Day 3

Good morning,

 I hope you are feeling steady and calm as you ease into your juice fast.  The first two days are often the hardest, and you may find that you feel more energized later today. 

Remember that the cleanse is a process and a journey.  It is normal to feel physically or emotionally heavy as you begin to dislodge toxins of all sorts.  

Your dreams may be more intense, and your tongue may be releasing more of a substantial layer of ama today.  Remember to scrape your tongue before you have any water so that you don’t consume what has been released.  You can floss and scrape your tongue in the evening as well. 

I am always amazed by what these first two days can do in shifting our perspectives around eating and self-care practices.  We can make such a to-do over getting back on track again and convince ourselves that it takes so much effort, we might as well put it off for another day.  

But it takes just 2-3 days to realize that we can climb back on track just by aligning what we want to be doing with what we are doing, at least as it relates to how we are taking care of ourselves.  To me, that is everything in giving us the energy to keep going.  Shifting the perspective to claim this time as your gift to yourself, rather than a punishment for living your life the best way you knew how. To quote the Van Leeuwen ice cream purveyors, “a life without anything good is bad.”  Finding balance is key. 

I hope you are enjoying the juice so far.  Fasting on raw, juiced fruits and vegetables is one of the best ways to clean and strengthen your body. Because the digestive system is not busy breaking down and filtering solid food, the energy this would normally take is redirected to cell rejuvenation, immune function and elimination processes. 

You will likely feel waves of energy during a fast.  At times, you’ll feel what some have called “natural Red Bull” and at others, you’ll want a nap.  Try to ride your own flow.  The way you feel during this juice fast is not how you’ll feel during the next one or the one after that.  Every fast is a unique exploration and a wonderful time for writing in your journal. 

Please make sure you are drinking enough fresh pressed juice that you are neither hungry nor lightheaded.  You should be drinking juice every time you feel hungry, rather than saving it for meal and snack times every 3 hours. You can have a few sips or a whole bottle at once.  A good cut off time in the evening is 8:30 PM.  

In addition to juice, you must drink tea, warm water with lemon and homemade vegetable broth (any vegetable medley, purified water, sea salt and pepper, strained through a colander - or use the recipe in the manual).  If you consume only juice, Vata will be very high and you’ll feel scattered, cold and unhappy.  It would be better to skip the broth until you can make it on the weekend than to have the store-bought kind with additives.  

If you are Vata (or experiencing constipation, weakness or dryness, which are Vata issues), please drink more room temperature water, juice, broth and tea, as too much cold or raw food imbalances Vata.  

Kapha, stay very mindful of warm liquid intake.  Balance the cold juice with room temperature water, or hot tea and broth.  Pitta, make sure to always have juice on hand, so that you are not going hungry for too long.  This would, of course, apply to everyone.

Make sure the juice stays refrigerated to prevent spoiling.  

Be okay with a little hunger and remember that a lot of the feeling starts in the mind. When you feel hungry, check in, stop yourself from panic, nourish yourself with juice or broth, and check in again.  If you are feeling very lightheaded or dizzy and feel you need to consume something more than the juice or smoothie, try all-natural applesauce or blended cooked vegetables (like a blended soup). You can also have a small amount of homemade, non-strained almond milk to bring you back to earth. 

Try to stay in the moment, witnessing your mental and physical reactions to the fast.  If you catch yourself wishing for something different than what you have, take yourself back to this moment and remember what you do have: a well-deserved rest, the opportunity to connect within a supportive community, a chance to pick up a project you've been meaning to finish, an excuse to let go of all stuck emotion and thoughts.  Remember that what you're doing is feeding your wellness, not taking away from it.  You are refining your patience, your higher mind and your ability to visualize the big picture.  You are practicing the skill of reframing your experiences and communicating with the self rather than bouncing along through your reactions. 

See the day as a breath-by-breath refinement of focus, and give yourself tea, juice and water anytime you need it.  Remember that you have endless sources of strength and vitality within you apart from food.  Let your inspirations, in all of their forms, bring you energy and joy today.  

Have a wonderful day.

Warmly,

Lauren