Day Eleven my first free day

I'm counting this as day eleven of my juice fast, even though (yes I know) I was not juice fasting today...this was my free day. Since it's past midnight here...I am back on the juice fast.

So free day. I know that this may be a touchy issue with some of you. There are a lot of people who say that you absolutely MUST break a fast in a certain way. Some common advice on how to "properly" break a fast that I found on the Internet is:

• Make the period of time that you take to gradually reintroduce foods into your diet approximately half the time that you were on the fast. So, since I've been juicing for ten days, that would be a five day period to slowly break the fast; during which, I would be slowly introducing fresh fruit and vegetables, then light foods like soups, broths, and smoothies. 
• Don't rush or eat a large heavy meal.

As far as I can find, the worst thing that will actually happen to you if you don't follow this advice is flatulence, nausea, constipation, stomach ache, vomiting and diarrhea. ...And I was willing to risk it. I had cravings that would only shut up if I promised that I would eat some pickles, root beer and a taco today. Going from pretty much eating whatever I wanted, to just fresh fruit and vegetable juice was amazingly difficult. And I only came this far BECAUSE I allowed myself this free day. Now I'm not good at restraint. This is a skill that I am learning and building within myself, so who knows where I'll be with this down the road? In a few weeks or months, I may feel differently about this. But this is a journey that I will experience first hand. And right now, I need my free days. I don't think I gained weight today. But I also know that I didn't lose any either. So free days are basically a wash. They serve as a way for me to take a break from the austerity of fasting and also allow me to continue on for longer periods of juicing. (At least..that's what I think of them today.)

So what did I eat? -Everything. I had: an egg sandwich, 7 Pizza Bites, 3 Bagel Bites, a taco, a bean burrito with extra onions, a grilled cheese sandwich, HALF a jar of pickles, two liters of diet root beer, a slice of pizza, some jalapeño chips, a sip of cherry icee, and a handful of skittles. So all in all a pretty horrible day diet wise. It tasted great but had almost no nutritional value. But what I was really testing out was how would my body respond? Would I be doubled over in pain? Would explosions of diarrhea come flying out of my ass? The answer is: No. I was fine. I felt pretty much the same. Not tip top yet, but not horrible either. I did notice that I got full with much less food. Nothing too dramatic. A good example would be dinner; it had been about 3 hours since I had eaten, and I ended up having one slice of pizza for dinner (and I couldn't even finish the slice!). Now granted...this is a monstrously large, deep-dish, Chicago-style pizza. But still...before this juice fast, I could have easily eaten two slices, plus a salad. And now, I was full for the rest of the evening on one slice. This is not too bad. I had a lot of different foods, but most of it was in very small portions. I pretty much grazed my way through the last twenty-four hours, and my tummy is no worse for the wear. I think this may be because I am in a way still digesting and drinking juice, so it's not like my body is going from complete nothing to digesting a shoe. I plan on trying a more traditional "break" from the fast in the future. I'm curious to see how it will fare compared to today?

Things I learned today:

1. Contrary to what many, many, many people will say on the interwebs; you CAN break a fast and just start eating. Nothing truly horrible happens. The worst that might happen is an upset tummy and some gas. But even that doesn't always happen. I do think that the more traditional way of breaking a fast, slowly, and by gradually introducing small amounts of lean healthy foods into your diet, probably IS the best way to do it. I'm just saying that if you don't do it that way, and just rush out and get some Taco Bell...nothing really happens. At least...nothing really happened to me. Who knows about you?
2. Nathan's Kosher pickles are not only delicious. But they also only have 5 calories each, making them an awesome guilt-free snack. 
3. Towards the end of my free day I actually did crave juice and fresh water. 
4. My eyes are always bigger then my stomach. 

Day Ten of the juice fast

I made it through day TEN! YES! 

The last few days, I've been pouring over the Internet adding new pins to my Pinterest "Food" board. It's become an amalgamation of fresh healthy food and heavenly cardiac arrest food. One of my favorite new sites that I found was http://norecipes.com; upon which I found the egg sandwich image on the right, which inspired me to want to make it. 

