itself! This is a great way to heat food while not passing the point where the food undergoes a chemical reaction due to the heat, in other words – it’s a great way to make raw soups!

Many other foods and recipes can be prepared in a Vitamix or Blendtec blender, making them a versatile kitchen tool that goes well beyond just smoothies and whole food juices.

Investing in a high quality blender is well worth it. They’re easy to clean, and they last forever. The Vitamix and Blendtec Blenders are about as high quality of a machine as you can find. The thought that went into their design and the precision with which they are produced is immediately noticeable from the moment you take them out of the box. What this consideration and care means down the road is a fast and easy way to get your nutritious fruit, vegetable and nut drinks every single time. The best part? A quick and easy cleanup at the end, which is crucial. Because we all know we’re more likely to do something if it can become routine- it shouldn’t take a lot of time. In fact, it should be fun!

The biggest hurdle to overcome when taking on a new and positive habit in life is making it routine. In order to be routine, making nutritious foods and beverages shouldn’t be cumbersome and trying. If there’s more pain than pleasure in any experience, why would you stick to it? Appliances in the kitchen should always ADD convenience, ADD pleasure, and ADD health to our lives. The frustrations I’ve seen over the years that come with juicers just don’t fit the bill. They often end up sitting in the corner collecting dust. I have numerous friends however (myself included), who all make blended fruit, vegetable and nut drinks on a daily basis. That’s right: every single day we take in between one and four glasses of highly concentrated, invigorating, all natural nutrition.

Why? Because it’s fun and easy, and then we can trade tips, recipes, and even enter into friendly competition to see who can produce the most nutrient-rich drink that still tastes great. Healthy living should be social! And besides that you can…

Save Money by Blending!

Blending as opposed to juicing will make your produce go further. Instead of tossing all that pulp into the trash, leaving your glass half empty, you’ll keep every bit of it, and make your dollar go even further at the grocery store or farmers’ market. Blending allows you to get about 35% more from your produce. That’s $35 for every $100 worth of produce. Why throw that away? It would be crazy.

Not only will you save money by choosing blended juices over strained, watery juicer juices, but think of how much you’ll save by cutting out those stale, pre-packaged vitamins. That’s right: by using fresh blends of fruits and vegetables, I was able to rid my cabinet, and my budget, of countless bottles of vitamins and minerals. Through my research into blended juices, I learned how many of these vitamins quickly lose their health benefits when bottled up and left to sit on the shelf. They have to be packaged and shipped, and left on store shelves, and it can take months for a pill to travel from one end of the world to my local store, and even then it can end up sitting around for weeks or more.

On the other hand, when I go to the grocery store or farmer’s market I can grab a bag of spinach or carrots or celery and be confident that no more than a couple days could have possibly gone by since it was soaking up sunlight and rain in a farmer’s field. In fact, the produce we buy at the store are STILL ALIVE! When I go to the farmers’ market, I make sure to find vegetables that were picked THAT VERY MORNING! Every Saturday I make it an outing, joining a few friends to collect the very freshest and tastiest fruits and vegetables. I can’t wait to get home and throw an assortment into the blender, knowing the rich, earthy taste is the flavor of Mother Nature’s very best efforts at providing nutrition to the world.

I’ve started my own garden plot as well, and would encourage you to do the same. Even though I only have a small space to work with in my suburban neighborhood, it’s amazing how much wonderful produce I can grow. I dream of one day moving back to the country where I grew up, and taking advantage of a great big plot of land, but there is bounty to be had even in the tiniest of spaces. And all that translates to added health, and savings on groceries. To put it plainly, an increase in all-around quality of life.

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Nutritious, Delicious, with Endless Options!

Not only have I had fun with my Vitamix, but I’ve discovered I can get all sorts of nutritious foods into my diet that I previously wouldn’t have imagined eating in years past. I’ve expanded my own palate and learned fantastic recipes for sneaking otherwise not-so-favorite foods past not only my stubborn lips, but also into my friends’ mouths. Blending has become part of the household eating ritual. It’s part of our lives.

In short, I’ve experienced a complete revolution in my own health since I first discovered blending years ago. It was a long and arduous journey for me, since back when I started there weren’t these highly advanced blenders we have today in Vitamix and Blendtec. I can only imagine how much faster I would have taken to blending as a way of life had I had the option for such a great product back then.

But here we are! I’ve never had an easier time getting all those servings of fruits and vegetables into my diet, and I’ve also never felt so full of energy and vigor. I’ve lost weight, and still feel satiated, never missing a carb-heavy dessert when I can make myself a delicious, fiber-rich smoothie at the end of a long day. I hope you’ll join me on the road to a better, richer, life, in a happier and healthier body!