10 day juice fast: day 5

so far i'm feeling alright today. i slept for like 12 hours last night without waking up... i arose at 2 PM and couldn't believe the time. i'm house and dog sitting for friends this week, beginning today, so i promptly ran over there and walked the puppies.

actually, i should say ran.

i started feeling pretty light-headed and knew i needed to make some juice fast. it was made of:

2 slices pinapple
chunk of ginger
4 carrots
1 apple
1 orange
1 grapefruit
huge handful of kale
handful of strawberries
1 kiwi

yummmmm. i needed sugar. 

then i did some stuff on the computer and off i went to get groceries. i ran out of cucumber, bell peppers, tomatoes and celery the second day of the juice fast, so it was nice to finally buy some. i think i'll make some more juice soon because i'm feeling pretty tired. i walked to the grocery store as well. i probably just haven't gotten enough calories today.

*passing of time* i just had my juice for dinner and i still feel pretty tired. i thought maybe it was just because my blood sugar was low or something but i didn't even want to drink or eat anything. i left most of juice in the fridge. maybe i'll drink it later. i think i'm gonna watch some movies tonight then go to bed early. maybe this is finally some signs of detox?

anyway - my second juice was:

1 cup of strawberries
1 kiwi
3 sticks celery
1 grapefruit
1 orange
1/2 field cucumber
1 tomato
chunk ginger
1 apple

here's a good post about the benefits of juice fasting that i think is fairly accurate, intuitive and thorough.

and this is a PDF file that i also think is informative, about the same topic.

finally this is a review-type post about a new raw food book called "raw and beyond" by Victoria Boutenko, Elaina Love, and Chad Sarno (all well known and respected raw food proponents). the thing that is different about this book is that it talks about why an 80% raw diet is ideal, instead of a 100% raw food diet. the authors all used to praise and follow a totally raw diet, but now they have come to have a new opinion. i might have to agree.

when you first go raw, you feel amazing and might never want to eat cooked food again. you begin to strive to reach and keep that 100%. but as many of us have learned - 100% might not be best. i suggest reading the book to learn more. i'm going to as soon as it hits my library. having said all that - a mainly raw diet, with some lightly cooked whole plant foods is pretty much fool-proof for everyone.

we got coconut oil in da house

First of all: update on my fast. I had to end it early because I had school today. However, things look good for the 21 day fast I'd like to do in a month! Because on my 2nd day I felt good. Tired and a little weak, yes; but mentally I felt like I could surely go a long time. I didn't even particularly want to eat...

Very different from the 1st day - I was just hungry and doubting if I wanted to do this; which usually happens on the first day of any fast/cleanse, but after that it's easy. Anyhoo - SOON.

Moving on. Today we got our package from Upaya Naturals! It was a big, heavy brown box that contained treasure. Treasure, meaning a gallon of Tropic's Best raw virgin coconut oil, Sunfood cacao powder, and Strawesome glass straws! YAAAAY. 

You will be seeing some more raw chocolate very soon =) Speaking of chocolate... care for some pudding? I made some last night for my parents and I, since we had 3 avocados that were VERY ripe and screaming to be used in pudding. They got their wishes. Here's the recipe. 

I was late for class because I was taking photos! But when I got to campus I learned my lecture was cancelled anyway... So I ended up talking for two hours with my friend who happened to be there until my next class. Things have a way of working out.

water fast: day 1 & cupcakes for st. pattie's!

Wow. I slept for about 15 hours. I am a sleep-o-holic anyway, but I could have easily slept more. The only reason I actually got up was to say hi to my friends who came over, and give them some of these:

They're Guinness Chocolate Cupcakes with Maple Whiskey Vanilla Frosting. Everyone is saying they're delicious so I advise you to make them TODAY. It is Saint Patrick's Day =)

Obviously I didn't eat any today, but I did have one yesterday and can tell you they're awesome. Super moist,  chocolaty with just a HINT of excellent beer. Guinness is a family favourite here.

I've seen this recipe a lot for St. Pattie's, but never a vegan one. So here ya go! Enjoy.

