Raw Food extravaganza - Day 28

Okay, a REAL update now!

Thanks for your patience.  We moved, and you know how that goes... major chaos everywhere and a few days without a solid internet connection (via computer) to, you know, blog and stuff.

So I'm back with some info for you.  I have measurements... but no weight.  Because... I can't find my scale. Dan packed it, and it's in a box SOMEWHERE.  So, we'll just do measurements for now, weight later. :)

Stats:
Weight = 173.0 / 163.0 (last known weight in Denver four days ago.)
Bust = 39.5 / 37.5 (-2)
Waist = 31.5 / 29.5 (-2)
Lower belly = 38.5 / 37 (-1.5)
Butt = 43.5 / 42 (-1.5)
Hips = 42 / 40 (-2)




I fit back into smaller clothes, and I'm feeling wonderful!  So... you might ask, "What have you been eating?"  Well, LOTS of salads.  Like these:

Oh yeah, and veggie Nori rolls.  Freaking yummy.  (That's riced cauliflower, not rice.) :)

More salads...

"Pasta" made out of zucchini, with baby bella mushrooms, red bell pepper, cherry tomatoes, italian seasonings, black pepper and evoo with fresh lemon juice.  Freaking delicious!

Oh yeah, more salads.  (key ingredients for me are sun dried tomatoes, red bell pepper, cherry tomatoes, sunflower seeds and walnuts.  Usually I add half an avocado as well.)  Dressing = balsamic vinegar and a little evoo.

When I was in Denver, there was a unique set of challenges.  Like, eating RAW for every meal while traveling, not having my own kitchen, holy crap it was difficult.  I did a huge bunch of grocery shopping when I got there and bought a ton of fresh produce, fruit, etc.  I also bought my brother a juicer like mine with the stipulation that I get to use it when I'm in town. ;)

So, I had the juicer and a huge cooler of fresh fruits and veggies with me for the two and a half days I stayed at the hotel.  Here is the juicer in the room with me.

I did go off "raw" for one meal:  a celebratory sushi dinner with my brother and his new wife!  I had eight pieces of various rolls, and my own "riceless" roll, which was delicious.  I also tried the seaweed salad, which I HAVE to start making at home.  It was ridiculously delicious.

SO.  What has it done for me in these 28 days?

My skin has come upon a DRAMATIC difference.  My apologies for wearing the big baggy t-shirt in the last photo, but for that, I'll show you what it's done for my body.

I've had to switch to my smaller bra, (sorry, Dan.) -- And I can fit into this halloween costume, the one I could NOT get into (the corset especially,) even three weeks ago.

I love RAW.

Raw Food extravaganza - Day 25

Hey all!

A QUICK update - I will hopefully have a bit of time Friday or Sunday to update you all... but I just got back from Denver, am moving tomorrow (so today is crazy last packing and cleaning day) - and then my honeymoon Tuesday!  Things are super nuts right now.

I'm still raw, still feeling great, and I promise I'll come back and update you with details and photos. :)

Love,
Jenn

Raw Food extravaganza - Day 17

I've been a bad EHG and not updating you all.  Sorry!  Things have been so crazy with work, packing the house for our move, getting ready to go to Denver for a week... sorry about that.

So, I did NOT complete 15 days of the juice fast.  I ended up incorporating fruit and veggies on Friday last week, and I've decided to just eat raw until my body decides it needs something else.  For now I'm still drinking juice every day, and eating raw foods.  I am learning SO much about the raw lifestyle, it's been really an amazing experience so far.  (raw = fruits, veggies (including raw juicing and raw smoothies) only peppered with SOME raw nuts and seeds.  Selective additional things like EVOO or balsamic or cider apple vinegars and lots of seasonings like garlic, cinnamon, chili powder, etc.)

Me on the way to the grocery store:

What I bought.  (yeah, boyyyyy):

Breaking my juice fast with a kiwi.  YUM!  It was the BEST kiwi ever.

We still love the juices, and even Dan gets into it.  This was one of his own concoctions:

Sunday football snack - "chips" and fresh homemade salsa.  (chopped tomato, cilantro, chive, red bell pepper and avocado.  HOLY delicious.)  ((chips are slices of zucchini!))

"pasta" made from spiralized zucchini and yellow squash - mixed with lots of black pepper and some chopped red bell pepper - tossed in a little EVOO.  Delicious.

