If you are new here and want to start from the beginning....good idea :-) You can click here and It will bring you to the beginning. CLICK HERE
So if you have been following this you probably know that I'm writing a book to tell this story. I figure with about 45,000 people reading this, it seemed like it was in order.
I felt that for a couple of reasons I would "do" another broth fast -- for 15 days.
In no particular order, I had took an absolutely horrible assignment working with a school in a big city far from home. I was 3 hours from Santa Barbara so commuting wasn't an option. I went to check out the area and realized that I'm not a city guy. I've never liked them. So I found a place to live in the mountains nearby in a town of 1,100 people and it's lovely. The catch is that I have to drive about an hour each way...well worth it. But suffice it to say that eating healthfully became more of a challenge. And the stress of the job (way, way, way more stress than I care to describe here) allowed the Cushing's Syndrome to reappear and this began to affect me quite adversely. All this to say that I started to gain weight again...not much but it was coming on pretty quickly and my health was deteriorating. I knew this path and wasn't about to walk down it again. So I decided that I needed to re-set and re-start...again. So I decided to take 15 days and drink broth to get back to the healthy state that I have been in for over 2 1/2 years.
The second reason was that if I was to write a book 2 1/2 years after first completing it, it would be helpful to be able to revisit those feelings and issues. After all, when I first went through it, I hadn't been considering writing a book. So here I am writing and drinking broth.
I'm going to post as I did before giving updates as I go.
I hope that you'll take the time to read along....should be interesting. :-)
PLEASE SHARE ON FACEBOOK or TELL YOUR FRIENDS!! That would be a very nice gift.
CLICK HERE for the NEXT post
Wednesday, May 31, 2017
Day 2 draft
Day 2 of the 2016 Broth Fast
If you're new to this...Here's the latest. So 2 1/2 years ago I did the 30 Day Broth Fast and lost 35 pounds in 2 months and eliminated a whole host of medical problems. I ended up losing another 10 pounds literally without trying over the next few months. Now with about 45,000 people reading this blog, I thought it was time to assemble a book. You're welcome to read from this point or you can go back a couple of years and start at the beginning. If you'd like to do that: CLICK HERE
For those of you who have been following this, here's the update on Day 2 of the latest broth fast.
Yesterday was really hard. It hit me like BAMM!
There was this intense desire to eat and although it is been a while since I have done this (broth fast), yesterday seemed harder than any other day so far. I really hadn't experienced anything like this during the other two times that I fasted in the past. But what I learned was that for some people there's going to be a point where it just seems too overwhelming.
I had that feeling, that questioning, could I actually do this? Was I going to make it? I was ravishing. I was literally so hungry that I was actually nervous. Anxious. Anxious about the fact that I didn't have food to eat...solid food that is. I had that feeling of impending doom. Like something was going to happen to me, something unpleasant. If you've ever dealt with anxiety issues before, like I have, you might understand the feeling. It felt like I was going to die or something. Even though there were no symptoms, I felt like I was going to have a heart attack or pass out or explode, I didn't know what but it just felt scary.
It truly overwhelmed me and became my most prevalent thought. It was more than a momentary obsession, it felt like it was life or death. I almost had that feeling like "My gosh! I have to eat right now otherwise I'm going to die." It was that type of hungry. But in reality, it'd only been two days. And I had "some" broth 4 hours earlier. Oh and this feeling... it was the second time that it came over me in the same day, but the earlier was certainly not as bad as this one.
So how did I make it through? I just stayed convicted. I had to have my brain and logic trump my physical body's request. I knew that the feelings were strictly related to my body craving the carbs and sugars that it had been getting on such a regular basis. I knew that I would get plenty of nutrition in the broth if I just drank it. That "was" my "food". And why was I so crazy hungry? I hadn't eaten! I did not have enough calories that day. I did not get enough nutrition. Whatever you want to call it, I had not ingested enough to stay satisfied.
But I "knew" that this feeling would subside in a matter of minutes, certainly in less than an hour, as long as I had some broth.
I know enough now about broth fasting to be certain that I needed to have more than 1/2 a cup or even a whole mug. I needed to have at least two. And I needed to slam them.
