I am sorry for the lack of updates, this has been a very busy year. I have been zigzagging all over the US with work.

Recently I made a huge decision which has taken a lot of my time. I will announce it in due course.

I have knocked off 3 pounds from the 16 I need to lose by September. This is a good sign as I was able to do this despite being on the road and in NYC for over 10 days.

I am truly amazed by the amount of places preparing real juices in New York City. A lot of delis have the juicers now and my favourite was Health King in the Financial District very close to my office.

No wonder Joe Cross from Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead juiced his first 30 days in NYC. It is a mecca for juicers!

Running is going well, slowly but surely making plans for the half in September. It is good to be out there again. I finished my last half in 2hrs 11…I keep asking myself if I can knock 11 minutes off that time..it is a big ask…..

So I thought I would outline today’s menu from Day 3 of my juice fast.

Living Greens Juices SF

Breakfast

Spinach, cucumber, dandelion greens, apple, lemon, ginger

Mid Morning

Apple, lemon, ginger
Detox Tea

Lunch

Carrot, orange, cucumber, lemon, strawberry.

Mid Afternoon
Lemon, Apple, Ginger

Dinner

Kale, cucumber, celery, spinach, broccoli, apple, lemon, parsley

Coconut Water
Calming Tea

Again I did not feel the need for the Potassium Broth, there is nothing wrong with it, just that I am FULL!

These juices from Living Greens really are delicious.

I did suffer a bit with headaches and some lethargy this afternoon. True detoxing at work. I did though run a very fast two miles in tonight speedwork session.

Until Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead many thought juicing was a fad or a ‘new age’ alternative.

Joe Cross is a male, usually juicing and detoxing is the domain of housewives. Joe Cross made it acceptable for men to talk about and try juicing.

Here is a short video I made to congratulate him:

Since the launch of the film Joe Cross claims that over 2 million people have watched the film, 300,000 people have joined the reboot site and that around 1 million pounds of weight has been lost.

Congratulations to all at Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead.

Yesterday I took a drive to Russian River in Wine Country, I drove the 150 miles to take my mind off juicing and also to show that you don’t have to lock yourself away when you go on a juice fast/cleanse.

The only danger of juicing is the fact I need more bathroom breaks than ordinary!

I was excited this morning because Living Greens SF were making their first drop off. They arrived shortly after 7am just in time for breakfast. I was amazed at how much they give you for the day, it is certainly more than I would ordinarily juice for myself. I don’t see how anyone can possibly feel physically hungry with this amount of juiced fruits and veggies. Of course most people will feel mentally hungry and knowing that difference is the key to a successful juice detox.

Day 1 of the Living Greens Juice Cleanse

Day 1 of the Living Greens Juice Cleanse

As you can see this is a lot but it is expensive so be warned.

This is what came with today’s Living Greens delivery:

Every 3 months I juice fast, that is where I have nothing but juices for 5 days or more.

Today I started a 5 day juice fast for the second time this year.  This time though I am going to try something new.

Usually I make all my own juices which I have done today. However tomorrow a San Francisco based company called Living Greens are going to drop off a days supplies of juices and elixirs. Living Greens juice it in the morning and deliver them between 7 and 9. This is a radical change for me but I am happy to give this a try for 3 days. I was swayed by the fact they deliver your juices every morning – all cooled and sealed. Other companies deliver you the whole 3 days supply of juices in one delivery which does not appeal to me.

Today of course I made an old favourite – my infamous Phil Staples Juice you can read more on making a Phil Staples ‘Mean Green’ Juice here. Although today I added some Bok Choy – this does give it a fresh crisper taste. Check out 3 Fat Chicks on a Diets 6 health benefits of Bok Choy!

I feel good – this morning I took a leisurely 4 mile run along San Francisco’s Embarcadero. I love the way juicing makes me exercise better and gives me that additional calmness and energy.

I am excited to get my juice shipment from Living Greens tomorrow and of course I will blog and let you know all about it.

This is Chris’s Juicing Story.

Across the pond

Late 2004, the clock is ticking by, 80 minutes………..85 minutes………..89 minutes………..90 minutes.  Well that’s it I better dig out the atlas and find out where on earth Leigh RMI play their football (Soccer) matches, HANG ON……..GOOOOOOOAAAAAAAALLLLLLL!  Cambridge City were through to the next round of the FA Cup (<<<< that is very important) thanks to a last gasp winner from Jon Stevenson and all around me there were grown men crying and grown women jumping for joy.  Why is this relevant I hear you ask?  Well it was this event that caused Shane and I to cross paths and become good friends.

