In the beginning...

A few things helped me get started...I watched the movie "Sick, Fat and Nearly Dead" which I cannot recommend highly enough. Juicing may not be for you (I think a short fast might be great, but 6 months is way beyond me) however it is an amazing movie. I had had some great success with a raw diet in the past, which included daily jucing, so I found my copy of "Detox 4 Women" by Natalia Rose: http://www.detoxtheworld.com/books-detox-4-women.php. Natalia is a clinical nitritionist who helps people regain their microbial balance so that they are better able to attain a healthy balanced body! 

One of the foundations is to keep carbs, proteins and fruits seperate. Not only that, in order to rebalance gut microbes and kill off any possible Candida Albicans only a few carbs are allowed for the 1st 4 weeks. These are sweet potatoes, winter squashes (butternut, buttercup, acorn, etc.) and millet.  It sounds limited, I know! I freaked out initially. BUT guess what, sweet potatoes are fantasticlly delicious when prepared well...winter squashes roasted with sweet onions and garlic are incredibly satisfying AND millet (when it is properly cooked, which took me a few tries to figure out) can be made into rissoto, stuffed in cabbage leaves, eaten with your favorite (non-protein) pasta sauce. I also figured that I could do anything for 4 weeks...no big deal, it's only for 4 weeks!

Fruits are also limited in the first 4 weeks to: grapefruits, grannie smith apples and berries. But frozen organic berries rock the house and if you belong to a coop buying group, you can get large quantities on sale while they are out of season. Fruit digests very quickly and has to be eaten BEFORE carbs or proteins...so I often had a large mason jar of raspberries and blackberries mid morning (after my juice.)

Most vehetables are great on this diet... greens (I have been having a love affair with things like kale, chard, mustard greens, broccoli raab and dandilion greens) carrots, broccoli family, peppers...stay away from potatoes, corn and dried beans.

Pasture raised meat is expensive, but I figure chronic disease from pesticides and hormones and chemicals in the feed, not to mention unhappy animals, is more expensive in the long run. There are folks in Southern Vermont who raise and sell meat and eggs from happy healthy animals. We get eggs, goat cheese and goat yogurt every week from a neighbor and we buy beef, pork, chickens (and we're currently looking for a source for turkeys and ducks) locally.

If you live in the city...there is probably a farmer's market nearby, and a farmer that runs a C.S.A. with meat and produce.

So check out Natalia Rose and here is a sample menu from my first few weeks:

Breakfast: a LARGE glass of carrot, granny smith, celery, parsley ginger juice...sipped slowly all morning. Mid morning: a jar (pnut butter size) of mixed frozen berries. Lunch: A LARGE salad; greens (I adore arugula) celery, carrots, scallions, raw beets, 1/2 to a whole avocado and some protein...eggs, chicken, whatever we ate the night before with my oh so wonderful dressing...(recipe coming soon)...Mid afternoon snack: carrots or kale chips (haven't made carrot chips...I am going to try making them tomorrow!) And Dinner: either vegies and protein (salmon, chicken, etc) or vegies and carbs (a big mess of roasted squash, sweet potatoes, beets, garlic and onions OR millet stuffed cabbage or rissoto). WITH a glass of red wine and...2 to 4 squares of really fantastic dark chocolate. 

4 weeks goes by quickly...especially when you have a cheering section!