August 18th - Day 18

[bowie]

Welcome to day 18. More than halfway through!

[MiahTay]

Why put off until tomorrow what you can do today? Ok, I've been reading all your posts all month and being encouraged. I have been so rebellious. So, the jig is up ;) I'll start today instead of waiting until the beginning of next month. My food plan for today is:

Superfood Shake
Applemeal
Large Salad
Chocolate Cream Pie

Blessings,
Heather

[tango167]

Welcome Heather! Good luck on your raw food journey, you're right the best time to start is now...

Breakfast was nearly a kilo of tangerines. I can't wait to feel better again, I was suffering this morning from last night's non-raw foray! Aches, morning breath (ugh!) sinuses blocked again. But I know it will pass by the end of the day & I feel more committed than ever by this reminder of all those symptoms.
It makes me wonder how people manage to cope on their diets of non-raw and alcohol, etc...

[somelikeitraw]

Have stayed 100% even through a 50th birthday celebration with some of the best homemade Greek food on the planet (I've had my friend's food before when I wasn't raw and it truly is the best, if you're eating cooked ;)).

Have been out of town at the above party and then just didn't get online for ages. Felt kind of nice to be off the ol'puter for so so long.

[Thick]

Heather, I am SO glad to see you!=)

Today..
Green smoothie
warmed mushrooms in a creamy herb sauce (all good things, even tikka masala must have a break occasionally=)
Jason's deli probably, though I'm not really in the mood for the salad I have there--maybe I'll bring some dressing and change it--or just leave off the olives..
bowl of oranges at movie time (if neccessary)

I am going to not spend so much time online anymore. It is wasting so much of my kids' time. I should be out in nature now, not in a room with my pretend digital friends..(I'm so lonely for likeminded attention, rft is a hard habit to break)

[MiahTay]

Thanks for the warm welcome guys! Thick - I can't wait to try some of your recently posted recipes - I LOVE Indian food.

I was reminded again today how food is such a MENTAL battle with me. I had the same Superfood Smoothie I've had for the past two weeks at breakfast time today and by 11:45 I was shaky and woozy. This has NEVER happened to me when having this shake for breakfast, that is one of the things I LOVE about it and I even send it to work with my hubby because it HOLDS you over until lunch. So the only thing I can figure is that my shaky woozyness was a response to my choice to go RAW today. Our MINDS are the battlefield. But this battle was won! I enjoyed my Applemeal for lunch and couldn't even finish it all!

Blessings,
Heather

[contessa20]

So far today:
grapefruit juice, watered down 50/50
pineapple juice, watered down 50/50
bowl of pineapple pulp (You know you've been raw too long when most people would consider your lunch fodder for the compost heap. :D)
nectarine juice, watered down 50/50 (though I really shouldn't have diluted it quite so much)
mango
chocolate/coconut bar

[carolv]

I couldn't post last night because we lost our internet connection. I don't know if it is back on yet so I am posting from work.

Yesterday's food:
Watermelon
Just like ritz crackers
Cheezy cucumber rice
Alissa’s No Potato Potato salad
Cherries
Watermelon
Banana
Alissa’s berry bar (I put it in the freezer and it is very refreshing so I put the rest of them in there)
76 oz water total woohoo! :D


Today's food so far:
Watermelon
Alissa’s carrot cake
Just like ritz crackers
Cheezy cucumber rice
Alissa’s No Potato Potato salad
32 oz water so far

[ab_raw]

B: smoothie with banana, kale, blueberries,cacoa nibs, maca
S: 3 chocolate chia crackers with almond butter and sliced banana
L: cheezy cucumber rice casserole
S: 3 sweet potato crackers w sliced tomato on top
D: will try bbq portabello burgers
S: blackberry cheesecake

[Carly]

Today I woke up with jaw pain (this is probably the 4th time this has happened since I went raw, just usually it is accompanied by all over joint pain), but luckily it went away. I'm not as voraciously hungry (especially for fats) as I was for about 3 days there, so that's good.

Today:

-Vegetable Juice
-Banana
-Grapes
-Orange
-Thick's Cheesy Cucumber Rice Casserole - In the dehdyator now - I hope I made it right!
-Probably some fudge cookies or I'll make Ani's mango cobbler

[snoops]

Well this is day 2 for me. So far so good. Not bad cravings like the first time I tried this. I really did crave some bready stuff after my workout though. So I had some olives instead and that seemed to satisfy me. I think it was the strong flavor. I will remember that.

