Weight Loss Challenge......

[Mary Kay]

Somelikeitraw---wow, 42 lbs. You go girl!

Mary Kay

[gabriele]

Gaby, you simply must throw some greens in your smoothies! Just a handful of spinach here, a stalk of celery (makes it "sort of" salty) etc etc. We're striving for 40% of our food coming from greens. You won't even really taste them!

MK

yes yes i have been doing this!!! spinach, kale, green powder.......i'm right now stuck with my homemade salad dressing, with honey and mustard, i have tried everything, i can't stomach acidic, vinaigrettey dressings......so i made my own but blechhh, wow, it is so strong........ still trying to fix it....

[Susan123]

Hi, ladies!! I've been trucking along. It's funny as soon as I said to myself "I don't NEED to eat 100% raw" it's easier for me to do just that. I did have a little bite of homemade bread yesterday and one, small organic cookie the day before. It's like the desire for cooked food isn't there. I do have a cooked dinner planned- some quinoa and steamed brocolli. I can't seem to get used to raw broccoli.

I'm trying to cut down my fats and it's working. I've lost 1.5 pounds so far this week!! I'm thrilled with that...

Gaby-- I love adding loads of spinach to my green smoothies. My son enjoys them, too!! My daughts isn't so crazy about them, though...

[gabriele]

Good job on the weight loss Susan123, you know, i am such a dummy, i am sitting here trying to figure out my weird homemade salad dressing, instead, why don't i just add a huge handful of the MIXED salad to my smoothies?? I have bananas and date so it should be sweet enough. I can't believe it took me all this time to figure that one thing out.

i do like greens in my smoothies, i just don't do it every day.....now i will try that.

[snoops]

I can't seem to get used to raw broccoli.



I don't love raw broccoli either but I find if I chop it finely enough and add some red onion, sunflower seeds, raisins and a dressing (I use juice and pulp of an orange, Tbsp honey, Tbsp olive oil) I can do it and it really tastes like the SAD cheese and bacon and mayo filled broccoli salad.

[snoops]

gaby - I saw your comment on my blog. Yes I refrigerate my smoothies at work. They do get a little lumpy but I shake them up and they are OK. Not as good as fresh but good enough.

I am having a tough time today. Bad cravings. Thank goodness I work 3-9. I don't think I could do it if I was at home. But then that is rather self defeating talk isn't it. What you think you get. So I should be more positive with my words.

This will be the first time I have made it 5 days raw. 2 1/2 was my best before this. I will feel fantastic on Saturday morning. AND, I will be 218 lbs. How is THAT for positive. Yahoo:D

[gabriele]

I am having a tough time today. Bad cravings. Thank goodness I work 3-9. I don't think I could do it if I was at home. But then that is rather self defeating talk isn't it. What you think you get. So I should be more positive with my words.

This will be the first time I have made it 5 days raw. 2 1/2 was my best before this. I will feel fantastic on Saturday morning. AND, I will be 218 lbs. How is THAT for positive. Yahoo:D

You are doing so great, you WILL feel awesome on satuday, don't you give in to those cravings!! My smoothie this morning is: one avocado, one banana, some frozen blueberries, 3 dates, flaxseed, yummy, it is deep purple!!

[snoops]

Well day 4 sees me starving and craving again as I get home from work. So I have a couple olives, half an avocado and some nuts. I guess the high fat seems to deal with the cravings cause I feel OK now like I can get through to dinner anyway. And son is working so I can probably convince hubby to eat salads!!

How's everyone else??

PS - I'm close to being under 220 - I'm hoping tomorrow morning!! That should keep me good tonight.

[gabriele]

Everything the same here, we are all kind of quiet these days. YOu sound like you have good control of your cravings, that is so hard......but you're doing a great job. I'm still having chocolate cravings. Had a great smoothie today and a great salad. Cold and rainy here, i have never seen so much rain as this past spring, ugh...

[Susan123]

You ladies are doing SUPER on your cravings!! I'm trying to get off from eating my daily Larabars and it's not working. I only have 2 more in the pantry and then I'll not have a choice (unless I buy more, obviously :cool: ).

We were talking about salad dressing earlier in the week and that is a thing I struggle with (making them tasty and not so boring). I made some cashew hummus (with some chickpeas, too, but you could omit them). I've had these cute little tupperware containers for years and they are the perfect size to carry my lunch-time salad dressings. See them here>> http://order.tupperware.com/pls/htprod_www/tup_show_item.show_item_detail?fv_item_category_co de=21000&fv_item_number=P10055960000 I added a tablespoon of the hummus and enough rice vinegar to fill up the container. It was a creamy, dreamy dressing!! I'm having it again today!

Have a wonderful friday!!

[snoops]

PS - I'm close to being under 220 - I'm hoping tomorrow morning!! That should keep me good tonight.

Well check out my sig line - I did it and more!!!!!

I woke up a little weak and dizzy this morning though so I did not eat enough yesterday especially since I went an a 12 km bike ride. I read through Alissa's book looking at recipes last night. I NEED to plan an evening meal to be able to continue this. Salads dont do it for me. I get my greens and veggies in the green smoothies - just don't love salads. I am going to make the enchiladas tonight because they can be made in a day - although it will take all day to make them. I am finding you need to be really prepared and have a timetable for these meals with all the dehydrating soaking etc.

So that is what I will do. Day 5 here I come.

[gabriele]

Ladies!!!

Wow!! Snoops, congratulations on your great job losing weight, even more than you expected, you must be doing something right. I hear you about the planning..... my problem is not really planning because i don't prepare food!! I am a convenience food person, so smoothies are as far as i go. I am preparing to make some homemade hummus soon though.

Susan123, that is a great idea, hummus with vinegar, i have some kind of french champagne vinegar (i'm sure that's not raw), maybe i can add that. Dressings are my biggest hurdle (other than the constant thoughts of chocolate).

still raining here again....

[Susan123]

Snoops- You go girl!! I'm soo proud of you!! You rocked that scale this morning!! I agree with the raw food prep- it seems to take some time and planning!!

I can't wait to hear how the enchilladas came out! :p:p <<<That's me licking my lips!! :)

[snoops]

I have the corn tortillas in dehydrating now. I am soaking the sundried tomatoes to make Noni's (from the photos only thread) enchilada sauce. It looks so good. And I will make her sour cream too. I hope it all looks as good as in her photo.

I got home from the Farmers Market and I am feeling faint. I have to go to a training session soon so I am jamming in o.j and grapefruit juice, and a kale, cherry, cocoa, goji berry smoothie. Better have a Larabar to top it off or I wont be able to lift those weights! I feel like I have to eat all the time not to feel weak - am I doing something wrong. Or maybe this is detox finally. I was very tired at times over this past week which is not normal for me. Maybe that was detox too.

[gabriele]

I got home from the Farmers Market and I am feeling faint. I have to go to a training session soon so I am jamming in o.j and grapefruit juice, and a kale, cherry, cocoa, goji berry smoothie. Better have a Larabar to top it off or I wont be able to lift those weights! I feel like I have to eat all the time not to feel weak - am I doing something wrong. Or maybe this is detox finally. I was very tired at times over this past week which is not normal for me. Maybe that was detox too.

Hmmm, maybe you're not eating enough, do you eat nuts?

[snoops]

Wow, wow, wow, those enchiladas with Noni's enchilada sauce and cashew sour cream were AWESOME. I made fried rice with dead pig in it for the family. I was going OMG these taste so good and on and on. They didn't say anything about theirs. Mine was better. I had two. OK and I also had a glass of red wine. But you know what? It was perfect. I even felt like an apple after dinner not something "sweet" and SAD. Wow wow, I am so excited.

I MADE IT 5 DAYS. The red wine was raw as far as I'm concerned:D

[Susan123]

Okay- my mouth is totally watering after reading your description, Snoops!! I had a bad raw (or not to raw) day. Started with Cascadian farms cereal (instead of my green smoothie).

For lunch, we went to a new restaurant (Crispers- doesn't it sound like it would be good) for lunch with the kiddos. The only raw salad was a wimpy lettuce, carrot, cucumber and tomato option. I ate half a veggie (avocado, lettuce, peppers, etc) sandwich on multi-grain bread because we were heading to the movies and then grocery shoppping and I knew a plain salad would NOT hold me... I did munch on some raw almonds, but still it needed help.

For dinner I only had watermelon- and it was soo refreshing!! It was suppposed to be a punishment for eating so little raw today, but I ended up loving it (well I KNEW I would)!! I cut it up this moring and it is soo sweet. I swear, the watermelons I find being sold in the back of pick-ups on the side of the road here seem to be the best!! Talk about LOCAL produce!!

[SusanF]

I am trying the 30-day challenge, and finding it challenging. Not the food, but finding time to MAKE the food and keeping one step ahead. I have resorted to just eating a raw cucumer in my car on the way to carpool 'cause I didn't plan ahead very well. This won't last for long, you all know this, right?

So I had a few slips but I'm back on the wagon today, primarily because I got on the scale and despite my slips I lost 4 pounds this week. I felt encourage, knowing what the loss could have been if I managed to stay 100% raw. I feel good too. A little hungry, but it doesn't really bother me that much. Yet. I have to go to a pool party today with lots of alcohol and copious amounts of cooked food. There will be fresh fruit and veggies. I hope, I hope, I hope I can just stick to those! :-)

[snoops]

Well I thought I might extend my 5 day challenge and do yesterday too. But I had a quinoa spinach casserole with dinner. Its OK cause I sort of planned it. Also had a steamed corn on the cob but my asparagus was raw. I gained a couple lbs but really don't believe it is real weight because the rest of the day I didn't eat much and it was raw. So I am not changing my sig line! Will check tomorrow. Plus I still had no dairy, grains( I don't consider quinoa a grain because it doesn't affect your body the way gluten type grains do) or sugars. So I am still feeling good. I will probably have left overs tonight and then Monday go all raw again for the week.

[snoops]

Susan F - good work on the 4 pounds. Feels good doesn't it?

I know what you mean about the pre planning. I felt like that all week. What to have now? Hmmm nothing prepared. Don't feel like an apple. So I made some onion bread and corn bread yesterday. Now I will be able to make a sandwich for lunch.

[gabriele]

SusanF, good for you with the 4 pounds lost. Let us know about the party and if you were able to stick to the fruits and veggies. I bet you do.

And Snoops, you are quite the cook (not that you are cooking, you know what i mean). A Chef!!! i made some hummus yesterday, it's not raw because i guess the beans have been cooked, but wow it was delicious, i put green carrot tops in it, onions, garlic, flax seeds, it is yummy.

I made a great smoothie yesterday. I had some cantaloup, which i thought would be kind of watery and mushy and plain.......so 2 slices of that, with some frozen cherries, one date, some ice cubes, wow was that great.

My house has never had this much fruit and salad in it before, it feels good to have all this stuff around. still very new to me!!

[snoops]

Well my weight went back down to 217 so I don't have to up my sig line!! And that's a good way to start the week. I plan another 5 days all raw and deal with the weekend when I get there. I am proud of myself though for not going off the deep end like I normally would have on the weekend. I had some wine and a couple cooked things but healthy and didn't revert to cheese and crackers and toast and peanut butter. Yeah me, I am more than half way to my first goal. I know my size 16 clothes will fit then. Yeah, yeah.:D I have been having dreams where I am thin.

How's everyone else this fine Monday?

[gabriele]

Good for you Snoops!!

i had a good diet weekend, have avoided my chocolate like you with your cheese. I feel much better than this weekend, where i felt headachy and dizzy, i get that a lot.

made a lot of smoothies over the weekend, we are using that Vitamix non stop. IT's very humid here today, after a beautiful weekend, but i managed to sneak in a walk this morning at work.

[Mary Kay]

I'm feeling down. I exercised a fair amt. Biked up and down some RELENTLESS hills. Did a raw juice fast for one day last week and the next day ate some peanut butter with carrots and gained TWO STINKING POUNDS.

Now, my Monday weigh-in day, I'm at 134. I started three weeks ago at 135.

BUMMER. I'll snap out of it though, I know.

Mary Kay

[snoops]

Now you know that you did not gain 2 lbs from the carrots and pb!! It was just water weight. Maybe from all the exercise you did you put on some muscle which weighs more than fat. Think positively. This week will be better and show better results!! I know it.

[Susan123]

MaryKay- ((((HUGS)))) Don't beat yourself up!! There is NO way you gained 2 pounds from carrots and peanut butter. It's just not possible. Is it about that time of the month? I know my Aunt Flo is on here way here- I can tell!!

Well the watermelon is gone (I had the last of it fro dinner last night :D ). Luckily I bought another one yesterday. It's just not summer without a watermelon around the house.

[Mary Kay]

Okay ladies, I'm going to check in here more often. I really love giving and receiving support here! I've read all the posts and need to comment more frequently like:

Susan F --4 lbs...pretty darn good!
Snoops - I had a really awesome quinoa site...tried looking it up on my faves, and it was gone. got obsessed and found another one, not quite as good, but has a recipe for raw quinoa salad and cookies. I just got in a new batch of quinoa last week and am going to soak some and do various things with it. Thanks for the inspiration!

Susan123, funny how watermelon as a "punishment" turns into a treat. My how our tastes have changed...LOL

RE Food combining...someone --no time to look up -- said they were really being good and while their family ate pork or something, they had enchiladas? Can'tremember, but then they said they had an apple for dessert...Just wanted you to know that even if you don't obey other food combining laws, eating fruit with a meal is a no-no as fruit wants to digest more rapidly and will be delayed by other food, thereby fermenting.....Supposedly watermelon is a REAL big no-no as it produces some toxin when eaten with other things.....Just two cents.

And re my two lbs gained in one stinking day.....maybe this was a good thing. My rosacea also flared up tremendously. Maybe the whole thing was an inflammatory reaction to peanut butter. I'm not going to do any pb for a while, then I'll hit it hard one day, and see if my face flares up etc.

So some good things do come out of bad ......

I've also cut out tomatoes/nightshades to see if it helps my rosacea. I'd rather it be peanut butter than tomatoes. I just love my raw spaghetti, and lots of other tomato-containing things.

Oh, and Gaby, I am literally no longer Jonesing for chocolate. For the first week or so, every day I wanted it. I'm no longer "addicted." I've done this before though, and have been surprised at how quickly I become unaddicted.....But as W.C. Fields said: "Quitting's easy. I've done it a thousand times." LOL

And like most of you, I'm getting slight headaches too. And I didn't gain weight due to my pd, as I'm just ovulating. I'll be 54 next month, and am sill geting my period...but they're just beginning to whack out. Sigh.

I'll check in with all of you more often!

Mary Kay

[Mary Kay]

Oh, Snoops, I forgot to mention the site. Has two raw quinoa recipes, from which I think you could deviate and make a ton of things. One's a salad, and one is cookies. I think I'd like to try quinoa for tortillas.....

http://earthmother-intheraw.blogspot.com/2009/04/sprouted-quinoa-mother-grain.html

Going to go soak some quinoa right now!

Also, while on that site, it had a link for the sproutpeople who said you could make rejuvelac out of rye. I tried to make my first batch ever of rejuvelac last wk out of soft wheat and although I followed a recipe, thought it was too weak. the sproutpeople mention this and say they like to add less water. so will also be soaking some rye this time to try this. See what all this leads to? LOL

MIL in hospial. She got c-diff....Makes me realize how important these probiotics are, like rejuvelac. Gaby, not very hard. soak and sprout your grains for a couple days, then add water for a couple days. Go look up on sproutpeople.com Even you, who hates to cook might do this! LOL Rejuvelac is a sort of fizzy probiotic drink. I never did much like pop, but if you did, I suppose you could add some juice to it to sweeten it a little etc and make diff't flavors of "pop." --er, soda. I do this with kombucha, so I'm guessing it would be similar.

Now, howcan I talk the docs into giving my MIL some probiotics?

Mary Kay

[gabriele]

Now, howcan I talk the docs into giving my MIL some probiotics?

Mary Kay

Isn't it funny that the one, most important place for someone to get good nutrition is in the hospital and it's not gonna happen there!!! :( patients should all be getting green smoothies for breakfast, can you imagine that? And no meat allowed!! Only fruits and smoothies!!

Anyway, i'm having good days and then a bad day. It's just such a hard transition to make after a whole lifetime. (excuse #1). And i hate preparing food. (excuse #2) But i LOVE making smoothies, and you should see how proud i am when i concoct some green-brown looking drink, i feel like a master chef!!

Mary Kay - i would be interested in quinoa, a substance that has never graced my kitchen in my lifetime, but i know it's healthy, i just don't know what to do with it. Oh, and Mary Kay, you will just love menopause, since i hear you are approaching it.....i have been wondering lately how eating raw and green foods may affect these hot flashes......or whether eating "bad" foods makes flashes worse, hmmm, i wonder about that. Because i notice that some days they are hardly there, and other days i feel like i'm on fire.

Snoops, you must have a dehydrator to whip up all those goodies?? How will you celebrate when you get below 200? Won't that be a wonderful milestone?

later,

[snoops]

Oh, Snoops, I forgot to mention the site. Has two raw quinoa recipes, from which I think you could deviate and make a ton of things. One's a salad, and one is cookies. I think I'd like to try quinoa for tortillas.....

http://earthmother-intheraw.blogspot.com/2009/04/sprouted-quinoa-mother-grain.html



Mary Kay

Thanks I will look at the site when I get home from work. I have been wondering how to convert my quinoa casserole to raw. I love quinoa. Tortillas sound awesome.

[snoops]

Snoops, you must have a dehydrator to whip up all those goodies?? How will you celebrate when you get below 200? Won't that be a wonderful milestone?

later,


I do have a dehydrator. It's great. You are looking far down the road for me for 200!!:eek: Hope to get there soon but am aiming at 212 right now!!

[Mary Kay]

[QUOTE=gabriele;533351]Isn't it funny that the one, most important place for someone to get good nutrition is in the hospital and it's not gonna happen there!!! :( patients should all be getting green smoothies for breakfast....

Ain't it the truth?!!!!!And even Gaby, who doesn't like to cook can probably whip them up in five minutes. It would be SOO easy for hospitals/nursing homes/day cares to do make green smoothies. .

My late father was in the hosital a couple yrs ago, and he didn't eat his dinner. He told me to eat it, but I was actually doing a raw juice fast at the time....So I lifted the lid, thinking I'd hate to see it go to waste and would take it home for the chickens to eat. I WOULDN"T EVEN FEED IT TO MY CHICKENS!!

Looked at the white bread....no,has hydrogenated oil, white crappy flour,
Bratwurst....no, it has nitrates etc etc. you get the idea.

But me, I just bitch about it. (Well, I do try to educate somewhat...I actually teach some Uncooking Classes to kids in a homeschool co-op and do small things...gave a "Grow Your Own Food and Eat it Raw" lecture a couple wks ago.... )---but a friend of mine actually DID something about it big time. She was disgusted at a cancer "Relay for the Cure" in her hometown at all the junk food they were serving, and this year got a 20 x 30 ft tent and made a big professional sign "CANCER PREVENTION" and had tons of info inside....Gave away organic hot dogs (well, baby steps), made green smoothies all day, had posters about the hazards of cleaning products....She even got Vita-Mix to donate the blender and raffled it off. I made some raw choc coconut macaroons and donated..... I was so proud of her.

Hugs gals,

Mary Kay

[Mary Kay]

Like Snoops, I'm glad I don't have to change my sig line...whew...this a.m. I was back at 132...same place I was two weeks ago...sigh.

But we had a pool party for my twins --just as an excuse to have a potluck, we had their 6 1/2 yr b-day party. To them, it's a big deal to be officially 6 1/2.

I made them a raw coconut choc vanilla checkerboard cake with choc avocado frosting. I'll tell ya, it was a work of art!!! It was oh, 95% raw as I used maple syrup and melted a few choc chips into the frosting to stiffen it up. Yes, I ate some, but didn't pig out, so am happy to still be at 132!

Sorry to describe it for those avoiding chocolate, but I was proud of it. VERRRRYYY rich. Three layers, alternating choc and vanilla checkers made from a little kit. Essentially coconut macaroons. I put each later into the dehydrator overnight. You couldn't eat much because of its richness, and it was hard to slice really thin without falling apart. so that was a tad disappointing.

