Breville vs Omega Juicer

Breville Elete 800JEXL vs Omega J8006 Juicers

I came across a pretty good deal on an Omega J8006 juicer. Even though I already have a Breville which I love, I have heard and read about the benefits of a masticating juicer. The big one being you get more juice out of your fruits and veggies. 

For those that don't know the difference between a centrifugal and a masticating juicer here you go. 

A centrifugal juicer spins at a high RPMs. Fruits and vegetables that are put into the feed shoot are chopped up by a disk and juice is forced through a fine mesh screen. The remaining pulp is thrown into a separate container. They juice very fast but your pulp can come out pretty wet meaning your not getting as much juice as you should. 

A masticating juicer chews and crushes your fruits and veggies between 1 or 2 augers. As it grinds and crushes and presses the juice through a small screen. 

Both have pros and cons for different fruits and vegetables. Some will say that the centrifugal oxidizes the juice because of the high speeds which will reduce shelf life.  Also I have heard that it's heats up the juice because of the high speeds causing it to loose nutrients.   

So keep in mind this is only my opinion based on my use of both machines. I juiced all of the following on both:
Kale
Romaine
Swiss chard
Beets
Celery
Carrots
Cilantro 
Apples
Lemons 
Mint
Watermelon 
Ginger
Strawberries
Grapes

First off I will say the Omega did produce more juice with the leafy greens, plus you can rejoice the pulp again and get a little more juice. That is the best I can say about the Omega. While it did produce more juice it took close to 3 times longer to do it. I make a gallon of juice a day. Cleaning the fruits and veggies is the same but prepping is a different story. In the Breville the only thing I had to cut up was the watermelon. Everything else I was able to put in whole. The Omega required everything to be cut into small pieces. Even carrots had to be split. The leafy greens had to be put in small leafs at a time. The Omega also clogged several times while making the gallon of juice requiring me to take it apart and clean it. When I was done I strained both and the Omega juice also also had a lot more pulp in it. 
I repeated this three times on different days and the results were pretty much the same every time. The Omega produced more juice in the beginning with the leafy greens. By the time I was done with both batches the Breville had produced slightly morels juice. As far as heating up the juice, the juice produced by the Omega was almost warm when it was done compared to the Breville. Speed, the Breville took 23 minutes to make 1 gallon of juice after cleaning the fruits and veggies including cutting the watermelon. The Omega took 1 hr 36 minutes including cutting up everything to fit and stopping at least 3 times to clean the screen and corkscrew. Cleaning, the Breville only had 4 pieces, all pretty large and easy to clean. The Omega has more pieces and some are small but I didn't think clean up was an issei really with either one. 

In summery while I do not think the Omega is a bad machine. You can also make pasta and breadsticks if you want to and I really wanted to like it. But in the end it's just way to slow. If I was only doing leafy greens it would be slow but make a lot of juice. But I'm not, I juice all kinds of fruits and veggies. Does it make a better quality juice, maybe but not enough to justify the extra time it takes. 

Day 101

Day 101    Dec 28th, 2013

Hello everyone,

I'm being told that I'm not blogging often enough. I agree, I just don't know where the time goes. 100 days has seemed to fly by. The biggest question I've been getting from people "How much weight have you gained since you stopped juicing?" Well first off I haven't stopped juicing, I still have juice everyday. There has been only one day in that last 100 days and that was on Christmas. I ended up traveling all day and didn't have any juice to take with me. By the time I got home with my kids I was exhausted. As far as how much weight I have gained......wait for it..... Zero!! I have continued to lose weight. On Christmas Day I was at 68 lbs lost, 1 lb short of a goal I had for Christmas morning. I was really wanted to see 199 on the scale. It has been at least 17-18 years since I've seen that. But I'm not disappointed at all. I've freaking lost 68 lbs and feel better than I have in years. 

I've had some good luck paying it forward as well. I've mentioned my friend Frank before and how he was interested in what I was doing. He decided to try juicing but only lasted a day or so. Well now after seeing how well I'm doing he has decided to try again. He even bought a Breville 800JEXL like the one I have. I know he can do it. He has always been someone that once he sets his mind to something he does it. Him and his family will be out in California in May. It will be so awesome for both of us to be fit and healthy for the first time in decades! 

Speaking of family, last night I seen Franks brother, sister, and mother. Needless to say they were quite shocked with my transformation. They were equally shocked when I told them I haven't had meat or dairy in almost 4 months. They have known me my entire life and how I have always eaten. It really made my day to talk to them about my journey. 

That's all for now, Happy Juicing 

Fat Sick & Nearly Dead Special!

I encourage everyone to check this out! It really was the jump start I needed to make a change in my life for the better. You can also watch the full movie on Netflix!

