Veggie Profile to the Week: Garlic

Unlocking the Benefits of Garlic

What makes garlic good for you? 

Garlic has long been touted as a health booster, but it’s never been clear why the herb might be good for you. Now new research is beginning to unlock the secrets of the odoriferous bulb.

In a study published today in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, researchers show that eating garlic appears to boost our natural supply of hydrogen sulfide. Hydrogen sulfide is actually poisonous at high concentrations — it’s the same noxious byproduct of oil refining that smells like rotten eggs. But the body makes its own supply of the stuff, which acts as an antioxidant and transmits cellular signals that relax blood vessels and increase blood flow.

In the latest study, performed at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, researchers extracted juice from supermarket garlic and added small amounts to human red blood cells. The cells immediately began emitting hydrogen sulfide, the scientists found.

The power to boost hydrogen sulfide production may help explain why a garlic-rich diet appears to protect against various cancers, including breast, prostate and colon cancer, say the study authors. Higher hydrogen sulfide might also protect the heart, according to other experts. Although garlic has not consistently been shown to lower cholesterol levels, researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine earlier this year found that injecting hydrogen sulfide into mice almost completely prevented the damage to heart muscle caused by a heart attack.

“People have known garlic was important and has health benefits for centuries,” said Dr. David W. Kraus, associate professor of environmental science and biology at the University of Alabama. “Even the Greeks would feed garlic to their athletes before they competed in the Olympic games.”

Now, the downside. The concentration of garlic extract used in the latest study was equivalent to an adult eating about two medium-sized cloves per day. In such countries as Italy, Korea and China, where a garlic-rich diet seems to be protective against disease, per capita consumption is as high as eight to 12 cloves per day.

While that may sound like a lot of garlic, Dr. Kraus noted that increasing your consumption to five or more cloves a day isn’t hard if you use it every time you cook. Dr. Kraus also makes a habit of snacking on garlicky dishes like hummus with vegetables.

Many home chefs mistakenly cook garlic immediately after crushing or chopping it, added Dr. Kraus. To maximize the health benefits, you should crush the garlic at room temperature and allow it to sit for about 15 minutes. That triggers an enzyme reaction that boosts the healthy compounds in garlic.

Garlic can cause indigestion, but for many, the bigger concern is that it can make your breath and sweat smell like…garlic. While individual reactions to garlic vary, eating fennel seeds like those served at Indian restaurants helps to neutralize the smell. Garlic-powder pills claim to solve the problem, but the data on these supplements has been mixed. It’s still not clear if the beneficial compounds found in garlic remain potent once it’s been processed into a pill. 

Final weigh-in from original 40 days

Yesterday morning I did my final weigh-in for my 40 day experiment, but didn’t have time to write about it.  So this is a late update.  Although I had some rough patches and didn’t do everything that I wanted to do (regular and consistent enemas, regular and consistent exercise, dry brushing, consuming more veggies than fruits), I am proud of myself for making a conscience effort to improve my health.  One thing that has become clear is that I must work less on my weight and work more on the issues that contribute to my unhealthy eating, and to develop proper coping techniques for those troubling issues that contribute to using food in an unhealthy manner.  I could blame the food industry for the rampant availability of unhealthy food products, I can blame my parents for failing to instill in me healthy eating habits as a youth, but at the end of the day, I’m responsible for me and my health and we all have power over what we place into our mouths. 

My Day 41 weight was 298.6 which is actually higher than my last weigh-in, and brings my total weight loss over those past 40 days to 24.8 lbs.  I attribute the weight gain at the end to the massive quantity of salt (and corresponding lack of water) that I consumed over the past week. Ummm.  Lays.  Looking at my transition eating habits, I consumed only a fraction of what I have eaten when not doing the program, and I feel confident that what appeared to be a weight gain was in fact water retention and perhaps even a small amount of bloating due to menstruation.  As I look forward to my new regime that I plan to start April 4^th, and that is outlined in Day 40, I plan to focus more on how I will reprogram my thinking and behavior so that I don’t rely on old habits, using food as a crutch.

