Day 7 Juice Feast -- How Quickly the Day Passes

Yesterday I thought a little deeper about what it means to age and today a free Coursera course comes to my attention on global aging--I love it! I've signed up although I may only audit the course (I'm forever a student at heart and sometimes I over extend my schedule trying to saturate myself in wisdom). If you're interested see here and check out the brief introduction to the course.

                                                          (Video)
Today went smoothly enough, if busy. There are only so many hours in the day of a juice feaster! I spent my lunch produce shopping and I'm almost out the door to run a few errands and stop by the library to pick up a couple of books. I've been using the library fairly regularly lately. One reason I love the library is I already have so many books it's slightly embarrassing. Also I like to check out books from the library on health topics like Norm Shealy (cute! cute! cute!), and Sara Gottfried's new book on hormone health because libraries operate on popularity. If books like these are checked out and the demand goes up, the library allocates more resources to stock the library with useful, health sustaining information. I was stunned but delighted last week when I saw a copy of Gabriel Cousen's Conscious Eating in my local library. I wish better information like this was around when I was cruising the stacks when I started out.

I've drunk 3 quarts of juice today and the 4th is sitting there staring me in the eye (ok not really, but it is sitting there). I am a slow metabolizer so it's been a focused effort to get all 4 quarts in me. I am simply not hungry. The juice is particularly important to me in the morning although it's more to stabilize me rather than satiate any hunger. As I thought about it, in part, it's likely because I'm not exercising enough. I like to take long walks at lunch but the rainy weather is difficult to walk in when I have to go back to work. I'm hoping when I wiggle in some exercise my appetite for the 4th or even 5th quart will be more appealing. Right now I'm aware of the issue and letting it go.

My favorite new juice to date? Leaf lettuce, (hard) pear, lemon and ginger. Unbelievable!

Day 3 Juice Feast -- Types of Juices and Specialty Liquids

Last night I made up two different types of fermented juices.  I've found fermented beets to be just about the only way I can drink beet juice. I used to juice them but found them too strong on my body. It was like my liver became a punching bag and beet juice was a world champion boxer. So, one of the fermented juices is a combination of beet, celery, cabbage with a bit of Celtic sea salt and one stick of kombu seaweed. I shred or chop finely the beets, celery, and cabbage and add all items to a gallon jar.  Then I fill it with spring water and set it in the closet. Here it sits and ferments for about  3 days (my house is fairly warm) and I then harvest it through a strainer and drink and store the excess in the refrigerator.  This mixture can then be filled again with water for a second harvest, although I usually let it sit a little longer (maybe 5 days) this time.  The second fermented juice I made was taken from the Jubbs book Lifefood Recipe Book: Living on Life Force. It's made with shredded cabbage, lemons with the rind cut off and I throw in a pinch of sea salt.  This one need only sit for a day or day and a half before the single harvest. I will drink these in addition to the 4 quarts daily.

The other types of juices I'm making are green juices with either spinach, swiss chard, kale, lettuce I picked up from the farmer's market, 1 head of celery, 1 cucumber, 1 inch of peeled ginger, and two lemons with the rind cut off. I have two of these each day.  I fill the Vitamix up with these items, add in a minimal amount of spring water, blend and strain through the nutmilk bag.  After I did the 3 Day Green Juice Feast I've found I have a greater taste for green juices. This was not the case during the first Juice Feast. I have also had Spirulina Blue Eyed Goddess juice, one quart of pineapple with liquid probiotics added (my favorite!) and small amounts of grapefruit juice mixed with Chlorella Manna or Warrior Greens and fermented spirulina. While making my juices I like to think of the most loving, positive thoughts I can. I usually say my mantra over the juice but when I'm spending extended time with food and making juices I listen to monks chanting Om Mani Padme Hum with a forest (a favorite place of mine to be) background.  The mantra is complex but in simple terms it is said to alleviate the suffering of all sentient beings. I like to listen to it on some nights too as Eknath Easwaran  has taught those who use mantras should try to embed the mantra deeper and deeper into their being.


