For those of you who juice....
- Thread starter JEDIYoda
- Start date
balloonshark
Diamond Member
- Jun 5, 2008
- 6,887
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Smoothies > juice. Why would you want to get rid of all the fiber by juicing? A good blender would also run you $160 and up though.
I bought a juicer - and the more I juiced the more I came to this same conclusion.... Christ - the remains of the fruit/veggies was just ginormous vs. the actual output of the juice.
I totally agree - just get a nice blender instead.
snoopy7548
Diamond Member
- Jan 1, 2005
- 8,211
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Red Squirrel
No Lifer
The good ones are actually built well, unlike most consumer gear. I think they have no choice to build them well just because they actually do need to work fairly hard and need quality gearing and a motor that won't overheat. At least the masticating ones, which is what you want if you are juicing for health. The really fast ones that use a blade break up all the enzymes and you don't get as much out of the juice.
I bought an Omega one wanting to get heavily into juicing then it just kinda stopped... which tends to happen with juicing, it's expensive and lot of work, and the juices that are actually good for your health don't taste that great. I thought I was doing really well doing carrot juice but turns out those have lot of sugar so you don't want to juice them, you may as well drink a Pepsi. You mostly want to juice greens and it basically taste like you are drinking grass. I do need to try to get back into it though, but I want to grow my own stuff, maybe wheetgrass. Treat the process like taking vitamins, it's not something you do because it taste good, but because you just want to keep your health.
I bought an Omega one wanting to get heavily into juicing then it just kinda stopped... which tends to happen with juicing, it's expensive and lot of work, and the juices that are actually good for your health don't taste that great. I thought I was doing really well doing carrot juice but turns out those have lot of sugar so you don't want to juice them, you may as well drink a Pepsi. You mostly want to juice greens and it basically taste like you are drinking grass. I do need to try to get back into it though, but I want to grow my own stuff, maybe wheetgrass. Treat the process like taking vitamins, it's not something you do because it taste good, but because you just want to keep your health.
Red Squirrel
No Lifer
Yeah I always feel kinda bad for all the left over stuff, seems wasteful. I guess if I was growing my own I would just compost it.
You're probably better off just eating the damn thing instead of juicing it lol. The benefit of juicing is all the nutrients get absorbed super fast by your body though... but whether or not that is really a benefit or not, who knows. Health science is one of the most complicated things. Even rocket science is easier and more established.
You're probably better off just eating the damn thing instead of juicing it lol. The benefit of juicing is all the nutrients get absorbed super fast by your body though... but whether or not that is really a benefit or not, who knows. Health science is one of the most complicated things. Even rocket science is easier and more established.
Kaido
Elite Member & Kitchen Overlord
- Feb 14, 2004
- 49,987
- 6,299
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I have both a high-quality juicer (Champion masticating) and a high-quality blender (Blendtec). I use the blender a LOT more than the juicer. The juicer is great for what it does, but as others have mentioned, there are two pitfalls:
1. Fresh, good-quality produce is expensive.
2. It's not an instant process, due to the cleanup required.
A glass of mixed juice can easily run $8 where I live, due to the cost of fruits & vegetables. I do think there are health benefits to it, because you're getting a LOT of vitamins & minerals, but you're also getting a direct sugar hit with zero fiber content. I watched the documentary "Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead" awhile back & it was really good, but it was also before I learned what macros were & how they operated. I have since written a guide on them:
www.reddit.com
That documentary is available for free (with ads) on Youtube, fwiw:
Any diet where you restrict calories is going to cause you to lose weight, simply because that's how physics works. An 8-ounce cup of carrot juice has 2 grams of protein, half a gram of fat, 21 carbs, and 89 calories. But it also has 867% of your daily value of Vitamin A, lol. So technically, juicing is an effective way to lose weight, if that's your goal, because even if you chug eight 8oz glasses of freshly-pressed carrot juice a day, you're only downing about 700 calories. The downside is that you're also getting 168 grams of carbs with zero plant fiber to slow the impact of that sugar down, as well as low protein & low fat. I think sugar is fine in moderation, especially when combined with a balance of real food & a sufficient protein & fat intake, but it's a little scary to drink that many carbs with nothing else to buffer it with.
Anyway, good-quality equipment is expensive. Expect to pay around $300 for a top-quality juicer. I've had mine for many, many years & it's still going strong, so you kind of get what you pay for, which is important if you plan to use it long-term. I use it every season to make apple cider from apples I pick at nearby orchards, and occasionally still juice with it, and also make banana ice cream with it (frozen bananas = soft serve!). Would I recommend buying one? Only if you are really, truly going to integrate it into your lifestyle and/or if you have the budget & space for it. They are large, they are heavy, they are expensive, they take a bit of time & effort to clean after each use, and the supplies are expensive. If I had to choose between a juicer & a blender, the blender would win every time. I've had my Blendtec for something like 10 years & still use it on a weekly basis for all kinds of random stuff, including whole juices (fiber & all) & smoothies.