So I have had a fruit smoothie, Larabar, grapefruit-lemon-kale-apple juice, a butterscotch shake(raw), some Goraw sesame flax crackers and a spoonful of Artisana Raw Cocoa Bliss (mmm). I just put some rawrittos in the D. I will make a big tossed salad and a kale salad for dinner and call it a day.

I woke up feeling very light - not physically but mentally and emotionally today. A bit of a headache - maybe detox but my boss adjusted me and it was gone immediately!! Gotta love free chiropractic care:p

[Factoid]

Been doing it for a bit already but didn't realise you could start any day, I thought it had to be the first of each month.
Makes sense to start NOW! Heehee
I've been using up some things that I have already which aren't raw too. Also need to check if some of the things are I eat are raw

So far today had:
-1/2 handful almonds
-1 serve vegetables in total in a salad made up of carrots, asparagus, broccoli; w salad dressing which not sure if is raw; parmesan cheese not raw
-1 glass tomato juice not sure if raw
-1 bunch dill; taramasalata not sure if raw and kippers not raw
-1 serve vegetables in total crudites from carrots, asparagus, broccoli; hommus not sure if raw
-1 glass pomegranate juice not sure if raw
-a few almonds

[katchmoleen]

Snoops, your comment reminded me of when I was a young woman and went to this elderly chiropractor. He was very good, trained in China, but also a real character. Whenever he would do a particularly noisy adjustment, he would always say, "There, now doesn't that make you want to marry a chiropractor!"

I am feeling very discouraged about our financial situation. I was hoping to have all our credit card debt paid off by January 1, but an analysis of the situation today makes that very unlikely. Thinks are so tight. Being raw has already cost me about $500/month. $200/month increase in groceries (sometimes more) and a loss of $300/month income donating plasma, because since going raw my protein levels are too low to qualify to donate. I hope that improves as my intestine heals and the diarrhea (my constant companion since going raw) stops. I want desperately to stop or at least cut back on work and be home with my kids, but that seems very remote right now. My husband seems satisfied with the way things are so can't count on help there. I know being raw will pay off in the long run, health and energy wise, but tonight I feel very down.
I get really irritated on this board when people ask questions about cost and some people are so flippant about it, saying they don't even think about it or keep track. Must be nice! OK that was ugly but I am feeling ugly tonight!

Alright, done whining! But I am sure I am not the only one who wonders if the commitment to raw is financially worth it. If I did not specifically believe that God led me to be raw, I would be done today. :(

B: Green smoothie, daughter made it but I think it had collards, cherries, peach, almond, coconut oil.
L: Ummmm uhhhhhh, oh yea, I had a lara bar while running errands.
S: Cherries. green salad with vinaigrette, avocado on mediterranean bread.

I may make something sweet tonight, comfort food :rolleyes:

[Factoid]

1 kiwi fruit.

I was going to try to cram something else in but I just can't. I don't feel hungry and wasn't feeling hungry for a lot/ most of the other stuff I ate today either! I was just trying to get - given - my very near total lack of hunger - the bare minimum(lowest common denomenator) amount of fruit and veg the UK government sets as a standard for one day.

katchmoleen: get a good night's rest and wake up renewed for tomorrow. Have you thought about how you can cut costs? I have been thinking about it myself as I too have noticed an increase in the amount of my food bill. Do you have markets near you where they sell cheaper produce? Also what about growing some of your own fruit and vegetables? Maybe you could make it a homeschooling project with some education and put your children to work!;)

[MiahTay]

katchmoleen - I agree, get a good night sleep. There is also an emotional factor to detox, chances are this is contributing.

Also ... I look at weight and debt in a similar light. We didn't gain the 20, 30, 50, 100 lbs. over night and we aren't going to loose it over night. Same with debt, we made choices over long periods of time to get ourselves into financial debt. YOU are making such GREAT progress - LOOK at what you've already accomplished, look how much debt you have already paid off. So, it's going to take a little longer than you hoped ... it usually does. Just like a quick fix doesn't work with weight loss...

And as far as the financial aspect being worth it ... I look at it as I'll either pay for it now in a bigger grocery bill or I'll pay for it later with poor health, I choose vitality later and a bit more expense now, even if my debt takes longer to pay off.

There are lots of threads about saving money on raw, I've been thinking about it myself as well. Maybe we can all share ways we can save when we come up with ideas ... or maybe start a new thread on the main board.

TRUST ...

