Raw Foods & Consistent Exercise -- Unbeatable!

[maui_butterfly]

aloha gang,

i've been on a fitness kick in the last month and really excited about the progress i've made so far. wanted to share a little raw inspiration with my friends!

this was my older photo post at 8 months raw...
http://www.rawfoodtalk.com/showthread.php?t=39101&highlight=photos

i also started an online support group for raw vegans interested in actively pursuing their fitness goals. my goal is to get SUPERFIT in 2008 and support a bunch of likeminded folks to do the same. so whether you have a goal to run a marathon or lose 50 lbs and you want some accountability or information around your own personal goals, come and check us out at www.rawveganfitness.com

as always, my thanks goes out to the online community of raw vegans. your knowledge, experience, and support has been invaluable to me! mahalo nui loa!!!

[mtraezme]

I just joined up!

You look awesome in your pictures, by the way.

I gotta say also that I loved having to do a math problem for the confirmation code instead of having to try and figure out what the swirly letters were, like on most sites. I just hope I got it right ;)

[Revvell]

Ohhhhh, so THAT's what you've been doing. You look GREAT!!! Congratulations!

Revvellicious

[les]

Wow, that is amazing. I'm a newbie so I have questions. Did you count calories or limit any of the highly caloric raw foods?

[tanishamarshall]

You are looking Good!!!

[Eva]

You look absolutely fantastic! You go girl!!!

[rawstrength]

You look great! Congratulations!

[Bodhi]

Wowwie Maui! Excellent progress!!! :D

[earth_sista]

dang lady! you look fabulous!

[RawSinger]

It would be a crime for you not to show off that rockin' bod at the beach!! Congratulations!!

[Raw Angel Mom]

Awsome,

Now you gave me the fever to start doing weight training. Just what i needed.

Thank you for sharing!

[GreenJB5]

YOU LOOK GREAT!!!!! WOOOOWW Were you 100% raw for 10 months? if so what keep you motivated to eat 100% ie what did you eat that did not cause you to slip? Please do share

[cordeliasmama2]

you look so amazing & young!
you have inspired me to start working out!!!
thanks & congrats! :)

[cordeliasmama2]

i joined the site, too =0)
i'm super excited!:p

[maui_butterfly]

thanks everyone for all of your kind words, i sincerely mean that. i like to say that i take no credit, the credit goes to raw foods--all i had to do was eat. LOL. but in truth i will say that it comes down to a big shift in attitude i had about PRIORITIZING MYSELF. a people-pleaser by nature, i always put myself way down on the list. luckily i am pretty high energy, so for a good portion of my life i got away with this behavior, but when i became a mom, it avalanched on me. your kids take 100% of what you have to give, and if you haven't learned self-care and boundary setting or mastered the "put your oxygen mask on first" rule, you can get in over your head pretty quick! that's what happened to me.

now i keep MY wellbeing at the top of the priority list, at least somewhere in the top five. :) i eat raw and i refuse to go to bed unless i have spent at least spent 8 minutes exercising. (i sit at a desk 8-10 hrs per day five days a week... that MUST be counteracted somehow.) and i find that by taking that necessary time for myself, i show up as my best self more often, in my parenting, my relationships, my work... everything. so it pays off big dividends. our kids especially deserve strong, healthy, fit, and energetic moms, not tired, cranky, energetically-depleted moms. and if it means seeing a tiny bit less of a cranky depleted mom in order to get a happy, healthy mom, well, that's a pretty good trade off.

mtraezme i'm happy to see that you passed the confirmation code/IQ test on the rawveganfitness.com! LOL. welcome!

revvell, that means a lot coming from you. i love your primal play stuff, and have really incorporated the spirit of that into my own life. now when i take my daughter to the beach on the weekends, i challenge her and her little friends to races in the sand (i run backwards), swim them around on my back, join in games of tag, do cartwheel contests, or i set them all up in a line and jump over them... they love to have an adult playing with them, and i get a great workout.

