This is me before the experiment, it can only get better.

Still eating fruit during the day and a vegetarian meal in the evening, really enjoying it. No chocolate, sweets or meat for nearly a week, no sweat at all. Want to bring on Lent now. Should I give up coffee and alcohol for Lent? Coffee would be a real challenge. Is wine not fruit? Excited about being Fruitarian for 40 days and nights, excluding Sundays of course! To me what I'm doing at the moment is not hardship but I do feel better for it, this may be something I could go long term after Lent. Going to get some photos on here tomorrow hopefully.

Didn't manage a post yesterday. Not a good start to my blog! Having major building work done, which seems to have an effect on our ability to use the internet! Anyway, it seems to be working at the moment so onwards and upwards.

Had a second juice on Tuesday as planned. I found the whole experience a bit traumatic to be honest, not really hunger based trauma, just not quite ready to give up the whole ritual of the evening meal. So had a re-think for Wednesday. Decided to eat fruit all day and have a cooked vegetarial meal of some description in the evening.

Wednesday morning had a weigh in = 10st 4lbs. I will call that my starting weight, no goals, let's just see what happens.

I had during the day a banana, a pear, some dates and had salmon and brocccoli in the evening, all in all an easy day and I enjoyed it too to be honest.

Did a karate class last night which was totally exhausting but loved it.

Today I had some dates for breakfast and a huge pizza for lunch. Nothing since, don't need anytning to be honest.

I decided at the beginning of the week that I ought to begin to give a few things up in readiness for my fruit fast. So far this week I've refrained from eating meat, chocolate and sweets, to be honest not difficult, not ready to give up booze or crisps just yet!

Sorry if today's blog is a little bit all over the place, as I am at the moment. Now was probably a bad time to start my blog and my 'life changes' but, it's always a bad time!

Given my living situation, I would normally have used it as an excuse to drink and eat too much, but the blog is helping me I think not to fall into that trap.

Anyway, have managed to download loadsa inspiring podcasts. Anything I hear that I find particularly helpful I will post on here.

I know I said I was not going to do any more research. I thought it might be a good idea to perhaps look at the balance, or possible imbalance of my fruit fast. I think I may well face criticism from some people so need to be armed or at least prepared with any necessary nutritional information to back up what I am doing. It is not my intention to make myself ill, quite the opposite! I will as far as is possible make sure I am getting the nutrients I need.

It's 11.30am, just had my first juice:-

2 apples
2 pears
4 carrots
piece of ginger

It was lush cus I was starving, feeling pleased with myself.

Thought I ought to touch on the Lent side of all this. I am not a religious person, that's not to say I don't 'believe' as such, this experiment is giving me the opportunity to perhaps open myself up to any possibility of spiritual enlightment. I have signed up to a daily podcast with Christian Aid which will take me through Lent. We all know the role of Lent but I am interested to see whether this fruit fast gives me an understanding of what self sacrifice might actually be like as I have no idea at the moment.

I am new to blogging, but it is my intention with the help of a young person, to get some photos of me on here, before and after etc! I will fill out my profile too.

Pancake Day is two weeks away, so what? you might say! well, get this! I have decided to do a fruit fast for Lent, crazy, I know. But the good news is, having undertaken extensive research, I have discovered that in the christian calendar Sunday is a day of celebration, so that means I get Sundays off, hooray!

The thought of going totally cold turkey on Ash Wednesday is already freaking me out, so, I have decided to start preparations early. Today I am going to juice fast! i.e. make my own juices and not eat any solid food. When looking at the bigger picture, not a huge leap of faith, but, have you ever done it? thought not! I will let you know what I have and when, and how I have felt throughout the day.

Now for some background and how I have arrived at this point.

IT'S ALL ME, ME, ME!

Same old boring story i'm afraid (but in a nutshell!). 'Put on' first diet at 13 by my lovely slim mother, I think I was about 10.7, she would probably remember if I asked her! In actual fact by today's obesity standards, not actually that fat. Fat enough, i admit! Then continued the serial dieting for the following 27 years! INSANITY! I cant help but wonder whether I may have naturally slimmed down given time. Anyway, needless to say, my weight has fluctuated ever since. Got fat having babies, then spent the next 15 years trying to get rid of it, you all know where I'm coming from, I don't need to spend hours typing what you already klnow!

Been on every diet under the sun, as has every other woman in the world. The only one thing that ever worked, I hate to say, was exercise. But, not a little bit here and there, but loads. And, as with diets, maintenance is the key. I kept it up and enjoyed it too, for a couple of years, got a bad back, then that was the end of that. But, as with everything we 'start' there has to be an end. My end of that period of my life was my bad back, I never managed to get into it again.

What I am hoping to achieve with this experiment is obviously weight loss. I walk my dog every day and that has to be enough, I don't want to go to the gym or go out for a run.

HOW DID I ARRIVE AT THE FRUIT FAST?

I fell upon an article on a raw foodie about 18 months ago. I was inspired by what I read. I then proceeded to research the idea quite extensively over the next few months. Failed hugely on a number of occasions when trying it myself I should add! But I still feel I want to give it a go. I have read reports on massive life changing experiences, increased clarity, calmness and any other new age expression you can come out with! I want that and I want it now! Here will be my experience, no more research I have decided.