Thursday, November 29, 2012

365 Days of Green Smoothies

For those of you who are wondering about my progress, I decided that since green smoothies were helping I would start a new blog to help everyone see how easy it is to get green smoothies into your daily diet!

Check out my 365 Days of Green Smoothies!

Drink your greens!

VeggiePatti

Wednesday, October 3, 2012

Update

I realized I forgot to update the blog with my results! All of my test results were normal. On the one hand, that's good news. But on the other hand, that means my search continues!

Since the last blog post, I have still had increased problems with digestion and my food choices have become narrower. I've seen naturopaths and other alternative healers who simply weren't able to help me. I've finally found a naturopath and clinical nutritionist who seems like she can help - after all, she has lots of food sensitivities herself so she knows what I'm going through! Right now, it seems like I'm responding to green smoothies and nuts the best - I'm still having issues with any cooked foods.

I will continue to update you on my progress!

Wishing you green thoughts,

VeggiePatti


Sunday, July 29, 2012

Transition Day 5

Today I decided I would try some other cooked food, especially since it was my brother's last day in town and my dad always makes a brunch. My mother made pancakes with buckwheat flour, almond flour, coconut, xanthum gum, and baking soda (I think). They were completely grain and sugar free. (Of course, I did add a little bit of maple syrup on top.) Then my dad made fried potatoes and sauteed mushrooms - all in olive oil. I did not have any adverse effects immediately, but I did notice that cooked food makes me think I'm still hungry even when I know I'm full and also it did make my knuckles hurt. I'm not sure if it's heated oil, cooked food in general, or one of those particular foods; I'll have to do some detective work at a later time.

After brunch, I went kayaking with my brother for a half hour in the local park (I had walked the dogs before brunch). My shoulders didn't hurt as I had expected but my hands were really starting to hurt. Gripping things for long periods of time has always been an issue with my EDS, but I did it!

Later, I went to the health food store and got a kale salad with raw tahini dressing and a piece of raw chocolate hazelnut pie. I also ordered a shot of wheatgrass since I hadn't had any greens. The wheatgrass didn't hurt my stomach like it used to, but boy, that taste has stayed with me ALL day no matter what I do. I don't think I could ever do one of the wheatgrass cleanses - I just couldn't stomach it. (But I guess never say never - I also said I would never do a juice fast and we all know how that turned out!) I was so glad to have the kale salad - that's something I can savor. (This one needed a bit more on the dressing as it was quite dry.) But I know I definitely like the savory flavors. I had the dessert later, and it really wasn't all that appealing to me anymore. I think I might have kicked my sugar habit! I would much rather have the savory!

We had a late dinner - leftovers from breakfast plus salad. After dinner my knuckles were really starting to hurt so I do need to figure out if it's from cooked food in general or from lack of greens today. I had a few cherries later, but the sugar was hitting me so I stopped eating them.

For now, I need to stick with a high greens, high raw diet. I might maybe eat 1 or 2 cooked meals a week, but until I figure out what my system really thrives on, I think that's the way to go. So, I will be going back to my green smoothie/raw diet with juices thrown in. I was only going to juice a few times a week, but I'm going to try to do it everyday, partly because my dog does so much better on the pulp!

For now, this will be the last entry on the juice fast blog. I will update if something significant happens with my diet or medical conditions. And I will also update when I get my test results back!

You can catch me on my regular blog - VeggiePatti: Hot Off the Grill

Thinking green, leafy thoughts,

VeggiePatti

Transition Day 4

I started off day 4 with a smoothie - red butter lettuce, blueberries, half banana, soaked chia seeds, coconut, and alfalfa sprouts. The butter lettuce was very earthy and so were the sprouts. I didn't have a lot of fruit in it so the earthiness overpowered it and it wasn't that great. I probably drank about half the glass. I then took the dogs out for a short walk and I actually jogged with them for a little ways - I haven't done that in a while!

For lunch we went to Cacao Tree Cafe - a great raw foods restaurant for my belated b-day lunch! I have to say I pigged out on raw food! LOL I had a green juice (finally!) with cucumber, celery and greens; a small salad with basil miso dressing (which was awesome!), and I had mock egg salad wrapped in a collard green. I had a raw white chocolate nugget for dessert. The food was so good! I felt satisfied, not full. I didn't have any side effects! And I had a ton of energy afterward!

After lunch my family went to the zoo and we walked around there. When I got home I took the dogs out for a walk again.There was part of a raw dessert left and I was hungry so I had that, but as I was eating it I thought...I'd rather have some kale salad. Who would have ever thought I'd prefer a salad over chocolate! lol

Around dinner time I was hungry so I had the rest of the smoothie. After I fed the dogs I took them for the third walk of the day, which is unheard of. I was still hungry and I had to go to the grocery store anyway, so I got cauliflower and broccoli and decided to try that with some hummus that my parents had at their house. I didn't eat again until around 11 pm, which I know isn't good. The hummus made me tired - not sure if it was from the canola oil or just being cooked food.

During the day, I had so much more energy than I normally have and I physically felt a lot better. I have always liked raw foods, but I have always craved more of the gourmet raw which is heavy on nuts. I love nuts, but now I am more inclined to stay with more greens and have nuts in smaller amounts, such as for dressings. If I can keep up with this way of eating and keep adding more smoothies and juices I really think I'll start to feel better. Still need to figure out the food allergy issue, but one step at a time...

Thinking leafy green thoughts,

VeggiePatti


Saturday, July 28, 2012

Transition Day 3

My day was so busy yesterday I didn't have time to blog - but here's the recap from yesterday.

I woke up so dehydrated my throat was completely parched, my eyes were dry and it hurt when I blinked, and I had cramps in both legs - classic signs of dehydration. I forced myself to try to drink water, which was difficult and not helping, so I grabbed a coconut water and downed that - it helped a little. I slowly kept drinking more water until the symptoms went away.

I had a busy day planned so I had gotten everything ready to make a smoothie the night before - the lettuce was washed, the chia was soaked, etc. I did everything except forgot to wash the blender! The blender was caked in lovely chlorella so it wasn't a simple wash, and since I was running late I just had to run out of the house without eating. (See - this is why you always need to be prepared!)

I had an early wedding to go to so my first stop was the hairdresser. I had planned to go to pick up a raw cake for my belated b-day celebration after getting my hair done. I figured I could get a green smoothie there. However, when I called the place, they forgot to make my cake! So instead I stopped by my local health store on the way home that stocks items from Cacao Tree Cafe and I ended up getting a slice of raw pizza. Because I was running around so much, it took me about 2 hours to finish the one piece of pizza. (Lesson: I really need to have healthy convenience foods to take with me AND I need to learn to stop and enjoy a meal every once in a while!)