This evening, the Cute Boy and I went shopping in preparation for tomorrow's free day. OMG! I had it all planned out...I wanted to make an egg sandwich. My eggs, would be my masterpiece. I was going to really take my time making them. I was going to enjoy this. I was going to slowly whisk together fresh eggs with milk, butter, salt and pepper. Then cook them over low heat so that the eggs get extra fluffy and creamy. Then...there was supposed to be a light buttery croissant, cut in half, upon which would sit my perfect eggs, and smooth meaty spears of avocado, fresh diced tomatoes, and a sprinkle of Diamond Kosher Salt on top to bring out the flavor of the avocado and tomato. UGH! I had really thought this out. But then...the store was out of edible avocados. They had some that were beat up and mush, and then they had a bag of rock hard ones...which would not be ready tomorrow. Now at this point, looking back, I can see what I *should have done* was get what I needed, and then go to a different store for the avocado. Duh. But what I ended up doing was chuck that idea completely and I headed to the frozen food aisle, where I got a box of sausage egg breakfast croissants. 

Along the way...I also picked up fixin's to make my famous oatmeal buttermilk pancakes! Everyone in the house is looking forward to a pancake breakfast tomorrow...with freshly squeezed OJ. ;) I also got a package of Bagel Bites AND Totino's Pizza Bites. I haven't had Bagel Bites since I was a kid, and I've never had the latter before but the cravings that I've been having have driven them to the forefront of my imagination. The strange thing is, under normal circumstances, I know that I wouldn't be buying the pizza bites. Egg sammich -yeah guilty. That is one of my most favorite comfort foods in the world. Oh...I also got some bread and cheese to make grilled cheese sandwiches...and some peanut butter in case I felt like making a peanut butter and marmalade sandwich. I honestly don't know what I was thinking...except that I wanted to "eat all the food" and I couldn't make up my mind what I wanted to have. As we loaded up the groceries, I told the Cute Boy that he would probably have to eat most of this stuff by himself, after my free day. He understood and was willing to take that bullet for me...cause he's awesome like that...and this shit tastes good even if it's not good for you. By the time I got home, I realized what a blessing this shopping trip really was. I'm not too worried about the next few days. I know that I'm going be fine having a free day and then getting back on the juice fast again. What I did realize though  was how I was going to have to actually "practice" planning, shopping, and cooking healthfully. So most definitely, towards the end of my juice fast...I can see clearly that I'm going to work in cooking. I also see the value in the free days because they're not only pressure release valves, but also very valuable test runs for my life after the fast. So clearly...I've got a long way to go before I have a handle on these things. But I am working on it. and gleaning all lessons (both intended and accidental) along the way. 

Things I learned today:

1. Free days are excellent test runs for the real thing: aka. life after the juice fast.

Day Seven of the juice fast

I could hear a strange grinding coming from the kitchen. My normally powerful juicer sounded like it was going toe to toe with a tree stump. 

"Are you breaking my juicer?" I could hear the motor grinding in the other room.

"WHAAAT? I CAN'T HEAR YOU." [he shuts off the motor] It's all right. Don't worry.

a few minutes later the Cute Boy enters the room bringing me my juice. "How is it?" he asks.

"Ugh. It's bitter. What was that noise in there?"

"Oh some of those pears you bought were really hard and were getting caught in the juicer."

"Pears??? I don't think I bought any pears?"

The Cute Boy goes into the kitchen and emerges once again holding a small, hard, unripe mango. And that would explain why this morning's juice is horribly bitter. I decide to roll with it. I'm going to just drink it quickly and wash it down with some water. On the plus side, it has instantly killed any and all cravings I've had for other things. I love my Cute Boy. He may not know much about produce, but he's learning, and he is so loving and sweet to me, I find myself laughing with him and enjoying the ride daily. Anyhoo... back to juicing. The green mango made the juice today extremely bitter and I'll just say it...was the kind of fiber that kept me running to the bathroom several times today. So noted. Check. No more green mangoes...unless you're constipated. 