1. Fresh, good-quality produce is expensive.
2. It's not an instant process, due to the cleanup required.
A glass of mixed juice can easily run $8 where I live, due to the cost of fruits & vegetables. I do think there are health benefits to it, because you're getting a LOT of vitamins & minerals, but you're also getting a direct sugar hit with zero fiber content. I watched the documentary "Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead" awhile back & it was really good, but it was also before I learned what macros were & how they operated. I have since written a guide on them:
Reddit - Dive into anything
www.reddit.com
That documentary is available for free (with ads) on Youtube, fwiw:
Any diet where you restrict calories is going to cause you to lose weight, simply because that's how physics works. An 8-ounce cup of carrot juice has 2 grams of protein, half a gram of fat, 21 carbs, and 89 calories. But it also has 867% of your daily value of Vitamin A, lol. So technically, juicing is an effective way to lose weight, if that's your goal, because even if you chug eight 8oz glasses of freshly-pressed carrot juice a day, you're only downing about 700 calories. The downside is that you're also getting 168 grams of carbs with zero plant fiber to slow the impact of that sugar down, as well as low protein & low fat. I think sugar is fine in moderation, especially when combined with a balance of real food & a sufficient protein & fat intake, but it's a little scary to drink that many carbs with nothing else to buffer it with.
Anyway, good-quality equipment is expensive. Expect to pay around $300 for a top-quality juicer. I've had mine for many, many years & it's still going strong, so you kind of get what you pay for, which is important if you plan to use it long-term. I use it every season to make apple cider from apples I pick at nearby orchards, and occasionally still juice with it, and also make banana ice cream with it (frozen bananas = soft serve!). Would I recommend buying one? Only if you are really, truly going to integrate it into your lifestyle and/or if you have the budget & space for it. They are large, they are heavy, they are expensive, they take a bit of time & effort to clean after each use, and the supplies are expensive. If I had to choose between a juicer & a blender, the blender would win every time. I've had my Blendtec for something like 10 years & still use it on a weekly basis for all kinds of random stuff, including whole juices (fiber & all) & smoothies.
Red Squirrel
No Lifer
Speaking of fiber, one of my coworkers who's die hard into meat only eating ("our bodies are not made to eat plants" is his claim) said that fibre is actually sugar, is that really true? I always thought fibre was it's own separate thing and that it was good for you.
- Jul 13, 2005
- 33,986
- 3,320
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Thank You!! A high quality blender is what it will be!!I have both a high-quality juicer (Champion masticating) and a high-quality blender (Blendtec). I use the blender a LOT more than the juicer. The juicer is great for what it does, but as others have mentioned, there are two pitfalls:
1. Fresh, good-quality produce is expensive.
2. It's not an instant process, due to the cleanup required.
A glass of mixed juice can easily run $8 where I live, due to the cost of fruits & vegetables. I do think there are health benefits to it, because you're getting a LOT of vitamins & minerals, but you're also getting a direct sugar hit with zero fiber content. I watched the documentary "Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead" awhile back & it was really good, but it was also before I learned what macros were & how they operated. I have since written a guide on them:
Reddit - Dive into anything
That documentary is available for free (with ads) on Youtube, fwiw:
Any diet where you restrict calories is going to cause you to lose weight, simply because that's how physics works. An 8-ounce cup of carrot juice has 2 grams of protein, half a gram of fat, 21 carbs, and 89 calories. But it also has 867% of your daily value of Vitamin A, lol. So technically, juicing is an effective way to lose weight, if that's your goal, because even if you chug eight 8oz glasses of freshly-pressed carrot juice a day, you're only downing about 700 calories. The downside is that you're also getting 168 grams of carbs with zero plant fiber to slow the impact of that sugar down, as well as low protein & low fat. I think sugar is fine in moderation, especially when combined with a balance of real food & a sufficient protein & fat intake, but it's a little scary to drink that many carbs with nothing else to buffer it with.