Since I wasn't allowed to eat at the reception due to my food allergies, I just went to Whole Foods Market for dinner. I decided to test cooked foods. I wasn't going to test soy yet, but I wasn't thrilled with the choices so that's what I ended up doing. I got some raw kale salad (kale, tomatoes, dried cranberries, pinenuts, lemon, oil, salt), Brussels sprouts (made with olive oil and garlic), mashed potatoes and cauliflower with herbs, and mango curry tofu with cashews - all in small portions. The kale salad and the Brussels sprouts were the most appealing to me - actually I could have just eaten the Brussels sprouts and been fine! The kale salad tasted very vinegary/acidic to me. The mashed potatoes and cauliflower were very dry - I did not finish them all. The tofu is something I had gotten before - previously I could taste the sweet of the mango. Now I could just taste the earthiness of the curry powder. It could have been made differently, but it wasn't great - I did not finish that either. The only thing I even really liked were the Brussels sprouts.

When I was eating the food I didn't have any ill effects - just the usual slight runny nose. Soy used to make my knuckles swell - luckily that did not happen! And no pain in my stomach (even though I forgot my enzymes). But no sooner did I finish eating I got this horrible pain in my ears and my throat! Normally I have been getting this mucus bubble in the back of my throat. This time I realized my Eustachian tubes had both filled with fluid and the middle of my throat was slightly swelling. It did pass after a little while, but I don't know if that means I'm allergic to soy, the canola oil, or something else.

Back at the reception I danced for quite a long time. I haven't had that much high-energy physical activity in a while, but I was fine! It felt good to get out and move.

When I got home, which was around 11:30 pm I fed all of the animals and then did something really stupid - I ate again! I don't know why - I wasn't hungry, I wasn't emotional, I just felt like I really hadn't eaten that much during the day and I should eat something. I see that this habit must be stopped. I finished the raw kale chips and the chicken-less salad. Honestly, I didn't even enjoy them, I was eating to get sustenance that for some reason I thought I needed. (But in all fairness, I did not enjoy the juices either - I was drinking them to get sustenance, too.)

I didn't have any issues until I woke up the next morning. I stepped on the scale and it was 5 pounds heavier! I did NOT eat 5 pounds of food yesterday! And even though I confirmed my bowels were working again (I had to go 3 times in the morning), the scale still did not move. The moral of the story is: I have to watch what I eat, how much I eat, and when I eat, and I still have a long ways to go.

Thinking solid thoughts,

VeggiePatti

Thursday, July 26, 2012

Transition Day 2

Today was a strange day. I started off by drinking the rest of the smoothie I made last night - 1/2 banana, spinach, blueberries, LOTS of chlorella, and licorice root. But I couldn't drink it all - so I saved some for later. I did confirm that my bowels are still working! :)  Hopefully they'll get back to their norm soon.

So even though I couldn't finish the smoothie, I got hungry really quickly afterward. Since I didn't have any negative effects (except for the stupid sinus/mucus issues that I'm still having when I eat), I decided I would eat some solid food for lunch. I wasn't at home so I went to a place by my work that has a berry salad I used to get. The salad is mixed greens, fresh berries, dried cranberry, nuts, sunflower seeds, and house strawberry vinaigrette dressing. The first thing I noticed was that I remembered how to chew...lol Then I realized that things tasted differently. The dressing, which I used to think was sweet, seemed very vinegary to me and I didn't use as much as I used to. I also realized that the parts of the salad I was subconsciously gravitating toward were the parts without dressing! I also noticed that I was chewing longer and eating slower. I wasn't hungry after, but I didn't get a full feeling either, which was good. My nose did start to run a few times, which honestly is better than the stupid mucus bubble at the back of my throat! I also noticed that I felt really parched - my lips and my hands got really dry after I ate. Maybe that's because I'm used to juice!

When I got home later I was hungry again, so I had the rest of the smoothie. For dinner I decided to make my own salad instead of a smoothie but I didn't have a lot of salad ingredients. So I made a small salad with red butter lettuce, alfalfa sprouts, flax seeds, apple cider vinegar, olive oil, and sea salt. Even though I didn't use that much dressing at all, it was still too vinegary. Again, I found it very drying and a little hard to eat. The taste wasn't really that great. And it also didn't satiate my hunger.

So later, I decided I needed to have some decent food in the house so I went to the health food store and got some raw kale chips (which used to be my favorite), a small raw kale salad, and some raw, vegan chickenless salad to save for later. I had about 4 or 5 kale chips and my hunger was finally satiated - for the time being. But these were a different type of kale chip then I used to get and I didn't really like them as much. Later in the night I was hungry again so I ate the small kale salad. It did take me a while to eat it and I needed LOTS of water because again, everything is drying. And afterward, I'm still getting that stupid mucus bubble from some unknown allergy. At this point, I'm not hungry but I'm not full. I could keep eating but that's a really bad habit to get into, so I just have to switch to water. I might make some tea later to see if that helps to rehydrate me. My hands are completely dry, my lips are dry, and my throat feels parched. I'm going to add chia in my smoothie tomorrow to make sure it's not an EFA thing.

So what I learned is that my food allergies have definitely not going away, which is a real bummer. So far, so good getting back on solid food. I am going to keep the smoothies going for a week before I switch back to juices as I think they are just too concentrated for me at this time.

I definitely can tell I have a candida problem, but I can't start the internal parasite cleanse until after my test for H Pylori. I can't start my other supplements again either until then.

Oh I almost forgot - after I ate the salad at home I noticed my stomach got bloated. I didn't have any gas, but my stomach definitely is bloated. I used to have a horrible allergic reaction to grass (after I came back from the jungle), so I'm wondering if my adverse affects to greens are a residual of that. I also found a few more red spots on me - I don't know if it's an allergic reaction or if I got bit by something. I just hope I don't get anymore!

Will update more tomorrow. I'm going to do a test with cooked food!

Thinking solid thoughts,

VeggiePatti

Wednesday, July 25, 2012

Transition Day 1

So today was my first transition day. Since I had to fast for my blood test, I just took the rest of my juice with me. This morning I was anxious and just wanted to get the test done so I could get back home and make a smoothie! Surprisingly the test went well and was pain-free! Normally, because of my EDS, the poke is painful, I can feel it as the blood comes out, and it hurts and sometimes bruises after. She took 7 vials today - I didn't feel the poke going in and it was done super fast! I didn't even feel woozy or slightly sick like I normally do. The only thing that did hurt was the pressure of the bandage, but I took that off. So I started drinking my juice, went to the grocery store, ran some errands, and then when I got back home I forgot about making my smoothie! LOL So it was probably around 3 pm before I made a small smoothie.

Sadly, the smoothie didn't taste very good - just blueberries and spinach - heavier on the spinach. I didn't feel any negative effects, however. I was anticipating I would be running to the bathroom, but I really think the water fast messed up my bowels. I have never had a problem in that department and I really haven't gone since the water fast! So I'm not sure what's going on there. Hopefully it will resolve soon.

So I drank most of the smoothie, but just couldn't get it down. I have found that the amount of food I actually need is substantially less than I thought it was prior to the fast - so that's a good thing. A few hours after drinking the smoothie, my allergies were really starting to kick up. I admit I had the post nasal drip this morning still - carry over from yesterday. So I'm not sure if it's the weather, external allergies, food allergies, a late detox or what.

