F.A.Q.'s

***DISCLAIMER***
I am NOT a medical professional whatsoever. I am NOT a nutritionist. I am a wife and mother who was a few pounds away from being morbidly obese in June of 2012. I was desperate. I was miserable. I honestly did not like myself and I needed a drastic change. This is my story. This is my advice. This is what works for me.



What rules do I have to follow?

There are no real rules. If you are actually fasting for more than a few days, you will want to try to stick with the 80/20 veggie/fruit percentage as soon as you can....but in the first few days, if you need a sweeter juice to keep you from stopping, by all means, add some fruit. The way I see it, if you need a sweeter fruit based drink, it's better than chomping down a bag of chips. Also, drink as much water as possible, especially during the first few days because the water will really help flush all the toxins from your body.


Why can't I just drink fruit juices from the store? Why do I need a juicer?

Even though the juices at the store may say "no sugar", that juice has been processed so much that it loses most of its nutritional value and it is nothing at all like fresh fruit and vegetable juice. It would not be safe or healthy (in my personal opinion) to do a juicing reboot with store bought juices.


Do I have to drink The Mean Green?

Nope! Again, there are no real rules. If you don't like a drink, then don't drink it! It's better to find a drink that you do like, than to force yourself to drink something you detest. You have a better chance of staying on your reboot/fast/cleanse if you actually enjoy what you are drinking. Your palate WILL change! So if you start out not liking a juice, try it again later on. In the beginning, ginger was just too much for me. Now? I find myself adding ginger to recipes just to "give it a kick" and because I really enjoy ginger now.


Do you have to actually fast to lose weight?

No, not at all. Your weight loss will not be nearly as dramatic as it would if you were only fasting and not eating foods, but you can still lose weight and enjoy many health benefits by replacing 1-2 meals a day with juice.


How much juice should I be drinking in a day?

Listen to your body. When you are starting out, you will probably consume more juice and there is nothing wrong with that!!!!! Keep your body full! Juice is GOOD for you. When I started out, I was drinking about 70-80 oz of juice a day (based on my height and weight, some people drink far more and that's perfectly fine, too). Now, 32 days into my juice fast, I drink around 48 oz of juice. I did not limit myself on my juice consumption to try to starve myself or to make the scale move more, I simply found that as my stomach got smaller I required much less to keep me feeling full and satisfied. I do not get headaches, feel lightheaded, dizzy or nauseous. If I did, this would be my body's way of telling me I need more "food".


How much water should I be drinking?

Again, listen to your body. Water is great for you and it helps flush the toxins from your body during the first few days. Drink as much water as you can but don't make yourself sick. Drink it cold, drink it warm, drink it hot (if that's your thing....ick) but just drink! Many people enjoy coconut water as well, just make sure if you buy it, it has no added sugars. There are many different varieties of 100% coconut water to try.


Won't you just gain all the weight back?

I sincerely hope not. The reason I went so drastic and set my goal for 40 days was to reset my system, or to break my addiction to processed, unhealthy foods. And trust me, I was addicted. I feel like, "I've dedicated to not eating food for 40 days. I can't ever just go back to the way I was before." Maybe this is an immature way to think, but I truly feel that I am continuing to learn far more about food than I ever knew before. I feel like I am smarter and I've seen the benefits!! I'm living with the benefits! I have no doubt that I will gain SOME weight once I start consuming foods again, that is only to be expected. Only time will tell, I suppose! Stay tuned!


What plans do you have after your 40 Day Fast?

I'm going to Disney World!!!!! Haha. Just kidding! I wish!
To be honest, I can't wait to start incorporating HEALTHY foods back into my diet. I'm not going to sit here and lie to you, I am sure I will indulge in unhealthy foods OCCASIONALLY, but it will not be a daily, weekly, or even monthly routine. I haven't decided if I am going to become vegetarian or not...but at the moment, I really do miss meats. I want to have at least a 90% plant diet but I'm also terrible at math....seriously. Hahaha I am going to learn to ENJOY foods RESPONSIBLY, not become some crazy nutso health freak (no offense to you wonderful crazy nutso health freak readers....). I want to add in lots of beans and nuts. I'm not going to count calories, I'm going to make healthy, informed decisions.


What should I expect during the first few days of my fast?

Everyone is different but it seems that for most people, Days 2-5 seem to be the hardest. You can expect headaches, some nausea, dizziness, lack of energy and that might make you a bit cranky. This is all perfectly normal as your body is detoxing. Plan ahead for these first few days and start out your fast when shutting yourself in your room (if you are unlike me and actually can afford that luxury) for a day or two is possible. I made sure to cook my kids foods that I least craved during the first week. We didn't keep many snack foods on hand (having 3 young ones, we couldn't just throw every single processed food out the door) but the ones we did have, we kept out of sight, out of mind.


