Thursday, May 31, 2012

Day 71 Down to A Size 18 Feeling WONDERFUL

Hello my wonderful friends and fellow Juicing Peeps! I am so exciting and frankly amazed to say it is now Day 71 of my Juice Cleanse. WOW 71 Days Straight of nothing but lovely Fresh Raw Vegetable Fruit Juice! I must say I never thought I would last a week much less *71* days! I started out at 259 pounds and a size 24 and at my last weight in some time last week (before I put my scale away for a month) I weighed 215. I now am wearing a size 18 and the one pair of jeans I purchased are getting  a wee bit loose...and I LOVE IT!
I still have a long way to go and it is still tough going many days. Do I miss food? There are many days when Kassy walks in the house with her french fries I could just grab one of her hand and eat it, but I don't. It would defeat all I have done. So instead I grab a juice. I keep them made up just for that reason!

I try to remember to go to the pool  when I can and water walk , water run and swim around some. Have to beat the kids  out there now that school is out for the summer. So guess I will be getting up in the mornings and heading out and stepping into a nice COOL POOL...Guess that is a good way to wake up the body in the morning right? I decided to be very brave and post a picture of my and Zoe swimming last Sunday at my nephew's birthday party. I lost so much weight in my arms I now have *turkey arms*. I have to work on those too to firm up the skin,( but first have to unfreeze the shoulders so I can). So if you know of any good low impact exercises for turkey arms post those suggestions right here!
  Tomorrow starts a new month and a new day. Just remember if you decide to try your hand at adding a Juice Cleanse to your life, it is something you don't have to do all the time like I am doing. Tomorrow I will tell you how we are incorporating it into my husband's life. He has chosen to use juice in a different way. each person must listen to their own body and follow it.  
Until Tomorrow.
Stay Juicy~

New Recipe will be on the Recipes Blog tonight
~Sandi

Wednesday, May 30, 2012

Stages of Juice Detoxification


I wanted to share with ya'll the different things you might be feeling as you start juicing. It is fine and normal to feel different ways and your body to go through different reactions as it releases the toxins it has been storing for years and years. I myself was amazed at the colors my tongue turned from day to day and it even depended on what juices I have been drinking.

 I just shared with you  the picture with you off all the tongues and what  I have learned from my support group on facebook with you. Some I use and you might want too...some I don't but you might find you will. It's all about sharing what we know or learn and letting each of us decide for ourselves which is right for us. 
If anyone is interested in joining our facebook group Rebooter Buddies just click and JOIN GROUP BUTTON.
As always if you have questions drop me a note and I will try to answer or ask from someone in my group. 
livingtheshweetlife@gmail.com

Also added new recipes today on the Recipes 4 Shweet Living Blog so pop over and check them out!

~~Juice ON!~~



The Different Juice Fasting Stages of Detoxification
A single cell within the human body is more complex than the most modern supercomputer. The process of removing a hundred thousand antigens, each with unique molecular properties, from trillions of functioning cells is indeed a complex process. Imagine three trillion cells being repaired during the function of countless biochemical processes needed for life. Even the best mechanics have to turn off the engine. Yet, the body has millions of micro mechanics that do this with ease.
One of the body’s automatic maintenance processes is the destruction of foreign microorganisms. When looking through a dark-field microscope, countless parasites are clearly visible. I observed parasites living inside blood cells. Several could be seen eating cholesterol, and I was amazed to see one swim. Watching lymphocytes moving in the blood was like a science-fiction movie. These complex, lymphocyte organisms attached themselves and engulfed toxins. As they did, their colorations flowed into fascinating patterns leaving me with a sense of wonder and respect for the miraculous ability and infinite complexity of the human body.

Fasting Detoxification Stages
Here is an overview of the detoxification stages during a juice fast. The time periods are a general estimation.

Stage 1 (Day 1 To Day 2)
On the first day of fasting, the blood sugar level drops below 70 mg/dl. To restore the blood to the normal glucose level, liver glycogen is converted to glucose and released into the blood. This reserve is enough for half a day. The body then reduces the basal metabolic rate (BMR). The rate of internal chemical activity in resting tissue is lowered to conserve energy. The heart slows and blood pressure is reduced. Glycogen is pulled from the muscle causing some weakness. The first wave of cleansing is usually the worst.
Headaches, dizziness, nausea, bad breath, glazed eyes and a heavily coated tongue are signs of the first stage of cleansing. Hunger can be the most intense in this period unless the enema is used which quickly assists the body into the fasting state by ending digestion in the colon.

