Juice Fast Day 4

Day 4

Today was the last day of my juice fast. I didn’t lose any weight today, but I feel and look skinnier. I made juices for breakfast and lunch, and then I ate a healthy dinner. I think that they suggest that you eat only fruits and vegetables for a day or two when you come off of your fast, but I didn’t do that. I had hibachi chicken with lots of veggies. It was nice to eat something finally.

About 45 minutes after I had eaten my dinner, I got a headache. It was kind of frustrating because I know that juicing is really healthy, but it is not a diet that you can sustain. I want to start living a healthier lifestyle, but it is so hard to do that with all of the food options available. I thought that my dinner would be a super healthy choice, but then I didn’t feel good afterwards. Maybe I shouldn’t have had any chicken, or maybe it just shocked my body. Either way, I am well aware of what I should and shouldn’t be eating. I’m going to wait at least a week before I eat any sweets. Hopefully I won’t want them at all!

Overall I am glad that I did this 4 day juice fast. I think that I will do another one again in the future. I felt great doing it, and I looked great too. I hope that you will look into doing this juice cleanse. I loved it!

Pregnancy - Week 4

Week 4:

During week 4 you may notice that your period is late, although you may have some spotting from the fertilized egg implanting into your uterus. Your placenta continues hormone production and also transports nutrients to the baby as well as oxygen.

Your baby is about 1 millimeter long, and is the shape of a grain of rice. You can see the locations where the eyes, nose, and mouth will all develop. Little buds are starting to grow out of the body, later to form arms and legs. In the umbilical cord you can visually see 3 distinct blood vessels appear. The cells continue to multiply and group together to make different body structures.

There are 3 different layers that are used in the development of the new baby's body.

1- The Ectoderm: The ectoderm consists of the forming of the nervous system, the brain, skin, and hair.

2- The Endoderm: The endoderm consists of the forming of the gastrointestinal tract, the liver, pancreas, and the thyroid.

3- The Mesoderm: The mesoderm forms the skeleton, connective tissues, the blood system, urogenital system, and most of the muscles.

During this week you should still feel quite normal, but you may feel some mild cramping due to implantation.

Some books that I studied from are:

The Pregnancy Book - Everything you need to know from America's baby experts.

By: William Sears, M.D., and Martha Sears, R.N., and Linda Holt, M.D., F.A.C.O.G.

Your Pregnancy - Week by week

By: Dr. Glade Curtis, OB/GYN and Judith Schuler, M.S.

You & Your BABY Pregnancy - Your ultimate week-by-week pregnancy guide

By: Dr. Laura Riley, OB/GYN

Pregnancy - Week 3

Week 3:

This week the baby continues to grow and develop. He is about the size of the head of a pin. The fertilized egg burrows further into the uterine lining.

The HCG that the placenta is producing lets the ovaries know not to ovulate again.

The heart begins to beat and circulate blood.

You still do not feel any different than before you became pregnant.

Some books that I studied from are:

The Pregnancy Book - Everything you need to know from America's baby experts.

By: William Sears, M.D., and Martha Sears, R.N., and Linda Holt, M.D., F.A.C.O.G.

Your Pregnancy - Week by week

By: Dr. Glade Curtis, OB/GYN and Judith Schuler, M.S.

You & Your BABY Pregnancy - Your ultimate week-by-week pregnancy guide

By: Dr. Laura Riley, OB/GYN

Juice Fast Day 3

Day 3

Today was a great day! I only lost one pound but I feel and look skinnier, especially around my tummy. I didn’t mind the juices at all today, but I did make my own drink mixes. 

It seems silly to me when people say that they have more energy when they are eating less. That is exactly how I feel. I think that it is because I am only putting good nutrients into my body instead of processed junk and candy (mostly chocolate). I am eating about 1200 calories a day and I feel very invigorated. I usually am dying for nap by noon and today I had enough energy to WANT to workout! After I felt a little tired so I laid down for 15 minutes and woke up alert and ready for the rest of the day. That NEVER happens! A 15-minute nap has never happened on purpose in my life! I usually need at least an hour and a half to feel somewhat rested.

