Day 6

What a disappointment. Things were progressing nicely on Day 6 when right around mid-day the heart palpitations returned, this time more noticeably than yesterday. This caused me to immediately question whether or not continuing on this juice fast is correct for me right now. The wave of emotions I felt were intense as wavered back and forth on whether it was time for me to break the fast or not. After contemplating my next move for a couple of hours I decided to end the fast and at around 4pm I had a smoothie which was the first non-juice food I had consumed since the prior Sunday. Later in the evening I ate some table bread when we were out with family having dinner.

I’m feeling like I let myself down somehow. At the same time I feel proud that I entered this journey and feel like I have set a really good precedent for myself moving forward. I now know more than ever that I need to consume more and better nutrients than I had previously.

My plan right now is to slowly transition back to solid foods, but I don’t see myself going away from juicing either. I plan to drink at least 2 juices a day from now on, likely one fruit and one green.

I’ll continue to update this blog as I have some thoughts about how I would like to tackle a juice fast in the near future and I would also like to share additional thoughts as I transition back and break this fast.

On the weight front I had lost 6 lbs in 6 days. That part was cool; however since I went 6 days I was not able to get into the deep detox that I had planned to. Next time….

Juices:

BREAKFAST: Beet, Orange, Pineapple (24oz)

LUNCH: Kale, Spinach, Mint, Cucumber, Celery, Apple (16oz)

AFTER-LUNCH: Smoothie (Banana, Acai Berry, Coconut Oil, Cacao)

DINNER: Bread

Day 5

Day 5 was a rollercoaster ride.

I woke up feeling very energy deficient. After walking the kids to school I woke up, but just slightly. I then found myself essentially high for the remainder of the day. I was out and about all day and my wife and I went to a concert tonight (don’t forget that we live in Austin Texas folks), but the high feeling remained for the most part. I read that this could be a sign of low blood sugar or even that I need to eat more…so I ramped up a little more juice throughout the day today. This is one of those days where I won’t remember much of what took place a few days from now. Good thing I’m keeping track of things here haha.

For the 1^st time since I started the juice fast I felt some slight heart palpitations. Right after I felt them (after lunch) they subsided pretty quickly. They returned later in the evening while at the concert. This event really makes me start to question whether I need to end the fast now. I’m all over the map about this. On one hand I want to continue with the fast because I’m 5 days deep now and want to see this through into a deep detox mode. However, the heart flutters were alarming and since I’ve never had them before I didn’t recognize them right away. I’ve decided that I will stay the course but if these start happening more frequently I am going to break the fast, period. I’ve come a long way in just 5 days and it’s really something to be proud of already, so whatever happens happens now. I’ll listen to my body and that’s the bottom line.

I realized today that I really like mint in my juices, and dislike watermelon.

Aside from being around some good smelling beef stir-fry this evening I didn’t find an overwhelming urge to eat solid food today. In fact, I think those urges are beginning to fade. My hunger pains are lessening as well. That’s to be expected at this stage from what I’ve read.

Later all.

Original weight (pre-juices of any kind 8/8/11): 180

Weight on 1^st day of juice fast (8/22/11): 175

Today’s weight (8/26/11): 170

Juices:

BREAKFAST = Watermelon, Lime, Mango (16oz)

LUNCH = Cucumber, Celery, Spinach, Kale, Mint, Apple (12oz)

LATE AFTERNOON = Orange (10oz)

DINNER = Cucumber, Celery, Spinach, Kale, Mint, Apple (12oz)

AFTER DINNER = Orange, Mango (12oz)

Day 4

Today was the earliest I’ve woke up without an alarm clock in a long time. Just woke up and jumped out of bed unsolicited. Trend or aberration, time will tell.

I can’t say that it’s a pleasure to drink these juices; I don’t crave them except for one right now. The Pineapple/Orange/Beet mix that is known locally as ‘Red Dawn’. I’ve discovered that I dig pineapple way more than I thought I did and this drink is the real deal right now for me. Plus it’s an easy way for me to eat a whole beet….that wouldn’t happen otherwise. It’s thick; almost like milkshake…it hit the spot.

