Why Juice Fasting?

I have been dabbling at becoming a “high-raw” eater for the better part of a year prior to the time of this post. My family and I have seen the benefits of eating an organic, raw and nutrient dense diet for several months and we intend to continue to improve our eating habits, I say dabbling however because we do still eat meats and occasional processed foods. This is mostly due to cravings for some of our favorite comfort foods; my deadly weakness is Chinese food followed closely by cheeseburgers.  Over the last few months however I have noticed some things that have brought me to the conclusion that it’s time for a detox.  Things like, difficulty losing weight, occasional pains In my armpits and groin  in the areas of  lymphatic watersheds, fatigue, poor concentration, negative moods and thought patterns. Even though my family has made what many would consider to be major changes in the last  year I felt like something else needed to be done.

Fasting is something I am familiar with, fasting is a part of my Lakota spiritual practices and I have undertaken several fasts over the years. Many other cultural and spiritual traditions practice  fasting as  means of cleansing and purifying the body and focusing the mind. I have undertaken fasts lasting 1,4 and 7 days in the past and all have been good experiences but all have also been associated with cultural spiritual events, This time is different….

When I decided to undertake This particular fast I had several goals In mind, Lose weight, detox and change my mindset and relationship with food. It was not enough to just lose weight, I have become an expert over the years at losing weight, The problem has been keeping it off. When I was younger all I had to do was increase my exercise frequency and/or intensity and the weight would come off. I didn’t have to think about how and why the weight would always come back. As I got older however my priorities changed, I got “distracted” with the mechanics of Life, Things like, a career, a family and being  part of the rat race.  Now at the tender age of 45  things Just don’t seem to work the same, but fortunately due to my education and experience as a Physical therapist and My study of the martial arts, I have developed enough body rapport over the years that I can feel the physiological imbalance occurring within me.

The Most Important Step…

At the time of this post I am actually 7 days into my fast. It has been an overall good experience.  I have lost 8 pounds during this time without any increase in my activity level, keep in mind however that I had already been working out 3-4 days a week.  As I talk to people about the experience of Juice fasting though the inevitable question so far, ends up being,  ”can you give me some recipes? ” At first i wasn’t exactly sure what to do about this question and started writing down any impromptu juicing concoctions I created. I went to the computer and found several juicer recipes with jazzy names like, ” Very Berry Medley, Or Citrus spritzer.”  Then, one of my relatives was telling me about how they were thinking about doing a juice detox and how they bought a juicer and a book about juicing and detox but they haven’t used the juicer at all yet. It was at that point that I had my AHA!… Moment, The Most Important thing you need to to do a juice fast is COMMITMENT!

There is an old saying,

“if you want different results than you’ve always gotten, you need to do something you’ve never done before.”

It’s not that hard to make a checklist of things you’ll need like, oh… buying a juicer, getting veggies and looking up, downloading or copying juice recipes But none of that means anything if you aren’t committed to  taking action.

How To Start your Juice Fast!…

Step 1.  Decide that It is time to take action and commit to that action. How do you go about doing that? well I Like to refer back to Tony Robbins for this step. “Know your reason/outcome”  If your goal is to lose weight then set a number of pounds. Keep in mind that if  you want to lose 20 or more pounds that you may need to fast for 30 or more days.

Step 2. Consult your Doctor! I cannot emphasize this part of the process enough, especially if you are being treated for a medical condition such as Diabetes, heart disease, hypertension or any other chronic disease process that requires medical management.  It is also important to be aware of any food allergies or food and drug interactions. For example some cholesterol meds may require you to avoid consuming grapefruit.

Step 3. Get  Juicer!  If you have already taken care of this part feel free to read on, If you are not sure what to buy however or are on a tight budget, I have included a recommendation for a simple Little Juicer at the end of this Blog post. Just click the widget to veiw the amazon product page. It is The juicer I am using now and it is adequate. The port to put the fruit and vegetables in is small and  requires a little more time to cut the food items into smaller pieces. Also, it has only one speed setting But it has plenty of power to do the job for your average Juicer.

Step 4.  research your Recipes and food requirements. There are a number of blogs out there on the subject and many have good recipes available on the right on site.  For our purposes, I will refer you to the web page of the two famous juicers that inspired me.  ”fat, Sick and nearly dead”   is an amazing movie about two men who changed their lives and their health through Juice fasting.  Here is a link to Joe’s Juice Recipe Page: Juice Recipes

If you have The courage of your Convictions and are willing to truly change your life you may want to consider a Juice fast in your not-too-distant future. remember to follow the suggestions provided for you above and always do your research. I am currently in the process of my own life Reboot and Juice fasting and raw food nutrition will continue to be a major part of my life from this point forward.  Learning to correctly nourish your Body is one of the best things you can do to improve your overall wellness  and I hope you consider joining me. Thanks!