Fasting Thread - Come One Come All

[Aleesha Sattva]

I thought I'd start a new fasting thread since the other one is getting pretty long. http://i182.photobucket.com/albums/x87/recyclinggoddess/blahblah.gif

I feel the need to bring new focus into my life and into this fast, cause really gently breaking my fast for the weekend... I'm finding it hard to get back on track. So perhaps a new thread will assist me to do just that!

My commitment:

I will fast today.
I will not choose to break my fast today, I can contemplate breaking my fast tomorrow but not today.
I will not break my fast on a hard/bad day.
I will focus on drinking more water.
I will surround myself with love, light and support during my fast.

For anyone posting in this thread, please do not discuss eating in this thread. http://i182.photobucket.com/albums/x87/recyclinggoddess/Groaner.gif Whether it's you eating or someone eating around you. You can be vague "He ate in front of me" but not specific "He ate X, Y and then three helpings of Z!!!" This can cause other fasters to have a hard time/break their fast/focus on cravings and we don't want that.

So... who wants to join me and fast for awhile? I don't know how long I'll fast for, but I do know it will be healing and cleansing... and hopefully... deeply spiritual.

I hope to do some days on water - other days on juice. I am blessed to have a wonderfully supportive family and an amazing hubby who does all my juicing for me! *ya I'm totally spoiled*

So... let's do this! http://i182.photobucket.com/albums/x87/recyclinggoddess/4.gif

[OneBite@aTime]

Today is day 2 for me. Still no BM or BP (butt pee...hehe) and a major headache left over from yesterday, but that is what I get for years of SAD eating...

Today I will focus on:
more water
being thankful

When I'm having a hard time I will:
read
rest
take a hot bath
journal
meditate

Have a great day everyone!

[lavendarJ]

Touching bases again with everyone...very busy since I posted last week. Wow - the 40th day takes place this week and transitioning has been a smooth sail:).

Have a lot more I'd like to share - but I'll check in on my next "break" perhaps... supposed to be working online but you know...decided to drift for just a moment

See ya later

[Aleesha Sattva]

ah lav... we love it when you drift!

michelle, congrats on day two!!!

i have some really great news to share. my hubby is going to fast with me! how cool is THAT! he's done a green smoothie feast with me for 21 days before... but never a juice fast. we'll see how it goes! ;)

:D:D:D
i'm sipping on grapefruit juice... and then i'm off to work

[nadien alexandra]

aleesha, glad to hear you have a fasting buddy. that'll surely help to stay on track.

day 5 for me.

I'm feeling good today energy wise. Want to conquer the world with all my energy, but a little irritable today, easy to set off.

I find myself wanting to spend time alone, or in the company of trees and grass rather than people.

My family is so so SAD and it really hurts as they are all in bad health but refuse to do anything about it.

They think what I am doing is absoultely silly, and I just need to get over this. I need to let it go. I need to stop thinking about healing them, and heal myself.

live by example!

[Mad Mex]

Hello ladies, hopefully there is some space for a guy. I join in!

After a few sad SAD days I feel an urge to cleanse. I would like to fast with juices and GS for at least 10 and with some strength 30 days.

I started already with 3 litres of pure water and a 1.5 litres of gingerbeer with parsley.

Awareness of the day, there are 58 steps from my office to the restroom.


Saludos,

Marcel :cool:

[lavendarJ]

ah lav... we love it when you drift!

michelle, congrats on day two!!!

i have some really great news to share. my hubby is going to fast with me! how cool is THAT! he's done a green smoothie feast with me for 21 days before... but never a juice fast. we'll see how it goes! ;)

:D:D:D
i'm sipping on grapefruit juice... and then i'm off to work

Awesome news about your hubby joining in on the fasting fun!!!!

[Katie P]

Not fasting, but hugs & love to you all!!!!!

Aleesha, might I add you are ALWAYS inspiring with your fasting! You kick BOOTY girl!! :)

[CathyA.]

She does kick bootie....doesn't she?!

[bikediva]

Max, welcome! Feel free to share, or ask any question you want about fasting!!!

[brightly]

I'm in! I had posted on the last thread that I was ready to start a fast but then I had an unexpected visit from family I hadn't seen in a long while... so I postponed my fast. They left Monday and so tomorrow is Day 1 for me! How awesome that I log in to check in and see a brand new thread- perfect timing! I am REALLY looking forward to this as I am feeling heavy, sludgy and slow and am ready to feel light and cleansed!

and yes, Aleesha is an amazing inspiration! :)

[Aleesha Sattva]

i wish i inspired myself as much as i seem to inspire all of you LOL i could use a good dose of ME right now *giggling*

i am having a hard time in this moment. just had a bath... and am about to zone out with my daughter and watch some tv to get through this moment.

weird thing... i have no problem fasting at work. none at all. i get in the car to go home and all i think about is eating. hmmm... i need to look into this i think. ;)

max, welcome! you have amazing male fasters who have walked here before you. firstgarden and MR to name two... i'm sure you will lighten this thread with your depth of being. i find your posts bring a beautiful grounding quality in other threads and i look forward to reading your thoughts and experiences here.

ah... *deep breath*... i can do this!!!

[Conscious Midwife]

Joining you soon.

Need to get my jucing goods together.

[Aleesha Sattva]

yipppeeee!!! (((hugs)))

[Aleesha Sattva]

k it's time for bed... we've made it through day one... and my hubby is doing amazing. he says it's weird to not eat, but other than that he feels fine.

;) i'm the grumpy one LOL he seems normal.

men. sheesh.

giggling... night all!

[Mad Mex]

I'm blushing...

I fasted before, years ago, so I have some expiriences, I never did it with rawbackground, so, let's see.

btw, I see some confusion about my name, I'm called Marcel, Mad Mex is just a screenname, which expresses my love to the land of my wife and my crazyness.

Love to be here with all of you.

Started the day with a 0.5 litre of water with some squeezed citron, I will just do water during the day and the juice or GS in the late afternoon, give the body some rest.

Saludos,

Marcel :cool:

[CathyA.]

Good job Mad Mex.

[lavendarJ]

Quick hello to everyone...just finished off a nice tropical themed juice blend.

Just wanted to say hi to everyone...talk to you later

[Aleesha Sattva]

jut got home from the market... getting lots of greens and carrots for my hubby's juices.

he's about to make me some yummy apple/spinach/parsley/celery/ginger juice.

mmmm can't wait!

we ordered two more cases of young coconuts for me and a case of grapefruits as well.

[Aleesha Sattva]

okay so he made something different: this makes one litre

one stalk of rhubarb
4 apples
fennel - slice
parsley
ginger

mmm mmm goooooooooooooooooood!!!

[Mad Mex]

we ordered two more cases of young coconuts

Aleesha,
what are you doing with the pulp of the coconut?
Today I had 3 litres of water with some squeezed citron and a nice GS, one pineapple, ginger, a bunch leafs of turnip cabbage, an apple and one leftover kiwi, even my brother-in-law a mexican carnivore, liked it.

Saludos,

Marcel :cool:

[Aleesha Sattva]

I scrape it if it's nice and thick... and freeze it (or my hubby eats it when he's not fasting)... otherwise it gets tossed out with the nut unfortunately.

kiwi is sooooooooo nice in juices and smoothies... i love adding them. ;)

hubby has made me three litres of juice for work tomorrow... and i'm feeling so pampered by him. (((lovin' hubby vibes)))

[Aleesha Sattva]

i have a slight headache... need to go to bed. night all!

[fitchic]

I thought I'd start a new fasting thread since the other one is getting pretty long. http://i182.photobucket.com/albums/x87/recyclinggoddess/blahblah.gif

I feel the need to bring new focus into my life and into this fast, cause really gently breaking my fast for the weekend... I'm finding it hard to get back on track. So perhaps a new thread will assist me to do just that!

My commitment:

I will fast today.
I will not choose to break my fast today, I can contemplate breaking my fast tomorrow but not today.
I will not break my fast on a hard/bad day.
I will focus on drinking more water.
I will surround myself with love, light and support during my fast.

For anyone posting in this thread, please do not discuss eating in this thread. http://i182.photobucket.com/albums/x87/recyclinggoddess/Groaner.gif Whether it's you eating or someone eating around you. You can be vague "He ate in front of me" but not specific "He ate X, Y and then three helpings of Z!!!" This can cause other fasters to have a hard time/break their fast/focus on cravings and we don't want that.

So... who wants to join me and fast for awhile? I don't know how long I'll fast for, but I do know it will be healing and cleansing... and hopefully... deeply spiritual.

I hope to do some days on water - other days on juice. I am blessed to have a wonderfully supportive family and an amazing hubby who does all my juicing for me! *ya I'm totally spoiled*

So... let's do this! http://i182.photobucket.com/albums/x87/recyclinggoddess/4.gif
Aleesha.. how do fasts work? And why do you do them? I am possibly interested in doing one? Congrats on ur husband joining you!

[Aleesha Sattva]

a fast is whatever you make it. you can fast from anything. i am choosing to fast from fibre which means i'm only drinking juices and water... liquids.