les i did not count calories, especially at first, and i lost 40 pounds very quickly, then another 10 over the course of several months. then i plateaued out at 155lbs. my diet has naturally been getting more refined as i've gone along, but for the first 6 months or so in particular i ate all the so called "bad" raw foods, and lots of them (avocados, larabars, nuts, "raw gourmet" recipes, etc). i think the optimal diet is as many fresh unadulterated raw fruits and vegetables as possible, so i have been mindful about moving in that direction, but allowing myself to eat whatever raw foods i wanted along the way. in the past month i have dropped all "transitional raw" ingredients: miso, agave, nama shoyu, sea salt, acv, oils, "probably-not-really-raw" nuts, etc., and i think that plus the exercise allowed me to bust my plateau and go from 155 to 145.

hey rawangelmom, happy to inspire you to pick up the weights. strength training is so fun. i love working out with kettlebells especially...

greenJB5, i've been 90-100% raw, and i strive for 100% every day. i cook for my daughter, and that has been the most challenging thing, but hey, its my choice! my strategy has been to be totally gentle with myself when i slip up, and focus on all the wonderful things i am doing for my body by eating all the raw foods that i DO eat. i can't say there is one thing that i eat that prevents me from getting cravings, more like a toolkit full of strategies... i carry apples/asian pears in my purse and if i want to have a bite of cooked food, i have to eat the apple first; i never prepare my daughters food on an empty stomach, i always make sure i am full if not a bit overfull; i always tell myself about anything i am wanting "if you wake up in the morning tomorrow and you still want it, you can have it" --the morning me is a much tougher cookie than the 4pm me.

thanks, cordeliasmama! yeah sometimes i look in the mirror and i seriously feel like i have stepped into a time machine! glad to see you on rawveganfitness.com, and i hope to see you diving into the challenge soon! let me know if i can help...

blessings all!

[moonstar]

You look wonderful!

Just what I need today

[moonstar]

I love that photo with you and the little girl -- which I presume is your little one?:)

It's got such attitude -- like "Yeah -- that's my mom -- don't mess with her! "

Adorable!

[maui_butterfly]

thanks moonstar! yeah, that's my daughter... she's a character alright.

[cara4art]

Wow! You look fabulous! Great work, and should be inspiring to all who want to get in shape!

[GreenJB5]

Jennifer,

You are a great inspiration!!!!! I have a few more questions How often did you excerise per day / per week? WOW your six pack is amazing. What kind and how much stomach excerises did you do? And your skin is great!!!! You do not have hanging skin. I am afraid that I would have some. I will repeat .... You are a great inspiration

[moonstar]

I am seriously inspired...

I would also like to know more about your road to fitness and what you are doing...

Were you athletic before?

[Morn]

Wow you LOOK FABULOUS! Ok I am soo jealous! How tall are you? A Bikini - Don't think I will ever be wearing one of those again! Especially After having 2 C-sections and losing 100 pounds my skin just hasn't bounced back like yours. Looks like you have a completely flat stomach and Doesn't look like you have any lose or extra skin. Is this true? Well you deserve it - good for you taking care of you and showing people it is a good thing to prioritize that! So many of us moms are always last on the list when it comes to taking care of a family and such. I agree with you that it has to be a priority and our familys will benefit in the long run cause they have happier healthier moms. What kind of exercise do you primarily do?

[IamLoved]

You look years younger. You were beautiful before, but now you are just gorgoues and you are glowing and so healthy and happy looking. Congrats!! I will be checking out your website. Thanks for posting those pics. You should be very proud of yourself!

[StarFire]

Maui... you are RAWk'n it girl! you look amazing.... simply BEAUTIFUL... I think you are inspiring many of us to get off of our duffs and take responsibility.... okay.... okay... I'm on it...

MAJOR CONGRATULATIONS... YOU REALLY LOOK FANTASTIC!!!