So far today I made some juice with wild greens..lemons and apples, strained it, and sweetened it for the kids. I may? do an entire juice fast today. To be on target for my weight-loss challenge with my friend, I need to lose 7 lbs in 16 days....

She was there last night and I kept jokingly tell her to "have more cake!" Oh, and I made raw ice cream (not vegan - with raw cream and raw eggs) and she had some, but I didn't. LOL

DH is a farmer and works 7 days-a-week and is taking a few hrs off today. We have trail-a-bikes and will take the kids for a ride - maybe a picnic....so I'll even get a workout in!

Mary Kay

[Mary Kay]

Gaby, you wrote about hot flashes. You know? I'm kind of believing that a healthier diet does alleviate them, as I have read that primitive cultures and those that eat well/real foods do not have probs with them.

I don't think I'll get them. When doing IVF when I was 46, I was given lupron (only for a tiny bit, so I'm not worried about any longterm effects), which brought my estrogen levels down close to zero - below 10, anyway). Many women will get hot flashes when doing this, but I didn't.

My thoughts anyway...not very scientific though.

It will be interesting to note whether yours get better/lessened while you're now eating a healthier diet as opposed to when you didn't. would love to hear from you in a year or so after you have a great weight loss to find out!!!

Mary Kay

[gabriele]

Gaby, you wrote about hot flashes. You know? I'm kind of believing that a healthier diet does alleviate them, as I have read that primitive cultures and those that eat well/real foods do not have probs with them.

Mary Kay

Yes, i have read the same. I can even tell on days where i am "good" and days where i am "bad" that these hot flashes differ. I don't really notice them so much during the day, it's at night when they wake me up, in a flash, from a deep sleep.

Anyway, i have had some really bad diet days and won't go into it here so as not to embarrass myself, but my hubby and i are doing a whole weekend of just salads and smoothies, this is very big for us. I am so hungry i could eat my shoe right now!!

[Seedy]

OK forget starting on Tuesday. I had pizza last night and felt so disgusting, bloated and wicked heartburn that I am with you guys today.

I totally hear you about cheese and addiction. It is really the one thing that it is killing me to give up.

So my goal is not to eat cheese for 5 days. Mon-Fri. Started with a banana, blueberry and strawberry smoothie this morning. Will do a green smoothie for lunch and am going to peruse the salad recipes to plan for dinner. Am making my family a polenta black bean casserole for dinner. I may or may not have a bit of that. It's not raw but it has no addictions in it for me. I am focusing on the cheese this week. 100% raw is in my future though!!

Have you ever tried raw cashew cheese? I realize not everyone considers cashews raw, but surely its better than the real thing. There are lots a recipes on the internet. The one I like uses cashews, miso, lemon juice, sweet red peppers and nutritional yeast.

Seedy

[snoops]

I tried cashew sour cream and liked it. Have not tried cashew cheese yet. I will give it a try. It has been 3 weeks now not eating cheese and I do believe my addiction is losing its hold!!

[Mary Kay]

BTW, Seedy, you can get truly raw cashews online....

And you can make nut cheeses out of other things besides raw cashews, like pine nuts, macadamias ---real high-fat nuts that will blend up creamy.

I made some the other day with pine nuts and macadamias...added a tiny bit of olive oil to use it in lettuce sandwich rolls etc, then as an experiment thought I'd dehydrate a small amt. It never dried due to all the oil, so if you want to dry some, don't add any extra oil!

Then there was some stuck in the blender. Was too lazy to clean it out and didn't want to waste it, so added celery, water and a little olive oil for a soup broth base....then later added greens etc....Before I added anything to the base though, it was creamy white and made an excellent base for a cream soup.

Think I gained a lb just looking at the nut cheese though....LOL....I'm still at 134. Lost one stinking lb in four weeks. Sigh.

Gaby, that is SOOOO interesting that you can notice a difference in your hot flashes on a day-to-day basis, based on eating good stuff or not! Thanks for the info.

Made some raw carrot cake in the dehydrator last night for a raw potluck tonight - my own invention based on Alissa's muffin recipe. It's very good. Now I'm going to make macadamia cream cheese frosting! I promise I won't taste test too much.

No time today, but will post my "before" and "during" pics, because I know some of you think I'm being silly thinking I'm fat at 134 lbs. You'll see!!!!
No, I'm not obese....but fat and out of shape nonetheless. I don't have abs --I have an AB!

I do not eat junk food. Eat very little cooked. But sure do love my nuts....sigh.....Too much fat --too much of a good thing ain't good either.

Mary Kay

[gabriele]

No time today, but will post my "before" and "during" pics, because I know some of you think I'm being silly thinking I'm fat at 134 lbs. You'll see!!!!
No, I'm not obese....but fat and out of shape nonetheless. I don't have abs --I have an AB!

Mary Kay

I for one cannot WAIT to see what a "FAT" person looks like at 134 lbs!!!! :)))))

[snoops]

I don't have abs --I have an AB!





Ha ha good one Mary Kay:D:D:D

[somelikeitraw]

I do not eat junk food. Eat very little cooked. But sure do love my nuts....sigh.....Too much fat --too much of a good thing ain't good either.

Mary Kay

MK, I would be lost without nuts, seeds and avocados! They keep me raw. I keep melting away while eating them. I also go for a coconut oil dessert I make, a variation of Matt Monarch's Almond Dream Bars (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XvUiFxlJWLE) recipe. I think eating the good fats helps my body release and deal with the gross fats I have been storing all these years.

OMG! 134 would be a great weight for me! Your cake sounds simply decadent!

[Susan123]

I for one cannot WAIT to see what a "FAT" person looks like at 134 lbs!!!! :)))))


Me, too!! I have my before photos from when I was ~180 and it's weird to see myself now.

I've been reading, but not posting much... Some weeks, life is just so busy with the kids and all....

[snoops]

Matt Monarch's Almond Dream Bars (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XvUiFxlJWLE) recipe.

Honestly I wish he would tie his hair back when he demonstrates recipes. :eek:

[gabriele]

Well, i have to report a gigantic victory for me, probably sound stupid to everyone else, but last night i had this enormous craving to go get my favorite lindt chocolate, it just overcame me, such a powerful addiction, i thought about it all night long, i would have gone to the store and bought it on my way to work,

and i woke up this morning......

and i thought about my crunchy wonderful salad for lunch and i DID NOT GO TO THE STORE and did not buy any chocolate!!!

This is HUGE for me, to actually resist temptation and have some willpower for a change!!!

how is everyone else doing this week???

[Mary Kay]

Snoops, now watch out....like me you'll just sub one thing for another. Don't you become addicted to nuts......LOL, I'm going to order 10 lbs of cashews today....RE Matt Monarch's hair.....Ditto. I wonder if he'll get at all "cleaned up" for his wedding. Have you ever seen his old "clean cut" vids?

Somelikeitraw---you said you used a version of their Almond yumpot - whatevers---do you use lucuma? I've never tried it. I mean it though, they say that if you don't combine fat with carbs, you won't gain weight. That just doesn't seem to be true for me!!! If I ate a couple of those, I think I'd gain a couple lbs ---although theirs is also combined........LOL

Gaby, your victory sounds H U G E!!!!!!! I do not think of it as a little thing. You go girl!!!

Me: I've actually had chocolate - cocoa and raw cacao - on occasion. I sincerely think I'm over the "addiction." But I have to really watch because it'll be so easy to get right back in there!

Was up until 2:30 making yogurt and fruit leather for my kids. Got in tons of organic strawberries, so want to do lots of things with them. The kids are at a Farm Camp, put on by the park system, so I have a couple free hours today. WOOHOO. But then I have to tend to the chickens, laundry, house.....ugh. Will probably not get a workout in. I've been so-so on the workouts, Last workout was on Tues.

How are all of you doing in the exercise dept? I'm okay, but need to do more. I'm at least happy I'm doing SOME though.

I would always try to have Daddy go over to my in-laws pool next door with them, now I found a stationary bike at a rummage sale for $8!!! which I'm going to keep next to the pool. Now I can get "something done" while watching them!

Mary Kay
I can't figure out how to post my pics. Tried again, but out of time. You will all see!!!!!!

[Mary Kay]

I weighed 141 in the first photos, and 129 in the second two. This was for a Biggest Loser contest at my gym, which ran from Jan this yr through April. I won second place and was only able to lose weight by SEVERELY limiting my fat intake. I predominantly drank green smoothies for a month towards the end of the contest, after I didn't lose very much.

I am currently about five lbs heavier than the last shots, so obviously, I still have a ways to go.

But yes, all you skeptical ladies, you can be fat at 134!!!

Mary Kay

[gabriele]

Well, i don't think you are fat, MaryKay!! You ask about exercise, i have to brag again, because i've been walking at work!! I sneak out, we have a little mini-park between the medical buildings here, it's beautiful, lots of green and trees and even benches, and i do my loops around the park. The first day, i think it had have been Monday, i could only do 2 loops. Then every day i did more, so that today i did 6 loops. It takes me 20 minutes, so that's a mile for me. I feel better since doing this.

Your fruit leather things sound soooo yummy, i don't have a dehydrator (yet).

[Mary Kay]

Gaby, You've tripled your exercise regiman!!!!! LOL

You go girl. Please keep bragging!

Mary Kay

[snoops]

Gaby - excellent work on the chocolate. The first time is the hardest. Now you can look back at that victory and know you can do it again.

AND fantastic work on the walking.

I am still stuck between 216 and 218:mad: But it is my own fault. I have not been able to put together more than a day of raw in a row!! I'm still off cheese and crackers and chips and sugar. The cheese is huge for me. Because there is always cheese in the house. I am just not buying chips or crackers that I like. I don't feel nearly as addicted as I was but I also know how easy it would be to become so again. Must stay focused and get back to 100% raw. I am going to my Dad's for Father's Day and my sisters birthday so I'm sure I will nibble some cake. But maybe Monday. I will try to put together 5 days again. Cause then it will be my birthday and I wanted to be 212.

[gabriele]

Hey Snoops, at least you're not eating that cheese. Your cheese is my chocolate. When exactly is your birthday?? On Monday?

Well, i stayed strong all day, this is another achievement for me, i had such a strong chocolate craving yesterday but not today. I wonder where that comes from, it just overtakes me like a heroin addiction. yuck

going grocery shopping tonight, maybe farmer's market tomorrow morning...

[snoops]

Hey Snoops, at least you're not eating that cheese. Your cheese is my chocolate. When exactly is your birthday?? On Monday?



Next Friday - 212 *fingers crossed* of course I'd have to eat almost nothing to get there but I can dream!!

[Mary Kay]

Snoops ---That would be a great b-day present!

I just realized - I've been saying hi to all the ladies here...sorry if you're a man!

Mary Kay

[snoops]

I'm a lady and hey look at that I've become a leaf:D

[gabriele]

Well we're going to have to remember your birthday on Friday, Snoops.

I think you can get down to 212 by then.

Of course, i've been gaining weight, too much good food i guess (coconut oil, larabars, NOT chocolate interestingly). This is depressing, even with the walking that i did, i'm just plain eating too much. I'm a calorie counter, so this is really hard for me, to know what i'm doing. I'm still not doing it right.......

[Mary Kay]

You know ladies, I'm just like you --maybe I'm lighter, but I'm still having the same troubles---we're obviously eating wrong - too many fats etc. My latest thing to try is to gather up a huge basketful of greens every day and eating about 3/4 lb of greens. Victoria Boutenko (who is overweight btw - still?) says that the Bonobos eat 39% of their food as greens. and I think it was Frederic Patenaude who translated this to betw .5 lbs and 1 lb a day for we humans, who should eat the same. .

Of course the easiest way is in smoothies. I went all day yesterday without any greens, so I added a ton of greens to a smoothie and that was dinner. I did end up going to bed hungry. Good job!

AND I'm not going to eat at night. This is difficult because my time to experiment with raw food prep is after the kids go to bed. If I taste stuff, I'm just going to spit it out, because I DO need to taste it. It won't be wasted because it'll go into the compost, where the chickens get everything....

Wondering if this is some sort of bulimia.....LOL

I have gone back and looked at the photos I posted to you guys, and I'm actually inspired by my own photos--I do see a difference! And I do want to post some good "After" photos.

Mary Kay

[Mary Kay]

Gaby,

I researched the heck out of dehydrators before I bought my five-tray Excalibur, so wanted to share with you. There was another brand --can't remember the name, that was cheaper, but that didn't have a door! The tray edges block off the opening like a door, however, this wouldn't be good in the event you wanted to remove a couple trays to make -say, a pie and needed the height. I know you don't like to cook - but raw apple (any fruit) pie is about as good as cooked. and if you have an apple-peeler/corer manual handcrank machine $20 - $25 - it literally takes about 10 min to make!)

I have since heard that they have installed a door on it. so that may be a good way to go if $$ is an object.

But Excalibur is the "Cadillac." I couldn't decide betw a five-tray and a nine-tray dehydrator. I read many reviews that said the nine-tray was noisy. and after looking at the electrical draw, figured it would be a higher cost to run - besides being loud. AND it's hard enough to prep five trays of something, let alone nine!!!

I know you don't like to cook, but you can make some real quick easy dishes with your dehydrator, that gives you a much more diverse menu.

HTH,

Go for it, you won't be sorry!

Mary Kay

[snoops]

Gaby, I ate too much other stuff when I stopped eating cheese. I was filling the need with something else. But I have stopped doing that now. So go ahead with the Larabars if it helps keep you off chocolate. The need for them will pass.

[gabriele]

HI ladies,

thank you Mary Kay and Snoops for all the excellent advice. I will keep that in mind when i decide to get a dehydrator. Eventually, i guess, i'll cave in, but i'm not ready for this step yet.

I'm kind of down this weekend, i sometimes have a "let down" feeling on weekends, i just feel fat and hopeless sometimes. We went for our walk this morning, in bright sunshine, and returned in a huge downpour. It has been raining an incredible amount here this spring, it's so depressing.

I'm a person who always looks forward to eating, so all of this is overwhelming me today. Sometimes i just can't imagine eating fruits and vegetables for the rest of my life.......i don't know, i'm just discouraged right now.

[Mary Kay]

Snoops, you know? that's really good advice...the "go ahead and sub something for chocolate, if that's what it takes." Gaby, you're probably just being too hard on yourself.

And if this helps at all, Gaby - at least you know what SAD is and what healthy eating is all about. Think of all those poor fat Americans that haven't a clue!

When I was 21, I smoked cigarettes for like a year. At my peak, I only smoked maybe five cigarettes a daynevertheless was addicted. (Once I did quit, I still craved them for up to 1 1/2 yrs later!). I was working on fishing boats up in Alaska during college break and I had this great captain who was young and cute and funny and who smoked like a chimney and was hacking away. I quit while working on his boat just to prove to him that it could be done! (I did end up subbing smoking pot - but knew that would never become a problem, because I never really liked it --so see Snoops, I was taking your advice back then....LOL.


Anyway, my point is, I was better able to do this because I wanted to be an example to someone. I am currently wanting to lose this weight before our homeschool co-op starts in the fall, to prove toeveryone that eating raw can truly help...and many are coming to me for advice. Who's going to listen to someone knowledgeable if they're fat?......

Is there someone to whom you'd like to be an example? You've already come here to this group for support, but are there others you can go to for support? IDK, just some random thoughts.....

I came on here tonight just to see this forum...I have 700 emails I'm going to ignore. You folks have become my buddies....

Oh, and I know you're not ready, and I'm not trying to push, I just forgot to add that if you are going to get a dehydrator, some will give you teflex sheets to go with it - the flat solid sheets, besides the mesh screens they come with...Definitely get them.

Tonight I'm making another attempt at raw granola my family will like. Int he past, I used buckwheat sprouts and they were too sprouty tasting. tonight I'm trying sprouted quinoa.

Quinoa, nuts, coconut, vanilla, dates, raisins, dash of salt, dash of maple syrup---I would use cinnamon, but my dd doesn't like it.

Gaby, besides the fact I had to soak/sprout the quinoa = no biggie - The whole hing will take about five minutes. Then I'll pop it in the dehydrator.

Hugs Gaby---Is it pronounced like "baby" or like "Gabby?"

And you know, I have a couple raw foods vids that show how to make a ton of fast, easy dishes. I'd be happy to lend them to you, if you'd like. We can mail them back and forth.

Mary Kay

[Mary Kay]

I forgot to mention there's another reason why I NEED/WANT to lose this extra weight.

Because of my pregnancy with twins, I got abdominal diastasis - you know, where your abs come apart due to being stretched so far, AND I got a belly-button hernia. Apparently, they go in to fix these with an incision just like a c-sec, which is just like the incision for a tummy tuck. Obviously (from my photos) you can see I have some belly fat that needs to go before I get this done. (I went to two docs who said they would not do a tummy tuck until I lost the weight.)

My kids are 6 1/2 for crying out loud and I haven't lost the weight to be able to do this!

So that's my story. (and I'm sticking to it....LOL)

Mary Kay

[gabriele]

Thanks for all the really helpful advice MaryKay. I just had a miserable day today, just feeling kind of fat and hopeless, and ironically this took away my appetite as well.

my name is pronounced "gabby"....

You must watch Deadliest Catch!! Right? Admit it!! I love this show. My whole family gets mad at me for how often i watch this show.

You made another great point how at least we "know" about eating this way as opposed to all the SAD eaters. I think this way when i'm at work, in the hospital, and i see people in their 50's and 60's hobbling along the hallways, disabled, from being overweight, and probably with diabetes, or heart disease, or who knows what.....and they do not have a clue about what is causing this. Of course, i feel like a hypocrite myself because i KNOW it, i just can't seem to stick to it. But it is a weird feeling knowing that the secret to real health is eating this way and it feels like i know some kind of special "secret" that most of the world, or at least this country, doesn't know.

Maybe i'll take you up on the videos when i am ready for that, thank you so much for the generous offer to share.

[gabriele]

ok where is everybody?

i want to brag one more time that last night, i had the usual chocolate cravings, with the intention of maybe buying some this morning before work.......that is my old pattern.....

and, i woke up, thought about it, thought about how miserable i feel and look and said NO WAY, forget it, you are not going near any store, no chocolate for you!!

and i made a nice banana/peach/cherry smoothie and bypassed the store completely.

for me, another victory........twice this week now. :))

[Mary Kay]

Well, Gaby, it's just you and me today, so far. You go girl!!!

Do you --or any of you others who are nurses - have ay advice for me re the belly-button hernia/ the abdominal diastasis/ tummy tuck surgery that I'm going to get?

My weigh in was 132. I lost 3 lbs in five weeks. Not a heck of a lot. But, I lost.

We took the kids for a 19 mile bike ride with trail-a-bikes on Sun, (attached bikes that turn your bike into a tandem) Father's day. Packed a dinner and met another family with their trail-a-bike. It was awesome. But I don't think I drank enough, and got the beginnings of a migraine yesterday. I came home, drank a bunch of water, drank a bunch of angstrom magnesium, took a New Chapter's Headache Take Care and a Tylenol. Took a nap and two hours later it was gone. Shotgun approach, I know, but at least I felt human!

Are you all drinking enough water? You're supposed to drink half of your weight in ounces. So if you weigh 200 lbs, you should drink 100 oz of water a day!

I fill up quart jars each day, but didn't do enough for the ride, I think. Sigh.

So that's my update.

Hang in there Gaby.And btw, you are inspiring me.

Mary Kay

[gabriele]

Thanks, MaryKay for saying i inspire you, i don't know how though!! I don't feel that way at all.

anyway, i'm not a nurse, but i did have a tummy tuck!! so if you have any questions about that, i can help! I had it on my 45th birthday, 10 years ago, also had a face lift and a breast lift on the same day. The surgeon said i totally exhausted him, it was unusual ten years ago to do all those things in one procedure.

anyway, i can't believe a 19 mile hike, wow, that is awesome. Great job. And those 3 pounds, who cares how slow, you did it, you don't weight that much to begin with (i know, i know, you think you're fat!!) but still, at that weight it's going to be very slow.

i think i'm finally going to have a nice report this saturday.