My brother and I were out when lunch-time hit so we dropped into a local juice place ‘The Daily Juice’, they have a pretty extensive and impressive juice and smoothie list. It’s basically a free for all in there. The lady at the register made a few recommendations and I grabbed a juice and was on my way. The drink was pretty interesting, it reminded me of the other green juices I have been having but the coconut juice made the bitterness fade quick and left my mouth with a nutty aftertaste. Damn good for a green juice in my opinion, but weird tasting overall.

I keep reading about the different stages of detoxification online and in the juice fast book I read (Juice Fasting and Detoxification) and I continue to look for signs that I am entering the 2^nd stage of detox. However, I don’t think I’m there yet as the symptoms are not present. I have the white coating and overall sluggishness (despite this morning’s energy rush) and I had a little muscle pain in my lower legs this morning. Other than that though I don’t have much in the way of detox signs.

One thing I cannot wait to end is the hopeless feeling of being hungry all of the time. I’m fine when I’m busy and have something to take my mind off of it, but when I have down time its tough. The best way to describe it would be feeling extremely empty but yet full of liquids at all times.

I also took the time to weigh myself first thing this morning:

Original weight (pre-juices of any kind 8/8/11): 180

Weight on 1^st day of juice fast (8/22/11): 175

Today’s weight (8/25/11): 171

Juices:

BREAKFAST = Beet, Orange, Pineapple (16oz)

LUNCH = Coconut Juice, Cucumber, Celery, Spinach, Kale, Romaine (10oz)

LATE AFTERNOON = Beet, Orange, Pineapple (16oz)

DINNER = Coconut Juice, Cucumber, Celery, Spinach, Kale, Romaine (10oz)

Day 3

This was the toughest day thus far. I struggled throughout the day with a strong sense of wanting just something, anything solid to eat. My little girls wanted daddy to make a little flat bread pizza for a snack after school and I obliged but it completely sucked to make, cut, and serve a pizza that I wanted to taste badly but couldn't. That event spun the rest of the day into a funk. From that moment on I thought about all of the solid foods I missed already. A short time later I ran an errand and I pretty much desired every restaurant I drove by. It took all I could muster to stay on path, but I managed. Willpower won for once here.

Again, I find the morning and early afternoons very easy to handle....but the urge for solid food and the hunger gets progressively stronger as the day grows on.

On the detox front it's clear now that I am entering the early stages of a real detox. My tongue was slightly coated with a white film this morning and I had much worse morning breathe than I typically do. I used a tongue scraper throughout the day and found myself brushing my teeth a few more times than my typical twice a day routine. I also sneezed way more than normal as well all day. Not sure if that's a sign of something or not...but it's noted all the same. A few folks have asked about regularity thus far, everything is normal on that front...no changes. I think I may have set a record for the most number of times peeing in a day today though, haha.

I'm ok with the juices thus far, I just wish they would leave me filling fuller is all. I feel hollow right now overall, but obviously light and free.

Juices:

BREAKFAST = Orange, Mango, Carrot (16oz)

LUNCH = Cucumber, Celery, Apple, Kale, Spinach, Mint (13oz)

LATE AFTERNOON = Orange, Mango, Carrot (16oz)

DINNER = Cucumber, Celery, Apple, Kale, Spinach, Mint (13oz)

AFTER DINNER = Coconut water

Day 2

I slept off the head-ache that I went to bed with last night and slept pretty heavily. I had some pretty vivid dreams which is not the norm for me at all. Kicked off the juicing day with a recipe from the little book that came with the Breville juicer. Strawberry, Pear, Apple. Lucky for me I had the exact ingredients to a T. Nothing more, nothing less in the fridge. It was a decent tasting juice, and I was surprised by how much juice the strawberry's made.

By lunch I was wanting something of substance honestly and my brother was in the area and asked me if I wanted to meet for lunch. In the past this would have been a slam dunk chance to grab a slice of pizza or some brisket at a local bbq joint. Times have changed as I was able to maintain my composure and we headed over to the JuiceBox for lunch. Part of me wanted a smoothie but when I asked the girl who worked there what she would recommend for someone on a juice fast she laughed and said 'some juice'. She was right, and I went ahead and ordered a green juice.

