Feb 2012 Monthly Raw Challenge - JOIN ANYTIME OF THE MONTH!!!

[Aleesha Sattva]

Welcome welcome welcome!!! :excited:

Welcome to the 30 day challenge and welcome to our new monthly format.

This is our monthly challenge thread. We are choosing to do one (or perhaps split into two) continual threads so we can create a community of support within this challenge. You can join this thread at any time during the month. Don't be shy... we love new posters!!! So if you want to join us... please do!

I welcome people who are already 100% raw to join in the conversation - supporting our challengers in their quest! :cheer:

This thread is specifically for those of you who are eager to commit to 30 consecutive days of eating 100% raw foods and seeing miraculous results!

I will start a new challenge thread on the first of every month. If I forget... send me a quick email and remind me... I'll get the challenge thread online for you quickly.

The focus of the monthly challenge is on staying raw and accountability. Therefore, if you have eaten all raw and then slip up and have something cooked, don't beat yourself up over it or dwell on it - but this is not space to discuss it. You are more than welcome to document it in your journal/blog or ask for help in the discussion area, but it is not necessary (and not allowed) to discuss your slip-up here in the challenge threads, just get right back on track and keep going! This thread is about celebrating what you are eating that IS raw!

I welcome you all to share pics of your dishes, ask questions, share what you are consuming (as long as it's raw). We are here to listen to your emotional and physical challenges. So share share share!!! :hug

OH and the best part of this (not only the support but...) you can subscribe to this thread and get notified every time someone posts to it. This way you will be connected!

So let's get this party started!!!:throwhearts:

[Aleesha Sattva]

Please do not post in this thread until Feb. 1 2012

[qwerty988]

WOOOOO-HOOOOOOOO Welcome February!!!!!!!!!!!!! :excited:

Yesterday I felt like I ate TOO MUCH, but it was all raw so all good....

4 (yes, 4!) veggie burgers hahahahhahahaa
one quart green juice and 2 bananas
guacamole and flax crackers
seaweed salad
a few more bananas

The lesson for me is, I do much better not keeping these savory yummies around the house! I feel better sticking with smoothies and salads and juices. So for now I think I'll save the dehydrator for flax crackers and special treats. Live and learn!

SOOOOOO excited to begin a new 30 day challenge!!!!!!!!!

RAWK ON everybody! :throwhearts:

[Hopity]

Hellooo!

Broke my 25 day fast and went straight into Raw 6 days ago .. Looking forward to the next 30 days!

Was all geared up to buy a dehydrator but have decided to keep it simple (though I would so love to try Kale Chips!)



Today I had Pineapple, Apple, Grapefruit and Banana fruit salad for breakfast.

Lunch - Rocket, Spinach, Tomato, Cucumber & Pepper Salad.

For Dinner I plan to make zucchini soup ( please feel free to chip in if you have a good recipe for this!) and for afters Banana Ice cream (Eating Daily since discovered!)


Mistakes so far ... Too many nuts in the house! Can't keep my hands of them .. So they have to be hidden from me lol.

I can't believe how good stuff tastes after Juice Fasting.

Best Of Luck Everyone!

[Traceyraw]

Im kinda starting unprepared. We didn't get home from my daughters softball tryouts till 10 pm. I made Pineapple/cucumber juice for this morning. I will have salad tonight. I get my coop box today so thats dinner.

[rollerjuicer]

Hi Aleesha, QWERTY, Hopity, Tracey and everyone else!
I'm in! Since I discovered RFT only a few days ago, I've been counting the days until February 1st so I could join the challenge. Hooray! I'm totally in, and I would like to try to make raw an indefinite commitment. I was talking to someone a few weeks ago, lamenting the fact that I had fallen so hard off the raw wagon and she surprised me when said "when you know better, you do better". I know the benefits of raw and I'm ready to come back.

In terms of my own experiences with raw, I discovered it through the film Food Matters last January and went mostly raw for eight months. I juiced a lot too - I'm very impressed that you did it for 25 days Hopity! I did several between three and eight days. Then, around my 40th birthday in August, I started eating cooked food again, but that soon degenerated into a truly SAD diet. And now, exactly six months and 15 pounds later, I know what I need to do!

So here I am! A little about me - I'm 40, female, and I have a very happy busy life with my husband and two small kids (my son is 6 and my daughter is almost 3). They are all very supportive of me/us being raw, even though we do feed the kids a lot of cooked foods - rice pasta, dairy, etc. We do insist that they eat at least one raw item at every meal.