My goal is to lose 12 pounds in the next 30 days.  Losing 2 pounds a week is normal for weight loss, and since the average person isn’t attempting to lose as much weight as I am, I think 12 pounds in thirty days is a reasonable goal and not too drastic.  Saturday begins Day one.  I will have a weigh-in on day 16 (the half way point) and day 31 as a final report, but no weigh-ins in between.  This way, I can spend more of my effort focusing on healthy eating and changing behavioral patterns, and not on what the number on the scale reads.  More later…

Day 40

It’s been an interesting forty days to say the least.  Last week, I started transitioning to regular food.  Every text that I read indicated the importance of transitioning slowly for a few days after a fast.  And although I did transition slowly, I definitely didn’t transition with the proper type of food, so I’m not quite patting myself on the back.  Transitioning started Tuesday of last week.  The plan was to continue juicing while eating a small portion of fruits and veggies.  Well, instead of eating a small portion of fruits and veggies, I allowed myself a 280-calorie bag of Lays potato chips.  I would feel ashamed, but unfortunately, for me, I seldom feel guilt.  The first bag I ate last Tuesday actually made me feel great!  I think it’s because my diet has generally been lacking in fat, oil, and sodium- substances that our bodies do need in limited amounts.  Not to say that Lays potato chips are ideal sources of fat, oil, and sodium (as they most definitely are not), but I do believe that a diet devoid of these issues is problematic.  I chewed the chips very well because after the pizza incident, I didn’t want to be sick.  I didn’t become sick so I had one bag of 280-calorie Lays chips on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday too.  On Saturday morning, I ate a fast food hamburger and I just looked up the nutritional content on the website- 1063ca.  Wow!  That’s all I ate on Saturday.  On Sunday morning after midnight I ate a burrito, had a cup of orange juice later in the day, and had a salad and a soy Sharma wrap from a vegan restaurant (probably way too many calories on Sunday).   On Monday I ate a burrito and the infamous 280-calorie bag of chips.  Tuesday, I ate a burrito and a few tortilla chips.  And today is Wednesday.  I wonder if you can guess what my favorite food is…yup burritos!

The interesting thing about eating after the fast is that I don’t feel hardly as hungry as I once did.  Eating once a day for me is more than sufficient and I don’t feel hunger.  Thus, I have decided that since I’ve had such fabulous results, for the month of April, I am going to continue with my fast, but with several modifications: 

Firstly, I am going to gravitate from fruit juices to vegetable juice.  I have had sinus and mucous problems for many years, which I believe may be a result of too much sugar. Additionally, vegetable juice is ideal over fruit juice any day of the week.  Thus, I’ve started reading another text: Juicing, Fasting, and Detoxing for Life.  I’m using this great text for all of my April recipes.  

 Next, I’ve decided that I will consume two raw garlic cloves finely minced daily.  Garlic will be featured in my next veggie profile of the week.  It’s just great for a multitude of reasons.

Third, I will allow myself to consume five small nutritious meals and one not so nutritious meal weekly.  One of the grips that I have about juicing is that there is so much left over pulp from juicing.  I plan to use this pulp in  soups and have a salad for my nutritious meals.  This way, I'll have fiber in my system and I don’t have to be burdened with doing the enemas that I told myself I would do regularly, but never really did.

Exercise.  Although I have been walking more, I don’t have a solid routine.  So within the next 72 hours I’m going to purchase a pedometer and set a goal of walking a minimum of 6,000 steps daily (recommended for optimal health) and 10,000 steps (recommended for weight reduction) at least three times weekly.  

Education.  I will continue to read books to educate myself about proper nutrition.  I've recently started reading a text called The China Study: Startling Implications for Diet, Weight-loss and Long-Term Health.   THIS BOOK IS AMAZING.  I didn't actually buy it, I checked it out from my local library.  Highly recommend you read it.  At the very least, read the reviews about this text from amazon.com.

Tomorrow I will do an official weigh-in so that I can say that after 40 days, I have lost x amount of weight.  Stay tuned…

April Recipes

The following is quoted nearly word from word from the following text: 

Juicing, Fasting, and Detoxing for Life

Morning Energy: 4 carrots scrubbed / 1 cucumber, peeled /1 whole beet (with greens) / ½ lemon peeled / 1 inch chunk ginger

Liver-Cleansing Cocktail: 1 handful dandelion greens / 4 carrots, scrubbed / ½ cucumber / ½ lemon, peeled

Spring Cleansing Cocktail: 1 vine-ripened tomato / 1 cucumber, peeled / 8 asparagus stalks / ½ lemon, peeled

Beautiful-Skin Cocktail: 1 parsnip, peeled / 3 carrots, scrubbed / 1 cucumber, peeled / ½ lemon / ¼ green bell pepper

Note: Cucumber and bell pepper are good sources of the trace mineral silicon, which is recommended to strengthen skin, hair, and fingernails along with bones.  In studies, silicon has been shown to reduce signs of aging such as improving thickness of skin and reducing wrinkles.

