Thursday, September 27, 2012

Day 25 of Juice Feast, Mean Green Juice and Master Cleanse

Day 25, I am so amazed that I am doing so well. By that I mean that I'm not craving foods and out of my mind with hunger. I am a little bummed because I have stabilized at 13lbs. I have decide to do just the Mean Green Juice from "Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead." If you haven't seen the film yet you can check it out on Hulu or YouTube for FREE! It's a very inspirational documentary. I had some of the juice today but added stevia and really enjoyed it. I was doing way to much fruit in my other juices but, I think that also helped me to get to this point.
 I am also considering doing the master cleanse recipe every other day with the green juice. I made up a batch today and really liked it. Lemons are very detoxifying and aid in flushing toxins out. With the master cleanse you're also supposed to do a salt flush with Celtic sea salt for the minerals and to aid in elimination of the bowels. It is also recommended to do a laxative herbal tea at night for the same reason. Beyonce made it more well known when she did it, but it's been around since the seventies.
 
My enema update, I have been doing them everyday. I watched a ton of videos on YouTube and decided to just do it. My headaches have gone away completely and my energy has really improved. I am so happy that I got over myself and just did it. Ten years ago I would have thought it was lame and stupid but, with the more research I do into health and healing disease, it is really important. I will some day do a colonic but for now, I have to do it from home.
It is funny how we change as we get older and start to realize our health is paramount. Things we do when we are younger are so harmful to our aging bodies and we don't realize till it's too late. So have a green juice today and ENJOY!!!

Sunday, September 23, 2012

Day 21 Juice Feasting

Day 21
 
I have had a plateau for awhile but have lost another pound, so I'm down 13 lbs. ;)  I was hoping to have more of a loss so far into the feast but oh well.
 I made a strong green drink yesterday and am still working through it. I made 4 quarts and put them into the fringe. If you plan on saving juice for more than a day fill the glass jar to the very top and apply lid. This way there is very little air to oxidize the juice and it will keep a little longer. I used Swiss chard and Pac Choy for the greens and the juice turned out a little greener than I'm used to and a little salty. I mixed it into a V8 but it is still potent.
I know people will look at the Vita Mix container and think, what the? But I only use it to hold all of the juice to re-mix it then I divide it into jars. If anyone has noticed I went back to my Omega 8002 juicer. I don't have to cut up the greens so much and sometimes at all. I also felt like I could juice quicker with my old one so, back to the store the Omega VRT went. I used the money to buy more fruit and veggies.
Enjoy!!!


Thursday, September 20, 2012

Day Eighteen

smileys
So today is day eighteen of my juice feast. I had a break out on my neck of acne yesterday, just another nice detox symptom. Another reminder that my body needs to keep healing and I need to stay the course. I've had some head cracking headaches in the evenings. I need to buy an enema bag. Yes, an enema bag. I've heard a lot of detox symptoms can be totally relieved by doing some enemas. The toxins just get stuck and need help being removed so they aren't taken up by the body again. I've never done them before but many juicers and raw foodist recommend them. I know, who wants to do them but, I will if I have to.
I've read a little about Ann Wigmore and she had her patients do them to help the bodies natural healing to cure disease. I am all for taking your health into your own hands and finding relief somewhere besides a little blue pill and a hundred side effects. Have you ever heard that Jeff Foxworthy bit about taking I think it was eye drops for dry eyes. It's hilarious he says they work great for dry eyes but the side effects are like headache, hair loss, runny nose, bad breath, hives and anal leakage. That sums up our pharmaceutical industry to a T.
I have started getting into essential oils and find they help me sleep and when needed help with stress. I use the Young Living oils once I read about their processing and products. I don't want something that potent to be contaminated with pesticides or be genetically messed with. I get them for my own use I don't sell them. After I get my health squared away I might look into doing something more with them. I've used other essential oils with out them helping at all.
 
I have to say, I have had a tomato or 1/2 cantaloupe here and there to help slow down some of the healing crisis I've been having. Usually once a day every couple of days or more. Nothing like a meal.
 