I look forward to reading the posts and getting to know folks!

As for today, I plan on juicing a lot of the day (I too consume way too many nuts and need to cut back on that) and doing a broccoli 'chedda' dish with salad for dinner. I'll try to post pics. That will give me an incentive to make it pretty!

Have a great day!

[breathless]

I am on board to try this again, and I'm so excited! I started the raw challenge for January but only lasted about two weeks. I feel I did a good job transitioning for the remainder of the month as I kept up the habit of having a green smoothie daily. I was loosing weight for those first two weeks, but I put it back on once I started eating cooked foods again.

I had a green smoothie this morning for breakfast with blueberries, banana, and greens.
I brought to work a bag of cut up broccoli, cauliflower, and carrots, which I'll dip into a dressing I made with zuccini, olive oil, Italian seasoning, and salt. I also packed a large salad made with mixed lettuce, cucumber, and marinated cauliflower, and I'll put any leftover dressing on top. I also have four oranges in my desk that I can eat if I need to. I know it is a lot of food, but one thing that helps keep me on track is having a lot to eat. I realize it's not good for weight loss, but I'm hoping that the benefits of raw will outweigh any detriment of overeating. Is it true you can eat as much as you want, as long as it's raw?

I am married and will still be cooking for my husband. I am 36 years old, 5'5" and 135 lb. My goal weight is 115 lb.

Thank you for your support. I love this forum!

Stacey

[tiggerbounce]

Welcome, Februrawry! :dance:
Awesome to see everyone here!

(will edit as I eat things, hate to lock myself in...)

Today: Orange Juice
Almonds
Banana Whip

[tiggerbounce]

My experience is that as long as it is raw and fresh you can eat as much as you want. Once you start adding in gourmet, it seems to slow down.
I believe Alissa's book said she eats fresh and raw most all day and gourmet items are sort of a treat or cravings squelcher. I think that is a good balance/compromise. ( Steady and controlled weightloss if that is what you need. )

Other people may have had different experiences though with adding in gourmet raw. For me, fresh is best. I do enjoy gourmet sometimes though.








I am on board to try this again, and I'm so excited! I started the raw challenge for January but only lasted about two weeks. I feel I did a good job transitioning for the remainder of the month as I kept up the habit of having a green smoothie daily. I was loosing weight for those first two weeks, but I put it back on once I started eating cooked foods again.

I had a green smoothie this morning for breakfast with blueberries, banana, and greens.
I brought to work a bag of cut up broccoli, cauliflower, and carrots, which I'll dip into a dressing I made with zuccini, olive oil, Italian seasoning, and salt. I also packed a large salad made with mixed lettuce, cucumber, and marinated cauliflower, and I'll put any leftover dressing on top. I also have four oranges in my desk that I can eat if I need to. I know it is a lot of food, but one thing that helps keep me on track is having a lot to eat. I realize it's not good for weight loss, but I'm hoping that the benefits of raw will outweigh any detriment of overeating. Is it true you can eat as much as you want, as long as it's raw?

I am married and will still be cooking for my husband. I am 36 years old, 5'5" and 135 lb. My goal weight is 115 lb.

Thank you for your support. I love this forum!

Stacey

[Juicing Juli]

Excited to begin this challenge. Have learned so much already since I went raw on Jan. 9th!!! Wow.

Breakfast: Smoothie: kale, barleens greens, raw protein, blueberries, maca powder, almond milk, water, ground flax, banana...yummy!!!!

[breathless]

I am wondering what to have for dinner tonight. I have one bunch of carrots already and another is being delivered today. Any ideas for good recipes including carrots? I don't have a dehydrator or a juicer.

[tiggerbounce]

Lettuce wraps? Use a vegetable peeler to make carrot strips and then cut up some more veggies, onions, etc. Make some guacamole and you are good to go.





I am wondering what to have for dinner tonight. I have one bunch of carrots already and another is being delivered today. Any ideas for good recipes including carrots? I don't have a dehydrator or a juicer.

[raw is the new black]

Raw food challenge? I'm IN!

