Agave Warning and Substitution Ideas
In the paste, I have listed agave as a recommended sweetener in several of my dessert recipes. I personally stopped using agave quite awhile ago after reading several articles from trusted sources, such as mercola.com, about the metabolic dangers of agave. I decided to do a post stating about I no longer recommend using agave as a low-glycemic sweetener after learning about the Glycemic Index Institute’s recent clinical study on agave being halted due to agave’s very negative impacts on diabetic study participants. This unfortunate circumstance has low to the institute banning and de-listing agave from their recommended products list. I have learned to use other, more metabolically friendly sweeteners and also greatly decrease the amount of sweetener used in recipes through experimentation.
To substitute alternative sweeteners in my recipes that call for agave, simple use a combination of dried fruit blended into a paste with a teeny bit of water, and a few drops of stevia. I have used 4 to 6 figs or 4 large pitted dates plus 10 drops liquid stevia in my blueberry muffin recipe. This recipe originally called for 1/3 c. of agave. I have used the same amount of dried fruit/stevia to replace up to 1/2 c. of agave in a cookie recipe and it turned out fantastic as well. I got the idea to use a mix of very small amount of dried fruit and liquid stevia in place of agave from Elana of Elana’s Pantry, who has several recipes using this sweetener combo that look fabulous. Yes, dried fruit has more carbs and is higher glycemic than fresh fruit. However, the amount used in this muffin recipe. for example, turned out to a very small amount of carbohydrate per muffin and adds the perfect amount of sweetness in my humble opinion.
Important Info on Food Addiction
Some of you may have started watching the new Food Addiction show on Oprah’s new network. I just read a brilliant 3 part series on Food Addiction inspired by Oprah’s new show that I highly recommend reading. It is deeply insightful and offers a lot of hope. I wish I had this information when I first learned about food addiction back in 1999. The only hope I knew about was offered in 12 step programs, which was helpful, but not able to provide the insights necessary for full recovery.
Here is the link:
Ending the Cycle of Overeating
January is almost over and most of us are facing the reality that we are loosing steam on our New Year’s Resolutions to eat healthier.
One of the main reasons we overeat or break our commitments to eat healthy is because we have a habit of calming ourselves by eating. After a stressful day, many of us go home or to happy hour to empty our minds by filling our bellies.
Our constant contact with our blackberries, laptops, and televisions sends the message to our subconscious and conscious minds that we need to be constantly on the alert. Have you ever woken up in the middle of the night after hearing the buzzing noise your phone makes when you receive a text or call in a dream? I certainly have.
If there is nothing in place in your life that is as calming and gives you as much sensory pleasure as eating, then it is going to make it very difficult (and no fun!) to stop the cycle of reaching for food for comfort despite your intense desire to attain a specific health goal or achieve your optimal weight.
I recommend two things to ending the cycle of overeating or comfort eating: Meditation and/or something called TAT (Tapas Acupressure Technique). I will not be going into TAT in this post beyond saying it can uproot deep-seated food cravings when meditation does not seem to be strong enough medicine. If you would like to experience TAT for yourself, please go to my friend Kara Sorensen’s web site.
One of my biggest breakthroughs in my quest to overcome overeating came after I returned from my first 10 day silent meditation retreat. All of a sudden I could not binge eat anymore. Before the retreat I had been overeating to the point of feeling very uncomfortable physically once a week no matter what I tried to do to stop. One day I realized I had not binge eaten in 6 months. The only thing I was doing different was daily meditation.
I’d come to crave the deep calm and inner quiet that the meditation gave me MORE than I craved the numbed out sensation overeating gave me. I could even eat ‘just one’ cookie, whereas before I had to finish the whole box.
And as a fabulous plus I had to buy new pants because mine were way too big.
To reap the benefits of meditation you do not have to sit cross legged like Buddha for long periods. Nor do you have to go on a silent meditation retreat for 10 days.
What is important is to find a form of meditation that you will do consistently and enjoy to the point you actually look forward to doing it. I promise you once you find the right type of meditation for you, you will fall in love with it and it will not feel like a chore. You too will come to crave calm and peace more than being numbed out and over-stuffed.
A great way for beginner’s to get into meditation is to find a guided meditation they love. There are many free guided meditations on itunes, youtube, and for free at the library if you look in the audiobook section.