Today I started with watermelon juice, one quart for breakfast and one for lunch. I have noticed I don't drink near as much as when I first started. I'm still pushing myself to drink more water. I'm just not thirsty and I forget. I need to slow down on the fruits and that will slow down my detox symptoms. But they are so delicious and really help with the wanting anything else.
 
Weigh in; I've lost a total of twelve lbs. which is the reason for the giant smiley face at the top.


Monday, September 17, 2012

Day 15 Juice Feasting, 10lbs Lost, Why I started

My juice feasting has been going pretty well. Yesterday was a little difficult. I made my husband and son some pork chops and they smelled so good. Then they wanted breakfast for dinner so eggs and sausage. I wanted to eat the sausage so bad. I just kept telling myself the juicing is only temporary and I can eat later. It's been working well. I made a delicious V8 last night and it was very satisfying. I weighed in the morning and have finally hit the ten pound mark YEA!!! I've been having to mix organic produce and conventional when I can't find what I need. I hate to do it but I'd rather stay on the feast.
 
Detox symptoms:
More headaches and my lymph glands have been hurting here and there. I watched some videos on-line about detoxing. A lot of people say there are a wide range of detox symptoms from mucus pouring out of every orifice, to pus, headaches, fatigue. So I don't have much to complain about. I am getting more mucus in my throat and nose but not much anywhere else, thankfully. I get really tired by like seven o'clock and went to bed last night at eight thirty. I care more about fixing my healthy right now then staying up late. My jaw has also been aching everyday by about four o'clock. I've been doing some homepathic meds for symptoms that are more than uncomfortable.
 
I am loving my pineapple juice mix. Just to re-cap it's a pineapple, zucchini, cucumber and a lemon. I add stevia to sweeten and water to dilute. I crave this one often.
I have been able to keep my mind focused on this juice feast better than the last one I did. My cravings for food have decreased so much I'm sometimes flabbergasted.
 
Anyway, I was going to do a post on why I started this juice feast in the first place.
1. Detox my body
2. Increase energy levels
3. Relieve Headaches and migraines
4. Relieve chronic fatigue
5. Lose weight(this is the first one really)
6. Relieve depression
7. Increase nutritional levels
8. Stop muscular cramping
9. Help PMS symptoms
10. Improve Skin
11. Relieve chronic inflammation
12. Relieve muscular and joint pain
13. Re balance body
14. Get rid of toxins in body(this is ongoing process)
15. Help with brain fog and recall problems
16.Help with severe menstrual cramping
 
So far, I have noticed an increase in the day with my energy levels. My brain fog has gotten better and so has the depression. I posted on how much better my PMS was and my cramping was the lightest it has ever been. My skin definitely has improved and so has the muscular pain. Also can I say again I LOST TEN POUNDS!!!!

Saturday, September 15, 2012

Day Thirteen



Day Thirteen! Wow, I'm shocked I made it so far and look forward to celebrating two weeks tomorrow. The longer I do this the easier it becomes. It's funny how your focus changes from all the things you can eat to other things you could be doing. It takes about half an hour to juice everything but sometimes I do extra so I won't have to juice again till the next day. I have been doing my basic juice with some add ins. This morning was watermelon juice with zucchini and stevia to taste. I'm trying to get all the watermelon I can before the season is gone :(
 I've also purchased several pineapples to use over the next week or so. They're  cheaper right now and give a lot of juice. Last time I mixed it with cucumber, zucchini and lemon and it was sooo delicious. I added water to thin it a little and of course stevia.
 On to the detox symptoms. I have had several days of late day headaches and a lot of tiredness. My husband has been great and letting me get to bed around eight o'clock. I have noticed that all of my muscles are much more relaxed and loose. I know it's from being grain free. Before they were hard and tight. My chiropractor had said it was like trying to adjust a table.
I have been having some mucus in the morning and evening recently. When I have been dairy free before that had gone away completely. I thought I had allergies to seasonal stuff, but it was just the dairy. Dairy is very mucus causing not only in your sinus' but also in the gut.
I have also noticed some aching in my joints and in past injuries which I here is normal during this kind of detox. I hurt my ankle 15 years ago and really haven't ever had any issues except it being a little wobbly. It's been more sensitive and hurting at night. 
 
