Detox Day 3

Juice of one lemon, water, MSM, stevia, cayenne
Vitamineral Green & water
1/2 quart carrot juice & almond milk
1 1/2 quarts mixed vegetable juice (celery, cukes, broccoli, kale, parsley, lemon juice, ginger)
1 cup almond milk with 1 scoop vanilla Sunwarrior protein powder, Shapeshifter, 3 Jewels
1/2 quart coconut water with spinach blended
apple juice with bentonite clay/psyllium husk powder
miso soup
probiotics
zeolites
fulvic acid
parasite herbs (Clarkia)
Intestinal Movement


Today the hunger pangs have subsided quite a bit and my energy has been consistent all day.  The hubs made a veggie burger on a toasted sprouted bun and it didn't even phase me. I can't believe how great I feel physically and mentally. I almost felt high at one point. I hope the feeling continues. I could easily do another 11 days if it goes this well.

Btw, I slept 12 hours last night. That might be a record for me. It's typical to feel run down the first 2-3 days of a juice fast as well as feeling really cold. It's a good idea to start a fast over a weekend when you have no where to be. Stay home, stay warm and let your body adjust.

21 Day Detox - A New Health Journey

The past few months have been very frustrating for me. After all my efforts of eating and living a clean, raw life for the past few years my #1 nemesis has returned with a vengeance. Acne. It's something I've dealt with since my teens but lately its gotten out of control. It started a year ago when I got off birth control pills. I had been on them for years for hormonal balance. I was missing periods for months at a time and then I would bleed for weeks. I was scared to get off of them when I went raw because my doctor told me the irregularity would just come back. I figured if I was giving my body the best diet in the world, it would work itself out. So after 3 years, I tossed my pills and let nature take its course. Happy to say everything is perfect, i.e. on time, like clockwork. Phew! The only bad thing is, every month since stopping the pill, my skin gets more and more oily. So oily, I have breakouts on my face, neck, chest and back. I've been taking probiotics religiously and eating fermented foods in order to get the good bacteria flourishing. I've been cutting out sugar to keep my blood sugar balanced and prevent candida overgrowth. I've tried liver cleanses, sauna, MSM, zinc, neem, bentonite clay, honey masks, not washing my face, not wearing makeup, colonics, green juice, DIM, myomin, parasite herbs, fulvic acid, zeolites, chlorella and a plethora of other supplements. One thing I've never done is a long juice fast. I've done a lot of 3-5-7 day juices but this one will be 14 days of juices and 7 days of easing out of it with soups and smoothies. I would go longer but I actually need to get cracking on recipe development so this is my only window of opportunity.

I would love to hear feedback from anyone else who is struggling with the same thing and if you've been successful. FYI I had severe acne while on the pill, as well, that was corrected by going raw. This is a whole new thing I'm dealing with which seems to be an overproduction of testosterone (or drop in estrogen?). I'll keep you posted how things are going. Here's a recap of yesterday.

Day 1
Juice of 1 lemon with water, stevia, MSM and cayenne
1 scoop vitamineral greens in 8 oz. water
1 1/2 quarts green veggie juice
1 cup miso soup
1 cup almond milk with scoop of Shaman Shack Shapeshifter
1 teaspoon coconut oil
Evening: bentonite clay/psyllium husk with 1 cup apple juice (from Blessed Herbs colon cleanse pack)

I wasn't very hungry and had trouble taking down all the green juice for some reason. I was sluggish and fell asleep for 3 hours in the afternoon.  

Day 2

Juice of 1 lemon with water, stevia, MSM and cayenne 

1 quart watermelon/fennel/cuke 

2 cups orange juice/almond milk/pumpkin pie spice 

3 cups coconut broth

1 teaspoon coconut oil 

Felt energized when I woke up. Started the day off with 1000 mg niacin, 10 minutes of rebounding and 40 minutes of sauna. I have more energy today but some brain fog. It's only 3pm so I'll have more green vegetable juice before the day ends.  