[Mary Kay]

Gaby,

A breast lift is the same as a breast reduction, right? They actually cut off your nipple, raise it, then take a triangular section out of the bott of your breast, right? I would actually consider it, if they didn't cut off your nipple....but how else are they going to get them "up there?"

Can't they raise them up by taking any skin off the top? Without cutting off the nipple?

Last I knew, I was like an "I" cup. Of course I was nursing, but they're still huge now.

And how soon after the tummy tuck could you walk? Tend to daily stuff, like prepare meals for the family etc?

Would you recommend doing both at the same time again?

IDK, for me that would be four things at once. But I think that while you'redown, you might as well be down for it all.

Thanks,

MK

[Mary Kay]

And yes, Gaby, you do inspire me, because first of all, you resisted something that has such a strong hold on you, and secondly because I feel I have to report back to you and others.

Mary Kay

[gabriele]

Well i thank you Mary Kay!! That is very nice.

i'm still hanging in there, haven't had chocolate in a long time. Don't even have a craving today, just waiting to eat my big salad at lunch.

How are you doing?

[Shoney]

Between a crazy schedule and no internet at home, it's been weeks since I posted!

I'm just going to put this out into the universe because I'm scared: I have a suspicious mole on my leg. Recently changed color, and upon close inspection the edges are now irregular, but the overall size does not appear changed, and it is very small. I come from a long line of overreactors, so until I talked to a nurse friend of mine didn't even make an appt. My friend said to see a dr.

The appt. is next week. To alleviate my worst fears I am sharing this here rather than with my family whose predictable hysteria would not be helpful. Also, because if my fears are validated, believe me when I say traditional treatment is NOT going to happen.

Anyone else have experience with this??

[snoops]

This was a good place to put it. Our thought will be with you during your doctors visit.

[gabriele]

Good luck Shoney....

i have seen people with the weirdest looking moles, which i would have sworn were "dangerous", and they turned out to be nothing. Many times. So try not to think about it too much and wait to see what the doc says (easier said than done).

i remember my father had a big black NEW mole on top of his little bald head and i really thought it was something bad, and it turned out to be nothing.

[Mary Kay]

Shoney,

I do know that moles do appear, but one changing color would also have me suspicious and I would start doing preventativethings anyway. What's it gonna hurt? Well, maybe your pocketbook a little...but not much.

I've researched cancer, and avoided a D&C and possible hysterectomy/potential cancer from a molar pregnancy. I had a natural miscarriage and one doc said "You've proved us all wrong."

Here's what I would do: My thoughts just throwing it out there: \

sorry for typos..wanted to get back to you...computer acting up skipping letters...son whining in the background.

check your pH with a test strip. Enzymedic (I think is name) or ph-ion pH strips. get at a hfs....Check SECOND urine of the day. should be 6.75 - 7.5 if it's not that high, make it so!

Make it so by going on a green smoothie fast with tons of greens.

No protein, no fat. this puts your body into a state of autolysis after four days. where your cells are starving for protein and fat so they attack other cells. In your body'swisdom, it attacks the crappy cells --not heart or liver, but cancer cells. Now you have a reason to lose some weight...LOL for me, this really inspired me and I didn't cheat. I had a purpose. After losing 30 lbs though, when my fast was over, I gained 20 of it back.....sigh

I would buy Young Living's essential oils. ONLY theirs as they are therapeutic grade and can be taken internally. Now I can sell them, but don't want you to think that's why I'm recommending them. (I haven't sold them yet though....LOL haven't had time to get set up) I would combine in a ratio 4 drops of frankincense to 3 drops of lavender and put on the mole 4 or 5 times a day. I'd put some into either water or into a capsule and take a bunc during the day.

I'd also research baking soda rubbed onto the mole. Cancer hates an alkaline environment, ad baking soda is pretty darn alkaline. I've read where some have made a paste and put it on canerous parts....

Either do deep breathing and or exercise. Cancer hates oxygen. 42% of Americans get cancer, but only 14% of those who exercise get cacer.

Take digestve enzymeswith your smoothies. Betw meals get Wobenzym's enteric coated digestive enzymes. ancer cells coat themselves with hcg - a protein and if the dig enzxymes get into your bloodstream via enteric coated ones n your gut, it will help dissolve the coating. Cancer cells act like a wolf in sheep's clothing by cloaking themselves in this protein so yur body won't attack it. Many with cancer will test positive to a pregnancy test. Even men because of the hcg.

I wrote a lot, but these are actually som simple things you can do. Maybe you feel I'm being alarmist by starting these immediately before you even get a diagnosis. but if I'm wrong and it's not cancer, then hey, you've cleaned out our system somewhat.

again sorry for typos.....now it's up to three people waiting for me, not just my son....sigh...i just wanted to tell you asap

Mary Kay

[Susan123]

Shoney- Try not to overthink the mole (easy for me to say, right??)... Is it raised up from the skin a bit or totally flat?

MaryKay- great advice!! You rock, girlfriend!!

[Mary Kay]

Shoney and all,

I came back and reread my hurried thread. Maybe it was too much and maybe it was being alarmist. Nevertheless, am going to save it just in case you may need it.

It is good advice though, and was well researched even though there were typos etc!

Have you been out in the sun? Could that have changed it/ just gotten a sunburn?

Sorry if it was too much. Just trying to help.
*********************

I got an email yesterday that looked like it was from an acquaintance. A woman who organizes "green/holistic" events. She was a "supposed" dietician and gave people advice. But honestly, I think I knew more than she...she ate tons of cooked grains served up a dinner once and served watermelon for dessert (I set her straight in private afterward).....

Anyway, she wasn't your typical SAD eater. She was a vegetarian and was health oriented, albeit a bit misguided.......

She died of cancer!!! She was about my age, I think.

She felt sick one week ago, went to the hospital and was diagosed with liver cancer and died immediately. Wow. I found out at the funeral that she had breast cancer ten yrs ago, and was talking to a friend about it metastacizing (spelling?) in her liver. My friend said she didn't believe in the metastacizing stuff - that you create a cancer-friendly environment by having your body being too acid etc and that it just shows up in other places. Makes sense.

When I had my molar pregnancy (I got pg at the age of 51 - Two weeks after I stopped nursing!) , I was told that the cyst-like cells could become cancerous and spread to my lungs. After I found out that there was the potential for a hysterectomy with the D&C, I immediately went on a raw-juice fast and chose NOT to do the D&C. (a molar pregnancy, is a rare thing...it's when two sperm fertilize one egg. With a 51 year old egg, this just wouldn't normally be a big deal if one sperm fertilized it, you'd have an early m/c, BUT when two sperm fertilize it, the body counts two sets of viable chromasomes and thinks it's a "go." It tries to create a placenta and instead makes cysts)

I wonder if I had been "pure" if this would have even been an issue. My body would have gotten "rid" of it earlier.....

Anyway, before I knew it was molar, I was waiting for a natural m/c. Almost three mos went by, and I finally tested. My hcg only came down only 5,000 units in 11 weeks, that's how I came to get an ultrasound and figure it was a molar pg.

The first week of being on the raw-juice fast, my hcg came down 11,000 - not a typo - points. Three weeks later, I had a very easy m/c. I fasted for three weeks, had the m/c then fasted for two more, ate for about two or three, then tested and my hcg was coming down too slowly. At this point, the docs want you to go on a chemo drug - methotrexate, because even if you have a D&C, or a natural m/c, there can still be a few cancer-type cells remaining. So I went on another fast - this time for six weeks ---toward the last couple weeks, I did add some whole, raw milk. But it worked, and I've checked since and I'm fine.

I tell you all of this ladies, to inspire you. Heck my own story even inspires me to be healthier. And it really made me believe in cleansing ---either with a raw juice fast or a green-smoothie fast. the raw-juice fast is very difficult because juicing is more difficult then smoothies and you have to eliminate your poop ---I chose to do enemas five days-a-week and a colonic one-day a week....ugh....not to mention, making your juice AND cooking for your family.... All this extra stuff took about two hours-a-day. By having my digestion shut down I had so much energy that I could get 1 1/2 hrs less of sleep per night! So I was only "down" 1/2 hr!

I also had so much energy that I felt "hyper." So I checked my thyroid (I was on a small amt of meds for being hypo), and son-of a gun, I no longer needed the meds. Still haven't needed them!

I had researched raw-juice fasting /cleansing over the course of sev'l months - one yr prior and did a fast then. Good thing I knew what to do, because I didn't have months to research this time. This time though, it proved to me that cleansing really works. I still check my pH regularly and try to be on the alkaline side. I think everyone should cleanse ATLEAST once-a-year, for a couple weeks minimum.

Hope it inspires you folks. This is why I said cleansing wouldn't hurt, Shoney.

Mary Kay

[rojeo]

Hi Ladies (and gents?),

I'd like to join you on your weight loss challenge. 100+ to kick to the curb.

Mary Kay, thank you for so much good info. Do you think a green smoothie cleanse is as effective - or almost - as a juice cleanse?

I've got everything together to start a green smoothie main course. (Mostly green smoothies but also bites of raw, inspired by Clent Manich.)

Even more pressing than the weight right now is the fact that I can't breath. I guess years of smoking have come back to bite me. The last 5 months I keep developing asthma and bronchitis. I want this stuff cleared up without medical treatment. I read somewhere breathing/asthma would improve in 4 days raw? Hope so.

So, tomorrow is my 'ginnin day. Hope everyone is doing great!

hw: 320
cw: 265
gw: 165

Deb - 55 - 5'10"

[snoops]

Hi Rojeo - welcome to the raw food forum AND the weight loss challenge.

Have fun with it!!

[gabriele]

Hey everyone,

MaryKay, wonderful informative posts. I love reading your long posts, please don't apologize for their length, i learn so much.

In reading your posts, i am thinking about doing some kind of fruit smoothie "fast" - not juicing, but smoothies. Any advice on this would be very welcomed. I'm kind of stuck as to how to take this to work without it becoming "yucky".

Welcome Rojeo!!! I too have to lose over 100 pounds and am so sick and tired of waddling around and being out of breath. Please keep up posted as much as you can, because i want to try a smoothie "fast" like i just wrote.

Snoops, HAPPY BIRTHDAY FRIDAY, before i forget, because tomorrow i'm going to be super busy at work and may forget, so have a wonderful wonderful day.

Shoney don't worry about that mole, i am a worrier also, and it just doesn't get me anywhere. Wait and see what the doc says. Most likely it is nothing, i'll be thinking about you.

Susan123, what's up with you? Nice to see you here again!!!

I've been avoiding chocolate, as i posted earlier, i had TWO very strong cravings and almost went to the store and grabbed that Lindt chocolate, but didn't do it, so that's good. Please let me know any good thoughts about doing a smoothie fast, everything i read is either about fasting (with just water) or a juicing fast, which i'm not interested in.

[snoops]

Thanks a bunch gaby. Unfortunately, it is going to be a busy day for me. We are driving to San Francisco on Saturday and I have much to do in preparation.

Speaking of juice fasts. Don't write the idea off. I have unwittingly been doing an almost juice fast. I have been playing around with juicer recipes in a book I bought and have really not eaten too much else for a couple of days. Got me back to the 216 posted in my sig:o. Won't make my goal for tomorrow but I have learned a lot on this semi juice fast. I have not been hungry at all. Have not had a lot of craavings. I may do it for reals when we get back from vacation. Other than Cafe Gratitude I doubt I will be too raw this next week so I will need a boost when I get back.

[gabriele]

Snoops, we will be here when you get back!! Have a good trip and later we can talk about smoothies!!!

[Mary Kay]

Deb - Rojeo....Welcome!

Snoops. It's official! It's 1 a.m. and Im still up! So Happy Birthday to You!!!!!

I hope this isn't another one of my novels!!! LOL, but before I begin with my ideas of the the basics, I want to again tell you all to go to a Yahoo Group I started a while back. I led a green smoothie fast, and there's LOTS of info there. I'm not trying to sell anything, I swear!!! LOL

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/goingrawforthirtydays/

During both a raw-juice fast (rjf - to make it simpler) or a green-smoothie fast (gsf), you do not want to consume ANY protein or fat. No nuts, or avocados etc.....waaaah.

For the most benefits, you should go for at least a couple weeks. I'd recommend a month.

For either one, I believe it's best to ease into 'em, and you DEFINITELY have to ease out of them. It's more of a transition into and out of, so as to not shock your body. You'll get headaches and detox if you go too quickly into it, and bad digestion and discomfort if you try to eat a bunch after.

For both, I believe you want to go easy on the fruit, and only use as much as necessary to flavor things. It's best not to eat dried fruits, as they're hard to digest. You could cheat and add say, dates to a smoothie to sweeten it a little, but you would't want to have a say banana, apple date smoothie with only a tiny amt of greens. .

You know, I explain it all on that Yahoo group. Pls go there for more details of how to cleanse and ease into either one.

Raw-Juice Fast rjf - In a way, easier because you don't get hungry, as your digestion shuts down completely. When drinking juice, you are absorbing minerals as they go down your throat because you don't have to digest'em to get the minerals. BUT, and it's a big BUTT--LOL, You have to worry and decide about elimination (poop), because you literally even strain your juice to make sure there's NO fiber, so that your digestion remains shut down. You have more energy (you can't believe how much energy digestion takes!) but it requires more time.

You have four choices for elimination: 1) do nothing and let what poop goes into your gut, stay there (The "old timers" wrote of how their patients didn't poop for 30 or 60 days etc with no apparent ill effects - but I don't like the idea of my poop just sitting there, leaching stuff into my intestines)

2) do salt water flushes ---which IMO could deplete minerals, and they do trigger your gut to go through elimination

3) take some psyllium once a day. I don't like this either, because it revs up that digestive process, but will make you poop

4) do an enema at least 5 X a week and a colonic say, once a-week. I dreaded doing enemas. When looking them up online to learn more, I came across some kinky sites where partners would do them for kicks. A couple times they almost made me pass out. No fun in that, IMO. and I don't particularly like washing away the beneficial bacteria in my gut. However, for you ladies who have really led a bad lifestyle, this could clean some "gunk" out of your colon. But then again, so could a gsf. Especially if you lead into it like I describe on my Yahoo Group...using bentonite and psyllium.....

**********

Green-Smoothie Fast. I'd recommend this one unless you had cancer, or something where time is of the utmost essence. Yes, I believe the raw-juice fasting is probably a tad bit more effective, but you're going to cleanse and detox this way too --just at a slightly slower pace. Because your food is all blended (a high-speed blender is ALMOST essential), your food is way easier to digest, so although digestion is not shut down, it is resting somewhat. Again, you want your smoothies to contain as little fruit as possible - just to make them taste good IMO. This way you poop as you please, no trips to the colon hydrotherapist, which costs good $$$ etc.

Also, a couple weeks into either one, I'd recommend Alissa's liver/gall bladder cleanse (somewhere else on this site).

You could even do a gsf and throw in a couple days a-week where you do a rjf. This way, you'd still be eliminating your poop and one or two days a-week you'd just be doing juice.
************

Don't do like I did though!!! I did gradually come back to eating, (It's amazing how many raw foods you will appreciate when you're done, LOL) however once I could eat comfortably, I pigged out and gained 25 of the 31 lbs I lost.

My advice and I've seen others advise this too, is to up your fruit intake and caloric intake towards the end so that you're not so starving! Then you'll gradually ease out of it by adding, say, 1/3 of an avocado to a smoothie and half an apple in one day, for example.

The first time I fasted, it messed up my period ---so I figured those essential fat-soluble substances should be included now and then. You're still operating at a fat deficit, but they do call them ESSENTIAL fatty acids for a reason. I've never read anybody else recommend this, this is my own thinking.

So for the next handful of fasts, after a week, I'd add cod liver oil one night, I'm not vegan) maybe Borage oil another, or some flax oil, which by the way, is supposedly anti-cancerous, etc. I'm talking a spoon or two say every other day, that's it. And again, these are my thoughts, but I found it didn't mess up my hormones and I still got my period, which even if you're menopausal, still shows that it helps with hormones/feeding your brain etc.

So to conclude, I'd say ease into a green smoothie fast. Maybe throw a day or two of a rjf in here and there. And beef up the calories towards the end so that you're not starving and want to pig out...You know, start adding in more bananas, apples, mangos whatever. Fruit gives you the energy and the calories. It's more building, whereas vegetables are more cleansing.

Some people say you don't need to drink as much water. I still tried to drink 1/2 my weight in ounces every day.

These are my thoughts. I'm not a doctor, just someone who researched the heck out of this stuff! Some of the points could be argued...like there's another clay that might be better than bentonite etc, but this is what I did.

Oh, and with either --- I believe in the power of wheatgrass. I'd try to ingest some often. I'd even shoot a small shot or two up my butt (retention enema) --they call it an enema, but it really isn't. You're just trying to hold it in. Your intestines absorb the minerals etc.
***

Geez, one more thing: With the rjf, I was so busy making juice, which takes 45 min at least, and doing an enema (another 45 min), and factor in going to the colon hydrotherapists once a week, which took half a day ---- that I didn't have time to exercise at all. Green smoothies are way quicker 5 - 10 min, so that leaves you with more time to exercise.

And breath deeply whenever you can. Even in a car, on your way somewhere.....Slowly. A zen master told me that deep breathing can help cure/prevent 50% of all illnesses. I believe it.

Hope this helps!

Mary Kay

[Mary Kay]

If you go to my Yahoo Group, then pls start at the first message. Sorry there's some spam---I never could figure out how to get rid of it, tried once and thought I deleted EVERYTHING, so left it alone.

HTH,

Mary Kay

[gabriele]

MaryKay, great great advice and information. I visited your website but have no time today, i am doing the work of 2 people at work, and we just got a nice lovely letter from the IRS saying we owe them a few thousand $$$ because SOMEbody who filled out our Turbo tax information and forgot to put SOMEbody else's income information. (guess who??) So we are a little shell shocked around here and i'm ready to have a nervous breakdown.

Anyway, when i get settled down i'll visit your site again. So much great information. Thank you so much for taking the time to write so wonderful long posts, which i totally enjoy, and sharing your knowledge on this subject. I was so stressed at work today i forgot to really eat (this is a good thing). I think tomorrow i'm going to have a report (finally) and i will be BRAGGING!!!!!

So basically you're saying that these smoothies should not have an excess of fruits and have a lot of greens?? hmmmm, i wonder if i can do it this weekend, don't see how i can at work, these drinks get yucky after an hour or so in my opinion.

[Mary Kay]

Gaby, the fruit in a smoothie or in just plain juice without pulp, will help it to not become too yucky, IMO. Apples, carrots and lemons especially --are good "preservatives" in my experience. I'm not saying to NOT have any fruit in them, just the minimum to make them taste good - and act like preservatives.

So go ahead and make your smoothie and take it with you to work, add more fruit to make it keep --so what?!

Aw, that's good that you didn't eat much, but sorry to hear it was the stress that was the substitute for food!

Looking forward to your report!

And everyone,

Every Friday we have a potluck at our in-law's pool. Some holistic-minded good friends bring their other homeschool kids and I'm giving the kids swimming lessons. And I was fairly good in the food dept where I could have pigged out. Could have been better, but ate a huge salad, and a very small amt of cooked veggies and beans.

My potlucks are "all natural, no artificial ingredients allowed," but they're not all raw. I partially dehydrated some strawberries in sweetened strawberry slurry and put it on top of some grawnola, and everyone raved about it. I called it "strawberry crisp." It was good, but I wanted to save it for them, so I didn't have any. And my kids robbed it out of the dehydrator, so there wasn't much left before I even got there....LOL

So that's my report. I sure have been blabbing on here a lot lately. Not too many others around. Hope all of you are out doing fun things and being "good."

Mary Kay

[RawKnitster]

gabriele, That is a serious bummer! You might be able to get on the IRS installment plan. I've done that. Fill out the right form and you can get 12 months to pay it off, with penalties and interest or course. Sorry you have to deal with that worry. It certainly is unsettling.

