Improving Health

I have been taking walks and riding my new bike most days since I received my new cruiser bicycle.  I have a great app on my iPhone called Sports Tracker.  It was windy this morning so I went for a walk, rather than kill myself riding against the wind.  It was a nice change from riding the bike so I had an enjoyable time.  I also listen to podcasts or music while I walk or ride because the time goes by less tediously.. LOL

The weather here in South Florida is rainy lately - May Showers bring June Flowers or whatever...

This morning after the walk, I had Muddy Mean Green juice.  It is Mean Green made with red kale which makes it muddy-looking, but the taste is the same, only the color is different.

Later, I went to late lunch/early dinner with a friend to a Mexican restaurant and had vegetarian fajitas which were very good.  NO DESSERT!!!  Once I got home I ate some watermelon, which was PERFECT!!  A local farm grown seedless, sweet, heavy watermelon.  High in Vitamin C, Vitamin A, magnesium and potassium.

Eating better, getting exercise, being active really has my body cooking, and food is being processed through my body.  I feel like I am regaining health I should have had all along.  Next Monday, May 21, will be my first visit to my doctor since November.  Since then, I have lost 28 lbs. and started exercising.  I have not lost much weight for the past month, but I know to just keep moving forward and not to let the scale stop me from doing what I am doing.  I will ask my doctor if I can do a 3-5 day "juice only" fast, and that will knock some pounds off.  I think a 10 day fast will do more good than harm.  I have strayed from a raw diet of fruits and vegetables and slowly cooked food, wheat, sugar, dairy, is working its way back into my diet.  I do best when I juice and eat clean, plus I feel so much better... I hope to do better.. I mean actually DO better, not just talk about it...

More later.....

I moved the headlight and taillight from my old bike to my new one, just in case I get caught out riding after dark, or decide to do a quick evening ride.  Better safe than sorry.


I also got a NICE beach bag/basket liner for $11 at Kirkland HomeStore and it fits in my basket perfectly. I can pull it out of the basket to go into a store, or just have it in the basket to put my "stuff" in there without it falling through.  I think it is "sunbrella" fabric... 

Next, I have to figure out what to do with my one-speed bike.  I think I should sell it, but these days, no one has any money.  I barely used the bike and it is a nice Huffy, Nel Lusso, 26" women's.. Very nice, but too hard to ride in the wind.

Here is my new bike.  I just got back from a 2-3 mile ride around the neighborhood and I decided I really like it.  Easy to handle (steer), very comfortable, brakes good, all around smooth ride.  I assembled it, then took to bike shop for them to go over the bike to make sure I had it assembled correctly.  I asked them to put the rear basket on the bike.  I put the basket on the front the next day, then today I got a new REALLY comfy seat, Schwinn Deluxe Comfort.  We have to take care of our fine butts, ladies!!  The bike is a Pacific Shorewood, 26" wheels, 7-speed cruiser bike.  At first I was disappointed about some scratches, but because the bike is such a nice ride, I forgot all about them!!  I do need to do some touch up painting though, or the scratches will rust.

This morning's juice was carrot, red beet, and cilantro.  Delish!  This is a liver cleanser and if your liver is clean, then your blood will be clean.  I am looking forward to a good doctor's report when I have my check up in three weeks.

Then I went to Pei Wei's for lunch and had Asian Chopped Chicken Salad and two crab wontons for about $10.  Can't beat that!!  It was delicious and I like the atmosphere at Pei Wei's.  Very calm and welcoming.

So between the juicing, eating better, and exercise, my life is changing.  Now I have to do some toning exercises to get rid of LOVE handles, or maybe I should call them LOVE bags.  HAHA

Love your life, keep moving, eat right, keep your stress to a minimum, get outside and if you are prone to skin cancer like I am, go out near sunset, go for a bike ride or go for a swim... Life is GOOD!!!

New Bike Arrived!!

My new bike arrived yesterday, so I got started.. Had a terrible time just getting the bike out of the box.  You aren't supposed to lay the box on its side, so I could not easily lift 44 lbs straight up, without someone holding onto the box.  I should have cut the box down the sides, but didn't see that video until AFTER the struggle. haha.. There was no packaging, no styrofoam blocks, nothing, just some cardboard type stuff wrapped and taped around the main parts.  Therefore, there are some scratches and a dent in the fender on a new bike.  I hate when I don't get to put the scratches on by myself.  Anyhow!!  I got it all put together and the front brake didn't want to work right.  After applying the front brake, it would not spring back to center.  It is a V-brake configuration. I messed around, watched YouTube videos, read all I could on the internet and I tried EVERYTHING to get it to work, so maybe I have a defective brake?  I found a bike place one mile from my house, so I am going to ride over there tomorrow morning and have them do a tune-up, making sure I did the assembly correctly, and they can make adjustments accordingly. The gear derailer or something back there is making a lot of noise, so they can adjust that, and I think the rear wheel needs to be trued by adjusting the spokes. It probably got bent to shit during shipping.  I will also have them put on a rear cargo rack I bought.  It is a "retro Pletscher-style" rack which will look very cool.  Tomorrow afternoon, I am supposed to get the front basket I ordered and I think that will be pretty straight-forward, so I should be able to do that myself.  If not, I can go to the bike store and they can do it for me.