Cast your mind forward seven and a bit years and it is now early 2012, I am in Cambridgeshire and life isn’t really going to plan.  Something has got to change to make me feel good, I am unhappy, unfit and turning into a bit of a chubster!  I have been following Shane’s juicing journey on Facebook and runningonjuice.com and must admit that I have always been a bit of a sceptic, even though the results were clear for all to see my mind was telling me that those results were not meant for me, but I was getting desperate, something had to be done, why don’t I take the plunge?

I went out one morning and brought a Philips HR 1861, the stylish looking contraption had been recommended to me and reviews on the Internet seemed favourable, it also came with a copy of Keeping It Simple! Over 100 Juice & Smoothie Recipes by the Juice Master Jason Vale.  The book gives clear and straight forward instructions on ingredients and what quantities to use along with the benefits that each and every ingredient, the recipes are simple and idiot proof.  The juicer itself is a powerful machine, when you turn it on it feels like you have a small jet engine in your kitchen yet with the silence of a hot air balloon, it is easy to assemble and easy to keep clean.

My first shopping trip involved apples, carrots, celery and beet, as I got home and started unpacking everything all I can remember thinking is ”this will taste vile” but I pressed on and was ready for my first juicing session.  In it all went and the quantity of juice was unbelievable, as each different item was pressed through a different colour would emerge.  I poured my juice out and then set about cleaning the machine, I figured the juice would be a reward after making sure the housekeeping was done.  The machine can be cleaned from top to bottom in under a minute and using a bag in the pulp container makes life very straight forward.  The time had come to taste my creation, I held my nose and went for it……………….DELICIOUS!

Since that moment I have experimented with different ingredients and never made a juice that has not tasted yummy.  I have started running, go to the gym three times a week and have convinced a friend to play squash with me.  I have lost 15lbs in four weeks, feel healthy, look well and above all my clothes fit better (some don’t fit at all, but in a good way).  What Shane has achieved is phenomenal and if I can achieve half as much as he has then I will be pleased, hopefully I can get out to SF and treat him to dinner soon (healthy of course)!

I hate to admit this as I know I am a source of inspiration to many of you. In the last few weeks I have fallen back into my old bad habits.

The only excuse I can offer is my job which requires me to travel a lot. I have completed almost 20,000 miles already this year. I do feel this is a flimsy excuse.

Today I faced the harsh truth of the weighing scales when I hopped on and saw I was 16 pounds over my goal weight. Remember my euphoria when I hit 180 pounds? I am devastated.

So what went wrong?

I put my weight gain down to 4 factors.

1. Increased alcohol consumption. – Last week my good friends from the UK were over and we spent 6 nights in Vegas! Need I say more. Healthy Shane went right out of the window, I drank Jack Daniels like it was going out of fashion and partied till 5am most mornings.
2. Straying from a plant based diet.  I started eating meat again a few weeks back. Initially white meat..then steaks then those god awful sausages. Now I am not saying you cannot lose weight by eating meat, just for me I keep the weight off if I cut out the meat.
3. Not enough exercise. I took my running gear to Vegas with me and guess how many times I exercised? Zero! Nada. Shocker! The reason…I was waking up with a hangover each morning which started the cycle of eating crap then drinking etc.
4. I lost my mental focus. Somewhere along the line I thought’ yeah I have my goal weight so I can relax now’.  Of course there is nothing wrong with some treats but in moderation. Fried Chicken is not the way forward!

I saw a photo of Phil Staples the other day and I read comments about him putting weight on. I sympathise with the guy. The juicing is only one element of the weight loss playbook, the rest is being mentally focused on your goals.

Luckily there is a silver lining here.

Tonight, looking at the scales I was disgusted with myself. Before 2010 I probably would have said ‘ok I will join a gym next week and sort this out’. Of course next week would never come.

Tonight, I threw on some running clothes and got my fat ass out there. My shirt felt tight which did nothing for my confidence, I felt as if other runners were looking at me and thinking to themselves ‘Aww a fat guy running!’. The same thoughts I had back in 2010 when I started this whole weight loss campaign. Really devastating.

The good news is that I took immediate action, I got out there running and on the way back bought fruit and veg to get back into juicing. I also ran 9 minute miles. My average pace is 9.30 min miles. So thats good, even though I have piled on the pounds I still have my running fitness.

So tonight dear Running On Juice reader I am announcing my Sweet 16 campaign.

I am committing to losing 16 pounds by the time of my next half marathon in San Francisco in September.

YOU are my inspiration, I feel I have let you all down so the least I can do is show you that us juicers can take affirmative action when needed. I also don’t want to let the naysayers, those ‘experts’ who condemn juicing as a fad win. I always love the fact I can answer these negative folk by asking them to justify how I lost 70 pounds and kept it off.  It’s time for action.

I am grateful to Jamin from the Joe Cross Reboot site who pointed me in the direction of some good juice bars near my hotel in Soho.