My digestive system has been unsettled lately. I've been too sick to eat for the past 3 days. I could only drink small amounts of juice for the first 2 days. I'm feeling a lot better today, but still not up to eating. I had a cup of apple juice, some coconut water, a smoothie made from 1 banana and 2 stalks of celery. Tonight I got brave and ate an apricot. I've dropped 6 pounds in 72 hours. I do not recommend it, but it has taught me that I can get by with a lot less food. I'm hoping seeing the scale finally drop again is enough incentive to eat less and lose more!!!

[gabriele]

Ladies!!

well, i thought i would hit the 240 pound mark this morning, and it hit 242, darn, and i was good all week too. :( Oh well.....maybe next week.

MaryKay reading about your foods makes me hungry! It all sounds so yummy.

Rawknitsster, we have come up with the $$$ but after a day of headaches and stress. What a nightmare. It was our own fault, looking over the records, i can't believe we made a mistake like that to begin with.

Well, it's hot and sunny out, at least it's not raining, so in a few minutes we'll go out for our walk. I haven't walked all week, we'll see if i'm still huffing and puffing like mad!!!

[Mary Kay]

RawKnitster, Bummer. Hope you're feeling better. My son had a GI bug a couple wks ago and that skinny kid dropped some weight too,which he didn't need. I figured out what it was, and all the stuff I read said it would last about a week, which it almost did......sigh.

Gaby, Funny, even before I got your last note about my food making you hungry, I went back and deleted the food details, thinking it might make some hungry. Sorry about that. Well, I left the raw one about the strawberry pie, just in case someone wanted to try it.

Do you all think I should delete something like that on a weight-loss thread? Seriously, lmk. No prob, I'll go back and delete. I suppose if some of you wanted to know how to make a dehydrated fruit pie, you would go to the recipes section. It was just an invention though, so I wanted to share - and I'm not sure you'd find it on a recipe board, but I could post it there, not here. This is just my "favorite" place.

And what about if some of you begin a fast, and I start raving about my raw pie?

LMK,

Mary Kay

[gabriele]

Me and my BIG fat mouth, MaryKay, NO NO NO do not delete any of your posts, please! I don't want to be one of those people who are so easily offended by someone else's information.

I meant, they sounded mouth-watering and yummy, this did not cause me to go running to the fridge!! Please include them, as far as i'm concerned, because i'm getting ideas from you, even if i hate to cook, i'm learning things.

Please write whatever you want, they make me hungry but not in the sense of breaking my "diet"......... only chocolate has that power, unfortunately.

Just got back from my walk, it's nice but i just don't like humidity, i am soaking wet from it!!! But glad i did it.

RawKnitster, are you feeling better today? What are you eating? I hate those stomach bugs.

RoJeo, how are you doing? Isn't this your first day? I would love to hear your progress, i am still new to this myself.

[RawKnitster]

Much better today, thanks gabrielle. I'd like to venture out today, but not sure that is a good idea just yet. That is great you solved your problem so quickly. :) What a relief!

I've always found those numbers on the scale that end in 0 are the hardest to reach. :)

[Mary Kay]

Monday is my day to report/weigh in for the week and I'm ashamed to say I gained a lb last week. This is the final day of the contest betw my friend and me. We wanted to lose 10 lbs in 6 wks. I lost two. Sheesh. I doubt if she made it either, but she was doing better than I, last I heard.

I made lots of raw goodies for my kids this week: grawnola, strawberry crisp, sweet flax crackers, pizza flax crackers and pancakes.

I ate some, but that wouldn't have anything to do with it....LOL

YA THINK?!!!!!!

I just can't eat this rich stuff. And I failed at eating almost a lb of greens a day. I'll be better this week. Sigh.

Going outside to gather up some greens now.......

Mary Kay

[gabriele]

You know, MaryKay, next week will be better. I'm eating too much also........i am just not getting anywhere here. Down 2 or 3 pounds, then back again, up and down......... i have forgotten how to lose weight, or forgotten what it feels like to be hungry.

I don't lose weight unless i go to bed somewhat hungry. :(

[Mary Kay]

I don't lose weight unless i go to bed somewhat hungry. :([/QUOTE]


Ditto, Gaby. True for me also.

Mary Kay

[rojeo]

Hi Friends... sorry to be gone so long. Long story and boring. :)

Mary Kay, thank you for the long, helpful post! You are just full of such good info.

Gabriele, yes, I was supposed to have started Friday, I think. And I did but I let the weekend do me in. Well, not altogether. I actually have been eating around 50%. Today was my new start day and I'm ready to rumble. So far just melons... honeydew & watermelon.

Hey... We had some volunteer watermelons come up from our compost pile this year. I spread the compost into some tomatoes I planted and up sprang watermelon plants. How cool is that? But that's not what I'm eating. We found a local guy about a half hour away and his are just now coming off the vine.

Here's a pic of the biggest one of ours... cute lil bugger. I put the marker there so you could see how big it isn't.
http://i39.tinypic.com/2lt1sfp.jpg

Do you both really not lose unless you go to bed hungry? Even @ 100% raw?

Ok, I'll keep ya posted now several times a week. This year is officially half over Wednesday and I've got some serious work to do. I can't end this year at this weight or even close.

Are you with me? Let's do it. For ME I say, "Quit playing and just do it." Maybe you all don't play like me so I won't fuss at you (yet). But girl here has gotz to get on the stick.

Thanks for being here. wish you the best, rawest day ever.

.

[Mary Kay]

Rojeo,

You go girl! What will you be doing...going 100% raw right off the bat? Just curious.

I am not 100% raw, but most days I'm about 95%....Like last night I had a salad with some cooked wild salmon. (I'm not vegan). We were in a restaurant and I forgot to bring my own dressing, so I got lemon, and they had honey, so I put a little of that on too. We took the kids biking with our trail-a-bikes, so I got a good workout in hauling my daughter on the back of mine for probably a good 15 miles. When we got home, there was a bunch of stuff in the dehydrator--pancakes and fruit leather, and I just HAD to taste some. That was at like 10:00, and I was figuring I'd gotten in a good workout so could cheat...SIGH. BAD, BAD, BAD.

The pancakes were made with bananas and macadamias....combine carbs with fat and whammo, right on the belly for me....LOL

Yep, I need to be slightly hungry when I go to bed to lose weight.

Paul Nison is a raw foodie, gives lectures etc, and he says not to eat after 5:00. That's a little early for me, because dh comes home around 7:00. but I just have to go light at the end of the day. Like I think I'm going to start having green smoothies for dinner. When I was losing, I'd actually make a salad and put it in the blender. I'd add dried tomatoes, a little lemon, ACV, (apple cider vinegar), and a couple dates to sweeten up the ACV and lemon. The dried tomatoes really make it yummy IMO.

When I first went raw, even eating avocados every day, I lost 6 lbs in two weeks. Not now. Body got used to it....LOL

And over the holidays, I went down to about 50% raw, and gained six lbs!!! Of course I pigged out though.

Mary Kay

[rojeo]

Ha! Mary Kay, I like you. I'm not vegan either but I'm eating vegan for now. There are a number of things I'm eating that probably aren't raw (but labeled raw) and a few things I'm eating that flat out aren't raw. I'm keeping coffee and commercial dressing for the time being. The dressing I'm using right now is Newman's sesame ginger. It's probably one of the better ones but still has loads of nasties. I may have frozen corn or peas... not sure yet. But if I do, it will be very seldom.

I just had to figure out what would work best for me and keep me between the raw lines as close as possible. I read Nora Lenz allowed herself two cooked items while she transitioned to raw and a light went on. That's it! Make this mine, make it livable (with a dh that LOVES to eat out), stay consistent and I can do this. My plan is to work toward 100% at whatever pace works. No stressies.

I've been watching some weight loss videos on youtube that are really inspiring but not a diet I would follow. So, I got this brainstorm to go public on youtube with my raw weight loss. I did a video today... my first video ever. But now I'm chicken. I don't know if I'll ever have the courage to do it.

Such a chicken. bakbakbak http://i39.tinypic.com/34yxyty.gif

I'm not finished with this but dh is insisting on hooking some wireless something to my computer. Be back soon... or asap.

;)

[gabriele]

Hi ladies,

well, i just posted on a new thread how i fell off the wagon big time today. I ate chocolate, and it was BAD!!! My favorite brand, and i hated it. Maybe i have lost the taste for chocolate??? Can this be? I am hoping. I really didn't even enjoy it, that is a first for me. I can't see how i'm going to have cravings for this chocolate if it made me feel so bad and sick today, and i didn't even enjoy it. (not to mention the guilt) :(

anyway, yes, i have to go to bed hungry in order to lose weight.

Rojeo, i too use commercial dressing, and what's worse it has EGGS in it!!! Yikes. I'm trying to get away from it, have tried everything, but nothing is working, so i still use it, at least it's all organic.

[Mary Kay]

Un-bah-lievable....The chocolate was BAD, Gaby! LOL Yay!!

Speaking of bottled dressings: I just made dh a "gorilla sandwch" did you see that in another section? How cool.....Anyway, I used lots of salad-type veggies, with some raw cheese AND Annie's org Ranch dressing....LOL

I've attempted ranch dressing sev'l times, but haven't gotten one the kids like yet....And I've looked up tons of recipes. Will keep trying. I'll even use my own homemade mayo and sour cream if needed. But can't get the spices right.....So I hear you gals. Once I get the spices right, I'll try cashew/macadamia nut cream for the base.....

Oh and Gaby, rather than Newman's (which prob has non org canola oil in it --80% of the canola oil in this country is GMO, if it's not organic), Bragg's makes a sesame ginger dressing that I like. I think it has too much oil in it though, so I use a turkey baster and suck most out of the top, then use for other things. I also sweeten it just a teeny tiny bit---delicious. It uses their own raw ACV and their liquid aminos, which are controversial. Those with severe MSG sensitivities can't do them because even thought hey contain NATURAL glutamates, theymay be sensitive. I don't appear to be sensitive to them.
*********

If I'm repeating this, sorry, but I'm so excited! We're going on a vacation to a B&B in the Catskills of NY, 7 hrs from our house. They have raw/high raw breakfasts and dinners AND you've probably guessed that we're a bicycling family ---a 19 mile trail right across the street, that attaches to other trails.

We're leaving Sun. We'll be cycling every day (I'll be hauling my 6 y.o. daughter on a trail-a-bike) and I'm going to go buy a Magic Bullet so I don't make too much noise in my room --to make green smoothies for myself for lunch. I should come back about 10 lbs lighter.....LOL

Mary Kay

[rojeo]

Gab... that is so cool your taste is changing! Go girl!! Lose the guilt... this is a journey, your journey and every step is a learning, growing process. How many people our age are even considering eating raw and changing their old bad habits? Give yourself a HUGE pat on the back! C'mere, I'll do it for you. :D

Mary Kay... have fun! Come back here with your skinny self 10 lb lighter. Wouldn't be a bit surprised.

That was me with the Newman's. This is supposedly fat free but it does say canola oil about the 8th ingredient. Good news is, I have used it once in the whole five days.

Do you see my sig? :eek: I'm melting..................... happy dancing all over the place. Breathing is getting better too.

[gabriele]

Hi ladies,

i'm still hanging in here. REading some disturbing stuff about what happens after you lose your gallbladder, and i work in a hospital, but NObody told me that your liver keeps dripping it's bile acid stuff directly into your colon (instead of gallbladder) and so eventually you may end up with right-sided colon cancer as a result of this irritant. :(( I never knew this, of course, i don't have a gallbladder (it's been 10 years).

Anyway, i'm drinking my watermelon/strawberry/coconut smoothie right now. Worried about what to do with the right side of my colon!!!

MaryKay, have fun on your healthy-sounding vacation. I am off this coming week, we're not going anywhere, we have a lot of bills to pay off. We're used to going to Europe, but i have to get these credit cards down first. A lot of dental implants are on there, a sign of years of unhealthy eating.

Rojeo, i did notice about the Newman dressings that they have canola oil in them, which i won't touch, why do they have to add that to a supposedly healthy food item? I'm still stuck on the dressing issue and i have tried making my own, ohmygod, what a disaster that has been, you should see the bottle, it's still in my kitchen, i'm so scared of it i can't even throw it out!! It's got a life of it's own!!! so for now, honey mustard dressing (with some organic egg, i don't like that, haven't solved it yet though).

Rojeo, you are down 12 pounds??? YOoooo hoooo!!!! wow, i am jealous. We are about the same weight. My all time highest weight was 345 about ten years ago (i may have said that already at some point). Good for you, let's race to the end!!! :)

Snoops, are you still out there??

[rojeo]

Oh hey... I was putting my highest weight from 5 years ago. So, my highest weight should be from when I started raw? lol... I'll go change that.

Wow, I had never heard that about the missing gallbladder. I wonder if raw would make it less irritating? I bet it would. Do you feel this irritation (now that you think about it?)

Before I started posting here, I was thinking how neat it would be to have 4-5 of us rawbies with 70+ pounds to lose, working together... keeping a weight chart, encouraging one another, etc.

How bout we race to 230? Yea? You on?

[gabriele]

Oh hey... I was putting my highest weight from 5 years ago. So, my highest weight should be from when I started raw? lol... I'll go change that.

Wow, I had never heard that about the missing gallbladder. I wonder if raw would make it less irritating? I bet it would. Do you feel this irritation (now that you think about it?)

Before I started posting here, I was thinking how neat it would be to have 4-5 of us rawbies with 70+ pounds to lose, working together... keeping a weight chart, encouraging one another, etc.

How bout we race to 230? Yea? You on?

Of course, now that i know about the gallbladder issue, i am feeling pain right at that exact same spot!!! Yikes!!!

i would love to have a race. Want to race to 180? That is my first ideal weight where i feel better. But either way, i'm in!! Where do you get a good weight chart, i love keeping track...

[snoops]

Snoops, are you still out there??

Hello I'm bad from vacation. Put on ALL the weight I lost. I am so upset with myself but I really don't want to talk about it because today is a new day and I am back raw.

Read my blog about Cafe Gratitude. It was an awesome experience. I have to go make a grocery list. Need something in this house that is alive. Son has been on his own all week:eek:

Here we go again:o

[gabriele]

Well, Snoops, boy do i know how you feel.

I had that same thought many times (i've just read your blog), and when i eat chocolate all day long, what nutrients is my body getting? How did i live to this age anyway? How is it possible? Because there were NO nutrients in what i was eating......

so......i finally broke down and bought Alissa's book. Not because i didn't think it was a good book but bcause i have a table-full of unread books that i have to get through. Everyone always teases me about my quantity of books. So i'm excited about her book and learning more and following this lifestyle better.

I have learned so much, and read so much, and still, it's taking me MONTHS to really live it. I guess this is my "transition" and even though i would love to do it overnight, i can't, so i take these baby steps, one day at a time, you will overcome your cheese problem like i will overcome the chocolate problem. One day at a time, one victory at a time!!

[snoops]

you are so right - baby steps and one day at a time!!!!

We WILL do it;)

[gabriele]

yup, look at me, i can't seem to leave the 240's........it's so frustrating. But i never give up, and you don't seem to either, we just plod along and try, try try again....

[snoops]

Phew - 2 days raw and back down to 218!! I should have known it was only water bloating. Feel a lot better today. Did a lot of juicing and smoothies yesterday.

[gabriele]

Oh good for you Snoops!! I finally ordered Alissa's book, which is arriving today sometime. So i'm excited about reading it and filling in the gaps.

I have been off this whole week, with nowhere to go (no money) but the good news is that hubby and i have been walking...... THREE MILES a day!!! Whooppeee, i can't believe i can even do it, but it feels good.

What's everyone else up to??

[snoops]

three miles a day is awesome gaby. Way to go.

[gabriele]

Yep. I just got Alissa's book and hoping it will jumpstart me once again. Doing the walk every morning, (off work this week).

[gabriele]

Ok, where is everybody?? I'm sure everyone is busy working or enjoying summer vacations.

I'm reading Alissa's book, but the big news is that during this week off of work i have been walking every single day, THREE miles each day, yesterday we did 2 walks for a total of 6 miles, i couldn't sleep my legs and feet hurt so much. But it feels good to be able to even do it, i MUST exercise more, along with healthier eating.

What is everyone else up to?? I miss talking to all of you...

[Mary Kay]

Gaby --Three miles-a-day....Way to go!

Everyone, I'm back from my vacay.....It rained, and my son got a fever the first day, so I only ended up riding about three miles total!!!!LOL. We spent a lot of time getting the bikes all decked out too ....Sheesh. this morning on the way home, we stayed at a regular hotel, and I rode the stationary bike in their gym....LOL

I am so obsessive!!! I was going to a B&B where we were having raw breakfast and dinner made for us every night, and I still brought enough food that I could've made us every meal and still have had food left over. I brought three large coolers!!! I wanted to bring lots of lightweight snacks so my dehydrator ran non-stop for an entire week before we left.....Geez.

Although I ate 98% raw, the food was often rich, and when you're paying big bucks, you kind of feel you'd better eat, KWIM? And we were there on my birthday, so of course I had to eat birthday cake --- a torte made of pecans walnuts, dates and raisins, with a date- lemon sauce. Don't even want to count calories there....LOL Oh, and don't forget the raw potluck while we were there.......

Of course there were lots of good raw dishes, but one SUPER simple one that has been a failure of mine, was a breakthorugh.....Mashed potatoes. I've tried making the raw cauliflower mashed potatoes, but didn't like them. Even tried the avocado to help "cream it up" a bit. Didn't like. then this young guy brings cauliflower mixed with macadamias run through the Vita-Mix blender with salt and pepper. So simple and rich. (But of course, more nuts!!!)

I'm afraid to get on the scale!!!



I don't want to be pushy, but I think some of you gals should do a green-smoothie fast. Gaby, especially you. This will jump-start your weight loss, and you could do it all the while you're reading your book and getting lots of recipe ideas. When all you've had is raw smoothies for six weeks, once you can eat raw food again, it makes you feel like "How did I ever feel deprived?" There's so much from which to choose, that SAD eaters could never imagine.

And Gaby, I'm not a big fan of colonics, on a regular basis, for most people, mind you, but I wonder if one every now and then wouldn't clean out your colon/gall bladder thing? I never knew that about the gall bladder thing either. It would be interesting to research this and to call and ask a couple colon hydrotherapists....but of course, they'd probably be biased!

When I had a colonic and the woman was in the room, my poop came out real dark green at one point, and she mentioned that was my gall bladder cleansing. Another time when I did a gall-bladder/liver cleanse not a colonic) it came out real dark green, so I know that area gets hit.

Just some gall bladder musings.....

Well, it's good to be home. DH has no doubt already fallen asleep....sigh....Off to bed. All for now.

Talk to all of you soon. And I promise to shut up about the green-smoothie fast!!

Mary Kay

[Princess Pamela]

Today I got moving. I have been raw for about a month now and have lost only 2lbs... so out I went... walking aprox. 3 miles around Lake Merrit in Oakland Ca. I am thinking that being 49 , I might need to keep it moving... I have been faithfuly raw for the past month, so I'm thinking age and menopause ... theres only one answer... get moving... got any comments?
thanks ... oh and I am new here....

[gabriele]

Hey MaryKay,

happy belated birthday!! My son's birthday was yesterday (sunday), he is in Kenya on a trip and my daughter's birthday was Saturday. About the colonic idea, ix-nay on the whole thing!! I work in a hospital, and i know it's not in a hospital but i stay miles away from any procedure. I know people love them, but it's not for me. I think my flaxseeds and salads are cleaning me out really well!! I wonder how a colonic can reach up by your gallbladder area, that's really high up, i didn't think it reached that far. Anyway, the problem seems to be, the way i understand it, that even if you went for one, the liver is constantly dripping bile into the intestines, so a cleaning would only help for those minutes that you're cleaning, i think. And then the drip drip drip continues. I'm trying not to think about that, it's too scary.

i also thought of doing a smoothie fast thing, i don't think i can survive on just juice, i get dizzy and weak very quickly.....i'm afraid that chocolate voice would really be calling me big time. I'm going to weigh in this Saturday and i think there will be some kind of report!! (due to all my walking)

Princess Pamela!! You are a new person here!! Welcome, and i just started walking again myself, look at my weight and you can imagine it's not easy for me at all. I was off work last week and we huffed and puffed (well, i was doing the huffing) for 3 miles each day, when i came back home my face was a bright red tomato!! I plan to keep at it, good for you, you can do it too!!