I regret that I didn't get a Huffy or Schwinn... The quality on this Pacific Shorewood is not up to par.  But it's too late now, I guess.  I try not to make a big deal out of stuff, so it will be okay.  If they can't adjust it so it works right, I may have to send it back.  That's okay... I have my eye on a Schwinn that is on sale for the same price on amazon.com.  Let's just see how all this plays out.  Things happen the way they do for a reason.  God is in charge of stuff, even my bicycle buying mistakes!!

And I went to the Dermo doctor for a skin check.  You get down to your underwear and he checks your skin all over.  Not the most fun thing, but I trust and like my doctor, so it's not a big deal.  I go back in 6 months...

I had some nice juice today. Mean Green, my favorite!!  And I was just reading how good cilantro is for ailments.  The other day I had pineapple, cilantro, lemon and ginger root juice.  OMGosh it was so good!!!  So if you are juicing, try adding cilantro to your juices, even if its just a big handful... and do a Google search on cilantro to see the benefits of juicing it.

Okay people, get out there and enjoy your day, ride a bike, take a walk, go look around, explore, go on adventures, stimulate!!  And JUICE if you can.  There is a lot of energy in fresh fruit and vegetable juices.  My skin is looking better than it has for a long time.  The texture has changed from alligator to soft.

I heard that a girl from high school died.  She didn't feel well... next thing you know she had a heart attack and died!!  She was only 63-64 years old.  Get out there and LIVE it... You never know when you might not be able to do the things you want to do...  and keep your chin(s) up!

Still Standing!!!

Hello out there:

Just because I have not been posting, doesn't mean I have strayed from juicing and eating "clean."  Since November, 2011, I lost 30 lbs!!  YES and I am in a smaller size pants (still not small enough).  I gathered up my "big" clothes to give away, because I am determined not to ever wear them again.

I started walking about 20-30 minutes a day, then started riding my one-speed bike.  It has been windy lately and my legs turned to rubber the first day out.  Each day I seem to get stronger.  I downloaded an app on my iPhone, Sports Tracker, and it uses GPS to determine, speed, time, altitude, draws a map of your workout, and has an online component that expands on the data provided.  Today, it was raining so I did a "mall walk" and tried not to knock people over, especially the little ones and the elderly.  See?? I am a nice person!  lol  The map of the mall walk was very wobbly, but I assure you, I was not high or drunk.

I had a beautiful watermelon juice today.  I was so nutritious, I could feel it filling in the gaps as I drank it.  Do a google search on "watermelon" and you will see what I mean.

So, the diet and exercise thing is in play.  I have a doctor's appointment in May and am very excited to see the medical results of my efforts to improve my health.

I ordered a new bicycle, a 7-speed, Pacific Shorewood, from Amazon.com. It is inexpensive and practical.  I also ordered a front basket (Wald 135 deep basket), and a rear cargo rack, Pletscher style, retro looking.  COOL!!  

This is an example of the workout data.

This is the mall walk, not really wobbly, but maybe the GPS had trouble finding me inside the building. It was raining, so I went to the mall to walk instead of not doing any exercise today.

This is the FABULOUS watermelon juice I had today... It really hit the spot!!

March 20, 2012

Here is a photo of my juicer... Breville Juice Fountain Elite.... Notice the plastic bag in the pulp container. After juicing, the pulp can easily be removed and thrown out, neat, no muss, no fuss.

I weighed myself this morning and am now 27.2 lbs down from November 2011. I am amazed because I am juicing twice a day and eating one main meal. If I eat too much I don't feel good, so I do best with smaller wholesome meals. I don't pretend to know what I am doing, but I keep doing internet searches to see the possibilities. There are so many schools of thought, so many ways to go about regaining health, vegan, vegetarian, juicing only, so I am trying to go middle of the road. I think I am off to the side of the road though, because I eliminated sugar, processed foods, meat, dairy, etc. BUT I have had a few items that are processed, and last week I had a chicken breast. I am trying not to be so stringent, use common sense, and enjoy what I am doing. I don't want to be so rigid that I will have a "beat myself up" attack if I stray a little here and there.

My skin has changed to softer, even though I am 63 years old and try to stay out of the sun as much as possible since I live in Florida where the sun is very strong and harsh. My forearm and legs used to be "tougher" but now it has changed.

Today I had juice twice. I went to a salad bar for a late lunch, ignored the "free" frozen yogurt machine over there, and tried not to eat things with too much oil. They have an amazing olive tapenade, they call it muffaletta, and I love that stuff!! So I have to be light with that.... If I love it that much it is because it is not that good for me... :-)

Anyhow, one of the juices was pears and fennel bulb. That is so good... Usually I have greens in any drink, but not that one, not today. It is very refreshing...

OHHhhhhhh...... Yesterday I made socca, and that is a chickpea flour, tortilla type thing you make in a cast iron skillet that is heated in a very hot oven, then you add some olive oil, then the chickpea batter, then bake it for 25 mins at 450.. I know.. I thought it would be burned!! But I flipped it over, added some carmalized veggies, and put it back in the over for 3 mins. Then I cut it with a pizza cutter... It has a very different flavor that may take some getting used to... but I love the idea of having such a high protein item that is like pizza!!!! LOL I must experiment more!!

That's it for today. My official weigh-ins are on Sundays... More will be revealed!! haha

March 13, 2012 - Doing well!!!

I have been eating cooked foods, plus raw foods, plus juicing. My experiment has lessened my weight loss. If you feel you are losing weight too fast, just eat some cooked veggies and that will slow it down. I will say that the more I eat, the hungrier I am, and when I mostly juice, I don't feel as hungry.

