Taking Care of Your Whole Self!!!

     I apologize for pulling a disappearing act. Just because I have not been blogging does not mean that I have fallen off the wagon and gained 50 pounds. I am still the exact same size that I was when I last blogged. Worked consumed my life and left little time to do much else. I am baffled that I have not gained a single pound, even after cutting back on my exercise regime. I went from working out 3 to 4 times a week to only 1 day a week. I still ate healthy and continued doing my once a month juicing ritual. This just proves that your weight mostly depends on what you eat and not so much on how much you exercise. Don't misunderstand me, I'm not saying that exercise is useless and you should not do it. There are wonderful benefits to exercise. 

     I was extremely stressed out and tired over the summer. Yes work mostly contributed to it, but I now believe that if I made more of an effort to exercise regularly my mood would have most likely been better. I would not have felt as tired and old. My body felt fatigued and heavy, even though the scale stayed the same. Towards the end of the summer I felt exhausted, stiff, depressed, and old. I needed a break and to focus on ME again. Even though your body may be healthy, your mind may not and that defeats the purpose of leading a healthy lifestyle. What's the point in looking healthy if you don't feel healthy?

So I did a pretty drastic thing to drag myself out of a slump. I took a 3 week vacation and traveled to New York and Amsterdam. I needed to spend some quality time with my best friends in New York and some solo time in Amsterdam. What a world of difference did my vacation make. I felt rejuvenated, inspired, youthful, and emotionally happy. I learned a valuable lesson. In order to be happy & healthy, you must take care of your whole self. Your diet, exercise regime, work habits, spirituality, and connections with loved ones must be equally balanced. If you focus all of your energy on only one thing in your life, something will get neglected. You will probably be okay for a short amount of time, but over time you will feel drained and incomplete.

     My vacation was much needed and I am now bouncing back. I am taking care of my WHOLE SELF and feeling like the old Joi again. I am back to exercising 3 times a week and not letting work consume me. In my next blog I will share my experiences in Amsterdam and how I managed not to gain a single pound while still eating whatever I wanted. To get to this point in my life and health feels great. It's priceless!!!

Heaven on Earth IS JeJu

 I recently experienced true bliss. I have heard of this place mentioned several times by a friend, associates and even personally by a famous celebrity. The one common phrase that they all said was "You have to check out JeJu". I finally gave in to those requests and stopped by JeJu. I have already been there twice in two weeks, and my little heaven will now be a monthly ritual. JeJu is amazing. It is beneficial for your body, mind and soul. You may be asking "what are you talking about" or "what is JeJu". JeJu is a Korean bathhouse and sauna in Duluth, Georgia. The building is plain and nondescript. I was expecting something more luxurious, but the reviews were outstanding so I decided to try it out. You walk into the lobby and tell the front counter attendant that you would like the $25 access into the saunas. If it is your first time, tell them that you would like a tour of their facility. They only do tours Monday through Thursday. You will not be able to get a tour Friday, Saturday or Sunday. JeJu is also open 24 hours every day. Yes, you heard right. It is open 24 hours 7 days a week. This is another reason why JeJu is heaven on Earth. Once you pay your $25, the attendant will ask to hold your license or car keys. They do this so that you do not stiff them, run up a credit and bolt from the facility. The attendant will give you a wrist band with a key on it, a toothbrush, and a uniform. They give a pink or salmon colored uniform to women, and a light brown uniform to men. The uniform consist of a shirt and shorts. You then enter into the women's locker room to your left, or the men's locker room to your right. Once you are inside of the locker room there are little lockers to put your shoes in. Be sure to look at the wrist band to see the locker number. You can not lock those lockers. Next you continue walking down the hallway and you will find the larger lockers, which you can and should lock. You have two choices at this point. You can partake in the wet bathhouse area or you can go into the communal area. I suggest you start by going into the wet bathhouse. Leave your modesty at the door and get naked. There are only women in this area and they will not allow you to wear clothes in the wet bathhouse. It is an amazing and exhilarating experience. I was pretty shell shocked at first, but my adventurous nature won out and I shed my clothes. It felt fantastic. Put all of your belongings in the locker and do not forget your wristband key. If you lose that key, they will charge you $50. They have showers, a steam room, a sauna, a hot whirlpool, a hot dipping pool, and a freezing cold dipping pool. Everything is well maintained and extremely clean. They have little towels so you can dry off. You must shower before going into the steam room, sauna or dipping pools. They have bars of soap, conditioners, and shampoos. I suggest that you bring your own soap because their soap is a community bar soap. I find that disgusting, so I bring my own soap. The wet bathhouse is a part of your $25 dollar fee and you do not have to pay extra for those amenities.