The below website has a few guided meditations to get your started. All of them are FREE. As a side-note they are Buddhist-inspired and require one to sit upright.
If these aren’t your style, find something that is and JUST DO IT!
Everyone in your life will benefit from having a calmer, happier spouse, friend, parent, or employee. And after some time practicing, your pants might fit better.
Gluten Detox Plan: NEW Tips to Improving Digestion and ENJOYMENT during ALL stages of a Gluten Free Diet
My most popular post ever is:
Gluten Detox Plan: 5 Tips to Improving Digestion during the early stages of a Gluten Free Diet
I am constantly learning about ways to improve digestion as the healthier my digestive system the better my overall health. The audio in the below link succinctly summarizes fabulous ways to make the gluten free diet as therapeutic as possible v.It clarifies how to approach the gluten free diet not only for optimal digestive ease but also for sensory pleasure, with a focus on keeping children diagnosed with Celiac Disease very happy and healthy. It includes a discussion of healthy alternatives to gluten that aren’t horribly processed and focuses on the more alkaline, more readily digestible grains. My opinion is the ‘top tip’ in the audio is not an action, but taking a particular mental perspective when shifting the diet away from gluten whether one has Celiac Disease or wants to decrease gluten in the diet for any reason.
Perspectives on Celiac Disease
Let me know what you think!
Love and peace,
Daniela
Got Hypoglycemia? It’s Time to Learn the Difference between True Hunger and Toxic Hunger
Do you experience weakness, light-headedness, abdominal discomfort, confusion, irritability, or headaches if a meal or snack is delayed or missed? This is what many doctors would call hypoglycemia. The likely prescription from the doc would be to eat a high protein snack or small meal every 2-3 hours to avoid these uncomfortable symptoms.
I self-diagnosed as hypoglycemic quite a few years ago and my diagnosis was later confirmed by health professionals who recommended eating a high protein, low sugar snack or small meal every few hours. My experience with hypoglycemia (or what I thought was hypoglycemia) led me to the conclusion I was eating not because I was TRULY hungry, but trying to help my body find homeostasis because I literally felt sick if I did not eat frequently. Something was wrong with my body and I began to dig deeper to get to the truth.
The answer came when I picked up a copy of Dr. Joel Fuhrman‘s book Eat to Live.In it he describes the difference between what he terms Toxic Hunger and True Hunger. According to Fuhrman, “Toxic Hunger” is what we often incorrectly refer to as hypoglycemia. Simply put, when we don’t eat for a few hours and our digestive system no longer has food in it, our bodies start to enter detoxification mode. If we eat a low nutrient density diet of processed foods, we experience withdrawal from not having the toxins in processed foods enter our bodies. This withdrawal is what produces the uncomfortable symptoms we call hypoglycemia. In reaction to the withdrawal symptoms, we are overtaken by an uncontrollable drive to eat to stave off the discomfort–resulting in food addiction, obesity, and a whole host of other health problems. In summary, we are experiencing toxicity, not “True Hunger”.
Fuhrman describes “True Hunger” as a comfortable experience, something we feel in our throat and/or mouth. Wouldn’t it be nice to feel a gentle nudge from our bodies to eat instead of feeling ill several times a day? I truly believe that if we are willing to make the lifestyle changes necessary by doing as Fuhrman recommends and switching to a high-nutrient density, plant based diet void of processed foods we can all get there.
I had already started to eat a high-nutrient density diet when I came upon Fuhrman’s book a few months ago, but was still consuming small amounts of animal products and occasionally caffeine. And I was still experiencing hypoglycemia occasionally. When I cut out the animal products and caffeine, and sticking closely to this food plan, my hypoglycemic symptoms dramatically improved and my pants fit a lot better! I was scared to adopt this food plan. It required decreasing my fat and protein intake, and greatly increasing my carbohydrate intake. Believing the old adage that carbs make you fat, I thought I would certainly gain weight. My fears were unfounded and the opposite proved true.
Below is a link to an excellent talk given by Dr. Fuhrman describing the physiology of Toxic Hunger and Food Addiction, and his cure for both. I highly recommend viewing the video (it’s free).