By about 6 pm my throat was starting to slightly swell. In the past, mushroom broth has helped with these throat issues. I didn't have any on hand but my mother had some homemade Dr. Oz broth (with mushrooms and cabbage and more) and since her house is closer than the store I went over there to drink some. I really had to think twice about putting the broth in the microwave because those are not supposed to be good for you, but I just needed something fast. (FYI - I do use a microwave at home, but I have been debating about getting rid of it.) Let me tell you - fiber hitting my system after 25 days had no effect on me. But hot liquid hitting my system - let's just say my digestive tract was not happy and it was an uncomfortable feeling. It wasn't quite pain, but it was not a pleasant feeling. But it passed after about 15 minutes. The throat swelling seems to have subsided, but the post nasal drip is even worse!

I will be making another smoothie tonight - this time I'll be adding half a banana and maybe a bit of licorice root. Hopefully that one will taste better.

I'll keep you informed!

Thinking solid thoughts,

VeggiePatti

Tuesday, July 24, 2012

Juice Fast Day 25

Today is the last day of my juice fast! I could probably keep going, but I really feel it's time to stop. My total weight loss has been 20 pounds - let's hope it doesn't come right back on! I have a few red spots popping out on me - on my thumb, my toe, my chest - so I'm not sure if the autoimmune issues have completely gone away like I was hoping. And after the water fast I did break out all over my back. So I think it is time to stop and see how I react to regular food again! Also, my throat is starting to react funny again to the green juice, so I definitely think my body is a little in overload. Plus I'm starting to get some sinus issues as well. 

One note: I have had horrible reactions to mosquito bites since I came back from the rainforest in 1996 - so bad that once half of my back swelled up from one bite and the bites usually stay on me for months (still itching!). Over time the allergy has died down. Last night I was bit by a mosquito and I had no reaction (except for the initial biting sensation and a slight itch). No bump, no prolonged itching - nada! I've never been so excited to have been bitten by a mosquito! LOL I just had to share...

Although my mood has been like a roller coaster on this juice fast, today I was in a good mood and felt like I could take on the world! If I would have had this feeling the whole time I probably wouldn't have stopped! But maybe it's also the transition from the horrible effects of the water fast to finally having sustenance and energy. Speaking of the water fast, it really messed up my bowels, so I'm thinking I'll need to stay close to a toilet when that first green smoothie goes in!

So here's my transition plan. Tomorrow morning I'm going in to get some bloodwork to see if the juicing has had any effect on me internally, particularly on my immune function. I have to fast for the bloodwork so I won't be drinking green smoothies before. Since I want to be at home to drink my first green smoothie, I've decided to take my remaining juice and some coconut water to have after the blood draw. Then, when I get home, I will make the smoothie.

The first green smoothie will be super basic - just spinach, water, and blueberries. I want to see the reaction I have to the fiber first. Then I'll slowly add in herbs, a banana (like normal), and protein powder. I will make the smoothies in smaller batches (which I normally don't do) so I can add things one at a time and see if I have any effect.

I will probably be on smoothies 1 or 2 days. If I'm feeling OK on the second day, I might try to eat a salad. I'll just have to see how it goes. I'm also planning on eventually adding back in legumes and soy to see if I have a reaction to those items, but I will do it one at a time. I will then go back to a raw foods and green smoothie diet with a green juice thrown in a few days a week. Eventually I might try adding grains back in, but not for a while.

So that's the plan. I will keep updating the blog throughout the transition period.

Thinking juicy thoughts (for the last time),

VeggiePatti

Monday, July 23, 2012

Juice Fast Day 24

Coming off a water fast is not easy! I woke up this morning feeling pretty good. I went to grab the coconut juice first thing and the new bottle I opened was rancid - eww! So I tried another bottle and that one was OK, but I really couldn't drink much.

I had put the frozen juice in the fridge at 6 pm last night but sadly it was still frozen. So I started to make a new juice. Trying to juice was so taxing! I had to sit down several times. I had no energy and I kept getting light headed and feeling sick. Let me tell you, when your bowels start to wake back up it is NOT a pleasant feeling! My stomach hurts, I'm hungry, I have all this excess gas that I'm burping out, and I'm getting the chills/shakes. Also, I feel like I'm going to vomit. The chills and shakes are almost exactly the same as when I get exposed to a bacteria and it just needs to come out! I did have to rush to the bathroom in the middle of juicing because I thought I was going to have diarrhea, but only one small, hard stool came out. (My first bowel movement in 2 days!) I did feel a little better but I get the feeling there will be more to come later. I just wish I could stop burping! Oh, and my nose keeps running!

The one thing about the water fast is it definitely does not control pain. I have this area on the back of my leg that's painful - right where it would hit a chair when you sit. There are no bumps, no marks, just pain. During the juice fast it went away. It started hurting last night and today the pain was back with a vengeance! I also found that I was VERY irritable on the water fast. Needless to say, sadly the puppy spent a lot of time in his crate yesterday because I just couldn't handle him.

I made my juice with 6 regular cucumbers, 2 stalks celery, 1 bunch kale, 1 bunch amaranth greens (which are actually red), 1 package mint, 1 bunch parsley, and 1 6 oz package of blueberries. You really need more blueberries for the flavor to come out! And amaranth greens do not juice very well! They get stuck and clogged in the juicer. Anyway, the juice really does not taste good but I'm drinking it anyway. It made enough to last through tomorrow. I might go out to the store and get some stevia (which is allowed because it's not sugar) to sweeten up these juices so I can get through the next two days. I've never had stevia before so hopefully it's OK.

I'll update more late if something drastic happens. I can't wait to get to smoothies, but I see why I can't jump right back in! I'd probably through them all back up!

Thinking juicy thoughts,

VeggiePatti

Sunday, July 22, 2012

Water Fast Day 2

So I woke up this morning feeling dehydrated and groggy and just tired. But I guess that's to expect on a water fast. And my hips are killing me something fierce since there are no greens to help with the pain. My chiropractor also warned I could be dehydrated so the rule for today is drink, drink, drink! I'm going to try to keep busy, too.

I forgot to mention that on the 21 day juice fast I lost 18 pounds - not bad! (I just hope it stays off!) I haven't dropped a pant size yet (which makes me wonder where the weight is coming from), but my clothes are fitting a little looser. On the water fast I did drop a pound so the weight is still going (although I didn't have a bowel movement yesterday sadly, but I guess that's to be expected with nothing coming in!)

I have to remember to unfreeze my juice this evening so I have it for tomorrow. And I want to wash all of my greens and have those ready. My plan is to make one more big vat of juice which should last me through Tuesday. That will give me a 25 day juice fast (with 2 days of water fasting thrown in there). Then I'll switch the smoothies for 2 days. Then on Friday I'll start with a salad (oh a kale salad sounds so great!) and hopefully if I can stomach it raw food restaurant on Saturday and I'll add some nuts back in!

I'll update if anything weird happens today!

