Ode to Orange Juice, And Other Thoughts

I tried blogging earlier today, and I just kept getting a blank page. So - here's the whole day's update for you!!

Day SEVEN!!!

I woke up this morning overjoyed that I was going to be drinking something NEW. Fresh Squeezed ORANGE JUICE! I went through 7 oranges by 11:30, and 11 today. It tasted *fantastic*. I took some with me on all of my errands this morning - orthodontist appt, ballet, target. . . but, i was fading so fast -the orange juice was not sustaining me at all. By the time I was checking out of Target, I was shaking and felt really dizzy. (It's amazing that the lemonade really does give you all that you need - that was apparent today!) I was almost worried about driving home. I decided on the drive that I was going to need to eat something. I made myself some more orange juice when I arrived home, and then went about preparing the vegetable soup for supper. The smell was intoxicating (a bit misleading, since it was incredibly bland!) and I finally partook of solid food at about 2:00 - with the vegetables not even completely cooked. I decided - why wait?? ;-) I'm feeling pretty good now, although weaker than I did all week. . .? I'm thrilled that I've slimmed down a bit - my face is looking pretty good - not completely clear, but I have hope that it will continue. My organs are certainly a lot cleaner than before and I'm hoping that as time goes on, I'll continue to see the benefits of my cleanse. Milo and I will be doing another one in the not so distant future, and I am **SO** happy to hear that so many of you are looking into it! I know that you won't regret it. My one lesson that I learned is to be careful of who you tell . . . some people are so interested and supportive, and some just think I've completely lost it!!

Last day's stats:

Weight: 111, not a lot lighter, but slimmer!
Face: I'd say 70% better.
Teeth: I never measured, but they've continued to get healthier!!

COMPLETELY WORTH IT. And now - I know that I can do *ANYTHING* that I decide to do. That was worth it all by itself.

You're *Not* Going to Tempt Me!!

I had the opportunity to run out by myself this eveing. . . I thought that since we're leaving for Florida in a week that I should get the stuff I need for the girl's Easter Baskets. Rite-Aid was having an incredible sale on Easter treats. I walked up and down those ailes, and you better believe that I bought a couple of bags of my delectable mini eggs. Don't worry, friends - they will sit absolutely untouched until Thursday night - after I've eaten dinner at the Country Club - I *AM* high society now, you know!! ;-)

Thanks for the Support!

I just want to thank all of you who have been supportive. This is going great, and I'm so happy that I did it, but it's also been quite hard at times. A couple of days ago, I experienced probably my hardest time. I was wondering if this was going to be worth it, I was feeling 'lonely' in my experience, I was quite hungry and really just doubting the process. I ended up talking to someone who said 'I can't believe that you haven't cheated!' but in that 'I *really* can't believe what you're saying' voice. My usual personality would just be more motivated, but it made me so sad. I realize that I set myself up for that, in a way, by being so open with my love of food and my constant eating since about the day I was born - but it really, really got to me. Anyway, I can honestly say that all of you who have been super supportive have tipped the scales for me completely. I'm over the hump - day six - and actually, I think I came up with a great plan to end this thing. . . *Ready??* I think Milo's ready to jump on board! **SO**, I'm going to end my fast sometime before Thursday - it will be either tomorrow or Wednesday morning, depending on if today ends up being a 'detox' day or not. If yes - I'll start the fresh squeezed orange juice fast until Thursday. If not, then I'll cleanse Wednesday too and shorten the OJ fast. AND THEN. . . Milo and I are going to do another one together sometime after his basketball season is done. . . Maybe in 6-8 weeks we'll start it. That makes me feel so much better because I don't want to 'come this far' and then quit, but I was reading in one of the books, that the second cleanse takes a couple of days to get where you ended last time, and then just picks up from there. I'm down with that!! And the thought of doing it with somebody else is just a huge relief. Especially Milo, because right now, he hasn't curbed his eating in *any* way. He's eating in front of me constantly. Not just meals, but snacking, too. It can be brutal at times, and others don't really bother me. (That's one of the signs of detoxing along with cravings, irritability sometimes, fatigue, several bms, and more. . . )I'm definitely over the feeling of being hungry, I'm happy to report - but I still love the smell of food and the ritual of eating it. I've read that a lot of people who have done this cleanse decide to go vegan after they are finished. I'm not there yet - although Milo and I did talk a bit about it last night. It's just such a huge change. I think that as of now, we'll just go back to only buying the best ingredients and trying to avoid processed foods as much as possible - along with as many fruits and veggies as possible. . . just some food for thought. . . HA!