[Mary Kay]

Oops....my previous post, I changed it to read that I think you gals should maybe do a green-smoothie fast ---not a raw-juice fast, like I originally wrote.

MK

[Mary Kay]

Princess Pamela,

WELCOME!! You only lost two lbs??? That stinks. When I first went raw three yrs ago, I lost six lbs in two weeks without even trying! Now I'm oh, 95% raw, and am having a heck of a time losing.

Pamela, are you 100% raw? Maybe if you're not, some of the other cooked things you're eating are doing you in? Like coffee? Coffee is not fattening, but raises your cortisol, thereby making you retain that fat.....One other thing: Gaby and I were both complaining that we don't lose if we eat anything at night. We have to go to bed a little hungry. Maybe you're eating too late at night?

Eating too many nuts/fats?....if so, you've joined my club....LOL

Well, I'm all out of ideas! Exercise sure won't hurt though.....

Oh, I did think of one other thing: Are you drinking enough water? You know, you're supposed to drink 1/2 your weight in ounces. So, If you weigh 200 lbs, you should drink 100 oz of water in a day.

And how about greens? Are you consuming close to 1/2 to 1 lb of greens a day?

I've given it my best shot wth ideas! Anybody else?

Mary Kay

[Mary Kay]

Gaby,

I didn't mean to be pushy.....that whole gall-bladder thing is new to me too. I wonder though, with a high-fiber diet, if just eating wouldn't kind of rinse out the acid---like you were saying. In the old days they used to say "It don't matter if you ain't got a gall bladder." But I guess it truly does!

And then all those people whose ovaries they take out "just in case" and all the appendectomies ---"just in case...."

Can they do some sort of ultrasound - or something on your colon,at the point where it drips, to see if it's doing any damage?

Hmmmm. Hugs. Just thinking of you and thinking out loud.

That's really something that you're exercising so hard. Are you noticing ANY change in your endurance etc yet?

And if it means anything, I could NEVER skip meals etc. I used to get dizzy and headachy, and yet I did fast without terrible headaches or hunger. I did notice though that if I eased into a fast, I didn't get headaches. When I found out about my molar pregnancy, I went on a fast immediately that day, without leading into one, and did get headaches for the first week or so.

Maybe just try one-day-a-week on a green-smoothie fast? Or just try one day and see what happens? But if you do, you may want to lead into that too, not just jump right in ..... my thoughts. Not to be pushy. I just gained so much from it, I'm trying to "convert" everyone else.....Good thing I'm not religious.......LOL


Mary Kay

[cara4art]

"Today I got moving. I have been raw for about a month now and have lost only 2lbs... so out I went... walking aprox. 3 miles around Lake Merrit in Oakland Ca. I am thinking that being 49 , I might need to keep it moving... I have been faithfuly raw for the past month, so I'm thinking age and menopause ... theres only one answer... get moving... got any comments?
thanks ... oh and I am new here.... " - Princess Pamela

Definitely keep it moving! This becomes even MORE important as we age. It will really help mitigate the depressing body changes that the mainstream media tell you you're going to have at and after menopause. Those depressing changes they mention are based on the fact that few women work out, or eat raw either. In fact, going raw, a solid exercise program, and a belief that you can DO this is THE best thing you could possibly do. Be sure you include solid resistance training - this will keep your bones strong, your muscles from atrophying, and the fat from accumulating.

[gabriele]

Hi everyone,

MaryKay, quit saying you are pushy!!! Stop it!! I love reading your posts, you always have a lot to say (i'm going to look you up on facebook when i get home tonight), and you have great information. I've actually been doing very well with my smoothies and salads lately, i'm down to 240 (god that doesn't sound good), and yes, with all the walking, i definitely feel a difference. I feel "light" inside. The walks still kill me, but i feel good afterwards.

Princess Pamela, i know my problem is not drinking enough water, i hate water, just hate it, but i can tell that i'm retaining water because my intake is too low. So today i'm going to try to fix that. And like MaryKay says, i have to go to bed hungry to lose weight.

[Mary Kay]

Well, Gaby, within a week or two, you can honestly say, "I'll never weigh 240 again!" You go girl.

I hope to be able to do the same within a week or two with 130. That number has also been eluding me.

I did get on the scale and it doesn't appear I gained much, if any from my vacation. Of course, I didn't lose, so now it's back to the grindstone...LOL, meanwhile I just ate something high in nuts and coconut.....sigh.

Gaby, I had to sign my name on facebook as "MaryKay" because it wouldn't allow me to leave a space---as I recall. It is actually "Mary Kay." I really dislike my name....LOL, but that's my name! Oh well.

Am taking the kids to soccer today. Haven't been there in two weeks because they've cancelled it ---it is located at a football field and track. While they're playing I jog around the track ---it's been a couple weeks since they've had a class and that was the last time I ran....Wish me luck! I'll keep Gaby in mind and try to work till I get pretty red in the face too.....and push it.

See Gaby, if a 240 lb woman can push herself to walk 3 miles, then I should be able to push myself to jog at least 1 1/2!!!!!....Thanks for the inspiration.


Mary Kay

[gabriele]

Wow, imagine me inspiring anyone!! thank you Mary Kay!! good luck on the jogging.......

just to give you a more accurate picture (and maybe inspire a LARGER person to walk), this is what i look like when i get home:

my face is literally beet red

my hair is soaking wet (in my ponytail)

i'm sweating all over

i'm walking stooped over the last few steps, i think i'm dying

i can barely make it to the living room couch where i collapse

Can't wait for tonight's walk!!! :)

[Mary Kay]

Gaby,

You made it to 240! You definitely beat me. 130 is still eluding me. Sigh.

You go girl.

MK

[gabriele]

I was wondering where you were, MaryKay.

Actually i'm a little under 240, (that doesn't sound so good), things are going slowly, but i have had NO CHOCOLATE in weeks!!! yippeeee

AND, we've been walking several miles every single day, my back still hurts but i'm feeling better every day.

[snoops]

Good work gaby on the "under 240". That's excellent. AND the no chocolate. It does get easier doesn't it. I'm still off cheese for the most part. Haven't been posting much because I am stalled. Still weighing 218 so I haven't gained the 6 lbs back but I just can't seem to push to the next level.

I talked to my personal trainer about it today and her advise was good. Its the journey not the destination. I am so much stronger than when I started 7 months ago. I eat soooo many more fruits and veggies. So my weight hasn't dropped yet. I am sooo much healthier. It's still frustrating because in January I had hoped to be "done" by now and BE where I wanted to BE.

So we carry on...

[Mary Kay]

Hi folks,

I haven't been posting because I haven't been losing weight and I have barely been exercising.

I must say though, I've been having a blast with my kids. My garden is looking good, and I've been making some good raw experiments, so I'm not totally down "in the dumps." LOL

Hugs,

Mary Kay

[gabriele]

Well, i haven't been posting either because i was stuck......

today i weighed in at 232, which is 18 pounds lost! yippee!! i had been hovering around 239/240 forever, now i can't wait to break into the 220's.

I had been eating too many calories. Despite the debate on another thread about calories, i do believe that a calorie is a calorie, whether you're eating junk or quality food. That's basic science. You might be eating the most nutritious food on earth, if you're eating too much, you're eating too many calories and will not lose weight.

We also have been walking, in this heat and humidity, to the point where i come home DRENCHED but happy. On weekends we walk around 4 miles. I am happy. I will really be happy when i'm below 200, that'll be a big one for me.

What's everyone else doing? I miss all of you!!

[snoops]

woWOWOWOW gaby - 18 lbs - that is fantastic. Really excellent. You go girl. Do you think it is the walking?? You inspire me. Got to get eating right again. I have fallen badly:o:o

[Mary Kay]

WOWIE ZOWIE,

And you just couldn't understand how you could be an inspiration to anyone Gaby. So now you can just be quiet already!!!!

I'm um, er........................ ashamed to admit, I'm now 135, but I'm not changing my signature because I have high hopes. .

Yep, I gotta say, a calorie is a calorie is a calorie, whether raw or not. Yes, the raw one's more nutritious, but it'll still make you fat. I'm a pretty darned good example. I eat very very little cooked food.....

Well, our last bicycling vacay didn't work out as far as bicycling a lot --but it was a great vacation....So this week we're going on a bicycling camping trip!!! Three days and two nights..... With the kids!

The campground is about 28 - 30 miles away. It's relatively hilly, and we'll haul everything --our food, tent, clothes etc - all on the bikes. Including the kids! They have trail-a-bikes and dh even welded up special racks so we could put panniers (bicycle saddlebags) on their bikes. I'll send you a pic.

It's going to be fun dehydrating/planning/bringing all our food, but I'm nervous because I've done so little so far.

It sounds like we vacation a lot, but this is honestly not the case. Dh works seven days-a-week and lately about five nights. He generally works about 350 days-a-year, but is excited about having kids/doing things with them, so is making a special effort this year.

After this, his next day off will probably be Thanksgiving. Seriously. So we are psyched!

And if I'm not home with all the nuts etc tempting me, I should do better.

Still thinking about taking the kids to the Raw Spirit Festival in D.C. (without dh), Gaby, you thinking about it? Still haven't heard your response.

Nice touching base with all of you.

Mary Kay

[gabriele]

Hey MaryKay and Snoops,

yes, it is the calories and the walking i think. Snoops, i was just eating too many calories. i am only eating when hungry. It's really amazing how little a body needs to survive every day.

MaryKay, have fun on your much-deserved vacation. We're going to SC beach again this November. I can't wait. What is that Raw thing in DC? We almost never venture to DC any more. I used to work in DC, been there, done that, don't like to go downtown. I'm most certain husband won't go with me and i don't go alone (i'm a big baby)

[Mary Kay]

Gaby,

Come with me!

Here's the info about the Raw Spirit Festival

www.rawspirit.com

go to "Events" and click on Washington D.C.

I'm bringing my six y.o. twins and I'm just about to make a reservation to stay in a rustic cabin that's five miles from the festival:

http://www.duncansfamilycampground.com/pictures.htm


The kids can sleep in the double bed and you and I can each get a bunk.

The room will cost you $20 - $25/night and the festival will cost you $99 for the weekend.

There is a pool at the Duncan Campground and playground etc for the kids, and without dh, I just don't feel like setting up a tent etc. I'll be bringing my Vita-Mix and some food, but there's lots of food avail at the Festival. There's no running water IN the room, but there is outside, and there's an electrical hookup in the cabin. No bathrooms, IN the cabin either. But they have hot showers etc, so not really "roughing it" IMO, but some may think so. Check out their entire site.

I'll make sure you do your four miles/day. Er, if I can keep up, LOL.....

The festival has kids activities all day long, so I can leave them and attend lectures etc. We can carpool to the festival, which is just 5 mi away.

Come on! Wouldn't it be great to be around a bunch of raw foodies/those aspiring to be healthy? Learn new stuff......

Well, I'm about to go register at Duncan Family Campground. LMK ASAP because I'll get somone else to stay with us.

Mary Kay

[gabriele]

Oh MaryKay, please don't be mad at me, it's not my kind of thing, please go ahead and find another person to stay with you.....

the husband (i'm going to blame it on him) is very jealous of our weekends together (we're kind of newlyweds) and the whole thing doesn't sound like something i would do anyway, sorry, please don't be offended.
I don't want to prevent you from finding your roomie there.....

[Mary Kay]

Silly girl, I'm not upset. Maybe you two would just want to drive there for the day...they have day passes for cheaper - $49, I think?

Even just to go there and check out the all-raw food court!

Mary Kay

[gabriele]

Ok, Snoops, i'm catching up to you!! just lost another 2 pounds, lost 20 pounds in the last month. I've been walking like a demon in this heat and eating very little, i'm hardly ever hungry.

where is everyone?

[Mary Kay]

Maybe no one wants to write because they're all doing poorly! That's my story and I'm sticking to it! LOL

20 lbs, WOW!

Mary Kay

[snoops]

Maybe no one wants to write because they're all doing poorly! That's my story and I'm sticking to it! LOL

20 lbs, WOW!

Mary Kay

ditto!! You are not catching my gaby - you have gone way beyond me. I've only kept off a couple pounds. 20 - WOW you must feel great. Keep it up. I'll be there soon.

[somelikeitraw]

Hi! Sorry I haven't been on this thread for awhile and haven't read all the posts I need to to catch up.

Posting my progress and then I'll go do some catch up reading.

Since starting raw in the beginning of February this year I have, as of yesterday, released 53 pounds. I am pleased with that and am wanting to improve on fitness. Would like to workout at least 4 days a week and get back into walking.

[Mary Kay]

Geez, Gaby, at the rate you're going, you and I will be vying to reach the 130 -lb mark.....LOL

And now to tell you folks about my camping trip: We loaded up the bikes with tag -along bicycles that the kids ride on, with all our gear. My daughter weighs 60 lbs, couple that with gear, and towards the end of the 28 -mile ride, I was walking up hills, and PLEADING with her to PLEASE PEDAL. This inspires me to get in better shape, I'll tell ya.

I brought just the right amount of food, which is unusual for me (I usually bring too much), most of which was raw, but I also brought a few items to cook, including our very lightweight hiking stove called a Whisperlite.

I was surprised at how well my kids did on the bikes--and how long they rode. I stayed up until 4:30 a.m. the night before preparing, and after the ride and no sleep, was simply exhausted. Took a nap in the tent, and got some coffee. I became instantly addicted, and have been weaning since then. Today I had about 1/3 cup. If I didn't wean, I'd get headaches. Maybe I'll just have a couple sips tomorrow, then that will be it. What a wimp.

I'll send pics when we get them loaded out of the camera! The bike was so heavy, I had trouble just holding it up!!!!

Hope to touch base next week with at least a lb or two gone! Geez!

Mary Kay

[gabriele]

Hey everyone,

Somelikeitraw, awesome job with the 53 pounds, you must feel so "light"!!

That camping trip sounds like fun MaryKay, even if i did swear i would never camp again.

I have been holding my own, gaining 3 pounds from just drinking more water, to losing those 3 again. Yesterday our office had a party for my boss who is leaving for a week's cruise down the Danube in Austria (i am sooo jealous) and they had nowhere to set up the table, so they set it up in my little office.......just inches away from me were so many goodies, i won't go into the painful details, but suffice it to say that there was some type of cheese, so i thought of Snoops!!......and there was my downfall SWISS CHOCOLATE, Lindt to be specific, my all time favorite. What did i do??

i grabbed a single piece of pita bread (considering the other stuff this was the very least harmful), and i watched everyone else gobble down cake and ice cream and all the rest. i was quite proud of myself, if i do say so!! Because i had been dreading that day all week, knowing that the theme was going to be "things from Europe".

anyway, we have been walking 2 miles every single day, on weekends sometimes 4 miles, i am drenched in sweat when i return home but i feel so good. My family is starting to see a difference too.

later

[Mary Kay]

53 lbs.....!!!!!!!WOW.

I hope you ladies are taking "Before" and" During" photos! At this rate, the "After" photos will be arriving soon!

Mary Kay

[raw2live]

I need to jump on the band wagon, that's for sure.

[Mary Kay]

Raw2Live,

Early Sun morning. You're up too? What are we doing up so early?

Hey, we have a lot in common. We're the same age with the same goal weight.

In all seriousness, even though I have a lot less to lose, if I also don't get on the bandwagon, many who are heavier, will pass me up!

Mary Kay

[gabriele]

Well i'm up too!! we just finished our long walk, today we did at least 3 miles. I'm drinking my green, spinach, banana smoothie, yumm. It is brutal out there today. I haven't missed a walk in probably a month. My husband says he's so proud of me and our walks, sometimes i have to drag him along, and he is he exerciser in the family.

trying this week to get into the 220's, that will be big.

[keke]

I hope you all don't mind me jumping in like this, but I have a question about raw weight loss and I hope someone has an answer.

During the past month or so I have been eating a mostly-vegan diet and monitoring my calorie intake. I have lost some weight, but it has been very slow (I don't mind).

During the past few days, I decided to try 100% raw because I am looking to try a 30-day challenge come September 1st. While trying this out, I decided to still count my raw calories just to see that I was getting enough (as I've heard that can sometimes be a problem and lead to SAD-binging).

ANYWAY, I found that I am STARVING on 1800 calories of RAW, when I was doing just fine on 1400 calories of mostly-vegan (and losing weight). I know many on this site say not to worry about calories, but it is difficult for me because I want to do a 30-day challenge, but I do not want to gain the weight that I have worked so hard to release.

I guess I'm asking if anyone can really explain the whole "raw calories don't matter" thing or give me some advice/encouragement. Will I GAIN doing this 30-day challenge? Or will I continue to lose since I need to lose and my body knows what it is doing?

Any help is greatly appreciated - thanks!

[snoops]

I'm not sure. I am only just starting a 30 ish day raw challenge. I am hoping to drop some pounds and believe I will because I know I will be eating less calories even though I do not count them. I just know if I cut out grains and cheese:o my caloric intake will drop regardless of how much raw I need to eat.

I think you will just have to start and monitor it. I find it hard to believe you would gain weight back unless you are eating TONS of nuts and 10 avocados a day. I say just trust the process and go for it. I believe I will feel so much better and be so much healthier by the equinox.

[Mary Kay]

Keke,

I agree with Snoops. And although I tend to be scientific about things as well, I think you are maybe being TOO scientific about it. Well, and couple that with the fact that everyone is different.

If you drink half your weight in water, in ounces/day,, eat 1/2 - 1 lb of greens a day, get a little exercise, don't oveindulge in the nuts....You should be fine. Monitor yourself during the first week very carefully to see what you need to do.

LOL, but you may not want to listen to me...I've remained betw 130 - 135 for twelve weeks and I'm trying to lose! Meanwhile Gaby has lost something like 10 - 20 lbs......

Now, to cut down on the nuts and take my own advice. LOL
Interesting, but when I first went high raw, I ate an avocado a day as well as nuts and still lost. But not now. I'm still not 100% raw, but am oh, 90 - 95%, and am happy with this.

HTH and WELCOME to the thread!

Mary Kay

[Mary Kay]

Snoops, When's the equinox? I thought it already happened!

MK

[gabriele]

Hey everybody, i just lost 2 more pounds, that makes 22! I just exchanged my XLARGE tops for LARGE tops, am throwing out the bigger ones. Also wearing a new pair of pants, finally! We are still walking, every single day, rain or shine, humidity and killer heat or not, still at least 2 miles. I feel so different than a few months ago. I am not 100% raw either, but it is my goal in life to try each day.

As for the question about losing weight and counting calories........i used to be an avid calorie counter also. I don't count any calories any more, although i have a vague idea about how many calories i must be eating/drinking every day, but it's very vague.

The thing that has helped me absolutely by far the most is: EAT ONLY WHEN HUNGRY. That sounds so simple and overstated, but it is the difference for me between staying overweight and actually losing weight. It is the key to it all. My husband, who has become a vegan overnight thanks to my prodding (but not raw), he can't lose weight because he eats out of boredom or whatever, NOT hunger. I really have to go to bed hungry (not starving) in order to lose weight. After a few weeks of this, i have rediscovered what it feels like to be truly hungry, not just having an appetite, but real, strong hunger. Then i eat, and not that much. I'm practically living on smoothies these days and don't crave chocolate at all (miracle). And every day it seems i eat a little less, because the hunger becomes less. It's amazing to realize how little food you actually need to live.

[keke]

Thanks for all your responses! I think I'm just going to put my faith into raw and listen to my body. Even if I don't lose the weight right away, at least I'll be healthier :-)

[snoops]

Snoops, When's the equinox? I thought it already happened!

MK

August 22. We just had the summer solstice! Equinoxes are in fall and spring. Solstices are in summer and winter.

Gaby I see you cracked the 220's. Congratulations. You rawk.

[Mary Kay]

Equinox...oh yeh, equal day and equal night......actually, Sept 22nd, so you've got an extra month! or maybe that was just a typo.

Go Gaby Go. Go Gaby Go.....cheerleading section over here.

I got into one of my "artist's modes" last night and after everyone went to bed, was creating raw food stuff: onion bread, various flavors of kale chips and zuke chips - all in the dehydrator.

