21 Day Fast: Day 16

Day 16 was a breeze.  I had juice throughout the day and also did some supplements, like MSM with camu camu berry powder.  It was a busy day at work, which makes it easier not to think about food.  The weather has been colder here, so I made a hot cup of tea in the morning as well.

Last night, Brandi from Raw Foods on a Budget presented her program at my house.  We had a potluck, but several of us were still on a juice fast, so there was lots of juice around.  Brandi's presentation was great.  She covered a lot of points about not wasting food, eating less, connecting with local farmers and so much more.  Then, she gave a food demo on how to make raw donut holes.  Fortunately, I got the recipe, so I can make it when I'm finished with the fast.

I'm also excited to practice and share some of things I learned at her presentation.  Staying on raw food doesn't have to be expensive or time-consuming.  I'd like to apply these principles to my diet over the rest of the winter and spring and blog about the results.  Hopefully, I can inspire others to eat more raw food and make significant changes in their health.  2012 promises to be a great year!

Mystic Merman

21 Day Fast: Days 13 - 15

I got a little behind on my blog for the 21 day juice fast.  Today is day 15.  The last three days have been great.  I've had good energy, worked out every day and consumed large amounts of juice from citrus to green juice, with a couple of kombuchas thrown in there.  With only six days to go, I'm feeling confident and healthy.

My workouts have been more intense over the last couple of days.  On Friday, I had another upper body work after about 15 minutes of cardio.  My chest, abs and back muscles are pretty sore, indicating a great workout.  This morning I got on the elliptic machine for forty minutes and burned 600 calories.  Then, I spend another fifteen minutes on the treadmill going up hill and burned another 200 calories.  Apparently, after 30 minutes of cardio exercise, you really start to burn fat.  So, I spent about 20 minutes this morning in fat-burning mode.  I love it!

For the rest of the day, I plan on doing green juice and drinking large amounts of water.  I'll probably burn a lot more calories, because I also have to clean my house for a raw potluck tomorrow.  Brandi from Raw Foods on a Budget is giving a talk at my house on how to save money on a raw food diet.  I'm looking forward to it.  Be healthy.

Mystic Merman

21 Day Fast: Day 12

Day 12 was another rough day.  On Wednesday evening, I took a sublingual Vitamin B12 tablet.  I usually take these in the day, but I hadn't taken one for several days, so I thought I could use it.  Unfortunately, B12 gives you energy, so I couldn't fall asleep for a couple of hours.  Since I get up around 6 am, yesterday was a tough day.  I had low energy and all the green juice in the world couldn't bring me out of my stupor.

I did manage to drag myself to the gym after work.  I got on the elliptic machine and plugged my headphones into it.  The only thing worth watching on the 6 television screens in front of me was an episode of Sex and the City, which I've never seen.  I decided to see what all the hype is about.  I have to say, television has gotten worse in the last twenty years.   What a ridiculous show!  No wonder I don't watch TV.  Life is so much better. One good thing, though.  I became so engrossed in picking apart everything about the show, that when I looked down to the machine I was on, I had gone 45 minutes.  I finished at 50 minutes and 550 calories, sat in the sauna for 15 minutes and headed home to go to bed early. 

21 Day Fast: Day 11

Day 11 proved to be the easiest day so far.  I had more energy today and very little craving for solid food.  I didn't think the day was going to go well, because I hit the snooze button an extra time this morning.  Once I was up and in the shower, I felt pretty good.  By the time I got to work, it felt like it was going to be a good day.

I started the day with two tablespoons of apple cider vinegar in water.  On my way to work, I drank about a half a liter of water.  About an hour into work, I made some herbal tea that helps the body detox.  The tea had ginger root and some berries in it.  I also added some Cat's Claw, Pau D'arco and Chanca Piedra.  These teas help the body to expel yeast overgrowth, build the immune system and remove calcification from the joints, as well as break up stones in the gallbladder and kidneys.

Before lunch, I had a cranberry kombucha, which is also great for detoxification and the cranberry cleans out the urinary tract.  At lunch, I made a huge green juice (about 32 ounces) with collard greens, red bell pepper, carrot, apple, cilantro, parsley, celery, cucumber, zucchini and lemon.  I sipped on this for the next hour while working.  This is a great combination, because it's very hydrating, it's full of electrolytes, and the herbs and lemon help detoxify and alkalize the body.

After work, I was feeling very energetic, so I went straight to the gym.  Tonight was definitely the best workout I've had since starting the fast.  The first thirty minutes consisted of a combination of walking and running on the treadmill.  After walking for two minutes at four miles per hour, I sped up to a run at six miles an hour for two minutes, then back to a walk for two minutes, and back to a run, etc.  This was all done at a four percent incline, so my heart rate got up to about 155 during the run.  Overall, I burned about 450 calories in thirty minutes.

Then, I hit the weights, spending another thirty minutes on my upper body.  This included a rotation between my chest, my abs and my back.  Basically, I did three sets of one muscle group, then moved onto the next muscle group.  Once complete, I repeated this rotation using different machines to work different areas of the muscle groups.  In total, I did three rounds of three sets for each muscle group.  I'm sure I'll be sore tomorrow, but it'll be worth it.  I really feel like my body is getting stronger and fitter.  I didn't weight myself tonight, but I will tomorrow or Friday to check how much weight I've lost.

Tonight, I'm having a more simple juice for dinner.  I blended grapefruit juice with camu camu, MSM and spirulina.  I didn't put much in the juice, but it was enough for some nutritional support.  Tomorrow promises to be a great day.  Be healthy!

Mystic Merman

21 Day Fast: Day 10

I got very busy last night and this morning and wasn't able to post about Day 10.  Things went well, although my energy was low.  I skipped the gym, did some shopping for greens, took a short walk and went to bed a little early after reading my current health book.  Stay tuned for Day 11.  Be healthy.

Mystic Merman

21 Day Fast: Day 9

Day 9 passed by with ease.  I had juice and tea in the morning, then a kombucha for lunch.  After work, I went to the gym and had a great workout.  I'm feeling stronger and cleaner every day.  I've lost about 7 pounds so far, which is exciting, since I'm gaining muscle.  That means the fat is coming off. 

After my workout, I went home and made a huge green juice.  This was one of the tastiest juices I've made so far. Here is the recipe:

1 whole fennel root
4 apples
2 limes
1 carrot
1 large cucumber
1 bunch of parsley
1 bunch of cilantro

This is a great detoxifier for the liver, the kidneys and the intestines.  I think I'll have to make this again.  Be Healthy!

Mystic Merman

21 Day Fast: Day 8

Yesterday was a day of rest.  I had a huge glass of orange juice in the morning and then went to the gym with a friend.  I didn't push myself too hard for my workout and then relaxed in the pool and sauna.  After stopping to pick up a couple of kombuchas, I went back to my friend's house and relaxed for the rest of the day.  A nice calm Sunday with juice, dogs and a good movie. 

Mystic Merman