Day 16

I am feeling much better today than yesterday...after juicing all day I'm really starting to feel back on track with everything! I also got my first workout in this morning.  I did Day 1 of the Couch to 5k as well as some strength training and abs.  My energy is up quite a bit after adding food back into my diet and I can't wait to start hitting up the gym again.  What I really love about the program is you only have to get to the gym 3 times a week, but you can obviously go as many times as you like. Very doable for a nursing student who works part time.

Now for my Chicken Enchilada Soup! I have shared this with a couple of people before who fell in love with it at as well.  I adapted it from The Pioneer Woman as well as this recipe from All Recipes.  You can add a couple cups of cheese for a creamier texture, but this time I was going for healthy!

Ingredients

3 Whole Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts

1 Tablespoon Olive Oil

1 Cup Diced Onion

1 Green or Red Bell Pepper

1 Jalapeno (Optional)

3 Cloves Garlic, Minced

1 16 oz. Can Enchilada Sauce (Mild or Hot)

2 15 oz. Cans Black Beans, Drained (If you don't like black beans, frozen corn would work great)

1 16 oz. Can Diced Tomatoes

1 teaspoon Salt

1-2 teaspoons Chili Powder

1-2 teaspoons Cumin

½ teaspoon Garlic Powder

32 oz Low Sodium Chicken Stock

4 Cups Water

I know it seems like a ton of ingredients, but you probably already have most of them in your pantry already. Plus this makes a HUGE pot of soup, I literally freeze half and still have the other half for lunch all week.

Directions

Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a pot over medium high heat.

Add onions, pepper, jalapeno, and garlic.  Saute ingredients until the onions are translucent.  

Stir in salt, chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, and shredded chicken breasts. 

Pour in chicken stock, tomatoes, enchilada sauce, water, and rinsed black beans.  Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer.

You will want to simmer at least 30-45 minutes uncovered.  Then it’s finished!

(If you want a thicker soup, add 3-4 tablespoons flour after sautéing the onions, pepper, jalapeno, and garlic.  Allow it to cook out for a couple of minutes before adding the rest of the ingredients.)

I love to garnish with:

Sour Cream

Cheddar or Monterey Jack Cheese

Diced Avocado

Tortilla Chips 

Day 15

The next two days will be juice fasting only! I have not been able to juice the past couple of days as much as I would like to and really want to get back on track.  I had lunch with my mom, cousin, and grandparents today, which was awesome. I hadn't seen my grandparents or cousin Katie in too long and was not going to miss out on spending time with them.  Lunch would have been fine if I had been disciplined enough to come back home and juice for the rest of the day. But (cringe...) that didn't happen.  I had a bowl of chicken chili for supper with my mom before our cake decorating class. I was still able to get in two jars of veggie juice today, but that just isn't going to cut it!

I'm trying not to feel guilty about today because I know that it will only bring my spirits down.  I had a fantastic day with family and friends and am not going to beat myself up because of it.  I also have learned that in the past whenever I forbid myself from doing or eating something, I only want it more! So tomorrow is a new day and fresh start. Literally...bring on cucumbers, carrots, spinach, kale, tomatoes, apples, blueberries, blackberries, and celery for breakfast, snack, lunch, snack, dinner, snack! Tomorrow will also be my first run for Couch to 5k! Please pray that I make it through the 30 minutes of physical activity.....

I've also noticed my water consumption decreasing.  I can totally tell a difference in how I feel with how much water I drink during the day.  Maybe tomorrow I'll venture to Marshalls for a fun new water bottle or container for some motivation. Yes, I can obviously be bribed....by myself.

I know this is more of a "juicing" blog, but I am going to start posting some recipes as well! Plus it's my little journal and I suppose I can write about whatever I want :) So coming up tomorrow is my recipe for the BEST Chicken Enchilada Soup.

Day 14

It's day 14 and I can honestly say that I cannot wait for this weekend to be over! It has been a hassle juicing while half of my "supplies" were at my house and the other at the house I was sitting.  I picked up some kale and beets along with a ton of other fresh fruits and veggies at the store today.  Beets have sort of been scaring me, I have heard that they give juice an "earthy" taste....but they are filled with antioxidants and figured they were woth a shot!

In other news, I am starting the Couch to 5k program. I am in no way a runner and have had back issues in the past but I think it's time to start up again. It is a simple, easy program to follow and it only takes about 30 minutes, 3 times a week- which is totally doable for me!