This isn't working! What is wrong!?!?!

I've hit a week long plateau. I really struggled and wanted to put blame somewhere. I wasn't eating any foods and yet the scale wasn't moving....or better yet, I had gained half a pound!!!! And you know what, I won't lie. It sucks. HOWEVER, I've found that when I get stuck, I really try my best to change up my drinks, make sure I'm "juicing the rainbow" (getting in all colors of fruits and veggies), up my water intake and STUCK WITH IT, the weight DID come off. Plus, you have to keep reminding yourself that this isn't JUST for weight loss. This is for a lifestyle change. On the days when I've not lost any weight, I focus on the fact that I feel damn good! I focus on the fact that I feel younger and more full of energy than I've had in YEARS! I focus on the fact that I know every single bit of everything I put in my body the day before and I stand confident that it is healthy for me and far better than the alternative, which for me was being a glutinous pig. I'll be honest, there are good days and bad days, but focus on the good and soon the bad passes by. I don't have a bag of fast food to hide behind anymore. And with my new figure, I don't want to hide behind anything!!!!!



Did you get seen by a doctor before starting your fast?

No. I started my fast on February 13, 2013 and had not been to see my doctor since August 2012, some 6 months prior. However, on Day 4 of my fast, I woke with ear pressure that started getting increasingly painful as the day wore on and it just so happened to be on a Saturday. Lovely. So I went to Urgent Care and was seen by a doctor who said my ear was so infected that the eardrum was about to burst. I brought up the fact that I started (this was my very simple explanation to a doctor who had never seen me before and whom I'll probably never see again) a completely raw vegan diet and I wanted to know if that had anything to do with my ear pain. He assured me the ear infection had nothing to do with my "raw vegan diet".
By the next Wednesday the pain was getting worse and I could tell the antibiotics were no longer working so I went in to see my family care physician. He looked at my ear, agreed with the Urgent Care doctor and upped the antibiotic dosage. Then we had a nice long talk about my lifestyle change and the 40 Day Juice Fast I was currently undergoing to reboot my system and break my addiction to unhealthy foods. Looking back, if I'm being honest, I was really hoping for an out. I was hoping that this doctor would tell me that I was insane to get on this "crazy crash diet" and to get myself a burger and fries on the way home. Yeah, that didn't happen. My doctor flipped back to our last visit and said, "Well, lets see. You were 216 pounds 6 months ago. Today you weigh 184 pounds. You've brought your BMI down over 5 points. Well done! Keep it up!" He did say that while he thought it was a bit extreme, he understood my reasonings for being so drastic and he was in full support. He did mention the fact that I wasn't getting enough proteins but he agreed that it would be fine for me to go 40 Days. He gave me the complete green light (green light...get it?? heehee). I wanted to know of he wanted to do some sort of baseline blood work but he said he saw no reason to, that what I was doing was extremely healthy and he saw no real risks.
Now, this is MY personal account.
I do not have diabetes, and while my blood pressure is usually slightly elevated, I've not been put on any blood pressure medicine. Although I am sure I was a physical examination or two away from being put on a medicine related to obesity, I wasn't at the time so I saw no need to be seen beforehand. If you are on any sort of maintenance medications, my recommendation would be to be seen first. I am NOT a medical professional of any sorts. I am not a nutritionist at all. I am simply a wife and mother who was close to being morbidly obese who needed a drastic change. I wanted weight loss surgery but my insurance refuses to pay for anything obesity related. This was my next best option. This works for me.



Can you make the juice ahead of time?

You can. I usually do not just because I like my juice fresh and my lifestyle allows for me (usually) to make fresh juice at home. This is not possible for my husband, as he works far from home and is not allowed to take a juicer with him to work. We've found that he does well when I prepare him 32 ounces of fresh juice and put it in a Mason Jar. I fill it to the top as to get the least amount of air in it, and I put the top on. He takes it and puts it directly in the refrigerator at work and drinks it that way. This works fine for him and the juice has never gone bad. I've read many sources saying that you should not keep juice longer than 48 hours. Also, the juice WILL separate and that is perfectly normal! All you need to do is shake the juice well and enjoy. Our family went to Six Flags and because I prepared my juices in advanced, I was able to stay on my juicing fast while ignoring the cravings for amusement park food. It CAN be done. We are going to Sea World overnight in a couple days. Stay tuned! We will be packing the juicer and taking lots of fresh produce.





