Countdown to reboot

Welcome back :-)

Yesterday I wrote a little about what brought me here and how this journey is something I NEED to do. I will write more about this later, but for now, let me talk about the Reboot site, the prep, the research, and the quest for the right juicer.

After watching the movie, I had to go over to the site and check it out (if you haven't already, feel free to click the link on the right and visit the site for yourself). The site is not the best I have seen but it has good information to help you make educated decisions. There is a Blog section with categories such as Ask the Nutritionist, Recipes, and my favorite, Reboot Profiles. Here you can read success stores of normal everyday people like you and me who for one reason or another decided that they too needed to join the reboot. Other sections include Forums, where you can interact with other Rebooters, and the Marketplace where you can purchase gear, juicers, and the like.  
   
Finally, you have a section called plans. Here, you have several different plans to choose from depending on your lifestyle and goals. Per the website, the plans are broken down as follows:

1. Long Weekend (juicing only) - This plan is three days long and is intended for people already eating a plant-based diet who are looking to add in even more plants and juice. Also for people looking to try out a Reboot before committing to a 5-day or 15-day or longer program.
2. Express Reboot (juicing + eating) - This plan is five days long and is intended for people looking to try a Reboot without making a long-term commitment. Also for people who would like to chew their food throughout their Reboot, instead of just juicing.
3. Quick Start Reboot (juicing + eating) - This plan is ten days long and is intended for people ready to try a 10-day Reboot but who aren't ready to give up chewing. Also for people who are brand new to a plant-based diet.
4. Classic Reboot (juicing + eating) - This plan consists of five days of eating, blending and juicing only whole fruit and vegetables; followed by five days of just juicing; followed by five days of eating, blending and juicing whole fruit and vegetables again. Think 5-5-5. This plan is intended for people ready to give a Reboot (like Joe's) a try, people who want to experience a juice fast, already eat a plant-based diet, and are ready to commit to 15 days of just veggies and fruits
5. Plus Dinner Reboot (juicing + eating) - This plan is three days long and is intended for people who would like to eat dinner with their family, people looking to ease into a full-juice program, or anyone seeking the benefits of juicing but aren't ready to give up eating solid foods.

I order to prepare for the reboot, you have one week of prep work. This is what I call the Countdown Phase. According to the website, you need to make sure that during that week you start changing the way you eat. Over the next few days I will have to eliminate processed foods, white flours, sugar/desserts, fried food, fast food, processed meats, alcohol, and wean off caffeine - that is the hardest part. I don't care that much about the other stuff, but the caffeine will be the hardest.

The Countdown Phase transitions to eating more salads, soups, smoothies with fruits and vegetables, whole grains, nuts, seeds, beans and legumes. I have to transition from animal protein to protein solely from plant sources such as beans, nuts, and legumes (for example, black beans, hummus, chick-peas, lentils, and edamame). I also have to transition off dairy. By the end of the week, all dairy should be out of my diet. The night before the Reboot starts, I need to stop taking non-prescription vitamins and over-the-counter medications, and that I have hydrated well with at least 64-72 ounces of water.

Tomorrow the juicer comes home. Been looking at them online, reading user reviews and such, and I think I am going for the Breville Juice Fountain Plus. There are so may out there that it is hard to narrow it down to one. This model seemed to have the best reviews for a juicer in my price range, so I am going for it. It will come from Bed Bath and Beyond because of their awesome return policy...so if it does not perform as expected, back it goes and I will pick something else. I will update you on this.

So...once all the ducks are in a row, I will be all set to start my Reboot. I picked the Quick Start Reboot. If after ten days I feel I can keep going, then I will switch to the Classic Reboot and continue for at least 30 days. I will be documenting weights and measurements along the way so I can chart my progress. I am really excited about this!

Tomorrow is t-minus six days. I need to set up a chart for measurements and take some before pictures. I will post all of this tomorrow along with some feedback on the juicer. I might make one recipe from the Juicing Bible to give the juicer a dry-run :-) More on that tomorrow. For now, thanks again for being a part of this. I appreciate your support more than you can possibly know. Good night, my friends...until tomorrow.

Ana