Today I had "mean green" for first juice of the day, then I ate some cooked cabbage, carrots, and potatoes, which was okay, nothing special. Then I made collard greens, parsley, carrots, celery, red beet, and ginger root. It was tasty and I do love the red beets. Go very easy on the red beets to see how you react to them. If you are pre-cleanse, the red beets really pack a wollop because of their liver cleansing properties. They are also high in sugars, so at first I used 1/2 beet, now I am up to a whole beet. If you do too much too fast, you can become nauseous, blech.....

I make 32oz of juice at a time, drink 16oz of it while I clean the juicer and refrigerate the other 16oz for about an hour later. I sip the juice slowly and wash the juice around my mouth to stimulate saliva, digestive juices.... Then I read that the acid from the juice can erode the enamel off your teeth... Even something good can be bad?? One thing I learned is to rinse your mouth with water after drinking juice, don't brush your teeth right after juicing, wait a while.

Because I had a good meal, and mostly juices today, I feel pretty good. The juice gives my stomach a rest from digesting foods. I suffer from GERD and take medication for it, and I don't know if I will ever be able to stop this medication. Maybe I am just built this way? I think once the weight comes off, a lot of these secondary problems will go away.

My skin is clearer and not spotty, and the texture is moving toward the soft side. My weight loss has slowed, so I have to start eating raw foods, not cooked, and use portion control, and really get serious, I MEAN IT, about walking about 30 mins every day. I have some weights, a yoga mat, yoga bricks, Wii Fit Plus, etc. It is all waiting for me to GET SERIOUS!!!!

I am sending my first Breville juicer, the Ikon Multi-Speed, back to Breville tomorrow for warranty replacement. Sometimes when I am ready to juice, it will not start. I tried taking it apart and putting it together again, still won't start... Wait a while, still won't start, then I turn it on out of nowhere and it starts!! This drives me crazy, especially when I have everything all set up to juice..... Hopefully, the new Ikon won't act like that and I can keep it as a backup or sell it to someone, or who knows what. I love the Breville Juice Fountain Elite, but it would be nice if it had variable speeds like the Ikon. I like the metal basket on the Elite, the Ikon plastic basket seems to collect residue that is difficult to get off the surface. I use Dawn detergent and it does a good job. Anyhow, Breville said it would take 14 days to get the replacement Ikon, thank God I have a back up...

I love the juices, but I don't feel I have enough variety. I tend to use what I buy which lasts a while since I am the only one in the house juicing. I need to try fennel bulb with other fruits besides pears, just to change things up.

I bought quinoa, brown rice, 7 bean mix, lentils to try. I read that lentils and brown rice was a complete protein, so I will try that with some raw veggies, or steam them lightly. I have to stay away from the Whole Foods cafeteria and eat at home. Stay away from flour, wheat, sugar, dairy, meat, eggs, cheese, butter, ok that is dairy, but I feel so much better, still have cravings for those foods, so that tells me I am not juicing enough, or eating raw foods enough. Once that conversion happens I don't think I will have cravings...

More later....

March 8, 2012

I got on the scales yesterday and came down one more pound. Every pound counts.

I made a lunch/dinner that was mediocre at best. I overcooked the steamed broccoli making it inedible. I roasted a spaghetti squash and it was awful. One good thing is I also roasted a red pepper, a sweet potato, celery, etc. I also made a tomato sauce for the spaghetti squash and that totally sucked. I ate the mushrooms that I put in the sauce, but threw the rest out. I won't kid myself by thinking I will eat it later. So my meal was pretty much gross. I have done better, but this time.. ick...

BUT, I made a delicious juice this evening: Two oranges, peeled; one lime, peeled; and one green apple. It was so refreshing and I really enjoyed it.

I went to a different farmer's market today. This one is also close to my home. I bought a HUGE bunch of collard greens that I had to put in the refrigerator sideways... It must weigh 10 lbs!! All that for $2.50!!! So I will juice the heck out of that!! The kale was puny and ridiculous, so I switched over to collard greens for a while. They also had NICE ginger root for $2.50/lb instead of $4.99/lb.

I got a lot of things I usually don't buy, because I am trying to have variety in my diet and not eat the same things every week. I also want to make some lentils and brown rice, supposed to be a good combination for a complete protein. I will have that with some steamed veggies and try not to steam them to death so they are edible... Maybe for 3 or 4 mins!!

So that is what is new on the food front.

I ordered some surround sound speaker stands which are supposed to be delivered tomorrow. I rearranged my living room and had to move the speakers, so that is my solution for the rear speakers. They sound so good!!

I also ordered a corner breakfast nook bench for my dining area. I will be getting that March 28, photos to follow, but here is the type of bench I am talking about. I love it and the price was right, $250 and free shipping!! Thank you Sears!!

That's it for today, I have to get to bed... Sweet dreams everyone!!

March 1, 2012

I LOVED this salad today. I went to Jason's Deli, they have a wonderful salad bar for $7.79 all you can eat, but I only visited the salad bar one time. They had mufeletto, several types of olives chopped, and I put it on a crisp bread... To me it was an olive tappenade which I totally love... Also on there was calamata olives, quinoa, mushrooms, artichoke hearts, bean salad, some lemons, red and yellow pepper and red onions, baby carrots, etc. I REALLY enjoyed this salad.