i fast for spiritual reasons - i find a deeper connection with my Self and within my meditations etc when i'm fasting.

~~~

woke up feeling great. have to go to work today. here's to another amazing day folks!!! hope everyone is detoxing, feeling great, healing... whatever your body needs... i hope it's happening for ya!

[Mad Mex]

have to go to work today. here's to another amazing day folks!!! hope everyone is detoxing, feeling great, healing...

An other timezone, my amazing day is nearly over. Again, during the day just water with a squeezed lemon, now in the evening a GS with watermelon and dandelion.

Yesterday I took an inside shower and I do not have any detoxsymptons.

I feel full of energy again after a few sad SAD days and completely lightheaded.

Saludos,

Marcel :cool:

[Aleesha Sattva]

had a great day at work. lots of energy. i'm finding my body wants less juice... which blisses me out!

i'm off to the sauna for a bit of meditation and detoxing...

my hubby is doing GREAT. he's still fasting like a champ!

[dread head vegan]

hello everyone, sorry i haven't been around for a while, but my computer has a virus and is not alowing me to get online. ( i am at the libary now) i am doing great, still fasting on juice water and teas. energy is high. happy fasting:D:D

[Aleesha Sattva]

nice to hear from you dread. happy fasting!!!

just had a nice long sauna... feeling goooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooood.

[Mad Mex]

I got off work earlier today, so I had 2 GS, one small one before sport with dandelion, ginger, lots leafs of turnip cabbage, carrots and an apple.

And after sport, a big GS with cucumber, celery, scallions, carrot, tomatoes and chilipowder.

Saludos,

Marcel :cool:

[debilana]

I am on day one of a 30 day fast. I want a goal so I am not preoccupied on when to break- that happened last time I did this. 30 days it is- juice it up!:D

[nadien alexandra]

hi to all the new fasters!

It's so great we can appreciate the goodness of cleansing together.

I have broken my water fast!! ah!

I feel silly about it... I broke it because an old old friend was coming up to see me...

I just HAD to have wine with her... so quite the break it was going to be.

Then she cancelled, and here I was, eating and drinking things that weren't water.

Well I will be back TOMORROW. full tilt.

:):):)

[Aleesha Sattva]

deb... yaaaaaaaaaaa i love fasting with ya!!! i'll *hopefully* be here for you 30 days.

nad, yup... just continue on like nothing happened... i totally agree with ya!

had a great day. not a lot of juice but i could have used more. it's soooo nice out, went for a few nice walks/hikes. feeling amazing... truly amazing!

[CathyA.]

I'm still in the land of the chewing, but I wanted to say hi and happy fasting to all my fasting friends.

Happy Fasting.

[Aleesha Sattva]

hey cathy!!! i'm in the land of the sippers. LOL

[Aleesha Sattva]

checking in with everyone... have you pooped today? how's that going for ya?

i'm still having pretty regular bowel movements... so is my hubby. i just had some apple juice and it did it's job... i went shortly after :

yipppeeeeee for pooping!

http://i182.photobucket.com/albums/x87/recyclinggoddess/bathroomsmiley.gif

[Mad Mex]

Slightly, but there is a movement.

I do assist my body with an enema, not everyday, just if it feels like to get one every third day more or less.

How do you fasters do it?

Saludos,

Marcel :cool:

[Aleesha Sattva]

i use apple juice to move my bowels. i don't believe in enemas or colonics - but it's a personal thing. i don't believe they are healthy for my body.

;)
but pooping is gooooooood!

[CathyA.]

People always tell me that I'm full of crap. Maybe that's why I never have a problem pooping when I'm fasting. (big smirk on my face.):D

[Aleesha Sattva]

*giggle... snort...*

[Subtitles]

Hello fasters! Newbie here crashing your thread.
Today I made the leap-I bought a juicer for $4 at a yard sale! I haven't used it yet, so I can't tell you if it works LOL. If not, I will go yard saleing again next weekend (the perfect excuse!).
So, assuming it works, I'd love to attempt a juice fast! I have never fasted/cleansed in anyway before, I feel like a walking toxin. Blech!

Does anyone have suggestions for me? Can I drink any type of juice or should I stick to one kind? There is VERY little organic food around here, so I'm pretty much stuck with conventional fruit. Will fasting still be somewhat helpful?

[Aleesha Sattva]

yup it'll be very helpful for ya. you can juice whatever blend you desire... here's some good ones to get you started:

apple/parsley/ginger
watermelon
apple/cinnamon
pineapple/spirulina
apple/rhubarb/ginger

and then there's young coconut water. i'm sipping on that right now!

having a BEYOND great day today. picked up a bunch of rings and pendants from work... oh my... oh my... oh my... moldavite, textite, elestial quartz... amazing stuff. i'm off to a meditate with crystal bowls and tibetan bowls... i'm sooooo excited. i think i'll go sit in the sauna and meditate for a bit before going... really be in the zone for it!

:)
Aleesha

[Subtitles]

Thanks for the suggestions, I'm really excited to try it out! What would you suggest for a first timer? 1-2 days then see how I'm doing?

Oh, and do you have any suggestions for a mix with orange juice?

[Aleesha Sattva]

nope. oranges are better alone.

10 days is a good start. the first three days are the hardest.

what kind of juicer did you get? i'm guessing an inexpensive centrifugal. remember that you will use more produce and you need to drink your juice immediately!

;) and drink lots of water

[Subtitles]

It is a BRAUN MP80.

Oh. My. Gosh. To test to see if it worked, I cut up a couple of apples to make apple juice. This is quite possibly the greatest tasting juice I have ever had (Once I got past the fact it is brown and frothy!). I have never had fresh juice of any kind before (except wheat grass a few times). I don't think I will have any problems with a juice fast!

Most of the pulp didn't make it to the pulp collector thingamajig, it stayed on the outside plastic border of the blade. Is this normal? Didn't seem to affect how it worked any.

When you juice oranges, do you peel off the outside then put the whole thing in (with the white stuff)? Do you buy seedless or can you do it with seeds?

OH, and any favourite type of apple to juice?

Sorry for all the questions!

[CathyA.]

I always peel oranges and grapefruit. Lemon peel is highly beneficial IMO so that stays on. Seeds are ok. My favorite apple juice is gala. Don't be sorry to ask questions. Thats what its all about here, sharing information and supporting one another.

[Mad Mex]

nope. oranges are better alone.

Aleesha, I don't want to disagree, but have you tried oranges with a bunch of mint?


OH, and any favourite type of apple to juice? (...) do you peel off the outside then put the whole thing in (with the white stuff)?

Try them all, you will be amazed about the different flavours, that's what you keep being raw, diversity. If you just take always ONE fruit or kind, you can get tired by it.
For the oranges and all the rest of the citrusfruits take this rotating citrusjuicers. Except grapefruits, these I spoon out of the fruit directly.

Ok, now my fastingexpiriences.
Yesterday, no workingday, day starts at 5:30 a.m with a cramp, O.K. lack of magnesium. Later it went on with a GS (watermelon, kale) in between water, a beautiful cyclingtrip and one more rebuilding GS.

I love the easyway of living, just tasty juices and sun, it's so good for the soul, especially my soul.

Let's raw(k) the next days.

Saludos,

Marcel :cool:

[Subtitles]

Thanks so much for the tips! I think I'm going to start my fast tomorrow. I do have a couple of concerns though.

-I know when I take wheatgrass (I'd only have it every couple of weeks) because it is so potent it would make me very nausaus soon after taking it. I noticed after trying the juice yesterday that the same thing happened, but not near as bad (just slightly sick to my stomache, only lasted a few minutes). So is this something I should take time to get used to before I fast? Or will it go away fairly quickly?

-I am very active. Every morning I work out at the gym lifting weights and doing cardio. Then I usually walk about 2 hours through the day. Am I going to have to slow down for awhile?

[CathyA.]

I always work out while fasting. If your body tells you to slow down--please do. Fasting has its peaks and valleys when it comes to energy. Listen to your body....it is guiding you.

[Subtitles]

Will do!
Back from the grocery store. I'm prepared to get started! I'm guessing it would be different for everyone, but on average how much juice do you drink on a fast in a day?

[Mad Mex]

Right now during fasting, more or less 2-3 litres (1,75 - 2,64 quart) of water and 1 litre (0,88 qt) of GS a day.

While I'm sporting I also drink 0,75 litre (0,66 qt).

It is never a problem, if you drink too much, just running to the restroom, but too less is not good.

Like Cathy said, listen to your body, and do not oversport while fasting, it should be a time to rest for the body.

Saludos,

Marcel :cool:

[Aleesha Sattva]

try drinking a 1/2 litre of water with your juice and only sip them. your tummy may not be happy about how quick they are coming down.

it's also a good idea to keep the first mouthfuls in your mouth for a bit. let your saliva mix with the juice. digestion starts in the mouth and sends signals to your tummy... so remember to do this while fasting as well.

i had an amazing evening last night. i went to a crystal bowl concert. we were in a small room with all that sound... oh wow... i was just flying!

today is a relaxed easy day. i think i have a Reiki session with a student later on. Perhaps planting our new rhodos... nothing major.

ahhhh i love fasting...

[Aleesha Sattva]

oh and juice wise... i find i drink more at the beginning of my fast than i do on the 20th day of my fast. but it varies. some days i drink a litre, other days i drink 7 litres! i just go with the flow of what my body asks for.

[Aleesha Sattva]

well another amazing day is coming to an end and i'm ready for bed. i'm so tired... but it's mostly (i believe) because of the crystal bowl concert i was at last night. i'm still feeling the energy although it's starting to subside.

i had lots of juice today. grapefruit and then 4 or 6 young coconuts... i'm not sure. i also had a small glass of OJ. my hubby is juicing my watermelon up for me tomorrow... i'm looking forward to that!

;) night all!

[Subtitles]

Day 1 of fasting! Had a yummy appl/grape/lemon juice for breakfeast. Felt the difference at the gym between having just juice in my system and food. Ah well!

I know it's better to drink the juice right away. Is it ok to make it the night before for breakfast? I get up pretty early and don't want to wake up my roommate.
Is there any fruit/vegetable that is better for giving energy?

[CathyA.]

You can make your juice ahead of time and freeze it.

[Aleesha Sattva]

not in a centrifugal you can't and that's what she has. you have to drink it immediately after making it.

lots of people don't start consuming juice until a bit later... drinking only water first thing. perhaps that will work for you?

of course, if it's a "gotta do it" situation... then go ahead and make it ahead of time... just know that it's mostly sugar and little nutrition at that point so don't count it as a 'healthy' choice.

i'm off... gotta run.

[Mad Mex]

Another lovely and sunny day is over.

Right now I'm sipping on a GS of pineapple and selfpicked stinging nettle.

Over the day I drank again pure water with squeezed lemon, I don't know, why I haven't made it before, it is very tasty and satisfying.

Later, I will make myself a dessert, frozen spinach with some water in the blender and then some frozen cherries on top, not liquid, more like a sorbet, but I think it doesn't break my GS-fasting.

Saludos,

Marcel :cool:

[MOTH]

Jumping in. I just started a water-only fast. I am so eager to get this show on the road. Ready to have patience and love for myself.

[Mad Mex]

Short before I go to bed, I want to write something, in the last nights I had some strange dreams, not really nighhtmares, but pretty strange.
Normally I do not remember, that I dreamed, but since a few days I expirience this.

Have good night all!

Saludos,

Marcel :cool:

[Aleesha Sattva]

(((MOTH))) hi hi hi hi hi *jumping up and down* (((hugfest)))

marcel... ah fasting dreams... they are a trip aren't they LOL

i had the best day today. just had a gorgeous bowl of tomato juice with celery, parsley and garlic. kelp powder, curry powder, cayenne and smoked sea salt. ohhhhh mama!!! i'm blissed OUT!

[billyberu]

Starting today, 05/25/2010. Water and a lemon juice/maple syrup combo. (Commonly called the MC) Current goal is to make it through day three, which should be early Friday morning and set sail into the weekend. Last fast in 2003 for 28 days.

We'll see how it goes. Thanks! I'll post as I go along, good luck to everybody.

Oh, and the goal here is health, weight loss, and to take control over my eating habits again, my craving (monkey) mind is out of control at the moment.

B.

[Subtitles]

Yesterday didn't go so well! I ended up having one 'regular' meal. I was hungry, and felt dizzy and weak. Figured better to be safe then sorry! So I'm hoping today I can make it on just juice, but I'm not going to beat myself up if I have to eat again.

I have peaches, kiwis and strawberries that I need to use up. They don't have to be together, but what are your favourite juice combos using one or more of those?

[fitchic]

I would love to join, a little nervous but I feel I need it! But I have never done it before? How long do u usually go? And what is a water fast? Or a green fast? I dont know the first thing, sorry:confused:
I kinda fell off the wagon on going raw so I would love to cme back starting with a fast.
Congrats to you all for fasting!

[fitchic]

Billyberu... can u tell me how that fast goes? That is exactly my problem!! I would love to converse with u!!
THanks:)

[Aleesha Sattva]

billy and fitchic... welcome!

sub, feeling dizzy is part of fasting. your blood pressure is lowering and so when you get up, take a moment before standing. if you feel dizzy sit down for a moment before getting up. it doesn't take long to get your bearings again.

hunger subsides after day three... so expecting to not be hungry, weak or a little dizzy and to fast longer than a day isn't a goal you may be able to meet. of course, if you fel it's best to stop fasting... then it's a good idea to do so. we aren't there with you but can only speak from our own experiences.

fitchic, fasting isn't something you should do without any knowledge. read many of the long threads here (there's so much sharing in them) and do a search on the web... read read read... knowledge is power!

here's one or two sites to get you started:

http://www.freedomyou.com/fasting_book/water%20fasting.htm

and

http://www.soilandhealth.org/02/0201hyglibcat/020127shelton.III/020127.toc.htm

here's a good read as well:

http://www.timelessspirit.com/JAN08/tom.shtml

[Aleesha Sattva]

my day is beginning well. was up late last night... had no desire to sleep and woke up early this morning... ahhhh i'm in the zone!!!

i have watermelon juice, apple/parsley/celery/ginger and coconut water to drink at work today.

[Subtitles]

Thank you Aleesha! You have been so helpful! I didn't realize it was normal, figured it would be something to worry about. I shall start today as day 1 lol!

My other big problem: vegetable juice :S I have never beenable to drink any form of vegetable juice. I figured making it fresh and putting in my own ingredients would make it a lot better, but I still can't stomache it. Blech! How important is vegetable juice in a fast? Maybe I'll put a few small pieces of vegetables in my fruit juice, so I can't taste it much?

[Aleesha Sattva]

apple is your key to success. make apple juice and add in your greens. start off with a small amount... and slowly increase it.

greens are healing
fruits are cleansing.

good to have a balance of both!

apple/parsley/ginger is a nice way to get your greens. remember... herbs are greens!

[nadien alexandra]

hi to all the new fasters!

Make sure you are taking care of yourselves on these fasts.

Drink lots of water, don't go overboard on exercise or other doings.
I did that yesterday, and biked way too far (forgetting that I also had to come back).

If it's as hot where you are as it is here for me, Drink an extra glass of water right now.

To those of you doing the MC, can you explain this to me? I am not totally sure of the benefits of MC over water, or over juice.

Just want to HEAR about it!

Well, today I am going to SWIM, and laze around writing.

HAVE A BEAUTIFUL DAY.

[Lilly2010]

I read somewhere that if you go on a water fast your internal organs would eat itself up in order to get nutrients, is this true?? Although they said it was only for skinny people exept I'm skinny, 5' 7" 120 lbs, I'm afraid that if I'm on my 4-7 day lemon-water fast, this would happen to me/??? :confused:

[nadien alexandra]

I really think you'd have to embark an quite the extended fast for that to even become a considerable thing.

[Aleesha Sattva]

i agree. VERY extended. i think you should do some more research on water fasting ;)

had a great day. lots of energy. just had a lovely tomato juice for dinner. this time we added in green onion which was very nice - oh and lime!

[Gossy]

So I've just done some reading on kidney cleansing (my primary concern with fasting is making my kidneys worse if I have stones hanging around in them) and apparently juice fasting is good for cleansing out kidney stones! Hurray! So I'm totally doing it. I think I'm going to start tomorrow (I have a spin class in the AM and don't think with my fast metabolism it's the brightest idea to start a fast on a spin day - however after tomorrow AM I have several days of low activity - so my fast will start tomorrow PM!) and begin with 2-3 days of juice fasting, then switch to water fasting (although I may add lemon juice as that is good for kidney stone issues). I'm super excited to give this a go!

Aleesha - do you have a recipe/hints/tips for your tomato/celery/garlic juice you mentioned earlier in this thread? That sounds yum but I'm totally clueless about how I'd concoct that.

[Aleesha Sattva]

you just put it through your juicer and drink it :) i'm not sure what else you wanna hear.

[Gossy]

See my problem with "just throw it in and enjoy!" is I have *no clue* what ratio of things to use. One tomato? Five? Ten gloves of garlic? I guess I like having some guidelines so I don't wind up like I did on my first green smoothie day, with way too much spinach in it that I couldn't drink it.

[Aleesha Sattva]

Here you go... from my e-book - available on my raw food coaching web page,

Dinner Tomato Juice
4 tomatoes
1 stalk of celery
1 garlic clove
1 chunk of ginger
Once you've made your juice add: 1 tsp kelp powder, 1 tsp of cayenne, smoked sea
salt (or celtic), 1 tsp of curry.

[Mad Mex]

The way I learned it, TRY and ERROR.

One of the first GS of mine was with a whole savoy cabbage and some fruits I forgot, I couldn't stand it it.
Next time I got just a few leafs and fruits and it was fine.

Because most of the people do not really like the thought of greens, start slowly. I think you don't have a problem with drinking fruits, start adding more and more greens like roman lettuce, spinach, kale, stinging nettle (good for cleansing), leafs of beet and turnip cabbage, rucola and so on to your fruity GS and turn them time by time into green Green Smoothies. You will find your favourites.

