Friday, July 5, 2013

8 Day Juice Fast, So Far

So, as I mentioned in a past post, my husband and I decided to do a juice fast.  We saw a wonderful documentary about juicing and all it's benefits and Ray was all for it.  As for me, due to my illnesses, I've been wanting to do a juice fast for quite some time.  What held me back was that we didn't own a juicer and we hadn't decided, yet, to invest the money into one.  I'm a big fan of the Gerson Method and knowing that the nutrients in our fruits and vegetables, today, are much less than the nutrients in fruits and vegetables 50 years ago, makes juicing all that more logical.  The amount of vegis we'd need to eat, in one day, to meet our dietary needs, is overwhelming.  When we juice, we can make a 20 oz drink from 12 kale leaves, 8 carrots, two apples, four handfuls of spinach and two thumb size pieces of ginger.  I can't even imagine sitting for a meal and eating that, but the juice is good and good for us.

It's been 8 days, so far.  My husband wanted to do a juice fast to lose some weight and feel healthier.  I wanted to juice to cleanse my cells and create a better flow of energy throughout my body.  Ray has lost 6 lbs, which he's thrilled about and he seems to be feeling good about the process.  He says he's feeling hungry every day, but he's not willing to stop juicing yet.  I'm feeling more energetic, much less brain fog and yesterday, I even offered to drive five teenagers to the beach (on the 4th of July in 98 degree weather).  As you can imagine, everyone was heading to the beach and a 20 minute ride turned into 2 hours.  The teens were thrilled.  They had their iPods, good conversation and we can't forget the favorite radio stations.  I was all set with my bottle of water, juice and ear plugs.

Each day of this fast, or cleanse, I feel there are challenges and benefits.  So far the benefits are totally outweighing the challenges.  I didn't even have a hard time when we brought the beach buddies to get pizza after our sandy, hot day in the sun.

I've never done a fast before, but I've heard a great deal about them.  One of the things I've heard, that intrigued me, was the spiritual connection.  My process, during this fast, has gotten me to thinking more about food and how I relate to it.  When I'm bored, anxious, upset, angry or even celebratory, I want to reach for food.  In the past it's been less about the fuel my body needs to function, at a high level, every day.  Now, I see and feel the connection to fueling the body.  I'm also much more aware of having to find other, healthier ways to manage my emotions.  There is food all around me.  Even unhealthy foods, in the house, that the kids snack on.  I made pancakes for them this morning and not once did I want one.  I could smell bacon later in the day and it smelled good, but I told myself that I can enjoy these things through my other senses.  I enjoy cooking meals for my children, that they'll eat.  I can enjoy comfort foods, without ingesting them.  I use my sense of smell.  The first couple of days, I missed the sensation of chewing or crunching on some type of food, but that seems to have subsided.

This has been a great experience, for me.  Everything from going out to purchase the foods to juice to spending the time washing and cutting and sending them through the juicer.  It's about a 2 hour process every day to prepare for our total of 12 drinks for the next day and it feels good.  I'm doing something positive for my body and I'm getting wonderful results.  I recommend a week long juice fast for everyone (check with your doctor first).

I believe the body has the amazing capabilities of healing itself.  We've just gotten so far away from trusting and listening to our bodies that we've lost the belief that this is true.  The outside of our bodies can heal on their own.  Why not the inside?  Good nutrition, an awareness of what works for the individual, exercise and belief that the body is an amazing bag of bones 'n stuff, that is capable of things we can't even understand.  We just need to allow it to do it's job.

Thanks for reading, forwarding and following my posts!!!

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