Friday 17 September 2010

Juice Feasting and Beyond

Ive started a 10 day Journey to Raw Program. Today is day 7 and its going really well. The recipes make really delicious meals and I still dont feel any real intense hunger. Since doing my 3rd JuiceFeast my body now responds a little different to hunger. Intrinsically the body craves nutrition and not specific junk foods. So we will receive the message or signal that we are hungry...and in most cases we are just thirsty! (Which is a whole other story)!
To the best of my knowledge since the JuiceFeast I've had all if not most of my nutritional needs met. So far Ive not craved for a single food type in particular. :-) I plan on seriously introducing more raw foods into my diet and having a high raw one at that!
I'm working on a new web-site, and will continue my classes very soon. Lots of new goodies in the pipe-line. In the mean-time I will keep this blog updated.

Never Under-estimate the Power of a Juice-Feast!

Oh my gosh....this last Juice-feast was completely different from the first one I did in 2008. At first I thought this was due to me getting older, developing bad habits, etc. Now, I'm sure its the classic 'onion peeling effect' that happens to you once you start any detox for an extended period of time. If you are like me and are always looking for positive growth and want to learn something new about yourself and the environment, then you will understand completely what I am saying. 
I made my goals clear to myself at the outset of my Juice Feast. I wrote them down and even hung them in parts of the house where I would see them daily. Just to spur me on. It is imperative that you really know the reason(s) why you are doing what your doing! Ensure that your reasons speak directly to the center of your heart..and truly ask and ask again. So when your emotions do come up for you, you will be in a place to acknowledge them and fully appreciate that they are yours!



 The Emotional Detox....

This is the most important thing you need to know!!!

When you start to eat raw, you will FEEL better on every level. Your heart and mind opens up to the universe; but on the other side of the coin you will often find yourself sitting back, watching your life on the big screen and the truth is that you are! You actually SEE very clearly exactly what is NOT working for you.....Hmmmmm

So, Congratulations I say to myself! Now you've given birth to another part of you that may have laid dormant for years un-manifested for years....the question is ....What will YOU do with all this new found information?!

Waking up to this fact can be painful – too painful sometimes.....this is when you would dive into the cookie jar and remember cravings that you thought were long gone!...BE Careful!

I will be forever grateful that my stuff is now in the light and has come up for me to deal with, and to be honest its well overdue!!...No more excuses! I've had to climb a huge mountain in terms of my own health over that last two years; and now that I FEEL better I can DO better!
Consuming raw for me feels like such a pleasure, it makes my heart sing and my blood tango!...it makes me feel good....and makes me want to do GOOD!... :-)
Even my boyfriend is turned on to raw now! He loves my green juices and nut-mylks and his superfood smoothie...on the same vybe!...I love it! He is reaping the benefits of increasing raw into his diet. No more afternoon slug-time....No more dead beat tiredness in the evening....better digestion....much more energy!

As for me...well this Juice-Feast was my chance to begin again...as that is ultimately what we do best as Human Beings!












BEGIN AGAIN!

Friday 10 September 2010

Day25-Fri

I ate another 2 meals of prunes today and drank the remaining prune juice...and still there are millions left! I seriously cant eat another morsel...lol I can safely say the prunes lived up to their namesake....and I still had an abundance of energy today.
I have good news for you all...Im starting a 10 day Journey to Raw Food Program which I've intrinsically timed to run straight after my juice feast to give me the jumpstart that I so need!
 I'll have to start a day late as I'm still breaking my feast today, but since its the last day...I'll have a plain salad tonight, and I'll be ready to start in the morning!! Yayy....plus there are some really nice sounding recipes on the web-site so I'm super excited to get started!

I'll keep you posted.....

Thursday 9 September 2010

Day23+24-Thurs/Fri... End Of Juice Feast Prune Party!!...lol

Yup YUP munching down on soaked organic prunes and still Juicing.
I had Blueberry and Apple.
Spinach, apple, fennel, celery.

Wednesday 8 September 2010

Day22-Weds

Hey!
I did it, I broke my Juice feast! I am in the process of trying to finish off 8 ounces of soaked prunes! I’ve managed to get down about half of the portion so far, It’s amazing how fast your stomach fills up after 22 days of nothing but liquids! I started with drinking the Juice which was really nice....yum and the prunes are very squidgy but also nice!
I want to give a heartfelt thanks to Angela Stokes for her thorough work in her Juice Feaster's Handbook and Ive adapted David Rain's Feast Breaking Protocol as follows:

If you have spent more than 24days, take 6 days to break your feast, spending two days on each section. For less days see David Rain's advice on www.juicefeasting.com