Saludos,

Marcel :cool:

[Subtitles]

Day 1 of fast was a SUCCESS! It had it's ups and downs, but for the most part I felt great. Friday will be my last day, as my cousin (she is going to school to be a personal trainer) will be coming down Sunday and we plan on going a little crazy in the gym. I'm going to need all the energy I can get!

How long would I have to wait to fast again?

[lavendarJ]

Just checking in with you peeps...super duper busy and for the record, last Friday (i think) was Day 40... technically not fasting but I will be drinking a vegetable medley I juiced the night before and stuck in the freezer...long hot drive for 2 hours to a meeting so it has plenty of time to thaw out....also have some separate fruit juice blends...


But anyhoo...just wanted to say hey to all the fasters...

LIVE WELL

[Aleesha Sattva]

mad mex, that's how i do it as well. i try this, i try that... finding what resonates with me in the moment. as my tastes change, my juices change. it's a progression. ;)

slept well. i hoped to sleep in but my body didn't want to so i'm up. i have a Reiki client today and will work on my magazine. hope to get a nice walk in as well - the weather is gorgeous today!

sub, you can fast starting monday again if you wish.

[Subtitles]

How come the persons post was deleted about eating disorders? It would have been neat hearing everyones opinion.

[Aleesha Sattva]

google is your friend subtitles... feel free to research it. we aren't here to defend our reasons to fast anymore than we are on this forum to defend our reasons to eat raw. ;)

[Gossy]

Here you go... from my e-book - available on my raw food coaching web page

THANK YOU ALEESHA! You're the best :)

[Aleesha Sattva]

anything to help a fellow faster!!!

[Shine]

Good Afternoon All~

Thought I'd tag along for the next three days.....hoping anyway :o Started fasting this morning due to a violent acute illness that shook me yesterday. I have not been treating my body (and thusly my spirit) well for the past month and I know it's time to sit back and renew.

Only planning a short three days at this point (three days seems to be my confort zone right now) followed by at least one to three days of green smoothy feasting. Hoping I have the strength - I certainly need this!!

Thses fasting threads are inspirational....and they keep me honest :o

[Aleesha Sattva]

i find the same. not only do they keep me accountable but they assist me greatly to keep on track.

i can't tell you how many times i've thought about these threads and it's assisted me.

nice to have you on board... *ship ahoy*

[nadien alexandra]

HI FASTERS!

I am having a hard time fasting this time around.

I think it's that full moon coming on. I just want to FILL UP also.

So, instead of pure water fasting, I am doing lemon water, and GS fasting!

which I am totally okay with.

Aleesha, I LOVE lime and tomato together. :D

Went to a blues concert last night, spent all night dancing. went to sleep around 4 and I was up again at 9! I am full of energy and am so happy about that.

I'm off on a bike ride. have a nice day all.

[Aleesha Sattva]

ahhhh i love going with the flow... nice to hear you are!!!

[Shels]

Glad everyone is doing well. :)

I'm going to try a gs fast for the next four days, and then take advantage of my days off to do a water fast for a day or two. It all depends on what my body tells me though.
I ate way too much last night, and am still feeling so full and heavy. :( This morning has been pilates and water, lots of water, so hopefully I will feel better soon.

[Gossy]

My fasting is going to start tomorrow! I still haven't figured out what I'm going to juice for the morning. I got some fresh fruits today though - strawberries, peaches, watermelon, lemons, limes. I'm going to juice fast for the next two days. I don't want to shock my poor body too much. My digestive system is VERY sensitive and I'm afraid of mega hunger pains if I don't at least juice. The plan is that by the weekend I will switch to water fasting for a few days and see how I feel. If necessary I will juice feast after my spin classes only - otherwise, I hope to water fast for at least two weeks. Though I may still have at least a morning lemon/lime juice water as I also am trying to do a kidney cleanse, in case I have stones right now, and lemon/lime juices are the best for doing that.

I'm very excited!!! I just hope I can make/bring enough juice for all day at work tomorrow. I should have enough time in the morning to make a bunch though.

[CathyA.]

Watermellon juice is the best!!! I like to leave the rind on. Cuts out a bit of the sweet, plus you get the benifit of the chlorophyll.

[Aleesha Sattva]

mmmm watermelon...

remember... when you are fasting exercise should not be a focus... but rather something you do on the days when you have the energy. your body needs it energy to heal/cleanse...

;) a green smoothie feast may work better for you if exercise is a focus...

[Gossy]

I love my spin classes. I'm signed up for 3 classes a week until well into September. But the great part is, spin is what you make of it. I can work out as hard or as light as I want. I crave the mood stabilizing and energy enhancing effects of working out. I plan to continue going to spin and doing my 30 minute treadmill walks on my days off from spin. I think if I had to cut that out it'd be more toxic to my body. I've read other fasters go on bike rides and runs and such, so, I figured I'd be okay, though I do intend to only push myself as far as my fasting body can go during spin. The treadmill walks are merely to get my steps in each day - not really pushing myself at all. And I honestly don't see, for me, being on a juice/water fast, and continuing my work outs, to be a problem. Its kind of like how I'll have to keep going to work.

If I notice it being a problem I will, of course, modify my fast/feasting accordingly :)

I can almost taste my watermelon juice already! Time for some healing sleep before I juice it up tomorrow!

[Aleesha Sattva]

sounds you like are creating a good balance... ;)

i know of fasters who have worked out extensively while fasting, so yup it can be done. i didn't word my post very well... i should have said, "in my opinion and experience... " cause that's really what i was sharing. http://i182.photobucket.com/albums/x87/recyclinggoddess/10_15_10.gif

hubby is making us a nice grapefruit juice as i type this... ahhhhh i love fasting WITH him.

[Gossy]

I'm actually taking your advice this morning, on my Day 1 of fasting!, and not working out. Normally I'd do 30 minutes on the treadmill, some crunches and/or push ups, what have you. But since I truly am not sure how my body will cope with this new adventure, I decided to lay off. If I feel the need I can always hop on the treadmill later! Or, I can let my body have some extra rest.

I did do some stretching and yoga poses to wake up though - and now I am already having my first bottle of water! It tastes delicious!

[Subtitles]

I was thinking of switching to a green smoothie fast, however now that I've spoiled myself with fresh juice I don't want to give it up LOL! Could I drink juice on a green smoothie diet, or would that defeat the purpose?

[Gossy]

Subtitles - I'm not sure how juice on a green smoothie fast would "ruin" the fast or defeat the purpose. Juicing, as far as I know, is a way to consume some calories/other nutrients but using the simpliest liquid as possible. Easier to digest than a green smoothie, IMO. At the same time, green smoothies are also a good fasting method for people who need the extra nutrition/calories, or have health/stomach issues that won't allow a pure water or juice fast.

Since juice is "less complex" than a green smoothie, as far as digestion goes, it wouldn't defeat the purpose at all, again, in my humble opinion. Now, a green smoothie, being more complex than juice to digest, might defeat the purpose of a juice/water fast for some people. Like me! I am trying to go the juice/water method to give my body the simpliest nutrition I can and the easiest things to digest I can. I didn't feel comfortable going total water to start with, my body gets low on things like Vitamin B really easy, so juicing seemed like a great way to still get my vitamins, yet, give my tummy a break (which it totally needs from all the SAD food its been getting all my life!).

So in summation of my babbling - it seems to me if you feel you need the nutrients and calories, etc, from the green smoothies, but also want to have juice meals, that would be a totally acceptable fast/feast! If, however, you were aiming to keep the fast as simple as possible for your body, adding smoothies would be adding in "extra" work for your digestive system. Still, considering what it is (fresh fruits/greens), this might not be an issue for you. All depends on what your body needs!

[Subtitles]

Perfect, thank you! I'm in the gym daily and usually walk a couple of hours a day, so a juice fast just isn't enough for me. I figured green smoothies will still be beneficial, and I won't have to give up any gym time.

[Gossy]

So I made "juice" this morning. It was a bit of a mini comedy of errors, my first attempt, but I think things turned out okay. I'm not sure if my juice really counts as juice though . . .

I had some lovely fresh chunked up watermelon. I threw it in the blender, seeds and all!, and used the whole juice setting on the blender. It whipped it up into a very juicey mix - seeds and all (I was shocked how the seeds disappeared - I'm using this setting on berries from now on to get rid of their seeds!) - and then I ran is through an incredibly fine mesh strainer I have. I didn't have time to get a paint strainer/nut milk bag yet - so I figured the strainer would be sufficient. Seriously, the weave on it is incredibly dense. Very fine. And it was definitely catching something - pulp? the frothy top of the juice? whatever it was I had to keep stopping my pour and rinse the strainer out 'cause it was getting clogged, so I think it caught the non-juiced debris as much as was possible - and my watermelon juice is quite tasty. Its kind of weird, I've never had watermelon juice before!

I realize using my blender instead of a true juicer may be keeping some of the fruit pulp in the liquid, thus making a more complex juice for my stomach to digest. But considering what I have been eating (this is truly my first day as 100% raw now!), even a more complex juice is much simplier than what my body has been getting! I'd love to do a true 100% water fast, but at the same time, I just know my body well enough to know that I need at least one juicy meal a day. Though I may try at least a few days of just water to see how it goes!

*sip*sip*

This is fun! And it made things so much simpler (despite having some newbie juice making issues ;) ) this morning. No fussing and fawning over what the heck was I going to do for lunch and omg I have to eat a bajillion of whatever before they spoil and yadda yadda. It's so easy to just wake up, choose one fruit, make some juice, and head to work! And I already know what I'm planning to try for my dinner juice (nice fresh peaches, yum!), and the rest of the day will be water galore! Just what my body needs!

This simplification is going to be good for not only my body but also my mind!

[Melis2010]

I'm joining in. Actually been juice feasting since yesterday. Since is day 2. You Aleesha are a true inspiration to me.

[Aleesha Sattva]

water fast - digestion goes to sleep - most healing/cleansing happens as your body uses all it's available energy to do this work.

juice fast - digestion rests - high level of healing/cleansing going on as your body uses the nutritients and the energy from the juices to do the work.

juice feast - (2 gallons of juice or more) - high level of healing happens.

green smoothie feast - digestion does not go to sleep - it becomes more efficient because all your food is blended and so it comes to it almost 'pre-digested' and allows the body to get more nutrients from your food. lower level of healing/cleanses happens as body is still doing all the work of digesting.

hope that helps. you can totally add juices on a green smoothie feast...

welcome melis2010!
gossy... working out this morning wouldn't matter... your body doesn't even know it's fasting yet! i doubt if it would even notice tomorrow... i would tailor your work outs more after day 3. (but that's just me)

[Subtitles]

Awesome, thanks Aleesha! Today I'm trying just juice except for a smoothie before and after I workout, and see how that goes.

[Aleesha Sattva]

um... i wouldn't. getting your digestion going right before working out will have on the toilet for most of the time!

[Subtitles]

Hmm...an hour or two before I work out? lol! I usually have to eat right before I work out or I get hungry almost immediatly, which is really distracting when I'm doing weights :S
Maybe I'll have one right now and get my stomache working :P
Thanks for the warning! :P

[Aleesha Sattva]

good idea. once you get it going again... by having GS all the time... then it'll be fine. but breaking your juice fast right before - not a good idea.

[Gossy]

Alright, I am starting to get hungry and cranky. I knew this would happen. Suddenly every food in the world seems like the best food ever and my mouth cannot believe I'm not feeding it! Wah!!!

[Aleesha Sattva]

breaking our addictions if one of the many benefits of fasting. start to notice what you can do with the time you normally spend eating/thinking about food.

i like to enjoy that time in meditation, going for a walk... taking a bath.

[Aleesha Sattva]

just had some pineapple/spirulina juice. forgot how much i loooooove this combo. mmmm i think i'll have some more tomorrow!

how's everyone doing? is everyone pooping? (ya i'm the one who asks... now you be the one who answers!)

i added a bit of hemp oil into our tomato juice (soup) tonight. nice to get a little oil when you are fasting. i do this one or twice a week for the duration of our fast.

[Gossy]

Morning Aleesha!

I had a rough night. I admit to caving into a bite of non-raw food craving and you know what? It tasted gross. My brain had built it up that it would be the most amazing thing ever and one bite wouldn't ruin anything so do it!!!

Wrong. Not only did it not taste how I remember it tasting, but it didn't taste good to me. Its amazing how in about one week of eating basically 98% raw my tastes have changed so much. After that all I wanted was fresh fruit!!

So today I am going into things with more stamina and drive. I'm still feeling quite hungry. And a bit headachey/cranky. But I'll get over it. I'm also making sure I make more juice this morning so I have something to bring to work. Yesterday I had breakfast fruit juice which lasted until around 11AM with me sipping it, and then nothing but water. Which will probably be fine a few days down the road, but as I transition to more of a strict fast, my brain/body needs something for afternoon at work. I just need that sweet little "break" to my day still. So to avoid temptation of other things I want to bring more juice.

I also took all the cash out of my wallet so I cannot possibly hit up the vending machine.

And since today is FRIDAY and I have a 3 day weekend ahead of me, I'm in excellent spirits! And honestly, not having to break for some big cooked food lunch yesterday, which would then usually make me lethargic and exhausted for hours in the afternoon, was really nice yesterday. I'm kind of looking forward to the increased productivity it can bring (which means getting to leave earlier).

[Melis2010]

Good morning everyone!
Yes I am pooping :) All moving well in the digestive track. Feeling great today actually. Awaiting the down days but I will enjoy these good feeling days while I can.

[GoodCat]

Well.. I'm going to go for it. Starting on the 1st. I'm going to go on an extended fast. I"ve only gone 11 days before, but I'm going to try.

I'm wanting to have healing from adrenal issues (low cortisol), hyperthyroid (which doesn't have many hopeful solutions), and liver issues.

I want to learn to have self control and not let food, or anything for that matter, control me (except for my God above;))

I will drink mostly juices with an occational green smoothie (if needed to keep me on track)

I will not break my fast today.... thanks Aleesha :)

I do not want my children growing up with an unhealthy view of food. I don't want them to think that you can't have fun, family time, holidays, or what ever without eating certain foods. I want them, and me, to learn that its about our time together making memories and sharing in eachothers lives that matters.

So, I'll try my best. I would love to go for 2 months, but I'll take it each day.

Abundant Peace!
Cathy :)

[Gossy]

Argh!!! I am having a ridiculous morning of stress - and I can tell I'm doing it to myself, but I don't know why!! The empty belly "WAH!" feeling isn't helping. I am sipping on my peach/strawberry/pineapple "juice" (its thicker than a juice for sure, but I just felt I needed it this morning - I have straight up pineapple juice for later/lunch), have a headache, want to cry, am exhausted, and feeling snippy! I just want to get all my work done and leave, but I have this feeling of forboding (not for no reason either, my workplace is not exactly functional) that I'm going to get dumped on soon.

I'm just so tired today.

:(

[Gossy]

Well.. I'm going to go for it. Starting on the 1st. I'm going to go on an extended fast. I"ve only gone 11 days before, but I'm going to try.

So, I'll try my best. I would love to go for 2 months, but I'll take it each day.

Good for you Cathy! You can do this!!

[nadien alexandra]

hi fasters!

Had a good sleep last night (and by that I mean, I SLEPT for a little bit, as i'm usually too ridden with anxiety, jaw clenching, feet squirming, back pain blah blah blah)

I'm on a gs and water "fast" and all is well. I have been struggling to overcome some personal issues, and I think I am making mental progress.

I tried darkening my hair yesterday with black coffee. AND IT WORKED!
I poured it on, let it sit for a long time, and rinsed it out and my hair is noticably darker.
Now that is a much better use of coffee in my opinion.

plan to get some writing done today and to go for a bikeride per usual.

GOSSY: I've done that too. That addiction is loitering and you feel so compelled to fulfill it, and when you do, it's nothing like you'd built it up to be. NOT AT ALL. so not worth it. but now you know, and wont do it again!

CATHY: glad you are making the step towards better health. :)

have a nice day!

[Aleesha Sattva]

ah good to hear you slept. have you tried focusing on your breath when you are having difficulty and/or feeling over stressed?

take a deep breath in and release it. watch it... focus on it and nothing else. take another breath in and this time allow it to take a tiny bit longer to come in. hold it for a second and then slowly release it.

now take another breath and have it take a tiny bit longer to come in. (the key is to increase this very slowly.) hold it for the same amount of time - simply a pause... and then release it slower than last time.

keep doing this until you are at your max with a breath in and a breath out. slow, slower, slower still...

feel the breath coming in your nostrils... and releasing the same way. just focus on your nostrils... nothing else. feel your breath.