I had a veggie juice and later a fruit juice. Both were awesome, but I find my appetite is perking, which means I am not focusing on the juices enough. If I have enough juice, I don't want to eat and eat. So tomorrow, a visit to my favorite produce market, hopefully, they will have some of their beautiful kale, and I can get back on track with the 80% veggie and 20% fruit juices. Lately, I have wanted fruit juices. It is not a surprise to know that my weight loss has stalled.

I think I get it... stay on juices til I reach a desired weight, then slowly introduce foods back into my diet, one by one. I will find which foods are agreeable to me by my body's reaction to them. I see the logic to that now, and since I have a new juicer, plus another juicer I may send back for warranty replacement due to some motor starting issues, plus I have my Acme Supreme Juicerator from 30 years ago that I bought a new cutter blade for and I just received the clutch/nut that needed to be replaced.. Now, the juicer is doing a great job and working properly. So I can juice up a storm without fear that I will be in the middle of a reboot or fast and have juicer problems.

I am glad I took some time off of Reboot (3 or 4 days), so I can regroup and get focused...

That's about it for today... Life is so good!!

Feb. 28, 2012: New Juicer

First thing this morning I had pear/fennel juice and I eliminated pretty heavy, an intense detox.

Then, my Breville Juice Fountain Elite 800JEXL arrived, and I immediately washed it and started making juice: Apple, Beet, Carrot, and Collard Greens. I got nauseated from the beet, and I think I might have drunk it too fast, or I put too much red beet in it? Who knows, but it hit me the way wrong way... Way wrong... I thought I was going to chuck it... So, I drank some water to dilute the juice that was already inside me. It took a while, but finally the nausea was gone.

I figured I needed to slow down the detox so I roasted some vegetables: Red potato, sweet potato, celery, carrot, red bell pepper, red onion, herbs, garlic, small amount of dressing and some olive oil. Roasted for about 50 mins at 375. That hit the spot and I felt so much better after I ate it, plus it was so delicious. I think I have to really be tuned into my body to know what not to eat, when to stop eating, etc.

Then later, I had a slice of Ezekiel 4:9 sprouted grain bread (no flour!) spread with hummus with black olives and roasted red pepper (from the roasted veggies). I warmed the frozen bread in the toaster oven and spread the hummus mixture on it. That was also delicious!!! Now, I want to purchase the Ezekiel sprouted wheat tortillas and experiment with different stuff, like my favorite Mexican dishes translated into "clean" foods. This should be interesting! There is so much information online that I should not have any trouble finding recipes and ideas.

I sorted through my pants and separated out the smaller size, so they could be grouped together for me to wear. This is so exciting! Soon I will be getting rid of the big sizes, because I don't ever want to go back there.

That's about it for today because it was pretty uneventful and peaceful. I wanted to take a 30 min walk this morning, but that didn't happen.. LOL... tomorrow is another day, but I will play some Wii games later this evening.

Live is good.. and the best is yet to come.

Feb 25, 2012

I am taking it easy today. I had a wonderful breakfast juice: fennel, pear, pineapple, cucumber, ginger, and lemon. It was very tasty and I loved it!

I weighed in this morning 20 lbs less than in November, 2011. To celebrate my 20 lb weight loss, I made a video of me in my undies, front, side, back, stating the date and my weight. I hope to do this at different intervals though this process. I wish I had made a video at the beginning, in November, so I had something to compare, but I wore size 16 pants yesterday and there was breathing room. I don't like to squish myself into clothes (at this point anyway), because it looks ridiculous when I am overweight, like a sausage being stuffed into a very small casing... and I tend to hide under my clothes, which makes me look worse.

At some point I will feel comfy in my clothes and they will fit properly and I won't feel like I am stuffed into them. Oh, happy day when that time comes!!

I am here to report that my dinner juice was so gross I couldn't get the last couple of swigs down. I juiced a sweet potato, friends please stick to roasting or baking your sweet potatoes, or put them in a pie.. The juice was grainy and gritty, and HEY I scrubbed it really well. Not going to do that again...

I made red cabbage slaw, which was pretty good, but was very light on the sweetener (honey) so it is a bit vinegary. Hey! I can put some pineapple in it!!! YUM!!!

More tomorrow!!

Feb 24, 2012

This is the local market where I shop. I don't know what some of these roots are but I bet I could juice them and find out how they taste. I just looked them up, thank you internet, and they are potato-type root veggies. Of course, I know what a Yam is, but this is a White Yam. Interesting!! They sell "traditional" produce as well, and have a refrigerated room where all the greens, etc. are kept. This will really get a work out in the summer months when it is so hot here in South Florida.

Every day I look forward to making juice. My fridge is stocked and I have something in there that I may or may not like in juice... A sweet potato... I haven't tried it yet, but it sounds interesting. BUT there are probably a lot of carbs in a sweet potato, so it will be an addition, rather than the main feature, of the juice.

I walked into a restaurant and saw some friends I used to work with and the first thing they said was, "You look great." OK.... I know I FEEL great and I seem happier, like I am coming out of a slump...

Today's morning juice was pear/fennel/ginger/lemon/swiss chard for starters.

Dinner juice was Mean Green... Love that stuff, but today for some reason, the juices seemed flavorless. I think I might have gotten a batch of blah apples. Something is different.. BUT it still has the good stuff.