Stage 2 (Day 3 To Day 7)
Fats, composed of transformed fatty acids, are broken down to release glycerol from the gliceride molecules and are converted to glucose. The skin may become oily as rancid oils are purged from the body. People with problem-free skin may have a few days of pimples or even a boil. A pallid complexion is also a sign of waste in the blood. Ketones are formed by the incomplete oxidation of fats. It is suspected that the ketones in the blood suppress the appetite by affecting the food-satiety center in the hypothalamus. You may feel hungry for the first few days of the fast. This effect is temporary. The desire to eat will disappear. Lack of hunger may last 40 to 60 days, depending on whether you are on water or juice.
The body embraces the fast and the digestive system is able to take a much-needed rest, focusing all of its energies on cleansing and healing. White blood cell and immune system activity increases. You may feel pain in your lungs. The cleansing organs and the lungs are in the process of being repaired. Periodically, the lymphatic system expels mucoid matter through the nose or throat. The volume excreted of this yellow-colored mucus can be shocking. The sinuses go through periods of being clogged, then will totally clear. The breath is still foul and the tongue coated. Within the intestine, the colon is being repaired and impacted feces on the intestinal wall start to loosen.

Stage 3 (Day 8 to Day 15)
On the latter part of an extended fast, you can experience enhanced energy, clear-mindedness and feel better than you have felt since childhood. On the downside, old injuries may become irritated and painful. This is a result of the body’s increased ability to heal during fasting. If you had broken your arm 10 years before, there is scar tissue around the break. At the time of the break, the body’s ability to heal was directly related to lifestyle. If you lived on a junk-food diet, the body’s natural healing ability was compromised.
During fasting, the body’s healing process is at optimum efficiency. As the body scours for dead or damaged tissue, the lymphocytes enter the older, damaged tissue secreting substances to dissolve the damaged cells. These substances irritate the nerves in the surrounding region and cause a reoccurrence of aches from previously injured areas that may have disappeared years earlier. The pain is good as the body is completing the healing process. The muscles may become tight and sore due to toxin irritation. The legs can be the worst affected, as toxins accumulate in the legs. Cankers are common in this stage due to the excessive bacteria in the mouth. Daily gargling with salt and water will prevent or heal cankers.

Stage 4 (Day 16 to Day 30)
The body is completely adapted to the fasting process. There is more energy and clarity of mind. Cleansing periods can be short with many days of feeling good in between. There are days when the tongue is pink and the breath is fresh. The healing work of the organs is being completed. After the detoxification mechanisms have removed the causative agent or render it harmless, the body works at maximum capacity in tissue proliferation to replace damaged tissue. While a short fast will reduce the symptoms, a longer fast can completely heal. Homeostatic balance is at optimum levels. The lymphatic system is clean except for a rare discharge of mucus through the nose or throat. After day 20, the mind is affected. Heightened clarity and emotional balance are felt at this time. Memory and concentration improve.

Stage 5 (Breaking the Fast)
The sticky, toxic, mucoid coating on the intestinal wall is loose, and the first meal frees it from the intestinal wall. Toxins enter the blood through the colon. The gallbladder dumps its waste in a heavy discharge of bile. This can cause an instant bowel movement upon eating followed by intense diarrhea. If the symptoms are too uncomfortable, an enema will help.

This article was written by, Mr. Tom McGregor, author of Eating in Freedom.

 

Saturday, May 26, 2012

Your Tongue Tells It All...

Are U surprised that the one little thing that gets us into so much trouble, can also be the one thing that can can help diagnose illness by simply grabbing a mirror and a bright light?
Take a good look at the chart below and your tongue.
Do you see something that looks familiar?

