#RealJuice - 7 Day Juice plan with Philips and Madeline Shaw

It's a big trend with A-listers to use juice cleanses to try and shed some weight and get glowing skin  but Madeleine Shaw (nutritionist who has worked with Millie Mackintosh and Louis Smith) says that having a juice a day alongside your regular diet can have lots of health benefits. There's no need to replace every meal with juice, you can have one a day and still see some big changes. - 'Juicing for me is a way of life. It's amazing how all of the goodness contained within a freshly made juice can fuel a workout, beat that afternoon slump or to help you sleep,' she said. 

Freshly made fruit and vegetable juice is packed with nutrients and a easy way to get your 5 a day but be warned 'If you are always on the go then it may seem like an easy option to grab a bottled juice. However, shop bought juices actually lose many of their nutrients over the course of their long shelf life due to the pasteurisation process. Plus they tend to be fruit-based making their sugar content 

higher,' As explained in my previous post I've been taking part in the #RealJuice Philips plan which encourages people to drink a juice a day. I was really looking forward to upping my fresh fruit and veg intake and juicing for the first time.

I've been following a 7 day plan created for me by Madeline Shaw and here are the flavour combinations from the first five days:

Madeline Shaw's 7 juice plan - Days 1-5

Monday: Glowing greens juice - 3 stalks of celery, 2 handfuls of spinach, 1 pear, 1/2 cucumber, 1 peeled lemon (or less according to taste), 1 handful of parsley

Tuesday: Pre-Workout juice - 3 carrots, 1 beetroot, 2 handfuls of parsley, 2cm of ginger

Wednesday: 4pm Pick me up juice - a handful of spinach, 5 romaine lettuce leaves, 1/4 a cucumber, 4 stalks of celery, 1 lemon, 1 apple, 2cm of ginger and 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

Thursday: Stir & purr sleep tonic juice - 1 green apple, 7 strawberries, 15 de-stoned cherries, 1/2 a cucumber

Friday: Watermelon cooler juice - 1/4 of a watermelon, 1 peeled lime (or less according to taste), 1 handful of fresh mint 

I was really worried about drinking the glowing green juice, I've never had a juice containing vegetables before and I HATE celery but the lemon and cucumber meant it was really refreshing and I actually enjoyed it. The green juice helps you get glowing skin as cucumber contains silica which maintains skin elasticity and pears contains vitamin C which helps fight free radical damage to your skin. I have to say that after a week of juicing my acne had improved slightly and I felt like my skin was less dull.

The Watermelon Cooler was definitely my favourite juice of the week, it was so refreshing and just what I needed after a long week in work. The smell of fresh mint filled the house and this is going to be something I make a lot in the summer.

I'm not sure that I would carry on juicing 7 days a week because some days I'm out 8am- 8pm with the commute, work and yoga but I'm going to make sure I don't waste any fruit and juice it and make a few of the glowing green juices a week because I noticed a big difference in my complexion after drinking those.  If you have any juice flavour combinations you think I should try please leave them below.

Philips and Madeleine are going to be hosting a Google+ Hangout Monday 27th October at 1pm. (TODAY) Madeleine will be talking about the Philips Campaign for Real Juice, giving her top tips on juicing and offering advice on how to incorporate juicing into your everyday life, rather than using it as a quick fix detox. She will also be able to answer any questions you have on juicing or nutrition in general, provide any advice you might be after so make sure you get involved. 

WIN - Tefal Infiny Press Juicer

We've got a great giveaway for you today, Tefal are giving you the chance to win one of their  new juicers worth £199!

Do you juice or like to have a juice detox? It’s something I’ve wanted to try for a long time and I'm always envious of those morning juice photos on Instagram when I'm munching on my boring Weetabix. It’s super healthy, and it’s a way of sneaking fruit and veg into your diet (great to encourage kids to have more) and it would save me loads of money from buying shop-bought juice.