So I poured some of my basic chicken broth into a mug and then quickly tried to aerate it to cool it down so that it would be warm rather than hot. I even took a glass that we keep in the freezer and poured some of the soup into the chilled and frosty glass to try to cool it quickly. I was so hungry, I wasn't interested in taking my time to savor the flavor. I just needed to get something in me, and get something in me fast. I know the importance of drinking broth quickly. For this reason I usually keep the broth at a warm, not hot, temperature. I first make the soup, cooking it on high in the crockpot, sometimes leaving it on high for quite a while. Hours, sometimes even a full day or more. This strengthens the flavor. It also, I believe, adds to the nutritional value. But once the flavor is set, I turn it down not just to low but to warm. In truth, I really don't want to drink it hot. It is so much better and easier to drink warm. I think the speed at which one drinks the broth helps immensely. More on that below.
Let's compare it to eating a meal. Think about how long it takes to ingest a hamburger. Think about being at McDonald's...wait, or better yet Tommy Burgers in Los Angeles where every burger comes with chili on it, perhaps the best burgers in America, but I digress. OK, I need to dwell on this some more. Let me explain how good these burgers are. They are so good that if you have two double cheese with extra chili burgers... they are so good, that I can guarantee the next day your stomach will hurt. That's how good they are!
But think about how long it would take to eat one burger, how long would it really take? 15 minutes? Probably less. It would be interesting for us to time ourselves and see how long it takes us to eat one basic burger. All that to say, we know it would be pretty fast. To take a mug of the soup broth and drag it out for 45 minutes would be like eating that burger over 45 minutes. It would fill you up but it wouldn't feel very satisfying. And it would take a long time to feel comfortably full. And so it is with the broth. I find that if I "slam" a mug of broth, meaning I drink it within five minutes or so, it's very fulfilling. Even if you don't ever take on a diet like this, and I wouldn't recommend it without your personal medical advisory, it would be an interesting mini-experiment. Take a time when you're hungry and try this. Try take some delicious soup broth that you make, just scoop it out of your regular soup. Put it into a mug and let it get to a comfortable temperature where it is easy to drink, warm to lukewarm. And then drink it quickly, in just a few minutes. I think you will see what I mean. It is really quite satisfying. You don't have to be doing a broth fast to appreciate and understand what I'm saying here.
I have to say, it really was an unnerving day. But it was my own fault.
I really didn't have enough broth. I had a crazy busy day. I should have scheduled my day knowing that I was still very early in this process. I didn't "plan" it out as I should have. Perhaps I was overconfident from the fact that I knew I had already done this twice before. The first time for 30 days. The second time was after a short break. After I finished the first 30 days, I took two weeks of "normal" eating while I traveled to work with a school in Philadelphia. But when I came back to Santa Barbara, I restarted the broth fast for 15 more days. So there were two times where I started this; where I went from having solid food to having just broth. Perhaps I looked back at this with a bit too much cavalier bravado.
Well, so I was up early in my little mountain cabin. 446 square feet at 6000ft. That morning I had a mug, maybe two, of my Zesty Chicken Broth and then I left to go down to a coffee shop where I had tea, and then I was running around most of the day. Occasionally I did get some broth, but nowhere near enough. Obviously. Then I drove in the car for four hours in heavy traffic. It became a bit of a challenge to have enough broth while I drove. Wisely, I planned ahead and brought a large travel mug with me. I finally got to Santa Barbara where we were to attend a splendid party at our neighbor's home in our little village of Montecito. I had one mug of broth before the party and then only sparkling mineral water during the nearly 4 hours that we were there.
And there was a lot of good smelling food there. And people were eating it, at times right next to me. Certainly it wasn't that they were doing anything wrong or inappropriate, but I found myself wanting and desiring what they were having. I remember from the first time that this was an issue for the first two or three days. I know and I knew that it would fade. And I suppose it did. I went to breakfast with my son David this morning, day three. I sat there and watched him eat and it had no effect on me. I was completely full and satisfied and was happy to see him enjoying his meal. But that wouldn't have been the case yesterday.
But back to the party, I had brought some broth with me in a thermos in the car, which was really a very good idea and would have been helpful. In hindsight it the amount that I brought still would not have been enough. And to make matters worse, I never went back to the car to get it. It would've just been too much of a hassle. The party had valet parking service there and it would have required them getting the car or at least getting the broth for me. I kept thinking I was fine. I felt a little bit more hungry and a little bit more lightheaded as the evening progressed. I kept thinking that we would be leaving soon, but soon turned into close to over an hour. By this point, I was really very hungry. And you know the rest of the story.
But today is a new day. We always learn from yesterday if we are a good student.