Am bringing to a potluck at the beach this eve.....but the point is, I was up until like 5 a.m. and I told Gaby I'd be real good and if I did taste stuff, I'd spit it out. I did up until around 3 a.m., then I actually had some tastes. Sigh. Confession time.

My pH was sure good though this morning, after a bunch of green juice I made yesterday. Any of you follow your pH? Just curious.

Mary Kay

[snoops]

:o opps - yep September 22!!

I would like to test my ph. Do you get strips at the pharmacy and test your urine?

[gabriele]

Now, Marykay, what was that stuff you were making with the cherries? Can you share that recipe??

still strong here, weigh in on saturday!! it is so humid today i don't know how we're not going to melt during our walk.

[Mary Kay]

Gaby, Sorry, I don't know what post you were talking about with cherries, but I've been doing all sorts of things with some sour cherries (10 lbs fresh, in their own liquid) that I got about a month ago. (Yikes, haven't checked what's left in over a week! Better go look!)

They're really super sour, so I sweeten with a little maple syrup, make a puree in the Vita-Mix out of say 1/4 of them. Mix, spread onto a solid Teflex sheet and dehydrate overnight. Just like cooked cherry pie. Actually better. Very rich. You can put a grawnola crust under/over and make cherry crisp. Eat plain, whatever. This will keep in your fridge for weeks too because a lot of the moisture has come out.

I also made some sorbet, smoothies, fruit leather.....Oh, here's an interesting one: I soaked some flax seeds in some cherries (they have a lot of juice) added sweetener and other soaked/dried nuts/seeds --pumpkins, sesame, sunflower, almonds, raisins, Gojis, dried bluebs....made energy bars. The cherry puree is the glue that holds it all together. Dehydrated for a good 24 -30 hrs. I loved 'em, but kids didn't like them until I topped with og chocolate chips and let themmelt on in the D. sigh.

All I can think of. LMK if one of those sound right! Gee, I wonder why I can't lose weight? LOL

MK

[Mary Kay]

Hey, I just wanted to share some pics from that camping trip. We brought our tent/food/everything on the bikes.....and then put a 60-lb kid on the back who becomes distracted by some cows halfway up a mega hill and......the bike felt like it weighed a ton!

The twins and I are in the last pic at the end of the trip, waiting to get in at a restaurant. You can see dh in the reflection!

[Mary Kay]

Snoops,

You can get pH strips at Whole Foods or other HFS's. I'm pretty sure Vitamin Shoppe has 'em too.

There are two kinds that I know: 80 little plastic strips called pH -Ion, or Enzymedica. I've compared both and feel Enzymedica (which is on a roll like scotch tape. You peel off tiny pieces) is more ecologically sound, gives the same reading as pH-Ion and if you're really cheap like me, you can tear off teeny tiny pieces and make it last forever.

You use your second urine in the morning as your first urine is always more acidic. Saliva is not very reliable as it's very fickle according to what you've eaten. You want it to be 6.75 - 7.5.

If you begin getting acid, just add some green smoothies, and voila, you watch your pH rise.

It's fun to check it various times during the day as well.. Peak/best is supposedly around 2p.m. and worst is supposedly around 2 a.m. (That is, if you're on a normal day schedule)

Ph-Ion has this whole complicated formula for checking it out and contains an informative little booklet too. It might be worth it to buy it for the first time, then switch to Enzymedica. They range from about $15 - $18.

HTH,

Mary Kay

[gabriele]

Ok ladies, bragging time again, 4 more pounds!!! Yes!! I am on a roll here.
We are walking 2 or 3 miles a day now, more on weekends (sometimes 6 miles a day). The husband sometimes is tired and doesn't want to walk and it is ME who drags him out. This is a total turnaround. Even in rainy weather, i study that radar and sneak out between the clouds!

Nobody at work has noticed a thing. (i am still big, i know). One coworker asked about my latest "diet" (she's known me for over 20 years) and when i told her i had lost 26 pounds, she didn't say one word. I mean, if someone i knew said that, i would be so excited and proud of them, and ask a bunch of questions, but all she said was "what are you doing" and i briefly mumbled the word vegetarian which is all they can handle. They already think that is quite radical.......to prove my point she said "but what about meat, can't you just eat it in moderation?" and i said to her, if you really want the answer to that, it would take me one hour to explain it to you. She laughed and left the room.

Even my dentist said "but where do you get your protein?", it's the very first question we all hear. But anyway i feel terrific, i feel "light" and i've never eaten so many fruits and vegetables in my life. Today we were actually foraging under the persimmon tree in our park, where our dog Dudley eats pounds of persimmons every fall, and i took home a bag for myself to make into a smoothie, never had one before in my life!!

Snoops, how is your raw challenge doing? And Mary Kary, what are you up to?

[snoops]

Congratulations on the weight loss gaby. Are you eating differently or is it strictly the walking? That is fantastic, you must feel awesome.

I am still going on my "till the equinox" challenge. I have slipped up a couple times but just pick myself up and keep going. Much different than in the past. I guess I am learning. This is a lifestyle not a diet and there WILL be slip ups. No biggie. Still haven't weighed myself and that in itself is so freeing. I can tell I am losing pounds and inches so I feel good.

I am doing Revvell's EFT tapping teleclass next week and am hoping that will give me continued strength!!

Thanks for asking and keep up the walking:)

[gabriele]

I think you must be doing very well, Snoops...... that tap class sounds like fun.

I think the walking helps a lot because it burns such a chunk of the calories i eat every day. I read that 811 book and it's emphasis on fruits and less fats and that has helped a lot, even though i still eat (gasp) whole wheat bread.

But the biggest key to it all (i keep telling my husband) is that i only eat when i'm really hungry (otherwise i could eat all day long and never stop). When i have the urge to eat something, i ask myself "are you truly hungry?" and if the answer is no, then i don't eat it.

[Mary Kay]

Snoops, I like the attitude that you've slipped up, but don't beat yourself up, and pick yourself up again. Way to go.

Gaby, You're going to be our poster girl, I'm betting. In my mind, there's nothing wrong with a LITTLE whole wheat bread. It's just not as nutrient dense as some raw foods may be. But obviously, a little is working for you, because look at the weight you're losing!!! I probably eat the equivalent of two or three pieces of cooked bread a month. We do sprouted spelt bread that I get from a co-op to which I belong, or else I make some whole wheat bread. Interesting that spelt, even cooked is more alkaline than other grains. And sprouted spelt is the more digestible, so I'm glad to have access to this bread through the co-op. My family eats/and can afford (weight-wise) to eat more than I.

Me? Well, I'm sad no one remarked about my camping pics a couple wks ago!! Wanted a LITTLE cheerleading/feedback/encouragement!!! LOL I am proud of the fact that I did it, but disappointed that I'm nowhere near being an Ironwoman!

Just got back from the Raw Spirit Festival (raw foods- Wash DC.) Was another big deal for me...not physically, like the camping trip...just the getting ready stuff. I brought my juicer, Magic Bullet, lots of food, packed up the kids, their bikes etc etc...PIA...And dh couldn't come. Kind of stressful getting everything ready without any help from dh this time. Wondered why I put myself through this. I wasn't ready on time because I had too much to do, and we didn't get there until 3:30 a.m. the night before the Festival.

But now that it's over, I'm glad I went. Even though I'm pretty experienced with raw foods stuff and knew most of what I saw/heard, I did learn important tidbits.

There was a doc there -Dr. Yashpal Jayne, who did live blood analysis and Electro Dermal Food Sensitivity Testing ///the kids and I all had it done as it was a good $$ deal -- My opinion: the live blood analysis doesn't lie. The Electro Dermal ---mmmmm, not sure.

I mainly did it because I was thinking about candida for myself, and possibly my son. About 3 wks ago, I started having gas and an itchy butt, not serious, but enough to make me think all these yummy treats with honey, maple syrup etc for my kids AND the amt of fat I eat should be curbed, and that I may possibly be getting it. Sure enough, the LBA live blood -- said I had a small amt of candida. So this is good inspiration for me to do something about it..

The kids did not - they were fine. They eat a ton of fruit and some sweets that I make (no storebought junk though), so I was wondering. But they are very active and can afford it. ----- I can't. Even Doug Graham, the high-fruit guy says "you have to earn your fruit." Well, I don't think it's the fruit I eat, but the added sweeteners, and either way, they earn it, but I don't.....

All our blood was a little sticky from not drinking enough water. Especially my daughters, which I knew. It is very difficult for me to get her to drink. I'm going to insitute a policy in my household where I'll pour out a measured amt for each person, and by the end of the day, they have to drink it. (Dh included - he's the worst culprit) If the kids drink theirs every day, they'll get a quarter a day....or something. Maybe I can give dh some sexual incentive....LOL........Well, I think if he sees it measured out, and I have it all prepared in containers for him, maybe he'll do it. This is what I do for myself...pre-measure, and I especially drank at the festival because I knew the test was coming up, and STILL he said I need to drink more.

The electro dermal pointed to a few things where my kids had sensitivities, and whether or not it's right, it still has made me realize something: You absolutely need to vary your foods. You just can't eat the same thing all the time. I raise chickens and my kids eat eggs (raw and cooked) just about every day. They had sensitivities to eggs according to the test, as well as a few other things. But interestingly, not to milk. They drink raw milk - almost every day, so I'm going to decrease this and add more nut milks so their diet is a bit more varied. I still "believe" in raw milk --but am going to do a moderation approach for them.

He said I had NO food sensitivities. I don't really believe I have none,, but he said he sees no sensitivities in maybe 1 out of 20 people.

Then I asked him how I looked --in gen'l,. what my "grade" was compared to others. He said I was definitely better than most. I said that I hoped so, since I don't eat a SAD diet etc, and he said that he was not comparing me to mainstream people, but to raw food people, since he mainly tests at raw food festivals ---so that was encouraging.

My weight this morning was 135. Sigh.

There was a booth there with some delicious BBQ "burgers" made with nuts, that really resonated with me. Loved 'em. Then I saw the woman whose booth it was, and she was well - overweight. This hit home, because I know this has been my downfall.

You know, in nature, we'd have to find 'em and shell 'em. They don't come in bags where you can reach in and grab handfuls......Sigh.

So I don't know what I'm goingto do....ease into a green smoothie fast? Just do lots of juicing? I haven't decided yet, but I'm going to definitely do something. This will have the side effect of weight loss too, so it'll be win/win.

Hope you're all doing well. Better go and unpack the van....not looking forward to it. Wanted to write all of you first....and procrastinate....LOL

Mary Kay

[gabriele]

Hey there MaryKay, that was a really nice, long post, glad you are back.

Phew, if only i weighed 135, dang!! But, i'm catching up to you!!! gee, only 87 more pounds to go (to catch you!).....

Sorry i didn't comment about the camping pics...... i really hate camping, i used to go with the ex husband while we were dating and it really brings back unpleasant memories, so i don't really "connect' when see or hear about camping experiences. We actually used to camp in the mountains of West Virginia in the middle of winter with only an outhouse and frozen water in the morning, what a nightmare.

The raw food festival sounds interesting, i'm glad you had a good time. Sounds like you learned a lot thru all that testing.

You bring up some interesting points about candida, "sticky" blood and drinking water. I too just finished that 811 boo (which i loved) and maybe the problems is not eating enough fruits and too many fats (seeds, nuts, oils, goodies, you know). Anyway, that's what i'm thinking.

I can't tear myself away from my hummus on bread at night (none of which is raw), i just can't give up everything. And i finally, FINALLY, came up with a salad dressing that i made myself thru much trial and error which doesn't have egg yolks in it, since i'm trying to stay vegan, which is mustard and honey (controversial to some i guess) but at least i've eliminated the eggs and the oil. Still a work in progress.

We've been walking miles and miles every week, not missing a single day. Of course now my knees hurt and i walk like i'm a 99 year old. hmmm, that's not good. oh well, glad you're back,

gaby

[Mary Kay]

Gaby,

You know what happens when you eat too much hummus?
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
You commit hummus-cide.

MK

[gabriele]

hummicide?????

i have committed lots of hummicide!!! love the stuff, it's better than eating chocolate.

Please notice, i lost ONE MORE pound!!! yippee!!!

i was stubborn enough to walk all summer long in sandals (on those long walk) and now my knees are killing me. Dummy. Started wearing "real" shoes again but i'm walking like a 90 year old.

[somelikeitraw]

Hi Ladies!
Hope you don't mind my popping in here from time to time. I am diligently not getting sucked into the computer for hours every day. :o

Sounds like you are all doing well.

Way to go on the weight loss Gaby!

MK, I am amazed at your bike ride camping trip! Holy Cow! That would've killed me! Really enjoyed your post about RSF in DC.

Snoops! You are doing so great!!! Kudos, kudos, kudos!!

I didn't look back in my posts to see where I was weight wise last time I posted here. As of last week my total release since the start of February is 55 pounds. It has slowed lately, yet it is still dropping. I do notice that if I go on a nut binge it slows even more, but if I just use nuts sparingly for flavor I don't have a problem.

Wow! 135! I would LOVE to weigh that! 52 more pounds to release will get me there.

My biggest challenge is exercise. I love the way it makes my body feel later in the day/week/month when I do it, I just can't seem to get myself to do it. It has been horrendously hot here lately, so there is no chance I am going walking. Yesterday was less hot at 104 F in the shade. Sorry, but I can not deal with that kind of heat. I do have a couple of exercise programs that I used to enjoy that I could do in the comfort of the air conditioned house. Now I just have to get myself to do them. I'm doing pretty well with not beating myself to a pulp about not doing them. Although, I am keenly aware that I am disappointed with myself for not having started.

Hummus-cide! I love it!

Raw Hummus is pretty easy and has become a craving for me. I soak the dried chick peas/garbonzo beans (love that name!) overnight and then drain and rinse. Then I let them sit in the strainer for about 15 - 20 mins. Then I put them in the FP with lemon juice (lately I've been using meyer lemons), fresh garlic put through a press, raw tahini, a longish splash of evoo, and a few dashes of cayenne pepper or a fresh serrano pepper from the garden (which has all but shriveled away from the heat!). Today I thought I would try adding some red, yellow and orange sweet peppers for something a little different. I've been dipping sliced cukes, zukes or diakon in my hummus, although yesterday I just ate it with a spoon!

Am planning to experiment with green lentils next.

Keep up the great job Ladies!

[gabriele]

Somelikeitraw, great to have you back!! My mouth is watering just reading about your hummus, i have become a total hummus fan. I don't think my chickpeas are raw, they're from a can, but oh well. The tahini i use is raw (and expensive, yikes) but i made my best batch ever yesterday. You may remember that i am no cook so yesterday i roasted my very first red pepper over the flame and it was so scary!!! Wow, did it taste good in my hummus.

Anyway, time to brag again, and i might say, great news about the 55 pound loss, i can't wait to get there, you sound like you have such a healthy attitude about how you're doing it.

I lost another 2 pounds, which makes my total 30!! yippeee

And the walking, do you have any humidity out there in CA?? It's cooler here now, in the 80's and less humid, i can't imagine walking in 104 degrees either, that sounds risky. It should cool off soon, don't you think?

[RawKnitster]

Hello everyone, I'm just peeking in on you for a few minutes to see what is going on here on the weight loss challenge. Keep up all the good stuff. :D

[ssandee]

Raw Hummus is pretty easy and has become a craving for me. I soak the dried chick peas/garbonzo beans (love that name!) overnight and then drain and rinse. Then I let them sit in the strainer for about 15 - 20 mins. Then I put them in the FP with lemon juice (lately I've been using meyer lemons), fresh garlic put through a press, raw tahini, a longish splash of evoo, and a few dashes of cayenne pepper or a fresh serrano pepper from the garden (which has all but shriveled away from the heat!). Today I thought I would try adding some red, yellow and orange sweet peppers for something a little different. I've been dipping sliced cukes, zukes or diakon in my hummus, although yesterday I just ate it with a spoon!
!

Thanks for the reminder of using dried garbonza beans...sheesh, that's how I made it SADly. But for some reason, been going the nut route when making hummus, and I really think I need to limit the nuts a bit while weight releasing is an issue.
thanks!

ssandee :)

[Mary Kay]

Somelikeitraw, What's a good raw tahini to use? I made some and it was bitter, so I bought some and it had the same bitterness!

I've tried raw chick pea hummus and didn't like it, so when I do make a cooked version, I raw it up a bit by adding avocado or zucchini. I even add greens and mix it up in the Vita-Mix. Looks more like guacamole, LOL.

I just tried a friend's raw version of hummus with strictly zucchini. It was good, but not quite as "rich" as with the chick peas.

Mary Kay

[Mary Kay]

Well, I'm at 133 today. My friend who started with me that was 10 lbs heavier is now at 131. Sigh.

I've got a plan though: I'm going to do two meals that are either just raw juice (mostly veggie), or smoothies, and one meal per day. It's going to be rather loose, like if I want to take a bite of something, I'll do it if it's not sweet. Maybe it'll be breakfast, or lunch or whatever.

Kids are going back to karate too, so while they're in karate, I can work out. This will mean I'll at least be getting in three workouts a week.

So that's my loose plan for now. If THAT doesn't work, I'll make it tighter. Maybe after a week or two of this, do a one-week mini cleanse.

I'm wondering if you ladies have tested or considered any candida. As I mentioned in an earlier post, I could just tell about three wks ago, I was getting it, and a blood test confirmed it. And I was thinking of you Gaby, with the bread. Mind you, I don't think a little whole grain bread is bad---the cooked stuff----but I'm not going to be eating any until I'm sure this candida thing is cleared up. Just thought I'd hrow this out there.

And did any of you test your pH?

One of the ladies in my raw meetup just cured herself of breast cancer by going quite alkaline,so this was good inspiration to me. She was diagnosed this April and is now fine.

Gaby, maybe you know about this: They use some sort of titanium clip on the lump to detect it. They left hers in without telling her because they always assume someone will have a lump removed! Now there's noting there but the titanium clip. She said at least she knew the exact location of where it WAS, but doesn't know whether to remove it or not. Any insight?

Mary Kay

[gabriele]

Hey MaryKay, no, i have never heard of titanium clips left in the body!! wow, it would be interesting to hear exactly what she eats.

You're talking about ph testing and candida........i work in a hospital and i make it a strict rule to NEVER go near any doctors unless i'm ready to have an organ removed (the gallbladder for example)........i stay away from doctors as a general rule. Our ER docs are the best, but they all just scare the hell out of me. :(( I had a whole cardiac cath done on me because a sonogram revealed a false positive result, and i didn't even need that sono either. I just find that the minute you get yourself involved in the medical web of tests and surgery it's very hard to extricate yourself.

About your weight, how tall are you MaryKay?? Because your goal is 115, i am imagining that you are shorter than 5'5", am i right? You know, no matter what your height is, you are pretty close to your goal weight, you know it's going to be slower and slower that you lose any weight. And you seem so active too! For a person as active as you are, i would look at the amount of fat in your diet (i'm the expert now, listen to me!! hahaha). Well, gotta get back to work...

[Mary Kay]

Oh Gaby, you are so right. I do eat too much fat. and as far as sweets, it's not the fruit I eat that's the problem, it's the added sweeteners I put into my concoctions. The kids and dh can afford to eat them because they are more active than I. (Did one of my late night artist's modes, and "invented" raw corn fritters and apple fritters last night!)

Oh, btw, I'm 5'2 and 3/4, so I just say 5'3" and I am very small boned. I could probably go down to 110. But there's a sort of a rule (rules can be broken by body builders etc though): For a woman: At 5 ft tall, you should be 100 lbs, and for every inch, add five lbs. Then if you're over forty, add another five lbs ---the extra added fat, helps your estrogen/hormones. So, that puts me right at 120. However, because I'm so small boned, and thin limbed, I go for 115.

I went down to 116 at the end of two long fasts (for that molar pregnancy), and although I looked a whole lot better, could still pinch some fat! I was not working out at all though, so I'm sure I didn't have much muscle, and have weighed the same amount in earlier/more muscular times when I was working out, and yet was "thinner.".

