Getting Ready for a Juicefast

Juice fast. Wow. This is a big challenge. I have never done anything like this before. Oh, don’t get me wrong. I have done some hard diets. 6 Week Body Makeover – did it. All 6 weeks. Twice. HARD!! HCG diet (500 calories a day). Did that one too. Three times.

So, I can do hard things. But I have never done anything like this. No food??? Just fruit and vegetable juicing? Hardest challenge yet!!

So, why am I doing it?

Actually, the road to this point has been a work in progress for a while.

First of all, about a year and a half ago, my mom gave our family a bit of a health scare. She had something called “jawbone death”. We thought it was connected to her Fosamax usage. Anyway, we began to look at some possible solutions for her health.

One of the solutions I wanted her to pursue was to follow an eating program I found called “Eat For Health” by Dr. Furhman. I bought her a copy of the books, myself a copy of the books, and audio books to put on our ipods.

We didn’t actually do the program. We were doing an HCG diet the time and were afraid to switch from something that was working. Well, working-ish. (We both have since gained back all the weight we lost on it.)

About a month ago, I felt ready to EAT BETTER. I was very confused by all the information out there. I read Gary Taubes “Why We Get Fat” and was convinced that high protein, low carb was the way to go. But then I thought about the religious counsel I have received about health and eating and high protein, low carb just didn’t seem to mesh with the words of wisdom I had been raised on. I kept looking.

I read 6 more books. Finally, one morning, I decided to fast and pray to know which eating style I should follow to get my health under control. That day, after church, I remembered the books by Dr. Fuhrman that I had downstairs. I fished them out and reread them.

I felt like this was the healthiest way of eating I could enjoy. Focusing on fruits, vegetables, seeds, nuts, and beans. I got the family on board and we decided to try it for a few weeks. All in all, it went well. SON didn’t know quite what to make of it. He isn’t a huge fan of fruit. Or vegetables. Or beans. But he was with us in spirit and tried to like everything I made so I am proud of him.

I had a girlfriend, Juliette, invite me over to her home for some juiced fruit and veggies for lunch and to watch a movie. She showed me “Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead”. It was an extreme version of how to kick off eating according to nutritarian principles. I was inspired as I watched it and I wanted to do it. I was inspired by Joe as he went through his journey. I was AWESTRUCK by Phil Staples. Seriously.

When Joe met Phil, I thought, “Oh, poor guy. He needs this so badly but he won’t do anything about it. He won’t be able to give up his cheeseburgers and comfort foods.” I was stunned, nay, FLABBERGASTED as I watched Phil do the 60 day juicefast. Watching him go for his first run, I was glued to the screen. Could PHIL do it??? As I watched, I felt pricked in my heart. “If Phil can do this, I can do this!!”

I wanted to kickstart my health in this awesome way. And so, here I am.

I have a juicer. I have a few days worth of fruit and vegetables. (I learned during my previous attempt at Eat for Health. I bought WAY too many fruits and vegetables at one time and some of them went bad.) I am ready to start. I START MY JUICEFAST TOMORROW! Wish me luck!