WELL DONE! ME thinks the butterfly hath emerged!!! ;)

http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s43/FireStar_830/2006-11-16T08_58_11-08_00.gif

[maui_butterfly]

thanks again, everyone, and i say that with a humble heart. a lot of you were here on this board when i was a newbie rawfoodist (aloha starfire!), and i can honestly say i wouldn't be where i am without the support, knowledge, shared information, generosity, and love of the raw food community online. we should never forget how powerful that is for us folks treading a different road than most others around us.

Greenjb5, i have to say you made my day, but i don't think i would classify what i've got going on as a "six pack"... YET. but i'm workin' on it! i'm starting to get lean enough that my abs are showing a bit. i've still got plenty of work to do, especially in the butt/thigh department, but i know it will come if i keep doing what i am doing, stay consistent. i'm looking forward to shopping for a new bikini in July on my raw anniversary... and it might be the first time in my life that shopping for a new bathing suit was a pleasurable experience.

i do mostly bodyweight exercises, kettlebell exercises, and workout in my home using equipment that cost me less than $200 (3 kettlebells, a yoga mat, a fitball, a few dumbells that i should probably get rid of cuz i never use them, a gymboss timer, a jump rope, an ab wheel, and this kettlebell workout video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eunPWJ57zX0).

up until about a month ago i would describe my workouts as inconsistent. then i made a commitment to start getting up a half an hour earlier so that i would have the time to exercise, and usually that happens. when it doesn't, i made a backup commitment that i would not go to bed unless i had done at least 8 minutes of exercise ("8 minute abs" or "8 minute buns" on YouTube generally does the trick!). if i manage to somehow get some free time outside or work where i am not needing to parent my daughter, i make sure to take advantage of that QUICKLY by (at first powerwalking and now) running for 30min-1hr, something i thought i would never have time for. now that i committed to this the time magically seems to open up for me about 3-4x/week (ever heard that saying "jump and the net appears"?).

outside of the running, i rarely work out longer than 15-30 minutes/day. i'm really starting to think this fitness game is different for raw vegans... 75% of fitness is diet, and 25% is exercise. we got the diet part licked. and a lot of the conventional wisdom doesn't apply to us, because we don't have to outwork a bad diet to get results! so the long slow cardio, the 1-2 hour workouts, may not be as beneficial or necessary to us as someone eating cooked foods.

if i had to sum it up, i would say CONSISTENCY, INTENSITY, VARIETY, and FUN are the keys to creating an effective exercise program for yourself. working out 5-6x/week for 15 min is better than working out 1-2x/week for an hour+. i love swinging the kettlebell around, and doing bodyweight exercises. i don't just like the results, i enjoy the process, even when its challenging. if you find something you love, you'll want to do it. you should never dread your workouts. if you do, find something else -- the options are truly endless! but don't dial it in, don't hop on the elliptical machine at the gym and look at the tv or listen to your ipod and zone out. be present, focused, and intense when you do work out. and SWITCH IT UP constantly -- don't let the body get complacent. if i jump rope for 10 minutes, do 100 squats, 20 pushups, 300 kettlebell swings, and 200 crunches, i do them as intensely as i possibly can, i've gotten a full body workout plus conditioning, and it takes me about 20 minutes. the next day i might see how many burpees i can do in 10 minutes and then if i haven't totally killed myself, dial up "8 minute abs" on YouTube.

re: loose skin. i read an interview with angela stokes where she said it took 3 years for her skin to tighten up after losing such a great deal of weight. raw foods definitely gives us the best chances for that to happen, because the weight loss is healthy and not stressful on the body. i certainly have my problem areas, but i notice that it is all starting to tighten up properly, and the stretch marks on my legs and arms are probably unnoticed by anyone except me. i view them as my battle scars and i wear them with pride.

morn, i'm 5'10". and woman you are a walking billboard for the power of raw foods and exercise! what are you talking about "don't think I will ever be wearing one of those again!" i was laughing my fool head off reading that written by you!!! surely you couldn't have seen where you are NOW from where you were THEN. don't you think its PROBABLE, even CERTAIN, that there are more surprises ahead for you? i mean, now that you've reached your goal weight and gotten those sassy photos taken, maybe you need a new challenge in your life??? i think "bikini fit" could certainly be in your (near) future... if you want it its yours for the taking. (that said, you should also feel free to rest on your laurels, as imo you are smokin'!) ;)