Skin continues to get better.  Weighed in at 164.8 today (-8.2 lbs in sixteen days.  So, I'm continuing the loss of about 1/2 pound a day, which is great.)  Seventeen day difference in my face:

I DID throw out my back somehow yesterday.  Big bummer there.  Not enjoying the sore back, and advil is my friend for the moment.  Lower back... pulled it while I was cleaning my studio yesterday.  But I will say it's sparkly clean now!  

I'm hosting a florist event on the 30th, and then it's time for MAJOR studio overhaul - I'm taking November to work on the studio and completely redesign it.  Yay for staying busy!

Well, that's about it for now.  Dan and I are going to go shopping for a new couch for our new place.  Yay!

Juice Fast Extravaganza! Today is day 12!

Yep, folks - I only have three days left.  It's interesting.  I really love juicing, and I'll keep doing it for the rest of my life.  I definitely am looking forward to starting to eat some delicious raw foods after I'm done.  The experience has been an awesome one so far!

I'm full of energy today, I'm down 6.6 pounds, and Dan told me today after kissing me, "your skin is getting so soft!"

I thought I'd share a few pics with you all, and a recipe that Dan helped me name. :)

"The Jackal"

2 huge carrots (four normal size)

1/2 huge cucumber (or one small)
1 zucchini

1 bunch parsley

1 bunch cilantro

1 bunch spinach

3 stalks celery

1 yellow pepper

1 hot pepper

1 lime, peeled

2 oranges, peeled

1 beet (ends cut off)

Look at all these gorgeous colors!  I mean really, have you ever seen a more gorgeous array of colors in your veggie selection?  Greens, yellows, oranges, red, purple... gorgeous!

At first I didn't have the oranges, but after tasting it, realized I needed a little sweet to counter that hot pepper a little bit!

Check it out:

Spectactular color.  SPICY juice, and jam-packed with so many nutrients... it's lovely!

~J

PS - speaking of nutrients, check out my nails!  They look and feel amazing right now.  My hair is growing faster, my skin looks good.  Juicing FTMFW!

Orlando Honeymoon - Healthy Eating?

Hidy ho, folks!

Well I wanted to interrupt the blog posts about juicing with a very real question.  Dan and I are honeymooning in a few weeks to Florida.  (I've never been.)  We're doing Disney World and probably Epcot.  What I'm curious to hear is:

1.  What are your "don't miss!" recommendations?  (We have four full days to work with.)
2.  What restaurants do you recommend?  (On or OFF park / resort grounds.)
3.  Speaking of restaurants... how, just HOW do I stay healthy in terms of food while I'm out there?  Are there any options for whole foods?  You know, hippie food?  I mean... I am not going through a fifteen day juice fast just to turn around and eat crap food because "oh well, I'm in Orlando."

So!

Those are my questions, and hopefully you can help me!!

xoxo,
~Jenn

Juice Fast Extravaganza! Day 10...

Hidy Ho!

Weight - 166.8 (down 6.2 pounds)

I was feeling pretty pretty the other day:

Yesterday stopped by the juicing place by my studio and got a Pink Flamingo!  That's orange, grapefruit and pineapple.  Yum-o!

And last night, a gorgeous green juice with cabbage, cucumber and apple.  Freaking yum.

I definitely still miss food.  I have found, however, that I'm most excited to get done with the fast so I can try all the delicious sounding raw recipes I have found.  I have been doing research on what kinds of raw foods and recipes are out there for my transition back into eating solids after this is over. :)

Ta-ta for now!

~J

Juice Fast Extravaganza! Day 8 - update / results

Stats:  10/2 vs. 10/10
Weight = 173.0 / 168.6 (-4.4 lbs)
Bust = 39.5 / 38.5
Waist = 31.5 / 30.5
Lower belly = 38.5 / 38
Butt = 43.5 / 42
Hips = 42 / 41


So, after 8 days I've lost 4.4 pounds and an average of 1 inch off of most of my measurements.  

I've gotten into juicing sweet potatoes.  With carrots, spinach - they're simply creamy and yummy.

Raw juice does separate a bit...

But, it just takes a quick stir.  Yum, yum!

So.  Can you guess which is the orange strawberry, and which is the tomato red pepper?

Delicious cantaloupe and mint!

This weekend I had two weddings, and let me tell you... I did come prepared with a cooler, with tons of bottled water and a juice, but... it was really, really hard.  The smell of the food, and it was GOOD food (wedding food,) both the dinners and the cocktail hour food... not being able to eat it was really difficult.  Just when I was feeling pretty comfortable with juicing, the idea of eating super healthy afterward and having gotten rid of my cravings for "bad" foods... all of a sudden I was constantly thinking about food yesterday.  The groom was served taco bell (as a silly joke) at the wedding yesterday, and then all I wanted was taco bell.  (yes, it's nasty but I LOVE IT.)  Then I came home, and what the hell... Dan got Taco Bell for his dinner.  The smell filled the house... it was so difficult, and I almost felt like CRYING, I was so frustrated.