Thinking juicy thoughts,

VeggiePatti

UPDATE:

I do not like water fasting! I don't feel good, I'm weak, my vision is all wonky, and I have no energy! I'm just telling myself I have 4 more hours to go! If I'm still awake at midnight (when I started 2 days ago) I will definitely drink coconut water for electrolytes! Although I'm hoping I'm sleeping. I definitely don't think water fasting is for me!

Saturday, July 21, 2012

Water Fast Day 1

So I started my water fast today. I wasn't hungry but I know I wasn't drinking enough. I had a bunch of things planned for today but I decided not to do them to conserve energy. Good thing I did - I think I've hit the wall! The effects of not drinking enough and dehydration are starting to kick in. I'm getting some cramping in my extremities and my mouth feels like it's stuffed with cotton! I survived day 1. I'll see if I can survive day 2! Stay tuned!

Thinking juicy thoughts,

VeggiePatti

Friday, July 20, 2012

Juice Fast Day 21

21 days! I never thought I could do a 21 day juice fast but here it is!

I spoke to the doc last night and she suggested I actually do a water fast of all things and get a couple of tests. Although I could keep doing the juice fast, my food sensitivities are becoming worse as everything I'm intaking is in concentrated form, so I feel it's time to stop.

I've decided to ATTEMPT a water fast over the weekend. I have too much going on to do a long water fast, but I will try for 2 days. Then it will be 2 more days of juices, 2 days of smoothies, and then finally some raw food!

I'll keep posting through the fast and the transition back to food in case anyone wants to do a fast and wants to see a day by day what it's like.

Thinking juicy thoughts,

VeggiePatti

Thursday, July 19, 2012

Juice Fast Day 20

Today didn't start out too bad. I didn't get a chance to make the juice last night because I was finishing up all the teleseminar calls from the juice cleanse program. I have to say I really liked Dr. Etti! She has some wonderful messages for empowerment, putting yourself first, and loving yourself. If anyone is struggling with these issues, you should definitely check her out!

I didn't end up throwing out the juice from yesterday - thank goodness! It gave me something to drink this morning before heading out to a client site. I took 2 bottles of coconut water and regular water to tide me over until I could get home to make more juice.

By the time I got home (late again), I was hungry, but I had to get the dogs out first before I could do anything. I actually felt like I had a lot of energy! So I tried to jog with the dogs. Big mistake! Within the first 2 steps it felt like my heart was in my throat and my lungs were swollen. I stopped and my heart was not beating any faster than normal but my chest felt really tight and I got super tired. I'm thinking it has more to do with the humidity and my EDS than anything else. So much for that plan!

When I got back I made a juice with 4 cucumbers, 1 bunch kale, 1 bunch celery, 1 bunch parsley, 1 package mint,1 package alfalfa sprouts, and 1 piece of ginger. It tasted horrible! I thought the mint would help but I can't even taste it. I definitely don't expect to juice sprouts again (except sunflower sprouts - those actually taste good)!

My EDS was acting up again while juicing. My back has been hurting from standing up so much so I put down an anti-fatigue mat. The problem is it raises you up 1-2 inches so then I have to look down and it puts a strain on my neck. Damn you EDS! No matter what I do it's not comfortable and it's causing pain. And of course when I'm in pain, my mood worsens. It took so much effort to make the juice and I was in pain after that I didn't even want to drink it (that coupled with the fact that it tastes bad). So I set it aside for later - maybe I'll add some coconut water and see if that helps.

I tried to stretch out my back but the puppy is being a pain in the ass tonight and I've pretty much had it with him. He's already seen the inside of his cage three times tonight!

I think my last day of the fast may be tomorrow. 21 days is respectable and I just get the feeling I've gotten all out of the juice fast that I can. As I mentioned before, I think I do better on green smoothies and raw food. But, I have my appointment with Dr. Ritamarie tonight and I will see what she says! If she thinks I should keep detoxing for a while more, so be it. But I just get the feeling it's time for me to start rebuilding.

I had hoped the juice fast would fix alot of my autoimmune and food allergy issues. I haven't had any autoimmune issues during the fast, but only time will tell (and my bloodwork!). And since I still had some food allergy issues during the fast, I don't think those are fixed. I may have to make juicing and smoothies part of my daily routine. I'm hoping that will help control the pain from my EDS. But as I said, I'll wait and see what she says and report back!

Until then, thinking juicy thoughts,

VeggiePatti


Wednesday, July 18, 2012

Juice Fast Day 19

19 days - I can't believe it! In case you're wondering, no...I don't feel hungry and I don't even miss food anymore. I'm starting to be able to drink more and my energy level is actually pretty good. I feel my body saying that the juice fast is coming to a close, however. I'm not sure if I'll just do 21 days, or 25, or still the whole 30 - I have to see when my body has decided it's gotten everything it can out of the juice fast for now. I'm a little scared about going back on regular food, but hopefully I can transition slowly. I've decided my first "food" will be chlorella tabs...yum! And then I'll transition to green smoothies and then salads. I'm a little nervous about the green smoothies, too, because mine generally have quite a bit of fruit - otherwise I don't think they taste good. But maybe my taste buds have changed! I also think I need to do another candida cleanse, which sucks because I love nutritional yeast! (Although I've heard both sides whether or not nutritional yeast actually affects candida growth.)

So today I attempted to finish the not-so-great juice from yesterday. There was a lot of it! I was sad to see that what I hoped was the last glass was not. But while I was drinking it, I missed the computer desk and it spilled all over the floor, the chair, and the computer! Luckily no damage was done! But maybe that's my sign I should dump the rest of it out! :)

I am going to listen to the last call from the program tonight and then make more juice for tomorrow. I'm going into a client site so I need to take my juice with me! And I can't wait until I talk with the doc tomorrow to see what she has to say!

Thinking juicy thoughts,

VeggiePatti

Tuesday, July 17, 2012

Juice Fast Day 18

Day 18 - I can't believe I've gone this many days without eating! Today wasn't a bad day - it was actually pretty decent.

I started off the morning finishing my green juice that I had made on Sunday. My juice is fine for 2 days but on the 3rd day it gets a little wonky, so I have to try to finish everything in 2. For anyone wondering, yes, fresh juice is best. And some people juice freshly every time they go to drink it. For me, that's not practical. There is no way I'm going to wash my juicer 3 to 4 times a day! Once is enough, thank you. So I choose to juice everything at once for that day. Hey - it's better than no juice at all!

I got really hungry around 2 pm and I needed to make my next batch of juice. It took forever! Over an hour. I really need to start cleaning everything in advance. I used the lemon/salt trick to soak my greens while I was preparing the cukes, but I still washed them more because I wasn't convinced it got them clean! So my juice today was 1 bunch kale, 1 bunch cilantro, 5 cucumbers, 2 stalks celery, and 1 ginger. One tip: Whatever you juice last usually doesn't get the full flavor! I always forget that and add ginger last and then I can't really taste it; I have to remember to throw it in the middle. So I tried the juice and it tasted like dirt. So I decided to try a kiwi - I know it has the acid but I was thinking it was low sugar. One kiwi didn't make a difference; so I juiced another. Not much juice came out sadly and it still tasted like dirt. So I decided to try a half a lime. Not much juice came out so I juiced the other half. Once I added that it still tasted like dirt, just a bit weaker. I wasn't about to add anything else so I figured I'd just drink it anyway. The lime is still too acidic for me. It's not burning per se but my throat is very warm and I can feel this kind of tingling all the way from the back of my throat down to the top of my stomach. It's not exactly a pleasant feeling.