To make Coconut Broth: 

Place 1 cup shredded coconut and 2 cups hot water in a food processor and blend. Strain out pulp using a nut milk bag. 

Bring coconut water to a simmer with additional 1 cup water, 1/4 cup chopped onion, 1 clove minced garlic, chopped cilantro, basil and lemongrass. Let simmer then strain. Stir in 1 tablespoon of miso once it has cooled a bit.

Blessed Herbs Colon Cleanse - Day 6

Mission accomplished! Actually I had intended on continuing the cleanse a couple more days. I woke up feeling so good that I thought why not go a little longer and get a deeper detox. Well, all my good intentions went out the window by 5pm. Earlier that afternoon I had gone to Au Lac (my fave raw vegan restaurant) for a seminar hosted by Kevin Gianni. He held a wonderful discussion on marketing for holistic health practitioners. It was great info but my eyes kept wandering to the course after course of culinary delights dancing in front of me. I held my ground and sipped orange juice and kombucha. I promptly had all my food wrapped to go and sent a text to my husband that he had an amazing dinner waiting for him tonight.

oh, the plans we make...

Soon as I got home I felt drained. I took a nap and woke up with the strongest food cravings I've had all week. I HAD to have the raw pistachio bread. AND the raw donut hole (NOT a Dunkin Donut, Au Lac's donut holes are about the size of a truffle and made with love and magic).

...and ouch, my stomach was not ready for it. Kind of forgot that breaking juice fasts take a little time. I was completely stuffed by those two morsels but I instantly got a burst of energy, so I decided to jump on my bike and take a 45 minutes ride around Eldorado Park. It was fantastic. Later that evening I ate the greens from the meal and left the rest for the hubster. My fast was over and despite the fact I rushed into eating solid foods my body wasn't that angry with me. Tomorrow I'll ease in with some light fruit in the morning and then some greens later. I don't want to ruin my hard work by eating anything bad. Reward your fasting with a massage or facial (to help rid some of the toxins) or new jeans but please, please, please not with junk food (especially the junk food that prompted you to go on a cleanse in the first place). I want to try to stay in a cleansing mode this week by keeping it simple with green smoothies and salads and avoiding sugar and nuts.

By the way, there are a ton of different juice fasts out there. A good book to get you started if you just want to try a basic detox fast is "Juice Fasting & Detoxification" by Steve Meyerowitz. If you have health issues it's best to tell your doctor before trying anything drastic. Also, my favorite juicer is the Omega 8005. I bought it at Mother's Market for $250 a couple years ago and I love it. It does everything from wheatgrass, leafy greens, citrus, root vegetables, as well as nut butters and banana soft serve. I've also heard great things about the Green Star and Champion but I think the Champion doesn't do greens as well. Avoid centrifugal juicers since they oxidize the vitamins before they reach your glass.

I hope these posts encourage you to explore the benefits of juice fasting. Even if you only try it for a day it will be the best gift you could give your body. Don't be afraid of hunger. It goes away, but it's a lot easier if you fast during a week where there are no celebrations or dinners to attend. Just sayin.

Blessed Herbs Colon Cleanse - Day 4 & 5

The last two days of the cleanse were a little bit of a challenge. I didn't have the euphoria that I often get from juicing but I felt pretty good. On day 4 I had a print job in Hollywood so I was up at an ungodly hour. Surprisingly, I had loads of energy until about 1pm when I started to run out of steam as well as fresh juice. I brought apple juice and toxin absorbers to set but only one bottle of vegetable juice. I think I felt sluggish because I was just low on calories. Once I got home the rest of the day wasn't that tough except when I went out again for my husband's birthday and had to endure two hours of staring at incredible vegetarian Vietnamese food. Nevertheless, I stayed focused and enjoyed a giant pot of lotus tea and made the choice to have a good time anyway. On day 5 I was in the home stretch. Midday I did feel crabby, maybe because we went out to breakfast (again for hubby's birthday) and had to face a plate of huevos rancheros while I sipped on green juice. Eggs and cheese have no power over me on any given day, but at the time it looked pretty appetizing. After breakfast we went to visit my friend's vegetable garden. She had the most beautiful chard I'd ever seen and I was salivating. I wanted to grab a leaf and start chewing. Now that is a sign my body is ready for food! Despite that, I was strong and made it through the rest of the day by just keeping my belly full of fresh water and juice.