[maui_butterfly]

moonstar, i'm glad you're inspired, and i see you joined the forum at www.rawveganfitness.com. i hope you decide to take the plunge into the challenge, because right now at 5'8" 190#s you are right where i was 10 months ago, and if you prioritized yourself and made the commitment to yourself, i have no doubt that you could be ringing in the new year 2009 looking HOT and feeling FABULOUS at your goal weight of 145... or less.

good luck girl!

[plucked]

You are AWESOME. I wish there was a little zened-out face that bows that I could place here.

this will have to suffice for now. :eek: :D

[moonstar]

Thanks. I did join the website and am further inspired!

[moonstar]

I am so inspired -- but it seems so far away!

I am only 34 - but I feel so tired, lethargic, and just non-hot! I don't want to be like this. There is and has been a lot going on in my life that I cannot go into great detail about at this time.

I am really inspired by your fitness and calmness! I will be 35 in January amd I want to be in really good shape for that and the rest of my life!

[maui_butterfly]

I am only 34 - but I feel so tired, lethargic, and just non-hot! I don't want to be like this. There is and has been a lot going on in my life that I cannot go into great detail about at this time.

I am really inspired by your fitness and calmness! I will be 35 in January amd I want to be in really good shape for that and the rest of my life!

i've been there, moonstar, believe me. i was 37 and i felt like i was 100 years old. overwhelmed and totally energetically depleted, with "a lot going on in my life".

relax. you don't have to do anything if you aren't ready. but instead of saying "i want to be in really good shape for that and the rest of my life!" try saying "i choose to be..." write it down and review it daily. we WANT a lot of things. when we tell our subconscious we are CHOOSING something, it takes on more significance, and separates that thing from all of our million mere "wants". :)

[w H i te D a i S y]

I want to work out now..or just get the end results :)
You look amazing by the way, really nice figure!!
Do you think I can whip myself into good shape in 3 months? haha im so flabby..

[maui_butterfly]

hi whitedaisy! whether you can get in great shape in 3 months kinda depends on where you are right now, but i can promise you that if you commit to 15-30 min/day 5+days/week (that is 2-3 hours a week!!!!) you will astonish yourself by the results that you will achieve.

the time is going to pass anyway. 3 months will be gone before you know it. the present moment determines the future, so see if you can find something physical that you enjoy doing TODAY, and do it intensely for 30 minutes and see how that feels.

again i recommend, if you're contemplating an exercise program but are not quite ready to start... start with your self talk. instead of "i want to work out now" say "i choose to work out now". see if a few days of that doesn't get your body moving!

[w H i te D a i S y]

Thank you Jennifer! That was really helpful of you. I was never in a terrible shape but I've been slacking off for the past couple months. Instead of thinking about it, I'll just DO IT :)

[Aleesha Sattva]

i don't know how i missed this thread. you look so freakin' amazing... i'm just speechless!

your posts... are inspiring... i hope this thread stays alive here forever... so others can read it!

thank YOU thank YOU thank YOU for being a guiding light!

[Raspberry4]

Maui - I am so glad I found your post. You look so amazing! Thanks for sharing. Per your signature we both started about the same time in July and I too was 205, then 150 by Christmas. But I could not seem to lose the last 10 pounds and starting thinking I needed to eat meat to lose the weight and all kinds of dumb thinking. Now I am back up to 180, but what is worse, my fibro is in full throttle. I needed to see your post to give me the kick in the butt I needed. I felt a sort of "kinship" with your posts based on your signature stats (dates/weight, etc.). I don't mean to ruin your post - I just wanted to share this to put it in writing to see my committment to return to where I should have stayed in the first place - RAW, BABY, RAW! Thank you for your inspiration :)

[Aleesha Sattva]

*holding the light for you raspberry*

[spicyfull]

RAW IS a LifeStyle Change and YOU are proof of what happens when you make that change.............I wish you Everything you need to Stay RAW.