Amazing things are body.... What we put in them good or bad has to come out of them. Sometimes it will take many years and many diseases later for it to show up. By changing your eating habits to that of a raw diet you can reverse the bad and remove the toxins from your body.
I have been amazed at the changes in myself and my husband, Marty.
I have been on a total Juice only diet since March 21, 2012. 
My husband has been on a Juice and healthy food diet. 
No fried food, dairy and eating as much raw as 
possible. No red meat either. 
One little  ~ToNgUe~ hint before I close this post today. When you are juicing be sure to brush your teeth, gums and tongue after every glass. The juice tends to set in your mouth. Also, remember from the chart above, your body is releasing toxins through your tongue so your will want to get those nasty toxins out and of your mouth and gone as soon as your can.

That's all today.
Til Tomorrow.
~Sandi~
Photo from Judi Finneran 


Recipe for Today Yummo! Red, White and Blue Juice

Perfect Juice for the HOT Memorial Weekend!
Strawberry Blueberry Jicama Juice.
Very Easy to Make and Oh So Good For YOU!

1 Jicima (peeled and cut into pieces)
1 cups of fresh blueberries
6 oz  Strawberries



        Juice all of the above together and drink cold. If you like things to drink smoothies, no problem at all. Simply throw the juice into a blender add ice and blend. You now have a nice Red, White and Blue Smoothie. Jicama when juiced  creates a great deal of cloudy white liquid that is a slightly vanilla taste. It is loaded with vitamins C, A and B, along with calcium and phosphorus.

Enjoy this Good tasty juice that has lots of purposes this holiday weekend!
Remember to stop and thank those how gave their lives to make and keep us safe!
~Til later~
Stay Juicey and Healthy~
Sandi

Friday, May 25, 2012

Memorable Movies for YOU to GET Healthy With this Holiday Weekend

The first thing I want to say is Please while you are out and about this Memorial  Weekend take a moment to stop and say a prayer for those who are serving our country away and at home, both in the military and serving in our police, fire and other forms of service. If you happen to see an Active or Vet please take time and Say THANKS. They will probably  brush it off and say "OH, Just doing my duty." and turn red. I know my baby brother does every time I thank him. But they are going way above and beyond.
Not just them but also the families of all our service men and women, police, firemen, EMT etc...

After you say your prayer for the ones who keep us safe and free and their families & thank all of them that ya see I'm sure you will have a little bit of free time and I wanted to give you a list of some movies you might be interested in catching on Netflix or youtube. This list was made up by a friend of mine in my Rebooters group on Facebook Michael Jones. If you get a chance to see some of these movies they will help you move forward in deciding what type of life change you will want to do after you complete your juice cleanse. NOW is the time for you to start deciding what you are going to transcend into after you come off of all juice (if you are just drinking juice now).  Remember you went to all the trouble to get your body detoxed and clean...feeling great now you don't want to add all the additives and junk food back into it do you?

Here are some of the Movies. I have watched a few of these that are closed captioned. The ones in BOLD i have seen and to me I say are MUST SEES!


Here's a list of Documentaries with corresponding links. Please feel free to add to this list if you have a title to share!

Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead

Forks Over Knives

Food Matters

Hungry For Change

Food, Inc.

FRESH

Food Fight

King Corn

The Future Of Food

Others you can find on Netflix are
The Gerson Miracle
Raw for Thirty Days

Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Cantaloupe as BIG as a Basketball!

Just the other day we were walking into Kroger's to pick up our nightly kale for our Mean Green. Now we go get our kale there because it is always beautiful and the produce guy saves it specially for me each day. As we approached the store we saw the biggest cantaloupes I have ever seen in my life. These cantaloupes were bigger than personal watermelons. WERE THEY CANTALOUPES EVEN?


Into the store we went to check out this monster size melons.So we discover the name of these basketball size beauties...*Athana Cantaloupes*. Yes they are a cantaloupe! In fact they are a hybrid of a regular ole cantaloupe they are quite a bit bigger and on so much shweetier! They are mainly grown in the South and Eastern US and have a very short growing period so you have to grab them when you see them. They have a salmon colored flesh, about 125 seeds that can be removed and planted once they are dried, and the flesh melts in your mouth (so my husband and grand baby says).

We decided we just had to show you the difference this melon was so we took a picture of it beside a regular cantaloupe and a personal watermelon. See what we mean?  