Calcium-Rich Cocktail: 1 cucumber, peeled / 1 to 2 medium to large kale leaves / 1 handful parsley / 1 celery stalk / ½ lemon peeled / 1-inch chunk ginger root

Weight-loss helper: 1 small Jerusalem artichoke /4 carrots / 1 whole beet with leaves

Good Sleep Nightcap: 2 romaine lettuce leaves / 1 small handful parsley / ½ cucumber, peeled / 3 carrots / 1 stalk celery

Mood Mender: 3 fennel stalks including leaves and flowers / 3 carrots /2 stalks celery / ½ pear / ½ chunk ginger root

Healthy Sinus Solution: 2 vine ripened tomatoes / ½ cucumber / 6 radishes /½ lime, peeled

Note: Radish juice is a traditional remedy for opening up the sinuses and supporting the mucus membranes

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The Dirty Dozen (Highest Pesticide Load)

You can cut your pesticide exposure by almost 90% by avoiding the top-twelve conventionally grown vegetables and fruit that are the most conventionally grown vegetables and fruit that are the most contaminated; purchase only organic for these twelve.

1. Peaches (100) 2. Apples (96) 3. Celery (94)  4. Sweet bell peppers (86) 5. Nectarines (84) 6. Strawberries (83)  7-13: Potatoes, Cherries, Lettuce, Grapes (imported), Pears, Spinach, Carrots 

Day 38: Transitioning

So I’ve spent the last week transitioning back to normal food.  I promise to make a more detailed account about this on Tuesday, as well as a final post on day 40 as well as an announcement about my future plans… Just been SUPER busy.  More very soon…

Day 32 Weigh-in: 295.8

I decided not to weigh-in yesterday because I drank a cup of chicken broth before bed and I didn’t want water retention to skew my results. So this morning’s weigh-in brings my weigh loss total to 27.6 pounds in thirty one days. More later…

Day 29

Unfortunately, I didn’t end up getting parsley yesterday morning and making my own juice. I had to travel for work, so I went to the supermarket to buy juice. In the section where they have the higher end refrigerated juices, I purchased several juices to last for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Also in that section, there was a mocha cappuccino drink, and since I was so tired that morning, I thought- wow, that drink will probably keep me awake, so I bought it as well.

Well, for some reason, I just didn’t put two and two together and failed to realize that this cappuccino drink was composed primarily of milk. Big DUH. I am lactose intolerant. I love ice cream and it usually gives me gas, but I’ll have some maybe once or twice monthly. I also enjoy the occasional bowl of cereal (maybe one or two boxes yearly). But generally speaking, I stay away from milk.

The bottle of this cappuccino drink was very large (like 42 ounces). I drank a little over 20 ounces over the course of about 2 hours before I started feeling poorly- stomach cramps and diarrhea for the remainder of the day (and night). Needless to say- I wasn’t too pleased.

I made it to the farmer’s market a little before 7am this morning. Replenished the parsley, though I was annoyed that I wasn’t able to find ANY spinach. Odd. So today I’ve juiced parsley, carrots, and Jerusalem artichokes as one meal. I also juiced apples, beets and carrots. I am relieved to once again juice fresh produce. Too much juice on the market is prepared from concentrate, and a huge difference in tests exists, for sure. More later…

Day 28: Unofficial Weigh-in 298.4

So I couldn’t resist and did an unofficial weigh-in this morning. The additional pounds lost since last Friday bring my total to 25lbs in 28 days. I’m up early today because I need to stop by the grocery store for parsley before going out of town for work. I’m really wishing I had purchased the parsley coming home from work yesterday…

Days 24 - 27

All is semi-well on the juicing front. Well as in no more pizzacapades; however, I still haven’t juiced nearly as much as I should have, and I’ve been drinking WAY too much Arizona Ice Tea and store bought juice. I’ve had some sinus related migraine issues (and related irritation) and haven’t been consuming nearly as much juice as I should have. On Monday I had orange juice for breakfast and for lunch- Liver Mover using three beets and 6 apples. I can’t remember if I juiced anything for dinner. I probably didn’t as I was waylaid with migraine issues on both Monday and Tuesday.

