The Juice-capades! Day 4

Today is Day 5 and I'm finally feeling basically normal again! But let's recap Day 4, shall we?

I woke up and saw that my sweet, amazing, shmexy (I went there) husband had cut up an entire pineapple for me before leaving for work just so I could turn around and liquify it. What a winner, right? Single ladies ... if your man won't cut up a pineapple for you, call it quits. He ain't worth your time. 'Cuz cuttin' pineapple just plain sucks.

Anyway, with my freshly-sliced pineapple in hand, I made a pineapple-orange-apple-ginger juice that was far sweeter than any juice a person should drink but man was it GOOD! It really hit the spot. And unlike my previous experiment with the garlic, I did not overdo the ginger and it was just what the doctor ordered.

For lunch, I re-concocted what I have now dubbed V5 (because it only contains five veggies): two Roma tomatoes, two whole carrots, half a cucumber, half a stalk of celery and a really really big handful of spinach. It ends up lookin' like this:

Go ahead with the "Siiiiiiick, I would never drink that in a million years!" comments. I would have said the same thing a week ago. But when that becomes your sole source of food, you actually start to like it. Orange foam and all. It's like Stockholm syndrome. And by the way, that juice does taste a lot like V8.

I also picked up a personal watermelon (you know, the baby ones meant for one person) and cut that puppy up for some delicious watermelon juice. Oh, mama. I actually juiced it with some cantaloupe and the combination came out the perfect shade of coral pink. I would have taken a picture but it was so yummy, I drank it too quickly. So, you'll just have to imagine what that looked like.

I felt energetic and refreshed all day and even played Just Dance 4 with the kids. Virtually no reflux symptoms and woke up without any stiffness. I feel like I'm finally over the hump!

I also decided two nights ago to allow myself a glass of unsweetened almond milk before bed as a little nightcap. It's technically a juice and I didn't want to get hungry during the night. Who knew almond milk could taste like heaven? It does now. Mmmm.

Alright, some more FAQ's:

Have you experienced any negative side effects from juicing? Yes, mostly psychological ones. The first day, I was all pumped up because using the juicer was fun and I was being all healthy. I felt empowered. On Day 2, the detox headache hit in the afternoon and I was feeling a bit defeated, but I knew it would get better if I pressed on. Day 3 was by far the worst. I still had a lingering detox headache, plus I was plain TIRED of making and drinking juice! And I didn't know what kind of things would go together well, so some of the recipes I came up with were turning out disgusting and making me want to die. I really almost gave up that day. It wasn't that I wanted a burger or anything -- I just DIDN'T want juice anymore! But Day 4 was so much better. I'm in a groove now and nothing can stop me!

Oh, I did get a small canker sore on the inside of my lower lip, but it's healing so fast, I've hardly noticed it.

What's the first non-plant you plan to eat when you're all done? My heart is telling me to go for a cupcake, but I think I'll probably have something sensible like a chicken salad. I'm still planning to go wheatless for at least a few days after the reboot is over. Wheat and processed sugar are my biggest triggers for reflux and pain. I'm not exactly in a hurry to get reacquainted with them.

The good vibes worked! Keep on sendin' them! I'm going to need extra encouragement tonight as I'm attending a fabulous wedding reception for my sweet, beautiful choir friend, Natalie. Cake is my biggest weakness!