Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead

[San Onofre Guy]

My wife and I have been wanting to see this since we saw a preview of the film months ago. We watched it last night and found it uplifting positive and were amazed at the impact juicing had on some individuals.

I liked it as much or possibly more than Forks over Knives.

[CathyA]

Whew.....I was afraid you were talking about yourself!
Thanks for the tip........I'll try to find it.

[Florence]

God, I had the same thought!! I am so relieved you weren't posting about yourself!!

[San Onofre Guy]

No, actually less fat, more healthy and much more alive than ever!!!

[Stella]

I watched it a few days ago on Netflix and really felt inspired by it. I think we may buy a juicer. I don't want to do a full juice fast, but I'd like to get a lot more vegetables into my diet.

[Merski]

Saw this and found it mind-boggling. Also saw Forks over Knives last night. Very exciting dialogue with DH over both and we are going to greatly reduce our animal protein intake to get healthier.

[San Onofre Guy]

My wife made the "Mean Green" juice yesterday and I had 8 ounces in the evening and another 8 ounces this morning. It is much tastier than I imagined. We will not do a juice fast as to reach my goal weight which Doctors tell me is ideal is only 5 pounds. I am 5' 10" and weigh 169, my all time high weight was 184. I get an annual Executive Physical and at that physical I am told that my ideal weight is 163-165. The lowest I have been since age 30 is 167 and that was after a weeklong backpack above 10,000 feet and probably 2-3 pound of that loss was due to dehydration given the saggy skin I had under my eyes.

[Rogar]

I watched it today based on this review. It was good. It is tempting to give it a try to reboot your metabolism, over weight or not. I had always thought juicers were expensive. I looked them up on Amazon and it looks like you can pick one up for $50-$100.

[Rosemary]

We also finally saw Forks Over Knives, as we'd been on the library reserve list for months. It was very well done, I thought! I think it may have actually been motivating for my DH. We eat well at home for meals, but he snacks on too many bad things all evening. Hmm, maybe we should watch it again before taking it back to the library!

As I've noted elsewhere, I'm not vegan or planning to be, but my overall consumption of animal products is below the statistics cited for the year 1900 (far below, for dairy products - wow, how many pounds of that can a real person eat in one day?!). Since doing the allergy elim diet my consumption of veggies is way up, and I feel like my diet is much healthier than it was.

[pinkytoe]

We watched it on Netflix this morning and enjoyed it as it was not preachy or self-righteous. We have been having green snoothies most mornings for over a year now and find that if we go more than a few days without them, that we don't feel quite right.

[The Storyteller]

When y'all first mentioned juicing I thought you were 'roiding up. Trying to figure out why that was a positive thing.

[RosieTR]

We watched it, having not much idea of what it was even about before we started. By the end, DH was all set to get a juicer and start. I was not as eager to do the juicing (why not just eat a salad, IMO?) but he wanted to so I was OK to try it. It turns out that yes, the juice tastes better than I thought it would though not what I would venture to say is fantastic. But for this picky eater I can get it down. Interestingly, while I can do kale as the main leafy green, DH *hated* it. When we tried cabbage though, I was the one turning up my nose while he was fine with it. Go figure. The other interesting thing that I should explore a little more is that my desire for sweets went down when I substituted the veggie juice for a couple of meals a week. Neither of us is overweight though it definitely worked well to drop our vacation pounds when we got back from visiting family (and the eating fest that that always is!).

[San Onofre Guy]

I have been told that my ideal weight is 163-165. My all time high was 184 and I have been 169-170 for the better part of two years now. I thought it impossible to get to 165. We have been juicing as a supplement to better eating for 7-10 days now. We weigh ourselves every three days. This morning 166! I think I will get to my low ideal weight. Cutting meat and dairy has done wonders for my health

[Bastelmutti]

Anyone mind if I revive this thread? I am a late-comer to both Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead and Forks over Knives, but watched both and liked them very much. The information was presented clearly und understandably in Forks over Knives and Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead was very inspirational. I was encouraged to try to drop my extra 20-30 lbs. (depends on if you use the Fuhrman chart or not - actually on that one, it might be 35!) After all, if someone can lose 150+, then I can lose a fraction of that even if I don't go whole hog. I did Eat to Live for a while and lost 15, so I know I can do it - it's a matter of maintenance. Also, my DH and DD have allergies, and I want to see if juicing/cutting down on meat and dairy (and possibly wheat) could help.