Day 89

Day 89       December 16th, 2013

Well hello all!

Things are going amazing, just really busy. I have a lot to update so hopefully I can get to some of it. If I look back 90 days I feel like I'm a different person. I feel better everyday and I really have come to enjoy my new way of eating. I no longer crave junk food but instead healthy snacks and food. I really think the most important thing I gave up was dairy! Obviously the junk food was a huge negative in my life but so was the dairy. Its really what I thought I would have a hard time giving up. 

Ok moving on, I had a few people ask me about thanksgiving. I know its been a couple weeks but its worth mentioning. I had an amazing vegan dinner that my friend Kim Lombardi made for me.

Veggie-Ducken, Potatoes, Stuffing, Sweet Potato Brulee, Vegan Gravy, and Vegan Pumpkin Swirl Cheesecake. It was so incredible! but it did take me 2 days to eat. I would get full after just a couple bites. 

I do need to work on some more healthy meals. So far I have been eating things like black beans and brown rice. salads with oil free non dairy dressing, lots of hummus, whole wheat pasta, veggie pasta sauce. Oh and I made the most amazing chocolate chip cookies that were salt, oil, sugar, and dairy free. 

I also continue to spread the word how amazing green juicing and plant based eating is for your health. This past weekend I sat and talked with a good friend of mine that has had ongoing  health issues. Nothing related to her weight, she really is quite stunning. But doctors have been using her as a guinea pig with medication and test after test. I'm convinced that juicing and removing dairy and other foods from her diet is going to help her. I think she is convinced as well. She has already started to juice once a day (before I spoke to her) and has noticed a difference. I can't wait to see where this takes her.

Just noticed the time! That's all for now, happy juicing. 

Day 80

Day 80    December 7th, 2013

Well as promised I will upload some photos.

This was last spring at R-Ranch of the Sequoia's

These 2 were taken in September the week I started Juicing.

Nov 16th, 2013 Mud Factor 5K Mud Run

This was a few weeks ago.

So far as of today I'm down 57 lbs. I have been back to eating for a few weeks and have not gained any weight back. I am maintaining a plant based diet with no meat or dairy. I have went from a size 44 jeans to a 34. I will take full measurements for the 90 day mark of my journey. 

More to come later :)  Happy Juicing 

DAY 70

Day 70    November 27, 2013

Well time seems to be flying by. I can't believe its been 70 day since I started this journey. I had said that I was going to do 30 days and hoped I would be able to go 60. Truth be told 60 was easy. Once I got through the first I would say 10 days, it became habit. Did I miss and crave food, sure I did. But my desire to get healthy sort of overpowered those cravings. And the better I felt and the more people that told me how much better I looked everyday, made it easier everyday. 

So I am still juicing everyday and starting on day 61 I started to incorporate some food into the juicing. Lets just say it was a disaster!!! I dropped my daughter off at work at the Pizza Factory and she had been telling me about the new Raspberry Vinaigrette dressing they have. I asked her if it was oil free and she said it was. So with my small salad gown I piled it with Lettuce, Green Peppers, Mushrooms, Carrots, Tomatoes,  Cucumbers, Beets, and Sunflower Seeds. Now if you read my blog up until now you would know that I have never eaten a salad full of vegetables. Well is was amazing, even with the dressing I was able to taste everything. I was full in no time and felt completely satisfied.........but guess what? It was not oil free dressing! I should have known by the consistency that it was filled with olive oil. Let this be a warning to any one doing an extended juice fast. Avoid all oils and salt when you start eating again. And obviously avoid any fried or greasy food. 

Ok, so that was a lesson learned. The next day I still juiced for breakfast and lunch. For dinner I made black beans and rice along with some juice. I only had a very small portion and was full. I had no problems with this and it was yummy!

The rest of the week was pretty much the same. Juice for breakfast and lunch and something light and vegan for dinner with juice. Solid fruits and veggies, salads, more beans and rice, pasta with marinara sauce. I felt amazing and actually was still losing weight. My weight loss had slowed down some, which was expected. 

Saturday I had something really good and also something really bad! For breakfast I added my green juice to a banana, blueberries, and chia seeds to make a smoothy. It was so amazing that I can even explain it! 2 of my daughters even liked it! Of course I didn't tell them about the green juice, only the banana and blueberries. Now the bad, Saturday night I went out to see my friends band play again. This time I had a couple drinks. Not that is very healthy but I had vodka with cranberry juice (So its still juice right?) but thats not the bad part. After the show about 2:30am a few of us decided to head over to the Pizza Factory and make some food. (My friends Brian and Kim are the owners and their daughter Kailey's band House of Alice is who we went to see) Now I could of had a salad of something healthy but we decided to make a Buffalo Chicken Pizza and a Pastrami Sandwich Pizza! I had no intention of eating any but when they came out of the oven they just smelled so good! I thought maybe I will just try a little of each. Well that turned into 3 slices of pizza! I new I would regret it but I didn't know how much. By the time I got home an hour or so later I was already having severe stomach pain. And without going into detail I spent Sunday and most of Monday running to the bathroom. By Monday night I still didn't feel good at all. I was dehydrated no mater how much water I would drink and felt weak and sick. 