Toxic Hunger and Food Addiction
If you’d prefer a short, written explanation of Toxic Hunger and how it relates to Obesity, below is a link to an excellent article on the subject:
“Toxic Hunger”: The Main Cause of Obesity
Dr. Fuhrman believes (and so do I) that Obesity and just about every other illness stems from toxicity, and the key to health depends upon detoxifying our diets and our lives, one step at a time. This requires dedication, perseverance, education, and support. Basically, good health requires hard work–and it is probably the most rewarding work you will ever do.
Top Tips to Keep Your Digestion Humming During the Holidays
Keeping your diet clean and your digestive system happy brings a lot of rewards: better stress tolerance, balanced moods, and a flatter belly. Additionally, as your digestive and immune systems are so intimately connected, a well functioning digestive system often brings markedly decreased incidence of colds and flu. If you already have eliminated gluten and dairy from your diet, you have gone a long way towards improving your digestive and immune health. Give yourself a pat on the back if you are one of these people!
However, all the temptations during this time of year can lead even the most health conscious people to either overeat processed, sugar-laden gluten-free treats…or dive for a platter of a gluten-laden goodie made from a generations old family recipe by their beloved Aunt Mabel. And then the prices is always paid for the indulgence via either short term of long health consequences. Sound familiar? If you would like to break the pattern of health sabotage this holiday season, read on for my top tips to staying committed to keeping your digestive system in top running order.
1. Have a Plan and Get Support to Follow It. This is the most important tip. I totally agree with this Winston Churchill quote “Failure to plan is planning to fail.” Sometimes people are afraid to make a eating plan because they have failed so many times at dieting. This is not about deprivation, but experiencing the abundance that comes from having optimal health.
Having a eating plan or general structure to your food intake makes it much harder to fall into unconsciousness about what you are eating during the holidays. The body loves routine. When you continually give it nutrient dense food on a regular schedule in moderate portions, it will ask to be fed that way again when you veer from the normal feeding rhythm. When you eat this way your cravings for junk food will be less intense, and you will find yourself craving feeling healthy more than you crave the momentary pleasure of a bite of something. If you don’t yet have a eating plan that gives you the results you are seeking, find a health professional who can help you with this.
2. Get Support to Follow Your Plan. Once you have your healthy eating plan, you will need to figure out how to fit it into your holiday social plans. This is where support is really helpful. Most of us thrive with adequate structure and accountability. Support can look a myriad of ways:
- Supporting yourself by keeping a food journal during the holiday season. Every morning write down what you plan to eat in detail: what, how much, and when. At the end of the day go back and write down any deviations. You will find the days you did this you made the best food choices.
- Get support from a health professional/coach. It can help greatly to have a weekly check-in during the holidays to keep accountable.
- Tell your friends and family what you are up to. Tell them you are sincerely trying to improve your health and would like their support. If even only one or two people at a gathering know you are on a special diet, it will help you avoid temptation. This takes some courage and you might encounter some resistance or judgment from others. The reality is more and more people are health and diet conscious now than ever, and you will probably be helping others out at social gatherings who are also struggling to make healthy choices during the holidays. You might even gain a support buddy!
3. Whatever You Eat, Don’t Overeat. Chronic overeating can lead to and exacerbate leaky gut syndrome, which can lead to the development of multiple food intolerances and numerous other health problems. If you decide to indulge in a favorite ‘treat’ food, decide ahead of time how much you will eat (the smaller the portion the better), take only that portion size, and relish every bite. I also recommend keeping the rest of the meal very simple and full of foods you know fill you up and you digest well, so that you are less tempted to overeat on foods that tend to irritate you. A common sense tip but worth mentioning.
4. Whatever You Eat, Chew It REALLY Well. Chewing coats the food you eat with the digestive enzyme amylase, which is necessary for carbohydrate digestion. Chewing also sends the message to your gallbladder to release bile. Bile is necessary for fat digestion and absorption. If you chronically gulp down your food and don’t chew much, your bile production will become markedly decreased over time and your digestive organs will become stressed. To put it simply, improper chewing of your food makes every step of the digestion and nutrient absorption process more difficult and less complete. Therefore, no matter what time of the year it is or what you decide to eat, do the following: relax, breathe deeply, and chew, chew, chew until your food is the consistency of baby food before swallowing.
