Juicing Day 5

A third of the way there, woo!  I feel re-energized...ok, not really, but I am happy with my progress and results, so I'm going to suck it up and stick it out.  Today's juice of the day is apple (2), jicama (1 medium), celery (2 stalks), lime (2 small), and mint (2 cups).  While I have to say that it's a little heavy on the lime, it's quite tasty (and not nearly as minty as I had feared).

For the record, I'm not starving.  I'm not depriving my body of calories (fat is another story), and while I may not be getting 100% of the protein that I "should" be getting every day, 1.) I wasn't eating enough animal protein per day to meet those needs anyways and 2.) not everyone needs a standardized amount of protein in their diet.  I don't live my life according to charts and formulas.  I've found (before and during this juice fast) that listening to your body is critical.  Counting calories will drive you crazy.  Eat when you're hungry (or in this case, drink a raw, fresh pressed juice) and stop when you're full.  Make sure you get enough exercise/movement for the amount of food that you're ingesting.  If you're moving less, then eat less.

I've been catching a lot of criticism for my experiment, everything from joking around to "poor baby" to downright lectures.  Well, you can rest assured that I'm not dying or getting sickly, and I'm certainly not a victim here.  I find it amusing how people tell me what conventional "experts" consider norms (did you know that the mayo clinic discourages people from drinking juices at all?  And if you do drink juice, they suggest you get store bought pasteurized juice...HA), mostly bits and pieces of information without really asking me about the juice fast or researching it on their own.  Juicing, in general, is something that most people should at least incorporate into their daily diets, especially given the fact that the majority of us don't get nearly enough fruits/veggies in our diets.  In each of my juices, I'm getting at least a daily dose of veggies/fruits.  If you are thinking about juicing, just remember to "eat your colors" and juice a wide variety of vegetables and fruits (although, you should probably limit the amount of fruits in your juice...just enough to add a touch of sweetness).  Heck, "eat your colors" should be a daily mantra when it comes to fruits & veggies in general.

Cheers,

Dorothy

PS I promise to update my posts with some pictures as soon as I charge my camera.

PPS I am planning on changing the frequency of these journal style entries.  Since I've transitioned rather well into drinking just juice, I will be just posting some recipes (with photos) of my juice successes.  I'll probably update and summarize at the 15 day mark and then again at the 30 day mark, just for progress sake.

Creating a New Reverence for Food Preface

  I have decided to undertake a major challenge and tackle a 60 day juice fast.  That's right, 60 days of cozying up to my juicer with a bag of produce, drinking it exclusively, and liking it.  So many people take food for granted, they eat junk because it tastes good or because they have decided that they are to busy to prepare and consume healthful food.  Others hold food in such high regard that they practically worship artisinal, vegan fed, nitrate free, bacon anything.  They are more interested in the culture of food snobbery than the origin and purpose of their food.  My aim is to understand the fundamental nature of food, the interplay of flavors of vegetables, fruits, herbs, and spices as well as the important nutritional role that fruits and vegetables have my body.

  Food, in its purest form is nourishment both for the body and soul, and I am hoping that by completing this juice fast, I can gain a better understanding of the food that I grow and consume.  All the fruits and vegetables that I am going to be juicing are going to be local and organic whenever I can find it.  I will be purchasing the bulk of my ingredients from local farmer markets so that I can have a better understanding of the hard work and passion that goes into the foods that I eat.  I will be documenting my progress here in the form of daily updates (well, most days) as well as photos and recipes of my tastiest juices (as well as produce combinations that just don't work for me).

  I will be regularly consulting a nutritionist in order to monitor my nutritional intake as well as to talk about the effects of the fast on my body.  I will also review the process approximately every two weeks in order to gauge my progress, in case something happens and I can't continue with my journey.  I welcome any and all questions that you might have, as well as any funny comments and words of encouragement for me.  Here's to a journey of culinary enlightenment.

Cheers,

Dorothy