Doing the Reboot–A Fruit/Vegetable/Juice fast

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Today is the sixth day of my entry into the 15-day standard “Reboot” program, wherein I am solely ingesting fruits and vegetables — raw, slightly cooked, or juiced.

The idea is to detox my body–eating only pure, fresh food and leaving out processed foods, meats (which includes fish and poultry), dairy and eggs, and all grains and nuts, caffeine and alcohol– in order to re-balance my body and purge impurities, reintroduce myself to fruits and vegetables, of which most Americans do not eat enough, and hopefully, in the long run, create healthier eating habits.

A big bonus for many doing a Reboot is the loss of weight that comes with this program, as well as, according the documentary film, “Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead,” even clear up some health problems.

The film is where the Reboot program was born. Australian Joe Cross was overweight, had a terrible skin condition that required medication, and was unhappy with his eating  and overall health lifestyle. He decided to hit the road, the American one, and juice for 60 days while filming his progress and interactions with people across the country. He did quite a bit of juicing from the back of his car (using a generator) and steadily lost weight, cleared up his health problems and began educating others.

One of those people he came across was a trucker, Phil Staples, who was morbidly obese, weighing 429 pounds. Joe told Phil about his personal quest to lose weight and become healthy, and told the trucker if he decided to try juicing, Joe would help him. After Joe went back to Australia in his new trim and healthier state, he got a call from Phil who said he wanted help. Joe set him up in a cottage by a lake and showed the trucker a shirt that was at least five times too small. Joe told Phil that by the end of sixty days he was going to fit into that shirt. The effects of the juicing diet Phil went through could be immediately seen on his face–it glowed and he seemed happier. The film follows much of the quest of trucker Phil, and by the end of his fast, he had lost more than 200 pounds–and fit into the shirt. He quit trucking and began educating others about juicing and eating healthier.

However, the film alone was not the sole impetus for me to start my juice detox. My son had come home one day with a Jack LaLanne juicing machine and said he was going to go on a juice diet. He asked me to join him, but I told him: “No Way! I love food too much!” I also like my wine, chocolate and coffee.

But then, during the same weekend I saw the film and went through an accidental coffee withdrawal. I had forgotten to drink my coffee one day–I was drinking at least two cups a day–and I got a massive headache that lasted three days. Also that same weekend I had received a deep tissue massage and my whole body went into some sort of shock–I lay in bed for the most of three days feeling miserable. I thought if not having coffee (read: caffeine) can make me feel so horrible, it’s got to be bad for you. Then the film’s message of how we consume so much that is not good for us resonated within me.  It was educational about the nutrition received from fruits and vegetables, and not overdoing it on animal protein (which the film’s makers do not recommend giving up, but to balance meals more with veggies and fruits), and how processed foods are just not that good for you.

I decided to do the detox, or Reboot as it’s called.

So the past week I have eaten only fruits and vegetables–and I am amazed at how many vegetables and fruits I do not eat! In one cup I’ve “eaten” a grapefruit, apple, pear, two carrots, and a cup of blueberries. I never eat that many fruits in week! For a dinner I made a delicious vegetable soup with carrots, celery, tomatoes, kale and Swiss chard, onions and leeks, served with baked zucchini that also had leeks and tomatoes with fresh herbs. To have that many vegetables in a week was also rare for me, but now I am having all of this everyday, several times a day.

To be honest, I am hungry quite often, which means I need to eat more often. But when I do eat, I am very satisfied. Today, though, I start ingesting only juice, and will do so for five days straight. The program is five days fruits and veggies cooked or raw and juiced, five days only juice, and then back to the combo.

I don’t know if I can handle it. But I will try.

By the way, I did cheat on my first day of this program. I went to a birthday party where gourmet Mexican food was served, and a tres leches cake. I had a bite of the cake. It was so moist and delicious, the taste made me feel as if I was in heaven. But I stopped at one bite, and vowed to stick through this program. It’s hard.