THE VITAMIX IS HERE!

I can not explain how excited I am right now. I was waiting all day, very impatiently, for the Vita-mix to arrive and when it wasn’t there when I left work I was a little depressed. I decided to go for a bike ride from my house, over the Presidio, across the Golden Gate Bridge and over to Marin and back. If anything can lift a little depression that can do it! I was feeling great and loving my life so much. How many people are lucky enough to be able to get off work and hope on a bike and be riding on the Golden Gate Bridge in 20 minutes.

As I was on my ride I received a call from my work. I checked my voice-mail and the Vita-Mix had arrived and I could pick it up when I got back. I took my time riding home and enjoyed the view and everything else. I arrived home and then went to work and picked up the Vita-Mix box. I have to say, I thought it would be packaged in gold or something and not a simple box that said “Vita-Mix”. It is funny that my expectations of what it would come in were so different from reality and just proved to myself how big my expectations were for this product. As if the box would make a difference. Maybe it was like a Christmas present since I wanted it so much. The Buddha would not be impressed with my desire! LOL.

Anyway, I got home and started watching the video. I cleaned it and then made my first smoothie. First of all I have to say that I love that I can make 64 ounces of smoothie instead of just 32 ounces as with my old blender. I packed in 3 cups of flowering kale, 2 carrots, 2 bananas, 1 apple and 1 tablespoon of honey. Remember, this is all in one container! I’m still trying to figure out the flowering kale since it is very spicy so I probably need to add more honey next time and will adjust the recipe accordingly. Anyway, the Vita-Mix blended like a champ! It took about 45 seconds and it was done. There was no pulp or anything stringy. It was like drinking water or juice because it was absolutely emulsified. The taste was fantastic and I can’t wait to bring it to work with me tomorrow.

Later on, my buddy Saul came over and we started looking at the different recipes that come with the Vita-Mix. We were dumbfounded and amazed at how many recipes can be made by this product. We decided we wanted to try the strawberry ice cream. I’m still trying to stick to the green smoothie diet so ice cream is not allowed right now but after looking at the recipe which was 3 cups of frozen strawberries and 1 cup of nonfat yogurt, I decided it was okay. I set up the Vita-Mix again and made the ice cream in about 30 seconds. It was INCREDIBLE! It was as good as any ice cream I’ve had in restaurants and Saul agreed. I only had to have a tiny bowl of it because it was so delicious and filling. I bet that most restaurants use the Vita-Mix or something like it to do their own ice cream and now I can do it too!

Lastly, we decided we wanted to see what a basic orange juice would taste like. So we grabbed two oranges, peeled them but didn’t take out the seeds and added a 1/2 cup of water. I turned on the Vita-Mix and ran it for 20 seconds. It tasted like truly perfect fresh squeezed orange juice. I can’t believe what this machine can do and how great everything tastes so far!

When I first told Saul about it today he said, “400 bucks for blender!?!?!” and after this demonstration Saul said, “I think this is next on my list to buy. They should pay you a commission because you’ve turned so many people on to it!” I laughed and told Saul that I think that is how Vita-Mix has its products sold: someone tells or shows someone else and the product sells itself. Again, if not for Martine and my mom, I never would have thought of buying a Vita-Mix and I already can’t believe how I’ve gotten along without it!

By the way, weighed in again today and I’m down 13 pounds in 16 days. My belt no longer fits and I have to buy a new one. My pants are actually falling off my hips and legs if I don’t have a belt on and that hasn’t happened in years. I’m guessing I’m going to plateau soon and that is okay. As long as I keep eating healthy food and exercising the weight is not that important. I will be getting my cholesterol checked on Friday and can’t wait to see if it has dropped.

UPDATE: I just went to work and weighed myself. I am now down to 189. That is wearing clothes and shoes so I’m guessing I’m right around 185. I am thinking my ideal weight, at this point, is around 180 (with clothes on) and 175 or so naked. I can’t believe that I’ve lost 15 pounds in 17 days. I also can’t believe how much easier my bike rides and running has become on this diet.

To your health!
Aram