[Raspberry4]

Aww, Thanks Aleesha ;)

[maui_butterfly]

hey raspberry! i am grateful that you found some inspiration in my story. don't get discouraged on where you had to go on YOUR path to get to raw. consider your detour as being the proof you needed to stay healthy and well FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE.

when i am in a rut with raw and struggling, i try to look "back" at where i am in that moment from the perspective of myself at age 50... by then a 12 year rawfoodist, totally stabilized, no struggles, no transitioning, no questioning, only ease and wonderful health. from THAT perspective, i am nothing but grateful to the younger woman who struggled and fought and kept picking herself up and dusting herself off so that i might be where i am "today".

visualize yourself as that older woman, and thank yourself for perservering. it sounds like you got your fire back! RAW BABY RAW! its all in you!!!!!!!

[maui_butterfly]

aleesha when someone as inspiring as you calls me inspiring, i am humbled to the core. seriously, thank YOU.

[Raspberry4]

Maui - thanks that makes alot of good sense. I will be 50 in 2 years! Yikes. I would like to look back in gratitude and be a sexy little mama at 50 and out of the fat and frumpy forty's. What a great thought, no?

Have a great day. :)

[avanderland]

hi whitedaisy! whether you can get in great shape in 3 months kinda depends on where you are right now, but i can promise you that if you commit to 15-30 min/day 5+days/week (that is 2-3 hours a week!!!!) you will astonish yourself by the results that you will achieve.

the time is going to pass anyway. 3 months will be gone before you know it. the present moment determines the future, so see if you can find something physical that you enjoy doing TODAY, and do it intensely for 30 minutes and see how that feels.

again i recommend, if you're contemplating an exercise program but are not quite ready to start... start with your self talk. instead of "i want to work out now" say "i choose to work out now". see if a few days of that doesn't get your body moving!

Your pictures are so amazing, and what a great attitude! You bring such a high spirit, positivity, and welcoming voice to the community! You rock!

Also, I wanted to say that I totally know what you mean about the self-talk being important. If I say, "Oh I don't really feel like working out" or "Oh not that again," I get really down on exercise and don't want to do it! But if I think thoughts like, "I crave activity!" or "I want to move, move, move!" then my body automatically clicks over. And once you get started on that path, your body really can get addicted to movement!!

Thanks for bringing your enthusiasm and wisdom to the board! I am going to join your site/challenge today or tomorrow, yay!

[corazon]

Wow, thanks for starting this inspiring thread! I just joined up on the 30 day raw food challenge here & signed in at RVF. This should be the perfect combo to keep me motivated, on track, and smokin' hot by the end of summer :)

[sareca]

Well, I'm inspired...

[RawHeaven]

Jennifer, Jennifer, Jennifer.

You are the most amazing, beautiful, grounded, sensational, heart sharing, spirit woman. Your raw journey is such an inspiration to me!!! You are absolutely stunning and now I need to go find my hand weights....I'll start with the 5 pounders....hehe...thank you for sharing your raw success! :p

[maui_butterfly]

oh my gosh, i haven't been back on in awhile... i am moved and honored to have made an impact or impression, as the online raw community has been the bedrock of my progress thus far.

what we might not be able to achieve alone, in little pockets or enclaves surrounded by countless others travelling that path of least resistance, we can surely do together, connected virtually to a whole lot of people like ourselves who have been called to walk the other way. and shine the light.

peace!

[Bananna]

So beautiful and inspiring Jennifer...really. You look shockingly different and fantastic.....so very motivating.

...and not just physically, you also seem very together in general from your posts.

I have now made a concret list. I agree that writing it down and reading really helps make it strong. I've used that in the past to quit smoking and it was such a strengthening thing to do. So thanks for reminding me of that again....

[justinesmith]

You look like a different person. Holy buckets. Truly inspirational and amazing. Like you weren't beautiful to begin with ~ now you bring down the house. :D

[Seabie]

Oh my!!! When someone can look totally awesome in a bikini that is proof what your doing is working! I also think it is great that you want to help others.

