A Little Reminder [Archive]

mattshor

02-26-2009, 10:15 AM

I was just thinking about all the posts of people that are struggling with, and perhaps beating themselves up because they can't stay on a 100% raw diet.

Read Alissa's story in her book. She didn't just wake up one morning, decide she was raw, and then never look back! She went through different phases, different challenges, just like all of us.

Alissa says she and a friend went raw, but because they weren't smart about it they ended up having all sorts of binges and slip ups. She gave up on raw for a while. At another time she was raw on weekdays and then ate cooked on the weekends.

She had to learn to listen to her body, she had to see what worked and what didn't. And she didn't get where she is overnight!

Why should any of us think that we won't have to go through the same challenges, same struggles and same learning process?

One of my favorite quotes is from "Just Another Roadside Attraction"
How long does it take for a caterpillar to become a butterfly?
Exactly the right amount of time.

We are all in our cocoons now, and when the time is right, as long as we keep working on the task in front of us, we will succeed!

HolyGuacamole

02-26-2009, 10:29 AM

What a lovely post, and so true.
I love Tom Robbins but haven't read him for 20 years... Might be time to revisit. That quote is fabulous.

Thank you for sharing.

Blessings ~

Veganforlife

02-26-2009, 10:41 AM

So very true. Read My Confession: below...

we're human. lots of temptation around. but we learn from it...

islesgirl

02-26-2009, 11:27 AM

Great post Matt - thanks so much for the boost! You're absolutely right. I had forgotten that Alissa wasn't able to go 100% first try but that it was a process.:) Have a great day!

greenfeline

02-26-2009, 11:33 AM

I totally agree. It is easy to become fanatical, but now I know if I eat something cooked it is okay because my next meal will be raw. I am not worried about being 100% raw 100% of the time at this stage.

Colorawdo girl

02-26-2009, 11:47 AM

Great post.I see people beating up on themselves all the time.The percentage thing(just to me) is a defeatist ideal. If a person can and wants to do that easily fine.But it sets others up for despair.I always chucked at that idea.
I always thought about the "better than" principle. Is my eating gluten free br rice pasta with org marinara sauce and rawmesan "better than" conventional white pasta etc or even worse....McDiet or Taco hear the Bell.haha well I laughed as i wrote this anyway.
So we do the best we can and be easy with ourselves in the process.It is a process and so honor it and enjoy it.
Let the beatings end here.!!!

*RayRay*

02-27-2009, 08:37 AM

Great Post, I have been thinking about this alot lately too! I see alot of people getting upset if they can't seem to stay 100% raw ! Why do we need to be 100% right off the bat...? Of course it may be the ideal for some of us...the eventual goal.... but if 90% feels good (that is what I am at...and I'm not trying for 100% right now!) or 80% or 70%.....then stick with that.....I think as long as you add in as much raw as you can...then your body naturally progresses to desiring more and more raw fruits and vegetables....There's nothing wrong with being less than perfect.....we all are!! When I see people saying "I am 100% raw.......80% of the time...." this is just silly....they are 80%, but seem to feel that there is something wrong with that.....so they want to say 100%..... why is this ? what's so great about being perfect....?;) just my opinion....I don't understand it....:rolleyes:

RawSweetie

02-27-2009, 08:55 AM

Just don't listen to Mr. Matt Monarch going on--and on--about how "pure" he is.....it's enough to make anyone nuts.

He's sweet though, and I know he means well. ;)

LotsaRaw

02-27-2009, 09:41 AM

This is precisely why my screenname is LotsaRaw ;) The MAJORITY of my diet (80% or more) over the course of the last 4-5 mos has been RAW. I have learned from my experiences that if it is not a non-raw food that I do not LOVE, then it is NOT going in my mouth! For the record, this list is shrinking. Different "gurus" have voiced different opinions on things such as wine, certain seasonings, and products. Go with what works for you.

I still think bell peppers are disgusting!

I do not feel this journey is a struggle.

Live RAWSOMEly!!

Aleesha Sattva

02-27-2009, 10:48 AM

i tell my clients that they have to find their own zero. the place where "the stuff on the left is what i want in my diet and the stuff on the right (of zero) is what i don't want in my diet"

then be prepared to move that zero around as they change, grow and go into different situations. don't be inflexible... allow yourself to be.

i know that i have fasted, don't fast, 100% raw, 90% raw... sometimes no raw (oh how my body cries when that happens)... nothing in my life is firm and solid... except hopefully my abs LOL

mattshor

02-27-2009, 10:59 AM

Just don't listen to Mr. Matt Monarch going on--and on--about how "pure" he is.....it's enough to make anyone nuts.

He's sweet though, and I know he means well. ;)

I don't know if that was directed at me, but if it was I apologize for any impression that I have given that I am "pure" about anything. I certainly have my struggles and challenges and have been quite forthright about sharing them in my blog as well.

Aleesha Sattva

02-27-2009, 11:00 AM

matt monarch is a raw food enthusiast... she wasn't talking about you. ;)

Aleesha Sattva

02-27-2009, 11:01 AM

oh shoot i just edited my post. i wrote (was) instead of (wasn't)... sorry matt

mattshor

02-27-2009, 11:03 AM

Aleesha, that is funny. I was VERY confused. Thanks for clarifying.:cool:

Aleesha Sattva

02-27-2009, 11:03 AM

*giggling* glad to help :)

TaupeRawMan

02-27-2009, 01:10 PM

Although I eat 100% raw, that is just the kind of guy I am....very intense and "perfectionistic." However, who is to say that 100% is actually perfect? I have read that 100% is great when healing from something, but as with anything, doing something when sick is not always best to do when well. Also, I think that different bodies need different things....some might do great at 100% while others might not. I am not sure if 100% is best for me, but because of my own warped perfectionistic thinking and fears, I am not willing to try cooked food again yet.

Life is a journey...

Pistachios

02-27-2009, 03:18 PM

The best thing to do is to enjoy the journey (the improvements and benefits from the dietary changes already implemented) rather than focus soley on the destination (eating 100% raw foods).

As it has turned out, some items that were thought to be raw, are not actually raw, but steamed or otherwise processed. So people who have been fixated on the 100% ideal and thought they reached the 'milestone' could find that in fact all along they were 99% [or whatever the %] raw. Does that make them a failure? Course not. Less than a success? Course not. Any efforts at improving one's diet will be one less aspect of burden to our body and one more tool to improve our health.:)

Aleesha Sattva

02-27-2009, 03:58 PM

Colorawdo girl

02-27-2009, 04:12 PM

I am so amused by this topic of pureness.It makes me feel all silly inside.Oh maybe its the wheatgrass I just had. hahaha.People say funny stuff.:D

RawSweetie

02-27-2009, 05:49 PM

I don't know if that was directed at me, but if it was I apologize for any impression that I have given that I am "pure" about anything. I certainly have my struggles and challenges and have been quite forthright about sharing them in my blog as well.

No, No, No! As Aleesha says, I was not referring to you...:) Matt Monarch talks alot about how "pure" he is, literally uses that word, quite alot and I find it alternately amusing, annoyng, and inspirational. :p