Detox Days 14-15

Day 14 Last day of juice fasting

I had 2 quarts of green veg, about 1 quart of fruit juice, two cups of herbal tea, 1 cup of miso soup and one cup of almond milk with protein powder. Had a 1 hour massage in the morning and kept busy around the house all day. I feel great and little anxious to end the fast. I wish I could go a little longer but it's time to get back to normal life.

Day 15 Now what?

One super important thing to remember about juice fasting is that you have to break it very gently. Your body hasn't digested food in a while so you need to go slow as not to shock it. Also, your metabolism has slowed way down.  You've lost some weight but you will gain it right back and then some if you jump right into your old diet. The rule of thumb for fasts is that however many days you fasted, divide by two and that's how long you should ease out of it. Some health leaders say 1 day for every 4 or 5 days but it depends on the individual. I find slower is better, especially for long fasts, but it's up to you. Listen to your body.

I fasted 14 days so I'll take the next 7 days to get my metabolism revving and fire up the digestive system. Many years ago, when I knew nothing about healthy juicing, I did the Master Cleanse for 7 days and broke it with a big Indian dinner. Do I even need to describe how horribly miserable my night was? I've come a long way since then.

First day of breaking the fast, I suggest starting off with some fruit. One type of fruit at a time not a fruit salad. Citrus or melon are great.  Next day, try some blended veggies like my Green Power Soup with little to no avocado. Then add a light salad. Slowly add your regular (healthy, clean) foods until you're feeling back to normal. Also, get back to the gym or whatever exercise floats your boat. This will stoke the metabolism so you can keep most of those shed pounds off (if weight loss was one of your goals).

Today went like this:

Lemon water with MSM, cayenne, noni powder, probiotics, fulvic acid and stevia
Niacin/rebounding/sauna 45 minutes
1 quart green juice
11am two oranges
 2pm small bowl of grapes
4pm 1 cup almond milk with SunWarrior protein
5:30pm two large heirloom tomatoes, sliced, with 1 teaspoon olive oil and small dash of sea salt

 It felt so good to chew food again!! The best part of it is I don't feel obsessed or attached to food. My cravings are in check and I feel balanced and in control.

This morning I weighed myself and lost another pound making total weight loss 5 lbs. Fasting puts you in a catabolic state where muscle break down rapidly. I worked hard for mine so I added protein powder to my daily regimen. Some would say it's wrong to do on a fast, but I found it energizing and made the fast much easier.

So how's my complexion you must be wondering? It's getting much better. The oiliness has subsided considerably and my blemishes are going away on my face, back and chest. I did so many different detoxifying things the past 2 weeks it's impossible to say if any one thing helped. I believe the probable cause for the improvement is that I've most likely eliminated food(s) that have been creating the inflammation. I won't know for a month what foods I will have to avoid but I will be very cautious as I start to reintroduce solid foods and return to a normal diet.