No.. I didn't take a 30 min walk today. Was busy in the morning, then went to meet friends and we ended up going for a nice long lunch. It is so great being retired and able to do whatever, whenever.

That's about it for today. Maybe I will do something interesting tomorrow... haha

Day 15 of Reboot (Quick Start)

OK I did a 15 day Reboot... Now where do I go? I think the next thing, after I have soup and some hummus, is to do a 5 Day Juice Only... Then maybe a 10 Day Juice Only. If I only drink juice and feel fantastic, then why wouldn't I continue on that road? I would love to do a 30 day juice only Reboot, so I need to talk to my doctor to see what's what.

I made Vegetable Soup from recipe on www.jointhereboot.com (they are having to upgrade because they have so much internet traffic.. something about "web hosting platform"), so I don't think you can go there to see the recipe.. I put a red bell pepper in it and the soup sort of sweet and savory, tarragon, thyme, oregano.

Then, this evening I made Hummus using NO OIL whatsoever.. not sure why you would use oil because the texture and flavor of the hummus without the oil is very good. I used chickpeas, tahini, garlic cloves, lemon, paprika, but I need to add a smidge of cayenne pepper. Be careful!! That cayenne is very HOT... Then I cut red bell pepper strips and ran them through the hummus. I had my own little bowl of hummus, no double-dipping!! Very good, and very filling...

If I stay out of the restaurants, continue with 2 qts of juice a day, then have one meal and maybe some snacks, I think I will do okay. I love the fruits and veggies and am trying to stay away from the sweet fruits, or use them moderately... Also have to watch the carrot and red beet juice intake. Those are very good for you but very sweet and probably because of that, a lot of calories.

I am keeping track of my eating, weight, and activity on the Weight Watchers site where I belong. Today I did a little bicycle ride, but I really like walking, and so far this week, since Sunday, I have walked or rode the bike every day. OK so this is Tuesday, alright, Sunday, Monday, Tuesday.. Only 3 days, but, Hey, "the journey of 1,000 miles begins with the first step."

I have all these nice appliances and a new kitchen, so I am well-equiped to take on this challenge. I am the luckiest gal in the world!

How do they say it? "I never had it so good, and the best is yet to come."

Day 13 of Reboot (Quick Start)

Day 13 of 15 Quick Start Reboot. Today I started out with chamomile tea, then went to a dear friend's memorial service. It started at 11am and I was there until 1:30pm, so I was really hungry. They had table after table of desserts, which I looked over and I saw fat, sugar, flour, dairy and it kind of hit me that it was disgusting. This, from a lady who went to a pot-luck and sampled two tables of desserts... So the reboot really has changed my taster.

After I left the memorial service, I went to my favorite produce market and first thing, I went to the juice bar and got an apple/carrot juice to hold me over til I got home. Then I shopped for my goodies. I am trying to get new things because I read that different minerals, vitamins, and amino acids are in different greens. So I am trying to do a variety of greens. Today, I got collard greens, some other green lettuce, mint, parsley... This place has the best quality stuff and the price is right... The stuff at the grocery store is so "plastic" looking, now that I am seeing stuff that is "real."

I made Mean Green juice and put a red beet in it for a change. I love that stuff!!!

Tomorrow, Sunday, morning is weigh in. I am excited to see how much I lost this week.

I took my blood pressure yesterday and it was 123/70, which is so good for me.. My next visit to the doctor will be in April and he will do blood work. I am anxious to see what my cholesterol levels are. In November, I was getting in trouble with my doctor about my cholesterol levels, and he said I needed to change something or he would have to put me on medication... It was my wake up call, so from then until Jan 30, I lost 10 lbs, eliminating dairy and trying to watch what I ate.

But then, I saw "Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead," and I knew if I wanted things to be different, I had to be different.. "Nothing changes, if nothing changes." So, on Jan 30, I started to drink veggie/fruit juices and foods, and since then I lost 7-8 lbs (or more). This juice, raw foods thing really works.

My friend ordered a Breville juicer, but is not sure when she will get it. She said it was on back-order at Williams-Sonoma. So, I may have a Reboot buddy that is in the same town as me.

More later.... Happy Juicing, everyone!!!

Day 7 of Reboot (Quick Start)

Day 7 of quick reboot for total of 12 days in Reboot...

First of all, I think it is very brave of a person to take these photos. That shows that I have a lot of hope for change.

This morning I started out with 2 pints of juice, and when I weighed myself I was 187.2 and I started at 205 last November. In the past 12 days since I started juicing and doing a reboot, I lost 7.2 lbs, so I am very happy with that. I am wearing size 16 instead of 18, and my belt is 2 notches tighter.

I went on an errand and instead of eating out, I came home and had a nice veggie salad with red beets and walnuts. I really enjoyed the salad.. Now I am drinking 1 quart of juice, one pint at a time. This juice is so good and had some bite to it... Three handfuls of spinach, 4 stalks celery, 1/2 small cabbage, 5-6 skinny carrots, a red beet, and ginger root. When I drink cabbage juice I get gassy, but that means it is probably a good thing..

Next time I need carrots I will get the bulk carrots at my favorite Green Market... They are huge and look really good. The other ones I got were bagged and very skinny...

Yesterday, I went to lunch with a friend and had some focaccia bread... It was so good, but I am glad we shared it because I would have eaten all of it... Not good on a reboot.. My friend said she was going to buy a juicer like mine. I hope she does, then, she can get healthy too.