Woke up today (Tuesday) feeling much better. By the afternoon I felt full of energy and back to normal! I will not be doing that again!

Until next time.......

Oh I've had a few people ask me about before and after photos. I haven't taken any after yet but I will try and post some before photos.  Happy Juicing :)

Day 59

Day 59   Saturday November 16, 2013

I will first off apologize for taking so long to update the blog. It has been busy busy busy! Juicing has been going great although I'm looking forward to food! 
This morning I ran a 5k Mud run with my friends Kailey and Nick. We had such an amazing time, except that it was freezing. It never got above 50 deg and we were wet the entire day. I'm cold all the time now anyway. That is the only down side of all the weight loss, I'm always cold. But that's ok, I would rather be healthy and cold. 
Speaking of weight loss, I don't like the weight loss to be the focus but I passed a milestone that I think is worth sharing. I have now lost 52 lbs!!!!!!  I never thought when I started this 2 months ago that I would be 50 lbs lighter.

I want to finish telling you about Healthy Taste of LA. After Miyoko Shinner did her cheese demo Eric Lechasseur and Sanae Suzuki  owners of Seed Kitchen in Venice CA. They did a couple demonstrations as well. One was Miso Soup and I can't remember the norther at the moment. They were so entertaining to watch, I can't wait to try the restaurant. 
Next up was John Pierre a fitness expert and author of The Pillars of Health . John spoke about the importance of of a plant based diet, exercise,  stress reduction and compassion in life. After hearing him speak I want to read his book as well. 
The last speaker was Dr. Neal Barnard founder of PCRM Physicans Committee for Responsible Medicine , author of Power Foods for the Brain and 21 Weight Loss Kickstart. The information he presented was overwhelming. He showed charts and maps of the increasing obesity rates over the years that was nothing short of scary. 

My eyes were already open to getting healthy and changing.  my life, now even more so. And I don't think it's really going to be that difficult. 

I continue to be amazed with the result and reactions I have been getting. This blog now has well over 3000 hits. I've had at least 10 friends or family that have started juicing as a result of my success and the blog. I really enjoy giving others motivation and helping if I could. 

Until next time.....Happy Juicing :)

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Day 49

Day 49      Nov 6th 2013

Well its been a couple days since I posted and lots of stuff going on! I've been getting tons of hits on this blog and lots of kind messages from people who like it. I think there have been something like 800 hits in the last week. Hopefully I have inspires others to get healthy as well!

So on Sunday I went to the event I talked about in my last post Healthy Taste of LA.
It was so amazing I don't even know where to start. Ok well first thing,  as I said before my amazing cousin Amanda invited me to come to the event. I get there and there is a seat reserved for me in the front row. Same row as all the speakers that were there. But then she took me around and introduced me to everyone.

First up was Dr. Alan Goldhamer founder of the TrueNorth Health Center. He is a fasting expert and was very interested in how my fast was going. He gave me a lot of pointers on what to do when I'm done with my fast and transitioning back to food. Check out the website for TrueNorth Health Center they are doing amazing stuff there. They not only help people get healthy while they are at the center but how to continue to live a healthy lifestyle when you leave. With their amazing Chef Ramses Bravo they promote a healthy diet  derived form whole natural foods using no Salt, Oils or Sugar.  (SOS) Chef Bravo was also there and made up some tasty dishes that I unfortunately did not eat. He did a great demonstration on how dressing are made and how you can make them yourself without the oil and salt.

Next up was Miyoko Schinner a gourmet restauranteur and vegan food expert. There was a reason Amanda took me to her. I had expressed my love of cheese as a reason I don't think I could become a vegan. Miyoko quickly told me that's not a valid excuse and she will show me why. Turns out that she has created recipes for making homemade non dairy cheeses that retain all the complexity and sharpeness of their dairy counterparts while incorporating nutritious nuts and plant based milks. Again she was amazing!

I will add more later, time to pick up the kiddos from school and off to girl scouts....

Day 46

 Day 46  Nov 3, 2013

Everything is going good with the fast. I continue to feel great and am very happy with the support I've been getting from everyone. Big thanks to everyone at Reboot with Joe that has read the blog and left comments.

