Ana Margarita Olar|Vigorbuddy.com
A juice fast is now becoming a popular way of detoxifying and cleanses the body of harmful chemicals, toxins and even preservatives from the food we eat. Jumping right away into fasting can overwhelm your body and may have some serious effects on your health.
So here are some ways to prepare physically for a juice fast:
- Consult a doctor to evaluate your current health status if it is deemed fit for a juice fast. Fasting can change your body’s blood chemistry so taking some medications while you are fasting may pose a health threat rather than benefits. Also, if you have conditions such as pregnancy, advanced cancer, or immunocompromised; fasting may not be ideal.
- Establish a plan on how your body can cope up with the possible changes while having a juice fast. Fasting causes the elimination of body toxins which may result in fatigue, weakness, diarrhoea, and headache. You may need to spend some time at home while experiencing these side effects.
- Gradually eliminate addictive substances 2 weeks to a month prior to a juice fast. Fasting itself has some minor side effects but can be aggravated when you abruptly stop smoking, alcohol, or even caffeine. So have your body deal with this one step at a time. Allow your system to detach from these addictive substances and deal with the withdrawal symptoms before proceeding to fast.
- Alter your diet, at least, two weeks before a juice fast. This includes eliminating the certain type of foods little by little until your body gets used to it. You can try eliminating foods that contain empty calories first such as junk foods, foods that contain refined sugar such as chocolates, and candies, etc. Then proceed to eliminate meat and fatty foods from your diet, and while gradually switching to fruits and vegetable diet before ultimately proceeding to a pure juice fast. It is also important not to binge eat before a juice fast.
- After two weeks of altering your diet, you can proceed with eating only fruits and vegetables 3-5 days before the juice fast to cleanse your system and detoxify your body gradually. You also need to hydrate yourself by increasing your intake of water and fruit juices. This can also serve as a way to prepare your body for a pure liquid diet.
- Have a moderate exercise as a way of letting out toxins from your body through sweating. Your need to do your physical activity in moderation even prior to a juice fast. That is why you need to plan ahead to make sure that your scheduled activity will not add a burden to your body while fasting.
While preparing for a juice fast, keep in mind that the success of your fasting relies on how you prepared your body as well as your determination to finish your fasting and achieve your goal.