Today, I took some photos of myself, front and side. When I look at myself in the mirror I look great, but when I look at the photo, it is how I really look... That's so weird that my mind plays tricks on me.

So tomorrow, I go to the market again, and will try to stock up on some different greens. I read that different greens have different nutrients, and to rotate them, or mix them up is very good, and to only drink one type of green is not good in the long-run... you can get an overload of one thing and not enough of another. Variety is very important, but I tend to stick with the things I like and with the familiar... I hope to keep an open mind tomorrow while I am shopping.

I was eating peanut butter on a banana or celery during my reboot, but found out I need to wait until after the reboot, when I go to mostly raw foods, and then I want to experiment with making nut butters. I saw a video online of a woman making almond butter... That looked really good and I bet it tasted good. She said you can add salt, or not, and I am sure I will NOT add any sweetener. Our tasters have been so adulterated by unnecessary additions to our food.

I just think of my grandparents who were born in the late 1890's, who ate out of their gardens or from their farms, make their own jellies and "canned" their produce for the winter. I remember their "cold cellar" and my mom's aunt/uncle who had a spring house for their water and to keep food cool, and also had a water pump. I know my grandparents did not have processed foods as they were growing up, so I try to think of how they ate (minus the meat and dairy), and if it grows in the ground or on a tree, then I know it is okay for me to eat.

Juicing packs in a lot of servings of vegetables and fruit into one item. I am so lucky to have found this way of life again. In the 1970s I ate raw foods and juiced and exercised and I was very fit and happy, of course that was 40 years ago!!! LOL But optimal health is my goal.

I need to start moving and exercising to really get the toxins out of my system. Maybe tomorrow ???? lol

Happy juicing everyone!!!

Day 3 of Reboot (Quick Start)

Day 3 of Quick Start Reboot (Day 8 of juice and food) started with pear/fennel juice. I think.. lol...

I ran some errands so I got some exercise... My errands included a trip to the produce market for more kale and other stuff, then I came home and made Mean Green juice, drank it... I had a simple meal of sliced avocado with a sliced plum tomato, sprinkled balsamic vinegar on both, also put garlic herb grinder thing on it. The dish was delicious!! The food was good too.. haha

I went to the grocery store for some peanut butter. I searched the shelves, read all the labels, comparing all the info.... It was brutal.. then I went over by the deli and the grocery store makes their own peanut butter.. ingredients? Peanuts... Period... I was happy to find that because I don't want to eat sugar or other stuff, like hydrogenated oils... I sliced a banana and put a small amount of peanut butter on it.

I need to amp up the juices, because I am not eating that much food. I don't want to hurt myself, but I do want to lose weight. If I don't get enough to eat or drink, my body will think it is "starving" and hold onto the weight.

I still love my juicer, but one thing bothers me. Why didn't they make the cutter basket out of stainless steel, rather than plastic. If any of you Breville peeps are reading my blog, please make note of that. I see that the $149 Breville has a metal basket thing. The plastic is okay right now, but I am not sure of the life-span, that it may become scratched and hold bacteria, perhaps causing some problems.. It would be so cool if this part was interchangeable with the other model, that maybe I could upgrade at some time in the future. I will check this out.. :-) If you Breville people need some help, just let me know..

I felt good today... so that is a good thing... More of the same, or better.. tomorrow..

Juice It!!!!

P.S. the photo was taken in New Hampshire two weeks ago by my cousin, Joanna. She is amazing!!

Day 2 of Reboot (Quick Start)

I did the weigh-in this morning and am down 6.4 lbs since January 30, 2012. I think this is awesome, an average of 3.2 lbs per week!!

I had a kale salad and tomato florentine soup. I will say the kale salad was not something I would go nutzo for, but I didn't hate it:

Kale Salad (enough for two):

3 cups of kale torn up and large stems removed

1/2 of an avocado squished through the kale

1 lemon juiced and poured over the kale and avocado

some red onion

some red peppers

salt/pepper

I should have added dried cranberries and or almonds or black olives, whatever.

I started with chamomile tea and lemon today, then had juice: Pineapple, pear and ginger root. It was so creamy and delicious, then lunch, then had Mean Green.

I found the exact perfect bowl to soak the Breville screen/cutter while I wash the other components, so I would say that's about 5 or 10 minutes, and I use an OXO dishwashing brush, the kind that has a place to put dishwashing liquid inside, to clean the screen/cutter... So the clean up is going really well, and faster each time...

It was a beautiful 50 degree day here in South Florida today, and I should have gone outside and enjoyed it but I was doing laundry and resting... Tomorrow is supposed to be pretty much like today, so I will have another chance!! Until then, I can play Wii games. I love tennis best...

I am loving my kitchen and realize I have all the stuff I need for the plant food way of life. Thirty years ago I was doing juice and eating mostly raw foods for probably 2 or 3 years. Anyhow I am very stoked about going back to a lifestyle I loved and I was very happy living!!

That's all for now... Hope you are all doing well and enjoying your adventures, whatever they are!!!

Day 1 of Reboot (Quick Start)

Day 1 of Quick Start Reboot: For some reason I woke up at 7am after going to sleep around 3am, so I got on my cruiser bicycle and went for a short ride, going against the wind on the way home. whew!!