I'm pretty excited, my cousin Amanda called me yesterday and her and her husband Ed are in Los Angeles for a conference called Healthy Taste of LA. "An all-day event featuring food, information and chef demonstrations by the finest medical doctors, vegan chefs and fitness experts". They have invited me to attend the conference with them. So in my next post I will be adding info from the conference. 

I've also been been getting a lot of people referred to this blog by my friend Kim's blogs. Please check out her stuff its pretty great!

My Delicious Vegan Diary 

Celebrate My Whimsy 

Until next time....

Day 40

Day 40    October 28, 2013

Plane ticket booked for the New Year New You Healthfest Event! Texas here I come!!!

I also passed a pretty big barrier yesterday. I have now lost 40lbs! Although I didn't have a specific weight loss goal when I started, it's extremely motivating. It's also been motivating to hear all words of encouragement I've been getting from friends. I would like to give a big shout out to Cori, Lisa, Frank, Sonja, Brian , Kim, Kailey, Sonia, and of course Amanda! You all have been so amazing. 

As far as the juicing, it's going great. The last few days I have added Beets to my juice and they are yummy. If you decide to try beets, they can be very messy and they will stain. And you have to mix them with other veggies or fruit. Drinking beet juice by itself can cause paralysis of the vocal cords. I read that in the internet so it must be true. Lol

I've had a few people ask if this has been hard and how can I do it. Well it was hard for the first week or so but now not so much. And I guess my desire to get healthy and loose weight is stronger then my desire to eat food right now. 

Until next time :) 

Day 37

Day 37    October 25, 2013

I just realized something. I usually get headaches all the time, 2-3 times a week. I've always chocked it up to stress and spending all day on the computer. Well....haven't had a headache since day 4 of the fast over a month ago.

Something else I realized. Juice at "Juice it Up" is really expensive. I left the house yesterday for work and forgot my extra juice. I live almost 25 miles from my office so I didn't really want to drive all the way home. I decided to go to Juice it Up instead. I ordered a large juice for what I thought was $3.20, but no it wasn't $3.20 it was $8.50! Turns out the $3.20 I seen was 320 calories. And while it was ok, it was not as good as mine and not worth $8.50! 

I shared my blog with my cousin Amanda and she was so supportive that it made my day. She also invited me to come to Texas for a great event that her and her husband are putting on. 
New Year New You Healthfest

NEW YEAR NEW YOU HEALTH FEST

TRANSFORM YOUR LIFE!

A weekend of transformation awaits you in the Piney Woods of East Texas. Learn about the endless benefits of a healthful, compassionate and sustainable plant-based lifestyle.

Gain inspiration from 15 of the world’s most influential and sought after speakers, athletes, and best-selling authors. Learn delicious recipes at vegan chef led cooking demos. Sample award-winning chili at the vegan chili cook-off and try new, healthy foods and products.

Work it off with a boot camp session led by a Hollywood fitness guru. Learn how to lose weight, increase your energy, prevent cancer, reverse heart disease, get fit and conquer type 2 diabetes. All of this and more await you in the historic downtown of Marshall. Don’t delay. Register now!

So I'm booking a flight to Texas....woo hoo! My favorite place ever! And I told my friend Lisa about it and she may try and make too. 

Day 35

Day 35      October 23, 2013

Well I guess the 30 day mark came and went. Really the days seem to be flying by and the weight is still coming off! Total weight loss as of this morning 37.5 lbs. Starting to feel pretty amazing and the comments I'm getting from other people are really inspiring.

Even having people that made fun of me just over a month ago when I announced what I was going to do, changing their tune and wanting to know more about it. Even my best friend since elementary school has been texting me today to find out more about it. And my friend Diane who although she has been supportive has shown little interest. Today she asked me how my energy was on the juice fast. I told her not only to I have crazy energy all day, I have amazing clarity of thought. I think she would really benefit from regular juicing and a mostly plant based diet to help with her MS. She doesn't need to loose any weight at all but really suffers from energy loss. 

I have also tried a few more things in my juice. Red and Yellow peppers really bring out a flavor. A little goes a long way with the peppers. I make a gallon of juice at a time and 1 whole pepper was almost overwhelming. Learned that Kale can be really bitter if not fresh, like undrinkable! Sweet potatoes are great but clog up the juice a bit so I do that last. I really don't like the juice as much after its been refrigerated, its best as soon as you make it. Its just not practical to make juice 4 times a day though. 