I put up the blog post, and made myself a cantaloupe and mint juice.  The mint was so powerful it overcame the residual taco bell smell in the house, and the juice was delicious.  After that I felt better, and I feel better this morning.


I freaking hate food addiction.






On the positive side... my skin is doing AMAZING.


I don't know if you guys really know about all the struggles I've had with my skin... Acne has been a major part of my life, (my brother has dealt with it just as I have,) - and it's the thing I'd always said I'd change about myself, even before weight issues.  I've tried every cream, ointment, toner, homeopathic method, weird ass crazy things to get my skin to clear.  Nothing has ever worked beyond temporary measures.  


Here are my results after 8 days:

Last night I found myself saying "I feel like this whole thing is pointless."




Well.. after writing this post... I am pretty sure I don't feel that way anymore.  I do miss food though.  I am looking forward to eating.  :)

~J

Juice Fast Extravaganza! Day 5...

Hello lovelies!

Well, yesterday was a FABULOUS day - I felt alive, full of energy, my soreness was completely gone, and I felt awesome.  Until, about 5:30pm.  At that point, I really started to feel hungry.  I made my favorite dinner juice (tomato, red and yellow pepper, celery, parsley) - and that satiated me for a while, but as I went to bed I really was super hungry.  Granted that was around midnight.

Starting weight:  173
Current weight:  169.6

Morning juice - I decided to go with a green juice that I call "Life Juice" - instead of my usual fruit.  This includes Kale, Romaine, 1/2 cucumber, 1 green apple, 2 carrots and a bunch of parsley.  It sort of tasted like drinking freshly cut grass.  Definitely a green taste, but still yummy.  I will try this again today but add a lime to it. :)

Here it is immediately after juicing before stirring it up:

After stirring, in my bottle:

I found out that there's a place in the Milwaukee Public Market by my studio that does fresh juices.  Woo-hoo!  It also happens to be one of my favorite salad places in the city.  I stopped by for a "green giant" juice, which was spinach, apple, wheat grass and lime.  It was super tasty and super lime-y!

In between I had 1/2 pineapple, two oranges and 1 golden delicious apple but forgot to take a photo of it because I drank it so immediately.  It was freaking delicious!

Final juice of the day was the tomato juice:

Oh!  And someone asked what I was detoxing from.  Primarily, caffeine (in a huge way.)  I used to consume MASS quantities of Diet Coke and around a half pot of coffee (at least) a day.  DAILY.  So that was where my detox symptoms (headaches, sore muscles, etc etc) were coming from.  In a fast you also are flushing out toxins from the foods you eat on a regular basis (chemicals used to grow or prepare the foods, all those ingredients we're like "wtf is this" to, etc).  

I was talking to Dan last night about how weird it feels to be doing this juice fast.  Not because of the actual act of juice fasting, but more about the long-term implications it has.  I didn't necessarily start this in an attempt to change my entire outlook on food, but in reality that's what is happening.  I don't want to put the work in, complete this 15 days and then go back and eat a pizza.  Or less "dramatically" even, go eat a sandwich.  Why would I reverse all the benefits I'm gaining?  Releasing weight, clearing my skin, clarifying my thought process and my mind, etc etc?  

It's honestly a little scary to try to think about what I'm going to do after the fast.  I know I'll start slow (obviously as to not shock my system,) with solid fruits.  After that I'll mix in salads and veggies, and perhaps some low sodium soups (or homemade soups, even better!)

Beyond that... should there be a beyond that?

Food for thought... 

~J

Juice Fast Extravaganza! Day 4...

Starting weight = 173
Current weight = 170.6

Only a -.2 lb difference from yesterday to today.  At least it's steadily going down.  But, damn I was hoping for at LEAST a half pound a day.  It's slightly discouraging considering I'm only drinking juice, people.

But, I continue on.

The GOOD news is that, despite the weight loss not being QUITE as amazeballs as I'd hoped at this point... my back pain is nearly almost totally gone.  I still am experiencing some detox symptoms (icky feeling in my mouth, coated tongue, etc) - but the headaches aren't happening anymore and I don't feel AS MUCH like crap.  My legs and back are still tight and very slightly sore, but I am continuing to stretch. :)

Yesterday I had a simple green juice (green apple, cucumber) for breakfast, for lunch it was a ton of spinach, one tomato and some carrot, then apple juice for a snack, tomato, cilantro, celery, red pepper juice again for dinner (I really love those...) and a really delicious cantaloupe and mint juice for a late "dessert"!