Several cool things have been, my face and neck have lost weight. My husband commented the other day. I have noticed loss in my waist, hips and feet. I'm on the tail end of my cycle so I should start to lose more soon. I was down another pound yesterday. I think this will really start to improve soon.
 
It is more expensive sometimes to juice depending on what I juice. On my watermelon days it's only about six dollars for one from the store. I've stripped down my garden using everything to juice and have been really happy doing it. Sometimes in the past I have thrown some stuff out or had to give it away so it wouldn't go bad. Juicing may be something I do every summer to use up produce and lose those extra winter pounds. After this juice feast I may do a green smoothie feast to transition into whole foods again. 

Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Color Me Impressed

I am so impressed! Wonder why? I am a woman who has had horrendous PMS and menstrual cramping since I can remember. Just ask my husband! I know I'm a terrible person to live with during that time. Otherwise I'm in pretty good control of myself and what I say. I get mad like everyone else but, during that time I just lose it. My hormones are nuts. I also have very strong cravings for sweets, grains and high fat. I bloat, have headaches am fatigued etc. I have every PMS symptom there is.
 
So, today is day nine of my juice feast and I "started" and really didn't even know I was going to. Sometimes I'm a week early but man do I know I'm going to start and so does my DH. This time I've been a little tired but, we went for a five mile bike ride yesterday and with pre-school starting I just thought it was normal. I haven't had almost any of the normal PMS stuff. I contribute that to the juice feast.  I'll have to update tomorrow about the cramping but, I haven't had any of the strong cravings, bloating or extreme fatigue. The cramping usually keeps me up at night and is so terrible the first day and sometimes the second day.
 
Anyway, I made a juice this morning with collard greens. I have never had them before and they were on sale so I decided to try a bunch. I mixed them with my standard base for juice and added, grapes, lemon and parsley. It was really filling and I just needed a quart to start. Then later in the morning I had the second quart and liked it even more than the first. For lunch I had a basic V8 with more thyme and rosemary. I have to say I really like the stronger thyme but probably couldn't do it all the time. It reminded me of Thanksgiving and sage stuffing? I have another quart that I think I'll save for tomorrow morning and I'll juice the other half of my watermelon. I wanted something for a small snacks so I did eat a half a cantaloupe. I figured it's mostly water anyway and really hard to juice so, I just ate it.
I'm lovin the watermelon with the extra stevia. I went out to the garden and found I had about five more. I'm gonna let them get bigger for the next couple days, maybe pick one for now. ENJOY!!!

Monday, September 10, 2012

Day Eight and Doing Great

Wonderful day eight! I was having a little trouble yesterday because I had to cook for my Dh and son. I cooked last Sunday and made enough for the week breakfast, lunches and dinners. So yesterday I had to do it again and the whole house smelled like yummy meatloaf. Ugh! I'm better today.
 
I juiced a half a watermelon from my garden yesterday before bed.
 It was an heirloom yellow watermelon.  Don't you just love the green color. I like the juice really cold and wanted it for the morning. The rest of the day will be V8's and maybe I might try that fruit lemonade I mentioned in another post. If you don't remember here is the recipe.
 
Fruit Lemonade:
3 Lemons or Limes peeled
1 Pineapple skin removed
3 Pears
1 Zucchini
water and stevia to taste.
 
With the whole lemons I like to dilute it a bit just like lemonade. Also it's better for the teeth if it's diluted. I have been brushing more and will be drinking more water. The first recipe was apples but, I have pears to use up and I may substitute limes for the lemons. I'm still doing the fish oil and coconut oil. I do the coconut if I'm going to be out for awhile because it helps with hunger. I usually do 1 tsp to a tablespoon. My detox symptoms are much better and I have more energy. I haven't re-checked my weight yet, I may wait a couple days. After my juice feast is over I will continue to do green juices daily. ENJOY!!!