Tuesday, I juiced apples and kiwis for breakfast (yes, I know it’s not good to juice citrus and non citrus) and I juiced parsley and carrots for lunch, but I didn’t get around to drinking it until Wednesday morning. The juice tasted terrible! I’d had this particular juice before and it was great. I think the parsley wasn’t good. It had been sitting in the fridge for a while, but it was still green, so I thought it would be okay. Apparently not. So I was stuck with no juice at work on Wednesday, ending up consuming four cans of Arizona Ice Tea. Yes, I know, horrible, terrible, lame. But it’s better then eating pizza.

This morning, I’m having store bought orange juice and 2 cans of Arizona Ice Tea. Still pretty horrible, but I’m going to get with the program soon. I’ve just been super busy with work, and I look forward to replenishing this weekend. More later…

Blood Pressure Reading

I forgot to mention that I had a blood pressure reading on Friday: 114/79 compared to two weeks ago when it was 125/90.  I think I'll monitor it more often than two week increments so that my pressure doesn't get so low that I just pass out some where.  I'll do my next pressure reading a week from Monday- on March 23, so that way, i can do a combined weigh-in slash pressure reading on Day 31.

Day 23: Cheaters Never Win

So I cheated!  Big time.  But I’ve SO learned my lesson.  Day 21 started really well, then by noonish, my energy evaporated big time.  Then, later in the day, I had a weird cramp in my stomach, and I was craving salt, big time.  So that evening, I went to a restaurant, ordered some chicken soup, but only sipped the chicken broth.  I ordered this soup at an El Salvadorian restaurant, so they left chips, salsa, and tortillas on the table.  I drank the salsa juice as well.  So that went fine- chicken broth and salsa juice- I didn’t consider that cheating.  I drink chicken broth several times a week whenever I’m craving salt, and salsa is basically a bunch of tomatoes and other veggies- and I’m almost positive that it’s made fresh at that particular restaurant.

So when I left the restaurant, I was SO craving food.  Even though I was not physically hungry, I couldn’t get my mind off of my favorite food- pizza.  The chicken broth and salsa made me feel great, and I didn’t experience any cramps at all afterwards, so I thought- pizza would probably make me feel even better (even though I felt fine).  It’s funny, because we all have our demons.  With some people it’s liquor.  Others- cigarettes.  Still others- it’s shopping, drugs etc.  Carbs are my Achilles hill, my tragic flaw.  My name is ________________ and I’m a carboholic.

So I folded.  My mental hunger won and I went to my favorite pizza place for pizza.  I ordered a cheese pizza with olives and sausage.  This particular pizza joint prepares everything fresh and makes a killer pie.  And when I bit into a piping hot slice, it tasted like rubber.  It was so awful.  I couldn’t believe how different it tasted.  So then, because I knew it shouldn’t have tasted that way (and because I’m an addict), I figured if I ate even more, then it would eventually taste the way it should.  So I had I think about 4 or 5 slices (about half of a medium pizza).  Now normally, I could have easily eaten the entire pie with some chips and cookies too, but I just couldn’t get any more down.  Then I went to sleep.  Around 9pm ish.

Well, about 2am on Day 22, I awoke to the most horrible stomach cramps and pain.  It was really bad.  I had horrible gas, diarrhea.  It was really, really bad.  I had stomach cramps and felt lousy for all of Day 22.  I didn’t consume anything by mouth until about 4pm on Day 22- I had to drink some water and later that evening, I had orange juice. 

Needless to say- lesson learned.  Big time!  I will not cheat anymore.  It’s so not worth it.  And actually, I’m glad it did happen- because now, when I’m craving pizza, I can remember Days 21 & 22 and know that it’s not worth it.  Although now, I can’t stop thinking about Subway sandwiches.  Lol. 

So today, day 23, I’m having orange juice.  I just juiced the last of my 25lb bag that I bought a few days ago.  More later…

Day 21

So I’ve officially passed the half way point in my regiment and have been juice feasting for 20 complete days.  I started my juice feast weighing 323.4 lbs.  As of this morning, I weigh 302.0 Ibs, and have lost 21.4 pounds.  Of course this is fantastic, but it’s also been a little frustrating.  I’ve actually weighed 302 Ibs for the last seven days.  One would think that in the course of 7 days, that someone of my size who is consuming considerably fewer calories than normal would by default lose at least a pound or two over the course of seven days, which is actually a healthy weight loss.