Pass this on if you feel so motivated
CLICK HERE to get to the NEXT post
If you're new to this...Here's the latest. So 2 1/2 years ago I did the 30 Day Broth Fast and lost 35 pounds in 2 months and eliminated a whole host of medical problems. I ended up losing another 10 pounds literally without trying over the next few months. Now with about 45,000 people reading this blog, I thought it was time to assemble a book. You're welcome to read from this point or you can go back a couple of years and start at the beginning. If you'd like to do that: CLICK HERE
For those of you who have been following this, here's the update on Day 2 of the latest broth fast.
Yesterday was really hard. It hit me like BAMM!
There was this intense desire to eat and although it is been a while since I have done this (broth fast), yesterday seemed harder than any other day so far. I really hadn't experienced anything like this during the other two times that I fasted in the past. But what I learned was that for some people there's going to be a point where it just seems too overwhelming.
I had that feeling, that questioning, could I actually do this? Was I going to make it? I was ravishing. I was literally so hungry that I was actually nervous. Anxious. Anxious about the fact that I didn't have food to eat...solid food that is. I had that feeling of impending doom. Like something was going to happen to me, something unpleasant. If you've ever dealt with anxiety issues before, like I have, you might understand the feeling. It felt like I was going to die or something. Even though there were no symptoms, I felt like I was going to have a heart attack or pass out or explode, I didn't know what but it just felt scary.
It truly overwhelmed me and became my most prevalent thought. It was more than a momentary obsession, it felt like it was life or death. I almost had that feeling like "My gosh! I have to eat right now otherwise I'm going to die." It was that type of hungry. But in reality, it'd only been two days. And I had "some" broth 4 hours earlier. Oh and this feeling... it was the second time that it came over me in the same day, but the earlier was certainly not as bad as this one.
So how did I make it through? I just stayed convicted. I had to have my brain and logic trump my physical body's request. I knew that the feelings were strictly related to my body craving the carbs and sugars that it had been getting on such a regular basis. I knew that I would get plenty of nutrition in the broth if I just drank it. That "was" my "food". And why was I so crazy hungry? I hadn't eaten! I did not have enough calories that day. I did not get enough nutrition. Whatever you want to call it, I had not ingested enough to stay satisfied.
But I "knew" that this feeling would subside in a matter of minutes, certainly in less than an hour, as long as I had some broth.
I know enough now about broth fasting to be certain that I needed to have more than 1/2 a cup or even a whole mug. I needed to have at least two. And I needed to slam them.
So I poured some of my basic chicken broth into a mug and then quickly tried to aerate it to cool it down so that it would be warm rather than hot. I even took a glass that we keep in the freezer and poured some of the soup into the chilled and frosty glass to try to cool it quickly. I was so hungry, I wasn't interested in taking my time to savor the flavor. I just needed to get something in me, and get something in me fast. I know the importance of drinking broth quickly. For this reason I usually keep the broth at a warm, not hot, temperature. I first make the soup, cooking it on high in the crockpot, sometimes leaving it on high for quite a while. Hours, sometimes even a full day or more. This strengthens the flavor. It also, I believe, adds to the nutritional value. But once the flavor is set, I turn it down not just to low but to warm. In truth, I really don't want to drink it hot. It is so much better and easier to drink warm. I think the speed at which one drinks the broth helps immensely. More on that below.
Let's compare it to eating a meal. Think about how long it takes to ingest a hamburger. Think about being at McDonald's...wait, or better yet Tommy Burgers in Los Angeles where every burger comes with chili on it, perhaps the best burgers in America, but I digress. OK, I need to dwell on this some more. Let me explain how good these burgers are. They are so good that if you have two double cheese with extra chili burgers... they are so good, that I can guarantee the next day your stomach will hurt. That's how good they are!
But think about how long it would take to eat one burger, how long would it really take? 15 minutes? Probably less. It would be interesting for us to time ourselves and see how long it takes us to eat one basic burger. All that to say, we know it would be pretty fast. To take a mug of the soup broth and drag it out for 45 minutes would be like eating that burger over 45 minutes. It would fill you up but it wouldn't feel very satisfying. And it would take a long time to feel comfortably full. And so it is with the broth. I find that if I "slam" a mug of broth, meaning I drink it within five minutes or so, it's very fulfilling. Even if you don't ever take on a diet like this, and I wouldn't recommend it without your personal medical advisory, it would be an interesting mini-experiment. Take a time when you're hungry and try this. Try take some delicious soup broth that you make, just scoop it out of your regular soup. Put it into a mug and let it get to a comfortable temperature where it is easy to drink, warm to lukewarm. And then drink it quickly, in just a few minutes. I think you will see what I mean. It is really quite satisfying. You don't have to be doing a broth fast to appreciate and understand what I'm saying here.