Blessings,
Heather

[carolv]

Carly – Concerning you post yesterday, I LOVE the Lara bars. Most of the flavors say they are 100% raw. I saw someone post one time on this forum that they found out they are not. I don’t know where they got their information so until I find out more it I’m still going to buy them. They are great to keep in my purse if I get any cravings. My faves are the lemon and key lime pie. However, they are rather expensive so you can certainly make your own and probably save a LOT of money. I haven’t been ambitious enough to try.

Heather – Welcome!

Somelikeitraw – Good for you! I’m always inspired by everyone that can stay raw under those circumstances.

Factoid – Welcome! You can use the search function on this forum to help you determine what is raw and what is not. In this thread only post what you know is raw, we are focusing only on raw here.

Katchmoleen – Believe me, I know what you mean about the cost of going raw. I only occasionally purchase the more expensive ingredients because it can just get ridiculous. I looked at a recipe recently that called for hemp seed and I went to buy some until I saw how much they cost. I decided I might get them some other time but not now. So I increased another ingredient in the recipe to make up for the missing hemp seed. It came out fine without the extra expense. There are a LOT of things you can have on the raw diet without going into debt, just try to find and focus on those. And if you can figure out a way to substitute expensive ingredients go for it. Heather brought up a good point, I think I remember seeing some of those threads about saving money on raw. I’ll need to look for those myself.

I got home from work and my cable and internet were working again. Yea!! :)
Unfortunately, my home computer got fried from the storm. :( I'll have to take it somewhere to see if it can be repaired or at least see if any files can be recovered. At least I can still get online using my laptop from work.

In addition to what I posted earlier today, I also have had:
Watermelon
Banana
48 oz water total today

[katchmoleen]

That is what is depressing is that I don't see how I can get my bills any lower. We keep the thermo set at 60 all winter (build fires to warm up:D), hang out clothes to dry year around. We do not watch TV or have a cell phone except a cheapy tracfone. We have the lowest phone and internet package I could find. I buy everything used. I cannot remember the last time I bought something new except for underthings! Our cars are falling apart. For the 7 of us (8 over the summer, and 4 of my 6 children are adult eaters) I used to spend $100/week on groceries, now I spend $150, sometimes a little more. That is really low, from what I can tell, and means not a lot of variety, but we eat healthy and good. I don't plan to up it much. Now the price of gas has recently risen so that stinks, especially when you have to drive a Suburban and don't have the money for another car!
The solution is to either sell our current house and get a lower house payment, or get a different job for hubby. He is not inclined to do either. Yes I could work more (I work 20-30 hours a week) but I already feel stretched to the limit. Being raw has helped, as I do have more energy and feel better able to cope than I did before.
We had such a cold summer here that no-ones garden grew. I definitely plan to have one next summer but it didn't happen this year.
My second daughter is planning to go raw with us soon, but today she heard me whining about things and asked me if she should not go raw. I felt really bad and said, absolutely she should go raw if she wants to and to just ignore my whining. it will work out. "All things work together for good....." Need to remember that. I do try to focus on the positive. Have already paid over $5000 in debt. Nearly halfway there. I have lost almost 20 lb (a ways to go but still good!) Slow and steady wins the race. I want everything yesterday!

[Factoid]

Go katchmoleen!:):) Sweet dreams to you now;)

carolv: Thanks for letting me know - I will check out the search function. I read the terms for posting under the 30 day challenge and I think it said that you can list cooked foods you ate just for your own notes if you want, just to not talk about it and that this part of the forum is basically for people who are going mostly raw to list their diet. I will check it again.

[j923571]

I am feeling very discouraged about our financial situation. I was hoping to have all our credit card debt paid off by January 1, but an analysis of the situation today makes that very unlikely. Thinks are so tight. Being raw has already cost me about $500/month. $200/month increase in groceries (sometimes more) and a loss of $300/month income donating plasma, because since going raw my protein levels are too low to qualify to donate.

Katchmoleen, I feel for you, I know that our costs have gone up. But don't get discouraged and try to find a way to make your costs at par to 300, what I would do is separate the amounts per week in little envelopes of 75, instead of taking your card or debit card, then trying as much as possible to stay "on track" and having "an emergency money fund" of the rest 200, now, if you do not spend those 200, pay your CC with them. I know this will be hard in the beginning, but think of it as "going raw money wise" you only spend what you have, when you run out of the 300 thats it. You will pay your cc in no time.
Try to buy food instead of every week try to buy it every 3 to 4 days, taking less money, so you can buy fresher stuff but just little amounts.
Good luck and hope this tip helps