Wet Bathhouse

 There are several additional services that they offer for a fee and be sure to bring cash for tips. They will charge the actual service to your wristband If you would like a body scrub, the cost is $40. I have not had this service yet, but I hear that it is amazing. They will clean you like you have never been cleaned before and it lasts for well over 1 hour. I hear that they are extremely thorough and they will clean every nook and cranny on your body. They will even wash your hair. If you would like a massage to go with the body scrub, it will cost you a total of $70. They offer a Gold Special Massage with a body scrub for $130. This service is 2 hours long, and I am not quite sure what it entails. If you would like Aromatherapy Massage with a body scrub or a Green Tea Massage with a body scrub, they each cost $100 and lasts for 1 hour and 40 minutes. Ladies, they have a service for only us that will change your life. This service is called a Hip Bath and it only costs $30. I had this service done and now I am a fan. I plan on having this service once a month. I am interested in seeing what the long term effects are. This service lasts for about 45-50 minutes and it is heavenly. You sit on a cushioned wooden stool with a large hole in it. You are completely naked and they place a large robe-like material over you. The only thing people will see is your head. The attendant will put different types of herbs in a pot with water and place it under your stool on top of a burner. I did not feel anything for about 5 minutes and then I began to feel a warm soothing feeling going up my va jay jay. The smells are simply divine. All I can say is WOW!!! It can get pretty hot down there, so be sure to lift the robe if it becomes too intense. This service is suppose to help prevent yeast infections, "itchy anus" LOL, alleviate PMS symptoms, and I hear that it will even tighten up your lady love. LOL, I will have to ask my husband about that one. They even advertise that it will help cure your sterility. So if you are having a difficult time conceiving, it would not hurt to give hip baths a shot. I have pretty awful cramps and bloating during my cycle, so I will definitely do a hip bath once a month to help with these symptoms. They do not recommend hip baths if you are currently pregnant, and I would not have one while I am on my cycle. Before or after that time of the month seems ideal.

Steam Room

When you are done with the wet bathhouse, you can now enjoy the communal area. You must wear your uniform in this section because it is coed. It will be extremely embarrassing if you forget to put on your uniform and walk out into the communal area. If you get confused and can not find the communal area, just ask one of the attendants. If you can not locate an attendant, just remember not to go into any of the closed doors without your uniform. Once you are in the communal area, the first thing you will see is an eating area. They serve natural juices, smoothies, desserts, and Korean food. I have not eaten at their restaurant, but I hear it has mixed reviews. If you like Korean food, you may enjoy it. You can not go wrong with natural juice and smoothies. You do not have to pay cash for the food, but they will charge it to your wristband. Everything else in the communal area is a part of the $25 access fee that you paid upon entrance into JeJu. There are a total of 8 rooms in the communal area. One room is a sleeping room for women only and it opens at around 10 PM. If you want to spend the night at JeJu (also a part of the $25 fee), women can sleep in this room away from the snoring men who spends the night at JeJu. They provide mats and pillows for the sleeping room.  If you would like a little brown pillow to lay your head on while in any of the huts or rooms, be sure to grab one from the cabinet in the communal area.