I have to say, it really was an unnerving day. But it was my own fault.
I really didn't have enough broth. I had a crazy busy day. I should have scheduled my day knowing that I was still very early in this process. I didn't "plan" it out as I should have. Perhaps I was overconfident from the fact that I knew I had already done this twice before. The first time for 30 days. The second time was after a short break. After I finished the first 30 days, I took two weeks of "normal" eating while I traveled to work with a school in Philadelphia. But when I came back to Santa Barbara, I restarted the broth fast for 15 more days. So there were two times where I started this; where I went from having solid food to having just broth. Perhaps I looked back at this with a bit too much cavalier bravado.
Well, so I was up early in my little mountain cabin. 446 square feet at 6000ft. That morning I had a mug, maybe two, of my Zesty Chicken Broth and then I left to go down to a coffee shop where I had tea, and then I was running around most of the day. Occasionally I did get some broth, but nowhere near enough. Obviously. Then I drove in the car for four hours in heavy traffic. It became a bit of a challenge to have enough broth while I drove. Wisely, I planned ahead and brought a large travel mug with me. I finally got to Santa Barbara where we were to attend a splendid party at our neighbor's home in our little village of Montecito. I had one mug of broth before the party and then only sparkling mineral water during the nearly 4 hours that we were there.
And there was a lot of good smelling food there. And people were eating it, at times right next to me. Certainly it wasn't that they were doing anything wrong or inappropriate, but I found myself wanting and desiring what they were having. I remember from the first time that this was an issue for the first two or three days. I know and I knew that it would fade. And I suppose it did. I went to breakfast with my son David this morning, day three. I sat there and watched him eat and it had no effect on me. I was completely full and satisfied and was happy to see him enjoying his meal. But that wouldn't have been the case yesterday.
But back to the party, I had brought some broth with me in a thermos in the car, which was really a very good idea and would have been helpful. In hindsight it the amount that I brought still would not have been enough. And to make matters worse, I never went back to the car to get it. It would've just been too much of a hassle. The party had valet parking service there and it would have required them getting the car or at least getting the broth for me. I kept thinking I was fine. I felt a little bit more hungry and a little bit more lightheaded as the evening progressed. I kept thinking that we would be leaving soon, but soon turned into close to over an hour. By this point, I was really very hungry. And you know the rest of the story.
But today is a new day. We always learn from yesterday if we are a good student.
Pass this on if you feel so motivated
CLICK HERE to get to the NEXT post
Day 3 draft
Day 3 Improving but not there yet
It was day 3 and I found myself doing much better. I had forgotten how it is so important to drink A LOT of broth. I saw a broth fast post online and the author said to drink 6 servings of broth per day…REDICULOUS. I guess one could but it sure wouldn’t feel comfortable. I should count how many mugs a day I have. All I know is it’s a lot.
As long as I drink broth when I’m even thinking about getting hungry, I’m really fine. But the other thing that makes it more comforting and filling is drinking it fast. I try to finish the mug in less than 5 times. If you went to college, you probably learned how to chug a beer in 1 long sip. The feeling that I get from a large amount of broth entering my stomach is comforting and calming. Fulfilling.
And the other thing that I learned was related to preparation. I nearly ran out and it caused a bit of a panic. Even now I have only one large pot going and only a few servings of the last. So, I’ve realized how important it is to be well prepared. Truthfully having 3 crockpots going at once really helps a lot! Having a back-up in the frig of pre-made broth is a great insurance policy.
So what am I drinking? That’s a question that I get often enough. Oh and the other thing that I get requests for is recipes. I’m going to include recipes in “the book”. But here’s some basic info about what’s in my mug.
I’m cooking a chipotle beef broth now. I took thinly sliced beef (Ranchera is what the Mexican store calls it). I got a frying pan really hot, added some butter, heavily seasoned the beef with chipotle powder (which has no sugar in it as opposed to a sauce), and then browned (like darkly brown) to add flavor. I used that with some veggies, etc. But right now I’m finishing an incredible “roasted chicken” broth. I bought one of those half chickens that you can buy pre-cooked at the store. I looked for one that was really darkly “browned”…almost “blacked”. :-) It add such a rich flavor. Truly amazing and savory.
I’ll try to list more as well.
