Day 19 - To juice or not to juice?

Don't let the title alarm you. I am not giving up my fast. But I am wondering if maybe I should be juicing and not just mixing. I have read lots on both and seems that not one is better than the other... or is it? Juicing has been known to push toxins out and help with the detox process. I think that although my goal has been to help with my digestive problems and lose the swelling and water weight packed on from pounds and pounds of medications, the ultimate goal is health. There are people out there who already think I am complete 'quack' and that the body does not need to go to these extremes. However I think it does. I think detoxing is something your body needs help doing and should be done at least once a year. Which brings me to the idea of juicing. I am happy with the results of my mixing fast so far but I am ready to push myself and take it to the next level. After talking to a friend who is going to begin something similar himself I think I will follow in the footsteps and see what other changes I can notice. 

My plan is as follows. Continue mixing for this week. 1 because I am still at work and juicing requires a little bit more effort and a lot more cleanup. 2. I am worried or excited there may be some sort of healing reaction by moving to the next step and I need to have no commitments so I can push through it and stay on track. 

After this week is over I will try juicing for the day and allow myself one smoothie at the end of the day if I am feeling I need something of more substance. After that week I will move to one solid week of juice and then back to mixing the following week and try and do 1 week juice followed by 1 week mixing. The goal will be to work myself up to one or more solid weeks of juice juices and mostly green juices. 

Those are my future plans but I am trying to remember to live in the moment. A fast is a great tool to make you slow down and think about the now... and right now I am tired. I did some swimming and feel like I have increased my energy in the pool already. Such a great feeling when your body pushes past a threshold. This fast may be one of the best things I have ever done, in more ways than slurping! 

Day 18 - Blueberries and Blue Water

Today I went a bit overboard with blueberries. I put them in every smoothie. They were delicious but I think I will pay for it tomorrow. I think  over mixed today. I did however swim for about a half hour which was such a great release. I am hoping after working out a little bit more than I did the past 2 days I will sleep well. I am still struggling with a good nights sleep and it is almost torture. I am simply exhausted and the concept of the fast is to give more energy and I feel the opposite.

Nothing new today other than the scale was down a bit which always makes me happy. Hopefully tomorrow the good news will be a feel of energy and good sleep.

Hard to believe I am almost on week 3. Time has just flown by. I am starting to really enjoy the mixes. There is so much variety. I still have so many ideas and vegetable and fruits I have not tried yet. The possibilities are almost endless and for that I think I will keep going and aim for 60 days... or more!

Empowered by the thought of healing myself and pushing myself all in one! There is nothing more satisfying then thinking that your body was not capable of something a few weeks ago and now is. I think I am on that path now.

CHEERS!

Day 17 - Coldplay

Sitting here listening to paradise by Coldplay thinking about the progress made this week. So after my random day of weight fluctuations in the wrong direction I am back down but not down past where I was. Feels sort of deflating to be honest. I read all these other blogs about people who had such progress on their juice fast that I wonder if I am doing something wrong or maybe it will happen in the end or most importantly perhaps I just need to be patient. I need to remind myself the medications and health problems did not pile on over night so this takes time. Forgive me if I sound like a broken record. I guess that is part of the point of this blog. To get this all out and hopefully see progress in the form of the physical and mental state of my body.

I did do a small workout yesterday so at least I am making my goals that I can control a possibility. I will start my second workout very soon. I think I will do the same thing as yesterday since I am lacking motivation to go beyond that - at this point.

I did have a successful day in other areas. I was able to cross off course work from my imaginary to do list. It is such a nice feeling to be able to check things off a list. Like a pat on the back or simply a feeling os paradise... yeah paradise*

Goodnight and remember to not just eat your veggies - sip them!

Sweet 16*

Tired but a productive day.

No real change since yesterday.

Sort of have nothing much to say but felt like I should do even a short post.

I discovered two things today.

1. I quite like carrot juice and peach. Yup.
2. I have almost enough areoplan miles to go to NYC for free. Sort of made my day.

Come on juice diet work your magic so I can roam the city and feel good while doing it. Besides it would not be a summer if I did not take a bite of the apple... would it?

Goodnight!

Day 15 - Headphones and nail polish

I have literally been sitting on my bed listening to music and picking shellac off my nails for hours. I am in a complete state of blah. It's not that I do not have energy but I feel my motivation is gone. Not with regards to this fast but just in general. I feel like doing nothing. I am happy doing nothing. Sort of in my own little musical world. Currently listening to Maroon 5 Pay Phone - explicit version. I feel zen despite the angry lyrics. Interesting moment of realization. This song is quite angry.

I have read that people who do fasts feel the fog leave their head and feel mentally clear. I think part of me is there and part of me is stuck in the drifting fog. Or maybe there isn't any fog and I am just lazy. Hard to say at this point.

I cut back my smoothie intake today. No real reason just sort of did. See what happens tomorrow.

I am excited I have made it to 15 days. Feel a sense of accomplishment that I have not felt in a while. I am still not into the idea of working out but have decided to push myself before next week begins. Tomorrow marks 1 month until my surgery so seems like a fitting day to try something more active than putting in and taking out earbuds out.

;) Cheers!

Day 14 - Two Weeks

Today I am feeling sort of annoyed. I do not really feel like blogging or doing anything really. I am hoping this is a detox phase. Being unmotivated and swamped with work is not a good combination. Terrible combination actually.

I find it really frustrating that the scale is still up and down. I sort of figured there would be no ups at all. I have not consumed more juice than before so it is puzzling to see it go up. Maybe this is why I am annoyed today. I guess this is all part of the process and the journey. Nothing worth while is ever easy. Or so I am told. I will not admit defeat though.

I think my body has been through a number of crazy things and things that have taken their toll in the past few years. These things did not happen all over night so the recovery won't either. I am realizing on this fast more and more I need to learn and accept patience. I have gotten out of the habit of doing yoga other than my morning routine. I think that will be my challenge for next week. Ease back into at least 10 mins of yoga every day. Meditation and moving your body is so powerful. I sort of want this fast to lead me to new patterns to include in my daily life afterwards.

Today I opened the fridge to find my cucumber and saw some hummus dip. Although hummus is relatively healthy - I seem to have problems digesting it and even more problematic is the fact that I gorge on it if I decide to even consume a spoonful. I realized when I saw this that my immediate thought was to open a bag of carrots and devour. Clearly I still have work to do. Although I am not craving solid foods and I never ate unhealthy I seem to use food even the healthy stuff to deal with stress. This is something that must change. 14 days may seem like a long time but not long enough to change.

Here comes another day tomorrow and hopefully a happier more relaxed day. Namiste.

Day 12 & 13 - A blend

A blend of the weekend days.

Yesterday was the Stag and Doe for my friend and all went well. I did go and buy some organic naked juice so I had something to sip on throughout the day and night.

Today I feel very drained and exhausted. Mostly because the long day yesterday and late night. I don't think my feeling of drained and even weak is food related. I feel like I am absorbing nutrients and starting to see changes on the outside. Which makes me happy!

Progress in any shape or form is always welcomed!

I do see a connection of when I am drinking store bought juice that I crave more fruits and things that are sweet. Once school ends I will try and avoid store bought juice all together. Right now with busy schedules it seems to be something that is needed and for the most part is almost as good as juicing my own.

Short post for a blended two days!