If there is a question you have or maybe something I didn't cover, please send me a comment below!!

Best wishes and juice on, y'all!!!

Day 3

Not bad! Not bad!

My energy levels have been fine.
I've not had a headache since Day 1.
So far (as of 1:30 pm) I've not been very hungry at all.
No nausea since Day 1.
No terrible cravings to report.

All in all, it's been a very nice day and I am down 4.4 lbs since the start of my journey just 2 1/2 days ago.

Updated

So around 2 pm I started to get a killer headache but I pushed on. As the night went on, I started feeling worse and worse. My husband and I had plans to paint the living room and I honestly just could not force myself to paint. I was ached all over and I did not want to do anything.

So I went to bed.
At 8.
And I was bad.
I didn't drink enough juice OR water yesterday (because I didn't feel hungry). I wouldn't be surprised if my body went into a true starvation mode and I don't lose any weight. :(

Day 3 has been the hardest so far.

Here's to hoping Day 4 is better.

My Plan

Bottom Line: To coincide with lent, I am going on a 40 day juicing fast.

Details:
I am a 30 year old wife and mother to 3 young boys.
I am overweight (I will update this with my starting weight on February 12th) and I need to get healthy.
I have Crohn's disease.

Starting on February 13, 2013 I will be starting a 40 day long juice fast. I am doing this to break my addiction to unhealthy foods, to reboot my system, to allow my body to heal itself on the inside, and to become healthy for once in my life.

I will not be eating any foods. I will not be drinking any coffee, caffeine or alcohol. I will consume only raw fruits and vegetables along with lots and lots of water. I should be drinking about 80 ounces of fresh juice (consisting of about 80% vegetable to 20% fruit ratio) along with at least 60 ounces of water a day, every day, for 40 days.

I am not doing this for the sole reason of losing weight, I am doing this to change my entire life. I don't want to ever go back to my current lifestyle. I don't want to wake up craving unhealthy foods. I want to set a good example of health for my children and I wat to live a healthy life. I don't want to feel so tired and run down all the time. 2012 WILL be the last unhealthy year of my life.

Other benefits to rebooting:
Beautiful hair and skin
Increased energy
Improved immune system
Mental clarity
And just overall better health and happiness

Why juice? Joe Cross explains it best here, but here is a visual:

Allllllll of this fresh goodness

ended up becoming this

which was one very delicious (and VERY filling) lunch!

Sweet Potato: Attempt #1

I turned this

1 sweet potato
2 naval oranges
1 Braeburn apple
1/2 lime


Into this beautiful drink

I will admit, I was scared to try this. My sweet potato experience is very limited. The closest I get to a sweet potato is around Christmas time when I turn up my nose and pass them by.

This drink tastes like....not much at all, surprisingly. I guess sweet potatoes are pretty bland? but I've been a little congested so that could be why everything has been pretty bland lately. My husband said it was good so if you try this recipe, let me know what you think.

How We Started Juicing

Where would you be without the friends in your life?

I've thought about this question a lot and the only answer I can come up with is that I have no idea where I'd be without my friends but I most certainly do not want to find out.

I have the most amazing and supportive friends a girl could ever ask for. A dear friend of mine joined a Facebook weight loss support group I started about a year ago and along with another 5-10 members, we've struggled alongside one another with our weight loss for the past year. I was having a rough couple days and I went to my wonderful group of women and did a little venting. About 10 minutes after my little rant, my dear friend Jennifer sends me an email and tells me that a Hamilton Beach Big Mouth Juicer will be delivered to my house by the end of January....and I couldn't fight her on it because he already paid for it! I was (and still am!!!) speechless. I am still humbled, almost 2 weeks later.

Well, my juicer came in and I LOVE it! My husband loves it! Our twin 5 year old sons love it! Our 18 month old little guy loves it! If you are on the fence about buying one, JUST DO IT!!! You won't regret it.

We've made all kinds of juice. I've had a few different people ask me to post recipes and I promise I will start. Right now I am playing around with different fruits, vegetables and tastes but my hope is that I am able to post a photo (with recipe and my personal review) of at least 2 juices a day during my 40 day juice fast. Fingers crossed!

I made a super fast snack of a carrot and a large naval orange and it has been my favorite so far.

Here was a quick breakfast juice with fruits, a beet and celery. This probably made 3 servings.

And here is the beautiful juice it made.

We have replaced all of our snacks and desserts with fresh juice. It's THE thing in our house right now! Do I have anyone else who juices a lot? If so, what recipes are your favorites?