[moonstar]

Jennifer -- how can I reach you with a private message?

Thanks!

[Vaclare79]

WOW, very inspiring!!

[maui_butterfly]

hey moonstar, if you go to this page

maui_butterfly (http://www.rawfoodtalk.com/member.php?u=14827)

you can email me under "contact info"

[maui_butterfly]

new 60 day challenge starting now at rawveganfitness.com.

here's what I did in 60 days (the bikini shot is from the beginning of May, the others taken just days ago). others have had great results too! (weight loss, strength gains, no more thyroid meds, out of the danger zone for developing type 2 diabetes, etc.)

there are over 100 members on the site, but only about 14 active challengers, and i know it is the part about posting the BEFORE photos that is holding alot of people back. but it is the cornerstone of what makes rawveganfitness.com different... if it was just a matter of logging food and exercise, people could do it right here at the fabulous rawfoodtalk.com (in fact i encourage them to, its very helpful to have a place where you can be accountable and on top of your goals). but if you want step it up, the photos are about squaring up with reality and making the quantum leap psychological commitment to go from "i want to get fit" to "by god, i will get fit"! it takes a person with a special attitude at the right time of their life to post them and really commit.

that said, i hope to see some new faces getting fit with me this summer! eating raw is a big part of it, but consistent exercise is vital to achieve true health and freedom in our bodies. why half step it? let's go for the whole (raw) enchilada!

[moonstar]

Amazing!

I received your message -- will respond this week!

[Bluedevil_angel]

You are smokin! I would have never thought you were 145 in that picture! I can only hope I look that amazing at that number.

Your comment about our children deserving energetic happy moms brought me to tears fast haha I'm so emotional about being healthy and happy for my daughter and being able to be there for her more than I was able to have mine there for me, physically. I want to be able to play with her and be an Excellent example for her, she is the most important thing to me and thats why I'm working hard on changing my unhappy, unenergized mommy vibe I have going on ;)

Thank you so much for sharing these!

[maui_butterfly]

hey bluedevil_angel... i've been there as a depressed, energetically depleted mom. you CAN turn it around. you're here, and that's the best place to be, in my experience. raw foods gave me myself back.

(i'm 5'10", so not petite. size 10 working towards an 8. broad shoulders, etc.)

moonstar, i look forward to hearing from you!

[Bananna]

Now I know what you guys mean about the skill testing question when I register...phew! ...always full of self-doubt, lol.

....place seems upbeat enough, kind of looking forward to it...and I am Totally in the right place at the right time in my life. Finally!

[BananaJana]

Jennifer, you are not only inspirational with all you've accomplished but you are so positive and have great motivational thoughts for everyone. Thanks for sharing all your hard work with us! I signed on to rawveganfitness and can't wait to get started but I have to take some photos.

See you there!

[maui_butterfly]

alright banana girls, let's do this! :p

[RawHeaven]

Holy ****, you are HAWT Jennifer! You must be batting off the menfolk with a stick or maybe a cucumber. ;) You are a divine inspiration. Bless you.

[Bananna]

ok, I'm going to do my photos today :( ....not a good time, lol.

[Conscious Midwife]

new 60 day challenge starting now at rawveganfitness.com.

... but if you want step it up, the photos are about squaring up with reality and making the quantum leap psychological commitment to go from "i want to get fit" to "by god, i will get fit"! it takes a person with a special attitude at the right time of their life to post them and really commit.

that said, i hope to see some new faces getting fit with me this summer! eating raw is a big part of it, but consistent exercise is vital to achieve true health and freedom in our bodies. why half step it? let's go for the whole (raw) enchilada!


GET OUT OF MY HEAD!!

How about I jsut took a 1/2 dozen gruesome pics yesterday.

After 2 years of raw enthusiasm I'm actually yearning to get IT Rright and be the Haute RAWmasutra I'm destined to be.

