I am going to keep a daily journal, which will be posted at the end of each day. Wish me luck! When this is all over, I will be a happier, healthier, more energetic self!
Journal:
Juice Fast Journal: Day 1
Juice Fast Journal: Day 2
Juice Fast Journal: Day 3
Juice Fast Journal: Day 4
7:16am
Feeling much better this morning. I'm a bit tired, but I am not having those hunger pangs again. The weirdest thing is: I had a dream last night that I accidentally broke my fast on the morning of day 5. I kept writing "failure" everywhere - on my menu, on the recipe...bizarre. I guess writing about breaking the fast right before I went to sleep wasn't the best thing in the world for my subconscious.
Weight loss slowed to 0.4 pounds lost.
8:45am
Well, I had my green juice - Mean Green (though with pears instead of apples). I think I just got hit hard with some detox flu though. It's like there was a backup of...something, and this is kick starting everything again. Feeling really tired right now. Not in the best condition ever right now, but I'll persevere.
12:11pm
The Mean Green definitely did help this morning, and straining it was clutch - I don't know why, but Kale Pulp kind of makes me sick. Here's the thing, I'm feeling that same deep down, intense hunger I felt yesterday evening. I have about 25 ounces of Juice here at work - if it isn't enough to keep this at bay, then I'll be breaking the fast. I believe Juice Fasting to be very good for you, but I am also a very firm believer in listening to your body.
I've been reading through a few articles on Juice Fasting, and have made a connection - the early stage symptoms of a Juice fast are eerily similar to the early stages of Atkins. A quick search for "symptoms of Ketosis" show that the symptoms are nearly the same - headache, body odor, bad breath, headache, lethargy...it's all the same. I may go ahead and try to find some ketone testing strips before I end this fast. I think we could all use a little empirical evidence regarding Juice Fasting anyway.
I'm also seeing a lot of evidence that a few of the claims of Juice fasting are a bit bogus (we all knew *some* of it would be). For example, there is very little evidence that impacted fecal matter is a real thing (the idea that there is old, putrid fecal matter stuck to your intestine walls). I'm not saying that this is impossible, but that I would like to see more evidence for it. Further, the "Detox Flu" symptoms appears to be simple Ketosis (not simple at all, but you get what I mean). I will hopefully be able to confirm or deny that, at least for myself, shortly.
Either way, Juice Fasting is still a great way to pump loads of nutrients (vitamins and minerals) into your body. The fear of a limited protein diet should be put to rest by having a varied assortment of vegetables - raw vegetables (mostly leafy greens) contain all of the amino acids we need (the essential Amino acids). By taking them in their raw form, and not in cooked protein, I believe it is actually easier for our system to process than a complete protein in the form of Animal Protein or Soy. Consider that horses have one of the highest percentages of muscle per body weight, and they are vegetarian - this doesn't prove that we process food the same as horses, but does show that all protein requirements are available in a pure vegan, non-soy diet.
That was a bit of a mind dump - I spent a good chunk of time reading up new information, and since this is a journal, I was able to get it out. I'm off for my juice now.
8:30pm
I'm feeling better now, but I think I am going to break my fast tomorrow morning. I will break it with fruit: Orange, Watermelon, Honeydew melon, etc. I really toyed with the idea of going longer, but it doesn't feel right, right now. And to me, juice fasting might feel painful sometimes, miserable other times, but it always feels "right" as you're going through it. Right now, it's just not feeling right. Whether that is a lack of enthusiasm, or not, it's how I feel.
I also read something interesting over at DoctorYourself.com - Dr. Andrew Weil pointed out that during a fast, the first two days we are getting energy from foods which were still in our digestive system. The following two days, we are using up the glycogen stores from our livers. The true fast occurs on day 5+ ... perhaps that's why I felt a bit different today. I'm also really looking forward to a kale salad tomorrow for lunch. Like...a lot! I really want that salad - I almost went and got it tonight, but I am going to complete the full 5 days, just so I can say I did it!
And I did do it.
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