5. Reset Your Taste Buds and Do a Cleanse. As I mentioned in tip #1, having a nutrient dense food plan that works for you is key to keeping cravings at bay and keeping your digestive system in good working order. Doing a cleanse often involves eliminating processed and allergenic foods for a set period of time, taking supplements focused on cleansing specific organs, and filling your body up with nutrient dense food. Many people report (including me) that these types of cleanses work wonders for re-setting your taste buds, releasing deep cravings for junk food, and developing cravings for healthy foods. Many people wait until after the holidays to do these cleanses, but think of how great it would feel to be full of energy and vitality throughout the holidays instead of cranky, hypoglycemic, and burnt-out?
A 7 day guided liver/gallbladder cleanse powered by raw foods is offered every month at Inner Awakening Healing Center where I work as a Colon Hydrotherapist. I have done three of these cleanses now and they have done wonders for my digestion. They are offered as a tele-class so that people can participate from anywhere in the world. The next cleanse tele-class is November 29- December 5. There is also the option to do the liver/gallbladder cleanse as a retreat at Mt. Shasta this holiday season, which will include 2 days of juicing for those ready to take it up a notch! The Mt. Shasta Cleanse Retreat is November 10-14. For more details go to: Mount Shasta Cleanse Retreat
6. Find Easy to Digest Holiday Comfort Food. We are human, and sometimes it can make us feel a bit down to watch others enjoy tasty foods we used to really enjoy during the holidays. There are so many options available now to either purchase or learn how to make healthy alternatives to holiday foods that are either full of gluten and dairy or are otherwise digestive nightmares. For many people, unless they see a new type of food prep method being demonstrated, they aren’t likely to try it out. For you visual learners, food prep classes are a must. A chef I highly respect is offering an amazing class entitled “Healthy Holiday Survival” on November 20th. I highly recommend it! Here are the details on this event:
Healthy Holiday Survival:
A Fresh Approach to Holiday Celebration
Imagine that your holiday experiences could leave you refreshed and healthy, rather than heavy and exhausted. In this daylong crash course, you will create a game plan for a fun, delicious and sustainable holiday season. The Bay Area’s top raw chefs will teach you easy raw vegan foods to nourish you through the winter’s festivities. Plus, you’ll get loads of holiday decorating tips, shop for green gifts and enjoy an elegant raw dinner with like-minded enthusiasts.
This fresh approach to holiday celebration is unlike any other event you have been to. It will include:
- A chat with raw food celebs about surviving the holidays and feeling rawsome in the winter. Featured guests include raw food luminary Cherie Soria, Café Gratitude Head Pastry Chef Gregory Manitsas, Monday Night Live founder Shea Lynn Baird, author Diana Stobo, Chef Melissa Mango and others.
- Raw food classes with featured chefs Heather Haxo Phillips, best-selling Author and Chef Jennifer Cornbleet and Krazy Kracker Lady Abeba Wright
- Tips for Holiday plating and decorations
- An elegant holiday meal featuring City Slicker Farms
- An opportunity to start your holiday shopping off right.
Nov 20th. 10 am – 7 pm in downtown Oakland.
Tickets: $95 early bird special, $120 after November 10, $30 for dinner only.
On sale now at www.rawbayarea.com
Gluten/Dairy Free and RAW Dining Experience in Pacifica
I have shared on many recent posts how transformative the raw vegan diet has been in my gluten/dairy free and lyme disease recovery journey. It can be very challenging to find something gluten and dairy free on the menu when dining out. Finding something to eat that is also raw, delicious, and satisfying is also challenging. Thus, I am very excited to announce that my friends and colleagues Paula Andres, Raw Food Chef, and Jane Guyette, Colon Hydrotherapist and owner of Inner Awakening Healing Center in Pacifica are offering a Raw Food Dining Experience that looks quite delicious. Here is the info:
RAW FOOD DINING EXPERIENCE!
Make Your Reservations Now for PJ RAW Restaurant!
On October 16th, Oceana Market will be transformed into Pacifica’s first raw food Pop-Up restaurant. Come experience some of Chef Paula Andres’ exotic Asian creations like: Mango Silk Soup, Yin/Yang Salad Boat and Pad Thai Noodle Fantasy.
We need your support to spread the news. Pacifica and the Bay Area at large are in need of healthier restaurant choices. If we see enough interest we can make this a frequent destination.
When: Saturday, October 16, 2010
Two seatings are available
5:00 pm & 7:30 pm.