They have 3 beautifully decorated huts right in the middle of the communal area. One hut is called the Gold & Silver Room. This sauna is very vibrant and beautiful. The colors are gorgeous and luxurious. This sauna is said to have "positive effects on nerve stability, poison counteraction, and neurosis". The next hut is Rock-Salt Room. This is one of my favorite rooms. This sauna is surrounded by pure crystal rock salt. It is said that the Rock-Salt Room "strengthens your cardiovascular system and increase blood circulation, flush out impurities, and release dead skin cells". This sauna is really hot and absolutely wonderful. The next hut is the Jewel Room. The details in this hut are exquisite. Visually, it is the most beautiful hut in my opinion. This room is surrounded by semi-precious stones, crystals, and amethyst. This sauna is said to have great healing and calming powers. It is a room that is great for depression. Next they have four different rooms that are not built like huts. The first room is the Jade Room. I love the Jade Room. The decor is so calming and it is so peaceful. It is a low-temperature sauna and it is excellent for sleeping. Every time I go into this room, I fall asleep. The Jade Room is made from imported Korean jade stones. This room is said to "increase metabolism, improve circulation, and relieve arthritis pain". I do not know about all of that, but it is an excellent room to relax in and catch a few zzzz's. The next room is the Charcoal Room. This is my second favorite room. This room feels like one big hug. It is dark and comforting. This room is surrounded by charcoal and is said to "eliminate toxins and wastes increasing perspiration and your resistance to diseases". I repeatedly go back to this room for some reason. The next room is the Baked Clay Room. This sauna is surrounded by Korean red baked clay. It is hot and excellent for "tight muscles, increase blood circulation, helps eliminate waste products, and delivers rich blood oxygen to depleted muscles helping them recover faster". I tend to sweat a lot in this sauna so it must be good for the skin as well. The last room is the Ice Room. Basically, this room is just a simple room with an air conditioner in it. Nothing too special about this room. If you get too hot...just go into this room to cool off. I have seen people working on their laptops in the communal area, or they can lounge around and watch television on the two or three flat screen placed around the room. If you want to go swimming, JeJu also have a full length swimming pool. You must wear a bathing suit to swim in the pool.

Swimming Pool

They offer additional services in the communal area as well. These services include a hour long Acupressure Massage for $100, a hour long Body Massage for $80, and a hour long reflexology Foot Massage for $50. I have not had any of these services yet, but I hear that the Foot Massage is to die for. I can not wait to explore all of JeJu's amenities in the near future. JeJu also have an area upstairs that is pretty basic. If you must pollute your body and grab a smoke, you can go into their smoking room upstairs. I believe smoking defeats the purpose of even going to JeJu; but to each his own. They also have a very basic and unimpressive fitness room. They have a few treadmills, several stationary bikes, and a television. There is a pitiful excuse for an arcade upstairs as well. I guess some kids may like it. They also have a full skin care and nail salon upstairs. This salon offers manicures, pedicures, facials, laser hair removals, eyelash extensions, and waxing services. You can go to www.lilyskin.com to check for pricing and more details.

Once you are ready to leave JeJu, you just go back to the locker room and change into your street clothes. Give your towels and uniform to the locker room attendant and walk back into the reception/front desk area. Do not forget your shoes. You give your wristband to the front desk attendant and they will see how much money you owe from your wristband. You pay your fee, retrieve your license or car keys,  and leave. You can spend as much or as little money as you like. If you just want to experience the wet bathhouse and the saunas in the communal area, the cost is just a grand total of $25 and you can stay there for as long as you like. If you want any additional services, it will cost you extra. JeJu is definitely worth $25 and much much more.

Ha Roo Baghn Bakery

Ha Roo Baghn Bakery is attached to JeJu and you can access it from inside of the reception/front desk area. This bakery is pretty good. I had the Pumpkin cake loaf and some Korean style ice cream. Delicious and inexpensive!!! Overall, I give JeJu 4 1/2 stars out of 5. I only took off points because the bars of soap are disgusting, the fitness room is sorry, and I do not get the smoking room. Everything else is AMAZING!!! I was debating on even blogging about this place because I want it to be my little secret, but I said that I was going to share my experiences of being Healthy in the A and I can not continue being healthy without JeJu. If you know what is good for you, pack a bag with soap, an Ipod with earplugs, water bottle, and  a book and head to JeJu. Hopefully I will see you there next time; if not, oh well it is your loss. LOL

JeJu
3555 Gwinnett Place Drive
Duluth, GA. 30096
678-336-7414
www.jejusauna.net

It's a Dirty job...but Everyone should do it!!!