For much of today, my cravings were at bay. They really came up when I took a walk past some restaurants around dinner time. OMG. BIG MISTAKE. I made it home to find one of the menfolk chowing down on a large sandwich...the scent of roasted meat wafted up to me and tickled my tummy. I drooled over his sandwich and headed to the juice machine. I brought out my arsenal of fruits and veggies, and took a look at my composition before I juiced it. It was beautiful. Such a large array of colors! I juiced them together and poured my green juice into my glass. It tasted fresh, and made me think of being on vacation in a tropical place. After just a few sips, I was back in control. I'm realizing that I'm going too far between juices. If I juice regularly I don't get hungry and want to binge on...EVERYTHING. But if I go too long (more than 4 hours) then I feel tempted by things that I can handle otherwise. I was actually hungry when this happened and it was the only big craving that I had today. I'm  wondering if I increase the number of juices that I make will the cravings diminish even more? (I think so...so I'm going to try that tomorrow.) 

Things I learned today:

1. Never ever juice an un-ripe mango. Period. 
2. It's better to err on the side of having too many juices then not enough. Keeping your body fed and satisfied really helps diminish cravings and helps you stay on track. 
3. All of the times that my Grandpa smiled warmly and ate our bad food or drank our bad coffee...and then thanked us and told us how good it was...and encouraged us to keep cooking...leading to our *eventual* culinary skill. -He did that because he loved us BIGTIME. And I'm glad that he taught me that skill. Not every juice that we've made so far have been "good". I've made a few, where the Cute Boy smiled and told me how good it was. And when he made me the green mango juice today, I had to do the same. 

Day Five of the Juice Fast

Day Five is done, and I'm still on the path!

Tonight was definitely a good test of my willpower. I got together with my girlfriends for "ladies night". Once a week we get together and hang out, while feasting on a pot luck dinner. I knew how hard it was going to be, simply being in a fun social environment with my besties. I was going to want to eat! The woman who hosts it is notorious for her cooking skills. And every week she made something absolutely delicious and tempting. She, was a goddess of food. Her talents: remarkable. This was going to be one hard evening of temptation and cravings.

I prepared for this evening earlier in the day, with my boyfriend. We went shopping at our local Food Maxx, where we found the fresh produce to not only be more varied, but it was also substantially cheaper then the Safeway where we had previously been purchasing our fruits and veggies. We stumbled upon a sale they were having on fresh pineapple -Two bucks! We loaded up on some other things and ended up heading out of there spending roughly eight bucks for two bags of groceries. Before, we were remarking about how expensive this juice fast was going to be, but now we realize that it's all in where you shop, and if you go to the right places, this will not only improve your health, but may actually be cheaper as well.

Ambrosia was my contribution to "ladies night", and fresh juice if there were any takers. Before I headed out from home, I thanked my housemate for all of the tempting shit he eats every day. I swear! Living with men! Every single day, I am bombarded with all sorts of temptation. There is nothing that they eat, that is not of the delicious and tempting sort. Living with this has been like being on a crash course in ninja diet school. My assiduous practice consists of my housemates making taco's, making burgers, making pizza, eating cake, eating more cake, now they're eating pie...and *I* am drinking my juice. My green juice. It has forced me to train my mind and focus. So I felt pretty confident, that after all this practice of restraint, that I could go into a social situation with lots of delicious foods, and stick to my juice fast. I almost lost my shit when I saw the cheesy rice balls from Trader Joes! I wanted to put them all in my face. And it would have been so easy to make an exception and just have a few, but I knew that my veneer of discipline was thin and that if I gave in to one thing, I didn't think I had the restraint to not have others. So I unpacked my juicer and focused on my dinner. I put all sorts of stuff in it: radishes, blueberries, cucumber, kale, red chard, strawberries, pineapple, and carrots. The hostess, and another friend, both had a shot of the deep browny-green juice. Oh my adventurous ones! How I love thee! It was adorable watching their faces pull up in surprise, when they realized that it did not in fact taste as bad as it looked. "It tastes green" one of them said. It was a pretty good juice. And as I sipped mine, I realized how good my body was feeling. And I had the strength and focus to enjoy my drink, and relax about the rice balls that were winking at me from the table.

Things that I learned today:

1. Food Maxx is amazingly cheap for fresh produce, and therefor rocks my world!
2. Kale makes the juice very dark green.
3. I may be struggling with my cravings, but I am also at the same time, THROUGH my struggles, developing more strength, self-confidence in my ability to succeed, and ability to chose healthy foods on a consistent basis. 
4. Those little tiny frozen pizza bites will haunt your dreams, if you let them. :)