Raw Milk Fast, Day 1

First I'm sure you want to know why. Why would someone subject themselves to an entire week of consuming nothing but raw milk? The answer is pretty simple. I have access to fabulous raw milk from organic grass-fed Jersey cows, thanks to The Family Cow This milk is virtually toxin-free. So for one week, I give my body a reprieve from ingesting toxins (with the exception of my anti-seizure medication). My plan cuts out water as well because the water I have access to is also full of toxins. Additionally, every once in awhile, it's good for me to cut sugar, including simple carbs, out of my diet for a period of time. A sugar detox is a difficult undertaking because so much time and energy is wrapped up in preparing meals I can eat. So this week I will also give my body a reprieve from sugar, without having to think about it much. Lastly, raw milk has incredible healing properties, so it's like a week of high-intensity medicinal soothing for my body.

So, today was Day 1

I got up at about 7:45. Our plans for the day included church and then a bike ride on the C&O Canal Towpath. Upon getting up, I poured 10 oz of milk and let it sit for a bit (it's better if it's not really cold). This I sipped on while I got ready for church. I brought 10 oz to church in a travel cup and drank from it periodically during my service in the nursery. It is not unusual for me to skip breakfast in an effort to get out of the house on time on Sunday mornings. So usually by the time church is over I am starving and end up eating donuts or coffee cake afterward. After church we spent about an hour chatting with friends, which put us going home around noon. To my surprise, I was not hungry at all. One thing I did have a problem with is the filmy feeling and taste the milk left in my mouth. I decided to deal with this by sucking on a cough drop for a few seconds periodically.

I had 10 oz more milk before we left for our bike ride. At this point I was still not hungry but I was craving food - the general pleasure of eating. I also had a headache, which often happens when I am detoxing from sugar, plus I hadn't had any caffeine. We left to go on our bike ride around 2pm. I realized that I couldn't go without drinking during the bike ride and it would be impractical to bring milk along for that purpose. So I brought a bottle of water and ended up drinking about a cup of it during the 9-mile ride. I should note that cow's milk is about 87% water so dehydration is not going to be an issue.

After our bike ride, I needed a nap - which is not unusual for me and had nothing to do with the milk. I slept from about 4:00 - 6:00pm. Before my nap, I was still not feeling any hunger, but I did wake up with a growling tummy. I poured 16 ounces of milk and sipped on it all evening. My urge to eat some sort of food is getting stronger, but I know that it is all psychological. I still have a headache but it's a dull roar in the background.

I need about 1500 calories a day for my age, weight and activity level. 10 cups of milk is 1600 calories so I was aiming for 9 1/2 cups. About 7:30pm, after putting in the data from our bike ride, Russ informed me we burned around 900 calories. Too late to make all that up tonight! Oh well, I'm still not hungry.

One last thing. Some of you may be wondering about the fat content in the milk I'm drinking. It is whole milk and the fat content is 50%. Am I worried about it? No. I'm not convinced that all fats are as bad for us as mainstream medicine tells us. But more on that another day.