So my friend Frank asked me about the cost of Juicing. I have to admit it can get pretty expensive, especially if your buying organic fruits and vegetables. I've leaned to shop around between Farmers Markets and different stores. My favorite the last couple weeks or so is Walmart believe it or not. Most of the produce is 1/2 the cost of my local grocery store and its definitely fresher. They also have a huge selection. I get my romaine lettuce at Costco because its very inexpensive there. A 6 pack of large green Romain is $2.69. That will last me 2-3 days. Cucumbers I get at Walmart for .48 cents each. I did get them at the famers market a couple weeks ago and although they were 4 for $3.00 or .75 cents each they were larger. I always peel the cucumbers even if they say their organic because I just don't trust them. Apples I tend to get where they are on sale. Best price .69 cents a pound to $1.69 at the highest. Kale is between $1.15 and $1.50 a bundle. Cilantro is .33 cents a bundle, Celery is between $1.25 and $2.00 a bundle. I've been buying the small watermelons 2 for 5.69 just because its easier to cut up a small amount that you need than an entire big watermelon. It goes bad fast after its cut so with the small ones I don't have that problem.
The first couple weeks it seemed like I was shopping everyday, now maybe every 3 days or so. 

I have started to worry more about when I end the fast and go back to eating. I plan on eating a more plant based diet but I'm craving the bad things so bad. A big cheese burger and fries!, Pizza, Jalapeño & Cheddar Cheetos, and Margarita's from Mexico Lindo. I'm going to stick to my plan (I hope) though. I'm even going to be on my fast for my birthday next week but what better gift to myself than saying I'm happy and healthier on my 43rd birthday and should have lost just over 40 lbs by then! 

Until next time.....

Day 27

Day 27   Oct 15, 2012

I know it's been a long time since I added to my blog. Rest assured the my Green Juicing adventure is going just fine. Although I would be lying if I said I didn't miss food, it's not because I'm ever hungry. I've gotten really comfortable with daily juicing and it's become a habit. I've also gotten really good making some pretty tasty juice. I started adding cilantro to all my juice and it taste amazing! Also juiced fresh pineapple, pears, zucchini , mint, and many others. I really like adding fresh watermelon for taste. 
I've been doing a lot of research on heathy vegan dishes to make when the fast is done. I think I said this before, I don't know if I will go complete vegan when I'm done. We will have to see how it goes, but I know it will be a mostly plant based diet. (With a few exceptions of course) 
So how good is it going? Well I feel amazing, have tons of energy, and definetly sleeping better. Total weight loss 32 lbs so far!!! I've been increasing my exercise to between 30 and 60 minutes of elliptical a day with stretching and yoga. Have even been able to do a couple yoga moves I was never able to do. I decided to go for 60 days. 

Day 9 9/27/13

Day 9

Still going strong on my juice fast! I know I haven't posted in a few days but everything is going great. Just really busy with the kids and work. Last night was a little rough. I worked late so the kids asked me to grab pizza on the way home. Have I mentioned I love pizza! I worked at a pizza place for many years, and if I didn't have my current business I would have a pizza restaurant.  The smell in the car was so strong from the pizza that it was driving me crazy. 
My juice has been really good the last couple days. I added a bit of watermelon or grapes to the greens. The basic recipe I'm using is:

     1 whole cucumber 
     1 bundle of romaine lettuce
     2-3 pieces of Kale
     1-2 whole carrots
     1/2 lemon
     1/2-1 inch of ginger root
     1 apple

This makes around 40oz of juice. I play around with it a bit and have used Swiss chard or spinach in place of the Kale. Sometimes I skip the lemon because I really don't like it. And like I said I've added about 5oz of watermelon or grapes and that really helps the flavor. 

So I guess I should tell how I'm doing. I was a little reluctant to post my weight loss. In part because it's not all about weight loss but getting healthy. Also I suppose I was nervous if I could do it or not.
I started juicing on Sept 9th and started my fast on Sept 19th.  So in the 10 days of juicing and still eating I last around 7 lb. I actually forgot to weigh myself on the 19th. Since I started  the fast I've lost another 11.8 lbs. So I've lost 18.8lbs so far. I feel a huge difference already although it's tough to tell if I could see a difference. Most important is I feel great! 
I did take some photos on day 3 or 4 that I will post later. 

Day 4 9/22/13

Day 4

Not a good day! Woke up with a splitting headache! Thought I would feel better after I had some juice. No such luck! I showed incredible willpower when I made breakfast for my daughter. Bacon and egg breakfast burritos, a Sunday tradition for me and the girls. I plan on making healthy changes to Sunday breakfast, but I don't have anything in the house just yet. 
My head continued to throb all day and I felt pretty crappy. Even though I it was warm outside and in my house I was freezing. I sat for most of the day huddled on the couch with a thick blanket wrapped around me! 
Hopefully tomorrow will be a better day! 

Day 3 9/21/13

Day 3

Ah day 3, what a day. Woke up feeling pretty good, I actually slept 7 hrs. And juicing all day went well. Occasionally I found myself hungry and I would just have more juice or water. Later in the evening I played in a charity poker tournament. As the night went on I started getting pretty hungry which was not helped by the pizza and chili dogs everyone was eating.  I stayed strong though, came home and had some juice before bed.