Anyway, good-quality equipment is expensive. Expect to pay around $300 for a top-quality juicer. I've had mine for many, many years & it's still going strong, so you kind of get what you pay for, which is important if you plan to use it long-term. I use it every season to make apple cider from apples I pick at nearby orchards, and occasionally still juice with it, and also make banana ice cream with it (frozen bananas = soft serve!). Would I recommend buying one? Only if you are really, truly going to integrate it into your lifestyle and/or if you have the budget & space for it. They are large, they are heavy, they are expensive, they take a bit of time & effort to clean after each use, and the supplies are expensive. If I had to choose between a juicer & a blender, the blender would win every time. I've had my Blendtec for something like 10 years & still use it on a weekly basis for all kinds of random stuff, including whole juices (fiber & all) & smoothies.
Kaido
Elite Member & Kitchen Overlord
- Feb 14, 2004
- 49,987
- 6,299
- 136
On the high-end side ($400 range), it really boils down to 2 choices:
1. Blendtec
2. Vitamix
Blendtec is better if you want to liquify things. Vitamixes are better if you are primarily doing smoothies. I think they do a better job keeping some texture in the drink & letting you stir it with the tamper (stick) inside of the blender bottle. You have to be a little more careful with the Blendtec because you can end up making soup pretty easily because it's so high-powered. My Blendtec has the large 5-sided Wildside+ Jar, plus the smaller smoothie jar. I use both on a regular basis. I make salsas, sauces, smoothies, whole juices, ice cream bases, all kinds of stuff with it. I've found the Blendtec to be a more versatile tool long-term. I'd go with this model on sale for $219 if you are interested in versatility:
Scarpozzi
Lifer
- Jun 13, 2000
- 26,391
- 1,780
- 126
I heard on the radio this past week that some British medical study debunked the apple a day myth...but said 2 large apples per day work for lowering cholesterol, dropping weight, etc....so juicing ain't bad when compared to eating Big Macs, but replacing more of your diet with fruits and vegetables is more important than anything.
What do you recommend as far as smoothies? Any particular recipes?
I always feel like (if anything) that smoothies main purpose would be for something like losing weight and instead of having Breakfast / Lunch replacing them with a smoothie.... In the case of Dinner though, I would figure it wouldn't make as much sense...
pete6032
Diamond Member
- Dec 3, 2010
- 7,946
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Taking out the fiber allows you to consume more nutrients than you would otherwise. My daily juice is half a cucumber, half a lemon, an inch of ginger, half a beet, a whole bell pepper, a bunch of kale, and bunch of parsley. I could never eat that amount of vegetables if they were raw.
Kaido
Elite Member & Kitchen Overlord
- Feb 14, 2004
- 49,987
- 6,299
- 136
Yeah, we have a big discussion thread here with lots of recipes & links to recipes:
Page 12 - How do you create a smoothy?
Page 12 - Seeking answers? Join the AnandTech community: where nearly half-a-million members share solutions and discuss the latest tech.
forums.anandtech.com
Read up on macros here first tho:
Smoothies are just another way to get your macros in. I like smoothies because you can do a lot of neat things with them:
1. They're easy to drink, which is nice when you're on the go or don't feel like eating
2. You can add protein powder to them, to control your protein intake
3. You can control the flavor by using all kinds of ingredients
4. You can control the thickness, from a thin watery liquid to a thick shake
5. You can make them as healthy or unhealthy as you want (ex. avocado smoothies or Jamba Juice shakes with sherbet in them)
6. You can control a variety of ingredients (whole fruits or fruit powders, different types of milks, ice, and so on)
Lately I've been doing a lot of smoothies with both eggs (raw & hardboiled) & cream cheese. Both of those might sound a little weird, but like in the case of the cream cheese, you can basically make a cheesecake in a cup. I figured out a good "strawberry shortcake" version with strawberry protein powder & cream cheese recently that is actually a pretty good balance between healthy & tasty. So if you like to tinker, smoothies are great because you have literally endless iterations you can go through. You can add weird stuff like chia seeds to make it thicken up, or use frozen strawberries to replace the ice with for more flavor & nutrients.
Losing weight is super easy with macros, as it gives you nice, clear targets to hit. Losing weight then becomes inevitable, rather than a question mark. Macros gives you the information required to control your results. Then you can tailor your smoothies to fit your needs for the day! Honestly, I spend less time cooking & thinking about food than most people I knew, even though I post about it a lot, because eating according to my macros kind of makes it all automatic!
Fuck you already convinced me. Reccomend me the best Blendtec and I'll order 5lb of protein powder to go with it stat!Yeah, we have a big discussion thread here with lots of recipes & links to recipes:
Page 12 - How do you create a smoothy?
Page 12 - Seeking answers? Join the AnandTech community: where nearly half-a-million members share solutions and discuss the latest tech.