Those of you who started juicing, which juicer do you use? We currently make green smoothies with our blender, which has an " iced drink" mode. The blender is good because you keep all the fiber, too. It works pretty well with spinach/baby spinach, but we might want to do more vegetables, so I'm thinking about a juicer. I'm looking at the $100-150 range (while dreaming of a Vitamix!)

[Rosemary]

We just saw this movie last week as it took that long to get it from our library. I thought it was really inspiring to see the changes that the morbidly obese man was able to make, one simple step at a time.

We don't juice, and I don't want to - too much waste, too much cleaning in my opinion. But I eat a large amount of raw vegetables in the form of salads - usually 2 meals/day are salad-based for me.

[Spartana]

We don't juice, and I don't want to - too much waste, too much cleaning in my opinion. But I eat a large amount of raw vegetables in the form of salads - usually 2 meals/day are salad-based for me.

I also never understood the juicing craze. I just eat a salad and have some fruit. Or I just put whole fruits and veggies in my Ninja blender with something liquid and (viola!) I've got a tasty healthy smoothie using ALL the fiber, viatmins and minerals in ALL the fruits and veggies - not just the "mainly water" that was squeezed out of them. The stuff juciers throw down the drain is the most valuable part of raw food.

[pinkytoe]

We have a heavy duty blender we bought at Sears for smoothies and a juicer from Breville. Would love a Vita-Mix but don't want to spend that much.

[bunnys]

Is Fat, Sick and Tired about juicing?

I heard a couple years ago that juicing is bad for you bc it spikes your blood sugar big time. I had planned on buying a juicer but then heard that and didn't do it.

I will say that I'm a vegan and have never felt better or been healthier in my life than I have for the past 7 years.

[San Onofre Guy]

I have both a Vita Mix and a Breville Juicer. I drink a glass of green juice from the Breville every morning. Is there a spike in blood sugar? Probably, but that is why they call it break-fast, you are breaking a fast.

We make many things in our Vita Mix including a sauce for macaroni and cheese, after making bread crumbs for the topping which is to die for. Some Vita Mix recipes actually run the machine long enough to "cook" or warm up the sauce which is how one gets a cheese/milk mixture pourable.

[catherine]

I have both a Vita Mix and a Breville Juicer. I drink a glass of green juice from the Breville every morning. Is there a spike in blood sugar? Probably, but that is why they call it break-fast, you are breaking a fast.

We make many things in our Vita Mix including a sauce for macaroni and cheese, after making bread crumbs for the topping which is to die for. Some Vita Mix recipes actually run the machine long enough to "cook" or warm up the sauce which is how one gets a cheese/milk mixture pourable.

I started watching the movie upon your recommendation yesterday (actually, I first read it yesterday--after Baselmutti bumped it), and I stopped because I want DH to watch it, too--in fact I mentioned the film title to him, and he laughed and said "That sounds just like me!" (sad to say).

I'm wondering--which of your two juicers do you recommend? The Vita Mix or the Breville? I think I'd like to try juicing, but I admit that the cost of the VitaMix is a bit daunting. Mr. Money Mustache says you save money because you can use bits of vegetables and less-than-fresh vegetables that you'd normally throw out so you save money. Do you agree? Would I get back my investment in food savings?

[peggy]

I have both a Vita Mix and a Breville Juicer. I drink a glass of green juice from the Breville every morning. Is there a spike in blood sugar? Probably, but that is why they call it break-fast, you are breaking a fast.

We make many things in our Vita Mix including a sauce for macaroni and cheese, after making bread crumbs for the topping which is to die for. Some Vita Mix recipes actually run the machine long enough to "cook" or warm up the sauce which is how one gets a cheese/milk mixture pourable.

A mac and cheese sauce in the vita mix? I have a blendtec, which is the same as a vita mix really. Do give the recipe.

[San Onofre Guy]

I have never tried to juice with the Vita Mix, but I am sure that you can. One thing about the Vita Mix is that it is so powerful it can "cook" which is problematic for those in the raw food category. Correct me if I am wrong but anything over I think 115 degrees to a raw foodie is "cooked". If you juice with the Vita Mix you would have to drain the juice through a fine strainer. I do find that I compost fewer bad vegetables as I juice them before they go bad, but that has no impact on food budget. I never juiced iceberg lettuce until one week ago when I had some remnants which were a bit how do I put this, soggy? I cut off the bad outside leaves and juiced the rest with other things. I wouldn't have eaten that lettuce but did I save any money? No.

