22 days into juicing... and I had my first HOT meal (Juice).

I'm human. I am.

I have cravings too.

Most of which I have found the will power to ignore, modify or overlook. At times though, embracing them is the best way to overcome them!

I actually enjoy going to dinner with my family, knowing that I will not be eating. I will be smelling the food.

Crazy? Not really.  When it comes down to it, making a big scene over "not being able to eat" would be much worse.  And in reality, I LOVE flavorful, excellent, unique and intriguing foods and dishes. The flavors, the spices, the way they can all come together to make one's mouth water.  Excellent.  I also love spending time with my kids, having clean arteries, and not carrying around so many extra pounds.

When I go to dinner, walk by a restaurant or through a kitchen, I take in all the smells and aromas. They remind me of what I had and satisfies my cravings.

The other day someone told me (or I read it somewhere) that once your food passes your taste buds, it is gone.  I knew this... but now I really think about it a fairly often.  There is so much truth to that statement.  On my way to 252 pounds I would pound food like none other!  I knew that I could punish at least two plates of food and a pizza... a large pizza was something I would finish on my own, without even thinking about it. I'm not talking about your normal pepperoni or meat lovers pizza.  No, I would do gourmet pizzas.  If I was going to eat, I wanted it unique and as flavorful as I could get it!

Why? Because food is good!  It tastes great! Smells amazing! And it is a social activity that builds friendships, brings families together and helps individuals bond in ways that other activities may not be able to.

Two nights ago I had a craving for a hot meal like none other.  I had not thought of it, it truly had been over 20 days since I sat down to a warm meal or eaten with a spoon or fork. I pulled out the Breville juicing / cookbook. I was determined to make something warm even if that meant I would juice a bunch of vegetables and then warm it up on the stove.  To my surprise upon opening the book I discovered three soups.  Two called for meats and one did not. I picked the one with the most vegetables and commenced juicing!

The recipe: "Gazpacho"
4 medium tomatoes
4 sprigs of parsley
1 large clove garlic, peeled (I used about 1/4th a clove)
1 small onion, peeled and trimmed (I used a tiny onion that I picked up from Sprouts)
2 carrots
2 stalks of celery
1 red pepper
1 Lebanese cucumber (I used an English one)
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar <-- Omitted this.
Freshly ground black pepper
1 cup crushed ice <-- Omitted this (My Gazpacho was going on the stove.)
3 tbl chopped fresh basil -- sprinkled on top <-- Didn't do.

It may not have looked the best... but it HIT THE SPOT! And slaughtered the craving!

After warming up the juice that came out of the Breville, I poured it in one of our bowls and grabbed a spoon.  After about 3 bites, I grabbed a large hot chocolate mug and poured it in there and drank it.

My Progress: 30.6 pounds in 22 Days!