~~~

i'm feeling very excited. i'm going for a detox mud wrap today... yippppeeeeeeeeee. a little treat to myself!

as for juice consumption. remember that fruit juices are cleansing - higher detox. green juices are healing. one juice for the whole day... not a good idea. i take 3-4 litres of juice with me to work. if i don't drink them, then i don't drink them... but i always have them with me. if i don't... and i 'starve' myself all day... then when i get home... EVERYTHING looks edible... yes even cutlery LOL so drink... drink... drink.

if your body is asking for more it's cause it NEEDS more. how do you know what it needs? you don't... unless you listen to it! it'll let you know when it's ready to have a 'less' day and a 'more' day. go with the flow. don't get rigid... flow is goooooooooood!

[Aleesha Sattva]

mel, good pooping!

good, welcome!!!

[streetsurfer]

I'm not fasting right now but wanted to drop in, say hi, and maybe give some encouragement.
I find fasting is a good way to help overcome stressful situations be it mental or physical, to help make big decisions, hear or receive spiritual guidance amidst all the clutter of life, find solutions, to train myself in new good habits or overcome/drop old bad ones, as well as all the cleansing and rejuvinating apects of it.

I hope you all make good progress in whatever area you desire to, during this fasting period.
Be strong, get rest, meditate, drink plenty of pure water, love life, give thanks, smile, pray if your inclined to, regroup and recharge, and hopefully you'll overcome whatever difficulty you might be having.

I thank Alissa for creating the site, and you all for the encouragement you've been to me in the past nine months. Have a great holiday weekend!

[Aleesha Sattva]

(((hugs))) right back atcha!!!

[streetsurfer]

G'mornin Aleesha, have fun playing in the mud!

[Aleesha Sattva]

oh you know i will! *giggling*

i woke up 90 minute early this morning... cause i'm so excited. i hope they have some yummy exotic tea for me to drink!

[nadien alexandra]

I DO know that I am a very shallow breather. Sometimes forgetting to breath altogether. I then notice I've been holding my breath and holding all my muscles tight also.

I'm going to try this Aleesha. thanks :)

and yes, have fun in the mud. Jealous!

[Aleesha Sattva]

stress creates shallow breath within us. when we change our focus to our breath and allow our body to relax with it... it brings peace.

enjoy!

i'll think of you ALL during my mud-fun.

okay i won't... cause i'll be very mindful... but i'll think of you after!

[Soose]

here's one or two sites to get you started:

http://www.freedomyou.com/fasting_book/water%20fasting.htm

and

http://www.soilandhealth.org/02/0201hyglibcat/020127shelton.III/020127.toc.htm

here's a good read as well:

http://www.timelessspirit.com/JAN08/tom.shtml

Thank you for these sites, Aleesha, I've only been reading on the first one so far but it's been very straightforward and helpful. A lot to read but I do have time with the water fast. :)

Day five, I'm feeling much better, but my ds is still not... going to transition now to a juice fast when I have learned more.

I feel I'm pretty rehydrated now; my ankles are down to normal size and my knee pain is almost gone, facial complexion improving from the allergic reactions over the last few weeks. (That potluck!)

I was thinking we'd have to stay on a water fast to detox faster but it seems now after reading -- even though we've been raw, that the juice fast will move toxins out faster than a water fast. Please correct me if I'm wrong there, or if anyone has any thoughts to offer. I'm surprised my ds is still feeling badly on day five. He's very open to moving to a juice or smoothie fast.

[Aleesha Sattva]

water is the higher detox. juice fasting is next. juice feasting next and then green smoothies... and then raw foods. now remember - ALL of these options are soooo much higher than SAD... so even though one is 'lower' we need to remember that it's still way HIGHER than SAD.

read the last link...

[Soose]

water is the higher detox. juice fasting is next. juice feasting next and then green smoothies... and then raw foods. now remember - ALL of these options are soooo much higher than SAD... so even though one is 'lower' we need to remember that it's still way HIGHER than SAD.

read the last link...

Aleesha, thanks for the help. Can I ask -- I do understand that water fasting is a higher detox and faster healing.

But thought I also understood (from the freedomyou site) that if a body has a lot of toxins, the juice fast might be more appropriate because it would keep the digestive system moving more of those toxins out, and provide energy and nutrients which help the detox. (That's what I meant by "that the juice fast will move toxins out faster than a water fast.") Maybe I shouldn't have said "faster" originally.

Is this right? I see he suggests:


Juice Fasting and Healing
Juice fasting has a greater ability to encourage healing compared to fasting on water. Juice fasting cleanses the body while supplying a remarkable increase in vitamins, minerals and enzymes. Cancer cells, toxins, built-up chemicals, excess body fat, transformed fatty acids, impacted mucus in the bowel, sickness and disease are all dramatically impacted. This is evident in the countless healing testimonies Freedomyou has received. Living fruit and vegetable juices are radiating with healing properties. Antioxidants attache themselves to toxins, effectively removing them from the body. A living fuel that takes no digestive energies, allowing the body's entire focus to be on healing and rejuvenation. Packed with vitamins, minerals, living enzymes, antioxidants, phytochemicals, yet low enough in calories to force the body to cannibalize on its filthy waste, propelling you to vigorous physical health and clarity of mind. There will be periods of toxic crisis, but once you learn not to fear them they can bring an exciting anticipation that your body is going through a deep cleansing.

I'm not trying for any debates -- just trying to understand. Thank you! :)

[Aleesha Sattva]

water is a higher detox. juice fasting is the fuel for healing.

but...

if you use an enema or colonics with a water fast, you will remove the toxins (as the bowels tend to stay active during juice fasting and not during water fasting).

that is my understanding and belief.

detox and healing are two different things.

[Aleesha Sattva]

hope that makes sense and answers your question. if not... ask again please! :)

[Soose]

Okay, ty for that, Aleesha -- detox and healing are two different things. I know that on some level, but didn't READ that in these references. I guess I'm confused -- how can you detox without healing? Aren't both going on?

[quote](as the bowels tend to stay active during juice fasting and not during water fasting)[/end quote]
That is my concern with a water-only fast where a lot of detox is going on (like us right now) -- nothing to move the toxins out -- and so I was realizing maybe we should have chosen a juice fast instead.

I guess what we want at this point is detox. And we got some detox now.

Drank 8oz carrot juice (with a couple of collard leaves juiced mixed in) this evening. That's the only food I had around. My ds is doing well -- I am sick and my ankle is now swollen some again. :( Plus some flu symptoms. I guess carrot juice was too strong for transitioning to a juice fast? Should have diluted it? But my bowels have never stopped this week while they totally did on our first water fast. I was pleased at that as I figured it would keep the toxins moving out.

I guess I'm confused. Maybe I should have put these questions on a diff thread.

[Aleesha Sattva]

nope questions are totally cool here. keep asking them!

detox and healing are two different things. when we detox... we are cleaning out the organ (for example)... now that the organ is free of toxins... it can and will heal (as the body loves to heal itself whenever possible) but needs energy to heal. so healing comes after detox but it can also happen without detox.

but... in my opinion, an empty vessel heals better.

juice fasting detoxes as well... AND it has the energy (within the juices) to fuel the body to heal. healing takes energy. that's why we suggest that people do not work out while fasting. let the body use all available energy for healing rather than using that energy for working out.

now... water fasting is healing - there's no doubt about it but it's also super detoxing. depending on what needs to be healed depends on which is better. for example: if you have an ulcer, it would be better to fast on water. this way you are giving your stomach a chance to heal without working (digesting).

last... water fasting is not a fast where most people have a lot of energy whereas while juice fasting people usually have heaps of energy. so... if we follow this train of thought... then a juice fast would be more healing whereas a water fast would focus more on detox than on healing.

of course... that's my belief... doesn't make me right... just makes it my opinion. ;)

my suggestion to you is this... read read read read read (that's what i do) and then form your own opinion.

[Aleesha Sattva]

by the way... flu symptoms can be detox.

[Soose]

Thanks for making it simple, Aleesha. (detox vs healing)

Yes, the flu symptoms (et al) are detox. My ds is pretty okay so far with the carrot juice, hope that continues. I am pretty sick. Live and learn.

I am trying to read. I noticed the Shelton site was really pro water fasting and against juice fasting and it seemed against master cleanses, any of that stuff -- I did not read all of it yet, and I noticed it was from the olden times...

I kind of liked what the FreedomYou site had to say about Master Cleanses -- if the originator had access to all the info we have nowadays, he would probably be in support of juice fasts. Makes sense to me.

The timeless spirit site was helpful to my dh -- who likes the biochemical stuff. I have to read it again to finish absorbing it.