I remember doing Atkins, and I think I’ve noticed a pattern.  Whenever I make any drastic dietary change, I lose a lot of weight in the beginning, and then around the three week mark, my weight loss completely stops for a week or two.  That’s usually the time when I’ve traditionally given up.  Well, this time, I won’t give up.  I have nineteen days left after today, and I will persevere!  In an effort to not become discouraged, I have decided that I won’t do any weigh-ins (even unofficial weigh-ins) until day 31 and day 41.  I have ten days until my next weigh-in and I hope to lose at least 3 Ibs- which I believe is definitely a reasonable expectation.  One pound at a time.

 My energy levels are fantastic.  I have a feeling that if I consume more veggies that I would feel even better.  I have experienced some sinus agitation and some related migraine issues, but it hasn’t been as bad as it usually is.  I’m actually quite excited to be beginning my exercise regiment, but I want to have my protein powder on hand before I start, and I also hope to have a more solid calcium routine down.

 I’m sure many of you are wondering what kind of supplements I’ve consuming.  The only supplement I take with any normalcy is Vitamin C in the powder form, and I have even been slacking on that.  I take no over the counter medication.

This morning I juiced apples and cucumber.  Yum.  My only criticism of this specific drink is that the apples make it very gritty, and I don’t particularly care for grit and foam.  More later…

Days 17, 18 & 19

I’m still juicing, on track, and haven’t cheated once! I’ve been really busy with work, lazy, tired, and I have somewhat of a cold coming on- all excuses as to why I haven’t been juicing more veggies than fruits. Fortunately, I’m one of those people who can pretty much drink the same thing daily, if I like it, so I’ve been drinking apple and orange juice exclusively for the last three days- which I know is bad because I need the nutrients from all of the other types of juices plus there is a ton of sugar in apple and orange juice. I am making a commitment to myself starting Monday (which will be Day 24) to juice more veggies than fruits. Also, that’s also the week that I want to incorporate exercise as well as a protein powder.

My energy levels have been good. I feel tired today because I was out of town for work yesterday and had a long day. But I have had the energy to do what I normally do, for sure. Most of you probably think that someone my size leads a sedentary lifestyle. Well, that’s not entirely accurate. On the days when I take public transit to work, I walk about ½ mile each way to my office. I often take public transit, however, since I’ve started juicing, because it takes so long to clean my produce, clean my juicer, etc., I’ve been driving into work and have effectively eliminated what little exercise I did engage in. Although it’s better to consume fresh juice, I might have to consider juicing all of my produce at night.

I have also been slacking on the enemas and the dry brushing. Starting on day twenty, I plan to do an enema daily. I’m just going to do it. I read that enema’s are super important while fasting because the body has the potential of reabsorbing the toxins.

Tomorrow will be the big ½ point weigh-in. I’m excited. I mean I weighed on Monday, so I know what the number will probably be, but it’s still exciting to have made it this far.

Days 15 & 16

I bought a little over eight pounds of organic Fuji Apples from the farmer’s market on Saturday, and had tasty apple juice most of Day 15.  I love buying farm produce that isn’t waxed- although at $1/lb, the apples were a little pricier than their non organic & waxed counterparts.  For lunch, I combined apple and cucumber juice.  Yum!  I don’t think cucumbers are in season as I spent $1 for one English cucumber (the ones that are about 12 inches) and a normal sized cucumber was about $.70 in the supermarket.  I look forward to juicing many cucumbers once they are in season.  I read that cucumbers are really good for having great looking skin.  Ideally, I hope to start drinking cucumber and garlic juice before bed- the cucumber so that I can nourish my skin, and the garlic so that I can nourish my immune system. 

Day 16 (today) I’m enjoying an old favorite- oranges and grapefruit.  Since I consume a substantial amount of orange juice in one form or another, I decided to buy two large bags.  In one of the bags, most of the oranges aren’t the best quality.  I’m going to stick with buying oranges that I can examine, for sure.  I’m definitely not drinking as much water and even juice as I should.  Shame on me.  I really need to work on that.  It’s just that since I feel no physical hunger, it’s hard to consume anything.  Starting a week from today, I plan to incorporate a one-mile walk performed three times a week into my regiment.  I already own the Leslie Sansone: Walk at Home Dvd that I’ve had for a while, and that I actually enjoy using when I get off my buttocks and actually do it.  The plan is:  one mile performed three times per week for two weeks; then move to one mile performed four times per week for two weeks, and then slowly progress until I can eventually walk 3 miles four times a week.  Walking is probably one of the few forms of exercise that I actually enjoy.  Once I begin to walk for fitness, I plan to incorporate a protein powder of some sort into my regiment. 