Where: Oceana Market,
200 Eureka Sq
Pacifica, CA 94044
Price: $40 per person
Reservations: email at InnerAwakeningCenter@yahoo.com -or- Phone (650) 355-7364
Gluten-Free Digestion Repair Starts in the Mind and the Heart
I have written a lot about the dietary aspects of repairing your digestion from the devastation gluten intolerance and other food in tolerances cause. It is my personal experience that focusing only on diet did not heal your digestive tract fully. The healing of my leaky gut did not pick up the pace until I chose to focus just as much on achieving emotional wellness as I did not what I was eating.
Many medical professionals believe that the main reason people with Celiac Disease or gluten intolerance continue to have symptoms post-diagnosis is that they are eating some gluten. That may be true, but I don’t think it is the whole truth.
The missing piece here for me has been the acknowledgment that there is a lot of stress triggering events happening in the world right now and most people don’t have the emotional or spiritual resources to cope with the stress. Some of us are more sensitive than others to external stressors (myself included). The stress I am referring to in this post is the internal experience or the internal reaction we have to external events. What I want to make clear is that we have A LOT of control over how we react to and experience our world.
I find when I don’t acknowledge emotional stress it starts to impact not only my emotional health but I start having digestive problems, hormonal imbalances, and blood sugar problems. I am convinced my emotional state and my digestive health are undeniably intimately related and that becoming more mindful of this reality has resulted in a profound shift in my level of health and vitality on all levels. My supplements work better, my hypoglycemia disappears, and my metabolism seems to get a boost when I regular employ basic stress relief practices.
A good part of the activity happening in our digestive, immune, lymphatic system, and nervous systems happens not only due to what we eat, but how we live in our bodies as a whole. By how we live in our bodies I mean what we take in on all levels: the thoughts we think, the environment we live in, the air we breathe, the people we spend time with, the way we interpret and hold on to past events, the media we are exposed to, etc.
I filter my experiences through my gut, or the core of my body, to a large extent. Keeping the flow of energy in my core organs is very important and a huge part of keeping healthy and letting daily stressors flow through me instead of getting stuck and causing illness.
Many studies have shown the incredibly transformative power of mind body approaches to healing. There are many skeptics out there, but I find that if one is willing to throw skepticism aside and “act as if”, to treat the healing journey as a sacred process, healing miracles become possible.
Here are the Top 3 cost-free things I do to keep stress from making me sick:
1. Forgiveness and Compassion
I often find myself feeling upset to varying degrees about various things happening in the world or in my personal life. When I am holding onto anger, resentment, fear, or hurt feelings my core gets tight and my back begins to ache. When this happens I find it helpful to adopt an attitude of forgiveness and compassion for myself for having these ‘negative’ emotions and for the other parties in the situation. To do this I simply take out my journal and write about the situation without censoring the words. I always end up at a place of forgiveness, compassion, and greater insight. Writing helps me connect to the wisest parts of myself and release whatever needs to be released.
Another way I practice forgiveness and compassion is a new prayer I learned from a friend that is making its way around the internet. I visualize whomever (sometimes it is me who needs to forgive myself) I want to forgive or whom I feel I owe an apology and send this prayer their way:
Ho’oponopono Prayer:
“I Love You, I’m Sorry, Please Forgive Me, Thank You”
You can learn more about this prayer that originates from a Hawaiian healer here
Gratitude
I make it a regular practice before bed to review with my husband things we are grateful for that day. It helps me keep my mindset positive instead of going to bed ruminating over daily frustrations. I have also kept a gratitude journal in which I wrote down 10 things every night before bed I was grateful for that day, it is really fun to pick up this old journal and review it whenever I am in a funky mood.
Nature As Healer
It is just not natural how much time I can spend each day sedentary and indoors if I don’t continually remind myself regular movement and especially exercising in nature is medication for me.
I find walking in nature to leave me feeling much calmer and peaceful than working out in a gym. I still like to go bust a sweat at a cardio dance class and reap great benefits from that, but nothing helps me let go of worries like a walk in nature.
This nature connection feels even more important when momma nature is ailing so much. Each news report of a natural disaster makes me want to connect to mother earth even more in an effort remind yourself that despite all the trauma she has gone through she is still thriving in so many ways and so beautiful.
Just like all of us, for all our inner and outer scars, we are so beautiful and thriving in many ways.