Late today or tomorrow morning I need to leave SB to head back down south to our little mountain cabin because I have some work down there. This time I’m going to be prepared. I’m going to bring a bunch with me in the car ready to drink. But I’m also going to bring a bunch extra with me to have once I arrive. When I show up, I won’t have any made and it will take some time to get that ready so I want to be well prepared.
If you wouldn’t mind sharing this on some forum or social site, or just tell your friends, I’d appreciate it. The growing numbers of readers is a huge motivation. It truly warms my heart.
Day 4 draft
Day 4 was definitely not a bore.
I was crazy busy. And I was running low, or low-ish, on broth today. I had forgotten how much broth I really needed to have on hand pre-made or in the pot and cooking. I thought that I was cruising along pretty well but it seemed like whenever I looked at my stock of soup, no pun intended, I didn't have is much as I thought that I did. There certainly was "enough" but I didn't feel comfortable believing that I could relax for a bit. I always had enough but there was not always a backup.
So I decided to be proactive. I went to the store and bought a bunch of different types of meats and vegetables. And I found the third crockpot. So armed with as much organic food as I could buy, I went back to the kitchen to start making broths.
One of the questions that I get often is if I mind watching other people eat food when I'm fasting? My wife often worries about this when I have fasted in the past. But the truth is, as long as I'm comfortably full, it makes little difference. I'm sure some people would use it as away to make others painfully aware that they are fasting, but if I'm not hungry, then it's not a concern. The same holds true when making broth. I suppose if I was really hungry and I was cutting up vegetables and cooking meats, the products going into the soups would seem a bit tempting. I try to make sure that I am fully satisfied, with a full stomach, before I even start shopping or assembling food. What is interesting is that although I may not want to consume solid food or at least be okay with not doing so, I want to chew on something. I asked the doctor about chewing gum and he said it was not a good idea even if it was sugar-free. He dissuaded me from consuming anything that might make my body think it was receiving sugar. That seems reasonable and logical. Although I haven't tried it, I've always thought that chewing on some ice would be good. I'm sure my dentist would love that idea :-)
Going to the grocery store was, and is, actually kind of fun. I know that every single thing that I buy will be used to make my own soup broth. I try to stick to organic products because after all, I am doing this to help my body and I might as well get the healthiest products that I can. Besides, making soup is far less expensive than making regular food and certainly many times less expensive then going out to eat. The amount of money I save all alone just on not having beer, and I'm not a big drinker, probably pays for most of my ingredients.
I guess what I learned most yesterday was to be aware of the need to constantly be drinking. The bottom line is to do this, and be comfortable, one needs to plan on drinking something all the time. I always have a glass of water, sparkling water, Ashwaganda tea, some other herbal tea, or broth nearby. But when I get hungry, it's not just the sipping that will solve the problem. When I find myself "getting" hungry, note that I didn't say when I "am" hungry, I know it's time to consume some broth to be preemptive. And as I mentioned in the other posts, I can't stress enough how important it is to drink the broth very quickly.
As I mentioned earlier, to do this I make sure the broth is warm to lukewarm. This morning I had some that was cold. It wasn't refrigerator cold but it was definitely cold. I think the idea kind of sounded a bit weird but when I drank it, it was really quite nice. I would imagine that it would be especially nice on a hot day. After all, gazpacho is served cold right? I have some in the refrigerator right now and I think I will try to drink it cold rather than warming it up.
So what am I eating right now? I decided to mix it up a bit. It seems like beef and chicken broths are pretty commonplace at this juncture. I was getting a bit played out on these and decided to go rogue. So when I went to the store I bought ingredients for a ham based soup, a sausage based soup, and a bacon based soup. I guess I was in a pork mode :-) So sorry to mention this to my dear friends in Turkey, or perhaps elsewhere. My Turkish friends don't seem so comfortable in consuming products that are not available in their country. I've asked them if they came to America, would want to have bacon. Some said yes some looked like the idea was just not something that they could do. But for those of you in other countries, although America is commonly thought of related to guns, the truth is this country is more about bacon. There is even a fast food restaurant here that for a short while served ice cream with bacon pieces on it....actually, that sounds pretty good right now.