I am of the camp that you spend money for quality appliances. Both my wife and I had juicers from prior lives. Hers broke when she first tried to use it and mine while it worked, was tiresome and was not very efficient. The Breville while not cheap is simply amazing from both speed and completeness to ease of cleaning. It also is more complete than other juicers, much dryer pulp.

Vita Mix, well bars and commercial healthfood stores use them. Why? The motors never burn out. Yes they are expensive, but you only buy one.

I look upon the price of both appliances as an investment in my health. I know for a fact that I am eating more fruits and vegetables because of both of these. What price to you place on avoiding heart disease, stroke and cancer?

[San Onofre Guy]

Here is the recipe thanks to Mr. Google
Macaroni with Cheese SauceTime: 4 to 5 minutes
Yield: 6 cups (1.4 l)
Speed: Variable to High
Ingredients:
2 cups (210 g) elbow macaroni, uncooked
1/4 cup (30 g) all-purpose flour
1/4 cup (60 g) light butter spread
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/3 cups (320 ml) skim milk
1 cup (115 g) cubed American cheese or yellow cheese
Crumb Topping
2 slices bread, white or wheat
1 teaspoon light butter spread
dash black pepper
dash garlic powder
dash oregano
dash dried minced onion
dash cayenne pepper
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C).
2. Cook macaroni as directed on package. Drain.
3. Spray an 8-inch x 8-inch (20 cm X 20 cm) baking dish with vegetable cooking spray then add macaroni to dish.
4. Place butter, flour, salt and milk into the Vitamix container in the order listed and secure lid.
5. Select Variable 1.
6. Turn machine on and quickly increase to Variable 10, then to High.
7. Blend for 3-4 minutes or until heavy steam escapes through the lid opening. As mixture thickens, it will not splash as much.
8. Remove the lid plug and add cheese through the lid opening.
9. Blend for 1 minute.
10. Pour over macaroni and mix thoroughly. Cover with bread crumb mixture and bake until top is golden brown, about 30 minutes.
To make crumb topping
1. To make crumb topping, toast 2 pieces of bread and squeeze each piece into a ball.
2. Select Variable 1.
3. Turn machine on and quickly increase to Variable 4. Remove the lid plug.
4. Drop each bread ball through the lid plug opening. Blend until you have crumbs. Add seasonings to the crumbs.

[Bastelmutti]

I was thinking of keeping our good blender for smoothies (using whole fruit & keeping the fiber) and maybe getting a Breville for juicing. I think it spikes your blood sugar if you only do fruit. I would like to try more veggie juices. I am looking at this as a supplement, not doing the fast. Our whole family eats a lot of fruit and veg already, but still trying to up the amounts and replace some of the meat/cheese/carbs with that.

[pinkytoe]

We often use diluted carrot juice in our morning green smoothies so use the Breville for that and the blender for the smoothie. I thought this would be a passing thing for us when we started over a few years ago but even a few mornings without a smoothie and we feel like something is missing.

[Rogar]

I watched the movie and made a comment back when the thread was new. Just for an update of opinion I bought a juicer for about $60.00 and with nothing to compare it with, it works fine. My goal was not to do a make over, but to have a juice "meal" every day or so. I suppose when it comes down to it, a juiced meal really isn't all that much more work or clean up than fixing a real meal. In spite of that, it just seemed tedious. I hated throwing out all the pulp as it seemed like a waste. The one thing I did like is that when the garden really gets going, it's a good way to keep up with things and even the ever productive chard would taste OK in a juice. I read a big handful of nutrition articles after seeing the movie and the conclusion I reached was that blending and green smoothies made more sense than juicing. I've always been a big fan of smoothies and just started throwing in more greens. I have a smoothie for breakfast probably five days of the week.

Now that fresh local greens are starting to show up I will probably bring out the juicer and get some use out of it. But after almost a year of thought on the matter, I probably would not buy it again and didn't use it over the winter. Smoothies just make more sense and are easier. I guess if I was fat, sick and dying, it might be a different story.

As a side note, I use an el cheapo Oster blender for my smoothies. I think it cost about $20. It has been a real work horse for maybe three years. I had one just like it previously and I burned out the motor trying to make some sort of paste with sun dried tomatoes and olive oil, which turned into something the Indians would use for glue. Anyway, they are pretty decent blenders.