Day 2 9/20/13

Day 2

Day 2 started out rough, I was running late getting the kids ready for school. In the process I forgot my extra juice for the rest of the day. I was pretty sure I would be starving around lunch time. It wasn't as bad as I thought but I was hungry.

Made it through the day though and went home and made more juice. Yesterday's juice was pretty bitter and even though I only used 1/2 a lemon, the lemon taste was strong. Did I mention I don't like lemons. Today the juice tasted awesome and the only thing different was the apples. I was out of the green colored apples I got from a lady by my kids school. Today I used one gala apple. 

Of couse my mother calls and invites me out for Mexican food, my favorite food at my favorite place Mexico Lindo. I was strong and declined!  The rest of the night went fine, still no headaches or other problems. 

Day 1 9/19/13

Day 1
Woke up a little early to make juice. I need to make enough to last till I get home from work. I have had juice everyday for about 10 days so I'm feeling pretty good about the fast. 

The day went pretty good for the most part. After picking up the kids, my daughter went through the McDonalds drive through. It smelled so good....at first. Once they all started eating their food, it just smelled like grease! 

Made it until bedtime with no problems. I was hungry a few time but just had more juice. No headaches and plenty of energy all day. 

Pre Week Part 2

Something I forgot to mention in the last entry is I decided to get checked out by a doctor before I started my juice fast. I explained what I was doing and my plan. Although he really didn't seem all that interested, he did say that he thought it would be a good thing for me to do. He told me what I already knew. I was really over weight and it wasn't going to be long before it really affected my health and activity. He reviewed my labs from a year and half before and ordered new ones. 

A couple days later I was able to look up my results:

They were pretty much as expected, overall cholesterol was up but still under 200, LDL was down and Triglycerides were really high. Almost double what they should be.

 *What are triglycerides? Simply put, triglycerides are fat in the blood and are used to provide energy to the body. If you have extra triglycerides, they are stored in different places in case they are needed later. 

High triglyceride levels have been linked to a greater chance for heart disease. Just what your triglyceride levels mean and how much lowering triglycerides reduces heart disease risk is sometimes less clear. Triglycerides are important to human life and are the main form of fat in the body. When you think of fat developing and being stored in your hips or belly, you're thinking of triglycerides. Consider these things. Triglycerides are the end product of digesting and breaking down fats in meals. Some triglycerides are made in the body from other energy sources such as carbohydrates.

So obviously I would like to see that number go down. 

Well today is going to be the start of my Green Juice Fast. I'm pretty excited and looking forward to it. I don't want to called it a diet but more of a "Reboot" is I could steal a term from Joe of FSAND. With the intention of changing my eating habits for good. 

*source- WebMD

Pre Week

I have now had my juicer and been experimenting for about a week. I have tried a few different recipes and had at least 24oz of fresh juice a day. A couple funny things, my daughter #2 keeps asking for some of my juice. And even #4 who is turning 4 is also asking to try it. Although she refused to actually taste it when I gave it to her. 

I've noticed a couple things as well. I am actually craving juice, and I lost 6lbs in the last week. I was impressed with that because I haven't really been watching what I eat. More the opposite as I say goodbye to some of my favorite fast food. I've also noticed that I have increased energy and focus. And even though I still only get 5 hours or less of sleep, I'm finding it easier to get up in the morning. I can only imagine how I will feel when I cut out the junk food, move to a more plant based diet and juice even more. Getting kind of excited. 

One quick note I picked up a new wifi bathroom scale that tracks my weight and sends it to my iPhone. It also tracks heart rate, and BMI. Of couse I got it from Amazon, it is the Withings WS-50 Smart Body Analyzer. It is pretty cool. I won't go into all the features but encourage you to check it out.

A strange new land!

      Ok so I received my shiny new Breville Juicer arrived from Amazon. So now what am I supposed to do? I have a general idea what most common fruits and vegetables are, but I have never shopped in a produce isle in a grocery store before. At least not like this. I don't think looking for lemons for Corona's counts. So I made a list of things to look for.

First thing kale! I honestly didn't know kale was edible until recently. We used to use it to decorate around the salad bar when I worked at the Pizza Factory. Also discovered that kale is expensive! As a matter of fact all of the vegetables and fruits are expensive. I decide to make a spread sheet on my iPhone to compare prices. The closest grocery store to my house is 6 miles. The next one is another 15 miles, so I'm really going to have really plan ahead. 

So I got my fruits and veggies and my girls and I make our first juice. Kale, cucumber, celery, ginger root, apple, and lemon. 

Well suprisingly not to bad! I do not like the taste or smell of lemon (long story) so the next batch I will use less lemon. Other than that, I actually kind of liked it. 

