Day 4: Fresh Juice Fast

Hubby and I are on our fourth day of fresh juice fasting.  Overall it has gone very well.  The first two days were the most difficult.  I had a bit of a headache Monday, that lasted throughout Tuesday morning, which was sucky.  I think it may have had to due with exercising while fasting - Hubbs is a maniac when it comes to that.  So we've decided to lay off the exercising while doing the fast, or at least keep it to a minimum.  I've been spending a lot of time with that juicer and blender, which is good.  It's been months since I've really juiced so much.  I used to juice back home in Brooklyn all the time.  When I finish with this fast, I'd definitely like to continue with the juicing - I've forgotten how great it is. 

I've taken some pictures of the juices, but not a ton, because the first few days I didn't have a lot of energy.  I also was so sure going into it that I would save the pulp for something and reuse it.  All of that pulp going into the compost bin makes me crazy.  And we're talking about a lot of pulp!  We've been making on average 1-1 1/2 gallons of fresh juice per day!  But the reality of using it all when there are gallons of it is a bit crazy and unrealistic.  I did, however, save most of the green pulp (from kale and spinach) and dehydrate it.  When I'm done, I'm going to grind it in the food processor and use it to add to smoothies or other dishes for some additional fiber and nutrition.  It's gonna look crazy on the shelf with all of my spices! 

Another thing I've noticed today is that my hunger is mostly gone, which is a relief, believe me!  The past three days have revolved around me thinking about food, hungering for it and just basically desiring it every second of each day.  When I didn't think about it for 5 minutes, I was ecstatic!  But I feel like I can go so much longer without even thinking about it right now.  And not having to worry about cooking every day and having a complete meal ready for when the Hubby comes home from work is such a great treat.  But I know it will likely begin again next week, just differently.  The main reason for me doing this is to rethink the way I think about food.  I definitely have my problems with it that I need to fix and would just love to eat so much healthier and feel better about myself.  I'm hoping that by doing this fast I will be able to focus more on eating good for me stuff and not junk.  I realize this is not something that is going to change overnight and that I will occasionally slip up, but I'm at a point where I really want to change.  My husband and I want to open our business within the next year and hopefully a year after that, start our family.  And I definitely want to be the healthiest I can while expecting.  A lot of pressure riding on me, but I feel very positive about it right now.  And now enjoy some pictures and recipes of some of the juices I've been making over the last coupld days!

Before juicing: Grapefruit Green (the greens wouldn't fit
in the bowl - they were in the sink)

Finished Grapefruit Green Juice

Green Grapefruit:

Yields: 2 Quarts

6 grapefruit, peeled
6 small apples, quartered
2" ginger
1 English or 2 regular cucumbers
6 stalks celery (wash very well - I found a slug in my organic celery!)
8 oz. spinach
1/2 - 1 bunch kale

Koko's V-8 Juice, but so much better!

 Koko's V-8:

Yields 2 1/2 Pints

6 stalks celery
2 jalapenos
2 lb. tomatoes, quartered
3/4 lb. carrots
1 red pepper, seeded
2-3 cloves garlic, peeled
1 English or 2 regular cucumbers
8 oz. spinach
(can also add 1/2 bunch cilantro - makes it taste like you're drinking salsa!)

Fresh pineapples for juicing!

Heartbeet Juice before juicing - there are oranges, lemons and
ginger under there and spinach in the sink

Heartbeet:

Yields: 1 1/2 Quarts

3 lb. carrots
1 1/2 lb. beets
6 small apples
4 oranges, peeled
2 lemons, peeled
2" ginger
8 oz. spinach

The finished juices: V-8, Heartbeet, Pineapple (and that's 2 small pineapples!)

Enjoy!

Koko