I'm starting this because for some reason I thought it would be a fantastic idea to sign up for this: The Warrior Dash.  This is an extreme 5k run filled with obstacles such as barricading over the Great Barrier Wall and leaping over fires. There are about 12 obstacles in all and it looks completely insane.  I was able to talk my brother, sister, and her husband into doing it with me as well! If nothing else it'll be a good motivator to get more cardio and strength training into my life.  There are still a ton of times open for Sunday if you want to get signed up! I'm pretty nervous and have never participated in something like this before, but what do I have to lose?...besides my pride and dignity...

Day 10

So I've finally reached Day 10! I have to admit that the first couple of days were the hardest and it has definitely only gotten easier throughout the week.  I'm at work again tonight and just had my first meal.  It definitely could have been healthier, but I thought I deserved a little goodness in my life.  My brother has been staying with Jackson while I work over night and he just had to order a Buffalo Chicken Pizza from Pizza Gourmet. Well needless to say, there was some leftover. I had one slice of pizza, carrots, and celery for my first meal.  It wasn't the best choice, but I restricted myself to one piece when in the past I could have eaten 3 or 4 slices! I am drinking my regular amount of juice tonight as well.  Although I only ate one slice of pizza and some veggies I am feeling very full and bloated. But it's kind of a good feeling to know that I can be satisified with a much smaller portion size than only 11 days ago.

I know I have a LONG ways to go, but I took some measurements this morning and was quite surprised at the results! I have not worked out once in the past 10 days but am still starting to see some changes.

Left Bicep: -0.5 in
Right Bicep: -0.5 in
Chest: -1.25 in
Waist: -2.5 in
Hips: -1 in
Pounds Lost: 4 lbs

In all I've lost a total of 5.75 inches lost and 4 pounds! Stay tuned!!!

Day 9

Day 9 is here! I'm working two 12 hour  night shifts in a row again this week so it's throwing my juicing schedule off just a little. Since I'm almost to day 10 I thought I'd share some of the things I've learned in the past 9 days

1. Stop drinking the juice when you reach the top frothy/foamy stuff on the top. It does not taste good and it makes me gag every time I accidentally want to drink it ALL down. Gagging is bad, because throwing up 1 cucumber, 2 handfuls of spinach, 2 tomatoes, 4 stalks of celery, and 2 apples is not my idea of a fun juicing experience.
2. Clean the juicer IMMEDIATELY after use. Yes, there were many times I was in a hurry to get to school or just wanted to crawl in bed for the night. But trust me, it's much easier to clean/rinse off right away. If I hadn't disciplined myself to clean it after every use, I would have looked at a dirty juicer everyday and given up on Day 2.
3. Put a plastic bag into the roughage "catcher." This may be hard to explain, but all of the roughage/stuff that isn't juiced comes out the back and into this big container.  Lining it with a Wal-Mart or Target bag to catch the mess saved tons of time cleaning that darn thing out.
4. Wash and chop all vegetables when coming home from the grocery store.  Juicing in a rush is time consuming as it is, let alone having to chop and clean every carrot, piece of celery, and cucumber that I used on a daily basis. Storing in a tupperware container or bag makes for easy, simple, and fun juicing :)  (Think I could sell ice to an eskimo?)
5. Don't sit around and watch others eat! Also avoid rummaging through the freezer and pantry "just to see what's in there..." I did this plenty of times in the past 10 days. Trust me, it's not worth it. I know there is nothing in the freezer to be juiced, so I have been avoiding it at all cost.
6. Don't go more than 2-3 hours without drinking! The more time I go inbetween drinking my juice, the hungrier I am and the harder it gets.
7. Don't even watch the dog eat. And the puppy peanut butter that you can put into their toys SHOULD NOT be consumed as human peanut butter. Or so the label says. This can also refer to #5
8. Don't tell every Jack, Dick, and Jane about your juicing. I'm not saying don't tell friends and family, but having to explain your diet to every elementary teacher in the break room is not fun.
9.  Invest in some good storage jars or containers.  My mason jars have been a lifesaver throughout the past 9 days.  I have tried storing in tupperware a couple of times, but it inevitably ends up leaking.
10. If you are going to drink a "green" juice in public, don't put carrots in it. Yes, they add such a sweet, mellow flavor, but with the flavor comes color. Pretty Green juice gets less stares than juice that looks like something no one should ever consume.
11. When buying fruit, splurge only on a couple of items for the week.  I always have the basics such as apples and oranges on hand, but last week I bought a pineapple, and this week a cantaloupe.  Cutting them up at the beginning of the week and adding a couple of slices to my fruit juices in the morning is a special little treat.  It also makes me feel like I am on a tropical island...until I look down and realize that I have spilled bright orange juice all over my scrub pants on the way to clinical. True story.
12. Have some friends go out of town the week you are going to start your juice cleanse.  That way you can stay in their huge house, baby sit for their precious golden retriever, and pretend you're at a spa (a spa that "allows" you to scoop some poop a couple of times). It also helps if there is a shower head that is retractable from the wall.  That way you can get everything nice & clean during the week. Like your feet :) I obviously don't have a retractable shower head at my house, but I really am starting to believe that it's all about the little things in life.

