Thursday, February 9, 2012

Juice Fast - Day Three


Just got home.  Hot herbal tea in hand. Jota Quest Pandora station on. Perfect end to a very long day especially after driving for an hour and a half from Port Orange.  My day started well with an awesome papaya carrot juice.  Thank God I saved some for tonight's ride home.  A ride that I usually find myself choosing between the Chick-fil-a or Wendy's drive thru. Nothing like driving on the highway by yourself to really get your thoughts going in every direction.

For the first time in the three days I have been juice fasting I found myself craving comfort food.  All it took was some alone time in the car for me to start thinking about all the things I need to do in the coming weeks and months.  We need a bigger car with the new baby on the way!  We need to sign Summer up for Kindergarten!  We might have to move in order to send her to the school we want her to go to!  What school do we WANT her to go to?  We trust God with our lives and know we are blessed because of Him,  but along with other pending life issues, these circumstantial thoughts have in the past only caused me to do one thing:  EAT!  I don't mean picking up an apple! I mean getting the triple sized cheeseburger with cheese and large fries!  Once in a while wouldn't even be that bad but eating it frequently has led me nowhere good. The funny thing is that I can go a month without eating fast food but the day I decide to stop and grab a burger and fries I find myself back there two or three more times that week.  Always looking for that temporary fix to comfort my emotions.  Why?  Why are people like that?  Why am I like that?  


I have come to the conclusion that two things contribute to this behavior that keeps crawling its way back into my lifestyle despite my previous efforts of getting in shape and trying to become a healthier person.  One is emotional.  I have found a way to associate food (fattening not good for you food) with contentment.  This cannot continue!  Although I plan on never eating fast food burgers again I don't plan to stop eating burgers and other foods I like.  I simply want to be in control of the choices of food I make.  Obviously I am in control and I am not one of those who blames McDonald's for my size 38 pants!  This is about that rationalizing voice we hear in our heads telling us that we might as well just eat junk! I know I am not the only one because since most people in America are overweight. Even though I'm not in a serious obese situation I am still at least 40lbs over what I want to be and have found myself coming back here three times in the past 7 years.  I am now 35 years old and if I keep this up into my 40's I know I'll gain more.  The other contributing factor is my body itself.  During these first three days of my fast I have seen how I have been able to stave off solid foods!  I believe my mind is getting stronger not only because I have focused on my goal but also because I am getting the right nutrition for it to do so. My mind is benefiting from a nutritious body and my body is benefiting from a nutritious and in focus mind.  Who knew you could get this nutrition from juicing veggies and fruits?  Actually, my wife did.  When I met her she had been juicing for 6 months.  She was doing great and had lost a lot of weight. For some reason it took us 15 years later to introduce it to our family. It's not about the past. It's about changing our direction today so we can influence our daughter and soon to come baby to live healthy active lives.  I also remember seeing Jack Lalanne infomercials!  Again... why are we so hard headed?  It seems so simple!  Raw foods are good!  Juicing them is an excellent way to get the most nutrition from them.  So why did I wait till I'm 35 to start?  Who knows! lol

Before I left late this afternoon I was able to cook a quick dinner for my wife and daughter.  It smelled great but at no point did I even hear that rationalizing voice telling me to just eat it.  Am I hungry?  Not all the time but I do hear my stomach growl if I go more than 3 hours without a juice of sorts.  I'm here three days into the fast and I am focused on my goal.  My ear is beginning to heal and I'm hoping to get out for a run tomorrow if in fact it does.  

I'm beginning to run out of some stuff to juice!  I might have to go to BJ's tomorrow for some apples, carrots, and perhaps a pineapple and another papaya.  Taking it one day at a time and finding out a lot about myself.  About what I can accomplish if I set my mind to it.  I'm also thinking about making Joe Cross' Mean Green Juice tomorrow.  

Since I have been basically randomly juicing I have started writing down some of the recipes I have enjoyed.  Juicing is a lot like cooking though.  There's flexibility.  There's variety.  I remember that when I started cooking I used to follow recipes exactly as they were written.  After learning some cooking basics and not so basic techniques I have been able to glimpse through recipes and just make my own.  I want to be that way with juicing also.  In time.  


So, amazingly enough I have gone through three days of just juice!  Seven to go!!!  Thank you for keeping up with my experience into the world of juicing.  I started following a blog today called JuicedAlive so if you want to see more recipes from someone who has been juicing a lot longer than me you can check my list of Blogs I Follow.  




3 comments:

  1. Your will power is amazing. You can do it!

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  2. Thank you :) Andrea, I saw you changed to a dynamic view. I did the same thing a few months ago and changed back. It doesn't allow people to follow you or subscribe via e-mail. You might wanna think about reverting back to the other style. Many people have complained to google including myself. They said they are working on it and to look for it in the following months this year.

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