Veggie Profile of the Week: Dandelions

The photo above is of dandelions I found online. The following text is  only a small excerpt copied directly from the Complete Book of Juicing:

Dandelions

Key Benefits:  Dandelions are a rich source of nutrients and other compounds that may improve liver functions, promote weight loss, and possess diuretic effects.  The dandelion contains greater nutritional value than many other vegetables.  It is particularly high in vitamins and minerals, protein, choline, inulin, and pectins.  Its carotenoid content is extremely high as reflected by its higher vitamin A content than carrots…Dandelions should be thought of as an extremely nutritious food and rich source of medicinal compounds that have a toning effct on the body.  Both the greens and the roots can be used for this purpose.

Dandelion root is regarded as one of the finest liver remedies, both as food and medicine.  Studies in humans and laboratory animals have shown that dandelion root enhances the flow of bile, improving such conditions as liver congestion, bile duct inflammation, hepatitis, gallstones, and jaundice.

Days 12, 13 & 14

So after having two consecutive days of disastrous juicing, I decided to return to the basics.  The night of Day 11 and all of Day 12, I drank pineapple and orange juice.  Yesterday (Day 13) and today (Day 14), I had/have no time to juice and purchased store bought juice.  Wow.  I’m amazed that my palette has changed so quickly.  I mean, what are they putting in this store bought juice?  And juice from concentrate?  What a joke.  It all tastes like a bunch of sugar, and I definitely don’t feel energized after drinking store bought juice (apple and orange).  In fact, during these past two days while drinking store bought juice, I’ve felt sluggish and irritable.  I can’t wait to purchase more produce at the Farmer’s market tomorrow morning. 

I forgot to mention that last Friday I had my blood pressure measured.  It was 125/90.  I’m going to have my blood pressure measured again on 3/13.  The weight has continued to decrease but now, my weight loss is normalizing and it’s not as dramatic as the first few days- which is totally to be expected.  I plan to do an official weigh-in on day 21 so that I can say I’ve lost x amount of weight after 20 full days on the plan.

To date, I haven’t had any issues with physical hunger.  It’s the mental hunger that always seems to get me.  I think about eating pizza.  I love pizza.  Although my energy levels have been down for the last two days, I’m definitely not too far from operating from full capacity.  I do work full time and my days are filled with meetings and a myriad of interactions- none of which have been affected by my regiment.  In a weird way, I feel lucky to be undergoing this experiment.  I could have spent this time doing horrible things to my body by continuing with my fatal eating habits, but I’m not, and I feel proud that I’m taking the steps to treat my body more kindly.

Day 11

This morning’s juice was a disaster. I decided to free style my own recipe instead of selecting one from a book. The Energizer calls for parsley and carrots- which is quite tasty, so I decided to do a similar recipe substituting the parsley with dandelion greens, and added a clove of garlic. HUGE mistake! To sweeten up the drink, I used approximately a cup of green grapes and an entire basket of strawberries. Unfortunately, the concoction still tasted terrible, which sucks, because one basket of strawberries was $3.50. Instead of tossing the juice like I did yesterday, I opted to dilute the juice in my water bottle. So in essence, I’ve diluted several ounces of juice into 24 ounces of water. I wonder if some of the nutrients are lost when consuming juice in this manner. Technically speaking, I’m still consuming the juice, but just not all in a concentrated portion.

Dandelion greens are really important for a variety of reasons. In fact, it will be my next veggie profile of the week, so look out for it. Prior to making my dandelion greens concoction, I had juiced all four baskets of blue berries that I had purchased last night, and it yielded approximately a $10 one cup of juice that I had consumed straight up prior to making the dandelion concoction. Of course the juice was very tart, but blueberries are loaded with things that are good for the body, so I didn’t much mind.

It feels great to say that having made it past day ten, I am 1/4th of the way closer to my goal. But of course, it’s not really about this 40 days, it’s about what happens after the 40 days passes. It’s about the lifestyle changes and commitments to improved health and healthy eating.

Day 10

This will be a very short post because I had a long day. 

I stayed true to my regiment today, but didn't consume nearly as much juice as I should have.  I consumed less then 10 ounces today because when I made my Immune Power Veggie drink, I decided to triple the garlic and the juice tasted absolutely disgusting!  I literally spent most of the day trying to get down a couple of ounces and ended up tossing about 1/3 of the juice.  But, I stayed true to my regiment and on the way home- even though I was stressed today and thought often about pizza (even though I wasn't physically hungry), I bought 4 baskets of blueberries and will have a very delicious breakfast and a day fulled with enough juice.