Breaking the Food Addiction Cycle when Going Green
I have had some great life-lessons this week post-juice feast that are bringing me back in line with my intention to listen to and honor the messages my body is constantly giving me. I am working hard at not reverting to the diet-binge cycle post-juice feast, and my efforts are offering me a lot of insight. My two biggest insights were 1) How one must respect the intensity of the amount of temptation there is in the world when one is trying to release a food addiction and adopt a high-raw/green lifestyle, and 2)The juice feast and recent liver/gallbladder cleanse has really changed my physiology, and my body is teaching me a new way to feed it.
Temptation
Before I went into Whole Foods today, I took time to sit and center myself. I knew that there would most likely be samples everywhere. I passed up the samples that were offered immediately upon entering the store (victory!) and was in the tea aisle when I noticed I was salivating! Just simply being in the presence of food had me salivating. I was not super hungry, I had had breakfast one hour ago. My study of the digestive system has taught me that salivation is one of the first steps in the digestion process, their release sends the message to the entire body “Get ready for food!”.
Here I thought I was in control by saying no to eating the samples, but my mind had already told my body “We are gonna get some food now, yahoo!”. If I had not centered myself, before entering the store, it would have been so easy to pick up a chocolate bar (you know those little chocolates they have at the checkout stand?) and eaten it on the way home. I am learning to RESPECT the power of my cellular cravings that are still hanging around and to re-program myself I need to: 1) drink my green juice and 2) center myself when I know the temptation is going to be great.
Increasing Food Sensitivity
Matt Monarch’s (of the Raw Food World) newsletter sent out today included an article entitled Two Levels of Sensitivity in which he talks about what happens when someone who has cleansed deeply and eaten a very pure diet for a significant amount of time eats something that is not part of what he calls their “consistent diet.” This article was a follow-up to another insightful article: Adapting to Toxic and Processed Foods. Reading these articles drove home the truth that there is nothing ‘wrong’ with people’s immune systems who are sensitive to foods such as gluten or dairy, the problem is in the toxicity of our food supply. I greatly recommend the articles, they are very insightful and true to post-juice feast experience, as I will describe…
On Monday I found myself at a Fresh Choice Salad Buffet ravenously hungry with the intention to eat only salad. However, one thing led to another and I made some very poor choices. Before this juice feast I was enjoying a new ability to eat an increasing variety of foods that previously I was unable to eat due to multiple food sensitivities that had seemingly resolved due to all the leaky gut and emotional healing work I have been doing for a number of years.
The food choices I made on Monday resulted in significant suffering on Tuesday. I found myself feeling very anxious, apathetic, fatigued, very bloated, and with a nasty pimple on my chin. The anxiety reminded me of the feeling I got after drinking fully leaded coffee, which alerted me to the reality the symptoms were most likely due to something I ingested. Also, I found the thought of drinking green juice repulsive! Prior to the juice feast, the food choices I made on Monday would have maybe led me to feel a bit ‘off,’ but nothing like the severity of the reactions I experienced Tuesday.
I got myself through the funky feelings yesterday by affirming to myself this was a GOOD sign that I had become cleaner inside than I have ever been since maybe infancy when I was only ingesting my momma’s milk (thank you momma!). I have been eating a high-green, 90% organic diet for several years and ow that I have done a juice feast, 2 liver/gallbladder cleanses, and tons of colon cleansing—I’ve achieved a new state of physiological homeostasis that needs to be respected and nurtured.
I committed to myself before going to bed Tuesday night that I would make (and drink!) 1 quart of green juice first thing after I drank my morning quart of water. My experience has shown me that drinking my morning quart of green juice (without any fruit besides lemon) keeps me clear-headed and on track with my food choices all day. I ended up making 2 quarts of green juice this morning (Wednesday) and enjoyed them as a nutritient rich breakfast and lunch.
I will end my reflection today with a recipe for an a tasty green juice. The consistency of this juice was smooth, it went down very easy, and it made my cells dance:
Makes approximately 1 quart
1 lemon, 3 little baby bok choy, 1 head celery, 2 zucchini, 3 romaine leaves.
Here’s to learning from our mistakes and becoming wiser every day!