By mid-afternoon the hunger was in full force and I was downing the 2nd half of my breakfast juice to keep it at bay. It is becoming clear that the mid-afternoon hunger and struggle to stay focused is the toughest part of my day to stay on track. I'll keep on fighting through it though.

My evening went better today than last night's hunger induced pain. Actually things are pretty non-eventful. No real signs of detox symptoms today. I finished my night off with the 2nd half of my lunch green juice. Man that was strong, the parsley and mint kicked me in the ass big time.

On the good news front, no head aches today...

Juices:

BREAKFAST = Strawberry, Pear, Apple (16oz)

LUNCH = Cucumber, Celery, Apple, Kale, Spinach, Parsely, Mint (13oz)

LATE AFTERNOON = Strawberry, Pear, Apple (16oz)

DINNER = Cucumber, Celery, Apple, Kale, Spinach, Parsely, Mint (13oz)

DAY 1

I slept a little less than normal last night since my kids started school today. Instead of sleeping in until 8 or so we were up by 6.30 and walking to school by 7.15. I typically curb my appetite by not eating really early in the morning. This works for me because if I eat at say 7.00am I would be really anxious to eat lunch around 11.00am and then have a mid-afternoon snack by 2.00pm or so, etc, etc, etc. It really sets me up for a tougher eating schedule to adhere too than I really need. What I've been doing leading up to this juice fast was just listening to my body and eating when it tells me that I need to. This morning the hunger didn't kick in until about 10.15am and I made a double batch of juice in the juicer and drank it down by 10.45am.

A challenge I have doing the fast is acid reflux. In the past I would make an effort to stay away from heavy grains, donuts, coffee, and fresh juices in the morning because that would be the worst way for me to get started...it was like acid in the bottle really. So for me, drinking pineapple + oj should = instant acid. While I felt a little of the acid kicking up, it subsided by lunch.

My wife was working from home today (I work from home every day btw) and she is in the middle of a cleanse so she hooked me up with a green juice for lunch (see below). Not the best tasting juice, but my body needs the nutrients from the greens badly so I just dealt with it.

A couple of hours later and I was having my first real urge to eat solid foods of the day. This could be because my routine for the past week has been to drink juices all morning and day and eat a solid meal at night for dinner. Or it could be just that I was actually really hungry for the 1st time of the day. Regardless, a drank some coconut water (the good stuff, not the from concentrate Zico brand drink). I later drank the other half of my breakfast juice, but it leaves me wondering if I am taking in too much acid from the pineapple.

As the day progressed my energy levels took a dive and just as I was thinking I would escape day one without a detox symptom a heavy head-ache came on and pretty much knocked me on my ass for the rest of the night. It's just starting to get better as I type this out. Over the past few weeks of juicing these head-aches have cropped up from time to time. To weather the storm I just lay down and relax and wait for it to pass.

Day 1 is in the books, tomorrow I need to introduce a new batch of colors and juices into the fast. Looking forward to it.

Juices:

BREAKFAST = Beet, Pineapple, Orange (16oz)

LUNCH = Green Apple, Cucumber, Kale, Rainbow Chard, Cilantro (14oz)

LATE AFTERNOON = Glass of raw coconut water

DINNER = Beet, Pineapple, Orange (16oz)

35 years of damage....

Here I am at the start of a juice fast. I don't know how long I'll take this journey, could be 5-10-20-30-even 60 days. I'll see how it goes and adjust.

My goal(s) is to blog about my thoughts, feelings, moods, and overall experience while doing the fast. Penning words provides therapy for me typically and could also hold me accountable I suppose as well. Also, hopefully you have stumbled onto this blog somehow and can use it to possibly answer some of your questions, fears, whatever about the fasting process. I know when I wanted to do some research and get some opinions on juice fasts I found a lack of documented day-to-day experiences. I'm guessing this likely has to do with so many folks having the intent to go through with a serious juice fast but not having the discipline to see it through. I don't stand in judgement of those people, I give them credit for trying and then hopefully getting up and trying again after they falter. My mindset and approach with this fast is very similar to what a person dependent on alcohol or drugs that attends AA or NA would be, except my drug of choice has been food and in-turn eating like complete shit for my whole life really.

