day 1: juicing

first things first - i bought a new juicer! my old one did a good job in the two years i've had it, but it was time for an upgrade. the new one is a beauty :) it does a great job at the actual juicing, keeping the waste of the fruit and veggies at a minimum, makes less noise, AND it is so easy to clean!

for the days following up to the juicing challenge i made sure to eat really well. i got lots of protein, fiber, fruits and veggies in my system. i worked out the day before as well. "they" say you are not supposed to work out a lot during a juicing cleanse b/c you won't have the energy for it. i plan on walking some later in the week though.

the night before the first day of juicing i got 9 hours of sleep. that is not normal for my life, but i want this juice cleanse to do what it does and a good night's rest is sure to help.

i started my day w/ 24 oz. of water, which i will alternate throughout the day between juices. i didn't actually have my first 24 oz. of "breakfast" juice until 11:30 am. on a typical day, i tend to either not eat breakfast or just something small, and drink coffee. and i always eat a late lunch. after the first juice i had another 24 oz. of water. i waited too late to drink my "lunch" juice, so i did get a little hungry around 3 pm, but drank the juice and did not feel hungry again. i followed that juice w/ more water. 

*juice for my breakfast, lunch and snack.* (ingredients: lemon, apples, cucumbers, spinach, romaine lettuce, tangerines, blueberries, celery, bell pepper, carrots & pomegranate.)

*juice pulp aka waste.*

around 4:30 pm i had another 24 0z. of juice and again followed that w/ water. (my apologies if you are already bored.) i left work around 6:45 pm and went home to juice my dinner :) followed by more water and then i had another "snack" juice around 10:30 pm.

*dinner juice consisted of these fruits and veggies.*
(not pictured: spinach, romaine lettuce, pomegranate, bell pepper and cucumbers.)

i had so much energy at the end of the day! it was kind of hard to wind down. i read a little and finally winded down around midnight. when i checked my blood sugar before bed it was in the range it needed to be and i was so happy to see that. i was concerned my blood sugar might drop so it was good to see that it was consistent w/ what it normally is.

a side note for any of you coffee lovers out there wondering if i felt sluggish w/out any - i've been drinking decaf since august. my doctor suggested i stop drinking caffeine after i went to see her for my weird heart palpitations. apparently those are normal for a lot of people, but she told me i could either take something for them or change things in my diet. i obviously chose to change things. within two days of not drinking caffeine the weird heart palpitations basically stopped. it is a rare occasion that i have them. and if i ever have any caffeine it's when i drink the occasional chai tea from my favorite local coffee shop, Lula's :)

see y'all tomorrow for day 2 of my juicing challenge.

                   

a confession and a challenge.

i'm about to be really honest w/ you and put myself in a vulnerable position. i'm doing it b/c i think it's important, i want people to be more aware of their health, and i want to encourage someone else.

on july 26, 2013 i was diagnosed w/ type 2 diabetes.

(i went to my doctor the day before b/c i had been having some weird heart palpitations for the last several days and wanted to get them checked out. i had also been extremely tired recently and very thirsty, which i would later be reminded are symptoms of diabetes.)

my doctor's office called me and told me the news while i was at work. it came as a complete shock to me. (both of my parents have diabetes so i knew i had a chance of getting it, but i thought my chances were slim b/c i do not have a big sweet tooth, very rarely drink sugary drinks, etc.)

i immediately broke down in tears and left work early. i called my mom and texted a few close friends who i knew would pray for me. it's one of those things where i felt embarrassed and just knew that people could look at me and tell that something was different. i realize now how dramatic that sounds, but that is honestly the way i felt. i also knew i just needed to get through that day and i would be able to see more clearly.

i went back in to the doctor the next week to talk about medicine and what i needed to change in order to get my blood sugar down to the number range it should be in. one of my greatest fears in life is being dependent on medicine and i knew i wanted to do everything in my power to change what needed to be changed.

i started checking my blood sugar twice a day and taking a pill every morning. losing weight was next on my list. for two and a half years prior working out was more of a dream than an option, due to back issues that i have. i had recently gotten clearance from my chiropractor to exercise again. i was really excited and scared at the same time.

i joined a gym again, for the first time in four years, and began working out three to five times a week. i watched my sugar intake, which was making sure i didn't eat any sweets (unless sugar free - aka that fake sugar), yogurt and watching the sugars i ate in salad dressings, and other sauces, which if you know me then you know i love a sauce :) and i also limited my carb intake.

my blood sugar got down to the range it needed to be in (and has consistently stayed there) and the weight really seemed to just begin falling off. i've never known what that felt like. i lost 26 pounds in three months! when i went back to check in w/ my doctor about my progress she told me that i was a poster child for what people should do when they find out they have diabetes. i was so encouraged!

a fire had been lit under me. God used the horrible news of diabetes to kick start a healthier lifestyle for me. i had already stopped eating fast food five months prior and knew that God had put that change in to effect to make this one even easier now. i could see clearly. i could see the bigger picture.

my end goal is definitely to come off of the medicine and, God willing, erase the diabetes completely. it won't be easy and i'm not even sure it's entirely possible to wipe it out completely, but i want to do everything i can to try and make that happen.

healthy lunch option for me: lettuce & hummus "sandwich" w/ grapes :)

here's the latest: after losing that 26 pounds in the first three months i gained back 7 of it at the beginning of november, lost 5 of it again after a week of not eating any processed foods, but eventually gained that back. i have kept off the other 19, even through the holidays! unfortunately i have not lost any weight since then. and that is discouraging.

and here comes the challenge: juicing. i love to juice and have used it as a meal replacement several times before. one of my friends decided to juice this week for 5 days. and i thought it would be a great time to do it myself. but i will be doing a full week, 7 days. and i began today! i'm doing it in order to reset/cleanse my system and jump start my weight loss. (among other reasons.)

i'm sure this sounds absolutely crazy to some of you, and that's ok. if you would like to better understand why i'm doing what i'm doing and what juicing can do for your body, PLEASE go watch the documentary Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead. it's on Netflix and it's so good. you can also read more about it and the guy behind the documentary at www.fatsickandnearlydead.com

a previous juice spill :)

i will be blogging each day of my juicing cleanse to share how i'm feeling, what i'm drinking and answer any questions that y'all may have for me. thank you for taking the time to listen to me and i encourage you all to listen to your bodies when things don't seem quite right.


please click these links for even more information on juicing:
Joe Cross's 3-Day Weekend Juice Cleanse
How To Do A Juice CLeanse