I will put the recipes for these broths in my book, but as a snapshot, I made a ham broth with some onions and carrots, etc. I also made two of my favorites. I made my famous, well it's at least famous in my mind because I think about it a lot, Italian sausage, bell pepper, and onion soup. It is perhaps the simplest soup that I make. Other than some herbs and spices that I add, it's nothing but Italian sausage, bell peppers, and onions. I have to tell you, it is absolutely delicious and takes the least amount of time to make and be ready for consumption. Easy and fast. And the most fun part is that everyone is ready to eat pre-cooked Italian sausage, bell peppers, and onions. They make for a great sandwich. My son, his friend, and Suzy my sweet wife will make quick work of that. The third soup that I made was a soup that I like to talk about. I call a BLT. It's made with bacon, leaks, and tomatoes. And that is it. Nothing else. It kind of, sort of, tastes like a BLT. Of course it doesn't taste exactly like one most likely because it is not one. But it is sort of along those lines and I find it is really nice in the morning when I wake up and am in the mood for more of a breakfast-y sort of thing.
I made all of these soups at the same time. It was nice to have three soups going simultaneously. And then I had a chicken soup available to me that I was drinking while making these. I had enough of the chicken broth to easily make it through until these three new ones were completed. I took the remainder of the chicken soup and put it into a large plastic water bottle and then put it in the refrigerator.
Today I will be on the road again. And when I get to my destination, there will be no soup waiting for me. So that said, this time I decided to be well-prepared. So I will leave with a decent amount of soup. I'm going to travel with the Italian broth, and the ham broth. I'll be drinking the cold chicken broth on the way. And I'll be drinking the BLT before I depart on the 3-4 hour drive. As I've said before, being prepared is one of the most important things to have a successful fast. At least for me.
By the way, as a statistical update, I've noticed that the readers have significantly increased over the last few days. That cheers me and motivates me. I'm not sure that I really felt like writing this morning but I felt obligated due to the interest of so many people. On that note, please share this where you can. It's kind of a fun story and is certainly something interesting to talk about between you and your friends."Did you hear about this guy who drank nothing but soup broth for 30 days straight?" Just so you know, if you're jumping into this and haven't read this from the beginning, that is what I did. It helped me immensely with some rather complicated medical issues that I mention towards the beginning of this broth fast and will address in great detail in the book that will be finished by the end of the summer!
I was crazy busy. And I was running low, or low-ish, on broth today. I had forgotten how much broth I really needed to have on hand pre-made or in the pot and cooking. I thought that I was cruising along pretty well but it seemed like whenever I looked at my stock of soup, no pun intended, I didn't have is much as I thought that I did. There certainly was "enough" but I didn't feel comfortable believing that I could relax for a bit. I always had enough but there was not always a backup.
So I decided to be proactive. I went to the store and bought a bunch of different types of meats and vegetables. And I found the third crockpot. So armed with as much organic food as I could buy, I went back to the kitchen to start making broths.
One of the questions that I get often is if I mind watching other people eat food when I'm fasting? My wife often worries about this when I have fasted in the past. But the truth is, as long as I'm comfortably full, it makes little difference. I'm sure some people would use it as away to make others painfully aware that they are fasting, but if I'm not hungry, then it's not a concern. The same holds true when making broth. I suppose if I was really hungry and I was cutting up vegetables and cooking meats, the products going into the soups would seem a bit tempting. I try to make sure that I am fully satisfied, with a full stomach, before I even start shopping or assembling food. What is interesting is that although I may not want to consume solid food or at least be okay with not doing so, I want to chew on something. I asked the doctor about chewing gum and he said it was not a good idea even if it was sugar-free. He dissuaded me from consuming anything that might make my body think it was receiving sugar. That seems reasonable and logical. Although I haven't tried it, I've always thought that chewing on some ice would be good. I'm sure my dentist would love that idea :-)
Going to the grocery store was, and is, actually kind of fun. I know that every single thing that I buy will be used to make my own soup broth. I try to stick to organic products because after all, I am doing this to help my body and I might as well get the healthiest products that I can. Besides, making soup is far less expensive than making regular food and certainly many times less expensive then going out to eat. The amount of money I save all alone just on not having beer, and I'm not a big drinker, probably pays for most of my ingredients.
I guess what I learned most yesterday was to be aware of the need to constantly be drinking. The bottom line is to do this, and be comfortable, one needs to plan on drinking something all the time. I always have a glass of water, sparkling water, Ashwaganda tea, some other herbal tea, or broth nearby. But when I get hungry, it's not just the sipping that will solve the problem. When I find myself "getting" hungry, note that I didn't say when I "am" hungry, I know it's time to consume some broth to be preemptive. And as I mentioned in the other posts, I can't stress enough how important it is to drink the broth very quickly.
