Q:What are your thoughts on juicing?
A:
The greatest benefit of juicing (extracting only the juice from a fruit or vegetable and leaving the pulp behind) is that you can fit a great deal of nutrients into a small amount of volume. A lot of people enjoy juicing and have used it for weight loss. The ONLY reason that this works for weight loss is if you are at a serious caloric deficit. When you are at a caloric deficit, you will lose weight no matter what you are eating. The problem with that is this…you lose weight, but most of it is muscle but not fat. Also, when you put your body into a caloric deficit but are giving it significant carbohydrates (like in juice), as opposed to protein, you are not raising the metabolism. That means that as soon as you stop juicing and go back to eating normally (even healthy), you run the risk of gaining the weight back due to a slowed metabolism.
Pitfalls of juicing
It does not contain any of the pulp of the fruit or vegetable so all of the sugar in the juice is directly absorbed into the bloodstream, spiking your blood sugar. This also causes an insulin spike which leads to fat storage, not fat burning. The body cannot burn fat in the presence of insulin, so you get an almost immediate halting in fat burning when you drink high-sugar juices.
Juices do not keep you full like whole food as they lack the fiber and the chewing sensation you get when you eat.
If you are going to do juices, please do them carefully and in moderation. Do do it properly, juices should be accompanied by a significant portion of protein and should replace a higher calorie meal. You also want to make sure that any juices you drink are relatively early in the day. The body is most insulin sensitive and accustomed to using carbohydrates for energy (instead of storing them) early in the day.
I am not a huge fan of juicing as a long term solution, but I hope the above info gives you enough to make your own informed decision.