Juice fast, day 5…

I’ve decided that I will not break my juice-fast until tomorrow at lunch. I’ve read that you have to be careful with how you break a juice fast. If you go crazy and eat anything you want you could make your stomach upset. I’m eating out for a celebratory graduation lunch so I’ve already scoped out the menu and know what I’m going to order. Light, fresh & yummy.

Juice fast rules…

• Drink at least 32 oz. juice a day (to keep your body from going into starvation mode)
• No smoking or drinking alcohol, caffeine, or dairy
• When you are hungry, drink juice. When you are thirsty, drink juice. There is no limit to the amount of juice allowed.
• If you are juicing for weight-loss, try not to juice too many fruits (because of natural sugars)
• Juice only raw foods
• Drink your freshly prepared juice right away (nutrients and enzymes deplete after sitting due to being exposed to oxygen)
• The length of your fast can be as long or short as you wish. 1 day, 2 days, 8 days, 60 days. Just make sure you listen to your body.

*If you don’t think you’re quite ready for a full juice fast, see my post on Juice Fasting for Beginners.

How to break a juice fast… Keep juicing while adding these foods:

• Day 1… Raw fruit in the morning and afternoon
• Day 2… Lightly steamed non-starchy vegetables (such as spinach, zucchini, asparagus, green beans, onions, cucumbers, tomatoes, cauliflower, broccoli, mushrooms, peppers)
• Day 3… Brown rice, fresh salad
• Day 4… Organic yogurt, unflavored and unsweetened. Eggs.
• Day 5… Meat, chicken, fish, tofu (if eaten)
• Day 6… Beans and other grains
• Day 7… Other foods, as desired
• Tips on no-processed diet rules: Fuel your life

What I juiced today…

I started my day with warm water & lemon (8 oz.) followed by:

Detox Filler: I had this one on day two. Since the banana gives a feeling of satiety I decided to have this one for breakfast to keep me full for the morning. Juice the carrots, apples, and celery first and then put the juice in a blender with the banana. (recipe makes approx. 16 oz. juice)

• 2 carrots
• 1 green apple
• 2 stalks of celery
• 1 banana

Green giant: Fave. (makes approx. 8 oz. juice)

• 2 kale leaves
• 2 swiss chard leaves
• 2 stalks of celery
• 1 medium cucumber (with skin) 
• 1 lemon
• 1 thumb-size of ginger
• Several hand-fulls of spinach

Best Broccoli (with pears): I substituted the apple with pears today. (makes approx. 10 oz. juice)

• 1 cup broccoli pieces
• 3 carrots
• 2 small pears
• 1 bunch of parsley
• 1/2 lemon

Veggie detox: I made this juice for the first time a couple of days ago. Yay for purple juice! (recipe makes approx. 8 oz. juice)

• 3 carrots
• 3 stalks of celery
• 1/2 small beet
• 1/2 lemon
• 1 thumb-size of ginger

Total liquid consumed today: 50 oz.

Hunger review… On days 1, 2 & 3 I just simply missed food. I felt satiated due to the rich nutritional quality of the juice but I really missed food. The funny thing was that I craved healthy foods. An egg for breakfast, fresh veggies, brown rice, peanut butter, hummus, fresh salad, a veggie burger, taco night with black beans, avocado, fresh tomatoes, veggie crumbles… I felt like folding. But on day 4 it was totally different; no cravings. Day 5 has been the same; calm, happy, peaceful.

Positive results… One of the results on the positive list from yesterday is “spiritual journey: sense of peace and calm within.” I saw that one and said to myself, “Nope, that hasn’t happened.” But I think it has. No, I’m not seeing aura’s or anything like that. But I do have a sense of peace with myself. Yesterday when I had no want to eat, no cravings, and no overwhelming feeling that I was missing out on something, there was an ease in my mind. I tend to have an unhealthy mental dialogue going on inside my head. I know… the yogi side of me tells me that it’s unnecessary and that I need to love myself, but that’s just the thing about an irrational inner dialogue, it is indeed very irrational. So I found myself eating something “bad” and beating myself up about it. But all that eased yesterday, I feel like I have given myself the power to know that I can resist those foods that make me feel bad, and maybe if I do eat them, I know that it is not an everyday occurrence and it is okay.

Weight-loss… I have dropped a few of those pesky pounds that came around this summer due to stress (I’m sure). I plan to keep them off by keeping up with my no-processed/clean eating lifestyle.

Exercise… When juice fasting it’s important to remember that you’re not eating enough carbohydrates for rigorous exercise. Fruit has some carbs, but not enough. When you exercise without enough carb intake your body uses the protein from your muscles for energy and that is not ideal. So exercising is not completely out when juice fasting, but it shouldn’t be near as rigorous. I haven’t exercised as much as I planned this week, but it’s probably for the best. I went on walks with Bailey (dog) and did some light yoga at home.

More info on juice fasting: Fat, Sick, & Nearly Dead