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Veggie Juice Fast: Bike friendly diet that works

46K views 411 replies 88 participants last post by  Leopold Porkstacker 
#1 ·
This last month, I was talked into participating in a food fast. Goal was 7 days living on nothing but veggie juice, tea, and water. I did a lot of research and found that this program is highly regarded as a way to detox the body while gaining significant benefits like weight loss and reducing blood pressure. I was fearful that I would be tired, grumpy, and most importantly, unable to ride my bike...I was wrong, wrong, wrong.

So, I bought a kick ass little juicer and gave it a go because forecast called for lots of rain and job stresses were low. I jumped in and, as warned, the first three days were rough but manageable...mostly mental but also the cravings and habits were rough. In the first three days, the body goes through significant detoxification and until everything clears out, the internal organs want to play. After three days though, hunger subsided, energy was at an all time high, and it was easy sailing...so easy in fact that I decided to go an extra 3 days (10 total). The theory here (which I see as completely factual) is that digesting is a highly energy intensive process. When you aren't digesting, your body suddenly has an abundance of down time which it uses to heal, remove crappy stuff, and allocate the energy to other areas. The veggie juice supplies the system with all the nutrients so you don't wain or feel crummy. If anything, I had more energy and perk than I have had in decades. The best part was I was able to go to the gym frequently and got in numerous bike rides including a couple 2000+ foot climbs.

The results: Lost close to 20 Lbs...mostly all of my beer belly. Took my blood pressure down from persistently high (doctor worried) to 120/77 which I believe is normal. I also came away with far less cravings for fat rich foods and more desire for healthy options. It has been almost 2 weeks since ending the fast and I am still sub 180 which is perfect for me. ( I was hitting mid 190s and growing)

Anyhow, I can't recommend this program enough. My buddy is doing 30 days and is a long distant runner. Check out this movie if interested: Fat Sick and Nearly Dead | a Joe Cross Film

My only regret was not following a pre-diet plan which consists of three days prepping the system for the change. I plan to do 2 a year. Anyone else out there try this?
 
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#196 ·
I have one. Raw Chard. Loaded with nutrients but makes a lot of people sick when eaten raw. I got a scratchy throat every time I was using and my bro-in-law threw up when he tried juicing it. I'd stay away from chard. Also, bananas don't juice.
 
#198 ·
OK finally started the juice/beer diet.

got my late Xmas present, Vitamix.

Time to experiment.
First try:
Kale
Beet
Spinach
Carrot
Celery
Apple

Not bad but I can do better; filling though.
 
#199 ·
Lunch:
two leafs of kale, handful of spinach, handful of grapes, half cucumber, quarter apple and some lime juice. Way better
 
#200 ·
My wife just started her first 5 day fast today. She did a 3 day prep of raw veggies. I have never seen her with so much energy...I am in trouble.

My breakfast: carrots, celery, arugula, cucumber, 3 cloves of garlic, snap peas, raspberries, and one whole orange (with skin). delightful! Wish I could ride today...Stevens Creek run tomorrow.
 
#205 ·
Not sure it matters as you'll only want to drink so much.
Day 6 for me, I'm 5 lbs lighter and still haven't grown a vag, kissed a goat or bought a hybrid :p

My "plan" differed from SquashYos in that I used a vitamix in lieu of a juicer cuz we have one and I didn't want to spend $200-$1,000 on a juicer I would only occasionally use. There's a lot more sludge to deal with using the vitamix, but many argue that's valuable fiber/vitamins.

I did my 3 daily El Sereno training rides(1,500 ft/7mi) in a row, the first two were about average, the 3rd was really tough. I'm debating whether to go on a longer ride Today or go to the gym and cross train.

I'm not experiencing the whole boundless energy deal, but I'm not suffering from lack of it either. Maybe if i stuck a hose up my butt, that would improve, but ill prolly pass on that phase of my development. I am more clear headed, but not spiritual awakenings to speak of, except of course when I see a bunny or deer and want to rip its head off an eat it raw, just sayin:eek:
 
#203 ·
I use a Nalgene bottle and go 1:10 juice to water, plus some green powder and alkaline drops. On the fast, I drink about 6 of these a day. When I'm eating, it's about 3. I'll make enough for a day during one juicing session, but never more than that. It goes bad pretty fast, even in the fridge. Also, I read an article about how it oxidizes very quickly and loses its maximum potency within 30 minutes. I don't know how practical it is to juice 3 - 6x a day though...
 
#207 ·
We are almost at the end of our 2. day of detoxing and so far I have mixed feelings.
Some of the food is tasty and is going to be used in the future but we both feel pretty sluggish and feel a liitle bit weird in general and light headed.
But that might be the bodies getting rid of stuff and I do not think I ever ate that much parsley in such a short period of time.

@squashyo, that is very good info about the fiber.
 
#213 ·
Day Three and I feel good. 6 lbs lost so far.
That includes 1-2 beers/ or glasses a wine and a healthy dinner...Sushi.

Day three drink:
Lots o Purple Kale
Beet
Carrot
Celery
Half Apple
Spinach
Banana
Handful Grapes
 
#214 ·
I started this today too-but with some mods. I'm doing the 5 day thing. I really need to change my eating habits. I don't think I can go full vegetarian, but I'm thinking about doing as much vegetables, fruit etc during the day and a sensible meal at night. Hoping this year I'll be able to get out and ride more too. 2012 wasn't a great year for bike rides for me, most of the people I was riding with have surpassed me.
We made plans for a vegetable garden and hopefully a place to keep chickens at our house, so that will be nice to be able to produce some of our own food. Thanks again to everyone for all the info on here-
 
#217 ·
I am probably going to drive people crazy but Juice Fast and what you are talking about are two completely different animals. If you do the 'juice fast', which I am a proponent of, you eat NO fiber at all. You give your vitals a complete rest...if you do juice with fiber (any kind of chewing) you are simply dieting. Sounds hard but after 2-3 days of a true juice fast, you do not miss eating at all and you will have insane amounts of energy and you will lose 10lbs off the bat with 1lb a day...and you can ride, work out, etc. Best of all, you purge the system of years of crappy toxins.
 