Guinness Chocolate Cupcakes with Vanilla Whiskey Frosting: makes about 20 cupcakes 


Cupcakes:
1 bottle of Guinness Extra Stout (other kinds are NOT vegan)
2 sticks vegan butter
3/4 cup cocoa 
2 cups whole wheat flour
2 cups raw sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp cayenne
1 tsp instant coffee powder
1 tsp salt
2 Tb ground flax mixed with 4 Tb water 
1/2 cup vegan yogurt (or use non-dairy milk)


Frosting:
1/2 package tofu
1/2 cup vegan butter
1/2 cup raw powdered sugar
1 cup non-dairy milk
Vanilla seeds from 1 pod
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup agave/honey/maple syrup (if desired)
1/4 cup whiskey 


Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Sift all dry ingredients together, set aside. Melt butter and beer together, then stir in the rest of the wet ingredients. Mix the dry and wet ingredients together until just combined and pour into cupcakes molds, or a cupcake pan lined with papers/vegetable oil. Bake for about 20 minutes. 


While they're baking, make the frosting: blend all ingredients together in blender until smooth and thick. I fiddled with mine a lot and so ended up with a lot extra. If your frosting is too thick - add more whiskey, non-dairy milk, or liquid sweetener. If it's too thick, add more powdered sugar, tofu or vegan butter. Keep in fridge until the cupcakes are ready to decorate. 


Pipe the frosting onto each cupcake and decorate with green sparkles for St. Pattie's! =)

Now, you probably care a lot more about Chocolate Beer Cupcakes than hearing about my water fast; but I'll talk more anyway. Today is good so far, it's the first day so nothing much happens in terms of detox. I feel a bit hungry but not uncomfortably so. I've dranken a quart of water, I'll probably drink another before I go to sleep. Actually, now that I'm typing this, I realize I'm thirsty!
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water fast

Hey guys. I think Blogger changed Canadian blogs from .com to .ca, which is cool but it means I lose all my likes, shares, tweets and StumbleUpon submissions... hmph!

This weekend I will be doing a 3-5 day water fast; the duration depends on results and how my body reacts. I made sure to have no plans (besides homework, sigh) and Tuesday I don't have class or work. Thus Monday is the only day I'll have to worry about being active. If I don't feel up to fasting after Sunday then I'll stop. But I think I can handle it. We'll see.

Fasting has been done for as long as humans have been around. Our ancient ancestors "fasted" all the time unwillingly simply because food wasn't around everyday! And later on when people had food available daily, they chose to fast for many reasons. For thousands of years it has been one of the most therapeutic medicines. It is healing, detoxifying, spiritually-enlightening, and emotionally-reconnecting.

Think of important spiritual, medicinal and humanistic proponents - Hippocrates, Plato, Aristotle, Gandhi, Buddha, Mohammad, Jesus, Moses, and many more - they all promoted fasting for several different reasons. Fasting is encouraged in nearly every major religion in the world. Not only because it allows the body to heal itself and detoxify, but also because emotionally and spiritually you are re-awakened and are able to focus on what is really significant (besides eating).

I won't delve deeper into the health benefits right now because there's simply too much to say! Research for yourself, I recommend it. There are many excellent sources of information on the subject available online and in your library =)

I will give daily posts about how I'm feeling, how my body is reacting, and what I'm doing. I'll also provide a little more general info about water fasting. WHY am I doing this? Well, I need to cleanse. My diet has been pretty random lately (as has my sleep schedule). This will reset my digestive system and my circadian rhythms.

Also, I've been feeling out of touch with my Self lately. I have not really meditated in several weeks; and I generally just feel unconscious. I am not excited about anything even though there's many things I SHOULD be excited about. Finally, I'm not passionate about FOOD lately! I view this as a sign I need to take a break from eating; not only to remind myself how wonderful food is and be grateful for it, but also because it shows me my body wants to take a break from eating too.

Time to do some spring cleaning.

Well, that's about it. Please give me your thoughts, advice and support while I complete this! 
Maybe you wanna do it with me? Yeeeeees?