Saturday, September 8, 2012

Down 6 lbs, Unbelievable Juice Recipes

Today is day 6 of my juice diet. I was a little bummed the last day or so because I hadn't noticed any big changes in my weight. Well, today when I weighed myself this morning, I was down 6lbs YEAH!!!
I was thrilled and the last time I did this I was desperately ready to quit by the sixth day and I don't feel like that this time. I feel like I could keep going for who knows how long.
 
Last night I made something a little sweeter, I was feeling down and wanted to indulge a little. Here's the recipe:
1 pineapple, chopped and diced with core skin removed
1 large zucchini
1 large cucumber (which was more like 2)
Stevia to taste
 
This came out sooooo good. Very yummy, but I know to keep losing I have to stay with the veggies.
 
The one for lunch today was unreal. Usually it's hard to say that for a veggie juice. I really like V8 juice and at the health food store they have some good ones, but this was sooo good.
 These are the herbs I used.
 
V8 Recipe:
1/4 bunch basil, parsley
4-5 stems and leaves of cilantro
1 stem rosemary, thyme leaves removed
10 stems if chives diced
3-4 flower heads from garlic chives
1 head romaine lettuce heart
1 lemon peeled
5 carrots
the stops from 3 of the carrots chopped up
1 large zucchini
1 large cucumber
About 2 lbs of heirloom tomatoes
I mixed yellow and red tomatoes
1 orange bell pepper
celery salt to taste
garlic salt to taste
 This is the carrot tops
My beautiful heirloom tomatoes
 
Now this made about 70 ounces so I put the extra in quart jars and sealed them up tight. The great thing about this juice is it tastes a little like salsa which I have missed doing a juice feast. You could also add some cayenne but, some people find that irritating on a feast so maybe when I'm off.  Everything except the lemon came from my back yard garden. I'll really miss my garden when the season changes :(
This is what I will probably finish the day with. ENJOY!!!
 

Friday, September 7, 2012

Be Prepared before juicing

Be prepared, it is one the the main problems people have when starting a juice feast. Be prepared for detox symptoms, being tired maybe cranky and definitely  have your food in order. It takes a lot of fresh produce to do a juice feast. Also I usually make a little more than I will drink for that "just in case" needed time. I will save some from the night before for the first thing in the morning. Sometimes I wake up so famished I can't get everything juiced as fast as I want it. Especially if my three year old gets up early, or if my husband needs breakfast and a lunch before he leaves for work. Another thing is you pee a lot, like 20 or more times a day.
 
Some greens will keep in the fridge if you rinse them then put them in plastic and in the crisper. I try to buy 3-4 days worth of stuff at a time and usually end up using it before I think I will. Also get a strainer that will fit your glass container. I like to strain most of my juices. I don't get a ton of pulp but I like to drink my juice not eat it. Most people find the pulp annoying.
 

Remember to try and buy mostly organic foods, there is a lot more to organic than just being pesticide free. A large part of produce being sold is GMO or genetically modified foods. These are genetically altered usually with a pesticide RNA strand. Some corn is engineered to kill a caterpillar when it eats it with a neurotoxin. So think about that! Many non-organic foods are also picked green, waxed,  sprayed with fungicides and gassed prior to shipment. The nutritional level is also higher with organic. Much of the soil conventional produce is grown in is completely depleted of mineral and nutrients. Organic is grown with compost and sometimes ground rock dust for minerals.

So today is day 5 of my juice feast. I had some left over watermelon juice for this a.m. breakfast and rushed out the door. When I got home for lunch I made a juice from:
half a bunch of kale
three carrots
2 small apples
1 zucchini
1cucumber
half a bunch of parsley
and one peeled lemon
Stevia to taste

I plan on doing the rest of the watermelon tomorrow because I have one sitting on my table from my garden. I think it is a yellow watermelon.