Clicking over to your site now:cool:

[maui_butterfly]

one year raw pics are in!

as many of you know i administer a little forum at rawveganfitness.com for folks looking to get support, encouragement, community, expert advice (not from me! from a real raw personal trainer!), workout ideas, etc. on their path to their own personal health and fitness goals. i found in my search that more "traditional" health and fitness resources did not quite fit with my raw vegan diet... (don't you get tired of so called "experts" suggesting you eat more protein all the dang time? :) me too!)

we're kicking off our next 60 day challenge on sept 1st. feel free to join us if the spirit moves you.

in this last challenge, i made some pretty good gains in strength and endurance, completed my first 10k run since college, and dropped from a size 10 to a size 8. AND (shocker!) i am not afraid to get my photo taken in a bikini any more. i'm not saying i'm bikini fit yet (that is my long term goal) but i am on my way.

you can be too, and that is my point!

"A year from now you may wish you had started today." - Karen Lamb

[HolyGuacamole]

WOW, you look amazing!
How inspiring!
I once was super-fit and want to get there again.
I'm off to check out your site now, too. :0)

[Ilse W.]

How could you possibly think you are not "bikini fit"? You look fantastic! I wish people would put their height along with their weight. That would help the not-there-yet crowd imagine what we might look like some day...:p

[veganrun7]

Aloha,

I'm glad to see another person from Hawaii here. I live on Oahu where I'm anxiously waiting for the Whole Foods store to open next month. There are not enough raw food places here on Oahu. Thanks for the website to rawveganfitness.com. I've been a vegan for quite a while but just a few weeks ago decided to try the raw diet. I've had some problems recently but one thing I've noticed is that I have more energy to go running. It is so true that a raw diet & fitness definitely goes hand in hand. Mahalo for introducing me to the raw fitness website - I'm so excited to learn more about a raw & fitness lifestyle.

[Bodhi]

You look awesome!!!

[RawHeaven]

Not bikini fit? You must be kidding. Jennifer you look amazing.

The last photo is very inspirational...Raw Poster Child inspirational. :)

Thank you for sharing your progress. You look happy, peaceful and fantastic.

[Ilse W.]

Jennifer,
I checked out your forum site for your 60 day challenge, and I think it would really be beneficial to participate. Except....I'm a single person with a couple of bathroom mirrors in my house. There is no way I could possibly take a picture of myself, head to toe, not front or side. If I could take a picture of my back, I don't think weight loss and exercise would be necessary. I don't quite understand why these pictures are needed?:confused:

[kichikoi]

Okey, Dokey: You've inspired me to begin my totally raw journey...been including at least 50%-70% but not total yet...not even vegetarian totally either....

you are remarkable at what you have accomplished and your writings are poignant and motivational to say the least.....

I am 52, and just one of your sayings about being fit and going for the whole enchilada has stoked me to get serious and stop dabbling....:D :cool:

so here goes: I'm jumping in and no looking back....I already do some superfoods and smoothies, juicing and some raw recipes and raw....but want to stay as raw clean as I can....

will check back soon and keep you posted with pix maybe too - yikes!

PS You're smoking...my husband is gonna love it if I can get back to that look...got 175 on me now...want to get to like 130...and got me some kettlebells so just another inspiration to go use 'em

mahalo to you, Jean

[Elena Ruj]

I hope you don’t mind, but as soon as I found your first 3 pics I saved them to my lap top and watched them over and over again. I am not a stocker:rolleyes:, but because of our similar starting weight, I loved the idea to go into the direction you presented. You are one of my biggest inspirations.
You changed yourself completely and you went from big mama to a "mini blond" (that’s how I call girls/women that attract attention everywhere they go, simply on their attractive looks), you are now the cutest thing. So you know, you helped me a lot. Thank you

[Jenifae]

Jennifer,

You look GREAT! You are an Inspiration!

Blessings,
jen

[theresaann]

Thank you so much for the inspiration. At 43, here I am, going BACK on raw AGAIN.....You are a great reminder about what's possible if I just stick with it!