I didn't do much exercising during this time though a lot of people say they feel energized enough to work out. With low calorie juice fasting, I don't recommend pushing your body that much. Walking, light bicycling and yoga is plenty. This is really a time of rest, so working out isn't necessary especially if you're only doing a short fast. Exercise depletes minerals and increases free radicals so if you really feel the need for a workout have a low sugar juice beforehand like celery/pear or kale/cucumber/apple and end your workout with coconut water to replenish electrolytes and then have a green juice to replace the minerals.

Blessed Herbs Colon Cleanse - Day 3

Today was the easiest so far. I didn't feel very hungry and only ended up drinking three packets of the toxin absorber. I forgot to take them because I was busy and not really that hungry. My friend who is currently on a liver cleanse is drinking "Potassium Broth" to supplement her during her fast. The broth provides a lot of minerals and is very satisfying (FYI though vitamins are lost during heating, minerals are less sensitive to heat, so simmer your soup don't boil it to death). Here's the recipe she's following.

POTASSIUM BROTH:
This is a GREAT tasting addition to your Cleansing Program. It will FLUSH your Body of TOXINS, Poisons and UNWANTED Salts and Acids, while giving you a CONCENTRATED amount of Vitamins and Minerals.
1. Fill a LARGE pot with 25% Potato peelings, 25% Carrot peelings and WHOLE chopped Beets, 25% chopped Onions, including 50 cloves of Garlic, 25% Celery and DARK Greens.
2. Add HOT Peppers to taste.
3. Add enough Distilled Water to cover the Vegetables and simmer on very LOW temperature for 1-2 hours.
4. Strain, or just dip your mug in, and drink ONLY the Broth.
5. Make enough for 2 days, refrigerating the leftover Broth.
NOTE: Put the Vegetables in your Compost. It is IMPORTANT, that you use ORGANIC Vegetables, because you do NOT want to consume ANY Toxic Insecticides, Pesticides or Inorganic Chemical Fertilizers, while you're doing a Cleansing and Detoxification Program!

I made a pot of this but only used 3 cloves of garlic instead of 50. It was all I had on hand. I drank the broth while my husband ate the vegetables. It was really tasty! I'd probably make this on a regular basis especially during the winter. In the past the only warm soup I've made is miso soup which I drink pretty regularly and have had a bowl every evening on this cleanse. I use Miso Master Organic Chickpea Miso instead of a soy miso. It's unpasturized and full of minerals and probiotics that help replenish the intestinal flora. I use 1 tablespoon of miso paste and dissolve it in a little bit of water in my soup bowl. I add warm (not hot) water and then add dulse and green onions (though I skip the additions when I'm fasting).

So far the cleanse has been great but I'm noticing my skin is getting really oily and I have little red bumps on my legs. That means my body is detoxing through my skin as well as my bowels. The skin is the third most detoxifying organ (next to the liver and lungs) so that makes sense though I'm not looking forward to the impending breakout on my face. My energy wasn't as high as the day before but feeling very clear headed. I'm already thinking about extending my cleanse to seven days but we'll see how my body feels on Saturday and take it from there.

Blessed Herbs Colon Cleanse - Day 2

Just got an email from Blessed Herbs that their Colon Cleansing Kit is on sale for $67.13 until April 14. You have to use the online coupon code spring09 for the discount. Maybe this is a sign that it's time for you to do some spring cleaning!