I also now know that although I do like the taste of basil and cilantro in other dishes, I do NOT like them juiced. I won't be juicing them again. 

Considering it was over 100 degrees today I decided to stay inside. I was supposed to go to a client site, but my car doesn't do well in the heat so I figured I'd just work from home. Sadly, that hasn't happened yet - although there is still hope for tonight!

Today was actually a productive day, though. I was able to finish up a few odds and ends and I finally got to move forward with a project that's been 4 years in the making! Woo hoo! I also got an appointment on Thursday with the doctor for the program so I can't wait for that - I'm hoping she can help me!

Also, my pants are definitely fitting looser so that's a good sign, too. And I really didn't have any energy lags today, so there's progress!

Well I'm off to finish a few more tasks while I'm on a roll!

Thinking juicy thoughts,

VeggiePatti

Monday, July 16, 2012

Juice Fast Day 17

Day 17 is going OK. Nothing special to report really. I did have a little emotional swing for a while - not sure why - but I think it's over.

I'm still working on the juice I made yesterday. I finally had to strain it because it was so lumpy from the blueberry fiasco, so hopefully this last glass goes down better. I went to the store and bought more stuff to keep juicing. I contacted the doctor from the juice program and am just waiting to hear back. So for now, I'll just keep going.

After this many days it's not that difficult really, I'm just concerned that my issues really aren't going to be resolved. And I'm also a little scared at this point what will happen when I go back to solid food. I did read that you should do 1 day of smoothies for each week you are on the juice fast, so I will definitely try that to transition back in. Although I'm a little bit nervous about the fruit because I haven't been able to juice it. I think I also might do chlorella tablets as well because I don't think there will be a problem digesting those. After that, I will be sticking to a raw food diet for a while to see if that helps improve things. Even though I've done raw before, maybe I just need to combine everything -juicing, smoothies, and raw food to see if that works. Something has to, right?

Thinking juicy thoughts,

VeggiePatti

Sunday, July 15, 2012

Juice Fast Day 16

So day 16 and I'm just getting tired of the whole juicing thing. It's not that I can't do it...I could probably keep juicing as long as my body allowed me to, I'm just tired of it. I'm still waiting to hear back from the program I signed up for and will look into consulting with the doctor running the program privately.

The last two nights I've been so tired that I wasn't able to make my juice the night before. I compromised and got all the produce clean that I would be using. It worked out pretty well because it did cut the time in half at least. Now that the festival is over I'm going to try to clean all the produce when I get home from the store so it's more readily available.

Today I had to make due with what I had so I juiced 6 cucumbers, 1 stalk celery, 3/4 bunch of swiss chard, 1 bunch kale, and 2 small packages of blueberries. I really don't like swiss chard - it's just too frothy and doesn't taste that good. Even my dogs hate it and they love greens! Also, the blueberries are still not juicing like they were before. They become very sludgy and big chunks of mushed blueberry paste come out. I don't want to drink it because it's fiber but when you take it all out there go your blueberries! I wonder if my juicer just doesn't like being used so much! I even tried to juice them slower as suggested. Maybe I'll contact the company and find out their recommendation.

So the juice just wasn't appealing. It didn't taste bad, but the huge chunks of blueberries and the chard just turned me off. I didn't even drink a whole glass of juice all day! I probably drank about 3/4 of a cup plus a lot of water and coconut water. It was also over 90 today and the thought of any food - even in the form of juice - just wasn't appealing to me. Surprisingly I'm not even hungry! We shall see how those juices seem tomorrow!

Tomorrow I will try to schedule an appointment with the program doctor and see if she thinks a juice fast is right for me or if I should go back to smoothies.

Thinking juicy thoughts,

VeggiePatti

Saturday, July 14, 2012

Juice Fast Day 15

The weather was so much nicer today than it was supposed to be! I didn't have to down all of the fluid I did yesterday to stay hydrated. Everything is still going OK. No real set backs except my trigger points (certain family members) were saying things that got me really irritated. Granted - I would have been just as irritated whether or not I was drinking the juice, so I guess some things don't change!

Anyway, I'm still waiting to hear back from the support staff of the program about the issues I've been having. I might just set up an appointment with the doctor herself.

One more very long day and the event is over! And I survived while on a juice fast! (Although at one point today I did have to ask someone else to get me my juice because I literally thought I was going to fall over, but once I started drinking it was back to normal!)

Thinking juicy thoughts,

VeggiePatti

Friday, July 13, 2012

Juice Fast Day 14

Well I survived today in the heat! I just kept telling myself I was in a sauna and I was detoxing!

I drank more green juice than I have so far - 3 huge glasses, coconut water, and of course regular water. Kept me hydrated throughout the day! Now I have to make another batch of juice for tonight and do it all over again!

Nothing else to report.

Thinking juicy thoughts,

VeggiePatti

Thursday, July 12, 2012

Juice Fast Day 13

So day 13 and I'm back on track. Had a few minor setbacks but overall it was relatively good.

I started off by making a juice with Choggia beets (the whole bunch with leaves), 2 mini bunches of bok choy, and ginger. I thought the beets would be sweet. It tasted like dirt. So I added a kiwi. It did not help. So I added a pear. It tasted very sweet...with a hint of dirt and a little spicy. I managed to drink it down (thank goodness it was only one glass!) but boy did it have nasty side effects! If my colon wasn't 't already cleaned out by the juice fast so far it has to be after today! I wonder if that means I'm sugar sensitive...

I started listening to the juice cleanse program that I have joined. While I can't share all of the info since it's proprietary, I can share a few little hints here and there! The first one is to wash your produce in water with some lemon juice and salt (1/2 a lemon and a tsp of sea salt from http://drbenkim.com/articles-pesticides.html). It forms a mildly acidic solution that removes pesticides, residues, grime, etc. Just soak for 5 minutes, rinse, and dry thoroughly before storing. I'm going to have to try that!

I also learned that by going on a juice fast too long you can deplete yourself of essential fatty acids, so you either have to supplement or break the fast. Even though I originally wanted to do 30 days, I'm not sure if I should as I have been seeing some unwanted effects like dry eyes, burning of throat when drinking the greens, crankiness, not wanting to drink at all despite hunger, etc. I'm hoping to consult with the doctor running the program and then decide what's best for me. I've been averaging a pound a day weight loss but my measurements are still the same - so hopefully it's real fat loss and not something else entirely.
 
