General Juice Fasting Rules:

o Have freshly prepared fruit and veggie juice and do not store it for over 72 hours. If you cannot consume it right away, put it into an airtight jug or jar. It is important for the juice to be sealed air tight to avert premature spoilage. Juice extracted freshly from fruits and/or vegetables is a huge nutritional powerhouse. It does, however, spoil quite quickly, so it is very important for you to be aware of this so you do not let any of it go to waste.

o The majority of fruit/veggie juices go down quite smoothly and do not foster the release of acids from your stomach. However, I caution you to use lemon, orange and tomato juice sparingly as they could, in some cases, cause uncomfortable acidity. Use them, but always mix them up with other types of produce.

o Raw fruits and vegetables aren’t always suitable when eaten jointly. Apples tend to be the exclusion.

o Working with Greens– you may want to juice all of your greens up front and leave harder types of veggies for last. The reason for this is that when you prepare greens last, they tend to create a thick sediment on the jug, which makes pouring it harder. I actually spilled an entire half-gallon of juice I had just extracted for that very same reason.

For example, I juice a few carrots or pears first, then I move on to spinach, parsley and watercress… then on to carrots, celery and/or squash. You may come up with your own favorite way of juicing; this is just my recommendation based on a lot of trial and error

o Melons should be juiced themselves. Making a meal out of melons is another option.

o Refrain from utilizing juices of the sweetened, commercial variety. That is just garbage and will only serve to perpetuate sugar cravings. Any food that is pasteurized loses its nutritional pep.

o Cucumbers are in the melon family and might not blend too well with other vegetables. You may have to get used to the taste in some mixtures, but do not let that inhibit you from trying out new combinations.

o Dilute all fruit juice 25 to 50% so as to minimize the amount of sugar that you will be ingesting. Drinking too much non-diluted fruit juice can end up strengthening hunger and cravings. So be very careful with fruit. Fruit has natural sugar, but it is sugar nonetheless. You don’t have to water it down too much; just use common sense. The juice can still be quite tasty.

o Vegetable juices need not be diluted.

Some Suggestions To Help You With Your Juice Fast:

o Take hot and cold showers or baths. While juice fasting, the body will be expelling a lot of toxins through the skin. So regular bathing will help rinse it out and keep the epidermis clean and thus avoid acne or other skin blemishes.

I actually use the bathtub as my own private fasting “recharging” station. I may be about to crack and break a fast prematurely, but once I sit in the bathtub and just let warm to hot water hit me, I seem to always get a second wind. Give it a shot. To be sure, your water bill will probably surge during this time. lol

o The pre-fasting diet ought to consist of eliminating all fat and refined sugar. Start to eat larger quantities of fruits and vegetables instead. This will begin the detox and help you later by reducing the intensity and length of hunger pangs and detox symptoms. Trust me; following this type of “pre-fast” cleansing diet will make the fast much more bearable and stack the deck in your favor.

o Avoid negative people. Do NOT feed into the hysteria if well-intentioned (but misinformed) relatives and friends caution you that “you will die if you don’t eat.” Gosh, I have no idea how many times I have heard that one.

Don’t get glued to the TV set and become immersed in news which can often be quite negative. Avoid horror or violent films. Spend more time in prayer, meditation and viewing/listening to inspirational material. This is very important because fasting is mostly a “mental” discipline. If you are being bombarded with negativity to and fro, your chances of reaching your goal could diminish.

o Get some exercise every day that you are fasting to oxygenate and assist the body in its fat burning, detox cleansing task. I am not saying to go out and run a marathon or put yourself through grueling aerobic and/or weight training routines. I am talking about low impact exercise (like walking or riding a bike) for at least half an hour. This will help you to lose weight faster, but it also will help to take your mind off of food and eating!

o I know this one may sound a bit odd to some people, but I also recommend that you sit under the sun for fifteen minutes to a half-hour daily while juice fasting. Sunlight in small quantities can help energize you, as well as give you a light bronze that will make you look great. Just don’t overdo it.

o Make use of Enemas–A juice fast may not always induce the disposal of ALL toxins, especially that tough and stubborn fecal matter adhered to the walls of the colon. You will want to make sure that any such debris is expelled so that it does not continue to pollute your body. Several colon cleansing sessions will usually do the trick. To this end, check out our  detox blog for a huge variety of articles related to detox cleansing.

o Continue with your normal daily schedule of activities. However, you will need to reduce the intensity at which you normally do things. You will need to take it easy, move slower and give yourself plenty of time to get things done. When fasting, especially during the first nine to eleven days, doing even the most mundane daily tasks can often require a great deal of exertion and concentration.

o Avoid coffee, soft drinks, tobacco or anything more. I smoked two-to-three packs of Marlboro reds for nearly thirty years. I smoked my last one the morning of my first 40-day water fast. If you are a smoker, I encourage you to do the same. Now is as good a time as any to overcome this terrible addiction.

o Cut back on certain nutritional supplements and prescription drugs. If you are more than sixty years of age, it is recommended that you take a multivitamin once daily while fasting. Again, make sure that you discuss all of this with your doctor and ALWAYS follow his or her recommendations. Although fruit and veggie juice has a LOT of nutrients, elderly fasters should err in the side of caution and take the multi-vitamin.

o If you are hypoglycemic, it will be best if you have someone around to supervise your fast. Depending on how your body reacts, you may need to “slow-down” the fast by adding some sort of protein.

o If you wear dentures, do not remove then because sometimes the gums shrink while one is fasting and you may find yourself having to buy a new pair.

o Get as much rest as you can and sleep, sleep, sleep!

Some Final Recommendations: It is important for you to realize that while fasting, you will likely experience periods of intense fatigue, tiredness and mood swings. This is all normal. Remember that when we fast a huge number of toxins that were hiding in fat tissue are abruptly loosened into the bloodstream. This is what causes the detox symptoms, which – depending on your diet – may be quite severe. But, the good news is that they WILL pass!

As I said before, fasting is a time when we tap into the spirit in ways that we are not accustomed to. It is a time of physical, mental and spiritual healing. Take full advantage of it and remember the HUGE benefits that you will gain from walking through the discomfort and reaching your goal.