 My first one weighed in at 7.5 pounds and the cost was only $2.00. So you get a whole lot of melon for a little bit of money! and boy does it make a bunch of juice too! This is how much juice one melon made....


So for this next juice we added the personal melon and 2 kiwi to the Athana. Turned out quite nice. (Yes I know i tell you all the time no all fruit juices but every now and then you can treat yourself and this also makes a great treat as a frozen pop.)


Athana Cantaloupe Watermelon Kiwi Juice

1 Athana Cantaloupe
1 Personal Watermelon (all the watermelon rind and all)
2 Kiwi peeled
Juice all the above together. Stain well and serve nice and cold.

To make as Popsicle
Need:
Paper Solo Cups smallest size I use the bathroom size.
Wood Popsicle Sticks
(or you can purchase the store made plastic Popsicle containers.)

Pour your juice into the cups til about 1/2 inch from the top of the cup. Place the cups on a flat surface that will fit into your freezer. Place into your freezer. Check on your cups, when they have reached the point where they are at the *slush* stage, place a wooden Popsicle stick in the center of each one. The stick needs to be able to stand in the cup and then place them back int the freezer to freeze rest of the way. Once they are frozen you can place them into a large plastic Ziploc bag, storage container or peel off the paper cup and eat one!

Enjoy these while you can!

Sunday, May 20, 2012

So excite I Finally Got THE BLOG SET UP! RECIPE BLOG TOO!

I AM SO EXCITED! Can you tell? Marty and I were talking and we decided that since we juice 1 sometimes twice a day and I always make something out of the pulp at least once a day that I just had to add a RECIPE Blog as a companion blog to the Living the Shweet Life Blog. So of course I set to work getting that set up on Wednesday night. I have connected the two blogs together and yet they are also each stand alone blogs in case there are folks who don't want to listen to me ramble on and on... LOL



So Hope you will come by and check out Recipes 4 Shweet Living . I started adding some of our recipes that we are created and that we like. We try to work on the 80/20 ratio  but there are times when it is not that. I will let ya know if it is all fruits so you can be warned.  Like the one I will be blogging about tomorrow and the reason I am still up tonight. OH MY GOODNESS IT WAS SO GOOD!

Just looked at that picture...looks good to eat but you really can't read it to well. Thinking I just need some good graphics from my Shweet gal Carm.

Til Tomorrow
Stay Juicy
~ Sandi


Tuesday, May 15, 2012

You want to JUICE? HOW DO YOU START?

Lots of you out there want to start juicing but just are not sure where to start. I know what you mean I was the same way when I started out. I must have watched "Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead" six times before I started juicing and when I did, I started at first with my blender. I did not know any different I thought heck a blender is better than nothing.

Using a blender is not juicing, that is making a Smoothie and that is just fine and can be very healthy in itself. BUT it will not give you a cleanse like a juice diet will.  If you are going to drink smoothies, just make sure you are watching you don't add to much sugar or fat into them. okay ya'll here is a smoothie recipe from
"The RECIPE BIBLE" by Pat Crocker.
Frozen Fruit Slurry
1/2 CUP  freshly squeezed orange juice
4 frozen banana chunks
4 frozen strawberries
1/4 cup frozen fruit juice (i would freeze your fresh orange juice into cubes)
1 cup ice cubes
In a Blender or Vita-Mix, combine all above and process until the mix is nice and smooth. Serve immediately.

** NOTE** to make the juice for your fruit juice. Juice fresh strawberries, oranges and any other fruit you like together and freeze into ice cubes. Keep them in a ziplock bag in your freezer for when you want to make Smoothies or add to drinks for a ZIP of fresh flavor.

Back to looking for your juicer. I started by reading reviews. When you read reviews you begin to see which juicer you are more likely to want to have in your kitchen. Next: What is the price you have to spend at this time? When I started juicing I knew that I only had about $50.00 to spend on a juicer so I went in search of the best juicer I could find in that price range. I also knew this was something NEW to me and being new I might not stick with it. So I would not be served to spend $500.00 on a Breville at this time but I did find a GE Juicer at Walmart for 49.00 that works so wonderful, cleans up in a snap (By hand not in the dishwasher) and juices really well. This juicer received the best reviews from all the juicers I researched online everywhere...that were priced under $500.00. That says a whole lot to me and  helps those of us who live on a limited budget.

