Juice Fast Reflection

I survived! Two days of nothing but juice and it wasn’t the worst thing I’ve experienced.

Throughout the day Saturday, I had 4.5 juices, which is much less than I thought I would need.  I was surprisingly satisfied after each juice and found myself not consumed with the thought of food. The one rough moment I had on Saturday was when I went to Target.  I think a combination of the bright lights and loud noises caused me to feel faint and feverish. I took some deep breaths and powered through the feelings and eventually felt better.

I woke up Sunday and immediately checked the scale, I had lost two pounds! While I was not doing this for weight loss and I know that weight will come back as soon as I started to eat real food again, it was interesting to see what not eating for a day can do! The rest of Sunday was pretty similar to Saturday. I think I only had 3 or 4 juices on Sunday.  After a bit of discussion, I was worried that having our first bite of food on Monday morning would be problematic (read: cause the body to go into shock, making you feel sick and miserable), so we decided to have a big salad for dinner, strictly made of fruits and veggies with no dressing added.  It was wonderful to finally have food after two pretty long days of not eating.  We polished off a fair amount of salad then had some brown rice for substance.

Today was not a great day.  I’m not sure if it’s because of the toxins that have been re-released into my body due to the fasting, but I came down with a head cold today.  This is a pretty common side effect during the fasting, but it didn’t happen to me until this morning.  If I still crappy tomorrow, it’s probably a real cold but if not, it was just the toxic evacuating my body!

All in all, the juice fast was not a miserable experience.  Would I do it again? Probably not for two days in a row. Did I enjoy fasting? I wouldn’t say I enjoyed it but I can say I didn’t hate it. Am I glad I did it? Yes, 100%. It showed that I do have the determination it takes to stick to something like this.  I’m proud that I accomplished a fast!

Tips for a juice fast:

• Enlist a buddy!- Having Dan fasting right along next to me made it much easier.  If he had been eating real food as I was drinking juice, I probably would have not had the will power I had. Misery loves company, right?
• Pick a weekend when you can dedicate your time to the fast.-I am glad I chose a weekend that I didn’t have anything to do.  Not having to be around other people that were eating or even outside stimuli was a blessing.  My trip to Target was too much to handle and I wouldn’t recommend leaving the house besides going for a walk.
• Don’t have too many delicious foods in the cabinets.- You want to eliminate as many temptations as possible.

Would you ever do a juice fast?

How long would you want to do it for?

One small victory!

Monday marked a huge turning point in my fight against sugar. The place I work is always scattered with sugary goodies to keep us going through the night. In the past, I was overcome by my desire to enjoy these tasty goodies, often consuming more than any human should. This week was different though. The table was covered in delicious looking cookies, brownies and candy. My first reaction was to marvel at how good they looked and I got excited to eat one with dinner. Right away, however, I remembered my pact to rid my diet of refined sugar. Disappointed, I walked away to do work but I couldn't stop thinking about the treats that were waiting on the table for me.

While I am still amazed at my self-control, I managed to make it 6 hours without touching a single sugary treat. I attribute my success to having banned refined sugars from my diet. Here are some of my other tips to resisting:

-Remind yourself why you gave something up in the first place. If you did it for weight-loss, think about the results you want to achieve and how you can be successful.
-Walk away! Take a step back from the candy jar or big piece of cake and do something else. Take your mind off of the treat and you are likely to forget about the craving.
-Don't keep a candy jar on your desk. Keeping candy at your desk will only promote mindless snacking. If you really want a piece of candy, you should seek it out to ensure you really want it.
-Just say "No, thanks!" It is hard at office parties and gatherings to avoid your co-workers' baked goods. There is nothing wrong with just saying "No" if you are offered something you don't want to eat.

What tips do you use for avoiding something you are trying not to eat? Have you tried any of these?

Sugar and Spice and Everything Nice...or Not

My most recent health conquest is giving up sugar. I use the term “giving it up” lightly. It’s more like I am cutting back severely and only having natural sugars that are hard to avoid. This was sparked by the large amounts of candy I consumed during Halloween, so I figured it was time for a change. Overall, health is always my first priority, but if this sugar cleanse helps me shed a few pounds, I wouldn't hate it.

Today is Day 5 and so far, it hasn't been as hard I thought it would. The first three days were completely painless, but I struggled last night and tonight with my cravings. They strike right after dinner when I want to counter my healthy dinner with something sweet. I see my housemates eating a piece of candy or a bowl of ice cream and it's hard not to miss those things. To control my craving, I try to walk away from the table or have a cup of tea. Yogi tea is my favorite and I'll write a review about it later.

How do you handle your sweet cravings when they strike? What time of the day do you struggle most with your cravings?