I'm feeling pretty good this afternoon, I woke up with the start of a headache and went to sleep last night with one. I'm drinking more water to help the cleanse and am also adding some to my juice. Enjoy!!!

Thursday, September 6, 2012

The juicer I use

This is my fourth day juice feasting and it has gone fast. I've been busy which is good because it keeps my mind off of what I'm not eating. For my birthday recently I bought and Omega Vrt 350 HD with all of the cash I got.
It took me a really long time to decide on a new juicer. I have a ten year old Omega 8002 and it has served me well. But, I wanted something with a little but bigger shoot and that could handle more produce at a time.
If your thinking about a juicer, masticating juicers are the best. They grind and press the food at slower RPM's. This helps the juice stay fresh longer and doesn't oxidize the nutrients when juicing. The Omega Vrt does 80 RPM's, most all of the centrifugal juicers do 1,200 to 13,000. I have to warn there is a learning curve with masticating juicers and highly recommend watching videos on You tube before purchasing and using one. I really like this guy that does videos on juicers,  John from rawfoods. He also does growyourgreens. He makes excellent points about juicers and does "juice offs" to compare juicers yields and foam etc. He has a company that sells juicers, dehydrators etc. He also is a raw foodie and knows the merchandise he sells.
I was watching some videos and people were talking about watermelon juice and how it helps to cleanse your body. So, since it's the summer and they're cheap I picked up a 12 pound one at the health food store for about $6.00.
 I juiced half of it, seeds, rind and all and it made a little over three quarts of juice.
 I will juice the other half later. The Omega does shoot out some pulp and most of the time I strain my juice, but this time I left it in to help me feel fuller. I added a little stevia to sweeten it up. This is the kind I like it doesn't have any after taste.
 
Before juicing a watermelon chill it for several hours, it's much more enjoyable and refreshing. Also since your doing the whole watermelon only get organic. Wash the watermelon with a fruit spray and rinse well. Then juice to your hearts content. I have heard some people say you shouldn't have more than a quart a day, then there are some that do this for 3 days. I think if your doing fine drink more. The instructions on the Omega state you can store juice for 72 hrs because of the low RPM's. Most people state to consume it immediately. Enjoy!!!

About me

I've decided to start this blog and document my road to more living foods. Juice feasts are pretty common when people do raw food diets.  I'm not a raw foodist but have been really researching and looking into where my food comes from and what's in it. Believe me when I say everyone should really be concerned with what is allowed in our food and what is being done to our food. I will cover some of these topics in later posts.
 
So I have decided to start a juice feast. I've done one before for about 6 days then decided to stop. I really don't want to put a number to how many days I want to do this. Is that a cop out? Maybe, but I find when I do things in concrete terms I deceive myself and feel horrible when I fail. Anyway, people do three days to one hundred days on a juice feast. I am not looking forward to my detox symptoms, but know they're common even in people that eat really clean, raw diets. The last juice feast I did really helped break me off sugar addictions and grains. I have indulged in both of them since but only about once or twice a month, can you guess at what time of month??? They really have lost their hold on me and I feel much better. But, I still have some lagging health issues and want to really boost my energy. I'll also get into my reasons on a later post. For now I will list a couple fruits and veggies I use in my base juices.
 
Base Juice:
1. Cucumber
2. Zucchini
3. Carrot
4. Apple
5. Greens
 
Now, I rotate my greens when I can to prevent a lot of oxalic acid build up that can cause kidney stones. I have to say I really like kale a lot though and grow it, so if it's all I have that is what I use.  I also never thought I would ever be a person that says "I like kale." I'm on the tail end of the gardening season so I think this will be a great time to use up what I have before the season ends. I also grow swiss chard, parsley, pac choy which is like bok choy. I sometimes do just one item all the way up to maybe ten things in a juice. I have been supplementing with a tablespoon of extra virgin cold pressed coconut oil and Omega Swirl Pina colada omega 3's which is awesome. I am thinking about some other supplements, but for now that's where I am.