More tomorrow...

Day 9 Weigh-in: 306.6

Last night I juiced a bag of grapes.  Grape juice is super sweet and definitely needs diluting; I suggest 2 parts water to 1 part grape juice- which still produces a sweet drink.

Pineapples were on sale, so I bought several.  I juiced the skins with a small amount of pineapple flesh.  The juice tasted fine, but it yielded a lot of foam- and I dislike foam, so I definitely didn’t have the most enjoyable breakfast and wasn’t really satisfied because I ended up tossing much of the juice.  

For lunch I juiced two servings of The Energizer (2 bunches of parsley and 12 carrots) and it tasted great.  My energy hadn’t been too great today, and I definitely felt increased energy levels after consuming this meal.  Now that my palette is acclimating to the taste of veggie juice, I plan to slowly use more green juice in my veggie drinks.

During lunch, I also juiced dinner.  I juiced a variation of Iron Plus.  I’ve had some issues juicing beets so I decided to cut off the tops and juice them in one group and peel off the top layers on the beet root and juice them in the second batch.  I did this for three beets.  I also juiced approximately 1.5 cups of broccoli, 5 or 6 kale leafs, 8 carrots, and 2 apples.  I haven’t tasted it yet, but it’s waiting for me in the fridge as we speak.

Day 8

This morning I was up early and collected produce from the farmer’s market and various other stores. Organic blueberries were on sale so I purchased and juiced one entire basked with 3 apples, and it was probably the most delicious thing I’ve juiced to date! The great thing about a juice fast is that with so many juicing options, one can never become bored.  

Because the apples and blueberries didn’t make a high yield of juice, I also juiced ½ grapefruit and two oranges for breakfast. My stomach made weird gurgling noises after I drank the citrus. Maybe the fruits were to acidic for my stomach...

For lunch and snacks I’m having Cruciferous Surprise (4 kale leaves; 1/2 cup broccoli; 1/2 head cabbage; 2 small apples; 2 carrots). I haven’t decided what’s for dinner yet…

Veggie Profile of the Week: Jerusalem Artichokes

The photos above are of Jerusalem Artichokes I found online. The following text is copied directly from the Complete Book of Juicing:

Jerusalem Artichoke

The Jerusalem artichoke, often referred to as a “sunchoke” is native to North America. It is not part of the artichoke family; in fact, it belongs to the daisy family and is closely related to the sunflower. The name Jerusalem is thought to be an English corruption of Ter Neusen, the place in The Netherlands from which the plant was introduced into England. Alternatively, Webster says Jerusalem is a corruption of girasole, the Italian word for sunflower. The plants were cultivated by the Native Americans.

Key Benefits

Jerusalem artichokes are full of a sugar known as inulin. Inulin is a polysaccharide, or starch, that is handled by the body differently than other sugars. In fact, inulin is not used by the body for energy metabolism. This makes Jerusalem artichokes extremely beneficial to diabetics….(the paragraph continues on to explain how)

Inulin also has the ability to enhance a component of our immune system know as complement. Specifically, inulin is an activator of the alternative complement pathway, which is responsible for increasing host defense mechanisms such as neutralization of viruses; destruction of bacteria, and increasing the movement of white blood cells to areas of infection. Many medicinal plants, such as echinacea and burdock, owe much of their immune-enhancing effect to inulin. Jerusalem artichokes are one of the richest sources of inulin available.

Sample Menu: Days 8 - 15

Immune Power Vegetable: 2 cloves garlic, ¼ inch slice of ginger, handful of parsley, 4 carrots, 1 apple, 1 cup Jerusalem artichokes

Iron Plus: 1 beet w/top, 2 kale leaves, ½ cup broccoli, 4 carrots, 1 apple

The Energizer: handful of parsley, 6 carrots

Diuretic Formula: handful of dandelion greens, 2 celery ribs, 4 carrots

The Don Juan: ¼ inch slice of ginger, handful of parsley, ¼ pineapple with skin, sliced

Day 7

So I’ve totally been craving salt and pepper.  Since last night.  This morning I decided to juice 3 tomatoes to which I added black and cayenne pepper.  Well, the cayenne pepper was too spicy for me, so I decided to add some other fruits and veggies to the tomato juice: one bunch spinach, one bunch parsley, four carrots, a bag of grapes, and two celery ribs.  Basically, Potassium Power with a bunch of grapes and two additional tomatoes.  I think I may have even thrown in an apple or two.  Well, my juice hasn’t satisfied my craving for salt, so I’ll probably get some chicken broth with sodium from the market on my way home from work- which is nice because then I’ll have an excuse to load up on grapes which are on sale.  I also did my second enema today.  I do warm water enemas, but am considering doing a coffee enema. 

