Do you believe in detox/is it a good idea to fast?

So, I've been 100% LFRV 80/10/10 (except 2 bites of tomberlies ice cream (raw) like a week or two ago) since the 9th of November and haven't even really been eating many overts. I'm still trying to up my greens (and fruit just a little), but I'm doing well and not losing crazy amounts of weight so I assume that I am not under eating too much.

If you would like to see my fit day you can see it: http://fitday.com/fitness/PublicJournals.html?Owner=hannahespedal I've been keeping up with it pretty well.

Anyway, the one thing I am really really hoping for is for my knee pain to go away. I don't know what is causing it but it seems to be getting worse, not better. I am kind of freaking out about it recently because my lifestyle does not allow for me to have a bad knee (or two) the way they have been. I don't own a car (nor can I afford one) so I bike everywhere, I stand all day at work, I like to run, etc.

My questions: Could it be detox? In your opinion do you think it is something that will get better, or do you think I should go to the doctor and figure out what it is first (the doctor is far away and I would have to take a long bus or something)? Should I try a water fast? Should I try banana island? Do I just need to eat more?

I feel like my body should have had sufficient detox time (though, I don't know that I really believe in the whole detox hype, anyway) by now to see SOME improvement. I tried running the other day and got about 3 blocks before my knees felt like they were going to buckle. This is making me want to cry.

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Permalink Reply by hannah on November 29, 2009 at 8:33am

Was your pain only while running? I have been having pain while laying down, lately.

My dad had to have knee surgery because he had this: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pigmented_villonodular_synovitis and I'm wondering if that's what's up with my knees.

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Permalink Reply by B on November 29, 2009 at 8:11am

Hi Hannah, in order for your knee to heal you need to give it a break from the exercise. Would you be able to take the bus to work? It may be also worth having a doctor look at it to rule out whether there's any damage that requires attention.

Unless you're doing a lot more exercise than is shown in your fitday log looks like you're doing well with food intake. The way to tell if you're eating enough is you're not interested in food in general particularly sweets, cooked grains, overt fats, etc. between meals. Also it's staying hydrated is very important, aches and pains can be symptoms of dehydration. If this isn't the case already you want to make sure you are peeing clearly 8x/day, drinking 1-2 L of h2o upon rising is a great way to start the day (prolly not the first time you've heard this advice lol).

It does take time for the body to heal, yours will have a lot of housecleaning to do in the first few months, getting regular gentle exercise (non-running) is important but so is plenty of rest and sleep. Just try to relax and give your body time to heal if at all possible.

Normally I wouldn't recommend water fasting unless you were sick, but doing a short (1-3 day) fast may accelerate the healing process. I wouldn't make a habit of doing them regularly however. If you were able to afford a supervised water fast that would likely be the quickest way to sort out the issue, unfortunately the cost of these are prohibitive.

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Permalink Reply by hannah on November 29, 2009 at 8:38am

In terms of working out, yeah, I haven't really been adding it to fitday, but I haven't been doing much of it because of my knees. I don't really add the amount of biking I do from place to place or anything, though.

Generally, anytime I start to crave cooked food I just eat a bunch of fruit. My cravings have been a little more intense the last couple of days seeing all of my vegan friends' pictures of their thanksgiving feasts, but I haven't been craving much.

The only time I really feel dehydrated is when I wake up, so I just try to drink a bunch of water or eat juicy fruits. It seems that when I do both too close together I feel really.. off. I can't explain it, but I feel like it's because there is an overabundance of water in my system. I'm certainly peeing a lot :).

I was just thinking about doing a Sat-Sun fast so I could rest the whole time maybe next weekend. I just don't know about it because I don't know if I really believe in the whole "detox" thing. I most certainly wasn't planning on doing it regularly. I love food too much.

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Permalink Reply by B on November 29, 2009 at 9:06am

Cooked food cravings are the most intense a couple weeks in for 30 days or so, these are elimination symptoms, so what you're going through sounds normal to me. I find it best to avoid images of cooked food, TV commercials are FULL of them, even non-food commercials. You are dealing with the cravings correctly, which is good :)

Yeah you want to sip water relatively slowly and if you've had a significant amount wait at least 20 minutes before eating. Sipping a bit of water before/during fruit consumption is fine.

Sat-Sun fast sounds reasonable to me. Certainly the body does detoxify, particularly for the first months of going for the most part the symptoms should be mild, fatigue is most common. Sometimes more intense symptoms occur, but only briefly. If its really intense 'detox' all the time that suggests that there may be under-eating/autointoxification going on. I can't say for certain, it may be that detox is partially responsible for you knee pain but it could be that it just needs a bit of a break to give it a chance to heal.

Ya, food is something I'd rather not live without either ;D