Day 8

I want food! I want food! I want food! just kidding....no, actually I'm not....I WANT FOOD!!!!
Is it Thursday yet? I didn't think so.

This wouldn't be so bad if I could just stay cooped up for the next 3 days. I wouldn't mind watching American Pickers and Teen Mom in the theater all day. Yes, the house I'm "sitting" has a movie theater.
But no, I have to leave the house for civilization and go to my clinical site for the day at an elementary school.
And of course people are going to ask questions when you break out a HUGE container full of weird, green juice during lunch break.  People I don't know. People who don't read this little blog and understand what I'm going through! So instead of saying "You can do it, only 2 days left!" they say...."arent you hungry? is that going to fill you up? it's like your starving yourself!" I try to explain to them why I'm doing this and the benefits/awesomeness that comes along with it, but they just don't understand.

Little do they know that I juiced more vegetables for my lunch juice than they are probably eating all week! They also have no idea that I drink about 4 of those containers daily, so there is no way possible that I'm starving.
Sorry about that....moving along.

I had the best breakfast this morning. It consisted of
2 Apples
1 Orange
1 Handful Blackberries
1 Handful Blueberries
1/3 Pineapple
Yum!

Lunch was the usual:
1 Apple
2 Handfuls Spinach
1 Cucumber
3 Stalks Celery
3 Carrots
1 Stalk Romaine
1 Banana
Double Yum!

I think it made them happy that I had at least 1 "chewable" item. It made me happy too. For some reason I feel like "that nursing student from Clarkson" may be discussed at their lunch break tomorrow.

Day 7

I have successfully completed one week of juicing! It was a loonnnggggggg week and I'm so glad it's over.  These next 3 days should be a breeze before I start adding one (healthy...hopefully) meal back into my diet.  I went grocery shopping again today and spent about $40.  I still had some produce from last week and didn't want to overspend since I won't just be juicing this week.  One thing that is pretty awesome about juicing is how simple it is.  I don't have to worry about meal planning, going to subway before work since I don't have any food at my house, or spending extra money on food throughout the week.

I watched the documentary Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead again today for some more motivation! If you want to watch it, but don't want to spend the money, Amazon has a free month trial that you can sign up for and watch it for FREE! You still put a credit card number in, but just immediately cancel the "membership" from activating after a month.

Click on THIS link, which will take you directly to the viewing site on Amazon. Then click on "watch now $0.00," sign up for a free monthly membership, and you're good to go!

I can definitely tell that I have more energy and motivation since I've started juicing.  That "full, blah, I feel awfully fat" feeling that I used to get isn't there anymore either.  And I am CRAVING fresh fruits, vegetables, and salads.  I am not losing too much weight, but am definitely losing inches and my clothes are already starting to fit better.  I have been able to stay away from the fruit roll ups, nutella, and doritos in the house I'm sitting for now, but they have definitelly been calling my name.


I just have to remember that you guys are all probably expecting before and after pics sooner or later in the game....AHHHHHHHHH NERVE WRECKING!

Day 5 1/2

Day 5 is almost over....I decided to stay in with Jackson tonight to A) avoid food/empty calorie temptation and B) because I am EXHAUSTED from school and work. I couldn't resist a picture. This is what doggy day care does to him....

For lunch and dinner I made my favorite "green" drink.  I threw an assortment of veggies into the juicer one day and loved it:
1 Apple
1/2 Cucumber
4 carrots
4 stalks of celery
2 small tomatoes (or 1 medium- if you use more tomatoe, it tastes like a bloody mary- whats not to love?)
1 handful of spinach
1/2 of a head of romaine lettuce
3-4 broccoli flourets
juice from one lemon

I really like this drink because it contains a variety of veggies.  It yields about 2, 16 oz jars of juice. You can of course double or triple the recipe!

