RawPeople | Raw, Real, Rewarding: Juice Fasting 101

Raw, Real, Rewarding: Juice Fasting 101

Sick? Tired? Overweight? Unhealthy? Out of shape? Stressed? Allow yourself to escape from the world’s noise by drifting into a juice fast—an experience that is serene and healing…

How did I end up here?

This is a question you have probably asked yourself. What went wrong? Many of you find yourselves in a situation you’re unhappy in. Maybe you used to be the fastest runner on the track team and now you eat donuts most mornings for breakfast. Perhaps you were the Homecoming Queen and now you feel like anything but beautiful royalty. You may have ended up a couch potato, watching hours on end of TV shows with no meaning. Don’t think you can leave that out-of-shape rut you’ve been living in? You can!

What am I going to do to change?

Whatever state your health –and mind—is in at this point in your life, you can change it. Yes, even though you’re exhausted, battling depression, illness, or just feel blah and out of shape, you can begin to heal your body and mind through juice fasting.

Raw foods are bursting with the nutrition you’re literally dying without. When you juice raw fruits and vegetables, and combine the juices with not eating, this is called juice fasting.

Where do I start?

First, you’ll need to invest in a quality juicing machine. Once you have one, decide which fruits and vegetables you like, if any. If you’ve never eaten a lot of salads or fruit, head out to a local farmers market or grocery store and pick out a few to try. If it’s in your budget at all, purchase organic produce. Why? Because non-organic produce is not only genetically altered most of the time, it’s grown in soil that’s full of pesticides, herbicides, and other harmful chemicals. You deserve organic, even if it costs extra.

Now that you’ve picked out a juicer and decided on your ingredients, it’s time to get juicing!

What should I expect?

Your digestive system takes a little rest on your juice fasting journey. While it’s resting, your body and mind undergo numerous changes.

The (possible) positive:

· new tissue emerges

· old injuries begin to heal

· organs rejuvenate and come alive again

· your skin will look healthier (after the initial [possible] breakout from detoxing—see below)

· your mind, memory, and eyesight experience precision and clarity

· you sleep more soundly, rest better, and wake up more refreshed

· you may even find it is a spiritual journey as you discover that there’s a new sense of peace and calm being birthed from deep within you—a place you never even knew existed.

The (possible) negative:

· your skin might break out (i.e., pimples on your face or body)

· you may experience headache(s)

· you might feel a little weak

· at times you could feel flu-like symptoms (i.e., achy all over)

Note: These (possible) negative side-effects happen because your body is detoxing years worth of toxins (from the air we breathe, foods we eat, drinks we consume, clothing we wear, bedding we use, etc.—toxins are everywhere). As your body expels these toxins, you’ll see and feel changes. Some notice symptoms such as these more than others; some don’t notice them at all. Everyone has a different experience with juice fasting, as we are each different and our bodies react in different ways. If you do notice, realize it’s a natural—and important—part of the process.

Juicy Tips:

Juice fasting is an amazing, beneficial experience. Here are a few things you can do to make your juicing journey a positive experience.

· Prepare your mind. You’ll be doing without food and that’s a very mental and emotional thing to most people. Even if you don’t feel food is an emotional problem for you, it might seem otherwise once you eliminate it and only consume raw juices—even for a few days.

· Prepare your body. If you aren’t used to consuming a ton of raw fruits and vegetables, start slowly cutting back on processed foods and drinks while increasing your intake of raw foods. Eat more salad and raw fruit than you normally would. Start telling your body what’s coming.

· Focus on why you want to juice fast. Do you want a healthy boost overall? Is it for a spiritual journey? Are you battling disease? Do you want to use juice fasting as a starting point for a new, health-filled lifestyle? Figure out why you’re going to juice fast—and keep your eye on the prize during those bad days.

· Go ahead and start drinking raw juices. You can juice raw fruits and veggies before you officially begin your juice fast. There’s no need to wait. Make fresh, raw orange or grapefruit juice to have with breakfast. Toss tomatoes, celery, carrots, etc., into the juicer and try having that for lunch to get a feel for what it’ll be like when you’re juice fasting—or have it along with your meal.

More on Juicing

Juice fasting is an excellent way to take control of your health mentally, physically, and emotionally. It’s a beautiful experience. Sure, it can be extremely hard to accomplish but it’s so worth it. The benefits far outweigh the hard days.

This is merely an intro to juice fasting. I’ve glossed over several aspects of the journey. In the coming juice fasting articles, I’ll share recipes, in-depth information on various health benefits, look at why it’s so healing to your body and mind, share more about what your body will be getting from the raw fruits and vegetables you’ll be juicing, and much more.

The preceding information is for education only and is not meant to diagnose, prescribe, or treat illness. It is valuable to seek the advice of an alternative health care professional before making any changes.

These statements have not been evaluated by the food and drug administration. These products are not meant to diagnose, treat or cure any disease or medical condition. Please consult your doctor before starting ANY exercise or nutritional supplement program or before using these or any product during pregnancy or if you have a serious medical condition.

Comments

Add New

RSS