The Infiny Press juicer offers a great way of preparing fresh juice at home. The Infinity Press works by slowly rotating a a screw mechanism which presses fruits, vegetables and even herbs very delicately to get the best out of them, to preserve as much flavour and vitamin goodness as possible. This gentle pressing process preserves as much flavour and vitamin goodness as possible by making full use of all the resources the fruit or vegetable has to offer. This helps you to produce fresh juice that is full of nutrients and tastes delicious.

• 35% more juice 

• 30% more vitamin C 

• 75% more antioxidants 

With a choice of two stainless steel filters you can have your juices smooth or with pulp, and with the compact size of the juicer it makes it easy to store. All of the removable parts are dishwasher safe, meaning less washing up too, bonus!

Compared with standard juicers, Infiny Press Revolution’s press technology can obtain up to:

 It's not your standard juicer as the Infiny Press features two removable filters which provide two functions – juice and coulis. So whether you want to make a revitalising breakfast juice or add the finishing touches to a dessert, the Infiny Press will help you achieve your juicing needs.

If you want some inspiration and ideas of what to make with a juicer head to the Tefal page here. The possibilities are endless.

All you need to do to be in with a chance of winning is fill in the widget below. 

Good Luck!

How to Make the Perfect Green Smoothie

Green smoothies have almost become the height of fashion in the celebrity world – every health conscious star has been spotted carrying one.  Before the green smoothie craze, many in the healthy living blogger world have been drinking this green liquid goodness for years.  I for one love my green smoothies, but it was a struggle at first.  Initially blending up spinach and kale into a drink didn’t really appeal, but now my confidence has grown and I think that I have got the perfect green smoothie down to a T.

So why are green smoothies considered to be so good for our health?

Smoothies have been on the tips of the tongues of many nutritionists for years, advocating them as a healthy snack or breakfast.  They are usually made up of fruit with yoghurt or milk, or just a basic protein smoothie.  Green smoothies however take it one step further and are packed with green earthy vegetables, meaning that they are bursting with a multitude of vitamin and minerals for your body.

Some of the health benefits include:

•  Increased intake of fruit and vegetables 
• A boost of antioxidants
• Improved energy levels
• High in fibre
• Easier digestion
• Fast absorption of nutrients
• Clear skin
• Improved well being
• Balances the bodies pH levels
• Detoxifies the body
• Contains a high level of chlorophyll

Since all of the contents of the smoothie are blended, the cells of the plants are broken down which makes it easier for the digestive system to process.  Also, there is an enhanced assimilation of vitamins and minerals.  Blending up the vegetables and fruit allows the body to absorb the nutrients a lot faster if you were to chew them.  The high levels of chlorophyll in the green smoothies help to boost your immune response.

When making your perfect green smoothie there are just a few things to think about, mainly how are you going to make it super delicious.  Here are some of my own tips and things to consider that help me make my green smoothies magical:

Liquids to blend with

Most smoothies always consist of a base and this may be unsweetened almond milk (or a milk of your choice), coconut water, or just plain water will do.  Adding a liquid will ensure that all of your ingredients are well combined and smooth in your…erm smoothie.

Choosing my greens

Dark earthy greens are best in green smoothies as they are packed full of nutrients and vitamins.  I tend to stick to spinach and kale as they are easily blended, but cavolo nero, chard and beet greens would also work well.

Adding my favourite fruits

Fruits add a natural sweetness to green smoothies and there are really no limits.  I love to add pineapple, banana, mango, peaches, apples and frozen berries to mine – the choice is yours!

Making your smoothie super

Adding powdered superfoods, nut butters or protein powders to your smoothie increases their nutritional value immensely.  Ingredients such as maca powder, camu camu berry powder, spirulina or lucuma powder are full of added health benefits in their own right.  The addition of protein powder makes the smoothie more satisfying and perfect for a healthy breakfast. 

Sweeten it up

If you have a bit of a sweet tooth you can add sweeteners to your smoothie such as honey, agave nectar, coconut sugar and maple syrup.

