Coming Soon
Many of you know that I’m a fan of the Daniel fast. I want to say that I’m shooting to do this once a month, but that is a stretch lol. I’ll need to be stricter and more obedient which isn’t getting any easier as I age. Wanna say this is my third or fourth go at it. My last one was consisted mainly of grapes, broccoli & mushrooms. This time, I want focus on a different type of vegetable. My mother started drinking these shakes in the morning to help her with daily choirs thus included her job. She has been a banquet waiter for decades along with my father. They both made good money for simply serving plated dishes at a pristine hotel. I also took the same role there for about 9yrs during my college days. It was the only job I could find making great money for minimal shifts. Bless my folk’s hearts for they both underwent back surgeries. Till this day I don’t know if my old man’s incident was triggered by lifting heavy trays or the slip disk was due to a badly positioned angle during a movement. They had to remove it nonetheless which put him out of commission for a few months. Come to think of it, both their scars are within similar proximities. What I do know, is all those years of heavy lifting didn’t help avoid his trip to the ER. My mother on the other hand, I know this was the case. And having the physician confirm this, she was glad to get the procedure done. It was impeding her walks and resorted to sitting for longer periods. Well, they are both healthy now and with mom’s daily drink, she recommended I get myself a good blender and be creative on my concoctions. Inquiring on her red color tone smoothie, I asked what did it contain? Out of all the ingredients listed, I never heard of beets. She wasn’t well versed in the vegetable either, however it was a good source of fiber with other nutrient values. Her now husband is very crafty in the kitchen and so decided to make her something for her to take in the morning since she doesn’t have time to cook during early shifts. Right off the bat, doubts synced in. I forcefully had to get used to vegetables growing up. Introducing a new one was going to be a struggle. After tasting one, my facial reaction wasn’t too harsh. It tasted or at least resembled that of a corn. That is, a corn on the cob. Grew up with corn all my life. The only thing was this vegetable resembled a burgundy lemon size food. I breathed easier. Now I would need to try and implement this as part of my Daniel fast. My mother is aware of these fasts I take on, so what does a mother resort to do? She goes protective mode. Mom almost had a panic attack on my first fast, her fear was that I’m not going to make it. Seeing me super thin, you can only imagine what went through her mind. She advised me to not eat them too much. That this can cause health issues. Eating too much of anything will do that in my opinion. But I did my due diligence. According to google, their leaves were the prominent focus instead of the actual beet itself in ancient times. I won’t bore you with a history lesson, but looking at the pros and cons, here’s what I found. Again, this is google, not a literature paper—def don’t miss lit and research papers.
Pros
Sports performance
Better heart health
Antioxidants
Good for digestive track
Better cardio
Cons
Could develop kidney stones
Gout
Upset stomach
Beeturia (urine/stool to turn pink or reddish)
Low blood pressure
These are some of the items I found to look out for. After researching a bit, perhaps combining other veggies may not be a bad idea. Going on solo beets daily throughout each day I wonder how the body would react. Mid-forties aren’t what it used to be when I started this. The plan is about 2-3 beets in a span of 4-5hr. Should be about 3 servings each day. Now I’ve always gradually climbed this hill. Don’t recommend cold turkey and just going into it. Right now, I’m on coffee, chicken protein salad (no dressing), fruit and snack before going to bed. This should easy my way to the fast. Hopefully this journey doesn’t backfire on me lol. As mentioned before, it’s a Daniel fast so it has a biblical side to this. For those that aren’t familiar, the passage is rooted in Daniel 1:8-14 and Daniel 10:2-3. In chapter 1 he and his friends decided to eat solely vegetables and water rather than the rich foods and wine offered by the Babylonian king. The king sought his servants to look fit and afraid if they only ate those foods, the result would resort to looking pale and thin. Basically, the premise was showcasing he had great power even through his servants. Daniel knew the consequences which lead to being beheaded. But God was behind Daniel. Informing the chief and staff to test them for 10 days and afterwords compare them to the younger servants.
In Daniel 10, Daniel fasted for three weeks (21 days straight), abstaining from choice food, which included meat, wine, and other rich foods. This was due to a vision he had that would lead to war and hardships. So during mourning, he fasted for those three weeks.
The Daniel Fast, as practiced by Christians, is intended to be a spiritual discipline, encouraging individuals to draw closer to God. By abstaining from certain foods, individuals may focus on their spiritual needs and cultivate a greater dependence on God.