autumn juicefeast - days 17 to 23

Sorry, about this. Messing up the usual every-other-day posts.

This week has been slightly unusual in a number of ways and almost every day I've been busy from the moment I got up right up till past a reasonable bedtime. I had some tough emotional stuff to deal with at the start of the week, and it threw me off kilter. So, in summary, I've continued to have, usually, 4 pints of juice a day plus a ton of herbal teas, but I acknowledge that I'm really not getting enough juice. The days I managed to write something are below.

day 19

starvation diet

One day I'm not hungry, not interested in juicing or drinking, and the next day I'm ravenous. Perhaps it takes a while for my body to recognise the hunger for what it is. Hmmm.

I had a big meeting today, followed by the busiest afternoon ever. There's a project with a wildly unrealistic deadline and we're all frantically trying to pull it all together so as not to disappoint those who pushed for the idealistic launch date. Anyway, it meant I didn't have time to make lunch juice despite being hungry and wanting more juice. 

You know, this has been a busy week so far, with lots to do, including appointments after work and I really am starting to feel the strain. I need a long, hot bath and a day of downtime. It's also messing up my ability to tell how well I'm feeling on the juice. Ho hum.

today I had:

carrot-apple-orange-strawberry juice x2

tomato-celery-pepper-basil-coriander-garlic juice with flax oil, salt and fresh ground pepper (tasty!)

day 23

the tipping point

melon juice (I love that frothy, creaminess...)

carrot-celery-romaine-parsley-apple-orange

white miso soup

Got home very tired from a physically and emotionally draining week. We relented and had a cup of miso for dinner. We talked a little about plans for transitioning. YummyHubby is having a 'double smoothie' (one litre of green smoothie which he takes to work) every day, so he's a few days ahead of me. I'll add in one smoothie a day for a couple of days, then move from that onto one smoothie, one juice, one raw meal. I'd like to think I could stick to that as 'the way I eat' - at least if I could do that for a month it would help with a) weight loss and b) to keep me raw when I return to solids. It's time to hatch a plan for post-transition.

autumn juicefeast - days 15 & 16

Hurray for us! We're half way through. It's really been easy so far. I wonder if it's a case of being an old hand, or it's just the right time to do this, or, well, no idea. YummyHubby isn't doing bad either, with barely any detox symptoms, so it feels very comfortable.

day 15

We went for a colonic today. YummyHubby's first time, and we were both a bit anxious, but it was fine. The lovely bottom lady recommended he take probiotics for a while - same happened to me first time. But otherwise he got a good report card. She was very impressed that I seemed to be detoxing a lot. There was a shock in there, too, though: I passed what looked like a parasitic worm. Ewwww!!!! How did that happen? I've been vegetarian for 25 years! The bottom lady said it was dead, probably been stuck in my colon or small intestine for a while but the detox had shifted it. So that bit's good. Better out than in. She also said I could have ingested it via veggie food from somewhere with poor hygiene standards. It's unlikely it's been there since the last time I ate meat. I'm still reeling from the shock!

Today I had:

orange-carrot-apple-ginger juice (soooo good!)

savoury broth

savoy cabbage-carrots-apple-celery

I made the savoury broth by adding chopped ginger, chilli pepper, garlic, onion to hot water on the stove and kept it warm while I added a bay leaf, cinnamon, cumin, turmeric, nutmeg and a splash of tamari. I let it sit for 15 minutes or so and added a spoonful of coconut oil at the end. It was quite tasty and satisfied my savoury cravings. I think it might be salt I'm missing, so I'll remember to put a tiny bit in my savoury juices from time to time.

I also did a weigh-in today. I've lost another 4 pounds, so that's a total of nine so far. Hurray!

day 16

So I might have spoken too soon about dry skin and not much detox... my face is feeling a little taught, so I've bought a richer face cream and will try to up my oils intake. I also spent most of the afternoon-evening with a headache, which felt like a detox headache. Bleh.

We went shopping for a few bits and pieces today then were going to spend the afternoon on the allotment, weeding and planting the spring bulbs. Didn't happen. YummyHubby went up and harvested a mammoth marrow for a colleague and that's about it. I've done a few chores between lying on the sofa not doing much. I entertained myself by watching a video of David Wolfe being crazy and inspirational, and read a few blogs here and there. 