We started on a water fast because (1) it's what we had experience with, and (2) when we've tried a very limited juice fast (really a water fast with a tiny bit of juice added in), it's just caused the hunger to keep going of course. So we were not doing the juice fast correctly.

So the next step is to get us over to an extended juice fast. (I figure it'll be slower than a water fast but hopefully better for us for now.) Hope we can do this without getting too sick. Hope we see the healing results, too. I would like to see my ankle swelling go back down as it was until tonight!

Soose
p.s. I realize now that the lifestyle center and even the docs there did not know how to end an extended fast -- most of the time their patients just fasted a day or two, they'd never had anyone fast as long as we did (9 days) on water. So when we stopped the fast -- (with cooked millet of all things! they were trying to find something that we had never eaten) --I remember I got VERY sick a few hours later. For that matter, I think they did not understand fasting enough to know we should have been including something on a water fast to carry the toxins out. I asked about doing a cleanse but it got dropped through the cracks. Probably part of why I got so ill on ending the fast. Again, live and learn. The water fast still did help us all a lot at the time.

[Aleesha Sattva]

when you juice fast you want to drink juice whenever you have the desire. if that's 7 litres, then drink 7 litres. if it's 1 litre then just drink the 1. but... don't drink 1 if you really want 5. it's your body asking for energy (and since we don't know what our body needs the energy for... we should gift it what it wants/needs/is asking for).

trust in your body... it'll detox and heal if given the fuel/break to do so.

hubby and i have decided to take a little break from fasting. i'll be back on monday... i think he'll be joining me. we'll see.

i'll still be here though... (((hugs)))

[Soose]

Status: I'm a little better than I was last night but still achy and sore in parts. My ankle has gone down again. I was so glad to see that! Knee hurts though. Not sure about the teen, as he's not up yet. At bedtime he had not had any adverse affects from his 8oz carrot/collard juice.

Please may I ask this about juice and water fasting? I know from the past that water fasting will bring quick results. At about day 7, I was amazed at some old symptoms that cleared up; we would see signs of improvement hourly.

What is our experience going to be with juice fasting? I understand we'll have more energy. Will we also detox? How will it be different from the detox during water fast? What are your experiences?

Will it just be slower? I'm willing to take the time, of course. Our next commitment is the last week in June. I hope to have a healthier boy by then as he has to go off to camp for a week. (He and his dad take all their raw food.)

(I know one difference -- the toxins will have a way to leave as the digestive system won't shut down during the fast. That's very important to me now! )

Thank you all for the help! And for the company in fasting. :)

[Aleesha Sattva]

no one can answer that... you have to experience it to know. trust.

i can't really comment on your son as i would never support a teen fasting... so i have no opinion on that one soose.

go with what you are doing if it feels right? why are you questioning it if you believe it works?

and research research research. read and read and then read some more. it's what i did and what i still do (as i've said before)... read!!!

[Soose]

I'm comfortable with my teen fasting -- it's for the right reasons and with a good doctor (who eats all whole raw) backing him up. We questioned very carefully before we allowed it the first time. I'm not going into the why's here. We've had very, very good results. So one rule does not fit all.

Well, day one on full juice fasting. I think everyone is content. I'm still a little sore but the teen is doing very well. I gave myself a fever bath to help this morning. Not drinking as much juice yet as I'd think -- maybe because we came from a water fast. If there's any doubt, I'm diluting it just now.

I've made (all small amounts as I only have a centrifugal juicer at this point): carrot/collard
celery
carrot/mixed greens
three berry (juice added to ice as an icee; juicing berries was a learning experience!)

We're trying to be mindful about how we drink it. And make sure we don't drop drinking water between!

Just got back from the store with a watermelon, cantelopes, 25lbs carrots.
They're going to be happy to see the melons. :) And I have some tomatoes and salsa makings I thought we'd turn into a juice tomorrow. We'll see! :)

[Aleesha Sattva]

i support you 100% in your choice to choose! (((hugs)))

[Soose]

Day 2 on Juice. We all feel good. :)

I'm surprised by how little juice it's taking to satisfy all of us.

(My husband joined us for the weekend, but he did eat a banana late last night. He was gone from the house too long and wasn't able to take anything with him, and when they got back both were hungry -- I had enough berry icee left for my ds but dh just grabbed the banana. Not a problem, he's not trying to detox with us right now. )

This morning, we juiced a whole cantelope. Experimented with 3 ways of juicing/straining. It was very creamy and I'm sure there was pulp still in it, but so was the stuff out of the juicer and strainer. I'll try the paint bag later. (On my way to get new ones.)

We're trying to remember to drink enough water between juicing!

I made a list of all the fresh ingredients and put it by the juicer so anyone can choose and be creative. :) We'll all need something green soon -- yesterday we started out with the carrot but I put greens in and our day was stronger on non-sweet; I felt better.

Left some bottled cantelope juice (from the blender) in the fridge for anyone with a sudden hunger. In fact I think I'll take some with me shopping.

Hope the rest of you have a good juicing day! :)

[nadien alexandra]

hey guys,

I have been having some stomach problems this weekend. I stopped fasting a couple days ago to go to an event where I was learning how to use herbs for ointments, salves, tea, food, and how to properly combine them to address particular health concerns.
I learned a ton! BUT, I broke my fast and ate solid foods.

My stomach felt/feels like there was/is a large rock in it. it's cramping up, and anything i put in my stomach wants to come back up, and in fact did. I know this is because I ate food that is harder to digest and in terrible combination. I have a very sensitive digestive system. Not many things sit well with me (they never have). I work totally fine on fruit and veggies though :)

I had been dealing with stomach problems previously. A lot of it was affected by my totally strung out nervous system, combined with eating the wrong things (my old SAD diet).

So I'm a little unsure as to what to do. My body is telling me no more food. it doesn't want anything.

I am thinking the best thing is to fast longer with some calming meditating and breathing, with the hope that my body will heal itself.

I'm looking for a little friendly feedback. I know it's ultimately up to me and what my body is telling me, but does anyone think it would be better to rest on water (and maybe juice) or... or what?

thanks guys. you are always very supportive.

I hope everyone is doing well!

SOOSE, your fast sounds like it's going really well. all the best to you are your ds.

[Aleesha Sattva]

well you probably know what i'm going to say but i'll say it anyway.

first and foremost... here's a huge hug for ya (((hugs)))

second - no guilt. you made a choice and regardless of the outcome... you've learned from this experience and that's something to celebrate!!!

and last... i would fast on either water or juice. whatever you desire most. i'm thinking young coconut water would be a good suggestion since it heals the tummy sooooooo quickly and so well!

(((hugs))) here's a few more for ya. sounds like you may need one.

[Aleesha Sattva]

oh and for everyone to know... i'll be back joining you tomorrow. hubby hasn't made a decision yet... but i'm sooooooooo wanting to fast again. i'm not sure how long... but definitely a few days anyway.

i sooooooo love the feeling - the experience - the spirituality of fasting. so i'm baaaaaaaaack!

[nadien alexandra]

hey aleesha.

thanks for your thoughts. I will DEFINITELY pick up a coconut tomorrow.
I didn't even think of it, and I'm sure my body will be happy that you thought of it for me.
I am thinking also maybe watermelon, cucumber, and some ginger sun tea.

and thanks for the hugs. :)

I feel so much better when I fast as well. I have SO much energy. I am a million times more positive. more active. more thoughtful....

I'm glad you're back, hubby or not.

I'll see you tomorrow! :D

[Aleesha Sattva]

(((hugs))) one more... and i'll see you tomorrow!!!

[Soose]

Hope you feel better tomorrow, Nadien. Hope you enjoyed your workshop aside from the food.

(Oh, when my stomach is upset and acidic, celery juice is amazingly calming! Not sure if that would help. I have not found any young coconuts around here to try fresh/raw. Count your blessings if you have them.)

Aleesha, thanks for watching the thread and helping out all weekend -- I forgot you were not fasting for the weekend.

I'm looking forward to tomorrow. Finally got some more strainer bags so I am all set to make a real mess in my kitchen again, lol. My husband doesn't have to go back to work until Tuesday, so I hope he'll continue the juice (or smoothies) with us. :) I like the slogan, "Don't look back" because I was second guessing today -- should we have stayed with the water a few more days? Should we go toward green smoothies at least? (I was rereading parts of the Green For Life book and that got me started.) So I think no change is a good thing. Let's stabilize our position where we are.

Found something interesting I'd forgotten in that book about stomach acid -- that many of us are actually not producing enough. (She says if your elimination is red after eating beets, you don't have enough HCL!) Seems greens can correct that with some time, so I need to make sure we include enough greens in our juice. Because I thought red was normal, just the way beets work in your body!

Made my first successful savoury green drink today: 4 romas, 1 celery stalk, 1 red bell pepper, juice 1 lime, 2 scallions and some purple onion, 2 collards, cilantro, garlic, a little seasalt (to please my ds).

It's probably old hat to the rest of you but I still can't get over how GOOD that was! My son did not want his share, just drank enough to say he had some, so I actually drank a little too much because it was so good! (You know, not quite enough to save, and besides, it needs to be fresh. )

[Aleesha Sattva]

soose... good to add greens to juice.

even when i'm eating, i always have young coconuts in the house. IF my tummy is unhappy with what i ate (bad food combos for example)... the juice of a couple and i'm feeling great again. so i highly recommend them!

[Aleesha Sattva]

here we goooooooooooooooooooooooooooo. hubby is fasting with me... we are on the road again.

fasting bandits unite!!!

oh and i have some new things to add to a successful fast:

we will not end a fast today.
we will not end a fast after 10am. if we want to end our fast we will end it in the morning. if we choose to end our fast in the evening, we will wait until the morning to break it.

so... if you decide to break your fast tomorrow but you end up fasting during the day... then hold off and break it the next day.

good way to not break it over a craving!

:)

[commoncents]

Hello All: I have decided to fast for 30 days. I'll be the doing the Master Cleanse. I'm really excited about fasting again. I'm tipping the scale at a sad high of 222 lbs. I can't stand this weight and the way I look and feel.

So, it is very nice to be here with my fellow fasters. Just drank my smooth move tea and will settle in for a day of sipping liquids and writing a paper for school

Happy Memorial Day to all!!!!

P.S. - I don't know what it is about June an fasting, but I always understake one in June and am always successful!

[Aleesha Sattva]

welcome!!!

[Soose]

Thanks, Aleesha, good commitments to make. :)

I had bought a watermelon - blended (peeled only outer part of rind). Diff results:

Hubby - liked it;

I liked it but it's a sugar rush for me mornings, don't like it and didn't do well on the cantelope juice yesterday morning either.

Teen loves watermelon but didn't like juice. :( (Not sweet enough, probably.)

So... I took the adult's and made a second round with yellow bell pepper and some red lettuce leaves. We liked it and it helped me with the sugar rush.

Teen wouldn't tolerate any greens in the WM juice at all. (He does like green smoothies with other fruits, and some types of greens in carrot juice; and eats a good variety on salads. I guess it's the chlorophyll.)

So we made him some of the carrot/collard and added a little apple in.

Tired today, some lack of sleep but some that sweet rush. This will pass.

Soon as we started juicing we started cutting down on water. I'm concerned that we will fall into the habit of relying mostly on juice instead of water.

Also, I have been taught that we need to abstain between meals to allow time for healing. If we're drinking juice often... we'll be digesting it too much of the day? Still more reading to do, probably some principles I need to learn.

[commoncents]

Thank you Aleesha and thank you for starting this thread.

[Aleesha Sattva]

why would you take away the rind? that's your GREENS! just wash it next time and leave it on.

your body doesn't really digest the juice... it absorbs it. and it's fine to sip all day if you wish.

also... what i do is - when i wake up i immediately drink 1-2 litres of water. then i drink another glass of water every time i pee. that way... i'm getting lots of water. i do this until noon... and then just drink when i want to.

[Aleesha Sattva]

Thank you Aleesha and thank you for starting this thread.

no problem... thanks for joining it!

[Soose]

why would you take away the rind? that's your GREENS! just wash it next time and leave it on.

Because I'm a newbie to some of this? lol Actually, in this case, it's not organic and maybe even felt as it if had a coating on it; so I didn't feel we should use it -- but thanks, I will next time if it looks good.


your body doesn't really digest the juice... it absorbs it. and it's fine to sip all day if you wish.

also... what i do is - when i wake up i immediately drink 1-2 litres of water. then i drink another glass of water every time i pee. that way... i'm getting lots of water. i do this until noon... and then just drink when i want to.

We do drink the liter minimum or two liters of water on rising. I'll tell everyone about the pee/drink habit -- there was a time I made that one of my "build a habit" endeavours; dropped it. I think I'll make a sign to put in the bathrooms. "Toilet rental cost -- drink one liter water." (Humour works here even if it's lame, better than nagging.)

[nadien alexandra]

welcome Commonsense.


I am preparing for a trip to Desolation Peak in Washington today. This will happen mid june.
I love the process of organizing and packing one's things for a great backpacking adventure.
I live in Ontario so it is going to be quite the journey making our way to Washington. We'll head down from BC, and then we'll head way down to San Fran.

