My 48 Hour Juice Fast

     For this past week I had been really bad and gone back to drinking soy cappuccinos on a regular basis which I think many of us would agree isn't a very good thing (decaf or no decaf). Eventually it started getting to me as my appetite decreased, my face (which is currently recovering from acne) started to slow  in the clearing process, I became thirsty often, and in general I just felt "heavy."


     After giving it some consideration I decided that my colon needed a break and my body needed to rehydrate, so I decided to go on a short fast. Now, being 18, active, and already on the lower end of a proper weight for my height, I have to be careful as it is quite easier for me to lose weight than it is to gain it. Also, I wanted to make sure that I wasn't depriving my body of the crucial nutrients and simple sugars I need to function throughout my days. With this in mind I decided to attempt a 48 hour juice feast.


     In the end the juice fast went magnificently well! From 7 p.m. Monday night until 7 p.m. Wednesday night I drank nothing but water, kombocha tea, herbal tea, and fresh fruit and veggie juices.


     All through out Tuesday I had an increasing good mood with loads of energy, and the later it got through the day, the lighter I started to feel. The general good mood I had reached its zenith that night when I went to karate where we focused on stretching, forms, and drills. Moving around, getting the blood flowing left me with a boisterous smile on my face until I went to bed.


     Wednesday I didn't have quite as much energy as the day before, but my mood still remained steady/positive/uplifting for the entire day, and my skin began to clear up considerably. I also experienced a great sense of focus and was able to get through my CSNN studies much more easily as my concentration was better.

Throughout the entire 

fast I drank about 2 of the Volvic water bottles a day (which is 68 liters) and 1/2 a bottle of Synergy kombocha (8 oz. a day). Keeping me really hydrated and maintaining good intestinal flora.

My first juice Tuesday morning (bottom left pic) was pomegranate/orange/

grape juice blended with ice and raw honey.

My second Tuesday juice (top right pic) was

pineapple/carrot/beet

juice blended with ice.

Tuesday night, before my karate class, I made my mom and I each a 2 oz. shot of wheatgrass in lovely little martini glasses. We joke about having sweet green martinis. LOL. Cheer! :D

After downing that sweet grassy treat, I proceeded to make myself a nice big green juice made up of apple/pear/celery/lemon/kale blended with spirulina and ice. Yummy!

This green juice really gave me a good energy booster for karate. I really needed it considering the instructor had me punch the living daylights out of punching bag until I broke the skin on my knuckle. Ouch!

Now you see it . . . 

Wednesday morning I got up and my lovely mother an Raw Orange Julius for her breakfast on the go. You juice two oranges, add a tbs. of pineapple juice (optional), 1 small very ripe banana (fresh or frozen), 3-4 ice cubes, and blend! It was gone before she could even make it out the door!

Now you don't!

My juice was a simple orange/pineapple juice blended with some raw honey, ice, and a dash of cayenne pepper. It think this was my favorite juice out of all the ones I had.

For lunch I pulled out the watermelon. I wasn't able to juice the rind since it wasn't organic (going to have to wait until next summer to try that), but it was still a lovely juice. My mom made a beeline for some of the cut up watermelon as soon as she saw it. She was so exited, "You got watermelon?!" :D

Eventually on Wednesday 7 p.m. rolled around and it was time to break my fast. I had prepared a lovely low-fat nutrient rich RAWslaw for my mom and I. I hadn't expected to be all that hungry until I took the first bite. After that I really had to concentrate on pacing myself and chewing well as not to overeat.

     Overall I would say that I enjoyed this experience and might actually for a longer one at the beginning of the summer when more fruits are available and when it's warm enough to soak up lot's of sun! Since this really seemed to work wonders for my physical and emotional well being I may do a few 48 hour - 2 day juice fasts through the winter months if I feel the need to clean out my system and boost my immune system. I also realize that reigning my coffee drinking back in and keep consuming lot's of raw fruits and greens will help keep the "heavy" feeling and dehydration away. We all have our vices that we struggle on and off with, coffee just happens to be mine. 

Ch-Ch-Chia Goodness!

So today wasn't all that exciting. It rained all day long, which means that I couldn't go for my walk today. So instead, after having half of a honeydew melon for breakfast, I accompanied my mom and brother to a cafe where I sat in a corner table by the front window and worked on my studies for about an hour. When I got home I spent the next few hours studying some more, doing laundry, and making veggie soup for my mom and vegan mac & cheese for my brother. Once that was done I got the chance to make my own lunch, in which I tested out some of my newly purchased chia seed! I soaked a tablespoon of chia seed with 1/2 a cup of water for about 30 minutes. I then proceeded to blend it with a mango, a banana, a handful of strawberries, 1 Tbs. of Spirulina, 1 tsp. maca powder, 1 tsp. vanilla extract, and some stevia to taste. It was really REALLY good. I was actually surprised on how well the meal sat with me. I was a little nervous mixing chia with fruit since it does have a highish fat content, but it still isn't a fat dominant food so I figured it could hurt to give it a try. It was delicious and didn't cause any bloating of digestive distress any kind. This meal made me feel satisfied at the end without feeling heavy. Two thumbs up!

