I’m about a week into a pre-fast “detox” diet. So I’ve eliminated many of my relatively non-productive dietary vices like coffee, alcohol and for the most-part, processed sugar & flour. I’ve been eating mostly various vegetables, sprouts, microgreens, fruit, nuts,  raw cheeses and fermented food; this often includes really densely packed wraps full of sprouts, avocado, sauerkraut, etc and wrapped in a sprouted wrap.

This has me feeling pretty good. I think just getting away from the caffeine, alcohol and sugar has helped tremendously. I am more aware of my environment, the subtleties in things and I’m thinking more broadly, rather than the more constrained perspective, which many of these chemicals encourage.  I guess you could say, it helps the body to regulate itself, rather than forcing it with food-based chemicals.

Also of interest, I find that I still have plenty of energy and vitality even without the constant caffeine boosts I usually have, while I’m also able to wind down in the evening without the glass of wine, I still manage to stay motivated and feel great.

So I’m going to be eating the rest of this big cauldron of vegetable soup I cooked, which features some really tasty Japanese Sweet Potatoes and various peppers and other soup-friendly veggies. By the time that’s all gone and I’ve used up most of the cookable perishables, it will be time to switch to exclusively juice/smoothies for perhaps a week or so.  Maybe a water fast for a few days at the end.

Since the beginning of the month of March, I’ve been working on an in-depth cleanse. This cleanse started with a detox diet for the first two weeks, consisting of loads of organic vegetables as soups and stir fries as well as nuts, fruit and dried fruit. This was followed by a week of juice fasting, consisting of fresh raw fruit and vegetable juice diluted 50% with water; this is the stage I am at now. A water-only fast will be beginning this weekend and should last for at least one week, perhaps longer if things work out well.

So far this week, I’ve primarily been drinking juices with some combination of the following (citrus is always taken separately as the guidelines of trophology suggest):

• carrot
• bok choy
• celery
• cabbage
• italian parsley
• ginger
• garlic
• kale
• oranges
• grapefruit

So-far, I’m feeling good, I have loads of energy and I don’t feel much in the way of withdrawal symptoms from coffee, dairy, bread, etc. In the past I had a hard time getting through the day without a few coffees, it was quite an addiction. Now I am able to get through the day without feeling the need for coffee. I’ll still have some caffiene in the form of a green tea, perhaps, but the overall dosage is much lower than before.

I’ve been able to go about my life with more sustainable energy than before and aside from missing out on the enjoyment of food, I am feeling better than ever. I think this opportunity I’m giving my body to really rest and repair, is really helping a great deal. So I’ll keep a good attitude, which has a huge influence on the results of this kind of endeavor, I’ll be mindful of the effects of whatever I am engaged in and I’ll push forth doing my best to maintain and improve my life as I go.

I went to a Yoga class followed by a Tai Chi class on Tuesday, which turned out to be an above average class in terms of difficulty. Despite having less energy to burn, I did well and I pushed myself in ways that I had not previously pushed myself. I was able to hold difficult poses like scale pose for 30 seconds on each side, which is a record for me and I was able to do poses like half bound lotus forward bend with less difficulty. Overall, I was stronger, more flexible, more disciplined and motivated than I had been in previous experiences.

One of the great things about these kinds of experiences, is they help you to apply the discipline that it takes to engage in fasting/detox, to other parts of your life. It really gets you thinking and introspecting, so you have the potential to really weed out toxic habits and motivational issues that you might have otherwise been complacent with, had you not done a fast/detox.

I did an hour long video podcast, which goes off on alot of tangents; but touches many areas that I felt inspired to discuss. I hope those of you who have the time will check it out and share your thoughts if you are so inclined.