So there you have it, my guide to making the perfect green smoothie.  Don’t be scared by the fact they are green.  There are so many different varieties and possibilities that you can create.  To start off with perhaps try a simple spinach, banana, peanut butter and almond milk smoothie.  If you follow these simple tips you will be dusting off your blenders in no time!

This post was written by Jemma Andrew-Adiamah, author of the UK healthy living and lifestyle blog Celery and Cupcakes.  You can follow Jemma via her Facebook and Twitter feeds.

Brita Boost Challenge - Taste - Mixology

It's now day 14 of Dry January for me (Gemma) and that's nearly half way through my BRITA Boost challenge. I've managed to drink the recommended 1.2 litres of water a day by using my BRITA jug and flask despite going on holiday and staying at my boyfriend's house. You can read more about the challenge in my first post here.

Part of the appeal of alcohol can be the taste so Brita hosted an event to inspire me to find a tasty alternative to alcohol. They worked with a mixologist to devise an exclusive list of mocktails that all use filtered water, to ensure they taste the best they can. I was unable to attend the event as I was on my holiday in France so our new 'Roving reporter' Maggie headed to the event to find out what it was all about. If you want to meet our new roving reporter you can head over to her blog here or say hi over on twitter. It can be tricky for some of the Where Are My Knees team to attend events as none of us are based in central London so I'm very happy to welcome Maggie to the team.

When I think of mocktails I just picture a restaurant adding soda to fruit juice and charging over the odds for it, so I was looking forward to Brita and Mixology showing me otherwise and proving that Dry January doesn't have to mean missing out on social events either.

We were welcomed to the Mixology lounge in Shoreditch with a glass of Brita filtered water. Not quite the glass of wine that is normally thrust in to your hands at events, but actually quite welcome after a day spent in a drying air-conditioned office environment. I'm very un-fond of tap water in London (I come from Scotland where the tap water may as well be straight from a spring) but Brita's filtration process really does make the difference – removing the harsh chemically elements from the tap water and leaving a clear, fresh and refreshing drink behind.

We were then divided in to groups across the mixing benches and shown how to mix four different drinks which we then recreated ourselves: a warm and comforting Hot Toddy; an Elderflower Julep, sweet and fresh with mint; the sharp and fragrent Lavender Sour; and a Pink Champagne punch, perfect for sharing with friends. These all, of course, featured Brita filtered water among a selection of more traditional (non-alcoholic) cocktail ingredients. My favourite was the Lavender Sour – I liked how the bitter lemon juice tasted against the floral lavender syrup, and if you didn't know better you would swear there was gin in the mix so I definitely didn't miss the alcohol at all. If you want to make any of the mocktails follow this link for pdf recipe cards.

Our mixologist also taught us about the history of the drinks, such as punch originated as a way for sailors to use up stale beer, or that 'julep' comes from a Persian word meaning rose water. It was also great fun to learn techniques such as using a mixer, muddling, churning, and capping the ice. Somehow I managed to get the hang of using and releasing the mixer from the glass straight away, which I thought I would struggle with.

After all of this, each team was then challenged to come up with a drink of their own invention. Our group came up with the Eldernut Slammer, as we decided that teetotalers shouldn't have to miss out on the fun of shots. We were beaten to the winning spot by a creation called 'Britalicious' but all attempts were judged as very drinkable, which we were told doesn't always happen at the Cocktail events, due to the quantity of alcohol people are under the influence of by the time they get to the competition.

The class and the whole evening was very enjoyable and it was nice to know I wouldn't be feeling worse for wear in the morning no matter how many of the drinks I enjoyed. Best of all, Brita sent us away with a Mocktail kit of our very own, so now I'm looking forward to inviting some friends around, impressing them with my bartending skills (hah!) and showing how to make tasty and interesting drinks with water instead of alcohol.

Brita made a short video about the event

If your taking part in Dry January I hope you're doing well, let me know how you're getting on in the comments section below.