                                                              (video)

I had my first colonic this afternoon. Afterwards I felt so relaxed I could take a nap. Too bad I had to deal with Friday afternoon traffic. During the first Juice Feast I regularly woke up early Sunday morning and drove for my weekly colonic. I don't remember exactly how many weeks (maybe 6 or 7) I went but I stopped once I felt nothing was coming of it. I usually do a castor oil pack the night before I do a colonic but I didn't last night. So today about an hour and a half before the appointment I rubbed magnesium lotion into my abdomen. I haven't done that before so I don't know what will come of it.  My plans for the evening are a trip to the sauna and more sleep.

The Day before the Juice Feast

Spring Water

My day before the Juice Feast has been busy. There was a lot I wanted to accomplish in preparation for this JF.  Unfortunately I was simply too tired to do much more than complete the bulk of my graduate work, sleep where and when I could while keeping up with the daily tasks that need to be done. So I spent much of today doing errands and further preparation work.

I did allow myself one "splurge:" a run out to the springs to gather spring water.  This took over an hour each way.  I do not regret this choice as it has been on my mind to make the bulk (if not all) the water I drink during the JF to be spring water.  Also a few miles before the spring was a farmer's market with lots of fresh greens, asparagus and local, raw, unfiltered honey.  I decided to include small amounts of honey, royal jelly along with the tablespoon of daily bee pollen.  The farmer lady had weathered skin but beautiful baby blue shiny eyes.  I'm delighted those un-sprayed greens will be part of my juices these next few days.  

I did not eat breakfast (lack of planning!), for lunch I had kale salad with natto beans and dinner is a broccoli avocado cashew soup.  I make the soup with 2 or 3 tops of broccoli (reserving a few of the flowers to stir in for crunch and to make sure I chew thoroughly) and any leaves on the stem, 1 avocado,  small helping of cashews, 1 clove garlic, pinch of Celtic sea salt, dash of apple cider vinegar, spices: turmeric and cayenne pepper and I blend with a cup or so of warm nettle tea (I make it hot and let it cool down).  I also had one final cup of jing city tea. 

Beltane begins at midnight and around that time I will purify my energy with a smudging of palo santo, leap over the purifying fire, light candles, complete a shamanic journey to ask the tiger to join me (if you want to learn more on this see the gorgeous Pixie Campbell's site), and take my JF vow of acceptance.  Then I am ready to begin.

Source

Schizandra Warrior Juice

One of the great things I am discovering post the 30 day challenge of consuming niacin, jumping on the rebounder then sweating out entrenched toxins is that it is so much easier to listen to what my body needs. At first I thought the benefit of the challenge may lay primarily in external appearances and resolution of health issues, but I've found the real benefit is my unclogged body can tell me what it needs. Since I've embarked on 100 days of Schizandra I'm also noticing new insights. After the first week I seem to look different. However this difference is so subtle it's hard to define other than an instinctual knowing.

Recently I've spent more time learning from the wisdom of Ron Teeguarden. His book is fabulous, however his website is also highly informative and easy to follow. I recommend a thorough reading of  Herbalism and Philosophy on his website. From it I was able to comprehend I may have a yin deficiency. This is a topic I hope to further understand with more study.

Another great thing I have discovered is that I have had to take the plants and herbs to understand them. After consuming tonic herbs in a clean body I am being led to greater insights. My choices and thoughts are aligning with a higher source of energy and information. I could not grasp this level of knowledge before I absorbed the herbs into my being. It is a fascinating process.

From this process I have uncovered a new drink for myself. It is a kombucha replacement drink. I am trying to cut down drastically on sugar. I have made slow progress, but some is better than none. My new drink is called Schizandra Warrior Juice because initially I felt I had to be a warrior to drink it. As I have consumed more I find it to be medicinally delicious and I sip on it throughout the day with enjoyment.

Here's the recipe for Schizandra Warrior Juice:

• 1  25.3 ounce bottle of sparkling mineral water (bottled at source)
• 1 ounce organic fruit juice concentrate (I've used--cranberry, mangosteen, sea buckthorn, noni, tart cherry)
• 1 ounce liquid probiotics (I use Grainfields lemon and ginger) 
• 1 packet Schizandra tea (I use Ron Teeguarden's tea)

This drink is clearly one I could consume on a Juice Feast in addition to my four quarts of daily juice. It is nice to have this other healthy option lined up as some days on a Juice Feast I seek different tastes.