No, I just wonder about you ladies who were so heavy, who were no doubt eating lots of carbs/sweets. I'm not quite as "addicted" and probably don't eat as much as you girls probably used to, but still got candida, so was just guessing that you gals probably did too .



Mary Kay.

[gabriele]

Ok, i actually had to go look up what candida is, exactly, and here are the symptoms of candida:

abdominal gas

headaches

migraines

excessive fatigue

cravings for alcohol

anxiety

vaginitis

rectal itching

cravings for sweets

inability to think clearly or concentrate

hyperactivity

mood swings

diarrhea

constipation

hyperactivity

itching

acne

eczema

depression

sinus inflammation

pre-menstrual syndrome

dizziness

poor memory

persistent cough

earaches

low sex drive

muscle weakness

irritability

learning difficulties

sensitivity to fragrances and/or other chemicals

cognitive impairment

thrush

athlete's foot

sore throat

indigestion

acid reflux

chronic pain

YIKES!!! wow, who doesn't have a lot of these symptoms? Anyway, it's a wonder i am alive, because i am not kidding you when i say that i literally lived on Lindt chocolate. It was the bulk of my food every day. Maybe some pringles added (ok no more bad food talk)......i don't know how my body survived that or got a single nutrient in all those years. Every time i drink a smoothie i imagine my organs all humming away in there, happy and wondering what happened that they are suddenly getting all this nutrition!!

[Mary Kay]

Thanks for posting the list Gaby. Yep, I knew I was getting it, as I mentioned because I have had a little gas (which is not normal for me) and my butt was itchy.

Interesting to see the earache on there, because once right after eating something really sweet, my ear started to ache! I mean right after! This was a couple wks ago. I wasn't realizing yet that I had candida but made the connection and curbed the sweet stuff and it went away the next day.

A friend of mine would add something to the list: dandruff. She says if she eats too much sugary stuff, she gets it and has seen others online who do also. I've always thought of dandruff as a selenium/fatty acids deficiency, but maybe somehow the added insulin or whatever, blocks those etc.

Thanks again for taking the time to look it up and post it.

Mary Kay

[gabriele]

You know, i think the problem with candida and sugar/fruits is when you have too much fat in your diet. According to Doug Graham, there is nothing wrong with fruits, it's the excess fat that prevents the fruit from being absorbed properly that causes the yeast that is normally in our bodies to go beserk. (And i'm simplifying here...) if you have too much fat, then you have too much sugar also since it's not being absorbed and then the yeast feeds on that sugar and bingo! you have candida. At least that's how i understand it.

[snoops]

Gaby, I just noticed on another post that you are at 215 now.:eek::eek:That is fantastic. How do you feel? Are you still walking? YOU GO GIRL. I'm proud of you.

[mamabird1953]

Hi there, can I join your little challenge? I have been following you for awhile. I think I need to be accountable to someone as well as needing support.

I've been on and off the over 50 thread for a couple of years now. I was very commited to my raw food diet for a few years, then when I got divorced and then reunited with my old boyfriend ( we've been together 4 yrs. now) I introduced him to raw, since he has health issues...over weight and diabetic. We did very well for awhile, then, one day we decided to have a Starbucks, and now for the past couple of years it's been a real down hill struggle. I felt so good and perfectly healthy on raw, plus it was fun being so creative in the kitchen! I was about 118 lbs. and felt better than when I was in my 40's. Now I'm 55. I've gained about 11 or 12 lbs. I'm very depressed over my health. All my symptoms of arthritis and candida, as well as chronic fatigue have come back. I just found out that I'm going to be a grandma for the first time ( my sons wife) and I want to be around for a long time with lots of energy for that grandbaby! So... I'm ready to get back to the way of eating that I love! I just can't understand why we let a few taste buds ruin our life? Sorry for such a long post... I just needed to vent.

[gabriele]

Hey Snoops and Mamabird!! Yes i'm at 215 now, that sounds a lot better than 250, huh? I feel so much better, we are still walking. My hubby visited his family in NJ for one week and i walked something like 23 miles that week all alone. Even in the rain, didn't miss a day. I can't imagine not walking now, not that i'm fast or anything, but i have to have my daily walk.

Mamabird, you can do it!! Interesting how fast those symptoms come back when you eat crummy food. I was very curious to hear how my hubby was going to do in NJ with his meat-eating family (who don't want to hear anything about healthy eating, and they look it) and he stuck to it, didn't deviate one single time! I'm proud of him. So for that new grandchild that's coming, you can do it, at least you already know how!! A huge advantage!! Write back soon!!

[mamabird1953]

Thanks for replying Gaby! I really need to cleanse. I feel every cell in my body is full of garbage. It's going to be hard now that my manbear isn't wanting to go raw. It upsets me because I know that we can heal just about anything with this lifestyle. I hope to be strong and a good example to him like I use to be.

[Mary Kay]

Welcome Mamabird, and hi to everyone else.

Not doing too well here. Think I had candida die-off and got three migraines in one week, so I slowed it down by eating more.

Consequently, I haven't lost any more weight. My friend who weighed 10 more lbs than I , is now thinner than I. She looks great.

Was thinking of starting this thread in the main part of the forum, because I was feeling like no one was posting! Glad to hear others posting!

I have been doing some workouts though, but I just don't feel like myself. Feel tired and have a teeny tiny headache. Must be the candida die-off. I just can't do a major cleanse/fast etc and kill off these buggers too quick, I guess---I have a family to which I must tend.....

Feeling down. I'll live though.

Mary Kay

[mamabird1953]

I too have been having candida problems. I know there are suplements that help the candida get out of the system a little faster. I also have arthritis pain that I know will disappear when 100% raw.

I want to join the challenge in October but we have been so poor lately that its hard to be creative. I lost my job and manbear is on dissability. Maybe I will post on the main forum for very low budget meal ideas.

Also I need to give up coffee and Vicoden. I dont take alot but its enough that I will feel the effects of getting off. I started the Vics when my arthritis pain came back. Gosh...I just can't believe what I've done with myself after being so perfectly healthy on raw.

[gabriele]

Hello ladies,

hmmm, MaryKay, i don't know anything about candida other than it seems that a high intake of fat makes it worse. ??? not sure. i also feel "tired", have been sleeping a lot and walking a lot, don't know, just feel sleepy and tired. Everyone in my house has been sick lately but not me, which is weird, i catch everything, but i am a big Vitamin D fan and take a lot of that so maybe that is protecting me now.

Mamabird, how are you doing sticking to the raw diet? Have you started? I'm sorry you're having a rough time with job and vicodin. :( Maybe once your arthritis goes away for good you can kick the vicodin out the door. That can't be good for your liver.

i lost 2 more pounds, i think maybe i'm not drinking enough water, i'm a horrible drinker. Even with my smoothies, i think i'm dehydrated.

[mamabird1953]

I've been on and off raw the last year. I use to be so strong and now I always let my guy talk me into eating junk. He has diabetes and is on dissability. I need to be strong and not let anyone get in my way. I want to get off coffee and Vic and live a long and healthy life for my only grandbaby thats comming into the world. I am miserable and I'm done with filling myself with dis-ease, mentally, emotionally and physically. It even effects me spiritually. I'm angry and I blame him...even tho I'm right there with my mouth open. Sorry I'm on the pitty pot.

[Mary Kay]

Hey Mamabird, Pity Pot away....that's why we're here.

Which kind of arthritis? Well, I suppose it doesn't really matter, but with OA, I believe it to be a mostly pH thing, and with RA, I believe it to also be a pH thing as well as a food sensitivity, particularly grains, dairy. These are my thoughts anyway, but the reason I'm throwing this out there, is because what really helps to stay raw etc is to monitor your pH.

If you're acid, your body's trying to neutralize it by robbing your bones, joints etc, so I've found it helpful by monitoring my pH.

Checking your second urine of the day is very helpful IMO. If I'm not high enough, it inspires me to add more greens via green smoothies etc.

You want it to be 6.75 - 7.5. For healing, you want it to be around 8 for awhile. My thoughts.

And Gaby, you keep bringing up the fat thing. You know that rude guy who said he eats 90% fat, that just posted last night? Well, I don't think he's totally wrong, actually, provided your body doesn't go into ketosis from a lack of fruits and veggies. Even though he's quite rude. I believe a high fat diet is okay SO long as you don't add the sugar combo. Look at the eskimos ---it wasn't until they added refined carbs that they got fat, diabetic and cancerous.

You just got done reading Graham, so I know that's where your mindset is right now - 811, but I think for most people, such a low fat thing is too low. Are you familiar with Jinjee Talifero? She's a raw guru of sorts and specializes in women's hormones/pregnancy etc, and she's seen numerous women have probs on such a lowfat diet. The hormones need the fat. That is also why women over 40, are "allowed" an extra five lbs to their ideal weight --to keep those hormones regulated.

Even Robt Young is now saying 3 1/2 oz of fat a day.

Now mind you, you're losing weight and I'm not!!! For me, I know that cutting the fat helped me lose the weight. But not a lifetime of low fat, IMO.. So I'm definitely needing to cut some calories! I got a mild case of candida because of the sugar er, I don't do regular sugar - I'm talking about honey and maple syrup. I don't even think it was the fruit, but the added sugars I put into my raw desserts. It's that fat/sugar combo that's the killer. IMO anyway.


But I think I need to do both - cut the fat AND the sugar!!!

There are some who believe that high fat is good for you and there's a site BEE Candida, where people have cured candida while maintaining high fat diets.....

My latest "experiment" is with coconut/coconut oil. I've also added a little goldenseal, bought some pau d'arco, but haven't used it yet etc etc. I've read coconut oil is great for candida due to the caprylic acid etc, so I'm giving it a try....Hmmmmmm. Maybe I'll make sure it's in moderation.

Don't feel like myself, but this is probably a good thing. LOL, will just have to wait it out.

Going to write about Candida die-off when I get a chance in the gen'l forum.

Kids want pancakes for lunch. LOL, they're cooked, but I do grind the flour --oats and spelt etc....Last week I ate two of these on the same day I ate a piece of Ezekial bread and my rosacea has flared up ever since...probably also part of the die-off - Herxheimer effect happening too. I'm not going to eat any today though, I guarantee that!!!

Talk to all of you soon...

Rambling Mary Kay

[gabriele]

Well there "rambling" MaryKay, you are way more knowledgeable than i am. Remember, all of this is new to me, i have educated myself a lot in the past year but a lot of people here and elsewhere have been eating this way for years and years.

I've read Alissa's book, the 811 book, also Doctor Yourself, Linus Pauling, John Robbins, Dr. Fuhrman and Dr. McDougall, and also that Engine2 diet. The truth is somewhere in all of these books. I think the raw diet is good except for the high fat content. That makes common sense to me. The fat prevents the other essential nutrients from being properly absorbed, as i understand it. Anyway, i can't explain it scientifically.

About the coconut oil, we have a gallon of the stuff in the kitchen, everyone loves it. I use it very sparingly, because i'm trying to lose weight. But what a yummy taste!! As you know, i'm stuck on my hummus thing, on black bread toast, none of which is raw. But the rest of the day is raw!!

[mamabird1953]

Good Morning Ladies! Its Osteoarthritis that I have. I even have some in my lower back and neck. Yuk! But you are right MaryKay! When ever I start eating grains of ANY sort, I will have a flare up. When I was 100% raw I did eat some sprouted oatgroats for breakfast a couple times a week with no symptoms. I need to get some of those ph sticks.

What was really nice on total raw, I could raw eat desserts every night and stay between 116-118 lbs. Truly "having my cake and eating it too.

I need to find some raw recipes that are really cheap. I got laid off and my manbear got on state dissability. Soon, he will get military dissability. But in the mean time were having to borrow for food. I got denied unemployment so I'm appealing it. Everything is behind here in California, so the appeal will take awhile. I make soap, incense, and body care products and I'm trying to get it off the ground. I do sell to friends but not enough to live. We're going to try the flea markets to see how that will go. I'm also working on a web site and thats hard and confusing so I switched to yahoo web hosting.

What are some ideas for cheap recipes? We've been so poor I've had to eat Top Raman. 4 packs for a dollar. That stuff is garbage and I really swell up.

We're looking to move to a cheaper area when he gets his military money. We live in Silicon Valley and its outragious here. Enough for now.... I talk too much!

[Mary Kay]

Mamabird....Don't do like I do, do as I say: LOL....Don't eat those raw desserts====this was my downfall as I now have candida!!

For cheap ideas: Grow your own. Do you have a Vita-Mix or a wheatgrass juicer? If so, wheatgrass in flats is real easy. Just plant some hard winter wheat berries and in 8 - 10 days you have wheatgrass. If all you have is a Vita-Mix, then you can just add a little water to some freshly cut wheatgrass and run it through a strainer after you blend it. You can get flats on Freecycle too no doubt, and also this time of yr, probably lots of seeds on sale.....spinach, lettuce.....Since you say you'll be moving, instead of planting outdoors in the ground, you can plant kale and collards etc in big pots. Lowe's or Builder's Square will often have sales of bagged soil this time of year. Or go to one and look for some broken bags and ask them if they'll give you a deal. I know someone who did this.

Then there's sprouts. Broccoli seed is really expensive but tasty and wholesome. Don't know if you have friends by you with whom you could share, but Frontier sells sprouts for cheap in 1 lb bags. You could mail order some. These can be grown in mason jars with nylons on top. They have a sprout mix that is something like $8 for a l lb bag. Plus shipping, maybe it'll be $12, but that'll grow a LOTof food.

Sunflower seeds can be grown in flats with soil. Eat them by cutting them off when they get their first set of leaves, before their second set. They're cheap to buy raw at the HFS or Whole Foods, for example. A couple bucks will get you a pound or so. (You can also get hard winter wheat berries there for wheatgrass)

What about some CSA's or local farmers? They're really busy this time of year, and could probably use some help in exchange for food. I'll bet they'd let you come in for a partial day a week and give you a week's supply of fresh stuff. .

We have an apple farm and there are tons of drops. The law says we can no longer sell or use these for cider etc (a deer might poop on'em! E-coli, for crying out loud....Oh don't get me started...LOL), but I'll bet an apple farmer etc would let you have the drops.

You could post on Craigslist "Garden/Harvest Help in Exchange for Produce" as well.

I know you wanted recipes, but these are my ideas for cheap fresh produce.

Oh, and after Halloween, you can probably get all the free or really cheap pumpkins you could want.

No doubt, you'll want to save your $15 on pH strips until you can buy food, but it would be interesting to see where you are now, vs when you start eating more live food. Heck, you could even post on Freecycle or Craigslist, for a couple pH strips, just to measure now. If I saw someone wanted some pH strips, I'd give'em a couple. Heck, give me your address, and I'll mail you some! Just email me. marykaysimoni at juno dot com. It can be good for your man to see where he's at also. If he sees how acidic he is, this might inspire him.

Put up signs at your local HFS.

I've been poor, and I remember in '76, when I was 21 and in college, I literally had 50 cents. I was at the Food Co-op and had to decide between raw cashews or gas for my mini pickup truck. (50 cents actually could buy enough for a couple trips to college in those days!). LOL, I bought the cashews and sold the truck.

I've always bought healthy mostly organic food, even when I was broke. Just make it a priority, and you'll do it.

It can even be kind of fun to see how much you can scrounge up, and feel a sense of accomplishment when you get great deals/barter etc.


HTH, all I can think of for now!

Mary Kay

[mamabird1953]

Mary Kay, thankyou so much for your great advice. I printed out your reply to keep it handy for ideas and support. I do have a Vita Mix, dehydrator, and even a proccesor and spiroli. We got those when we had money a couple of years ago. I can't afford to buy seeds through the mail but I can get sunflower seeds and hard wheat. I thought maybe I'd make a bunch of crackers and onion bread since flax and sunflower seeds are so cheap. And I thought maybe some zucchini noodles with raw tomato sauce. Yes...pumpkins too. Pumkin soup! I just can't be too creative since I have a limited amount of money for food. I'll just get a few things here and there with every few dollars we get. It is doable! I would love a couple of ph sticks. Thanks!

Now my guy is using this as an excuse to eat junk. I'm determined to show him that we can be temporarily poor and eat healthy.

I want to thank you so much for your great advice! This is a good thread. All of you seem to really care.

[gabriele]

Mamabird, i don't really have any advice for you, i think MaryKay has so much information for you, i can't top that. What a wonderful post she wrote!! I do think you are ahead of the game since you have a Vitamix and other equipment already and you do know how to use it!!

just wanted to add that back when i was eating my favorite lindt chocolate, i would stop off at the store and buy that and my other goodies, spending $20 for the DAY just on "junk" food. I did that almost every morning. That's $100 for one working week just on junk food. Today, i spend half that much on fruits and greens and other stuff. Sometimes less than half. You don't always have to buy organic either, there are a lot of fruits that don't soak up as much pesticides as others, ie bananas and kiwis come to mind. i never buy them organic. I bought organic kiwis and they were yellow and pale inside and tasted weird, the regular ones are deep green and yummy. Keep your chin up, just do what's best for you, don't worry so much about the hubby, it is exhausting trying to control someone else's diet, i have found.....

[mamabird1953]

your so right about the money spent on junk food. I use to always argue about this with Woody. Last night he was talking about how great he felt on raw and how fast he lost 50 lbs. So he said he'll start with me in the morning while stuffing his self with corndogs.

Well, its morning and he wants toast and syas he'll start when we get money. We had money yesterday and it was spent on junk. But I am determined. Gonna have some onion bread (from Gone Raw site) and avocado, a little sunflower cheese, red onion, and what ever else I can throw on.

I guess I should put up my stats. When I first joined I was about 116-118 lbs. I gained everything in my boobs and belly.

[mamabird1953]

I think I'll post my 30 day raw challenge on this thread because If I blow it or drink coffee, I can talk about it without feeling too guilty. So, I'm down to one cup of coffee now. Gonna get off pain meds too, including anti-inflamatorys which kill my stomach. I'm only taking 1 1/2 Vics. Then tomorrow and the next day, one Vic. Then half, then None!

[Mary Kay]

Mamabird,



Our bodies are twins! LOL, I'm 5 ft 3 and this a.m. weighed 131. It's all in my boobs and belly. I've got skinny arms and legs and no butt. A few pages back are my pics - page 20, just below halfway. Tell me if that's your body! LOL I'm four or five lbs heavier than the last pics, so I'm somehwere inbetween the photos now.

Had another migraine today. This Candida die-off is for the birds. Man, I just can't be debilitated like this. I've been in bed all day. Had to pay a driver to go get my share of stuff from a co-op, and a babysitter. Meanwhile, I'm not even dressed and it's 3:30.

Going to go shower and get my day started at the crack of 4:00 p.m. LOL

Gaby, at the rate you're going, you'll be our twin/triplet real soon!!!

Mary Kay

[Mary Kay]

Mamabird, that sounds kind of quick to drop the meds and the caffeine. Hope it's not too quick!

When I was addicted to coffee, I only ever drank one cup a day, it it still took me months to wean down to nothing.

MK

[mamabird1953]

MaryKay: The Vics has helped me cut down from coffee. I use to drink about 6-7 cups a day. Its been about 3 cups for awhile. I also use my migraine meds if its really bad. Is there anything you like to drink as a replacement? I feel I need something...

Gaby: I'm about 5'2 and 131 and my butts' as flat as a board. Skinny legs and arms. I look like a bird. I use to work in the whole Body department at Whole Foods and people use to use butterbur for migraines as well as feverfew.

So far I've had my onion bread and tomatoes. I might have a cup of Chai Spice Yerba Mate tea. Guayaki is a good brand. I know its not raw but from the site you can buy it raw and in bulk. Its supposed to be pretty good for you. So maybe I'm about 98% raw? Sometimes I have to take this a day at a time.

[mamabird1953]

maryKay and gaby..I got your names mixed up when I replyed to you. Brain Fart! Actually lots if them....

[Mary Kay]

I didn't even notice you mixed us up...LOL

never sent your pH strips....should get off the puter and send them. It would be really nice for you to see where you're at, before you "clean yourself up a bit."