As I mentioned earlier, to do this I make sure the broth is warm to lukewarm. This morning I had some that was cold. It wasn't refrigerator cold but it was definitely cold. I think the idea kind of sounded a bit weird but when I drank it, it was really quite nice. I would imagine that it would be especially nice on a hot day. After all, gazpacho is served cold right? I have some in the refrigerator right now and I think I will try to drink it cold rather than warming it up.
So what am I eating right now? I decided to mix it up a bit. It seems like beef and chicken broths are pretty commonplace at this juncture. I was getting a bit played out on these and decided to go rogue. So when I went to the store I bought ingredients for a ham based soup, a sausage based soup, and a bacon based soup. I guess I was in a pork mode :-) So sorry to mention this to my dear friends in Turkey, or perhaps elsewhere. My Turkish friends don't seem so comfortable in consuming products that are not available in their country. I've asked them if they came to America, would want to have bacon. Some said yes some looked like the idea was just not something that they could do. But for those of you in other countries, although America is commonly thought of related to guns, the truth is this country is more about bacon. There is even a fast food restaurant here that for a short while served ice cream with bacon pieces on it....actually, that sounds pretty good right now.
I will put the recipes for these broths in my book, but as a snapshot, I made a ham broth with some onions and carrots, etc. I also made two of my favorites. I made my famous, well it's at least famous in my mind because I think about it a lot, Italian sausage, bell pepper, and onion soup. It is perhaps the simplest soup that I make. Other than some herbs and spices that I add, it's nothing but Italian sausage, bell peppers, and onions. I have to tell you, it is absolutely delicious and takes the least amount of time to make and be ready for consumption. Easy and fast. And the most fun part is that everyone is ready to eat pre-cooked Italian sausage, bell peppers, and onions. They make for a great sandwich. My son, his friend, and Suzy my sweet wife will make quick work of that. The third soup that I made was a soup that I like to talk about. I call a BLT. It's made with bacon, leaks, and tomatoes. And that is it. Nothing else. It kind of, sort of, tastes like a BLT. Of course it doesn't taste exactly like one most likely because it is not one. But it is sort of along those lines and I find it is really nice in the morning when I wake up and am in the mood for more of a breakfast-y sort of thing.
I made all of these soups at the same time. It was nice to have three soups going simultaneously. And then I had a chicken soup available to me that I was drinking while making these. I had enough of the chicken broth to easily make it through until these three new ones were completed. I took the remainder of the chicken soup and put it into a large plastic water bottle and then put it in the refrigerator.
Today I will be on the road again. And when I get to my destination, there will be no soup waiting for me. So that said, this time I decided to be well-prepared. So I will leave with a decent amount of soup. I'm going to travel with the Italian broth, and the ham broth. I'll be drinking the cold chicken broth on the way. And I'll be drinking the BLT before I depart on the 3-4 hour drive. As I've said before, being prepared is one of the most important things to have a successful fast. At least for me.
By the way, as a statistical update, I've noticed that the readers have significantly increased over the last few days. That cheers me and motivates me. I'm not sure that I really felt like writing this morning but I felt obligated due to the interest of so many people. On that note, please share this where you can. It's kind of a fun story and is certainly something interesting to talk about between you and your friends."Did you hear about this guy who drank nothing but soup broth for 30 days straight?" Just so you know, if you're jumping into this and haven't read this from the beginning, that is what I did. It helped me immensely with some rather complicated medical issues that I mention towards the beginning of this broth fast and will address in great detail in the book that will be finished by the end of the summer!
Day Five draft
Today is day five of my "renewed" soup broth fast.
I started by day going back and reading some of the first days of my original broth fast. I did not realize in how bad shape I was really in back then. I had forgotten that I used to have night sweats. Oh my gosh, those were horrible. And it was almost every night.
I also noticed that it was on this day that I got hit with a tremendous set of symptoms that my doctor said were related to many, many years of damage and unhealthy things for my body, this coupled with an unexplainable amount of stress for many years. Back then, I had a bunch of flu-like symptoms and was running a fever. I have not had anything like this on this fast, but I guess the day isn't over yet.
I have felt a bit queasy in my stomach this morning. Not something I really was hoping to have to admit. I was kind of hoping this was going to go along pretty well and smoothly since I've already done this basically twice.
Sadly, I have found myself not really enjoying the broth. I'm sure it has nothing to do with the recipes, and more to do with just me.