Trouble in Paradise?

I realized this morning that I have to eat out on Thursday. There's really no way around it. Thursday is day 9. See, here's the problem . . . Almost all of Madison's swim team swim at a country club during the summer. It's probably not possible for her to swim there, too - expensive and really not necessary. But, it's looking like she'll be the only young kid to swim on her normal team over the summer now, and practices are in the middle of the day. (2-4 p.m!) Swimming at Lochmoor (country club) is supposed to be so fun, they have tonnes of parties for the kids and work so hard without realizing it for all the fun they're having. So, we told Madison that we'll at least look into it. We had an appointment to meet with the Directors and have dinner there last week, but (1) I had forgotten and started the cleanse and (2) Milo ended up having to work. So, we rescheduled. For this Thursday. While I'm still on the cleanse. Darn!!! We can't reschedule again or we'll look flaky and we really won't be able to join then! There are such crazy strict criteria. So again - you're probably thinking - no big deal, only one day - right? WRONG. There is a process of getting off the cleanse that I didn't realize. Two days of just orange juice. They say if I jump right back into food, it will take away some of the progress I made, and also that it can really upset your stomach. SO. . . maybe I can do the orange juice for one day instead of two - but even that puts me at stopping on Wednesday - and that's only 8 days. . . Before I read all about the cleanse, I would have been thrilled about this, but now I hear about how great the changes are on the 8&9th days, and I don't want to come this far without having that. At the same time . . . if we really are considering having Madison swim here, it would be rude for me to go to this country club (bringing my own lemonade!!) and decline to eat the food that they have prepared for me. . . seriously. This is where we make our first impression and we have to be nominated. . .

On another note . . . I took the sacrament at church today (I don't consider this cheating.) and the taste of that bread was delectable! Oh, my. So good.

Set Your Clocks!

It's been a *long* day! But, here I go. . . tomorrow is hump day! Woohoo!! I've felt pretty good today, and I was busy enough to have had the energy to run a half marathon!! I'm pretty tired now, though - and I'm sad because with the time change I'll get an hour less sleep. I'm ready to run to bed now so that I can maximize any of that precious time that I can!

Day Four stats:
Weight: 113

Face: Not much change right now, but my skin is softer!!

Can't wait until Monday! I'll be "almost" finished! I can do it, I can do it!!

On a High!

So here I am, well into my *fourth* day. . . I'm doing really well!! I've now read the books about this cleanse that my friend generously brought over last night, and I feel very reassured that this is a great thing to do for my body. Everyone could really benefit from this. . . (you interested???) However, I found that I'm one of only 7% that reports true hunger during it. I really have felt hungry. But, not starving. Just last month, I was fasting for 24 hours, and after the 24 hour mark hit, I was FAMISHED. I haven't felt anything like that. Maybe I will when I know that it's time for me to eat again. . . My skin is getting softer. . . I like that a lot! And, another 'side effect' that I hadn't considered is a little embarrassing to admit, but truly fantastic. I have a few teeth in the back of my mouth that are in desperate need of attention. The gums around them have receded, and it's just a nasty situation all around. This morning, while I was brushing, I noticed that my gums are pinker there, and moving back up my teeth! I want to try to measure it today and then check it again at the end of the cleanse, but there is no doubt at all that they look healthier! *AMAZING*.

Thank Goodness for Friends. . .

I had a friend call me today - said that she'd been thinking about me and meaning to call for a while. . . *anyway*, it turns out that she has done the cleanse, and she called me in a moment that i felt like maybe stopping. . . we talked for a while, and I found out that she's done this cleanse several times!! I said that I was starting to feel bad - a little shaky and kind of sad. She asked if I was drinking a lot of water on top of my lemonade. *WHAT*?? No - I told her that I had thought that all I was supposed to drink was the lemonade or the teas. . . ANYWAY. . . it's now an hour later - and 16 oz of water later - and I'm back to feeling like this is the best day yet. Thank goodness!!!