No one said that committing your life to being healthy is always pretty. It is difficult, can be painful, and even make you consider doing things that may seem down right disgusting. What I may tell you may disturb you, but it is a necessary "evil" for optimal health.  The key term for today is Colon Hydrotherapy. This procedure really isn't that bad, but it take some getting use to. I had this procedure done for the first time in January. Since I never had one before, I had to have a series of three treatments. The treatments consist of laying on a comfortable mat which is connected to a large machine and elevated approximately three feet into the air. There is a fairly large hole towards the bottom of the mat where you place your derriere. There is a long tube connected to this hole. Now this may sound traumatic, but trust me it really is not that bad. You have to place that tube about three to four inches into your anus. I will admit that it is slightly uncomfortable the first time, but you will get used to that sensation. Just lay back, try to relax and breath.

Itty Bitty Tube

The next thing you will feel is a slight trickle of water slowly filling your bladder. When your bladder feels full, just push. Do not try to hold it in because you will feel nauseous. I learned a lot about myself during the first time I had this procedure. I learned that I have a very hard time of letting go and relaxing. I must always feel like I am in control. Needless to say, my first hydro colonic therapy session was mentally exhausting for me. I can admit that I was slightly traumatized and vowed to never do this again. My need to control everything in my life caused me to hold onto a lot of crap. I am speaking figuratively and literally about this situation. Because I have made a personal promise to live a healthy lifestyle starting this year, I am dedicating every season to having one hydro colonic therapy session. So far, it has been one of the best decisions that I have ever made.

The sessions only lasts for about 45 minutes and after you are done, you feel so much lighter and healthier. It is amazing how much "crap" stays in your colon. It is so necessary to routinely clean out your colon, and I now live by this procedure. It is no longer traumatic for me and I now find it extremely relaxing. Having a bowel movement while laying down is awkward, but you will get use to it. Women, and especially men, need to consider having this procedure. We all know that colon cancer is serious, and this procedure can help prevent it. So please, try it and give it a chance. Your body needs this. I am going to set my appointment tomorrow and get my session in for this season. If you are in the Atlanta area, I recommend going to Nile Wellness Center. Click the link below and set your appointment.

(770) 454-1363

3781 Presidential Pkwy Ste 108 (Presidential Drive)

Atlanta, GA 30340

  http://www.nilewellnesscenter.com/nile_wellness_center/Welcome.html

Welcome To My Juicing World...part three

 So today is the last day of my juice fast. I have not had solid food in 71 1/2 hours. My husband is cooking some delicious lentil and veggies soup and it smells so good. In less than 30 minutes, I finally get to partake. My excitement cannot even be expressed through words. Well today was not bad at all. I woke up around 9:00 AM and prepared my breakfast, which only consisted of juiced watermelon. I really wanted to keep it simple this morning. I drank about 16 ounces of it and I was satisfied. I did not wake up hungry or with a headache. I even woke up with more energy than I had in days. Day three is so much easier than day two. My body is now used to the feeling of a fairly empty stomach. I do not have any cravings or temptations.

I had a lot of work to do today, so I just stayed in the house to prepare for my work week. After gathering all the documents that I needed for the week, I sat out on my deck for a while just to get some fresh air, I was planning on playing a tennis match today, but because of the morning rain and a wet court it was postponed. Even if I did play, I believe I would have enough energy to make it through the match. I would have just drank some pure beet juice and taken those miraculous EnergyPlus pills. Instead I took a two hour nap and woke up around 2:00 PM. I knew I had to put more on my stomach, but I just was not hungry. So I made myself make a juice made from three carrots, two radishes, two Brussels sprouts, and a cucumber. I made enough for 16 ounces, but was only able to drink eight ounces. I'm just really not that hungry and I am pretty sick of drinking juice all day. So, eight ounces was enough for me. Besides, I drank about 32 ounces of water already today.

It is now 6:55 PM and I am still not hungry; but I am looking forward to eating my first real meal since Thursday night. Overall, this fast went pretty well. I feel great and my skin even looks a little brighter. I also lost five pounds since Thursday. Even though this weight loss is temporary, I will take it. The hardest day was the second day and that day was still doable. I have realized that the more fasts that I do, the easier it becomes. All you need is a strong will, dedication, and the ability to see the big picture. Well, It is now 7:00 and my husband is calling me to come down and eat. Bon Appetit!