#219 ·
Try dandelion, collard, and cabbage, beets and their tops. Your toilet will forgive you later.


Been juicing for over 35 years. Never spent a day in the hospital. Get a cold maybe once every few years. I cycle 3-4 times a week and can keep up with guys half my age. I do drink beer and wine. What else would I drink have with my carne asada burrito?
 
#226 ·
Atta boy! I promise you get used to it and it grows on you. Secret to a great drink...lots of carrots, celery and beats...helps hide flavor of the greens (which I now dig). Throw in an apple or pear to sweeten it up a bit. Good luck buddy!
 
#229 ·
That juice deal worked out well yesterday I must admit. I was following you most of the time if I remember correctly. :p And let me say it again as per our conversation yesterday ... We kinda have to attempt the sub 40 to the top thingy ... stud ! :p
 
#230 ·
Man-an hour later and I think I'm finally over the drink. Craving a nice juicy burgar now! Had a light salad with little dressing instead. Not going to weigh myself, I'd rather see how my pants and shirts fit as I go along. Maybe my fox shorts won't unbutton themselves when I sneeze would be a nice start!
 
#231 ·
I started over the weekend and today was my first day back at work so I made a big batch to take with me to get me through the day, I must say I can already feel the difference. Crazy part of this is normally the ONLY way I eat greens etc is on a burger, I have been adding ice since these seem to taste better cold.
 
#233 ·
Cool man! Should start getting easy for you now.

I can't speak to the rack of ribs but I followed a strict ease back in diet my book recommended which entailed mostly veggies with the introduction of other foods (cheese, grains, etc) throughout the week. When I did get to pizza, it wasn't as satisfying...I craved healthy food...I have pretty much stuck to healthy since...kind of changes your taste needs in a good way.

Keep it up and keep us posted!
 
#234 ·
We finished our three day detox and the last day we started to feel "normal" and we can not really tell what it did to us but we also made a plan how to go back to normal so we do not feast to much on the not so good stuff. :p

We started today with the simple kale/banana/OJ smoothie which we really like.
But in the moment I have a hard time to fight the mental urge of a nice cup of coffee.
 
#235 ·
We finished our three day detox and the last day we started to feel "normal" and we can not really tell what it did to us but we also made a plan how. to go back to normal so we do not feast to much on the not so good stuff.

We started today with the simple kale/banana/OJ smoothie which we really like.
But in the moment I have a hard time to fight the mental urge of a nice cup of coffee.
 
#236 ·
I started on Sunday, mainly to lose the belly fat (I used to be around 100kg in the begging of summer, and due to some lifestyle changes, including being vegetarian, got down to 75kg and stabilized there. With working out, the fat was being transformed into lean mass, but the friggin beer belly didn't seem to go way. It is kinda weird being able to see the top 4 abdominal muscle, and the bottom 4 being hidden by fat). Guess since I was vegetarian, it shouldn't be that hard. I am writing a log, I will publish that when I am done. I am going for a 10-day juice fast followed by a 5-day reintroduction to food. Also, I wanted my blood pressure to lower. When I was 100kg, the pressure was near 11-17, and by 75kg, it got down to 8-15. This is still too damn high, was the doctor prescribed medicine, which I never took. I am 22 years old, I shouldn't be needing medicine right now... The fast should help the blood pressure get back to decent levels.

Questions:
1- I have slept a lot less in these nights (like 5 hours), and waking up super-energetic. But since I am waking up at 4 am, I usually get back to sleep until 7am (my normal waking up time). I feel like **** by 7am, no-energy at all. Would you just stay awake from 4am, drink the hot tea and do whatever to kill time?
2- Spinach juice has a horrible taste, and so does zucchini. I have read that raw brocolli isn't good. I am not fond on beetroot, but maybe it was due to the spinach. This basically leaves kale has the only green that I can easily drink. If I had one apple, the taste of juices becomes manageable. I have read you shouldn't mix fruits with veggies, but apple is ok. So, something like 25% kale/spinach/broccoli/beetroot or whatever, 25% apple, 25% carrot and 25% fennel/celery/cucumber seems ok? As the green juice, ofc. In the fruit juice, I use pear, kiwi, apple, carrot, mandarine. Just pick 3 and mix. The fruit juices are very tasty. I wouldn't mind drinking fruit juices the whole day, but I know I need the veggie ones. Any hints to make the taste less horrible? (I tried ginger and lemon, none of those helped)
3- Since I have been drinking so much, I am pissing almost clear, and pretty often. On the contrary, after waking up, the pee has a solid color. Is it due to being from a larger time-frame (through the night?)
4- Could beans, chickpeas, lentills be added? I like their taste quite a lot, but dunno if they yield any juice.
5- Here I can't find fresh pineapple, only canned ones in "their own juice". Is it ok to use these? I know the nutritional value is lower, but should present another option for the fruit-juices
6- Cauliflower, ok to juice?
7- soy sauce or balsamic vinegar can be added to juices, to make taste more manageable?
8- Whey protein powder shakes (with water) can be introduced in this fasting? I have been drinking them for a while (since I have been working out and being vegetarian to be specific). Can one of these replace the hot tea before bed?
9- Should some salt be added to this fasting? Like a small pinch in the green juices. I guess we could lack the salt if we seat and dont replenish
10- Coconut water for after workouts is acceptable?

Hope you can help.
Cheers
 
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