My second day of the cleanse was actually a lot easier. I wasn't that hungry except when I went to LA for an audition and got caught in terrible traffic with nothing but warm water that had been sitting in my car. One tip I can tell you when you're fasting or 100% raw is to be prepared! I should have had a big juice on deck in case of an emergency like this. And never underestimate LA traffic. Ugh! Times like these I wish I lived in Costa Rica. Anyway, yesterday was almost smooth sailing for me. I notice for myself that when I start to detox I can get pretty emotional. Not just grumpy from hunger but major mood swings. I got really sad for a little while and didn't know why until I realized that this happens every time. Detoxing can unload emotional baggage as well as other toxins. It didn't last long, especially when I realized it had nothing to do with my circumstances just my body going through changes. One very positive thing that I felt yesterday was such an increase in energy and clarity. I didn't feel sluggish or need a nap like the first day. I got up early and went to bed late and felt very alert all day. I also must give myself kudos for not snapping at the dinner table last night when we went to my inlaw's for Matt's birthday dinner. There was Mexican food (my sister in law make's the best vegan black beans) and two cakes. I sat there and drank Kombucha as my celebratory beverage and was still able to have a good time. That takes some mental focus and discipline but every time I overcome a challenge like that I realize how strong I am. Anyone can do the same including you reading this. I'm not superwoman. I've just made a decision of what I want to accomplish and sticking with it because I know this uncomfortable feeling is only temporary and reaching my goal is the best possible thing I can do for my health and my life.

Well on to day 3. Just had half a lemon in water and and a heaping tablespoon of Vitamineral Greens. Off to be productive!!

Blessed Herbs Colon Cleanse - Day 1

I feel a little apprehensive talking about my colon but I know so many of you out there are curious about cleanses and detoxes. I've done this particular cleanse four times in the past two years (once every 6 months). It's a five day liquid fast kit that you can purchase online at www.blessedherbs.com for $89.50. The kit includes 30 packets of the Toxin Absorber which is a psyllium husk/bentonite clay/apple pectin/herbal formula you mix with apple juice and drink five times a day. The psyllium husks act as a broom to sweep debris from your intestines while the bentonite clay draws out toxins (sort of like a facial clay mask but for your GI system). You can enjoy fruit and vegetable juices in between the apple juice concoction and best to obstain from all solid foods. I've done different juice fasts in the past including the Master Cleanse for 14 days and enjoy this one the most. The fiber drink helps take the edge off my hunger and the 'results' you see in the bathroom are, well, satisfying. It's a very thorough spring cleaning to say the least. The kit also comes with a jar of Digestive Stimulator pills that help gently move things along. Today is the first day and, honestly, I'm pretty hungry. The first two days are always the hardest on liquid fasts but it's so worth the effort. The key is to drink plenty of liquids so your stomach feels full. Also, I'm careful about not overdoing it on fruit juice since it can spike your blood sugar levels and leave you drained. I drink a lot of green juice to balance out the apple juice that I'm taking every three hours and it gives me loads of minerals so I'm nourished. Also, I'm using organic, bottled apple juice since the juice isn't for nourishment but just as a way to get the fiber/clay down. I've used fresh apple juice in the past which is much tastier but I get tired cleaning the juicer ten times a day.

Some might ask if colonics are just as effective. In my personal, semi-professional opinion I would have to say no. Unless you do a series of at least three colonics and eat a very simple 100% raw diet. I've had mixed results with colonics in the past and would occasionally do one if I'm feeling off. Because it is a juice fast you are addressing more than just your colon. Fasting gives your body a rest from digesting food so it can start repairing tissue and removing toxins from the other organs. Though Blessed Herbs doesn't promote it as a weight loss cleanse you do let go of a couple pounds which is a great bonus. Most toxins are stored in our fat tissues (like pesticides from non organic foods and hormones from birth control pills and animal products) so this is a major benefit of juice fasting that you won't get from hydro therapy. Plus the cost of the kit is about the price of one colonic so it's economical as well. I'll post my progress daily and feel free to ask questions in the comments section below.