Welcome To My Juicing World...part two

Day two of my juice fast started off pretty good. I slept in this morning and did not wake up until 11:15 AM. I felt refreshed, fairly energetic, and not hungry at all. These feelings surprised me because normally when I do a juice fast I feel pretty sluggish on day two. I am not complaining, maybe this will be an easy three day juice fast. I was pretty excited about my breakfast; I will try a watermelon juice mixture that I never had before. My breakfast consisted of juice made from some watermelon, two Fiji apples, one cucumber, and a lime. These fruits and veggies made 32 ounces of juice. It will be both my breakfast and lunch. I also took one multi-vitamin, drank some ginger root tea, and a glass of water. The juice was delicious and refreshing. I settled in on the couch and listened to the rain.

I must have dozed off because now the clock reads 2:30 PM. I did not feel tired when I woke up this morning, but now I feel fatigued with a slight headache. My stomach is now having a very loud protest. I am feeling very hungry and I really want to eat something. Darn, I really thought I was in the clear for having an easy day two. I sluggishly poured the rest of my juice that I prepared this morning and drank it. I chased my lunch down with another glass of water. The reason why I am so anal about drinking a glass of water with my juice is because some fruits and vegetables can be quite acidic. I learned this the hard way when I discovered I had kidney stones a year ago when I juiced a lot of fruits and did not drink enough water. I thought I was doing my body good and I ended up in the emergency room with kidney stones. A lesson learned indeed. Drink your water kids.

My juiced lunch gave me a slight burst of energy and the water cured my headache, but I still felt slightly hungry. Not too bad, but definitely felt that my stomach was empty. I'm sure I am down at least two pounds from yesterday. I feel lighter and any bloat that I had yesterday was gone. I decided that today will be a low key day and I settled back on the couch to read a book. It was hard to concentrate on the words that I were reading because I just felt my energy going down again. That juiced lunch only gave me energy for about 15 minutes. I really felt like I could have slept some more, but I really did not want to sleep my day away. So I called some friends and family to chitchat.

By 4:00 PM I am feeling pretty miserable. I really want to eat. I noticed a subway commercial on the television that my husband just turned on, and the sandwich looked like God hand made it his or herself. I became fixated on the sandwich and I really wanted one badly. Oh, temptation only makes you stronger. I hear and feel my tummy growling lightly. I had to make myself turn away from the television and I drank some more ginger root tea. It is best to avoid television whenever you do a juice fast because you begin to realize how many commercials contain food or how many television shows focuses around food. It's really quite disturbing. Most of the commercials advertise unhealthy foods and try to make it look delicious. If I was not doing this juice fast and I saw that sandwich any other time, it would have looked disgusting to me. It was with white bread, and I really prefer whole wheat or all grain. It had turkey meat and what looked like ham, and I do not eat meat like that. I may have some turkey three or four times a year, and I have not eaten pork in at least a year. But for some reason, that sandwich looked so yummy. After I drank my ginger root tea, I felt so much better. My hunger pains went away and I felt like I may make it though day two.

By 8:00 PM I realized that they day went by pretty quickly. I finished the book that I was trying to read earlier. I was able to focus enough to get through the book. I was no longer hungry but I still felt sluggish. I really did not have a lot of energy. I knew it was time for dinner, so I made a somewhat hardy juice even though I was not hungry. This is the hardest part of juicing. You body will start to adjust to the lack of solid food, and it will become difficult to continue to drinking juice when you are no longer hungry. But you must drink the juice because your body needs the vitamins and minerals. So I reluctantly made my dinner juice from four carrots, a half of a beet, and a cucumber. This was enough for 16 ounces of juice. I drank the juice and the beets gave me a jolt of energy. If you are ever feeling sluggish, drink some beet juice. It gives you as much of a jolt as coffee, and it's healthier. You will have to get use to the taste. It is pretty strong and can over power all of the other fruits or vegetables. The cucumber helps water down the taste of the beet, and the carrots adds some sweetness to the juice. Carrot juice is actually pretty sweet.

It is now 11:00 PM and I am ready to go to bed. I feel pretty good. The hunger pains are over and I believe I made it through day two pretty well. The biggest obstacles today were the lack of energy and the hunger pains in the middle of the day. The beet juice mixture I had at dinner and the ginger root tea made day two much more manageable. I am looking forward to day three because I remember day three being the best day of my last juice fast. I am about to drink some more ginger tea and another glass of water. Off to bed I go, anticipating the journey of day three.