Today I had:

"Pre-Christmas Spirit" juice: orange-apple-lemon-lime-pear juice with nutmeg and cinnamon

coriander-carrots-celery-pepper-ginger with cardamom (another failed experiment!)

mango-pineapple-golden kiwi-passion fruit

We bought a litre size Sigg bottle for YummyHubby today so we can both take smoothies/juice with me. We also had a chat about how he's going to approach his diet post-juicefeast. Avoiding dairy and gluten in general in order to have the good stuff now and again - so no cheese sandwiches for lunch, but perhaps some extra-special cheese at home with great crackers and homemade chutney. So it's a 'treat' rather than the norm. He's going ethical vegetarian, with a handful of 'get out of jail free' cards for special occasions. We talked about choosing the best option when the range is limited. Despite him working in one of the most affluent areas of London the range is not fabulous when it comes to veggie food. In fact, it's extremely limited; so he needs a bit of leeway there. But it's positive stuff. I'm looking forward to seeing how we both step up the healthy eating habits post juicefeast.

autumn juicefeast - days 13 & 14

day 13

Had a bit of a day and didn't manage lunchtime juice. I'm not hungry any more. I mostly want hot tea, and I do get the urge to have savoury broth type teas. I'm avoiding miso as YummyHubby reckons that's what was giving him hunger pangs. 

Today I had:

pineapple, mango, papaya, passion fruit (new soft fruit peeler worked a treat!)

outrageous juice, courtesy of YummyHubby: savoy cabbage-carrot-chili-basil-beetroot-leek-pepper

This needs some explaining. YummyHubby generally takes my lead in the kitchen and asks me what to put in the juice, but this time he was feeling adventurous and decided he would make something up. The result was dinner, and it deserved its "outrageous" name. Oh boy. Super spicy and strong flavoured. We had to sip it, it took forever to drink because of the taste explosion in our mouths. I don't think we'll be making it again!

day 14

melon juice

beet-romaine-cucumber-parsley-apple-pear

pineapple 

We were tired this evening and just couldn't get green juice sorted out, but my 'blood' at lunchtime was substantial and packed with parsley so I figured it would be ok. Last time I juicefeasted I got a bit of candida, so I am aware that I need to keep my greens up and my fruits down.

Wow, and also, we're half way tomorrow. Yeehaa!

autumn juicefeast - days 11 &12

It's going well. We're only getting light detox symptoms - which concerns me, to an extent, as we should surely be getting rid of junk at this stage. YummyHubby has decided to have a green smoothie for breakfast as he's getting too hungry. He had a moment of wavering, wondering if he really was going to last much longer. He's set a target of next weekend and then he'll have another think - whilst also believing that if he makes it half way then he'll want to keep going. So that's positive.

We're still adding crystal manna and flax oil to our savoury dinner juice and having our honey-filled coconut hearts to keep the oil coming in. It seems to be working. My skin is fine - it hasn't started to dry out, though it did threaten to briefly.

day 11

We're both aware that we need to drink more juice in general, and more greens too. It's really quite a challenge some days, but today I think we did quite well, whilst also having yummy treat juice. I had a green smoothie today for breakfast but it was too heavy. It kept me going until dinner time and even then if the juices hadn't been so darn' tasty I might have had to force them down.

green smoothie (banana, peach, spinach with maca and coconut butter)

greens-celery-cucumber-mint

strawberry-mango-orange (gorgeous)

day 12 

I made lots of juice in the morning and packed us off with Siggs and bottles. Then I made more at work with the leftover produce from Monday - only to realise that I'd be having pretty much the same juice all day long. Doh!

carrot-apple-spinach-ginger-celery (x2)

melon juice straight up

Feeling good...

autumn juicefeast - days 9 & 10

day 9

Did a fair few chores today and busied about a lot. Quite tired and washed out by bedtime, that's for sure.

Today I had:

watermelon juice

orange-carrot-romaine-apple-ginger

broccoli-mint-lemon-pear-grape

day 10

Feeling pretty good today. Maybe because I've upped the greens and veg. I'm also nearly over this cold that's been dragging me down for the past week, so my energy is coming back. YummyHubby still seems to be escaping the ravages of detox.

Today I had:

pineapple juice

romaine-parsley-celery-carrot-orange-apple

beetroot-carrot-celery-greens-pepper-garlic with pinch chili powder and curry!

It turns out the oil we've been using is actually flax oil, not hemp oil. I thought it didn't feel so oily or taste so overpowering! I much prefer flax oil.

YummyHubby is going to start including green smoothies for breakfast as he gets too hungry in the mornings. I'm still undecided whether to join him. I'm not really getting hunger pangs, so that's not an issue, but I'm not sure we'll have time to make smoothie and juice in the morning and clean up afterwards. We'll see.

autumn juicefeast - days 7 & 8

quarter of the way there

day 7

We're running out of fruit and veg already! I bought a couple of baby watermelons from the greengrocer on my way in to work and made over 2 litres of juice out of them. It was probably too much straight up fruit juice, really, but boy was it good. There is a downside though. It's a potent diuretic so I had to get up three times during the night to pee - my bladder was bursting to the point of discomfort each time, too. Must remember a) not to have quite so much in one go in future and b) to have watermelon juice next time I get PMT.