But getting back to reading the posts from the first time that I did this, I am amazed by my commitment. I always said that I made a firm and solid commitment and decided to do this no matter what, but in rereading these, I kind of impressed myself. Literally. :-)
I thought I would give a bit of an update as to how long I'm going to be doing this. I was hoping to do it for 10 to 15 days. After the first few, each day gets easier. So really the difference between 10 days and 15 is really actually insignificant. It really doesn't take that much effort. Once I'm in the groove, it just works fine. But in trying to schedule this, it seemed like I had just a small window. I thought I would have as much is 15 days available to me. Now I realize that it is just not possible. It truly is not a lack of willpower, it's just a matter of logistics.
My sweet wife will be on her summer vacation in a couple of days. We immediately leave for a bluegrass festival and will be camping there over the weekend. It just doesn't seem realistic.
So...I'm going to have to alter my initial plan. I'm not sure if I had shared a timeline with you anyway from when I first started this.
I've decided I am going to do this for seven days and then I will do my transition of two days. And actually I'm quite ok with this. I don't feel like I'm quitting early. It's all about fitting this into a busy life. Perhaps I should have waited until July 5th which would have been wide open. But it is what it is. But rather than beating myself up, I'm deciding to celebrate that I'm doing it for a week.
If you haven't read anything about broth fasts before, or really any type of fasting, the first two days that you finish your fast are critically important from what the doctor and others have told me. You really don't want to mess this up. It's a major problems apparently.
One dear friend decided to do a seven day fast in honor of is biblical studies about fasting. To celebrate breaking his fast, he met up with some friends at a coffee shop and ordered a big and delicious cinnamon roll. I think it was a cinnamon roll, it might've been a bear claw, but either way that's what he ordered. He said it was quite large and he happily ate every bite. But then he started having some significant intestinal problems soon thereafter. He said he was very uncomfortable and had a number of troublesome symptoms. It was over a week before he really felt back in the groove.
I always stress this point when talking with anyone about fasting because it was stressed to me so strongly by Dr. Scott Saunders.
He instructed me to eat nuts and fruits and vegetables for at least two days after I broke my fast. That is what I did and I had very little, really just about nothing, in the way of issues with regard to my stomach or any other part of my digestive system. And think of it, my fast was for a month.
I will have to look back, but I think I was able to have lentils as well. But quite honestly, after fasting for a week, 15 days, or 30 days, being able to have solid foods like fruits and nuts is an amazing treat. And it tastes absolutely delicious. Truthfully I am really looking forward to those days.
One last thing, I was talking with a friend today about what I am doing now and about my original 30 day broth fast. I told her that my goal was to improve. Improvement... That has always been my life goal. And it still is a constant goal.
We can't worry about where we would rate ourselves related to others. We are where we are. We don't need to worry about assigning a grade or number to some area of our life. But to accept our mediocrity and current state is a disappointing way to live. Yes we need to except ourselves as we are. And yes we need to like ourselves. And we don't have to get down on ourselves about our current place in life. We are where we are and if we know we are improving, that should be enough!
I remember watching Richard Simmons on TV. He had a number of really fat people on his show. But they all seemed pretty happy. And I knew, as did all the other viewers, that these people were actually doing something about it. They were improving! Moreover, I am always impressed when I see fat people out for a jog. They are doing it! They are improving! And I have to say, they are probably putting in more effort than I do.
There are so many ways that we can improve, not just our physical weight size but also our physical muscular frame, and the way we stand, our posture. And where we are mentally? Are we challenging ourselves? Are we improving with regard to how we handle stressful situations? Are we improving spiritually and emotionally? But I think it's important that we don't get down on ourselves because we see so much room for improvement. It's kind a like I said. We are where we are. And it is unreasonable to address all of these areas simultaneously. But we can work on things. Writing down goals and highlighting a 1 or 2 of subjects improvement, especially with a written plan is huge. Even a sticky note. I took a whiteboard marker and wrote one word on the corner of my rearview mirror. I have posted things that I want to remember to read in the shower. Whatever will help us improve.
I have been working on my posture for the last 2 1/2 years. I think for me, part of my poor posture was not having the confidence to stand tall. I also have been working on memorizing peoples names from the first time that I meet them. I have been doing that for two years and although it has been a slow process, I have made significant progress. People even say to me that they are amazed that I remember their name.
So there you are, I really hope you have enjoyed reading this, and the blog in general. There are my thoughts and reflections from the past, on improvement, and an updated timeframe.
I am continually amazed at how many people read this. And I thank each and everyone of you who has shared this with friends and people whether it be on social media or in direct conversations.
Thank you!
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