Look, all we have is today. If I do happen to get off track, there is always tomorrow to restart that clock.

Here is some foundation...a little about myself and my situation. I was raised by my mom along with my younger brother just outside of Detroit. My mom had a pretty poor diet and she liked to indulge in comfort foods 24/7. She would rarely eat fruits or vegetables. Of course being raised in this environment she allowed her boys to get away with the same things. So that's how I got this mess started. Last year I lost my mom to cancer. She was 53 years old. I am 100% convinced that her diet played a very large role in her death. I cannot allow myself to go down this same road. I have too much to live for, and besides I like living anyways. These days I live in one of the healthiest and vibrant cities in the US, Austin TX. Since we moved here I've put on a few lbs as I have binged on fantastic Tex-Mex, BBQ and Pizza (yeah I am a pizza snob too...that's one of my passions...read about our adventures @ pizzahunt.net btw...and before you think I'm breaking my fast by reviewing pizzas, keep in mind that we've got a bunch of reviews from the past few months queued up so it appears seamless despite my fast). My wife has long been a healthy eater. Having her support (she digs fresh juices and will try virtually anything) has already been a huge help. Also, the area I live in (South Austin) has two great fresh juice stands within biking distance (Daily Juice and The Juice Box). For me this is key as I don't always feel like juicing at home, and in a pinch I can get over there for some damn good fresh juice. We have an awesome home juicer(Breville) and I intend to use it everyday as well.

I'm 5'9" and I currently weigh 175 lbs. This is down from my all-time high weight of 181. I tipped the scales at 181 about 2 weeks ago when I started to cycle in fresh fruit and vege juices as meal replacements. I'm not sure what to expect on the weight loss front on the fast. I've read that some people lose about 1 lb a day while others avg 1/2 lb a day. I'm not overly concerned about the weight I lose...the lowest I've been since college was last year when I got down to 156 on a slow-carb diet. It was BS though as I knew in the back of my mind that eating that way was unsustainable for me. However, in the past 2 weeks I've found that juicing is completely sustainable for me. I got started a few weeks back by having 1 green juice a day. At first I would get completely debilitating headaches about 30 minutes after gulping it down. These subsided after a few days though. Over time I started to incorporate more and more juices into my day as I worked my way towards a complete juice fast that I will start tomorrow/Monday. The last few days I was drinking three 16-20 oz juices a day along with 1 solid meal. This was my way of easing into the fast. After eating like garbage for so long I didn't want to freak my body out too bad haha.

I plan to take it very easy during this fast. No weight-lifting, marathon running, etc. I've read various places about really allowing your body and soul to rest and heal during the fast. That is my intention. Some light bike riding, walking, swimming and yoga is recommended. Maybe I'll mix some of that in. The kids start school again tomorrow, sounds like and excuse to walk everyday to me.

My main concerns/reservations with the fast are:

1. I'm worried that my energy levels will be so low early on that I'll be a detriment to those around me and home and at work.

2. Lack of fiber = constipation. I don't know if I am a holder or releaser. I'll find out soon though.

3. Keeping myself nourished throughout the early part of the day. I've realized that juicing 3 times a day is not too challenging for me, however I need to do a better job of those in-between meals. My laziness can catch up with me during those times and I need to juice until I am full. There is no rules on how many times to juice a day. 3-6 seems to be the norm. So I need to be more dilligent throughout the day.

Oh, and finally. A friend asked me why I was doing this the other day. Easy. It's a reset. I need to essentially press the reset button on my life and start fresh. Pumping a shit ton into my weary body is a fantastic way to do it. Releasing the toxins from 35 years of nonsense will go a long way towards feeling better too.

So...check back. Heck, bookmark the blog and put it in your daily Internet cycle. Having some folks watching will help me keep on track...so drop in and drop an email or comment if you so please.

See ya back here tomorrow....