I am drinking water this morning. I'm going to bike into town for a coconut and then have a nice relaxing day organizing my things for the journey.

I hope everyone is doing well today.


I am going to own this nice mantra Aleesha.

And,
I will not break my fast today. :)

EDIT:
I AM owning this mantra.
I HAVE owned it.

[GoodCat]

I'm getting very excited. I'll be joining you all tomorrow. I'm not sure how far I'll go, but I'll give it my best each day ;).

Thank you all for being such an encourgement.

Cathy :)

[Aleesha Sattva]

another GREAT day of fasting... i'm in fasting bliss.

sipping on some watermelon juice as i type this!

glad everyone is doing so well... :)

and OWN that mantra!!! :)

[nadien alexandra]

had a great day as well. :)

I biked for 6 or so hours around town. picked up a coconut on my journey.

drank water all day and drank all that little coconut had to give just now.

I plan to sip on water until bed, which will come soon as biking exhausted me, but in a really really good way.

thought: I find it interesting to observe other members of my household when I am fasting, and how often they go to the kitchen, the fridge, for food. I wonder how many of those times are totally unnecessary, out of boredom, out of addiction, out of habit.

[Aleesha Sattva]

i hear you on your thought... it was amazing to me, during my first fast, at how often i found myself staring into the fridge... only to realize i was fasting.

[Soose]

There are certainly a lot of potential food triggers around both home and out and about! So glad we took the time to clear out the kitchen. (Though the fresh food returned Friday evening with my husband from work.)

We're going to a mix of juicing and green smoothies tomorrow. I am going to pick up the old Champion I bought off Craigslist, too. It'll be good to have it around. My centrifugal has been held together with tape over it's lockout switch for a year or more, lol.

[Aleesha Sattva]

you are going to love the champion! it's a great machine.

mmmm juice! i'm about to sip on some young coconut water!

[nadien alexandra]

goodmorning fasters.

my body was not interested in sleep, so I am up and about earlier than usual.
(7:30 this morning!)

I am swishing some coconut oil around my mouth and I'm about to go do some morning yoga.

today is water water water and maybe some juice in the evening.

be good to your bodies and have a nice day everyone.

[GoodCat]

Good Moring.. I've been so looking forward to this day. I went shopping yesterday and bought some pineapples, grapefruits, oranges, lemon, limes, cilantro, celery, carrots, etc. ;)

Right now I'm just drinking my carrot/celery juice. I will try to drink lots of water too.

:)Cathy

[nadien alexandra]

hey GOODCAT, glad you've joined us. day one is exciting.

nighttime might prove a tad difficult sometimes, but tell yourself to stick to this until tomorrow, and then tomorrow, you'll be even stronger.

I notices a lot of citrus fruits in your purchases.

May i suggest some calmer fruits?! (perhaps you already have these at home, in which case im sorry to undermine your thoughtfulness)

watermelon, other melons, apples, pear, kiwi, grapes, coconut..?

just a suggestion.
and melons make a ton of juice for your buck.

[GoodCat]

Thanks nadien... I do have watermelon, apples, and pears. I need to work on the coconuts. I know people love them, however, I do not like the taste of the juice/water inside. Not sure if I can add anything to it to make it more tastey?? I do like the taste of coconut meat, juice, and lime. I wish I would love the juice by itself.

I didn't realize that citrus is more of an "active" juice. I'll have to remember that. I usually only drink a few glasses of it a day when I fast, but it would be good not to drink it then before bed :rolleyes:

:) Cathy

[Aleesha Sattva]

citrus is a more active juice? what??? i have absolutely no idea what you are talking about. as far as i'm concerned... there's nothing wrong with fasting on citrus juices. i've known people who have done it.

i finished my litre of water and am sipping on grapefruit juice. listening to the cats complaining in the hall LOL

[Soose]

Morning, all. :)

Up, streetready early (a habit I'm trying to build this week). Sent my dh off with his raw stuff and fed him celery and watermelon juice for b'fast.

At home, I followed through with a savoury green smoothie. Even with very little scallions, it's too pungent for me, or perhaps it has too many collard greens. I was in a rush. Still, it sits well and I was not tempted by the goodies in the stores or the ones I had to handle on errands today. Home for lunch with some more produce and more green smoothie.

Going to try out the OLD Champion. Okay, it is REAL old. No blank screen, no accessories. I guess carrots are the obvious choice to try it out.

But at this point what I'm wanting is celery juice, to calm the pungency, then later, some melon juice. I can't wait for apple season!

My ds just got up when I got home, and has only had watermelon and some mixed fruit juice. I bought some flax oil; he will try some later today.

[GoodCat]

Yummy...watermelon juice. I heard everyone talking about it and so I made my first batch today. I LOVE it!! Who knew... well... you all did ;)

I'm glad to hear the citrus is okay. I love my grapefruit juice.

Cathy :)

[nadien alexandra]

hey cathy,

didn't mean to mislead you into thinking citrus is not good.

I was just trying to suggest a balance of things in your diet.

and from personal experience, melons sit better in my tummy no matter what, and has a very calming affect on me.


SO, i just bought a new juicer. Breville BJE200XL
It works a million times better than my old juicer. It's fast, easy to clean, produces sawdust pulp which reassures me that I'm getting as much juice as I can.

I made a apple/celery/carrot juice for myself
and a tomato/lime/celery/carrot juice for my dad.

Then I made a grapefruit juice, but I think leaving the rind on the grapefruit made it quite bitter tasting.

Well I'm am very satisfied right now and I'm off to make a rug!!

Happy Fasting everyone!

[GoodCat]

Oh no nadien... you didn't mislead... I think I just misunderstood :).

Today was a good day. I had my carrot/celery juice this morning and then juiced 1/3 of a watermelon and sipped on that the rest of the day. I did manage to drink about a 1 1/2 qt. of water too. I have a slight headache, but not too bad.

I did get a few books from the library on fasting, so I'll be reading those tonight and for the next few days. So much to learn ;)

Good night,
Cathy :)

[Soose]

GoodCat, congrats on your successful day fasting!

Do please share your book titles somewhere/somewhen if you find a good one. :)

[Aleesha Sattva]

I notices a lot of citrus fruits in your purchases.

May i suggest some calmer fruits?! (perhaps you already have these at home, in which case im sorry to undermine your thoughtfulness)

watermelon, other melons, apples, pear, kiwi, grapes, coconut..?


So then what exactly DID you mean? Cause I'd like to know. I've never heard of calmer fruits and the significance of doing them with or rather than citrus.

I'm totally into learning... but I'm also very into not spreading untruths. So please enlighten me cause honestly... this makes absolutely no sense to me at all.

Had THE best tomato juice of my life tonight. mmm mmmm good! lots of watermelon juice and a gorgeous pineapple/heavyonthespirulina as well.

[Shine]

Back again for another try :o Doing very well this morning. Had a liter of water before anything else (yep - learned this from Aleesha and it's a great habit for everyday....I find the days I do it I eat better as I feel better) some apple juice and am now sipping on a mc lemonade.

My goals for the next three days:
~drink!
~talk a walk outside to get away from my desk at "lunch" which will now be "mid-day break"
~meditate for at least five minutes
~stretch
~30 minutes of light exercise

This will be a great three days of juice and water. I am planning on following up with three days of green smoothies and fruit. The last time I fasted I did not break it well at all and I don't want to make that mistake again ;)

[Melis2010]

I bailed on fasting and went to regular raw eating :( but came back as my lungs are killing me and I feel just ick. I think I need to give my body more of a rest to let the healing continue. So Day 1 for me today. I think I'm going with green smoothies this time. :D

[Aleesha Sattva]

I've got my water in me and it sounds like my hubby is making grapefruit juice in the kitchen!

I have a Reiki session today... on ME! Very very exciting indeed. I'll be taking my new Nirvana Crystals with me into the session. Slept with them last night and had a weird night indeed.

Anyway... I'm off!

Oh I forgot to share... a friend got a huge amount of organic strawberries and has chosen to share a BUNCH with me. I mean a huge amount. So we've popped them into ziploc bags and into the freezer for juicing at a later date. mmm mmmm yummers!

[Soose]

We got well started this morning with a savoury green smoothie. My dh says "gives me a sense of well-being." Me, too! :) Sent along foods for him to work, and started my ds off with a little savoury green smoothie and not sure how much watermelon/cantelope smoothie. He prefers sweet green smoothies.

We're thinking smoothies in the morning, juices afternoons.

[Aleesha Sattva]

i'd still really like to know the answer to this (http://www.rawfoodtalk.com/showpost.php?p=610199&postcount=171) nadien.

only one way to learn... and that's to ask questions... hence why i'm asking you about this.

[nadien alexandra]

So then what exactly DID you mean? Cause I'd like to know. I've never heard of calmer fruits and the significance of doing them with or rather than citrus.

I'm totally into learning... but I'm also very into not spreading untruths. So please enlighten me cause honestly... this makes absolutely no sense to me at all.

Had THE best tomato juice of my life tonight. mmm mmmm good! lots of watermelon juice and a gorgeous pineapple/heavyonthespirulina as well.

Aleesha, it's not an "untruth" if it is an opinion, as I stressed in my "apology".
From my personal experience, drinking purely citrus juice makes my mouth raw and my stomach environment feel a little unstable (is it possible that this is because I ingest such a large amount of citrus in my diet everyday? (a few lemons, an orange and a grapefruit everyday)). from my personal experience, melons, pears, kiwi and the like tend to make my stomach environment more settled/satisfied/fulfilled, decreases that rawness in my mouth and overall makes me feel more of a balance (balance is a word to describe my personal state, not how alkaline or acidic I am, however it might have something to do with the nutrients I am getting from those foods and what nutrients my own body needs).

I was simply suggesting something that has worked for me. Does it matter if it is scientifically proven? Someone's personal experience is worthy of being considered valuable information. Take it with a grain of salt, or try it yourself if you're feeling what I described with drinking only citrus juice.

I am still learning too, and this is what I've learned about myself.

as well, I know people who have fasted on Just orange juice. I know people who swear by fasting on lemon water, and I have done a two week fast on lemon water before.

I was thinking in terms of a long term fast, and that's just what I thought to type with that thought in mind. (i was thinking "hmm all citrus. Melons have been so good for me right now as I'm struggling with stomach problems, I'll suggest that to someone else!")

feel free to delete my post.

[GoodCat]

Well today has been a good day so far. I started my day with a qrt. of water and then had some carrot/celery juice later. I'm thrilled to see my body reacting so wonderfully to this juice fast. Its already releasing things that need to be released ;)
I had a very emotional/wonderful time in prayer today and felt such a closeness to my God that I haven't had in a long time. I can't wait to see how things continue to grow/change as this fast continues.

Thank you. While reading everyones journeys on this thread, it encouraged me that I can do it too. :)

Cathy :)

[Soose]

i'd still really like to know the answer to this (http://www.rawfoodtalk.com/showpost.php?p=610199&postcount=171) soose.

only one way to learn... and that's to ask questions... hence why i'm asking you about this.

Why are you addressing this to me? I have no idea. lol

[Aleesha Sattva]

nadien it's the 'calming' comment that i just don't understand. i still don't... but i'll drop it.

just so you know i'm all about personal experience. that's why i start these threads and why i stick around in them even though i'm not fasting at times. i share my experience and i learn from other people's experience as well.

i'm not going to delete your post... you are totally welcome to share you opinion. i just wanted to learn from you.

sorry soose... *giggling*...

i had an amazing Reiki session today and found a new spice mix for my tomato juice. i'll be using it tomorrow night. i can't wait!!!

[GoodCat]

Ohhh..ohh..ohh.. I love the tomato juice/drink that Aleesha shared!! I added a little red onion to it too. It was sooooo very satisfying.

I finished reading my first book on fasting, and it was very good. I'll share the name later as I don't have it with me right now. I had alot of good info.

Abundant Peace!
Cathy :)

[Aleesha Sattva]

have you read 'dining from an empty bowl'? it's my all-time fav book on fasting!

we've started adding in a green onion or two to the tomato juice... that is tasty as well!

[nadien alexandra]

this was my dinner:

6 med. carrots
3 lg. tomatoes
handful of spinach
1 red pepper
1 orange pepper
3 stalks celery
1/4 onion
clove of garlic
bunch of swiss chard
bit of chili pepper

very satisfying. an absolutely complimenting combination.

Had some honeydew melon for lunch. It was a good choice.

having a quiet night. I feel very rational, very calm, but very disconcerted, a little melancholy.

I am quite hungry on my 3rd day. But I do not have the desire to eat.

well goodnight. sweet dreams everyone. I wish you the strength you might need to fast your way to health (and hold on to that health).

[GoodCat]

I don't have that book Aleesha.. I'm going to go and see if my library has it. I love reading!!

Cathy :)

[Aleesha Sattva]

cathy, it's such a good book... not expensive at all.

nadien, sounds like a yummy juice. toss some kelp powder and cayenne - maybe even a bit of curry and oh la la... i'd be over for dinner!

[Soose]

Congrats to everyone on arriving at the next milestone of their fasting journey! :)

It's getting easier this week. Now, to move forward, I personally need to do something about moving this bod. No suggestions, please, or I'll stage an internal rebellion, rofl. Stay tuned.

