My 10 Day Juice Fast


About a week ago, I watched the documentary Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead after my sister recommended it. She started juicing and lost 8 lbs in 10 days.

Since I've been in a rut and this documentary was incredibly inspiring, I decided I would do the same. My husband researched juicers we finally decided on the masticating juicer: Omega 8006. We ordered it....and waited anxiously.

A note about juicing: many people prefer not to do juicing because of the mess and cleanup needed as well as how much money it costs in items in order to juice enough. Another main complaint is that you lose all the fiber in the fruits.

The Benefits

After juicing for 10 days, I've never loved and believed in it so much. The benefits of juicing are:
  • Can reduce risk of cancer
  • Serves as a great cleanse
  • Boosts the immune system
  • Losing weight (in a healthy way)
  • Removes toxins from the body
  • Aids in digestion through the natural enzymes
  • Helps the body receive pure nutrients and minerals in an active state
  • Helps you eat more fruits and vegetables that you probably would eat or could in a given serving

After a weekend of being sick from a stomach virus, I arrived back home to find my juicer had finally arrived! Since I had been mostly on liquids anyways, I thought it was a perfect time to start my 10 day fast. Since this was my first time doing it, I thought it would be good to document it.
 
The Plan

First things first...I went to the Audubon Farmer's Market (one of my favorite outdoor markets in Orlando) and purchased some organic beets, then went to Publix and shopped for the rest of my organic fruits and veggies. I ended up making three trips to Publix altogether (I purchased by organic carrots and organic spinach from Costco- better price and gives you plenty for the 10 days). 

I would make about 4 drinks a day but only juice twice. I would make between 45-60 oz of juice per day and drink lots and lots of water. I "cheated" a little by eating raw, not juiced, fruits and veggies every once and a while.

I printed out a ton of pages with recipes and didn't use any. If you plan on juicing, use what you like and experiment!

What you see by each picture is exactly the amount I put into the juicer for my meals. Here is what my diet consisted of for 10 days:
Photo: My new meals  http://instagr.am/p/PsfCu2G_lq/
Day 1
Weight loss: 0 lbs
Ingredients: Spinach, carrots, ginger, garlic, apples, lime, celery, broccoli

Cheat: watermelon, cantaloupe, avocado

Day 2
Weight loss: .5 lbs
Ingredients: Beets, apples, spinach, carrots, ginger, green pepper, celery, cucumber, raspberries, broccoli

Cheat: Banana, raspberries and strawberries
Day 3 - Dinner

Day 3
Weight loss: 2.5 lbs
Ingredients: Beets, apples, kiwi, celery, green pepper, cucumber, ginger, spinach, carrots, coconut

Cheat: Banana and avocado 




Day 4 - Breakfast & Lunch
Day 4
Weight loss: 2.5 lbs
Ingredients: Cucumbers, lemon, strawberries, grapes, celery, carrots, tomato, raspberries, spinach, kiwi, ginger, apple, pineapple





Day 5 - Breakfast & Lunch
Day 5
Weight loss: 3 lbs
Ingredients: Cucumbers, lime, strawberries, kale, carrots, onion*, spinach, kiwi, ginger, apple, green pepper, coconut, beets

Cheat: Fresh pineapple and strawberries

*Do not attempt...disgusting!

Day 6
Weight loss: 3 lbs
Ingredients: Spinach, spirulina, ginger, pear, lemon, beets, pineapple, grapes, kale

Cheat: Banana and Carrot
Day 7 - Breakfast & Lunch
Day 7
Weight loss:3.5 lbs
Ingredients: Ginger, broccoli, kiwi, cucumber, kale, spinach, carrots, pear, green pepper

Cheat: Pineapple and Banana






Day 8
Weight loss:4 lbs
Ingredients: Beets, kale, pineapple, kiwi, ginger, lime, spinach, carrots, eggplant, celery, green pepper, apple

Cheat: None

Day 8 - Breakfast & Lunch
Day 8 - Dinner
Day 9
Weight loss:4 lbs
Ingredients: Kale, spinach, apple, kiwi, carrots, beets, ginger, zucchini, celery, eggplant, green pepper, lemon

Cheat: Banana and pineapple
Day 9 - Breakfast & Lunch
Day 9 - Dinner

Day 10
Weight loss:6 lbs
Ingredients: Celery, carrots, lemon, apples, ginger, kale, spinach, zucchini, green pepper, beets

Cheat: Lettuce and Tomato
Day 10- Breakfast & Lunch
Day 10 - Dinner

Rundown:
  • 10 days of juicing
  • 9 lbs lost
  • Total Cost: $150 in organic fruits and vegetables
Why did I buy mostly organic? This list looks at the"Dirty Dozen" which are the most highly contaminated fruits and veggies with pesticides and other toxic sprays.



My Journey

Most people say the first 3 days are the hardest. For me, it was actually the last three days. I wanted food so badly I was tempted to stop at day 8. Day 9 was by far the hardest to control from eating food, especially making food for my husband. Now, just because the first week wasn't too difficult for me didn't mean I didn't think about food. In fact, for the first four nights, I had dreams of eating food and I would get mad at myself for messing up.

It was quite funny...but needless to say...I made it! After 4 work potlucks and two dinner events, I completed successfully without so much as touching anything that wasn't fruits or vegetables.

I feel great and can see the biggest difference in my stomach and waist. I don't feel bloated and I have the same energy as before (that's a good thing...I always have a lot of energy). I never really felt tired because I really feel I was overloading on nutrients, in a good way.

I didn't feel the detox aspect of it until day 8 until now. I can tell my body was cleaning itself throughout the fast and it felt wonderful. I have also noted that my stomach shrunk and doesn't want as much food in a given serving; however, it does want food several times a day, as I used to sip my juice throughout the day to keep me from being hungry. 

I would do this again...and I will after the holidays. This was a great little adventure and it really helped me get my self-control for food back.

I can confidently say: I'm officially a juicer!

Let me know if you have any questions!

2 comments:

  1. Wow! I want to try... After breastfeeding though!

    ReplyDelete
  2. It really is wonderful! With all the nutrients, you're revitalizing your immune system. Just lost another pound ;)

    ReplyDelete