I felt so good today, and each day has progressively gotten better. I think that I am going to do this juice fast for another day. I am going to take it day by day and access how I feel, and go one day at a time. I really can’t believe how good I feel! I have been more patient with my kids, and I feel as though things are clearer. I feel like I have been taken out of a fog, a fog that I have been in for quite some time. If that isn’t incentive enough to eat healthier, I don’t know what is. Happy juicing and I shall update you tomorrow.

If you want to know what this juice thing is all about, click here.

Juice Fasy Day 2

Day 2:

This morning I weighed 150, so that is pretty good. I felt better today that I did yesterday. It seems easier to handle than yesterday too. On day 1 I felt like I was drinking so much! Today it didn’t seem like that. I feel like I have more energy than I did on day 1 too. It always gets hard around dinnertime for me. I think of the foods that I want to eat. I have noticed though that when I crave food, it is healthy “real” food. None of that processed crap or sweets. That makes me feel like this could be working for me to change my food patterns.

I want this juice fast to help me change what I eat and to be healthier in my life. I want to have more energy and look better. My goal weight is 125. I know that I can't lose that much weight on this fast, but I think that it will give me a good jump-start. I’m feeling good and ready for tomorrow! I might even go an extra day!

To find out what this is all about, read this.

Juice Fast Day 1

I heard about this great documentary for eating healthier by one of my friends. She told me to watch “Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead” on Hulu. It is an hour and a half show and I watched it all, completely impressed and feeling very unhealthy. If you haven’t seen it yet, you will want to at least watch it! This man goes on a “Juice” cleanse for 60 days. He eats nothing but fruits and vegetables that he juices in his juicer. He heals himself from the inside out and loses weight too. It sounds like a good idea, but I don’t think that I can do 60 days.

I have decided to try to do it for 3 days, and I am going to write all about it.

Day 1:

I weighed myself this morning and I weighed 152 lbs. It wasn’t too bad just having juice today. Some of the recipes that I used from the fat sick and nearly dead website were gross and some were good. I didn’t crave food until the end part of the day, which is when I usually eat treats. But I made it through pretty good. I think that tomorrow I will try to concoct some of my own recipes.

I thought that I would share one of the recipes that I liked from the website:

Carrot Apple Ginger Juice   (233 calories)

            3 carrots

            2 apples (I used Pink Ladies)

            1 small piece of ginger (about 1 inch)

Has anyone else seen the documentary?

Pregnancy - Week 2

Week 2:

During the second week of pregnancy your ovary releases an egg into the fallopian tube. Once the egg has been released it must be fertilized within 12-24 hours or it will die and will be removed with your uterine lining during your next period.

Conception typically takes place between days 14-17 of a regular 28 day cycle. When the egg gets fertilized it is in the fallopian tube.

*Fun Fact:* Sperm can live up to six days long. Also it can take up to 3 days for sperm to reach the fallopian tube.

Right from the beginning of fertilization your baby's gender is known. Sperm carry either an X or a Y chromosome determining the gender.

X - Female

Y - Male

As soon as the egg is fertilized it begins to grow and the cell begins to multiply.

Once the fertilized egg has reached the uterus it implants itself into the uterine wall. Usually close to the fallopian tube that it had come from. A premature placenta also develops, which causes HCG to be produced. HCG (Human Chorionic Gonadotropin) is a hormone that keeps the uterine lining from shedding and stimulates it to grow.

You still do not feel much different than before.

Some books that I studied from are:

The Pregnancy Book - Everything you need to know from America's baby experts.

By: William Sears, M.D., and Martha Sears, R.N., and Linda Holt, M.D., F.A.C.O.G.

Your Pregnancy - Week by week

By: Dr. Glade Curtis, OB/GYN and Judith Schuler, M.S.

You & Your BABY Pregnancy - Your ultimate week-by-week pregnancy guide

By: Dr. Laura Riley, OB/GYN