Hmm, perhaps fasting is helping me be more productive. I did notice even on water last week, about the second day my body started saying, "move me, please."

Drat! I forgot to make my signs. I've refined the idea. You know C-3PO and R2D2? So I'm going for, "1P-H2O" above the toilet.

Night, all! :)

[Aleesha Sattva]

I sooooo want a sign like that! LOL here's a little motivation for ya!

http://i182.photobucket.com/albums/x87/recyclinggoddess/dancing-6.gifhttp://i182.photobucket.com/albums/x87/recyclinggoddess/5vbxuo.gif

[Soose]

Oh! The banana dances?? lol I am sitting here watching a banana dancing when I need to be in bed! <G>

[dread head vegan]

hello everyone... i had a nice break from the intnet for a couple of days. still fasting, i lost count of how many days not really paying attention to it. :D good luck fasting everyone

[GoodCat]

Good Morning All...

Its another beautiful day around here. I've had some water and then some carrot/celery juice. This is day 3 for me, and its been easier this time around. My longest fast was 10 days, so we'll see how long this body wants to go.

Aleesha.. my library didn't have the book, but I did find it on Amazon. And you're right... its not expensive at all. Thanks. You know, the author has another book out too about raw eating. Is this a good book too?? My library did have that one and so I reserved it.

Is it normal for your stomach to growl? Does that mean I should drink more juices? I do feel somewhat hungry when it growls. And at some point, will it stop feeling hungry and just be a mental thing?

Thanks all,
Cathy :)

[Aleesha Sattva]

growling is not actually a sign of hunger... but if you want more juice... have more! there are no limits and no rules... it's your fast and you can make it whatever you want/need in that moment. that's the beauty about fasting... the freedom!

i skimmed his other book (i have it as well) and i liked it too.

here's a little (http://www.timelessspirit.com/NOV09/interview.shtml) about him (i interviewed him for my magazine)

and the review (http://www.timelessspirit.com/JULY08/review1.shtml) of his book.

sippin' on grapefruit juice... enjoying the sun!

[nadien alexandra]

It's a grey rainy morning in south ontario, but i quite like it. I'm going to get some stuff done in preparation for my backpacking adventure today as I cannot go biking.

I'm sipping on some watermelon (with a little sliver of honeydew) juice right now.
It is DELICIOUS.

I am however craving some sort of tomato/carrot based drink. Yesterday's tomato juice was just so amazing. I need more.

I'm still having bm's on my 4th day. they are little and wimpy, but I am wondering if drinking the froth of my tomato juice yesterday kept my digestive system awake.

I usually do water fasts, so I am still learning about a full out juice fast.

either way. I feel awesome today. I had some weird dreams after watching this last night: http://documentaryheaven.com/why-do-we-dream/

I think I'm a heavy REM dreamer. my dreams invovle a lot of searching, worrying, overcoming obstacles.

ALEESHA: I am a HUGE fan of cayenne. I'm going to add this to my next tomato juice, and despite my love for curry, I am a little apprehensive about adding it. But I will try it one day soon.

happy fasting everyone!

[Aleesha Sattva]

nadien, just give it a try... curry, cayenne, kelp powder and smoked sea salt. oh mama... it's soooooo amazing. it's my addiction!

and if you want another change... add in some nutritional yeast! it makes it cheesy tomato soup!

the froth is just air it isn't pulp... so it won't keep anything awake.

[nadien alexandra]

I just read your above comment ALEESHA:


growling is not a sign of hunger

Any thoughts about how I might distinguish assumed hunger from actual hunger while juicing?

I find that very rarely am i actuallyhungry but quite often I am Craving. sometimes I think I force my stomach to rummble with thoughts about solid (and sometimes SAD) food (i live in a very heavy SAD household, and despite my convictions, I feel tempted sometimes with it in my face).

[Aleesha Sattva]

i've fasted for 84 days (that was my longest fast) and i think i may have experienced true hunger at the end.

honestly, i hear about true hunger and how you know it when you experience it, but in all my fasts, i haven't experienced it.

i had a friend who fasted a lot as well. her longest was over 150 days and she never experienced it either.

so... in answer to your question... in my experience... it's more a mental challenge when it comes to a hunger than a real 'need'. i'm thinking that perhaps true hunger only happens with a water fast? but they say it happens with juice fasting as well. *shrugs shoulders*

[Aleesha Sattva]

so... i always recommend that if you need more juice - have it. if your body and mind are telling you need more... gift it to them :)

[nadien alexandra]

I have not experienced it on a water fast either.

Although, I have only water fasted for 2 1/2 weeks at the longest.

my brother challenged me yesterday. He said that it was wrong for me to say that a vegetarian diet is not very limiting and not many people can go without X in their diet, let alone X, Y, Z and a lot of other letters of the alphabet.

He failed to notice that I've been managing quite well without those things, and he does not think I can commit to RAW as a lifestyle thing. Thinks I'm going through a phase (apparently a very long phase as this started last year)


SO... I am out to prove to him that one can obstain from all those SAD things with strength and willpower and maintain a RAW lifestyle (AND partake in frequent water/juice fasts!)

[Aleesha Sattva]

you go girl!!!

[Aleesha Sattva]

hubby and i are going to take a wee break. i may do a short three day fast during this time but... his birthday and father's day is coming up and he doesn't want to fast through them.

but, i'll be here - just not as much... happy fasting everyone!!! and remember... the only limitations are self-imposed. create your fast to work best for YOU!

[nadien alexandra]

Aleesha, happy non-fasting, and see you around.

I had some apple/celery/carrot juice for dinner. I will never get tired of this combo.

made a watermelon/honeydew combo for lunch.

I'm feeling a little lonely right now, in my stomach that is, so I think I am going to make some tea.

warm tea always cheers me up.

I haven't been biking as much as I'd like because it's rained for two days straight, but it's stopped! so I'm going to be biking this evening.

Have a great evening everyone. see you tomorrow.

[Aleesha Sattva]

thanks!!!

aleesha

[GoodCat]

Have fun Aleesha.. I look forward to seeing back on when you can.

Today was kind of hard. I felt very tired and out of it. And to top it off, I had company coming for dinner.(It was planned awhile ago). But.. I made a yummy tomato/veggie juice for me and sipped on that while everyone ate and it was very nice. I was craving that juice for a few hours before hand and I felt so much better after I drank it. Note to self.... listen to your body sooner ;)

It was a very nice visit and I'm actually looking forward to tomorrow now :).

Abundant Peace!
Cathy :)

[nadien alexandra]

Goodcat,

I did the same thing myself. I was craving some juice, but I held off because I was being lazy and distracted and ended up getting very moody, unfocused/light headed, and really weak wherein I definitely did not want to go through the process of making juice.

(I am only having 2-3 small glasses of juice a day so my body is feeling weaker than usual)

I forced myself to drink a big glass of water. that saved me, i made some juice and I felt a million times better.

Moral of the Day: LISTEN TO YOUR BODY!!!

ps: does anybody know how long they will be fasting for? any loose dates? or is everyone just fasting till they feel the time is right to stop?
just curious!

[Aleesha Sattva]

two of the best ways to end a fast before you really want to:

number one: do not have juice when your body asks for it.

when we allow ourselves to go beyond the threshold of what our body needs (it's doing major healing here and needs energy to do it's work) then often our body will stop calling for juice and start screaming for food... any food... just give it energy!!! so remember that... when your body starts asking for juice... gift it some. after all... it does so much for you, it deserves it!

number two: limiting the amount of juice you gift your body a day.

this can be a quick way to no more fasting. our bodies either get into the mode of water fasting, or into the mode of juice fasting. but when we limit our juices to a very small amount... our body often thinks we are starving... that there is no food available and it begins to panic... and then the cravings start.

so please... remember that you are fasting but your body is healing. it is working very very hard - even harder than it works when we are eating and it has digesting to do. so it needs fuel! if you toss in exercising on top of that... you need to increase it's fuel even more!

that said... do as you see fit. it's your fast. i'm just sharing a little wisdom i've picked up along the way from fasting for well over 500 days with many of the great fasters out there (fasting bandits!) and others.

namaste'
Aleesha

[nadien alexandra]

Hey aleesha, I totally think you're right.

I did learn today that when my body wants something, I need to give it that or else it's going to shut down (which it did)

on the other hand, My body does not crave tons of juice. I think I would be perfect if I had one more glass a day, but I always wait too long and then I don't want to drink juice too close to bedtime.

As well, I'm a little short on cash and cannot afford more than that!

Tomorrow I am going to drink more juice than I have been and note the difference.

I'll report back, but I do think you are right and I do think I've been depriving myself.

[Aleesha Sattva]

i hear you on budgeting but even one more glass is a good thing. please do share about your experience... (((hugs)))

isn't fasting GREAT!

[nadien alexandra]

morning!!

just had my breakfast juice.

A big glass of orange juice!!! it was absolutely amazing. I can't get over it. Why would I want anything else?

Ah, I love life. Now I must go biking.

how is everyone this morning? What did you drink up??

[GoodCat]

Good Morning...

Yes.. I too realize I need to up the juices. However, I'm also realizing the kind of juices. Yesterday I was drinking juices, but they were all sweet juices, like grapefruit, pear, carrot. My body was really wanting the tomato w/onion and garlice and ginger. Once I drank that juice, I felt so much better. Its funny... the last time I did a fast, I craved the sweeter juices. This time around they really don't sound that great to me and I wanting the more savory juices. Go figure :rolleyes:.

This moring I'm just drinking my water.. not sure what the rest of the day will hold. I do need to take my children to their rehersal for their recorder recital and then they are having a water day afterwards w/ a big water slide. Its at a friends house, so I'll just take some juice and enjoy. Not sure what juices to do. Nothing really sounds intersting.

Well... day 4 for me.. Here I go ;)

Cathy

[GoodCat]

Oh.. and to answer the question how long..

Well. at first I wanted to go at least 30 days (and still do), but as I've been reading, I've read its important to listen to your body and stop when it wants to stop. So I'm trying for 30 days, but will also try to listen to my body.
Does that make sense :rolleyes:

Cathy

[nadien alexandra]

Makes perfect sense Cathy.

And I totally understand where you ar coming from with the KIND of juice your drink. Yesterday, I NEEDED some carrot/celery/apple. Melons would not suffice.
And this morning I could not imagine anything other than orange juice.

I will be attending a Raw Potluck on Thursday coming up, so I'm going to break my fast just before that.

[GoodCat]

Totally understand that.. I hope I won't be the Lone Ranger on here. I sure love the support and encouragement :o

Cathy

[Aleesha Sattva]

well i'll stick around and encourage you and honestly... it's not long between fasts for me. i love fasting and often fast for a week or two and then eat for a week max, and then back to fasting. hence why i stick around on the thread LOL

cathy, have you tried cantaloupe juice with mint? that kept coming into my mind when i was reading your posts.

[GoodCat]

Oh..I'm glad to hear you'll be around! I would love to get to a place where I can fast more often. From what I've read so far, it is so healthy for your body.

I haven't tried cantaloupe yet. Thats one of the things I'ld like to try though. I am going shopping today to get a few more things and I think I'll pick one up (and some mint too) and try it out. I'll let you know what I think.

I'm wanting to buy a coconut again too and see if my taste buds have changed. I didn't like the water last time, but maybe this time will be different. :rolleyes:

I'm feeling better today then I did yesterday. Yeah.. One thing I'ld like to work on is my back (upper neck and shoulder, and hip). They've been bothering me for a long time, but I've put off going to the chiropractor because of finances. But I'm really hurting in my shoulder/neck area, so I'm trying to find the money some place to be able to go. We'll see.

Peace!
Cathy

[Aleesha Sattva]

I'm not sure how much mint to add... as I've heard about this juice but never tried it. I love plain cantaloupe so much...

Anyone... adding herbs is the same as adding greens. As they ARE greens. So add a little and see if you like it and want more.

Make sure it's a young coconut not the old brown ones. They have little water and it often doesn't taste quite as good.

[GoodCat]

Thank you ... thank you.. until later ;)

Cathy

[nadien alexandra]

My bike broke down today, which was a little disheartening. It's pretty much my best friend.

But I'm feeling SO good and energetic and positive that it's not bothering me. I will just have to take up running until she's all fixed up.

Had some pineapple juice for lunch. It was AMAZING.

Aleesha, I feel silly for thinking the froth was closer to pulp than the juice, but it's probably farther away. My pineapple juice was very frothy and I am all OVER froth now. so delicious.

I do not have kelp powder, but I have some seaweed.... hmmm... maybe I can mimic the flavor of your Tomato juice suggestion?

[Aleesha Sattva]

have you tried adding spirulina to your pineapple juice? it makes it a super green drink!

i add in the spirulina and give the mix a good shake (rather than stirred)... or i put it into the blender... either way works well. you have to mix it well or you get clumps from the spirulina powder.

if you have seaweed... make it into powder (perhaps using a vitamix or a coffee bean grinder)... and add it to your tomato! it'll taste amazing!