Welcome To My Juicing World...part one

 I have decided to document one of my three day juice fasts. It will be interesting for me to come back and read these next series of blogs regarding this juice fast. I wonder how juice fasts affect my thought process while writing. I started doing juice fasts in January 2011.  My initial goal was to do a consecutive two week fast; but I was advised by my very intelligent husband that that may not be a wise way to start a juice fast. He encouraged me to research on the topic first. So I decided to go to Barnes and Noble, and I purchased The Juice Fasting Bible by Sandra Cabot, M.D.  This book recommended starting small, so I took the expert's advice. My first juice fast was only a day long. I waited one week to do my second juice fast which was two days long. I waited one more week to do my third juice fast which was four days long. So now I am a little more comfortable doing juice fasts. I decided after my last juice fast that I would commit myself to doing a three day juice fast every month. Now that time has come; but before I begin blogging about my current juice fasting experience, I would like to explain why I put my body through this.

 Juice fasts are so beneficial for maintaining good health. I look at it like your body is a car, and all cars need regular tune-ups. Basically juice fasts gives your digestive system a break from all of the work that it does to break down all foods that we eat and flushes it out. Some food, like meat, are tough to break down in your system and your intestinal track works overtime to do the job.  I personally would like to give my digestive system a break so that is why I do juice fasts. It also does not hurt to see a couple of pounds disappear from that evil scale during your fast. Even though that loss is temporary, I'll take it.

I find that it is easier to start your juice fast immediately after eating a light dinner. So last night I had a small bowl of vegetarian chili made with black beans, red kidney beans, chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, diced tomatoes, a little bit of salt, and pepper. I ate my chili with a handful of Trader Joe's Organic Reduced Guilt White Corn Tortilla Chips. I felt full and ready to start my juice fast. I drank a tall glass of water and went to bed about three hours later. I woke up at 7:30 this morning to prepare for work. I felt great and the hunger pains have not begun yet. Surprisingly, I am still full from last night's dinner. I often underestimate how much time it takes to prepare juice to take to work, so I like to set aside about ten minutes to prepare my juice. It takes about that much time to put the juicer together and decide what I will be drinking for the next 8 hours. The actual juicing only takes about two or three minutes; and if you are doing a lot of slicing, add another minute or two. I like my first juice of the day to be something light, crisp, and somewhat fruity. I decided on three granny smith apples, three Fiji apples, six carrots (which is my favorite type of juice), one celery, and one lime (with the skin). This made enough for about 48 ounces of juice. I filled my 64 ounce container with 1/3 of ice and poured in my breakfast, lunch, and snack concoction. I made 16 ounces of ginger root tea (just boiling hot water and about four slices of ginger root). I love drinking ginger root tea while doing a juice fast because it helps settle my stomach and it curbs my appetite. Besides, it is so yummy (if you like spicy teas) and very good for you. I packed up two bottles of water, and took two multi-vitamins and an extra Vitamin B-12 pill. It is so important to make sure that you take your vitamins because fasting has a tendency to deplete your energy and you want to make sure that you cover your bases and get all of your vitamins in your system. This is important everyday, not just while you are fasting. But enough of my preaching to the choir. After gathering my essentials, I was ready to start my day.

 Everything was going smoothly. I felt great and had tons of energy. Then I hit my first temptation at 1:00 PM. It was lunch time and I noticed that I kept glancing at my co-worker's chicken salad. Those leafy greens, white meat, and perfectly sliced eggs were staring at me. At this point I even thought that I heard it calling my name. I wasn't even really hungry. That salad just looked so good. So I made myself turn around and I poured another cup of juice. I envisioned that juice being that delicious salad; lo and behold, it worked. I made it through my first temptation of this three day fast. The rest of my work day was pretty uneventful. I did begin to get a slight headache around 4:00 PM, and my energy took a nose dive around that time as well. I did notice that it was harder for me to concentrate and I was ready for my work day to end. I just drank some water and the headache went away about ten minutes later. My energy was still low by the time 5:00 PM rolled around. Oddly enough, I did not feel exactly hungry just more tired than normal. Drinking the juice periodically throughout the day helped. By the last drop of that juice, I was pretty much sick of it though.