Today I had:

pineapple juice

watermelon juice

spinach-celery-cucumber-pear juice

day 8

Weigh-in day! YummyHubby(tm) lost 2 pounds and I lost 5 pounds, so we're very happy with progress on that front. My skin is looking good, though I'm concerned about it drying out so I'm keeping up my oil intake. I keep checking in with YummyHubby to make sure he's doing ok and not starving or feeling faint. I'm so pleased with his progress!

Today I had:

melon juice

mango-papaya-passion fruit-kiwi-pineapple

greens-celery-cucumber-apple-carrot

autumn juicefeast - days 5 & 6

Wow. YummyHubby is doing fantastically well. He's not suffering any detox symptoms so far (!) and the only side effect is the odd moment of lightheadedness which I think all juicefeasters get at some point.

We aren't remembering to take all of our superfoods and supplements so I'm going to have to sort that out. We get a huge delivery tomorrow of more green and less fruit, which I feel I'm gravitating towards. 

The big thing I'm excited about is that I seem to have almost picked up from where I left off in terms of needs, desires and focus. I don't feel hunger pangs or food cravings. The not-so-great habits I had in the big juicefeast earlier this year have evaporated. I'm having a lot of fruit juices because that's what is in the fridge/fruit bowl, but I'm looking for more greens. Last time I forced the greens down. Even celery doesn't taste that bad. So this is all good news!

I wrote those first paragraphs early on day 5 and then succumbed to the temptations of dates and miso soup, so perhaps I was jumping the gun a little. Though I still truly believe I'm in a much stronger position than I was at this point last time round. It's fine. I'm not worried.

day 5

Today I had:

pineapple juice (yum!)

miso soup (ok, so I caved in... but I lasted four whole days without it.)

gazpacho in a glass

2 medjool dates 

carrot-beetroot-spinach

crystal manna, hemp oil, coconut oil, bee pollen

day 6

Today I had:

watermelon

orange-carrot-apple-ginger

romaine-celery-pear-alfalfa

crystal manna, coconut oil

I feel and look better than I did a week ago, despite the last vestiges of this cold clinging on for dear life. I had my first hunger pangs today, but I still think I'm way ahead compared to last time, so it's all good.

I'm hoping for my package from the weight-loss fairy (credit to Bunny Berry for that expression!) when I get weighed on Saturday. YummyHubby's love handles and pot belly are disappearing. Bit of a shame, really, I've become quite attached to that little belly. I'll just have to put up with a six-pack instead ;)

autumn juicefeast - days 3 & 4

It's been a challenge. I'm still battling a cold accompanied by an evil headache. YummyHubby is mostly just hungry.

day 3 

I stayed off work, dozed, listened to some podcasts and dozed again, to see if the coughing and spluttering would clear up. I don't like spreading germs around and am lucky to be able to decide to stay home and take care of myself.

We made a ton of juice first thing, before I was totally washed out, so YummyHubby had his first taste of taking juice to work with him and I could just get up and go to the fridge to get my juice when I needed it. YummyHubby will be getting juice from the juice bar near where he works on weekdays, so our daily consumption will differ and the juice lists from now on relate to what I drank. 

Today I had:

orange-apple-carrot-ginger juice (extra ginger to help clear out my respiratory tract)

orange-apple-carrot-ginger-greens-mint juice

spinach-romaine-mint-pear-cucumber juice

lots of water, herbal teas, crystal manna, hemp oil and coconut oil treats.

Turns out the juice bar near work for YummyHubby does have decent juices, boosters, superfood shots and so on, so he's quite happy. Hurray! The nearest juice bar for me is ok, but a little tame. They don't have what we'd call hardcore juice - mostly fruit, and no greens, though they do one juice with celery. It'll do in a pinch but not ideal. Whereas YummyHubby is totally set up with ubergreen juices to go. Hurrah!

day 4

Today was much the same as yesterday. I stayed off work, slept and dozed my way through the day, trying to get rid of this cold and headache. I hate that I tend to be slow recovering from anything that involves headaches or my respiratory system. But I'm on the honey and pollen and with the juicefeast cleansing properties I should build up my immune system soon.

I am delighted to see that I've lost the bloat I acquired just prior to and during my holiday. I've lost a couple of pounds since starting the juicefeast but I think I must have lost a good few during last week's green smoothie and salad regime, too. Though I didn't get weighed before I started on the clean 'n' green regime last week, I look a lot slimmer than I did. Hurray for green smoothies!

Talking of which, the lovely Penni over at Real Food Tulsa is also juicefeasting right now, but with a twist - she's adding some green smoothies and blended soups into the mix. I suggested to YummyHubby that we could do that if things got tricky. I could certainly go for some miso soup right now...

