It all began with Hulu . . .

A few weeks ago, my husband was having a rare guys' night in the living room - we normally go out on the weekends.  In an effort to give the boys some privacy and because I was EXHAUSTED from a rough week at work I headed to our bedroom after eating some BWW's - classy and healthy, I know - to do a little web browsing.  I recently re-discovered Hulu after a long stretch in which I watched only television shows that began with "The Real Housewives of ______."  (pretty much every city except for Chicago).  I always love a little "Wife Swap," as well.  Anyway, I am a huge fan of documentaries about food - food production, healthy eating, big food-related developments, etc.  Enter "Fat Sick and Nearly Dead." The official website and a movie trailer can be found HERE, aptly named Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead Dot Com. 

The description was interesting enough and I love good drama ("600 lb. Mom"; "Toddlers and Tiaras"; "Tabitha Takes Over" etc.), so I gave it a try.  I'm not kidding when I say that it really made an impact on me. The premise of the movie is this: (from IMDB.com): 

100 pounds overweight, loaded up on steroids and suffering from a debilitating autoimmune disease, Joe Cross is at the end of his rope and the end of his hope. In the mirror he saw a 310lb man whose gut was bigger than a beach ball and a path laid out before him that wouldn't end well- with one foot already in the grave, the other wasn't far behind. FAT, SICK & NEARLY DEAD is an inspiring film that chronicles Joe's personal mission to regain his health. With doctors and conventional medicines unable to help long-term, Joe turns to the only option left, the body's ability to heal itself. He trades in the junk food and hits the road with juicer and generator in tow, vowing only to drink fresh fruit and vegetable juice for the next 60 days. Across 3,000 miles Joe has one goal in mind: To get off his pills and achieve a balanced lifestyle.

The movie is inspiring and hopeful, without being corny and judgy.  I realize that I am probably a little late to the juicing party, but I am a big fan now that I'm here.  

Of course, after watching the movie and boring my husband (and our houseguests) with the uncut summary - including multiple verbatim quotes about micronutrients, absorption and anti-inflammatory vegetables, I woke up the next morning with but one thought in my head: I have to get a juicer.  I am not an impulsive person - my husband would disagree, but I am really not that impulsive - the qualifier makes it better.  After doing a little internet research, pretending to ask permission to go look at juicers and shopping a few on Craig's List, I decided that Bed Bath and Beyond was my best bet.  I, of course, told myself that I  was just going to look, since it is super close to our favorite grocery stores: Aldi and Trader Joe's.  Big mistake :). 

I practically ran from the parking garage to BB&B and made a beeline for the food processing/juicer section.  There it was:  

I even ran into a woman in the juice section who saw me mulling over my juicer purchase and asked if I was buying the Juice Fountain Plus.  I answered, "Actually yes, I saw this great movie last night --" Woman: "Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead?"  Me: "Yes!"  It was like we were soulmates. Soulmates who juice and run - she noticed my running clothes and we started talking about Chicago races.  It was like meeting my long lost workout buddy.  Anyway, so after that practically religious juicer experience, I took the juicer with me - yes, I was too excited to take it to the parking garage before picking up my groceries - to the grocery store, where I bought about $30 worth of juice-able vegetables.  It was lovely.  

After that, I headed home to do some juicing.  I realize how nerdy it is to get excited about juicing, so, I invited my friend, Sarah, to join me. I figured that I could at least be nerdy with someone else.  She's not a huge vegetable/fruit lover so when she showed up with a single apple to contribute I was incredibly amused - and appreciative.  :) We then spent the next few hours coming up with some truly bizzare and delicious juice combinations.  My personal favorite: carrot, tomato, ginger, apple and cabbage.  Yes, cabbage.  That has to be the strangest part about this whole juicing thing.  I really like to add cabbage.  Here's why: I don't regularly eat cabbage, which happens to be an incredibly good source of 

Vitamins

• Vitamin A
• Vitamin B6
• Vitamin B12
• Folic Acid
• Niacin
• Riboflavin
• Thiamin
• Vitamin C
• Vitamin E
• Vitamin K

and 

Minerals

• Calcium
• Copper
• Iron
• Manganese
• Magnesium
• Phosphorus
• Potassium
• Selenium
• Zinc
• Sodium

I've been juicing regularly - as a supplement to what I consider an already pretty healthy diet - for about 2 weeks, now.  I still get a vegetable "buzz" right after I have my morning juice and I feel like my eyes instantly pop open.  I feel more alert and as if it is easier to process information - especially in the morning.  This morning, I had a pretty gnarly combination of celery, cabbage, carrots, tomato, lemon, ginger and spinach.  Not good.  I felt good, though, and didn't get hungry until about mid-afternoon.  Even in the absence of vegetable fiber - which is still important - I stayed full.  I won't stop eating veggies and fruits in their whole forms, but juicing creates an incentive to quickly and efficiently consume nutrients from fruits and vegetables that I wouldn't typically consume on an average morning.  While I'm not ready to completely abandon my Frosted Mini Wheats, I think that there is something to be said for cramming as many fruits and vegetables as possible into every meal.  I think I'm going to be a big fan of juicing.  So far, so good.  

p.s. my husband does not believe that my hair is growing like crazy as a result of all of these vitamins.  It's true!!