(sorry, it's kind of blurry...I'm stuck in the age of the blackberry) 

While I would love to buy every single one of my fruits and vegetables organically as well as fresh, that just isn't possible on my budget.  Maybe some day, but definitely not now... I spent about $60.00 on my first grocery trip, and it will last me one full week! Some of the items even longer than that! Since I drink juice about 4-5 times a day, that adds up to only $2.00/meal.  I bought 1 bag each of frozen blueberries and strawberries.  I keep them in my fridge and take from the bags whenever needed!  I also bought a 5 pack of romaine lettuce at Sams that has been awesome to throw in almost every juice I make.  It is virtually tasteless, but the nutritional benefits are amazing!

One question I was asked today was how I was getting my source of protein. Vegetable proteins are known as incomplete proteins but are exactly what the body uses to rebuild muscle.  If you are eating or juicing enough fruits and vegetables, a protein deficiency is nearly impossible.  We only need about 10% of our daily calories from protein, and most of us average 15-16% daily.
Here are some protein comparisons:
Bananas: 4%
Cucumbers: 11%
Oranges: 7%
Green Leaf Lettuce: 22%
Watermelon: 7%
Eggs: 37%
Whole Milk: 23%
Beef: 50%

While animals may be high in protein, they are also high in FAT! Eggs and ground beef are both around 60% fat. I hope that kind of answers the question.  I know that was a big issue for me when first starting to juice, but after reading tons of information on it a protein deficiency is just impossible!
I also plan on incorporating more protein sources after my 10 days of only juicing are up.  Such as nuts, lean animal protein, and more fish! If you want to learn more go to this website and it should answer tons of your questions!

Source

If anyone has any questions or comments please feel free to leave something in the comment section or e-mail me! I would LOVE to hear from you!

Day 5

It's Day 5, which is half way to my 10 day juicing cleanse!
My fruit juice for breakfast has been my favorite yet.  I used 1/3 of a pineapple, 1 orange, and a couple handfuls of blueberries.  I wish I had saved some cantaloupe from earlier in the week because I think it would have gone great with the pineapple, but oh well.  I am currently down around 5 pounds.  It fluctuates daily, but I will be posting pictures, measurements, and weights periodically.  I don't want to lose too much more weight.  Staying at a reasonable weight and reducing body fat is my main goal.

Dog sitting is going hilariously well.  I forgot how fun and entertaining it is to have a dog around all the time.  I feel like I'm living a double life.  I'm staying in their spacious guest bedroom with white bedding and a taupe paint my mom would love. She loves any shape of taupe/tan. Jackson and I got up early this morning because the house cleaners were coming.  I guess he likes to steal their rags, so he is at doggy day care for the day.

I hope this weekend isn't too hard on my juicing.  As long as I can avoid the pantry and keep my motivation up I will be fine. Stay tuned....

ps- I have no idea how this halfway turned into a blog about jackson. I now understand how dog owners lives revolve around their pups.

Day 4

I've been trying to keep up with working two twelve hour night shifts, school, and juicing for the past couple of days.  It's been difficult but I made it through! I did break down and eat a carrot yesterday morning after getting off of work.  I had absolutely NO energy to juice and needed something in my stomach before going to sleep for the day.  It really did help fill me up, and if having one carrot is cheating, then I guess I'm okay with that. I've also started juicing a little bit more everyday.  I was losing weight too quickly and needed some more energy for work the past couple of nights.  

In other news, I started dog sitting the most precious golden retriever today! His name is Jackson and I got to pick him up from doggie day care.  Holy. Cow. You wouldn't believe that place! They have video monitoring, snack time, play time, outdoor space, a doggie beauty parlor, and I could go on and on. I thought he would be a great running, err...jogging, uhhh walking partner for the week. BUT HE WAS EXHAUSTED! He has hardly gotten up from the couch since we got home.  I'm staying at his parents house till next Sunday, so I'm sure it'll be an interesting week with him around.

I brought all of my juicing supplies over to their house, but they have kiddos...which means it is literally stockpiled with fruit snacks, chips, frozen pizza, bagels, ice cream, and not to mention a stocked bar. But...I plan to stay away from the empty calories and continue juicing.  I think a trip to the grocery store on Saturday to stock up will give me some more inspiration and excitement for juicing.