There are a few other things that Marty and I simply can't live without in our Juicing Kitchen and we picked up these items at our Local Dollar Tree. He told me to make sure I told you in my blog so you can get the items too.
Metal Strainers (2 sizes) I use them to clean my greens and also to make sure my juices are nice and clear
Large Plastic Bowls (3) You will want to clean and cut up your veggies & fruits before you start making your juice each time. By having more than one large bowl you can do all your cleaning and prep work ahead of time and be set.
Veggie Peeler with Brush- It is awesome to have a peeler/brush combo. You can have it separate but I personally love the combo and it saves money too. (The long brush is also a perfect brush for cleaning your juicer basket.)
Large  Liquid Measuring Cups I think everyone who juices should have at least 2 large measuring cups. You can place your strainer or nut bag (some folks use that to stain their juices) over the top and pour in your fresh from the juicer JUICE. This is a step I have added and it really makes the juice so smooth.
Set of  "Dry" Measuring Cups- These are great for measuring grapes, blueberries, blackberries etc.
Measuring Spoons
Long Handled Plastic Spoons- Make sure you get several you will want several of these for stirring your juices once you mix your juices together in jugs.
Jugs or pitchers- Plastic with well fitting lids. Personally I like the tall, thin ones so that you can fit several side-by-side in the fridge and not take up to much room.
Travel Mugs- Plastic travel mugs are the best for going places with your juice. One hint... fill your travel mug about 1/4 of the way with your juice and freeze it. Then in the morning before you leave for work or your trip add your juice and seal. Your juice will stay nice and cold and the juice will thaw. Just make sure you leave room at the top for the juice to "un-freeze".

Hope this helps Out a little bit. If you are still not sure about juicing I have something I can send ya. Just drop me a note at livingtheshweetlife@gmail.com and I will email it to you. It explains juicing a little bit more.
Til later Have a Juicy Day
~Sandi

Monday, May 14, 2012

Went Fishing Today...Walked Around a Lake...1st Time...EVER!

Today was a first for me! Hubby came home from work and took me to Josey Ranch  to walk around the Lake there and to go fishing with him. Of course I forgot my camera and realized it the moment I stepped out of the car and saw the beautiful sky and water. The birds were flying above my head and the ducks and fish were swimming in the water. Every once in a while a heron and a lone white stork would swoop down and try to grab at the bait Marty had at his feet.

I looked online til I found a picture of this beautiful lake so that I could show you the amazing beautify of it. This picture does not do it justice. As we walked around the lake, I thought to myself how lucky I was that I lived in this busy urban city yet here in the middle of all the of the craziness is a peaceful retreat. NOT only that, HOW I have lived in this area now since 1980 and I have never walked this lake. NEVER! Even when I was younger and smaller I never did. I am so excited that I CAN ACTUALLY Walk around like this with my hubby! 40 pounds off the knees, back, ankles and hips makes a huge difference. Wonder what 40 more will mean?

Today for the first time, we took our first walk completely around the lake. Marty asked me, "did I want to go ALL THE WAY AROUND?" NOT sure HOW FAR it is... I don't care let's walk and fish. Enjoy the day. Enjoy the fact that I can actually walk out and about. As we reached the opposite side of the lake we saw a sign that read....
                    " You have just completed 
                                  a circle of 
                            Josey Ranch Lake
                                   .64 Mile" 
                      Would you like to go again?"

 I think I will take a second trip around the lake when we go on Wednesday and I will not just go around it once but at least twice.This time I will remember to bring my camera and show you the beautiful wildlife that lives inside the Urban jungle I call home.

I did remember to take my thermos of Mean Green with me. I have to remember to bring something to feed the ducks. Do you think they would like veggies or fruit? Maybe some kale perhaps?