Daniela
Juice Feast Day 7
I decided to ‘break’ my feast yesterday at the end of day 7 of my juice feast. I am extremely proud of myself for making it this long! I broke my feast at dinner time. I set the table beautifully and lit some lovely candles to make a little ritual out of my first real meal in one week. I enjoyed a small salad of lettuce, tomato, cucumber, and jicama dressed with a few avocado slices, hemp oil, and lemon juice. It was about half the size of the usual salad I frequently eat as a entree for dinner pre-feast, but I still could not finish it. As a former member of the clean plate club, I was surprised to see myself putting down my fork and sacrificing the rest of the salad to the garbage drain. I attribute this new super power to the habit changing nature of juice feasting. I focused on savoring and chewing thoroughly each and every little tasty morsal. My heart was also very happy to be sharing a meal with my sweet, so supportive husband.
I chose to break the feast because I needed a mental and physical break from juicing. I was experiencing juice fatigue in terms of feeling overwhelmed with constantly making juice and feeling I had to be tied to my juicer all the time. Further, I was feeling very ungrounded and having blood sugar control problems causing a lot of hunger. I plan to hire a juice feasting consultant or go to a place like the tree of life rejuvenation center to have even more support in healing specific physical ailments such as blood sugar imbalance and lyme disease…although I know that I have made huge headway into healing both on my own at home.
My BIGGEST lesson that I learned from my mini juice feast was that my most significant hurdle to healing from disease was letting go of my addiction to suffering. I had gotten so used to suffering that I realized I was holding on to the sub-conscious belief that I do not want to heal, that on some level it is not safe. I am so used to suffering it has become my modus operandi and somewhat comfortable, like a old stinky and moldy blanket a child carries around as a pacifier. This addiction was the true core of my food addiction and even my difficulty in releasing lyme’s disease from my body.
All the new detox practices I was doing this past week went against my status quo of suffering, and brought resistance kicking and screaming to the surface. I know the longer I practice acts of self-love, the harder it will be to maintain these beliefs and the homestatis of my being will shift towards more and more joy. Because, darn it, I am worth it! We all are. And I saw and felt the shift happen last week.
So many of us with chronic illness have been told we are not really ill, but have some sort of psychological problem and are just trying to get attention. I can’t tell you how much that irked me, because I have had more than one doc tell me that. Those docs were on to something though. My body was trying to get my attention, but it took me many years of study to learn to de-code its messages. The juice feast helped me become much more fluent in the language of my body and honor its incredible ability to heal itself when I removed the poisons (toxic beliefs, toxic thoughts, toxic behaviors, toxic food) and let it do its thing.
My studies and personal experience have taught me I must find a way to access the wisdom of my body, and in doing so I will heal myself on all levels. This is why I loved the globaljuicefeasting.com program, because it was a truly holistic, or integral, experience and thus allowed me to access the wisdom of my body, mind, and spirit.
Here are the integral life practices from my juice feast I will continue post-feast:
- A minimum of one quart of green all veggie juice a day
- Maintain a high green/high raw diet
- Daily body brushing before my morning shower
- Drinking 1qt water with 1/2 lemon & 1teaspoon MSM powder upon rising
- Minimum 30 minutes a day of walking outside, preferable hiking in nature
- Regular colon cleansing via enemas as needed and once a week colon hydrotherapy
- Far Infrared Sauna 1-2X/week
- Frequent Blogging to share with others my experience!
- Reading daily from one of the books or documents from globaljuicefeasting.com
- Doing detox/nutritional coaching with anyone in my life who asks for it:)
Short list of benefits from my 1 week of juice feasting and 2nd liver/gallbladder stones:
- My clothes fit much better, jeans that were tight Monday and are very comfortable now.
- I lost one inch from my waist, approx. 6lbs, and 1% body fat.
- I released 100′s of vitality-robbing liver stones
- I gained great insight into the root cause of my illness and a the path out of suffering
- Greatly increased my energy levels and mental clarity
- Greatly increased feeling of vitality
- Hair appears shinier and thicker
- Skin appears more ‘glowy’, firm, and smooth throughout entire body
- Am writing more on my blog and ready again to work with clients
- Feel much more connected to nature, a long-time goal of mine
- Released huge amounts of toxic sludge from my digestive system working towards goal of healing up leaky gut even further
Wow! Quite the list! This is just my 7 day juice feast list, I can’t imagine the transformation possible if I did it for 30, 60, or even 92 days!!!
I am signing off, my heart full of gratitude for all the beings in the universe that made it possible for me to feast on life and juice last week.
Daniela