The next day I decided to go check out a Farmers Market. To me this was a little confusing. Most of the fruits and veggies were not labeled or priced. It was bad enough to keep asking how much something was, but also what it was. There were fruits and veggies there that I had no idea what they were. I had always thought the farmers market was a place to get a good deal on stuff. That was not the case here. Even things like kale and apples were considerably high than my local grocery store.  (Stater Bros)  So much so that I could go buy the stuff at the store and resell it at the farmers market and do pretty well. I did managed to pick up some hummus that I sampled. I tried some hummus a few days before that was pretty good. 

The Plan

     So....as I said in previous entries. I know that I need to make a change. Not a diet, but a life style change. There have been a couple life changing events in my life the last couple years. I got divorced after 17 years of marriage, and raising 4 daughters on my own. Now I need to make a change for my health!

I think Fat Sick and Nearly Dead was just the motivation I needed to get started. So obviously Green Juicing is going to be my first step. The day after I finished watching FSAND I ordered a juicer from Amazon. I'm going to experiment with juicing for a couple weeks and find combinations that I like. Starting on Sept 19, 2013 I'm going to start a Green Juice fast for 30 days (I would like to go 60 days). 

The big change will be after the juice fast.  I don't know if I will go full vegan, but the plan is to change to a plant based diet.  Of couse this will mean no fast food at all. I'm going to remove fast food as an option! To prepare for this I have visited my favorite places Del Taco, Jack in the Box, and of course In N Out. To be honest I didn't really enjoy them. I felt stuffed, tired and lethargic afterwards. Of course cutting out soda is a no brainier. That won't be a problem, I really already did that a while ago. I mainly drink water and green ice tea.  Those meat lovers pizza's are a goner. So is the Mac & Cheese, and Tater tots, cheese it crackers, Doritos, mint moose tracks ice cream....and many more. 

Is it going to be easy...nope! But I'm looking forward to it, and I won't have to do it alone. Aside from this blog and a couple website forums, my friend Kim makes amazing Vegan meals. (also amazing cupcakes and deserts, on second thought stay away from Kim lol) Kailey, Kim's daughter who is also a vegan and super supportive.  My cousin Amanda and her wealth of knowledge. My sister Felicia who switched to a almost complete plant based diet after our trip to Texas. 

Next up my adventure into a foreign land to me. The produce section of the grocery store and the farmers market. And my first green juice....stay tuned!

Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead!

     Well title of the movie Fat Sick and Nearly Dead says it all! Granted I'm not sick now, but it won't be long if I continue on the same path that I have been. This was another movie that I had started watching while doing something else. I wasn't really paying attention to it and never finished. Timing is everything! Once I really decided that I need to make a change in my life I decided to give the movie another go. 

For those of you that have not seen it yet, stop reading now click on the link above and go watch it. I'll wait. 

Ok as you may or may not have seen by now Fat Sick and Nearly Dead is a documentary film that starts out by telling the story of Joe Cross. Joe was 100+ lbs over weight but worse then that he suffered from a debilitating autoimmune disease (chronic idiopathic urticaria)   that had him taking steroids and other meds. His health was at the point that he decided that he had to change. He decided to give up the junk food and start green juicing. He embarks on a cross country journey with his juicer in tow, vowing to drink only green juice for 60 days. 

Now Joe's story is amazing all by itself. By the end of the 60 days he looses a ton of weight, starts on a path of healthy eating along with his juicing. And....was able to stop taking all the prescription medication for his autoimmune disease. Last I seen it has been over 5 years since his 60 day juice fast and has not had a single flair up. 

The real story though is that during Joe's cross country journey he talked to hundreds of people about the benefits of juicing. In Winslow Arizona he came across a truck driver by the name of Phil Staples. Phil weighed a whopping 429 lbs and was obviously in horrible shape both physically and mentally. While talking to him about his story and the benefit of juicing , Joe discovered that Phil suffers from the same autoimmune disease. Joe seems to take more interest in Phil after this and after having him sample some juice tells him that he ever needs help to give him a call.

Fast forward a couple months and Joe is doing great back home in Australia. He receives a disturbing call from Phil saying that he is at the end of his rope and needs help. This is when the real story begins. After visiting a doctor with Joe's help Phil starts on a 3 day Juice fast. 3 days turns into 30 and Phil is doing so good he decides to continue on his juice fast. 10 months after he started his juice fast Phil lost over 200 lbs and changed to a mostly plant based diet along with daily juicing. His health is restored and also off all medication for his Urticaria. 

I don't know if Joe really just came across Phil at a truck stop. But it doesn't really matter, its an amazing story. The kind of story that motivates others to make a change. The kind of story that has motivated me to make a change!

Changes....