This weekend will be a real test. I'm working a booth at a festival for my nonprofit all weekend: two 14+ hour days and one 11+ hour day - in the high heat (upper 80s) and humidity. I don't do well with either in general. I'm incredibly light sensitive and in heat and humidity my joints tend to swell and so does my entire chest wall causing costochondritis. I hope this juicing helps! I was setting up this evening and was sweating bullets and had a hard time finding the energy to work. I'll be taking my juice (which I'll make in advance of course) and lots of coconut water to make it through the day. Here's hoping it goes well!

This evening I made my juice with cucumbers, celery, and spinach - I made enough to get me through tomorrow as well. It's weird because I had actually been wanting to taste the refreshing cucumber juice but when I drank it, it just wasn't appealing. Can't win em all!

Thinking juicy thoughts,

VeggiePatti

Wednesday, July 11, 2012

Juice Fast Day 12

Today was sooo much better than yesterday! I woke up and I felt pretty good. I had one glass of the green mess from yesterday and I drank that this morning - had no problem getting it down!

I had a busy day and I though I would be back mid-afternoon to juice again but I also took coconut water with me to have in between. Even though I didn't make it back until after 6, I still wasn't hungry, but I knew it was time to juice.

I had borrowed the Jack LaLanne juicer from my parents and I washed it up last night so it was ready to go. Since I wanted something fast I decided to try it out. I put in 2 small apples, 2 medium zucchini, and 2 oversized handfuls of spinach. The juicer does work a lot faster, less prep, and less parts to dismantle to clean. And I have to admit it does juice fruits better. However, it doesn't juice greens that well. That being said, I really think having 2 juicers is the secret to continue on with juicing past the fast. I will probably order a better centrifugal juicer at a later date.

Now I don't normally buy zucchini because I have a real problem digesting it raw - it really makes my stomach hurt. I thought the juice would be better - no such luck! After drinking the juice my stomach hurt and didn't resolve for at least a few hours. No more zucchini for me!

This evening, I was going to have a raspberry/parsley blend. But again, I didn't use the raspberries in time - they were all moldy so I had to throw them out. I think raspberries must have a shelf/fridge life of 2 days! So I used blackberries instead. The JL juicer did a much better job of juicing the blackberries - no sludge! But parsley didn't stand a chance - it was spit out whole! So I had to use my other juicer to juice the parsley. I just don't think parsley juices especially well; it came out but was very frothy and had some fiber in it. I almost felt like I should strain it, but there was no way I was going to use 2 juicers AND a strainer to make a simple juice which in the end turned out to be very acidic (I had to dilute it with water).

So ends day 12. I don't really think I'm drinking enough, according to the guidelines of the juice cleanse program, but I don't know how I can make or drink anymore!

Thinking juicy thoughts,

VeggiePatti

Tuesday, July 10, 2012

Juice Fast Day 11

Today sucked. Today was officially the worst day on the juice fast. I was too tired to make the juice last night, so I figured I'd just wake up early and do it. Wrong - missed my alarm - again! (This fast has me very tired!) I also realize that I don't have my normal produce, I'm hungry as hell, and I just plain old don't feel good today.

I made what I call the kitchen sink juice - what I had left over: 2 cucumbers, half a stalk of celery, 1 summer squash, bunch of kale, 1 apple, 1 kiwi, and 1 nectarine (plus ginger). The green juice just does not taste good to me anymore. It's too bitter, but yet I can taste the sweet from the fruit mixed in and that part's too sweet. I drank down a glass but it was a long time before I could choke down the whole thing. By this afternoon I was starving and had a coconut water, which didn't really help. Also concerned because I haven't had a bowel movement all day - I don't want my intestines to stop doing their job!

So I managed to make it to the store - bought some new produce. Also decided that I absolutely need another juicer. This juicer just gets too clogged when you try to do something other than greens so you are wasting a lot of expensive produce and very little juice comes out. I think I'll stick to this juicer for the base green juice and the centrifugal juicer for the fruit juices which I can mix in as needed.

I also need to go over the materials from the juice cleanse program to see if I can glean any insight from them.

It's tough because when I set a goal for myself I like to achieve it. I had decided that I would do this for 30 days or when my body tells me I'm done. My mind isn't foggy, but I've been very tired and extremely emotional on the juice fast (as I mentioned a long time ago when I started juicing - green juice makes me cranky!) I have seen some healing in my body going on and physically even though it doesn't look it yet I'm feeling more like the old me in my body when I'm juicing. So for now I'm going to stick it out, at least through the juice cleanse. I don't know if I'll make it to 30 days or not. If my body tells me to stop, then I'll have to stop.

If anyone has any words of advice, I'm all ears!

Thinking juicy thoughts,

VeggiePatti

Monday, July 9, 2012

Juice Fast Day 10

I made it to day 10! Woo hoo! Considering that even a month ago I couldn't make it through one day of juicing I have to say I'm impressed with myself!

I'm not stopping - I'm going to continue. I'm hoping to be able to do 30 days. I have seen some progress. My chronic pain has gone way down. The hematoma that's been on my leg since an October injury that refused to go away completely is finally gone! My energy isn't where I'd like it to be, but I suppose that's expected since I don't drink a ton of juice. I've also lost 9 pounds - I bet by tomorrow morning it will be 10! That's another reason I don't want to stop. I feel if I stop now then the weight could easily come back on. So I want to make sure more of the weight is shed before I stop the juicing.

I do have to say that today I was hungry and I definitely missed food. I may have been hungry because I didn't drink much yesterday and not much today either. I'm trying to drink more but it makes my stomach uncomfortable, which is weird, because I'm still hungry. But I suppose it will even out. I do have to say that there is no way you can get the same flavors from juicing as you can from eating and that's what I miss - the different flavors!

I've also noticed that I'm smelling weird food smells - things I haven't had in years and don't really have a desire to have. I don't know if it's a brain thing or maybe some old stuff being detoxed out of my system - who knows!

I also realize that I'm not eating enough greens. My friend who runs a juice detox told me the base juice was cucumbers, celery, and greens and no fruit except the occasional apple. Oh - and ginger. I've been doing the cucumber and celery base, but I haven't really added the greens like I should. So I'm going to up the greens. I also think I might juice fruits separately and then if needed I can add them to the base. That might help with the fruit overload unexpectedly going on in my fridge...lol

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Today I just finished the rest of the green juice I made last night. I need to make juice tonight so I have it ready for tomorrow. And then I need to buy more produce tomorrow! Boy do you go through that quickly!

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Today was also the first official day of prepping for the juice cleanse program I'll be joining. I didn't realize that juice fast and juice cleanse are actually two different terms - I have used them interchangeably as many people do. Apparently a juice cleanse involves drinking more than in a juice fast. In a cleanse you consume the same amount of calories as you normally would, just in the form of juice. In a fast, you are consuming half of your normal calories. I guess what I'm doing is somewhere in between. I drink when I am hungry, but if I drink too much my stomach hurts and then my throat starts to hurt so I suspect I have some acid reflux going on (which is very odd because I don't have that normally). I try to keep the water intake as high as possible to help. Now that I'll be starting the cleanse I have experts who can answer my questions!