Today I had:

orange-peach-passion fruit juice (mmm, thick and creamy. Delicious!)

orange

'gazpacho' tomato-cuke-basil-leek-apple-peppers-lime

herbal teas with honey, hemp oil, coconut butter treats

autumn juicefeast - days 1 & 2

day 1

We started off with our two pints of water. No MSM as I was not convinced by it during the Global Juicefeast. I just didn't experience the benefits everyone else talked about.

We made a big green juice, with spinach, chard, celery, apples and pears, which was actually very good, despite the celery. Or maybe my tastebuds adjusted after 65 days of it last time around and that's stayed with me.

Then I showed YummyHubby how to skinbrush and after we both showered we snuggled on the sofa and watched a movie and sipped herbal teas. We're both fighting off colds at present, plus I'm plagued by nasty headaches, so it was a write-off day anyway.

Early afternoon, we had a mint-melon combo which was lovely and fresh, followed by "gazpacho in a glass" for dinner.

More herbal teas with honey and an early night.

day 2

Made a big tropical juice for brekkie, while listening to The Archers. Papaya, pineapple, mango, lime, passion fruit and oranges. Delicious! We had our uber-green-celery  juice for 'lunch'with some hemp oil and a bit of an experiment with spinach-parsley-beet-apple-carrot for dinner, which turned out to be quite nice, with just a touch of earthiness.

YummyHubby is doing surprisingly well. I can't tell if it's detox or the headaches I've had intermittently for the past week, but I'm feeling rough, and rubbing lavender oil into my temples to keep the pain at bay.

We've made some coconut oil treats. The oil's needed to stop your skin drying out, if nothing else. But it also provides some basic calories and nutrients. I melted the coconut butter in the dehydrator, we blended in some maca and a pinch of cacao (which is a bit naughty, I know) and then for others we made honey centres. We left half of the coconut butter to almost set in the chocolate moulds, scooped a small hole out, poured in the honey then poured more liquified coconut oil over the top and stuck the tray in the fridge to set. Yum! 

Tomorrow I'll be calling the natural health centre to book us both in with the lovely Annette.

Before I go, I just want to shout our a huge congratulations to YummyHubby for making it through 2 days of juicefeasting. Hurray!

autumn juicefeast - intro

Wow. I'm back again already.

When I did the big juicefeast earlier this year YummyHubby was evidently inspired and said he'd like to do it at some point. So we set aside the month of October as a practical choice; post-summer hols and before it gets too cold, avoiding any major family celebrations like birthdays and anniversaries etc. It seemed like the right month. And boy did we choose well. Over this summer I slipped down that slide towards cooked foods. It started with the odd cooked thing here and there, mostly because we now have an allotment producing lots of veg, some of which is not edible raw, or so prolific the only way to eat it all was to have it cooked. So, I started cooking healthy, homemade food several nights a week. I stuck to raw breakfast and lunch but eventually more cooked snacks snuck in and then we went on holiday and I ate all sorts of things I haven't had for ages. Thinking back, even now, I'm shocked at how easy it was to slip back into old habits I thought were entirely killed off. So this juicefeast is well-timed. I need to drag myself back from the very edge of the abyss!

We spent the past week transitioning. We've had green smoothies for breakfast, raw salads for lunch, raw/dehydrated snacks and raw dinners of soups and crackers, pates and so on. Then, on Saturday we started the juicefeast regime. We're taking lots of what I learned from the Global Juicefeast and incorporating it into our regime, though we're not doing all of it. 

So this is our intention for our daily regime:

2 pints of water first thing

minimum 4 pints of juice (I found 8 pints a real challenge)

at least one green & celery juice 

herbal teas with honey

coconut butter, maca, hemp oil and misc other supplements

Plus as often as we can, the following:

skinbrushing

enemas/colonics

exercise and relaxation

We're juicing until the end of the month, for 30 days, and transitioning starts Monday, November 3rd.

Our goals are slightly different. I want to regain control of my food choices and lose the weight I've put on since the last juicefeast ended (I haven't gained it all back, but I have gained a chunk of it. I expect all of the regained weight to drop off during the juicefeast, and a few more pounds, hopefully.) YummyHubby is mostly doing this as an experiment. He's become more conscious of his health since he started running two years ago, and he's hoping to come out the other side with improved health which will improve his running performance. He copes very well on a mixed omnivore, mostly healthy and balanced non-raw diet, so if he cleans up and has optimal nutrition he expects his physical fitness to peak as a response. Though if you ask him what his aim is he'll say "to survive it" since he's only ever managed to stick to juice for 24 hours each time he's tried in the past.

So, welcome to our journey. Enjoy the ride.