Hey Vancouver!
So, it wouldn’t be a proper welcome home without a couple cleanses, right? My arrival home to Vancouver couldn’t have come at a better time, as Krokodile Pear and Culver City Salads are just about to launch their new program (launching today at noon PST) and believe me- this is not your regular cleanse. When Krokodile Pear asked me if I would be interested in trying out their program, I jumped at the opportunity, obviously.
This program, which seems to be the first of it’s kind in Vancouver, consists of 2 cold-pressed juices, 1 nut mylk, 1 green smoothie and 2 salads a day. The idea behind the cleanse is to offer Vancouverites a more substantial program than your regular juice cleanse. Instead of simply drinking 6 juices a day, you have the addition of a smoothie and 2 large salads.
It’s been interesting to observe the evolution of the cold-pressed juice industry, globally. This concept of combining cold-pressed juices with snacks, salads and soups is becoming more popular based on a lot of feedback that sole juices isn’t enough for a lot of people. Simply put, you don’t need to be drinking only juice in order to support your body’s natural cleansing process. There are most definitely a lot of different opinions and theories around cleansing out there. My own approach to cleansing has evolved over the years- going from being slightly opposed to juicing, to fully embracing it and working with juice companies, to also enjoying this new concept of juicing and eating to support your body’s natural state of rest and digest. Although I do still love a good juice feast every now and then, I try my best to not get too wrapped up into the extremism of it. Coming from a background of eating disorders and food restriction, a juice cleanse can sometimes be a slightly slippery slope in terms of the mentality around feeling light and focusing on weight as opposed to overall health and balance.
The motivation behind the development of this program is to offer Vancouverites an alternative to the standard juice cleanse, for beginners and those new to “cleansing” and for people that either didn’t enjoy a juice cleanse or couldn’t’ finish it because of the limited calories/fibre. Also, they have offered a very competitive price (CAD $50/day) to support a more mainstream group.
I’ve been asked by several people whether or not Krokodile Pear is still organic and why they switched from glass bottles to plastic. To be honest, I was also quite curious. When I spoke to Krokodile Pear owner, Nick Lewis, he discussed how he decided to evolve his business model after overwhelming customer feedback on the price of cold-pressed juices in Vancouver. When it comes down to it, I do understand and in part, agree. In my own experience, I have gone from drinking cold-pressed juice every single day (while I was working with cold-pressed juice companies and fortunately getting free juice- a huge benefit) to maybe having 1 a week. This is definitely where the challenge comes with this lifestyle and where a lot of criticism towards the holistic life originates. The average cost of organic cold-pressed juice is around $10-$12+ a bottle in Vancouver, which, when you add it up- can be quite a bit of money. If you would like to read more about Krokodile Pear’s choice to change, head to their page “Why We’re Different”.
When it comes to organic, again, it is a difficult choice to make. On the one hand, I am very much in support of drinking organic juice because of the fast-assimilation of whatever you are consuming- because of the lack of fibre. However, again, having the opportunity to drink juice that may not be 100% organic but is affordable is a great option for someone who cannot afford to pay for a higher cost juice on the regular.
When it comes to topics like this, I sometimes feel torn. There are several different juice companies in Vancouver (and around the world), all of which I love and support in their own ways. I always find it incredibly interesting how controversial and extreme the health and wellness industry can be and you have to be careful about what you say and how you say it. For me, it’s about honesty. Being honest about where you’re at, what you’re doing something and why it is important to you. When it comes to eating and in this case, eating and drinking- it’s amazing to have such wonderful options available to us and in this case, at an affordable price. I appreciate how every juice company I know in Vancouver is in support of the others and come from a point-of-view that there is enough space for all of us. As with any business, each has differential characteristics that set them apart and make them special. And that, I love.
Another benefit of this sort of program is that it makes it more approachable as a long-term wellness solution, as opposed to a short-term cleanse. The truth is, the program bares a lot of similarity to what a usual day looks like for me! When I’m at home, in balance and making my own food- I tend to have a smoothie, 2 salads and a few juices a day.
Here is what the day looks like with the new Krokodile Pear & Culver City Salads program:
Wake Up: Kicking Horse
Mid-Morning: Westwood
Lunchtime: Culver City Quinoa Salad
Afternoon: The Chief
Dinnertime: Culver City Grain Free Salad
G’night: Blackcomb
When speaking of the new program, Krokodile Pear owner Nick says, “We were going to put a green juice instead of Westwood, but the blended juice was easier for newbies, more filling and has more calories and fat from the avocado. We really didn’t want people to feel super hungry so the smoothie/blended juice won out”. I must admit, at first I was slightly upset to not see a beloved green juice in the program, however I also understand the idea of creating a more beginner-friendly cleanse. “We went with the green blended juice instead as it is 90% juice anyway and is less scary for a newbie. We really are positioning this as an intro to cleansing. Plus there’s plenty of green in the salads too”. The Westwood ended up being my favourite!
The best part of this cleanse is that at no point do you actually feel like you are on a cleanse. In fact, I wasn’t even able to finish one of the salads on day 2! The addition of ‘chewing’ makes a big difference as I remember from experience and know from feedback that a lot of the time people miss the act of chewing food during a cleanse. I also loved the variety of whole foods- you are literally consuming all colours of the rainbow.
So that’s it folks. It’s past noon in Vancouver and the cleanse is officially available to order!
If you would like to order this new cleanse program they will only be available for online order as they are not sold in our stores (however they can be either delivered or picked up in store). The reason for this is because they need a longer lead time for Culver City Salads to prepare and deliver the salads for the cleanse. The first pick-up/delivery date is Sunday evening to begin cleansing on Monday! If you are in search of a full-juice feast, Krokodile Pear still offers their juice cleanses which can also order online!
You can find Krokodile Pear on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter & Pinterest.
You can find Culver City Salads on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter & Pinterest.
Happy Cleansing!