Read up on macros here first tho:
Smoothies are just another way to get your macros in. I like smoothies because you can do a lot of neat things with them:
1. They're easy to drink, which is nice when you're on the go or don't feel like eating
2. You can add protein powder to them, to control your protein intake
3. You can control the flavor by using all kinds of ingredients
4. You can control the thickness, from a thin watery liquid to a thick shake
5. You can make them as healthy or unhealthy as you want (ex. avocado smoothies or Jamba Juice shakes with sherbet in them)
6. You can control a variety of ingredients (whole fruits or fruit powders, different types of milks, ice, and so on)
Lately I've been doing a lot of smoothies with both eggs (raw & hardboiled) & cream cheese. Both of those might sound a little weird, but like in the case of the cream cheese, you can basically make a cheesecake in a cup. I figured out a good "strawberry shortcake" version with strawberry protein powder & cream cheese recently that is actually a pretty good balance between healthy & tasty. So if you like to tinker, smoothies are great because you have literally endless iterations you can go through. You can add weird stuff like chia seeds to make it thicken up, or use frozen strawberries to replace the ice with for more flavor & nutrients.
Losing weight is super easy with macros, as it gives you nice, clear targets to hit. Losing weight then becomes inevitable, rather than a question mark. Macros gives you the information required to control your results. Then you can tailor your smoothies to fit your needs for the day! Honestly, I spend less time cooking & thinking about food than most people I knew, even though I post about it a lot, because eating according to my macros kind of makes it all automatic!
Edit: I'm actually serious, I'm really convinced to order a nice blender and start meal replacing. I hate the concept of "I don't want to make it" excuses, so just tossing shit in a blender is a million times easier.
Kaido
Elite Member & Kitchen Overlord
- Feb 14, 2004
- 49,987
- 6,299
- 136
"Best"? I mean, if you want to spend $800, you can get the blender with a quiet enclosure, which is what I do if I had money to burn:
Otherwise the 575 with the Wildside+ jar is a great deal for $219 on sale today:
I have the mini twister jar for smaller quantities, which is also useful for certain thicker things that you need some spin-action on. It's pricey ($94 currently), but super useful if you plan on using your blender a lot:
Amazon.com: Blendtec Twister Jar (37 oz), Professional-Grade Blender Jar, Thick Blends, Spectacula Spatula, Twister and Mini Gripper Lid, BPA-free, Clear: Kitchen & Dining
Amazon.com: Blendtec Twister Jar (37 oz), Professional-Grade Blender Jar, Thick Blends, Spectacula Spatula, Twister and Mini Gripper Lid, BPA-free, Clear: Kitchen & Dining
www.amazon.com
I want to say I've had my Blendtec for like 8 or 10 years now. It's been pretty dang solid! In addition to protein powder, check out stuff like Soylent & Sated as meal replacements...blend them up with some peanut butter or bananas or flavored protein powder with ice & you have a pretty easy meal you can drink straight-up or else put in an insulated Yeti-style container to go for later! I like Optimum's whipped vanilla whey & also their plain whey, those are my two go-to protein powders.
Captante
Lifer
- Oct 20, 2003
- 30,337
- 10,854
- 136
No your friend is not correct ... fiber is not sugar and does not in any way get converted to sugar after consumption.
- Jul 13, 2005
- 33,986
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Red Squirrel
No Lifer
Ok good to know. So much conflicting info out there when it comes to nutrition it's nuts.
Jeeebus
Diamond Member
- Aug 29, 2006
- 9,181
- 901
- 126
That's what I have (and the regular Blendtec blender as well). My wife used to complain that smoothies at 5am would wake the kids, so I opted for the one with the quiet enclosure. I don't care what people say in reviews, there is NO comparison between Blendtec/Vitamix and any of the other blenders out there. We were just on vacation for a week in Tennessee staying at a cabin. To my surprise, they had a quality Breville blender and I went shopping to make smoothies for breakfast. The consistency/final product was nothing like my Blendtec. Had to run it on liquify a couple times just to get a basic smoothie consistency where I wasn't sucking in huge chunks of kale. They are well worth the cost, though obviously no need to spend more for the $800 model when the regular Blendtec is great (just not quiet).
I feel kinda shitty if I have a 'regular' breakfast these days - eggs, cereal, etc. The smoothie keeps me energized through lunch. Trying to muster the energy to prepare a smoothie for lunch too for at least half the week. Easy enough to mix in protein powder and I have decent shaker bottles (with the little metal mixer sphere inside) that returns it back to a good consistency after a few hours in the fridge. The only real block is mental at this point as my mind is conditioned to eat 'food' and expects that input for lunch/dinner. Frankly, I feel better when having the smoothie, but it's difficult to transition to making that 2 meals a day.
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