Juicing Versus Blending

Last week, I was at CostCo picking up some produce I saw that they were having a special event showcasing the Vita-Mix blender. I was curious so I stopped to check it out. Initially, I wasn’t very convinced as the guy came off full of sales-pitch, telling me things that my juicer won’t do…when I know they do them fine (like juicing greens), and at the same time telling me why the Vitamix is so much better than any other blender out there.

Personally, I have a Tribest Personal Blender and have for a very long time. It’s small, portable, easy to use and clean… however, it’s a personal blender so it is a little bit limited on size, in regards to how much you can put in there. And sometimes it can be a pain to blend a full container of something (tip to myself: leave room, and blend small amounts at a time, adding in more as you go). I stood and watched the VitaMix blend up a fruit/spinach concoction and tasted the very satisfying output, and it left me wondering… which is better? Blending or Juicing?

In the last month, since I’ve become an unofficial Ambassador of Juicing, I’ve had several people ask me about the benefits of juicing versus blending, and if a high-end blender wouldn’t do the same thing that a juicer does. My response had been “well sort of, but not quite”. After reading a good bit more online, my answer is still the same. Here’s why….

Juicing… gives you a larger quantity of nutrients in a much quicker amount of time. Since it’s completely juiced and the fiber is removed the nutrients go straight into your system without your digestive system needing to do any work. Also, since the fiber is removed you can get the nutrients of a much larger amount of produce in a much smaller package.

Blending… gives you the fiber and slows down the speed at which your body absorbs the nutrients. From what I’ve read this may be a better option if you have blood sugar issues already.

Joe Cross (of Fat, Sick, & Nearly Dead) on Juicing vs Blending
In either case, you want to limit the amount of fruit and sweet vegetables (carrots/ beets) both to control your blood sugar, and to prevent your juice from being filled with simple sugars instead of good nutrients.

To give you a side by side comparison of what fits in a glass, let’s look at my breakfast:

 

Juice	Smoothie
4-6 stalks of Kale 4-6 stalks of celery w/ greens 2 apples 1 lemon 1/2 large English cucumber thumb of ginger	2-3 stalks Kale with large stalk removed 2 small kiwis 1/2 cup of blueberries 1/2 cup of rice milk – just to get the rest to puree

 

If you have health issues (like most who are reading this) juicing is the far superior way to detox your system and help reset it, again simply because the nutrients are more easily absorbed and because you are giving your system a break from having to digest food (thus it can use that energy to help repair itself).

If you have a blender but not a juice, give blending a try. At the very least you will up your intake of good stuff. If you can go the juicer route, I highly suggest it. I’ll likely continue to do a little of both, starting my day with Green Juice (unless I’m seriously short ingredients again) and using smoothies as an alternate snack.

Related articles across the web

• Juicing Vs Blending
• What About Juicing?
• To Blend or Juice: That Is The Question
• Green Smoothie for Beginners!
• De-bloating, Detoxifying Juice Recipe