My mom teaches at a homeschool co-op on Tuesdays in the wee early hours of the morning, and then again later in the afternoon. When she got hope from her afternoon class she and I decided to just go out for the sake of going out so we could get some one on one conversation time with each other. It was a nice pick me up from the gloomy feeling that had been sneaking up on me from all the wet and clouds. On the way home we stopped off at Ingles so that I could get some more organic mangos (I have a serious addiction to this fruit. They are a staple in my diet.)

When I got home it was about an hour before I would have to leave for karate so I decided to grab a couple of bananas and the last of my persimmon jam for a pre-karate snack. I have got to get some more persimmon! They are a new food love of mine, and once I find something yummy, healthy, and raw to boot, I can't get enough! :D

Karate went well. We worked on sets and escapes and ended with handshake push-ups. Karate really is a great way to workout, especially if your someone who enjoys being with other people as well. When it was over I came home HUNGRY so I grabbed a kiwi, 2/3 of a pineapple, 2 mangos, and a cup of grapes and dug in!

Welcoming Autumn with Activity

September is gone and October is here! Here in the South the weather is finally lovely! Last week we had a bunch of flash floods so all the bridges had to be closed down (I live almost right next to two of them) which made getting around town quite difficult. But now the temperature high is in the upper 70z, there is sunny and breezy weather with clear blue skies, and almost zero humidity. Yesterday was the same and I spent a couple hours outside doing my CSNN studies while drinking a decadent Spirulina Smoothie of my own spontaneous concoction!

So I haven't really written anything for a few weeks but honestly I've been quite busy adding things into my schedule. I now swim for 30-40 minutes at Johnson Park about 3-4 times a week and I've started attending my brothers karate studio to finish my advanced brown belt training and hopefully test for my 1st degree black belt by nest Autumn. At the house I've been trying to cram as many hours of CSSN while still keeping the house clean, the laundry done, keeping my brother and mom fed, running errands. . . just life in general.

Despite all this life for me is going alright. Just yesterday the two books I ordered from

Amazon.com came in, the 2010 Poetry Market and Sarma's new raw food book! I love buying

raw food recipe books for when my mom or I has company to blow them away with the delicious

and nutritious wonder of raw food. I bought the Poetry Market book because I am hoping to publish

my book of poetry that I have been working on for 4 years now.

This is what I want to encourage everyone in, stay busy! I find whenever I start feeling depressed

or alone that if I go for a swim, a walk, or pick up a book, start a project, just do SOMETHING productive,

I can temper or even completely eliminate the down feelings I have. We are human and we crave stimulation.

When people don't receive physical and mental stimulation we don't form any new muscles in our

body, and the synapses in our brain don't create new connections. This result in a deteriorated mind and body,

who would want to live like that? I can't think of anyone.

When life is dull and you wonder what's the point, that is the moment you need to reach out

and make something out of nothing. We are the dominant species of this planet. Why? Because we

are smart and resourceful and we have zest for LIVING not just EXISTING. We what to do things better,

we want to do things better, we want to learn, and we want to discover. Society today wants to shove

us in a box with a label and have us stay there for the rest of our lives. Not me, and hopefully not you!

Peace out everybody! Until next time. SMILE!! :)

P.S. And here are some recipes and pics:

My New Book!! I really admire Sarma.

She is an amazing woman.

A kiwilicious breakfast. Did you know that kiwi, along with blackberries, are actually a great source of zinc?

My mom wanted pudding so she asked me to make her a raw pudding. We only had the bare minimum of food left since it was the end of the week, but a managed to whips this up for her breakfast.

Tropical Mousse

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

1 large ripe banana

1/2 cup of fresh coconut meat

1/4 cup of dried coconut flakes

1/4 cup cashews (pre-soaking is optional)

1 1/2 cups fresh pineapple, chopped

1 tbs. agar agar flakes soaked for 10 minutes in hot water

1/4 cup agave nectar

1/4 tsp. real salt

juice from 1/2 a lemon

1 tsp. vanilla extract

3 tbs/ coconut water

Blend the 1st five ingredients until smooth, add the rest and blend until smooth and refrigerate overnight.

Serve 4

I made this smoothie as a little treat for my breakfast that same day. Not much left in the house but I'm a resourceful raw smoothie loving girl! ;)

Coco Cacao Beauty Smoothie

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

1 cup coconut water

1 cup chopped frozen banana

1 rounded tsp. raw cacao powder

1 rounded tbs. raw cacao nibs

1 tbs. raw honey

1 tsp. vanilla extract

Blend until smooth

Serves 1

While studying this last Thursday afternoon I got really hungry. It was quite warm out so I decided to invent a new smoothie. OMG, I made this tried it, had my mom tried it, and we have both had this every. single. day. for the past three days. This smoothie tastes amazing, is incredibly satisfying, and gives me the most incredible burst of energy and mental clarity that I have ever experienced.

The Green Peachy Keen

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

1 large peach (about 2 cups)

11 frozen strawberries or 7 fresh strawberries

2 frozen bananas

1 tsp vanilla

2 tsp. Hawaiian Spirulina

1 1/2 "scoops" of stevia ( I use the Now brand)

1/4 cup water

Blend until smooth

Serves 1-2