I started out with Chamomile tea with lemon and later, had one quart of Mean Green juice. YUM!! Then I met a friend who is visiting the area before she goes back home. I was so hungry by 1:30pm that I decided to go out to a restaurant to eat. I headed out to Wellington to eat at California Pizza Kitchen (they have great salads), but realized I was very close to Whole Foods!! I had a wonderful self-made veggie salad with red kale, spinach, romaine, roasted red peppers, artichoke hearts (not the ones in oil), broccoli with raisins, and an asian cabbage salad with sesame seeds. I meant to add some dressing to the greens, but it was too late to go back after I had paid ($6.00!!!), so I had it with the flavors from the other salads.... It was awesome!!

Then home to rest... later in the afternoon I had 1/3 of a fresh pineapple with some strawberries. That was tasty and nice to have something sweet. Later I made a carrot, celery, apple, ginger juice. I love me some ginger!! It adds some heat to the juice.

Anyhow, the world of veggies and fruit is opening up to me after a 30 year absence from that lifestyle. I am starting to feel 30 years younger, and the mind-set of those days is coming back, the good part, that is.... haha...

I will be juicing and eating veggies and fruits for 9 more days, for a total of 15 days. I want to do a juice only fast for about 10 days, see how that goes, then possibly for 30 days. I will see how I feel and where my head is at by then... I also have to see my doctor to get his OK before doing a juice fast, so I don't get into trouble.. lol.. .

I am excited to think that I could be 50-60 pounds lighter.. a day at a time.. For today, I am very happy with the progress and am feeling great and very upbeat....

Day 5 of Reboot (Express)

Day 5 started out with chamomile tea with lemon in it. Yum... Then I made Green Drink with a red beet, 32 oz and drank it.

I went to my favorite BEST produce market, 1 mile from my home! I bought a lot of great food. A pineapple, avocados, granny smith apples, strawberries, bosc pears, swiss chard, spinach, cucumbers, lemons, plum tomatoes, kale, 2 stalks of celery, I think other stuff, but can't remember. Anyhow, the total bill was $32!! I got great prices on these primo items.

Late afternoon I made Tomato Florentine, using all fresh ingredients, except for the vegetable broth and almond milk. I have a feeling that I will be making vegetable broth from the juice pulp... I cut up onion, garlic, celery, put in sauce pan with small amount of olive oil, chopped tomatoes, cleaned and chopped spinach and set aside. Anyhow, to make this very simple, I don't want to give a recipe... After the stuff was cooked I used my stick blender for a smooth soup, added the spinach and almond milk, some balsamic vinegar, and small amount of hot sauce, etc. It was a little too hot, so I will go easy on the hot sauce next time. It was nice to have a warm something in my stomach, and that's what is so comforting about the chamomile tea.

I put on shorts today (79F here in FL today) and used my same ol', same ol' belt. I was in hole #2, and today I was in hole #4. I think I lost about 6 lbs since Jan 30, but I will make an official announcement LOL when I weigh in on Sunday.

I am so excited about going to my doctor in April. I can't wait to get the blood work results to see how I have improved. I don't want high blood pressure, I don't want high cholesterol, I don't want to be obese, I don't want an out of sight BMI, I don't want to take medication... Gaining my health through diet (and exercise) will have a benefit of losing weight....

Juice On!!!

Day 4 of Reboot (Express)

Day 4 was uneventful, but awesome! I started with Star Anise herbal tea with lemon. Very nice.... Then I juiced endive, celery, fennel stems, carrots, apple, lemon, and ginger root. What a great combination, but I think it was too sweet because the carrots are high in sugars. I only drank one quart of juice today, and the elimination stopped!! So my experiment shows I need to drink at least two quarts of juice each day.

I went to dinner with friends tonight and had a small dinner house salad with a teaspoon of balsamic vinegar on it. Also had a cup of tomato florentine soup... was probably Campbell's tomato soup with some spinach chopped into it. Very BLAH and very BAD... I should have stopped after the first spoonful. Now, I want to find a Reboot type tomato florentine soup recipe for after the reboot.

SO, I am doing a 5 day Reboot (Express), immediately followed by a 10 day Reboot (Quick Start)... Hopefully, after that I can start a juice only Reboot.

The point of all this is to get the toxins out of my body, to be able to stop taking medications, to lose weight. I have to start exercising, too. That is really holding me back. The 5 day Reboot I am currently doing is a warm-up for better things to come, sort of like I am getting my feet wet...

I love my juicer, love the juices coming out of it. The greens aren't bitter and nasty, as I remember drinking years ago, but very palatable and tasty because if the apple and lemon added to it. I also found the benefits of lemon by doing a search on Google. So I am trying to use more lemon in the juices and also in the tea I drink first thing in the morning, and last thing at night.

Happy, happy, off to a good start, but I have a long way to go... One Day at a Time comes to mind.

Happy Juicing, everyone!!!

Day 3 of Reboot (Express)

Today I started out with Fennel and Pear juice. I was amazed at how much juice came out of the fennel!! It was delicious. I was light on the Fennel because I didn't know what to expect. Next time I will use more. I kind of hung around the house, due to the purging nature of the juice. I was in the bathroom a lot. This is so good, because what I saw looking back at me was SLUDGE!! All those toxins in my body are being released, not just from my bowels, but from my liver, and wherever else... I felt a little sluggish and slow today. Kind of sleepy feeling.

This morning the scale said I lost 5 lbs since Jan 30, 2012. This is a good pace for me. I don't want to go too fast, so I am juicing AND eating veggies and fruit. I am on a 5 day Reboot, www.jointhereboot.com so I want to go slow so I am not detoxifying too quickly.

