Juice for the Masses

Juice feasting improved my life in so many ways. After 65-days of fresh veggie and fruit juices, I'd lost the fat, I had lots of energy, my skin was finally clear, and I didn't have to struggle to avoid temptation. For the most part, the cravings had been killed. I still do mini-feasts and have at least 1 green juice every day.

Right now, I'm pushing to complete the first draft of my juicing book. It's meant to give readers lots of different ways to enjoy the benefits of juicing, from daily juice to juice feasting. Hopefully it will introduce juicing to a mainstream audience, as well. Most of my friends and family still think I'm the tofu-eating hippie, and don't get why you'd want to drink something the color of swamp water. Granted I can win almost anyone over with a homemade juice, but since I can't serve tasty green juice to the world, I'm writing this book. The point is to introduce masses of people to the yummy goodness of juicing, and I'm really excited about it!

Pineapple/spinach/carrot/ginger juice for lunch today!

What I Miss about Juice Feasting & a New Blog

It's been over a month since I ended my 65-day juice feast. In hindsight, I wish I'd done a full 90+ days. Still, I'm glad I was able to pull off what I did.

What I miss most about juice feasting was the incredible lightness I felt. (There were also these moments of crazy peacefulness that are hard to describe.) I can somewhat recapture that lighness by eating high raw-vegan, and many days I go 100% raw. I've definitely kept a significant amount of juice in my daily diet, and I've turned a lot of friends on to juicing--especially green juice. Nothing makes me happier than my kids requesting kale/pineapple juice. It's such a fan favorite I try to prep some whenever we're having guests.

I'll incorporate some all-juice days and some mini-feasts, and at some point I'd like to do another long juice feast.

If you're interested in a raw food lifestyle for health, weight loss, increased energy, or just to be a little kinder to the planet, check out my new blog, The Raw Difference. And no, you don't have to be 100% raw or give up any particular food forever in order to benefit from raw foods.

See you on the new blog! (Check out my new running shoes!)

Day 66 - Breaking the Feast!

Independence Day was the 65th and final day of my juice feast. Yesterday I enjoyed a sweet and rich pineapple/kale/ginger juice. A few hours later, I indulged in half a bowl of dried plums (organic and unsulphured, which had pleasantly plumped after an overnight soak. It was a bit strange to be chewing food, soft though it was, after more than 2 months of drinking everything. Other than a moment of slight nauseousness, I felt fine. Later, I had another small juice and then finished the plums.

It surprised me to find that I wasn't ready to end the feast. Before I started, I would've imagined I'd be glad to bring it to an end and enjoy solid food again. Instead, I'm grateful for what I've gotten from the feast, and I'm a little sad to bring it to completion just now.

Day 64

My plan was to post about how this was the final day of my feast. Logically I know I have to wind it up very soon, because of our travel plans, but my spirit longs to stay juicy for a bit longer. Continuing to feast would be very easy right now. I have no desire to move to solid food just yet, but I'll have to bow to practicality.

I went for a 2 hour walk today, and jogged about 3 miles of it. That's become my weekend routine over the last several weeks.

Today's juice:

pineapple/spinach/celery/ginger

grapefruit/orange

watermelon (It's at its juicy best when you squeeze it by hand rather than use the blender. Go make some!!!)

grapefruit/orange

1 more TBD

Day 60!

My original juice feast goal was 30 days, and here I am! I'm not doing 92 days, because of upcoming travel plans, so the current debate in my house is when I should end the feast. Avery, the amazing boyfriend who's been on juice with me whenever he's home, suggested I finish with the last day of the month. But that would be day 61, an unattractive prime number! I can't finish on that day. 62 isn't bad, but honestly I'm trying to push it as close to my travel time as possible, while still giving myself at least a week of transition.

I made a strong green juice this morning--apple/kale/spinach/ginger--and right now I'm sipping an ice cold cantaloupe juice. Life on juice is good!

Day 56 - You Have to Actually DRINK the Juice!

While my cousin was on her 15-day juice feast, she ran into a few days when she couldn't get the number on the scale to go down. Weight loss was her primary reason for doing the feast, so she was pretty frustrated.

That's pretty unusual on a such a short feast. During the early days, the pounds tend to fall away pretty fast. She didn't have a huge amount to lose, but she'd made a radical change in her diet and she'd started exercising. She should've been losing the weight.

After probing a bit, I found out the lazy bum hadn't been drinking enough juice! I made the first and last juice of the day--always green juices. She'd drink those, but then she'd maybe make one in the middle of the day, and sometimes not even that. She wasn't fueling her body with enough calories or nutrients. Once she picked up the quantity of juice, the number on the scale returned to its downward path.

Here's a juice feast tip: You have to actually DRINK the juice!

Today's juice:
pineapple/kale/spinach/ginger
grapefruit/orange
watermelon
grape
(1 more TBD)

Day 54 - Missing the Kitchen

As the end of my feast draws near--just 8 days to go--I realize it's been easier than most people think it could be, I'm not really ready for it to end yet, and I miss the creativity, textures, and tastes of whole foods. I still prepare many of my family's meals, but my inability to sample as I go greatly inhibits my ability to be spontaneous. That's just the way I've learned to cook/prepare food over the last many years.

What I really miss are the times when food prep becomes a loving mediation--Heifetz flowing from the ipod player; a countertop covered in red, green, yellow, purple, and orange fruits of nature, and an end result that pleases my family (most of the time), and makes me feel good about serving them fresh, delicious meals created from the best foods on earth.

Okay, so those meditative food prep days are the exception, rather than the rule. Perhaps a lesson I can take from this juice feast is to make sure those days come more frequently.

Today's Juice:
pineapple/kale/spinach/ginger
watermelon
grapefruit/orange
kale/apple/pear/lemon