I had a few questions about the fast:

Q)  Are you following recipes or a program or a website or something?
A)  No - I just was inspired by the documentary and I decided to Google (it really is an amazing resource, ya know...) - there is a ton of information out there.  Seriously, just google search "juicing recipes" and you'll have more than you could try in a month.

Q)  Are you working out?  You should share that too.
A)  Nope.  I walk occasionally, I am a photographer, so I sweat my bootie off when I work, but other than that it's just stretching and I sit at the computer most of the day.

Q)  Is it freakishly expensive to juice?
A)  Well, produce IS more expensive than crap.  But can you really put a price on outstanding health?  I guess it just depends on your priorities.  Did I spend $30 at the farmer's market?  Yes.  Is it cheaper there than a grocery store?  Probably not.  Is the quality and variety better?  Hell yes.  Now, you CAN choose cheaper things to juice, that give you lots of bang for your buck (like romaine, cabbage, etc) - BAGS of apples instead of choosing varieties individually... but like everything it just depends on your approach. :)

Q)  Have you been getting any crazy cravings yet?
A)  I won't lie.  When Dan has a subway sandwich or I see food on TV, I pout.  But I don't really CRAVE anything yet, though the first day I really REALLY wanted walnuts.  (odd...)

Q)  Why didn't you start on October 1st so your fasting days would match?
A)  Uhm... Well, I'd never think of that, first of all.  Secondly, I just started on the day that worked for me, which was Sunday.  Saturday I had a wedding and it's going to be hard enough shooting through the two weddings this weekend without eating at them.

Q)  How's that green juice?  Green juice looks gross.  Green juice scares me.
A)  It really is good.  Seriously, it just depends on what you put in it.  A little apple or carrot goes a long way.

Q)  Can you give me some more information on this?
A)  Well, I can share my journey, (Hey!  That's what I'm already doing!) - And you can search the great wide interwebs for a huge giant plethora of information out there that I won't regurgitate to you.  (google anything along the lines of "juice fast" "how to start a juice fast" "starting a juice fast" - I promise, it's more information than I could give you. :D

Juice Fast Extravaganza! Day 3...

Starting weight:  173
Current weight:  170.8

Breakfast:
1 green apple, 2 handfuls spinach, 1 cucumber, 1 carrot

Then, Dan and I went to the farmer's market and got a TON of beautiful produce.

And even though I HATE HATE HATE beets... I've only ever had the canned variety.  The smell of them makes me gag, but Dan has convinced me to try a beet in my juice, because of their intense health benefits.

So, my afternoon juice started out like this:

(1 cucumber, 1 carrot, 1 pear, 1 apple, 1 bunch bok choy and 1 bunch choy sum)

Went in like this...

And came out like this!  TONS of juice, this ended up being lunch and evening juice.

Oh, did I mention we found a yellow watermelon?  SO cool.  It tastes just as delicious.  :)  I will admit I ate some of the watermelon, but... I figure it's raw and like, 90% water.  So... yeah. :D

I decided to juice some watermelon, too.  Dan takes a sip of almost every juice I make. :)

It looks pretty, but doesn't taste nearly as good as one might think.  It's nice enough, but eating the watermelon with the crisp crunch of the melon makes it more delicious than just the juice.

Late dinner juice!

1 bunch bok choy, 1 tomato, 1/2 red bell pepper, 1 handful cilantro

(I know there are 2 tomatoes in this photo, but I only ended up using one.)

Not nearly as fabulous or savory as the previous night's tomato juice - whether that has to do with the type of tomato I used (last time was roma,) or the choy instead of celery... we'll find out!

SO!  Overall I feel pretty decent.  I had a very sore lower back and hips again yesterday.  It got so bad that I had a massage, and that seemed to help a little.  I am still sore today but not as much, so it seems to be getting better now.  The weight is coming off bit by bit, though honestly I was sort of hoping for around a pound a day.  But, slow and steady wins the race.  Including today, have 12 more days to go.

Today will be the first day I'm working while on the fast - I have an engagement shoot in two hours, so that should really be a piece of cake.  The real test will be over the weekend when I have two weddings.  That means not only working two long, hard days back to back, but not eating wedding food.  We'll see how it goes!

Hearts,
~J