I'll update more tomorrow,

Wishing you juicy thoughts,

VeggiePatti

Sunday, July 8, 2012

Juice Fast Day 9

So just an update from yesterday - I've discovered I can't juice pineapple anymore as it instantly gives me little canker sores - ouch! I also think I have to juice berries just a few at a time because the blueberries formed a sludge when in the past they've juiced up quite nicely. So yesterday drinking juice while everyone was eating dinner was easier than I thought. There were lots of foods I could have eaten, but I wasn't really tempted. I survived yesterday just fine and when I woke up I had lost a few more pounds, so yay for that!

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Today was a really crazy day. I didn't prepare the juice last night as planned since I got back really late making it much more difficult this morning. I didn't get a chance to make the juice for a while. I wanted something faster so I did one glass of cantaloupe, celery, and ginger. It did not taste good! I also discovered that melons are way too sweet for me at this point. I'd prefer to just stick with greens but now I have all this fruit and I really don't want anything to go to waste. Maybe I'll give it away, maybe I'll use it...we'll just have to wait and see how it goes and what I can tolerate.  My taste buds are definitely changing!

I had a very emotional and stressful day and didn't get around to going to the grocery store to buy more cucumbers until the evening so I didn't even get a chance to finish juicing until after 11 pm. (I had a coconut water in the middle of the day since I didn't have any juice.) I had a few sips because I was hungry but then just couldn't drink anymore. I made cucumber, celery, and chard. I don't think I'll be juicing chard anymore. I remember it was also difficult to put in smoothies. It's super frothy and separates way too quickly. Now I just have to get through the big vat I made! If it's too difficult, this is maybe where I'll add an apple or something.



I've also noticed that I've had a few break outs on my face - not sure if that's related to the sugar in the fruit or a detoxing effect. My mood hasn't been the best either, but I also have a lot of other stressors in my life at the moment so I'm not sure what to attribute it to.

In case anyone is wondering about bowel movements, as this is what I always wondered about before starting a juice fast, yes, you still have bowel movements, albeit much smaller and less often. Everyone is different so I think it also depends on your previous diet. Some people use enemas; I am not interested in going that route. So as long as there's something coming out, I figure it's all good!

I have heard from people that it's hard to get off of the fast because it's a sudden rush of fiber. But I will cross that bridge when I come to that!

Wishing you juicy thoughts,

VeggiePatti

Juice Fast Day 8

Finally - I think the weight loss plateau has been broken. The scale finally moved in the right direction! lol

I'm feeling pretty good today. The energy is not bad; less than usual, but that could also be do to the extreme heat we've been under for days.

I've been drinking the green juice from yesterday and just finished it off. My father just brought me over a huge supply of organic fruit on his b-day no less. We'll be meeting at his house for dinner and I'll be making juice and drinking it over there, so we'll see how it goes being on a juice fast while other people are eating! Haven't run into that scenario since day 1!

I'm not sure what I'll blend up. I want to blend something that others might want to try if they are so inclined, so it has to be something that is not only palatable to the non-juicer palate but also something that will make a lot. I'm thinking perhaps pineapple and blueberry with spinach and ginger. We shall see!

Wishing you peas and good health,

VeggiePatti

Juice Fast Day 7

Today was a very busy day! I made my usually blend - 6 cucumbers, only 1 stalk of celery this time because it's been so juicy, ginger, and the remaining kale from the other day. That's what's I've been drinking all day - 3 glasses of that and then some coconut water. And of course plenty of regular water!

Not much else to report!

Wishing you peas and good health,

VeggiePatti

Juice Fast Day 6

So it's day 6...another day, another set of challenges...but no one said this would be easy!

So the hunger hasn't really been an issue (knock on wood)...it's the logistics of the whole thing!

I saved a glass of the green juice from yesterday to have this morning while I was making the rest of the juice for today. Unfortunately, the power went out briefly last night, I missed my alarm, and needless to say this morning I was in a time crunch. Luckily I had the juice for this morning, but I still needed something for the rest of the day! Fresh juice isn't something you can just go out and buy where I was going to be so I had to make it. So instead of making all of the juice for the day, I decided I would just make a lunch juice and make the rest later.

I had seen a recipe for apple lemonade, so I did a take on that. I remembered from juicing previously that lemons and limes go along way, so I used 1 lemon, 1 1/2 apples, 3/4 a bunch of kale, and ginger. It was palatable, but too lemony. I didn't have time to fix it so off I went. I drank the juice, but I don't think high citrus items sit well with me. The lemon didn't feel too great in my stomach but it really burned my throat!

When I came home, I was going to make the big vat of juice, but I still had these tomatoes (I know, more acid) that had been haunting me. I like tomatoes, tomato sauce, tomato soup, etc, but I've never liked tomato juice. But I figured I would try a tomato basil juice. The basil wasn't juicing very well so I ended up using a lot without realizing that a little basil goes a long way! I also threw in a little clove of garlic at the end, but I think my juicer was partially clogged so I didn't really taste it. I was scared making the juice and when I tasted it I knew why! I'm glad it only made one glass! I hope I can choke it down. If not, well maybe it will be fertilizer for my flower beds..lol

So tonight I will be making the big vat of juice that should take me through tomorrow and I have to hit the grocery store since I wasn't able to do that today.

And my weight is still stable, sigh... Only I could go on a juice fast and not lose weight..lol  Hopefully, everything will kick in and it will start to fly off.

Wishing you peas and good health,

VeggiePatti

Juice Fast Day 5

So I made it through day 4 without any problems and was smart enough to make the big vat of green juice and have one in the evening and save the rest for today so I wasn't scrambling to make something to drink this morning!

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I have come across a few things that annoy me on this juice fast. But first, the reason I am doing this juice fast is two-fold: to be healthier and to shed excess weight. I have some genetic disorders and autoimmune issues that cause pain, digestive issues, fatigue, and a whole lot of other symptoms. It also has made losing weight an extremely difficult challenge, despite the fact that I'm a gluten-free, grain-free vegan who trys to eat at least 50% raw and goes on all-raw diets for 30 days at a time. And I do green smoothies. And I juice. So since both conventional and holistic medicine have not been able to help me, I'm on a journey to try to heal myself as many others have done before me with this type of juice cleanse.

That being said, I'm really tired of my family trying to sabotage me! Now, some family members support me and cheer me on; some don't understand, express their worry, and let me go about my business; but a select few family members deliberately try to sabotage me no matter how I eat! I suspect they don't believe I should be a vegetarian, let alone a vegan. And going on a juice fast and not eating food for days at a time goes beyond comprehension as something healthy to do. (Despite the fact that this person seriously considered going on an all-liquid, non-natural cleanse because the Western doctor recommended it.) It annoys me that when I say this is what I'm doing and here's why, this person goes and makes stuff for me that I choose not to eat at the moment and then asks me to come eat it! Supposedly it's done out of love, but where's the support? Sadly, this is common among vegetarians, vegans, and raw foodists and their family members.