1) PRUNES
Break your feast with 8oz of organic prunes soaked overnight. This is a very gentle way to 'Jump-start' your digestion of solids again. Drink the soak water first, then eat as many prunes as you like. This is the only solid meal on the first day and a bowel movement will ideally follow after 3-6hours. (If not, use Cascara Sagrada-it is not desirable to leave this food sitting in your colon for too long. as it will begin to putrefy.)
For the second day of this phase, eat 1-2 meals of soaked prunes, preferably earlier in the day. Maintain the same amount of juices you consumed while feasting.
2) JUICY FRUITS
Continue with juices and soaked prunes meals, now adding in juicy fruits too, such as watermelon, berries, mangoes, cherries, tomatoes, cucumbers, oranges etc. Avoid denser fruits at this point, like bananas, avocadoes or durian. Try to have about half the amount of juice you were having whilst feasting-preferably keep drinking the green juices and cut back fruit juices now, as you start to eat fruits instead. Eat the juicy fruits as regular meals.
3) SALADS
The final stage is to begin to add in salads, while still having juices,prunes and juice fruits as suits you. Use tender leafy salad greens,sprouts and very simple dressing such as flax oil and lemon juice-avoid creamy dressing at this point. You can now begin to add in fatty foods like avocados and raw olives. 

Now is also a good time to begin taking White Oak Bark and Ginger Root Capsules to shrink the colon, aid elimination and repair any prolapses, plus stone-breaker to help the body release any kidney/liver/gallbladder stones. You may also find it beneficial to begin taking the Ayurvedic remedy 'Triphala' now as powder for the next 6 months to a year, which works gently to rebuild peristalsis and tone the colon.


This has been an profound journey. I hadn't really decided how long I was going to feast for, I decided to go with the flow and to let my body tell me when that would be right. However, I had decided to break now due to several factors. The biggest factor was that my mind and heart was not fully into it anymore, my green juice was increasingly getting harder and harder to get down. I tried changing from Spinach to Kale and introducing more fruit juices, which worked well for a while but amazingly I started to miss my green juice... and ironically once I'd made it...guess what?.....yup i didn't want it!!! lol
So then, the timing was spot on for me. So for the past week I just drank what I could and observed...Finally my body told me that it was time to end it. I realized I also missed crunching and biting food, the juice was just not cutting it any longer!...
So..... here I am, in this 3 day transition back into the real world. It feels a little strange...The plus side is that I will still be juicing and blending my fruits and vegetables forever more, obviously not the same quantity and when blending I will keep the fiber in.!!

If you have been JFeasting for less than 24 days, divide the number of days feasted by 4. This is the number of days you will take to break the feast. Then divide that number by 3 to see how many days you will be taking for each phase of the Feast breaking. (E.g. if you have juiced for 12 days, you divide 12 by 4  to find that you will break your Feast over 3 days. So, you would take 1 whole day for each step of the Feast-breaking protocol.) So go and celebrate...you deserve it!

Right now I feel immense gratitude to myself for all the love and attention I've allowed myself to accept over the last 3 weeks....I feel happy and very loved. Juice Feasting takes a whole lot of discipline and determination and I whole-heartedly encourage you to GO FOR IT!....its not always easy but the sheer challenge is what kept me going to be honest with you.
As a whole You are ultimatley always in control and will always be respnsable for your life!! JF helps to open your heart chakra so many truths are revealed to you along your journey...there are many uncovered gems that are out there for the taking you just have to raise your vibration level high enough to be able to see them clearly! Get Juicing..... sip sip

Please check back in for post-feast highlights, pics and more!!

Tuesday 7 September 2010

Day22-Tuesday

Today I consumed:
1)Pineapple,lemon,agave,ginger,water (delicious)
2)Celery,cucumber
 Ive been feeling slightly out of sorts on and off over the last 3-4 days.
I understand that by taking the diet down to the bare minimal, as in just supplying the body with sufficient nutrients to operate on a normal basis; it is very likely that one will experience massive shifts on an emotional and spiritual level whilst Juice Feasting. The cells in the body hold a lot of history about ourselves such as repressed emotions and trapped feelings.
At times I've felt very light and free and at other times I've felt more heavier. as I move deeper and deeper into my cleanse I've felt sadness, anger, frustration and even depression. My advice to you guys is to ensure that you have a good support system around you, also try to indulge in some serious TLC. Bodyscrubs and massage, watch a funny movie, surround yourself with nature. Remember this is all to be expected whilst taking on a JF or any fast of this kind.

This morning I had a dry bodyscrub, Oh! my skin felt so very soft afterwards, and lets not forget its gr8 for detoxing the skin whilst doing a cleanse. Then I had a shower switching inbetween hot and cold water to help the lymph system. This is what David Rain had to say,
"This is a great method for moving blood and lymph, tightening skin and improving circulation. Like skin brushing, it can seem rather harsh in the beginning, but if you stick with it, you may start to find the sensation quite enjoyable. Shower as usual, then alternate the water temperature between hot and cold, staying with each temperature for five seconds at first before switching to the other and alternating perhaps five times between hot and cold in the beginning. You can later build up both the anount of time you spend on each temperature, and the number of times you alternate. Try to end on cold though, so that your skin remains tightened up."

