omega j8006 | Maple Avenue Juice

I love healthy habits and I love them even more when they just happen naturally. It’s not fun to always have to work at creating them but when you’re finally there, at that effortless space where it just happens, it’s magic, it’s fun and you enjoy the benefits. I realized this past Saturday that anytime I’m off on a Saturday (I work some weekends), I make a huge batch of green juice, sit on the couch (or in bed) in complete silence preferably and savor every last drop of my juice while doing absolutely nothing else. It’s meditative and I enjoy every second of it. I juice several times a week but for some reason I really look forward to my next Saturday morning juice feast. I’ve worked annoyingly hard to create other healthy habits, many of which haven’t stuck, so it was fun to realize I had incidentally created this one. So since healthy habits don’t always happen effortlessly for me or many others I thought I’d come up with a list of 3 other healthy habits I’d like to practice. Feel free to join me.

1. Going to bed and waking up at the same time. I love sleep, who doesn’t? My problem, like many of you probably, is that on my days off I tend to stay up late, not being very productive, and wake up late. When I wake up later in the day, by the time I’m dressed and ready to conquer my day I’m annoyed with myself because I feel like half my day is gone. If I made an effort to sleep at the same time, wake up at the same time and physically get out of bed I’m sure I’d feel a million times better. Although, truth be told, there’s nothing like having a day once in a while spent in bed 🙂

2. Exercise at least 3 times per week. I know y’all saw this coming. I have serious working out issues. I go through phases where I live and breath my workouts and then it all comes to a screeching halt when I have a break in my schedule like a 3 day holiday out of town or heavens knows what! It’s sad, it’s pathetic and I want to be in the space where working out at least thrice a week just happens, like going to work, like juicing, like taking out the trash. Aaaaaarrrgghhh, can I just be there already?

3. Have (more of) an attitude of gratitude. I used to be a master at this. This used to be my constant state of being and then my job happened, more bills happened and more, more, more nonsense. They’re all excuses really. When you consistently practice having an attitude of gratitude no matter what happens in your day, you are happy, you are calm, you feel abundant, blessed and only more wonderful things/experiences come your way. It’s a fact. It’s really simple and I intend to practice it more. You can make a list every morning of what you’re grateful for, you can do it at the dinner table with your family or you can do it in the car while sitting in traffic. Anytime is the perfect time to have an attitude of gratitude for any or every thing in your life.

So here’s the juice I made this past Saturday morning. It was lightly sweet, it was a gorgeous green and I was grateful for every last drop of it.

Saturday Morning Green Juice

2 very large organic European cucumbers
4 organic apples
1 organic lemon, peeled
3 cups of organic baby spinach

I used my Omega J8006 to make this green juice and it juiced my spinach so well. All the pulp was bone dry! Unlike the Breville though, it works better if you peel the lemon which is fine because it only takes an extra 15 seconds. Check out Types of Juicers if you still haven’t decided what juicer you think would work best for you.

What healthy habits do you have that you appreciate? or would like to start? Kindly share…

~Juice & Start A New Healthy Habit Today!~

I’m in love. Yes, love. It feels real. It’s the new kind. The one that makes you skip, hop and sing. I can’t believe it. I’m telling everyone and anyone that cares (or doesn’t) about the new love of my life. She’s shiny and new, sturdy and strong, sleek and sexy! She does a whole lot but I honestly just care that she juices.

It’s the month of my birthday and I couldn’t think of a better way to celebrate than to get a new juicer. After months of research, which pretty much consisted of reading reviews and watching YouTube videos, I finally decided on purchasing the Omega J8006 masticating juicer. I have owned my beloved Breville Fountain Juice Plus for 5 years now and it has served me more than well. I purchased it for $120 at Macy’s (with a coupon) in December of 2008. I unfortunately began to notice over the past few months that my pulp was getting wetter and wetter which meant wasted nutrients and money! Not cool. I am beyond thankful for my beloved Breville and for the little bit it cost me, it has rewarded me with great health and for that there is no price! I will more than likely still use my Breville from time to time but for now the star in my kitchen is my Omega J8006 masticating juicer.

Feel free to check out my post on Types of Juicers to get a simple rundown on the different kinds of juicers, their pros and cons, price points and what juicer will probably work best for you.

After only having experienced a centrifugal juicer, I knew I had to try something different. I purchased the Omega J8006 at Bed, Bath & Beyond for $239 with the 20% off coupon you can sign up for online and receive in the mail. It normally retails for $299. Thanks BBB, gotta love a deal 🙂 🙂 🙂 The Omega J8006 is sooooooo much better at juicing leafy greens and clean up is a breeze because the parts are so much smaller. My first juice recipe with my new juicer had to be the first juice recipe I ever posted on this blog (most popular one too) and one of my favorites, Grapefruit & Apple Juice Recipe.

Here she is…