Sorry, I lost an entire day when I had that headache.....GRRRR

Mary kay

[gabriele]

So, each of you ladies is about 130 pounds. My left leg is probably 130 pounds. :(((

anyway, i look thinner than i am because i had a lot of plastic surgery done over the years of losing weight and so i look kind of "sculpted".....meaning i had a tummy tuck and stuff so i don't look what my weight is.

I also get migraines, i pop 4 motrin (little ones) and i don't feel anything. I used to not be able to swallow pills so i suffered for decades. Because of this, i guess, my body is not used to medicines so the motrin is awesome for me.

Mamabird, good luck with quitting all that stuff, coffee and meds. My hubby drank at least 5 or more coffees every single day for many years and quit over night. Of course, he had a bit of a headache, but he's quit that habit completely. The meds might be tougher for you.

we walked 3 miles in the dark and rain last night (patting myself on the back) and then another 3 miles this morning, ohmygod, do my legs hurt, both of them, thru the whole walk this morning, i was almost in tears. I guess i'm walking too much.

will have a weigh in tomorrow morning, wish me luck!!

[mamabird1953]

Gaby...how fun to walk in the rain. I'm so ready for the changing season. We walk maybe a couple of miles 4 or 5 days a week. We have a golden retriever and she loves her walks with her mama and daddy. We joined 24 hr fitness as well. I've really lost muscle in the last 5 years and so I've been doing the weight machines, but very lite weights. I really love the steam room and hot tub. We get lazy about going as much as we should though.

Believe me, you'll probably lose more weight and at a faster rate than I will. Its so hard for me to lose, even though its only about 12 lbs. But its a lot for me and I feel unhealthy, weak, and miserable. I have chronic fatigue and candida. Its crazy what we do to ourselves for the sake of taste. I feel like caca and its all my fault.:(

By the way, what would someone eat with candida on the raw food diet?

Each day is a new beginning and it brings us closer to our goals. Yaaaay!

[snoops]

I'm so ready for the changing season.

Don't be so ready for it - its snowing here:eek: Arghhhh.

[gabriele]

Snoops!! Haven't heard from you in this thread for such a long time, and i miss you!! SNOW!!!!! blech........it's in the 60's here and i'm bundled up like an eskimo. in the 60's!!!

i hate winter, don't dislike it, HATE it. it is so gorgeous outside today. I wanted to post a 3 pound loss this week, but only managed 2 pounds. So i've lost 39 pounds in exactly 3 months. I guess i should be happy with this. And i am. I feel sooooooo good. except that my legs hurt a little from the walking.

Mamabird, don't know anything about candida except what i read in the 811 book, which is maybe you're eating too much fat (nuts, seeds, oils etc). They interfere with nutrients in the fruits. MaryKay knows a lot more about this than i do though. Good luck with everything, one day at a time, you will start to feel better soon.

[snoops]

So i've lost 39 pounds in exactly 3 months. I guess i should be happy with this.

You guess you should be happy with that??:eek::eek::eek: Girl!! 39 pounds in three months!! That is fantastic.

I keep reading here but have not been losing weight or really trying very hard:o so haven't been writing! I have maintained the 6 lb loss I had when I did that 5 days raw though. So that's a good thing. Just need a push to get going again I guess.

Keep up the good work gaby. You are my inspiration!

[mamabird1953]

Good morning, I've been up since 2:30. I'm detoxing so I have a bit of insomnia. So, I've been on the computer all morning looking at some yummy raw recipes. Gosh...there's litterally 1000's. No need to buy a book. Although I have plenty of them. So...I'm sitting here feeling kinda rummy and drowsy. I've been thinking of food for hours and am so hungry. I need to try to get some sleep. Been doing ok getting of the coffee and vics. Just have a headache and some body aches. Am very constipated though as well.

Keep up the good work Gaby. I look forward to seeing your stats going down.

[gabriele]

Good morning Mamabird!! You need to get some sleep!! I guess your body is reacting to all the bad stuff that you have kicked out of your system.......good for you!! I don't recall ever feeling the symptoms of detox myself, hmmm, maybe they were there but very subtle.

Finally this morning i lost the other pound, hit 40 pounds lost, i am so happy. I love a good round number!!! i am a 1/3 of the way there, only have 80 more pounds to go.

I fought hard for these pounds too, walking in the rain, walking when my legs hurt, walking in the blazing heat and humidity, going to bed hungry, ignoring hunger pangs, ignoring thoughts of eating something at night, ignoring all the food at work and the odors........... i think i'm actually a little proud of myself!!! :)

[mamabird1953]

I tried to go back to sleep but my old guy was snoring so bad that I just gave up. I'll take a nap later.

I am so excited for you. I think the hardest for us all is ignoring those hunger pains. You are a good example for those who have such a hard time. I know I don't have much to lose but its hard for me to lose it. Night time is the worse.

This week I humbled my self and applied for food stamps. I didnt think I'd ever have to do that one. But, they're giving me 200. a month untill things get better. Today I'm going shopping. Since I have to be careful with these, I'm going to get lots of smoothie and cracker ingrediants, and really shop the sales for produce. I'm going to get tons of bananas, let them ripen and freeze them. I'll get some nuts for nut milk as well. Also, stuff for raw pastas. I have to really plan this out and I simply don't know how since I've never been this poor.

I'm working on my liitle soap business but its been hard to do anything since I've been feeling so weak. But like you Gaby, I'm willing to go through it all to come out a winner. I think I'll take my dog, Daisy for a walk. Its a little brisk but will do me and Daisy a world of good.

[gabriele]

Hang in there Mamabird, you sound like you know just what to do to get you through all this. You know what to buy and how to prepare it, you will be ok. I can't wait until these tough economic times are over, it's really horrible.

I used to have a dog named Daisy, she was a lab. Now we have little Dudley. Yes, going for a nice brisk walk will make you feel a lot better. Hope you have a nice day!

[katchmoleen]

Hello, everyone, I have been active on this forum since the day I went raw almost 4 months ago. However I have resisted joining this thread. When I first went raw, I prepared myself for not losing weight. I have always had difficulty losing weight and I told myself it would NOT be the primary reason for going raw. It still is not the primary reason, but I have to say I am so excited to be losing weight and to know that it will stay off! I am really motivated now to reach a goal and do what it takes to do that. The first three months, 27 pounds came off rather easily. This month, only three so far, so I feel like I do need some support.

I am excited today though, because the scale reached THIRTY POUNDS GONE. Yahoo! To me, thirty pounds is a lot. You can't do that by accident. It takes effort and discipline! I am proud of myself, just like you Gabriele! :D

So now I need to start exercising. Several factors have kept me from doing so. I have an EXTREMELY busy life. I also (still) struggle with fatigue, even though I am doing a lot better. Also, I have fibromyalgia, and one of the symptoms of that is an exaggerated muscle soreness reaction with exertion. Where other people might be mildly sore after starting a new program, I literally end up in bed with flu like symptoms. It passes eventually, but I need to push through it and just don't want to be bothered right now!

I am going on a trip to Las Vegas next week with my family for a family reunion. My plan is to start an exercise program when I get back. Right now I am on day 2 of a water fast and then will do a day or two of green smoothies before my big Vegas trip.

Right now I am trying to employ the principles of EatStopEat (http://www.eatstopeat.com/intermittent-fasting.html) by Brad Pilon as a tool of weight loss (in addition to continuing 100% raw, of course). So we will see how that goes. Thanks for letting me join your group!

[gabriele]

Well Katchmoleen, welcome!! First off, is there room in your suitcase for one rather large woman? i just love Vegas, i have no money to gamble with, but i sure do love it.

I think it's a great achievement to lose 30 pounds, you are right, that didn't just happen by accident. I think a lot of people chose to eat raw for health reasons but avoid the weight question, thinking that eating raw will make them healthy. I personally believe that if you are overweight, you are unhealthy, you just can't see inside your arteries and see the fat on your liver and see the deterioration in your joints. And the stress to every part of your body that extra pounds create. But it's there! I think extra weight is a risk to your health, so why take that risk?

anyway, how will you exercise with your fibromyalgia problem? Does just plain walking do this to you? I am curious to see what you do to get around that. I'm so glad you are in our little group!!!

[gabriele]

Well, i'm back (for now)...........i've decided to start posting again. Is anyone still left here? Mamabird? Katchmoleen, Snoops, how is everyone? MaryKay?

I have lost 45 pounds BUT am eating more than i need, and have totally stopped walking because all those miles finally caught up to my right leg, which is sore, really sore, and now i'm limping around. This happened to me before, and i foolishly kept walking on it, and i guess it finally got worse.

But i feel so much lighter, people at work ask me how i did it and tell me how different i look. We're going to the beach in SC next week so we'll see how this affects my walking and diet. Looking forward to hearing from you all.

[Veganforlife]

Gabriele! 45 pounds is WONDERFUL! You go!

[gabriele]

Thanks, have a long way to go still...... working on it.

[katchmoleen]

Hi, Gabreile and everyone, I am now at 38 pounds lost on raw, 46 pounds total. Yay! We are all doing great! I found a full body photo of myself at my highest (those photos are as rare as hen's teeth, since I have always avoided the camera like the plague :rolleyes:) and I really see a difference. Tomorrow is 5 months raw for me so I am going to do a before and after full length to celebrate. Only ONE person has said anything to me about weight loss, besides a couple of people who know what I am doing. My husband says they are crazy, that it is very noticeable and not to get hung up on it.

Gabreile I hope your leg heals soon. Have a great time at the beach!

[Veganforlife]

Way to go! Katchmoleen! I am so proud and inspired by all of you!

[Mary Kay]

Yay! Glad you're back, Gaby. Mamabird, I sent you some pH strips, did you get them yet?

I went on a raw retreat this past weekend. It was HELL getting there --had to get ready to leave, pack the kids up for diff't houses /got little sleep, drove 600 miles, but what a deal! I couldn't refuse it. It was a weekend retreat/classes with Eva Rawposa in NC. I'm not new to raw, so it was not like I learned a ton, but I did pick up some tidbits, and the stuffing was worth the 600 mile drive itself! It was $245 for the whole weekend/food/room/classes, so I couldn't refuse.

I'm currently hovering around 130 and want to get into the 120's badly! I'm really going to do it!

I hope to be inspired by this thread again!

Mary Kay

[katchmoleen]

?

I went on a raw retreat this past weekend. Mary Kay



OOOOO I am so envious! I would have LOVED to go to that!

[gabriele]

Great to hear from everyone, except Mamabird, i hope you are doing ok.

Wow, Katchmoleen, you and i are neck and neck with the weight loss, 46 pounds is a lot, doesn't matter if you think nobody notices. You've got to notice it yourself, right? We should have a race, because i can't race MaryKay, my right leg weighs what MaryKay weighs. :((

anyway, can't wait to be off work next week and sitting on the sand staring at the ocean. Oh how i love the ocean. We've gone to this particular place for 30 years or so. There is nothing to do there but relax, be on the beach, walk, shop and read, it's so wonderful.

[katchmoleen]

I don't know what is wrong with me. My daughter took some pictures of me today and I can't bring myself to post them because I think I look horrible. I can't really see any difference with my "before" pictures. Forty six pounds for pete's sake, of course there is a difference, but I can't see it! Will I EVER like the way I look????

[gabriele]

oh c'mon, post them! I'm sure we will see a big difference. I'm sure you don't look horrible either. Please??? i would love to see them....

[katchmoleen]

I just did, in the before and after section, though I am still definitely "during."

[gabriele]

Are you kidding? You look fabulous!!!! What a difference, people are not seeing this? Your face!! You look totally different. Also the rest of you, there is a definite change. Wow, and look at your health. I also started on the 4th of July, what a coincidence!! And also lost 45 pounds. Good job! Your eyes pop out now!!!

[Mary Kay]

Oh, and Katchmoleen, your pic also looks like you're getting a waistline! I didn't mention that in my congrats in that thread.

And Gaby, a VACAY? Where ya' going? A little R & R has gotta be uplifting!

Mary Kay

[gabriele]

We're going to our favorite beach in south carolina, only it scares me about the walk because that's all we do there, we walk miles and miles on an empty, gorgeous beach. oh well, we'll see. i can't wait, it's my favorite spot on earth (after Paris!!) :))

[Mary Kay]

Most resort towns have bicycle shops where you can rent bicycles. Maybe you could go for a tandem? It's a nice way to see a town.

We have a tandem and I like it because I can keep up with dh.....Or I should say "used to." Now that we have kids, I don't think we used the tandem once this summer......sigh. But we did bicycle otherwise, as you know.

Mary Kay

[Mary Kay]

I just got an email from this site that said a Joyce09 had responded in this thread. When I clicked on it, I came here, but no new person named Joyce. Hmmmm. Interesting, she said she was 54 (my age), and 15 lbs overweight (me too!)

Joyce09, you here?

Mary Kay

[snoops]

there was a post from Joyce right below Gaby's. Then it disappeared!!:confused:

[Mary Kay]

Maybe she was somehow "banned?"

Mary Kay

[katchmoleen]

Well, her other posts are still here? Maybe SHE deleted it for some reason.

[Mary Kay]

I just went to the members section to see if she was still here, and it looks like she is, so I sent her a message.

WOWIE ZOWIE!! I had no idea there were so many members! There are something like 50 - 60 pages of members per letter of the alphabet!

Mary Kay

[joyce09]

Yes. I deleted it. My posting was answered first in another section where a group of gals are doing all raw. And they post daily progress. That suits me well because I need daily accountability. So I thought I just post there daily. Thank you for tracking me out!;) I am still visiting this section.:)

[joyce09]

Mary Kay, My goal weight is also 115 and I have been 130 for a couple of years (unhappily, always trying to lose the 15 lb.:(). How funny we have so many similarities!
I have been high raw for a couple of years too, with no weight loss to speak of:(. Now I realize my body is acid (according to Ph tapes), probably due to too much sweet fruit. Now I am trying to drink a lot of savory smoothies to see if it will make a difference.

[mamabird1953]

Hi there Everyone! I'm sorry I have'nt posted. I have been on the pitty pot big time, but before that my bear and I went to Hollywood and went on the Price Is Right. Thats been a dream of Woodys his whole life. We had to stand in line since 4 a.m. It was so cold and we hadnt slept so I ended up fainting...not once but twice. I refused to go to the emergency room. We did get in the audiance but we were'nt picked for the game. It was fun though.

My son lives not far from there so we spent a few nights visiting him and my beautiful daughter in law. This is my first grandbaby...due in April. We went out and bought them lots of baby stuff. We took her to the Doctors right before and we all found out together that they're having a boy. Yaaay! I am so excited about all of this. Never thought I'd be a grandma!

I recieved the PH sticks Mary Kay. Thankyou so much. Boy was I surprized at how acid I was. Especially after vacation. I am so weak! But on track again one day at a time. Sometimes I have to take this one hour at a time.

Im going to start planning my meals a day ahead of time. Otherwise I just cant stick with this. My man seems to really influence me and then we end up fighting over this. I introduced him to this way of life when we got back together 4 1/2 years ago and it was easy at first. He is such a compulsive eater and I have lost control as well. I wish he'd just eat somewhere else and that I didnt have to prepare anything for him.. I feel so resentful at times and get so angry but I'm the one with my mouth hanging open right along side of him! Have any of you gone through this? I feel so desperate and hopelss sometimes. I want to be strong and passionate like I use to be.

[Mary Kay]

I came here to write to you about how bad I've been...ate a ton of fat yesterday...weighed 133 today....Maybe this will inspire me to be better!

Katchmoleen, hang in there. Fainting twice!!!!??????

How was the vacation, Gaby?

Mary Kay

[mamabird1953]

Yes... I fainted twice . I have low blood pressure and I faint easy. Seems like I'm taking after my grandmother. She's was a fainter. My weight seems to be stuck. I can't seem to lose anymore. I just kind of hang around 130ish. I felt so good at 118. Its depressing. Blessings, Mamabird P.S.Thanks again for the sticks Marykay

[gabriele]

Wow, i'm glad you are back Mamabird and that you had a great time on the Price is Right! My oldest son also lives in LA so i don't get to see him often. He's trying to break into Hollywood as a writer.

My vacation was awesome, and we managed to stay vegan, at least, but ate a lot of junk vegan food, forget about raw........well, i did try to make some shakes with my little cuisinart that i dragged along with me, and they were good, but i don't think boiled, salted peanuts are raw. :(( i don't even want to weigh myself until next week, don't want to be depressed.

Today is my birthday, i am 56, ohmygod, that sounds so old to me. My husband is only 38! Nice as that is, wonderful as he is, i'm 18 years older and have my work cut out for me trying to keep up with him and be "young" for him.

Anyway, i'm back at work, same old grind....

[snoops]

Happy Birthday Gaby. Many happy returns!!

[gabriele]

thanks Snoops, how are you doing lately? Thought about you a lot before i left....

[katchmoleen]

Hi everyone, my weight has actually crept up a couple of pounds. This was a weight I was at for a loooooooong time, before I gained some more, so I think this is a "settling in" spot for my body unless I change something up. Don't really want to change my eating habits much, but i need to get more diligent about EatStopEat every week and I need to get my butt moving. When I come back from thanksgiving, I am going to start exercising regularly and I want you all to help me be accountable.

[mamabird1953]

Happy Birthday to you Gaby! My manbear and I will be 56 next month Dec 30th. He is 15 minutes older than me. So, of course we celebrate together. Wow....18 yrs older. Do you notice a difference in your ages?

We can do this...all of us. We just have to be strong and keep up with supporting each other daily. It sure does help. Have a peaceful sleep everyone. Nity-nite!

[gabriele]

Hey Mamabird, your hubby is only 15 minutes older than you? wow! what a coincidence. Yeah, i notice our age difference, everywhere we go, like to the vet for instance, someone always says to me "ma'am, your SON is out in the waiting room", i just hate that. Of course, if i was at my goal weight maybe i wouldn't look older. Also, it doesn't help that he has NO wrinkles at all, he has a baby face, so it's all his fault anyway.

Katchmoleen, i hear you about the exercise, unfortunately, i'll have to lose without that, as my leg is still sore. I must have really done something to it with all my obsessive walking, i walked even when i was in pain, so that was dumb. We were bad on our vacation, but i'm being good now. I actually was craving healthy, whole foods, believe it or not. It feels good to be back on track again.

[mamabird1953]

Happy Thanksgiving everybody! Have fun and stay true as possible to our way of eating...if only a couple of raw dishes with everthing else. I'm bringing a raw stuffing from Matt Amsdens book. It is devine, filling, and satisfying. Try it for xmas if not today. I can share the recipe.

[joyce09]

Mamabird, please do share the recipe.

[mamabird1953]

Heres the recipe for raw stuffing:

Soak nuts and seeds between 2-4 hours, then drain and dry.

1 cup soaked raw walnuts, 1 cup soaked raw pumkin seeds, and 1 cup soaked raw sunflower seeds, finely ground in a food processor. Make sure they are dry before grinding.

1/3 cup chopped yellow onion
3/4 cup diced celery
1 cup chopped mushrooms briefly marinated in 1 or 2 Tablespoons Namu Shoyu

2 Tablespoons olive oil
1/4 teaspoons sea salt
1/2 teaspoons black pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons kelp
1 1/2 teaspoons sage
1 1/2 teaspoons thyme

Combine all ingrediants in a mixing bowl, mix well and serve.

[joyce09]

Mamabird, I made the stuffing this evening. It was very good. Thank you for the recipe. I am encouraged. I am just starting to try raw recipes.

[mamabird1953]

Have you gotten Alyssas book yet? Its well worth the cost.

[katchmoleen]

I did it ladies! Started the Couch to 5k program today. My dearest sweetest 18yo daughter went with me. We walked/ran for 20 minutes and this old lady did the whole thing without dying. Yay me!

[mamabird1953]

I've never heard of the couch to 5k. What is it? Congrats to you anyway. We joined 24 hr fitness and have'nt gone in a couple of months!. Thats embarrasing. We paid for a year!

[katchmoleen]

Hi all, well the Couch to 5K (google it and you will find lots of info) seems to have gotten my weight loss moving again, after a month long plateau. Today my weight loss stands at 40 pounds on raw and 48 pounds alltogether. Yay! I completed week 2 day 2 today. It is very cold and windy here but I am determined to keep going.