Monday 6 September 2010

Day 21-Mon

I awoke up this morning to the sound of the rain....yes it rained the entire day!...the sound of the rain was very very soothing. Autumn is here. :-)


Today I consumed:
Kale/Celery/Cucumber/Spinach/lemon/green pepper/Garlic
Fennel/Apple/Carrot/Celery/Ginger
Water + Msm
Bee Pollen...mmm

Raw-ducation:
During this feast I am learning to love and respect my body even more than before. Ive learnt to be patient and observant with myself. Ive seen and felt the detox working for me. Sometimes more painful than others...I'll explain. I seem to have this wind type of movement that occurs every 3-4 days...very uncomfortable...I feel it in one of two places either along the top of my intestines or in my lower back...so its interesting to know that even after 20 days there are still deeper levels of cleansing to be done.I usually drink fennel and lemon tea or peppermint tea to soothe my intestinal track. My hot water bottle and a lot of TLC!! lol

Tips: Fennel is great with apple and carrot !  I love fennel it adds a smooth finish to your juice. Its a great duretic and is good for digestive disorders.
Movement:
I managed an hour of Rodney Yee's Power Yoga. Yoga + A Raw food Diet/Juices =Heaven. The two compliment each other very well, Yoga helps to expand and strengthens the body and drinking raw vegetable and fruit juices also expands the body and opens the mind.
Ive been having little thoughts about ending the juice-feast...not sure where its coming from..but finding it hard to fancy green juice at times...and even thinking about eating, for the 1st time in ages..I'm not craving anything in particular, and my day is pretty much full but I find myself spending more and more moments out of this feast....plenty observation me thinks....and some time out in meditation!

Sunday 5 September 2010

Day18/19/20...Fri,Sat,Sun

I had to include the last 3 days together as I went out for the entire day Fri and Sat and got back late in the night, and too tired to blog!..sorry guys....I know, MY BAD!..but I really was in need of some serious bed rest.

I left my house around 10am after making 3 quarts/litres of green juice, as today I was travelling in the raw!!  Well not really going anywhere exciting as in abroad or something...just going to get my hair plaited at my mum's. My hairdresser is kindly meeting me halfway between her salon and my house.Yayy!!

I made a new green juice and I totally fell in love with it. So I made 2 litres of it...heheheheh.
It was Bak Choy/squidge of lemon juice/celery/cucumber/pinch of salt/apple/....you know that feeling when you fall in love with something...well. its official I love Raw Bak Choy....! I encourage you to play around with it and creative your own loveable juice!....it will make your heart sing!








I carried my travel blender (see links page separately) with me and my nut straining bag and I made another favourite of mine at my mums for dinner. Kale/Celery/cucumber/lemon/salt/apple. mmmmm I made a litre and I shared it with my mum...she loved it.
I ended up staying the night at my mother's as my hair wasn't finished until 10.30pm. For breakfast I had cucumber and mint. Once I got home I made some freshly squeezed orange juice and admired my new hair style. Then after lunch I made some more green juice (the loveable bak choy juice) and drank like 2 liters as I was going out in the evening to a friends birthday. It was to be held at a comedy club..so I was definately up for that!! So I made sure I had my fill with green juice so that I would not be hungry whilst out! and it worked!! :-)
Needed some sweetness today so I made orange and raspberry...was delicious. In the evening I had a liter of water and Kale/apple/celery/sweet pepper/

Kemp Oil
Msm
Sea Kelp
Bee Pollen + Manuka Honey

Thursday 2 September 2010

Day17-Thurs

Today I consumed:
Apple/Fennel/cucumber/carrot/ginger
Spinach/apple/celery/carrot/
Water
Tea

Still feeling positive!! My boyfriend loved the carrot juice!

Wednesday 1 September 2010

Day16-Weds

I awoke this morning to a slight sore throat....still not sure what that's about, I will continue to be observant.

I had an estatic day today..At last the sun was shining...I opened up the windows and patio doors and sat outside whilst I sipped on my green juice. Later on I manged to do some Yoga!!!..although my mind wanted to do Power Yoga, I have to admit I was a little afraid and stayed on the side of caution....but boy did I sweat!...I felt my heart palpitating for the first time in a long while, it felt great!.. whilst I was in each pose it felt right ...my heart sang out today. I honor my body for its strength. My body is amazing and all it wants to do is to be well, and function on an optimal level for me. It feels great to be now creating a healing space for ultimate healing to take place and for it to do its amazing job.  :-)

Today I consumed
water/msm/goji berries/lemon
romaine,pear,orange,lemon,cayenne,
E3 live, Kelp,
Water, Tea

Body-brushing is fantastic, your body feels so good clean after you exfoliate as you are removing dead skin cells I highly recommend it!!