I had tennis practice tonight at 7:30 PM and I was wondering how I was going to make it through that practice. I really don't recommend doing extraneous exercise while you are juice fasting, but I scheduled that practice before I decided to do this juice fast and my schedule would not allow me to change the days of my juice fast. So I had to come up with a quick solution. It is not a good look to pass out on the tennis courts. So I did something that I would never ever do on a juice fast. I ate one banana about one hour before playing tennis. I knew that was what my body needed to maintain my energy during my hardcore tennis practice. It was the best decision I made. That banana coupled with two Pure Essence Labs EnergyPlus pills from Vitamin Shoppe made my two and a half hours of tennis practice much more doable. I had sustained energy for hours. This was the first time I ever took those pills and they worked really well. The pills are made up of natural herbs and they are very safe. The banana and those pills helped curb my appetite and I was not hungry after tennis practice. I came home and I made a dinner juice. I like my dinner juice to be a little more hardy and contain more vegetables. My16 ounce juice consisted of four carrots, three Brussels sprouts, two radishes, one celery, and one cucumber. I chased my juice down with one glass of water, and that was my dinner. In about one hour I am going to drink some more ginger root tea and prepare for bed. I feel good. I am tired, but I think it is more because of working an eight hour day and then playing two and a half hours of tennis. I do not feel hungry and I am ready for day two. Be prepared...It WILL be a doozy. Day two tends to be the hardest in a juice fast, but I am ready to take it on.

My first blog....WhoooHoooo!!!

So I decided to blog my journey for optimal health. You may be asking yourself, why??? Well the answer is really simple. I've been trying, for years, to find a fitness plan or diet that will work for me. I've created so many diets and none of them worked. Some of my friends would tease me and ask "what Joi diet are you on now". Now that I look back, it is kind of hilarious. I would go through a "I'm only eating vegetables and fruits" stage, but the next day I would eat a candy bar. And then I would immediately modify the diet to justify adding sweets. So I would change my fruits and vegetable diets to "I'm only eating fruits, vegetables, and less than 20 grams of sugar a day diet". Needless to say, those type of diets never worked or lasted more than a week (if I'm lucky). I was getting frustrated with myself. Here I am a college educated and intelligent professional woman who became obsessed with food. Not the "I eat all of the time" or "I eat everything" obsession. The obsession that I am talking about can be even more dangerous. I started to obsess over every little thing that I put in my mouth. I wondered how many calories were in it. I wondered how many grams of salt it contained. I worried over the type of sugar it had. Numbers were swarming in my head. I was obsessing but the scale never changed. My clothes fit a little too snug for my comfort. On the outside, I may have looked okay...but I was miserable on the inside.

I was always a smaller framed woman. Friends and associates would look at me and say "are you kidding me. You look great. I would love to have your body". But trust me, I looked better with clothes on than without. I'm petite. I am only 5 feet and 2 inches tall. At my largest weight, I was 132 pounds. I tend to carry my weight in my belly and thighs. My rock bottom occurred 3 months ago. Within one month, I was asked if I was pregnant 4 times by 4 different people. I could not ignore my bulging belly any longer. That was a wake up call for me. I had to make some changes and I had to make them immediately. Because I am a smaller framed woman, a little pot belly can appear to be a baby bulge. I no longer wanted to be mistaken as being pregnant. Word to the wise: Never, Ever ask a woman if she is pregnant unless you are 100% sure that she is. It causes for a very awkward situation.

Three months have passed and I lost 12 pounds and I dropped a dress size. I went from 132 pounds to 120 pounds. I feel great and I no longer have a "baby bump". This transformation was difficult but so rewarding. I am still addicted to television and I still like my occasional sweets, but I have made so many lifestyle changes. I work out 4-5 days a week. I cut out all starchy foods (white rice, white bread, flour). I limit the amount of sugar and salt in my diet. I do not eat red meat or fried foods. I only drink water, hot tea, and natural juices. I do a 3 day juice fast every month to detox, and I commit myself to one colonic every season to cleanse my colon from impurities. I feel great. I look great. And I am so happy about my lifestyle change, that I am ready to share this change to the world.