She gave me several options with the closest being Organic Avenue. (Organic Ave 156 Sullivan St)

It was a nice ten minute stroll from the hotel. Juice bars, I find usually fall into two camps. ‘The Hippy Hangout’ or the ‘high end detox’ place. I enjoy both, I love chatting with the staff and getting their ‘juice’ on juice’.

Organic Avenue is definitely not ‘hippy’, it is very high end. Organised with lots of neat looking bottles of juice in the refrigerator.  Initially I was disappointed as I like my juice freshly extracted. Otherwise you may as well buy the commercial stuff that whilst is not bad for you, it is not the optimum fuel that freshly extracted juice is.

So many juicy choices at Organic Avenue

My disappointed soon ebbed away as I was spoilt for choice on which green juice I wanted to purchase. One of the Organic Avenue staff told me that all the juices had been freshly made that morning.

Green Love by Organic Avenue NYC

I opted for ‘Green Love’ which is made from the following organic ingredients:

Kale, Celery, Romaine, Cucumber, Swiss Chard, Spinach, Collard Greens, Pear, Lemon, Parsley.

Organic Avenue describe it as:

‘A smooth, deeply nurturing blend of greens, pear, and lemon, Green Love is also surprisingly light and delicious. The leafy greens pack a vitamin and mineral-drenched punch; cucumber soothes; celery hydrates; pear sweetens and adds fiber; and lemon detoxifies. All combine for a freshly pressed juice that will not only surpass your daily veggie requirement of virtually everything, but give you a clean jolt of green love energy.’

It tasted as powerful as it sounds, not for the faint-hearted as there are only notes of the Pear and Lemon. After a long night out the evening before this was just what I needed to start my sight-seeing weekend in New York City. I really appreciated the nutritional facts it came with:

Calories 190
Total Fat 1.5g
Sat, Fat 0g
Trans Fat 0g
Cholest. 0 mg
Sodium 444 mg
Total Carb 38g
Fiber 3g
Sugars 13g
Protein 12g
Vitamin A (90% DV)
Vitamin C (493% DV)
Calcium (47% DV)
Iron (39% DV)
Percent DV based on a 2000 calorie diet.

It was not cheap, they will charge you 12 dollars but you get 2 bucks back for replacing the glass bottle it comes in. So I sat outside on a bench and enjoyed the crisp air of a New York City morning whilst savouring some Green Love. I went back in and got my 2 bucks back of course.

When I think what my breakfast could have been (sausage, eggs, bacon, biscuits or bagels with cream cheese) then 10 bucks is cheap considering the healthy enzymes and nutrients I consumed so for me it is well worth the price. A great way to start the day.

Organic Avenue also offers detox plans and delivery making juicing even easier for those of you who plan to juice cleanse and detox.

I will definitely be back to Organic Avenue when I am in New York City next which hopefully will be very soon!

I blogged a while back about UFC Champion Jon ‘Bones’ Jones who juices in order to give his body a winning edge – freshly extracted juice. Check out the Jon Jones juicing video below. But read on as I talk you through something else people who lose weight have in common with this MMA fighter.

I was reading this month’s copy of Mens Journal and there was an article on Jones and the UFC scene, a world I know very little about.

In my FREE Juicing Starter Guide I talk about the power of visualization. I used to visualise how I would look when I achieve my goal weight, I used to visualize finishing my first half marathon. I talk about how that technique helped me to lose 70 pounds through juicing and running.

In the Mens Journal article titled ‘Sweet and Vicious’, Jon Bones Jones talks about his own visualization strategy. I was particularly drawn to the words:

‘When I was 20, I had a voicemail greeting that said ‘Hi this is Jon Bones Jones, the light heavyweight champ.’  I was carrying myself like I was the champion before I was even in the UFC.’

Before I got into juicing, running and changing my life for good I would have laughed at this statement and called it arrogant.

Now, 70 pounds lighter I embrace this kind of thinking.

Losing weight is not just about nutrition and exercise. It is about the mental juice, its about getting your mind into that state where you are determined to shed the pounds and get fit. This is what carried my over the line of two half marathons, helped me run over a thousand miles in training and juice fast.

Have you downloaded my free Juicing guide yet where I share tips on visualization strategies?

Well Joe Cross has gone one better by putting together a short video with Williams Sonoma on how to make the Mean Green Juice or what I call the Phil Staples Juice!

Just two suggestions I would add to this video. Save yourself some trouble and add a plastic bag to the pulp container. That way you can just bag it and bin it – saves times on cleaning.

My second suggestion is think of your juice as a sandwich with apples as the bread. Try and add the apple in first and last, it will give you more bang for your buck as it will yield more juice and also it helps clean the juicer.

To quote our friend Joe Cross ‘Juice On!’