 Remember to get out and walk if you can. Taking care of our health food wise is great but we also have to take care of our health by exercise too. I am one of the worse people to talk about this. Pain has kept me in bed or sitting for the past 15 years but not any longer. Up and at them is my new motto so walking each day aches and pains or not. Let me know what you are doing each day to get rid of those pesky inches?
 Comment here I'd love to know cause heaven knows I need some help myself
. HUGs

Til Tomorrow
Stay Juicy
~Sandi

Life Is Just A Bowl Of Fruit...And Veggies 2

When I started this juice journey I never realized how much fun one could have with a bowl of fruit and veggies. After my first week of making the standard juices I set out to make up my own juices, making sure I kept to the 80% vegetable to 20% fruit ratio that is advised for a nice health glass of juice. Most of the time when creating my juices, I tried to make the fruit part less than 20% and  quite often pure  veggie juices are the best ones created. Remember when making your own juices to jot down your recipes, good or bad that way you have a record. Snap pictures of the before and after too. It is a whole lot of fun once you get started and sometimes it is really hard to stop.

Now, HOW do you know what to put into your juicer? WELL, that depends on several things.
1. Taste. Of course you want the veggies and fruit combination to taste good together.
2. What are you juicing for? To loose weight? To fight pain? Cancer Prevention?
                                                                             
Do your research. "The Juicing Bible" by Pat Crocker is an easy read a great way to know which veggies, fruits and herbs to use. This book even has a large number of tried and true recipes all ready for you. I received this for my birthday this year and have already read it front to back. LOVE IT.
Use your computer. Google, Join support groups.... There is a great Rebooters Group on facebook.. ASK For help! Folks are so willing to help out.


Wanted to share one of my favorite juices I came up with... I like to call it my
  3 Cs and A G Juice
1/2 Cantaloupe
3 medium canning cucumbers
1 large carrot
1 celery stalk
1 1/2 cups grapes




This juice is wonderful ICE COLD at the pool and even works well to freeze in small paper cups, add a wood stick when partially frozen so that the stick will stand in the center. YUMMY.
Stay Tune for more Recipes and fun ideas!
HAVE A Juicy DAY!
~Sandi 








Joe's Mean Green Juice

MEAN GREEN JUICE per Joe Cross
From "Fat, Sick And Nearly Dead"

  • 1 cucumber
  • 4 celery stalks
  • 2 apples
  • 6-8 leaves kale (Australian tuscan cabbage)
  • 1/2 lemon
  • 1 tbsp ginger (I personally don't add this as my stomach can't handle it)

Saturday, May 12, 2012

The Start of A New Life Change


Earlier this year my sister in law told me about a documentary, called “Fat, Sick and NearlyDead” by Joe Cross. It took me about 2 months to find one that was closed captioned so I could watch it but when I did, I knew this was something I needed to do. You too can watch this movie from your home either on Netflix or youtube  and also read all kinds of info at the REBOOT community.


WHAT EXACTLY IS THIS REBOOT Thing? Well it is simple. You first check with your doctor and make sure it is okay with him that you go on a reboot or detox diet. Then you purchase a juicer. You should have already watched “Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead” several times if you are like most of us. You will be replacing some if not all of you meals each day with raw vegetable & fruit juices. Yes, you heard that correctly juice(liquid) not food for your meals.

 It works believe me. This is not something you are doing the rest of your life. This is something you are doing to detox your body, for a short while. YOU ARE REBOOTING YOUR BODY. WHY? I think of it this way; for 53 years I abused my body with fast foods, sugar, gluten and fried foods. Now my body is telling me it will no longer allow me to continue to feed it that kind of *junk*. By only taking in juice, you are getting nutrients and vitamins into your bloodstream. You are allowing your stomach to rest while you are still being fed directly into your bloodstream. You choose the length of time to follow your juice cleanse. (Joe calls this a fast...I say cleanse 'cause fast to me means no food and I am eating be it a liquid). Remember this is about a detox of your body, removing the impurities so that you can start fresh with a healthier way to eat and live.

If you are on Facebook I would invite you to join a Reboot support group called 
RebooterBuddies – 2012. Everyone there is so friendly, helpful and very supportive.
My personal id is Sandi Keeton Ramirez. If we are not already connected please *friend* me and I will accept.
Check back, I'll be sharing some of my tips and experiences on this wonderful trip to get healthy. Have recipes, suggestions or ideas or you would like to share on this blog? Feel free to drop me a line. 
livingtheshweetlife@gmail.com
I hope you will follow me on my journey to better health and a new lifestyle. 
Sandi