[GoodCat]

Sorry to hear about your bike nadien. Hopefully you can get if fixed soon.
And I pineapple juice today too.. yummy!!

Well.. I went shopping and I couldn't afford the mint, and they didn't have any young coconuts, but I did get a canaloupe:) I'll probably wait until tomorrow to juice it though. I can't wait to see how it tastes.

Cathy :D

[GoodCat]

Okay.. I have another question. I hope its not a silly one. I realize everyones bodies are different too.

Heres my question. Today I had over a qt. of water, 2 c. of carrot/celery juice and 2 c. of pineapple juice before lunch. I then took 4 c. of watermelon juice with me to my childrens practice. We didn't get home until 4:00 and I felt really bad. I was very tired and kind of shaky. I juiced me some tomato/veggie juice and put a little olive oil in it. I layed down on my bed and now I'm feeling better. Still tired though.

I'm wondering if I'm needing to juice more. Is this my bodies way of saying that? Or could it be my adrenals? I was low cortisol about 6 months ago, but haven't checked since. I was taking suppliments for that, but stopped them when I started fasting.

I know that you all are not doctors. Just looking for some insight and personal experience.

Thanks for listening.
Cathy :D

[nadien alexandra]

Cathy, I can't really answer your question (I'm sure Aleesha could take a better shot) but I would like to give you my little opinion. I know that I had a very shaky/moody day yesterday (just sensitive all around and seemed to NEED more of SOMETHING), and I think my body was going through some physical AND mental detox. You are drinking much more juice than I am, and the water you had in the morning should have kept you hydrated. Because I am not you, I can only say that you are detoxing, and maybe your body wanted rest, as when you rested, you felt better.

two days ago I was so tired I passed out midday and slept for 3-4 hours.


Anyway,

please share the delicious details of that cantaloupe.

I didn't get one last shopping trip because of the price and so perhaps I can live vicariously through you.

Aleesha, I am going turn my seaweed into powder tomorrow, however, I did have a tomato juice supper (tomato, onion, garlic, kale, swiss chard, carrots, celery) with cayenne, and curry powder. DELICIOUS.

[Aleesha Sattva]

nadien, glad you juice was so yummy!

cathy... it's a little detox and a little "mama give me more" from your body. i would increase your juice. 2 c is equal to 1/2 a quart. so you had 2 quarts and i'm guessing your body would have been happier with 3 or even 4 and then the tomato blend as well.

don't be afraid to drink more. when i go out... i take 4 litres with me. (1 litre = 1 quart). if i don't drink it all, no biggie, but if i need it... i NEED it.

the other day at work i thought... i've had 3 litres and it's 2:30 - i'll let my hubby take my last juice home and put it in the fridge - i won't need it. by 3:30 i was hugely regretting my decision. :(

oh and i know nothing about adrenals/low cortisol... sorry. i have no idea if it would be part of it.

[GoodCat]

Thanks so much. I think I will increase my juices then and also try to rest more. It has been a busy week. I really do want healing, so I'll keep on keeping on ;)

nadien.. I'll definately let you know how that cantaloupe tastes ;). I'm sure I'll be wonderful!

Good Night,
Cathy :)

[CathyA.]

I love cantalope juice.

Happy fasting.

[GoodCat]

Another beautiful day here in Colorado! I love the spring and summer months. Actually.. I love all the seasons:D

I'm feeling fine right now and my wonderful children are upstairs juicing some carrots and celery for me :)

I'm going to try to drink more juice today and see how that effects me. I'm hoping I will feel better in the afternoons, since that is when I tend to feel the worse.

Cathy :)

[nadien alexandra]

Morning!

It's nice to hear that your kids are helping you out! that's sweet.

Just woke up a little bit ago. VERY weird dreams. They get more weird and more vivid as the week goes on.

I hopped on my friends WII FIT to wake me up. Apparently, since last week, I have improved my balance and my memory to absolute "perfection" (as perfect as you can get in the game). A week ago I was average!

I can't say this is from fasting, but I'd like to think so.

This morning I'm going to have some orange juice again. I just loved it so much yesterday.

I am in such a good mood. And my skin is looking REALLY good.

I want to post some before/after pics of my SAD to RAW transition. So look for that thread in the near future!

[Aleesha Sattva]

I will! I look forward to seeing your transition.

Cathy, how about some parsley in with the carrot and celery? Parsley is a nice way to sneak in more greens... and it makes the juices taste so yummy! Ginger is another nice addition to juices. It's very warming!

[GoodCat]

I'd like to see those pictures too:) And I love the Wii Fit!

Aleesha.. thanks for reminding me. I actually have 3 bunches of parsley in my refrigerator right now:). I have been adding some ginger in my tomato concoctions and loving it!

Cathy :)

[Aleesha Sattva]

you can add ginger to apple juice and pretty much any other juice blend. most blends will be even yummier with ginger!

same with parsley!

[GoodCat]

:) I'll try that then. I really do enjoy the taste of the ginger. I'm sitting here typing and enjoying the taste of this cantaloupe! I am LOVING all these juices and their amazing flavors.

I still feel a little tired today, but I do think I had alot of detoxing to do... and still do.

Okay.. heres a poop question:p Its day 5 and I still will go once a day. Its not huge, but there. And when I drink the juices, my stomach will feel a little out of sorts and uneasy like when I eat food. Could this be detox too? I know I have/had lots of digestion issues before this fast, so I'm thinking it will take a little while for my tummy to work it all out.
It is looking a little more mucousy (not sure how to spell that:rolleyes:).

Thanks again.. I know... I have lots of questions ;)
Cathy

[nadien alexandra]

perhaps you DO have a lot of detoxing to do. (the mucus thing is a good sign of that. and a good sign that your juices are working!)

This was happening for the first four days. The last two days, I have no had a bm and everything is sitting just right.

Things will work themselves out!!


Today, I have been in a bit of a fasting euphoria. Just unbelievably happy. Some people are calling me weird for it! SO much energy. So much frigging goodness.
I have not been thirsty really either. Had orange juice in the morning. and some water. a bit more water throughout the day and now it's almost 8 and I've made some watermelon juice, although I'm pretty sure I could have gone without it.

did a LOT of reading today about juice fasting, the function of all our organs, and how they react to food, toxins, and abstaining from those two things.
I've also been reading about the benefit of particular veggies and fruits for the body.

GOOD STUFF.

hang in there Cathy. I have a good feeling your body knows what it's doing. I'm glad you're sticking with it.
Day 7 is usually when the body enters a deeper cleanse; it understands what's going on, that you're serious, so it kicks in full tilt.

[dread head vegan]

hello all... i've desided to go off my fast. it is 96 days today sence i satrted my fast. i feel like it is time to transition back into eating again. i am going to break it tomarrow. i am amazed how long i fasted for... well, good luck to everyone. :D

[nadien alexandra]

hello all... i've desided to go off my fast. it is 96 days today sence i satrted my fast. i feel like it is time to transition back into eating again. i am going to break it tomarrow. i am amazed how long i fasted for... well, good luck to everyone. :D

do you care to talk about how your fast helped you in anyway? How you feel at day 96?

I am very curious!

also... I take it this was a water and juice fast correct?

ps. 96 days is, wow. You're amazing! I want to know all about it!

[GoodCat]

Yes..yes.. please share if you can. That is amazing. You give me hope that I can make my goal.

nadien... thank you for the encouragment. I'm hoping everything will start to work itselft out soon. I'm looking forward to the one week mark.

It sounds like you've been doing some good reading. I just ordered the book Aleesha was talking about. I can't wait to get it!

I have felt better today. A little tired, but not "sick" feeling. And actually, I was always a little tired during the day because of my adrenal issues. I'm really hoping this fast will help with that.

I did drink more juice today and more often. I really think that helped.

Blessings,
Cathy :D

[Aleesha Sattva]

congrats on your 96 days!!! remember... it takes approx one month to break your fast correctly so be slow and easy... nothing too much for at least a couple of weeks! keep your foods simple to digest!

cathy... that's all normal fasting stuff. nothing to be concerned about.

[GoodCat]

Good Morning..

I did feel better yesterday by drinking more juices. I had around 3 qt. I'll try to have 3-4 qt. available to me and drink what I need (thanks Aleesha).

I'm still having a BM on day 6, but I'm glad my body is getting rid of all it needs to ;) Its just weird to me because I've only had juices. So I keep wondering... where is this stuff coming from :rolleyes:

Blessings,
Cathy :D

[nadien alexandra]

morning,

I am feeling slow to rise today.

just drinking water.

apple juice with cinnamon is for later.

Is it okay to say that I don't really WANT to stop juicing? I feel so good juicing, and it's so much easier than making things. And I really like my mono meals.

[Aleesha Sattva]

that stuff is coming from the cleaning process in your body as well as old feces. i have had bms almost daily for 45 days during a fast!!! seriously... amazing stuff eh?

[GoodCat]

Wow Aleesha... thats crazy. It really is amazing how our bodies work and heal themselves when we let them. That really encourages me!

Still doing good today. We have a BBQ to go to tonight. Its actually for my children's recorder recital. I am bringing alot of raw foods for my family to enjoy and I juiced some watermelon and some tomato/veggie juice (just in case) for me. We will be there for over 5 hours, so I wanted to make sure I have enough

I'll let you know how it goes :)

Cathy :)

[Aleesha Sattva]

If it were me... I'd bring close to 6 litres of juice. Social situations always increase my desire to consume. Weird... but a reality for me. Sometimes I come home with all much juice though LOL

Have a GREAT time!

[nadien alexandra]

hey Cathy have fun.

maybe if you put some chipotle powder or something similar in your tomato drink you'll feel like you're having bbq as well. ;)

I had a hugantic glass of apple juice with cinnamon in it this afternoon after having only water all morning and immediately after I felt very light headed, headache-y, grumbling stomach... needed to have a nap in order to function properly afterward. (wow how many times did I use the word "after" in this sentence?)

I think the apple juice loosened something toxic in me.

This evening is going to be something with a huge bunch of Kale in it (the garden is overflowing with it right now).

How are you doing Aleesha?
I am wondering, after your short juice fasts, say 5-8 days, how quickly do you transition into eating things other than fruits and veggies?
I'm referring to seeds, nuts, and oils.
I am wondering as I think I will be wanting to break my fast soon (today is day 7)

[Aleesha Sattva]

apple juice moves the bowels...

i fast a lot and my body seems to handle the transition quite well most times. if it doesn't, i slow my 'break'. i usually keep nuts out of my diet for the most part... but i'm usually eating a salad within about 2-3 days. :)

[dread head vegan]

i don't mind talking about it. :) it help me out a lot. a lot more energy, lost weight, and most of all i healed my PCOS. it was hard some days.

yeah it was a water and juice fast, but a couple times i had a couple of smoothies and herbal teas. the good thing is that i didn't have a set date when i was going to end it, just lisned to my body

[Aleesha Sattva]

and it's a nice length of fast to do. soooo healing. i know my spiritual self grew tremendously during mine. did yours?

[nadien alexandra]

Thanks for answering my question aleesha.

Dread Head.. It is absolutely amazing that you cured yourself from that debilitating disease.

WOW.

I'm really frigging happy for you.

[GoodCat]

Good Morning..

dread head...congrats on the healing and the fast. Its so encouraging.

Well.. I ended up taking a qt.of watermelon juice and a qt.of tomato/veggie juice. It was all I had to take, but it was enough. Actually, I think I drank them too close together, because my stomach really started hurting. I got very gassy and started getting a headache. It wasn't good. I felt really bad by the time I got home and just wanted to go to bed.
I didn't sleep too great, but feel okay this morning.

The good side... I wasn't tempted by the food at all. And my children weren't tempted by the S.A.D food either!! That made me really happy for them. They just ate what I had brought for them and they where happy. Now my family is not 100% raw, but they are high raw and vegan (no white sugar,flour,etc.)

So...all in all... not to bad of a night. The children performed really beautifully and had a great time!

Cathy :D

[Aleesha Sattva]

congrats on all counts except for the tummy upset.

i'm soooo soooo pleased for you!

[dread head vegan]

and it's a nice length of fast to do. soooo healing. i know my spiritual self grew tremendously during mine. did yours?

yeah is did.

[nadien alexandra]

Hey Cathy, hope you're feeling better today.

It's so nice to hear that your kids are not tempted by SAD food. It's rare to see that in kids, to have such an understanding of what is good and what isn't and to be free of the addiction to all those unhealthy things.

I know my little brother won't even TRY my juice when I make it, just BECAUSE it's good for you. He automatically assumes it won't taste good.

Today is a great day. A good friend of my mom's did some rebounding on me. I am such a tense person naturally. I am slowly learning how to let go and free myself from my own constraints.

Had apple juice today and some coconut water that I mixed with pineapple juice. The latter was so delicious.

Tomorrow, my dad has decided to join me for a 24hr juice fast. This is a big step for him, so I am happy.

[Aleesha Sattva]

She did rebounding ON you??? are you meaning reflexology?

[GoodCat]

LOL.. I'm wondering too.

One thing I love about juice fasting.... its been high80's to low90's around here and everyone is HOT, but I feel just right!!:rolleyes:

Cathy