Hindsight is a great thing, isn’t it? But it’s not much help at this point in my life.
Hindsight, I should have prepared for the postpartum period as much as I did for the birthing process. I had a wonderful birthing experience, as I talk about here. But as I kiiiiind of touch on here, postpartum hits you on the face-literally, as I see my exhaustion, sleep deprivation, and rapid aging on my face!
Breathe, new parent. Breathe.
I do plan to make a list of things on what to expect once the baby is born. Obviously, one of those things is the lack of time. So for now, and in between pausing to breathe to keep my sanity, kissing my gorgeous 4+-month-old, changing nappies, and pausing to breathe to keep sanity again, I will share with you a new habit I recently developed to care for my beloved skin who never gave me trouble until now. It’s a juice, tasty and nutritious and it takes only a few minutes so you can run back to being a busy bee.
Don’t like celery? No problem!
By now, you’ve probably seen or heard about people having celery juice every morning. Celery is indeed incredible: Besides its anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties, celery also has benefits for skin, liver, digestion, eye and cognitive health. I used to make celery juice before I got pregnant. Then, all of a sudden, I started to hate even the thought of it. Funny (and alienating!) how your body changes suddenly, and you seem to have no say in it! Anyway, I had a healthy diet throughout my pregnancy, except for a few healthy veggies I couldn’t stomach. I was thinking “once the baby is born, I will get back to my dietary habits”. But once the baby was born, not only has my diet changed to much less than ideal, but I still cannot stomach some nutritious vegetables like celery. So I decided to bury the taste and trick myself into benefiting from it somehow.
The other ingredients don’t only hide the celery taste. They are superfoods, too. Blueberries are low in calories but high in nutrients. They reduce DNA Damage, which may help protect against aging and cancer; lemons are great for digestion, weight loss, and skin conditions; dragon fruit, aka pink pitaya, fights the signs of aging. Pink pitaya also aids in treating sunburn, acne, and dry skin. I use a freeze-dried and powdered version, which you can easily find online. Along with blueberries, this gorgeous fruit will act as a natural sweetener in your skin juice. But you can also add a powdered sweetener of choice if you like. Finally, I add a teaspoon or two of Yoursuperfoods “forever beautiful” mix. All their ingredients are certified organic. This particular blend is loaded with Vitamin A, C, E, Magnesium, Calcium and Iron, all of which may help with dull complexion, skin impurities and signs of early aging. (Use this referral link to benefit from a 15% discount on your first order: http://yoursuper.refr.cc/ilginivychan )
Ingredients
1 cup of water
5-6 stalks of celery
1/2 lemon
1 cup of blueberries
2 tsp of dragon fruit powder (pink pitaya)
1 – 2 tsp “forever beautiful” blend (if you don’t want to purchase it, just use a mix of chia seeds and/or acai. Again, for those who would like to purchase this amazing blend, use this referral link for a 15% discount: http://yoursuper.refr.cc/ilginivychan)
Powdered sweetener of choice (optional)
How to make it
I use my Vitamix. I don’t have a juicer, and I am fine with ‘drinking’ (or spooning) the pulp whenever I make a juice. I think it’s a waste otherwise anyway, and I like to think that I get more out of the produce this way! But if you do have a juicer, use that, for sure. Or you can use cheesecloth if you want a smoother -more liquidy- experience, without the pulps.
Pour a cup or two of water (depending on how watery you like your juice) in your juicer/blender. Then add blueberries. Process for 10 seconds. Add the lemon, pink pitaya powder, and the chia seeds. Process for another 10 seconds. Then add the celery and some ice, if you like. Tip for juicing: Always add liquids first, then soft fruits or vegetables, greens, and ice on top. Process for around 20 seconds, or until it looks like a juice you would like to gulp right away!
Perhaps I should do a before/after kind of thing to see how much this juice has helped me! Want to try it yourself? Let me know how it goes, please. Always lovely and fun to hear from you. Much love, everyone!
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