Fasting with Juice

Be sure to pass the PH test before starting any fast.

You cannot buy freshly prepared vegetable juice in any store at any price... unless they literally juice the vegetables right in front of your eyes and you drink it down before they make you pay for it! Any juice in a carton, can or bottle has been heat treated and was certainly packaged at least a few hours ago. Even frozen juice is not fresh. This means that you will need one essential and somewhat expensive appliance.

During the juice fasting, prepare juices made up of a combination raw vegetables and uncooked fruits, organic if your budget permits. Many people drink juice only from fruits. This is not optimal, simply because a lot of fruits include plenty of sugar which can spike cravings and have an adverse effect on blood-sugar levels. Besides, vegetables have tons of nutrients. So best use more vegetables than fruit!

Also best to either mix your juice 50/50 with water or drink a large glass of water before you drink your juice.

Drink as much juice as you wish. Remember that it is a food, not a beverage and that you can have as much as you want. There is little fear of over doing it. It is, after all, hard to hurt yourself with vegetables!

A good rule of thumb is to drink three or four large glasses of fresh juice a day plus water and herb teas if you like.

You will probably find that you will be urinating more as you drink more juices. You may also notice that you have more bowel movements now than you were previously accustomed to.

Fasting is defined as the complete abstinence from all substances except liquid in an environment of complete rest. Rest must be emphasised as even moderate activity can significantly increase protein metabolism, altering optimum adaptation to the fasting state. To maximise the benefits of fasting, unnecessary mobilisation of nutrient reserves must be avoided.
Fasting should always be conducted in an appropriate environment.
It is important to be able to differentiate a normal, although sometimes unpleasant, healing response of the body from a physiological compromise.
Fasting helps the body heal itself. Fasting is a powerful and effective tool in a comprehensive program designed to promote the restoration and maintenance of optimum health. Fasting can help people get on (or back on) track to healthful living.

The body's response to the fast itself is an important diagnostic tool in determining optimum fasting duration. The idea is to fast as briefly as possible, but as long as necessary, to allow the body to heal itself.
Three phases of fasting have been identified. The first phase lasts approximately the first six hours after the last meal. The body absorbs glucose, amino acids, and fat from the intestinal tract. Phase two lasts around two days while the body uses its glycogen (sugar) reserves. Phase three begins as the body switches from glucose to fat metabolism, allowing for the conservation of vital protein reserves.

Depending on your body, lifestyle and state of health fasting can be done from a few hours to a few month.

Breaking an extensive fast can be harder than fasting itself and it requires caution and understanding. Too rapid a return to food and activity can create problems. You may likely want to celebrate and indulge in a lot of your favorite foods to excess. You should take as long to reintroduce solid foods to your diet as you spent on the fast.

Start slowly by introducing some nutritious foods back into your diet, use whole fresh fruits and vegetables. Start slowly with reasonably small portions. You may be surprised that your stomach will no longer accept the portion sizes that you ate in the past.

Remember that the whole idea is to build health, so understand that you will not go back to your excessive ways of eating.

It is during the re-feeding program that good dietary and lifestyle habits are reinforced.

I often get asked which is the best juicer to use and I always reply: " the one you have in your cupboard and use!".

But if you have to go out and buy a new one, the "Compact Juicer" is the juicer of choice.

The "Compact" uses minimal bench space as the name implies. The low RPM (75-85) of the Compact and the gentle crushing and squeezing process, is similar to a Low Speed Cold-Press method, therefore generating minimal friction heat. Your juice can retain up to 60% more nutrients than conventional juicers and the valuable enzymes remain alive. The Live Enzymes are what aid your digestion and help your body absorb nutrients, boost your energy levels and immune system.
As an added bonus, your juice remains stable, nutritious and fresh for up to 48 hours (juice may be stored in a sealed container in the fridge)
What sets the new Compact multipurpose juicer/mincer apart from regular juicers, is that it can juice just about anything including wheatgrass. It will grind coffee beans, make nut butters, homus, pesto, salsa, dressings, dips, baby food, pasta and frozen desserts. It even has a completely separate mincing attachment that will professionally mince meat, chicken and fish as well as a sausage making nozzle. You won't believe how quiet the machine runs and how easy it is to clean, making it one of the most versatile and best value kitchen appliances available today.