Today I drank 2 quarts of juice. Two pints of the Fennel and Pear juice and two pints of Green Mean. I only had to clean the juicer two times this way!!! Then I had dinner of Roasted Fennel, Carrots, and Red Beets with some herbs. That was a perfect dinner for me and I saved half to put on greens tomorrow for dinner. This is the first day since Jan 30 that I drank 2 quarts of juice. It is recommended that I drink juice 4 to 6 times a day, 16oz to 20oz each time. I would like to continue this for the next 2 days, and maybe more and more days than that.

I really need a 10 day juice fast. That is what I am working toward.. Then I want to do a 30 day juice fast. I know I will feel so much better.

I have a fabulous juicer, it is so easy to clean and really gets the juice out of the produce. I am retired, so I have all day to do this.

I have to start incorporating some bicycle rides and walking in my day, and play some Wii Fit Plus games. I know exercise helps push the toxins out of my body.

That's all for today.. Happy Juicing Everybody!!!

Day 2 of Reboot (Express)

I started out today with herb tea, then baked apples with dried cranberries (this was so good), then impatiently waited for my juicer to arrive. I had a banana and some strawberries while I waited. and waited. and waited. LOL but finally, after having my nose pressed against the window glass, the mail lady came and I met her and a couple of the others who were waiting for their mail. My juicer had arrived!! I brought it into the house and started unpacking... actually, the packaging reminded me of how Apple packages their stuff... I washed everything and started juicing! I have been watching videos on YouTube on the specific juicer I purchased, the Breville Ikon Multi-Speed juicer, model BJE510XL.. This juicer has a 900watt motor and it zips right through kale, ginger, and really hard stuff. It has variable speeds from 1 to 5, 5 being the hardest. I can't even tell you how delicious the Mean Green juice was today. OH YES I CAN.. The Mean Green juice today was so delicious!!!

Later I made a Mean Red juice. LOL.. strawberries, apple, red beet, endive, and I got the celery out but forgot to add it. The main thing, I am told, is to balance the juices as 80% vegetable and 20% fruit. I am not feeling the effects of the juice today, but I probably will tomorrow..

My sleep patterns are starting to change and instead of getting to sleep at 3am and getting up at 11am, I am getting to sleep a little earlier and this morning woke up at 8:30am, refreshed and energized, so I guess I am feeling the effects of the juice in a subtle way.

Each day, I will get with the program more and more. I just got stalled out, waiting for my juicer to arrive, and now that it's here, I have to stock up on some goodies...

This is very exciting!! Plus I am losing some weight. I weigh in every Sunday morning, and last Sunday I had lost 3.8 lbs from the week before.

I know I can be a normal sized person and not overweight and obese. I know I will feel better and be able to move around again. I am hopeful and know if I do the work, I will get the results... If I don't, I won't..

More tomorrow!!!

Day 1 of Reboot (Express)

I watched a documentary, "Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead" on Netflix last week. I saw two men who were overweight and unhealthy, Joe and Phil, turn their lives around by doing 60-day juices fasts. I am starting out with sensible eating fruits and vegetables and juicing. The Mean Green juice that was the base of Joe and Phil's juice fast. It is 6 leaves of Kale, 4 stalks of Celery, 1 Cucumber, 2 Green Apples (I use Granny Smith because I LOVE them), 1 Lemon, and a thumb-sized piece of fresh ginger. The apple and lemon take the edge off the bitterness of the kale. It is very tasty and very healthy.

I am 63 years old with high cholesterol, high blood pressure, GERD, and depression. I have been going to the doctor for 3 month checkups for several years. The last time he did bloodwork, he warned me about the high cholesterol, and that he would put me on cholesterol meds at my next visit in 6 months. I think he gave me an extra 3 months to DO something about myself. He said, "Barbara, it's diet and exercise," and I heard him loud and clear.

I had a juicer (Acme Supreme Juicerator) sitting on my shelf for YEARS, I mean 20-30 years. It was time to take it down off the shelf and clean it. I started juicing, but after a day or two realized I needed to get a new cutting blade. I found one on Amazon.com. I started using the new blade and it zipped right through the produce!! But then it started vibrating and jumping around as though the basket was full, but it was only after juicing one apple. I think I need a new "clutch nut" but in the meantime started looking at the Breville Ikon Multi-speed juicer which is 900w, rather than the Acme 550w. Like Tim the Toolman Taylor, I said I need some POWER... So my juicer was ordered and this morning I found it was out for delivery today!! So I can get really serious about juicing and doing the reboot.

The new Breville I ordered is like this: You put the produce in the chute, the pulp goes out one side and the juice comes out the other, into a pitcher which is provided. This way you don't have to keep stopping to clean the pulp basket like you do with the Acme. You put a plastic bag in the pulp basket, so when you are done juicing, you just lift out the bag and toss it, or if you have a compost pile, you can put it there. Some people add onion and garlic, herbs, water, to the pulp and simmer for 15 mins, then drain the stuff off, making a nice vegetable broth that can be sipped. I like this idea because I hate the idea of throwing out the pulp... It's my PA Dutch "Waste Not, Want Not" sensibility.

So I will attempt to do a documentation of my progress, ups and downs, successes, etc. of my journey to a healthier, happier, more active person.

Let's just see how this all plays out!!??