The second thing that's annoying me is that I bought this "state-of-the-art" juicer and it definitely has downfalls! As I mentioned previously, the prep takes forever because you have to cut all the food in small portions. It does wonderful for greens and hard vegetables and fruits, but doesn't do so well with soft fruits. While I was juicing today I had to stop, disassemble, and clear out the machine on many occasions just to get through the juicing session. It's extremely annoying.

The third thing that's annoying is the expense of juicing! Today I decided to make a red, white, and blue juice in honor of 4th of July. I used blueberries, raspberries, jicama, and rosemary to make sure I got some greens in. The cost for this one-serving juice drink was $8. If you go out to a restaurant, that is what you'd pay, but that's a pretty big expense for one meal when you add it up! And if you screw it up and it doesn't taste good, you can either add more to it or just drink it down, because it's too expensive to throw out.



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So enough about the negative and onto the positive! My taste buds have definitely changed. I was getting hungry on just the green juice so I decided to do a quick watermelon juice (with the rind) to shake things up. It was too sweet! I used to be able to eat almost a quarter watermelon as a meal before with no issues! So I ended up adding spinach to tone it down, although it was still a little too sweet.

I am a little disappointed that the weight loss has plateaued for now - hopefully there will be a breakthrough soon!

So on the menu for today:

Green juice - cucumber, celery, ginger
Watermelon cooler - watermelon with rind, spinach, ginger
Red, white, & blue juice - blueberries, raspberries, jicama, rosemary

I went to the grocery story yesterday and have all the produce purchased and planned for tomorrow's drinks, but I will have to go back to the store tomorrow to buy the produce for the next day.

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If anyone wants to try juicing but is afraid to do it on their own, I will be joining a doctor-led juice cleanse starting July 15. The deadline to sign up is this Sat, July 7.

Here's the link to the Be Juicy 10-Day Juice Cleanse.

Wishing you peas and good health,

VeggiePatti

Happy Fourth of July!


Juice Fast Day 4

So it's the beginning of day 4. A few things I'm noticing:

I think I could really use another juicer! The juicer I have is great to get the most nutrients out of greens, but it takes a long time and doesn't juice all fruits as well. When you're hungry and you need something fast, it's not the juicer to go to! This morning my body was saying "you need food now" and it took a half hour to prepare a simple juice. So with this juicer, it's best to do a bulk batch in advance, and not first thing in the morning!

The first 3 days weren't as bad as I thought. I did lose 5 pounds in the first 2 days but nothing yesterday, so we'll just have to wait and see on the weight loss aspect. Some sources say you should lose at least a pound a day on a juice fast but I'm sure it's variable for everyone. (And yes, yes...I know you can average...)

Juicing is also very clean in the sense that your elimination channels aren't on overload. There's very little perspiration or odor for that matter, unless you have lots of ginger then it kicks it up a notch! Don't expect to go to the bathroom like normal either - you pee a lot more but don't have bowel movements as often.

Water is also extremely important! Juice does not replace water and you have to make sure you're drinking a lot of water. I try to change between juice and water, with some coconut water thrown in to help make sure electrolytes are balanced.

My juicy breakfast this morning was 2 small colanders of spinach, 2 pears, and a ginger "thumb". It's actually pretty good. Normally I can't taste the ginger but it's very evident here! I'd make this one again but maybe add parsley. I did want to make my standard cucumber/celery for the day, but that takes an hour and my body needed something right away so I whipped up this one - although this still took a half hour as I mentioned.

I'll be making the rest of the day's juice a little later - BEFORE I get hungry!

I'm also very tempted to try tomato juice at this point although I've never liked it in the past. I'll just tell myself it's tomato soup! Maybe tomorrow!

Until then,
Wishing you peas and good health,

VeggiePatti

Juice Fast Day 3

So day 3 of the juice fast went mostly smoothly until the end of the day...then the hunger set it! Coconut water to the rescue! Also the detoxing emotional side effects started to come out...hope that's over with!

So today I had more of the usual green juice but decided to have a fruity drink in the middle of the day - a virgin pina colada (fresh pineapple juice mixed with coconut water).

Once I made the decision to do the juice fast it hasn't been as hard as I thought it would be, but I don't want to speak too soon! I still have a ways to go!

Wishing you peas and good health,

VeggiePatti

Juice Fast Day 2

So I made it through the first day of juice fasting which has always been the hardest for me in the past. And in case you're wondering, yes, I drank all of the juice I made! I went to a graduation party in the middle of the day and the smell of food was just so tempting...but I survived.

This morning I decided to use up some cartons of berries I had before they went bad. So in went blueberries and most of the blackberries, but sadly the raspberries couldn't be saved. :( Note to self: Juicing blackberries produces a sludge so do it last! There wasn't much output so I added an apple, some ginger, and some fresh mint. It was pretty good, but there was not a whole lot so I knew I'd be hungry later.

Later in the day I made the regular green drink:  6 cucumbers, 2 stalks celery, and ginger. The celery made a lot more juice than normal so it threw off the taste a bit and I added a kiwi, which really didn't have much effect. That's what I'll be drinking for the rest of the day (and some coconut water!).

I've done some more research and everything says once you get past day 3 it gets a lot easier! Day 2 hasn't been too bad, so let's hope day 3 is the same!

Oh I also stocked up on raw coconut water to help with the electrolyte balancing in case I feel I need it.

I'll post more tomorrow about how Day 3 goes!

Wishing you peas and good health,

VeggiePatti

Juice Fast anyone?

I am so horrible at blogging! It's one of those habits that needs some work!

So I FINALLY watched Fat, Sick, & Nearly Dead - it was really inspiring. There is a corresponding website - all free - www.jointhereboot.com. I was surprised because there was so much fruit juicing going on! I've always been told to juice with mostly greens. But, I also realize you can't do a 60-day juice fast on just the same thing! (Although I'm sure some people do that - especially with wheat grass.)

So I've been putting off juicing for quite some time for several reasons. I think it's not going to be fun is probably number 1...lol  But I was so worried about doing it correctly - getting the right juicer, doing the right program, etc. that I realized if I kept worrying about doing it perfectly I would never do it!

So here's to trying! I'm going to start a juice fast. How long will I go? I guess as long as I need to.

I'm starting with the green juices as I have been told those are necessary for maximum detoxing, but I'm not going to be so vigilant about it that I can't have fruit juice now and then.

Here's how I started my morning...



 It took me an HOUR to make this much juice! It's not the juicing part per se, it's all the prep work! This juice contains about 1-2 cups of spinach (what was leftover), 6 very large cucumbers, 2 stalks of celery (the whole thing, not individual stalks), and some ginger. So I'll see how long it lasts! I've had 2 big glasses already and will just keep drinking it until I'm not hungry!

I've heard the first 3 days are the hardest, so hopefully I can get through that and it's smooth sailing!

If anyone wants to join me on my juice fast, just drop me a line and we can be juicing buddies!

Wishing you peas and good health,

VeggiePatti