Days 5 & 6

Day Five went pretty well. I drank Potassium Power all day- which is great because veggie juice is better than fruit juice because fruit juice has a lot of sugar.

Day Six is going well too. I had a really fun juice concoction all day- a bunch of spinach, one bag of green grapes, and three apples. This particular juice was too sweet (and I like sweet things), so I mixed it with an equal amount of water and it was still sweet enough to taste like a fun sugary drink. I think next time, I’ll use half a bag of grapes. My energy levels are pretty good. I’m probably operating at 90%. But I don’t think I’ve been tired because of the detox, I think it’s related to PMS- as I often feel tired when it’s close to that time of the month. But, I can say that I’m definitely not as moody as I usually am around this time of the month and I haven’t experienced any PMS related pain and cramping- which is extremely rare for me. Something about the power of juicing…

Day Four

Today I juiced a cucumber & 4 small apples; grapefruit and oranges; and Potassium Power. Still on the wagon and going strong! I also did a warm water enema today because my stomach was not feeling so well and I was lethargic. It seems to have helped with my energy levels tremendously. Still no hunger, but temptation surrounds me. I just have to remember- mind over matter.

Day Three Weigh-in: 316.0

I would categorize today as a good day. I was probably operating at about 85% of my normal energy level. No headache nor hunger today. I was able to fend of temptation rather well- though it was challenging. My desk is near the office candy bowl. And each time I passed by, I would gaze at it longingly. One day, I will be able to look at it and not desire to eat any of its contents. One day. At a morning meeting, I was offered chocolate. During lunch, a coworker offered me a portion of a sandwich. Also during lunch, it smelled like someone was warming up pizza in the microwave. The power of scent is astounding.

I continue to crave sugar, so I drank more fruit than veggie juice today. I know I should be better with the veggies, but it is what it is. For breakfast and my snack I juiced 1 grapefruit and 4 oranges. Grapefruit are on sale, 3 for $1 until Wednesday. I think I’ll buy more tomorrow. As I worked through my lunch hour, I had Cruciferous Surprise, and added a third apple to the recipe. For dinner, I juiced 1 grapefruit and 4 oranges. I drank half the juice and I’ll probably finish it off tonight. My mini goal for tomorrow: consume more veggies than fruit.

I should also be doing enemas and dry brushing. Yeah, I’ll get around to it…perhaps.

Night two

Day two is officially wrapping up. No hunger at all today. Thank God. But I did have headache, fatigue, frequent urination and sugar cravings. While napping today, I even dreamt that I had went off of my regime and had eaten food! Crazy. I wonder how many people have actually dreamt about food. I just think that speaks to the power of food in my life.

Because I wasn’t hungry, I didn’t consume any additional juices after Kill the Cold until I had dinner- ½ grapefruit, 2 oranges, and a whole apple. This is a very sweet drink, and it totally hit the spot for my sugar cravings. Tomorrow, I will consume more veggies for sure. It will be an interesting day as I actually have to leave the house and go to work for the ole 8 to 5. To insure that I have enough time to juice for breakfast and prepare juices to bring to the office, I’m going to have to wake up significantly earlier than usual- about 45 mins. Struggle. Wish me luck!

Day Two

I woke up with no hunger, but with a stuffy nose and definitely felt tired, despite getting a full eight hours of sleep- which is more than I usually have.  I also had a headache- which I’m 99% sure is related to excess mucous in my sinus membranes.

This morning I prepared the Cleaning Cocktail from the The Complete Book of Juicing.  The carrots I used were huge, so I used three instead of four and I had about 20 ounces of juice.  I poured about 16 ounces in my cup, and refrigerated the remaining four.  Just as I finished cleaning my juicer, I spilled most of my juice and was annoyed.  I decided to prepare Kill the Cold (1 cup hot water, ¼ lemon with peel, and 1 inch ginger) to which I added two drops of nutmeg essential oils.  The author claimed that Kill the Cold is supposed to warm you up and possibly make you perspire. Well, duh- I felt warm because of the hot water, but I definitely didn't perspire.  In an hour or two, I’ll consume the remaining four ounces of my Cleaning Cocktail.