So a few years ago I found out that my cousin Amanda was a vegan. In fact she has her own vegan website www.theveganvoice.org. And while I have been aware that I need to eat better for years...never in my wildest dreams did I ever think I would consider becoming a vegetarian or a vegan. As a matter of fact when my friend Kim was being treated for Thyroid Cancer, she started on a vegan diet. I thought she was crazy, after all you need good lean protein from meat and fish right?  

I read through the info Amanda's website, more because I wanted to know what she was up to. And a strange thing happened; the more I read, the more I wanted to know. Even though I realized that I had been completely wrong about what veganism is. I was still thinking "that's great for Amanda and others but not for me". After all I do not like vegetables. 

Last year in November 2012 I made a trip to Texas for my cousin Carley's wedding. Turns out several of my relatives in Texas were also either vegan or vegetarian. I made an observation that they all looked amazing and healthy. My sister Felicia and I (She traveled with me to the wedding) had some great discussions with Amanda and her husband Ed. I was amazed to find out that Ed had also become a vegan. Why was I amazed? Ed has a ranch in Marshall Texas and definitely had been a meet eater!  Before we left Texas Amanda gave me a copy of the book The China Study. This was the beginning of changes to come. 

When I returned home I had decided to try and eat healthier. But since I had just lost 60lbs eating the way I wanted, I wasn't really that motivated to change anything.  I had heard of The China Study, a while back I had started watching the movie Forks Over Knives but never finished. It seems strange now, but over the next several months I was reading and learning more about how to get healthy. Yet I was eating all the wrong foods, exercising less and gaining weight.

My Health and fitness has been on my mind a lot the last couple months. Really I was becoming a little depressed with myself. One particularly bad weekend when my daughters were away at their moms I downloaded a book called Buddhist Boot Camp. This is not a book to teach you how to be a Buddhist, but more to inspire you to be a better you. I read it twice before the weekend was over and even ordered a couple hard copies to give as gifts to friends.  I'm not going to say this book changed my life, but it sure inspired me to make some changes.  

So I set out to do more research. I started reading the China Study book again, and finished watching Forks Over Knives. I did research on the Internet, read blogs, watched movies like Vegucated, Super Size Me, Food Inc, and the one that really inspired me Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead. This movie really had an impact on me.

The Beginning

Let me start by saying that I do not eat fruits or vegetables! An occasional apple or banana, although I will eat salads. By salad I mean just lettuce smothered with blue cheese dressing. Sometime I make it a little "healthier" by adding chicken breast with buffalo wing sauce.

My diet for pretty much my entire life has been fast food and food loaded with fat and carbs. I guess the only good thing about my diet is I don't really care for sugar and sweets. French fries, tater tots, hash browns, potato chips....along with pizza, mexican food, hamburgers.  (In n Out Burger for those of you on California ) You get the idea, nothing healthy.

So at 42 years old where had this kind of eating gotten me? At my peak I tipped the scales at just under 300 lbs, 298 to be exact! That wouldn't be so bad if I was say 6'3", but at 5'7" it's pretty sad. I have been fortunate to not have many health problems. I have occasional back pain, headaches, and numbness on my right thigh. Slightly elevated blood pressure. Last physical was 18 months ago and my total cholesterol was 198, LDL, HDL at the higher end of the scale,  Triglycerides...a whopping 277 (150 is desirable).

 I have always exercised and worked out, sort of. Meaning I would go through periods where I worked out and exercised for months at a time and was in pretty good shape, although still over weight. I haven't been under 200 lbs since I was 22 or so while in the Navy. These periods were always followed periods on no activity and weight gain.  I have tried many fad diets over the years; The Zone, which I did really good on. Made it to 205 once in 1999, it took about a year before I was up to 250 again. The Master Cleanse, which I lost 25 lbs in 10 days. In the process destroyed my taste buds and to this day I can't eat lemons without gagging. And many others...

Around three years ago as I was looking at age 40 I hit 298 lbs. I was in the process of getting divorced after 17 years of marriage, depressed, angry, and really disgusted with myself. Needed to make a change.

I started working out aggressively, mostly cardio and trying to eat less. There was some ups and downs but by October 2012 I was able to get down to 235 lbs, the lowest I had been in years. I was feeling pretty good about my progress and was looking forward to getting below 200.  Well...Sept 1st  , 2013 11 months later and I'm back up to 265. Many things have happened the last 11 month. A new relationship that I thought was going somewhere, turns out it wasn't. The economy started to hit my business and my caused my stress to go through the roof. One of my best friends since childhood died of a massive heart attack. All of these are just excuses...truth is I stopped working out as much, but more importantly I never changed my eating habits. I was still eating all the wrong foods. 

I have known for a long time what I should be eating but just have chosen not to do it. Hopefully that is all about to change....