Day 1:
ginger-lemon water
breakfast: smoothie with kale, spinach, raw meal powder, soaked chia and flax seeds, half a frozen banana, frozen blueberries and raspberries (picked fresh last summer)
lunch: salad with mixed greens, tomato, red onion, dried cranberries, raw slivered almonds and homemade poppy seed dressing (fermented coconut yogurt, sunflower seeds, olive oil, grated onion, poppy seeds, and touch of honey all blended together)

[verbena]

hello fellow challengers! :D

Gosh how is it february already??

today
banana and mango smoothie
small salad with a few seed crackers
an apple
banana, chocolate and peanut butter shake.

i'm struggling a bit with lack of appetite/interest in eating... things are a bit weird at the moment, and i'm feeling almost constantly nauseous. I know i need to try and eat more. i'm normally a big fruit and salad eater, but just can't find the enthusiasm at the moment.

Bought a load of kale today, so tomorrow will be making kale chips, yum!!

Wishing everyone a sucessful raw challenge!!:dance:

[mysticshore]

I love the energy of this group! Day 1 and it's going well. I always start my day with a IF then have fruit for lunch. This keeps me feeling light and refreshed till dinner. I have a big salad planned.

This is going to be a fun month!

[carolv]

Hi Everyone. I'm happy to be here for another challenge. It's been a long time since I've done a successful 100% raw challenge.

I always start out my day with water and a green smoothie so I will continue with that during the challenge.
I've also had an orange, apple, green salad with cider vinegar, cucumbers and cherry tomatoes. Also indulged in raw snickers (yummy) for my sweet tooth. For dinner I had raw sesame bread smothered with mashed avocado and braggs liquid aminos. Had a bunch of water througout the day.

Good luck to everyone in the challenge!

[taraleev]

Hello my name is Tara and this is my first raw food challenge. I was following a strict gluten-free diet due to a bad allergy and decided to go raw.

Day One:

I have drank a lot of water. I have had pineapple, two bananas, two clementines, a salad with cucumbers and clementines with no dressing. I have also had a fruit smoothie consisting of orange juice, banana, and blueberries. For snacks, I ate a raw revolution bar and two lara bars.

Good luck to everyone (including myself) !!

[Juicing Juli]

Lunch: zucchini pasta with salsa, avocado and one corn/flax tortilla
snack: tahini, coconut butter, cocoa, almond milk
second snack: 1 teaspoon taco meat
dinner: small kale and red cabbage salad with ACV, olive oil, raw garlic and nutritional yeast... one avocado with more salsa and one more tortilla/cracker

drank lots of water and tea all day.:cheer:



Excited to begin this challenge. Have learned so much already since I went raw on Jan. 9th!!! Wow.

Breakfast: Smoothie: kale, barleens greens, raw protein, blueberries, maca powder, almond milk, water, ground flax, banana...yummy!!!!

[Basenjimamma]

OMG...I fell asleep before I got on here to record my 1st February day....so happy February is here...

Did spinning in the morning for 40 minutes after that I had a delish green smoothie, with spinach, bananas and pineapple.
Snack was more pineapple.
Lunch was a green salad with 1/2 of an avocado.
Snack in pm was a banana, some almonds and a few raisins.
Dinner was two large glasses of freshly squeezed OJ and a handful of celery stalks for salt..yum..had another banana a little later...feel a cold coming on so all I really wanted was OJ...and it ws good, but probably not enough..lol.

See you peeps tomorrow...well later today ..lol.

[qwerty988]

Good morning everyone!

Had an excellent raw day yesterday:

Breakfast was a quart of orange/grapefruit juice....then later snacked on bananas, grapes and 2 veggie burger patties.

Lunch was a savory smoothie! Tomato, celery, spinach, jalapeno, garlic, lemon, a cucumber..... spicy and DELISH! Later I had some flax crackers spread with avocado and topped with onion slices and chopped cherry tomatoes.

Dinner was another smoothie! A sweet one this time: bananas, kale, grapes and spinach.

Been craving smoothies lately so that's on the menu today..... SOOOOOO grateful to have everyone here to keep me accountable and on track! :heart

[Traceyraw]

Im starting my day with the best grapes ever. I ate 1 bag last night for dinner. Now for breakfast.
At the end of last month I lost my mind and gained weight back. :( Im restarting at 160.5. "crying"

I have 2 oranges for my snack. Carrots for another. I will have a big salad for lunch today.
Im going to make Nori wraps for dinner with almond butter,carrots, cucumbers, and Kale.
Im trying to use up my produce.

O yes water,water, water.

Have a great day everybody. Stay Raw, Stay Happy.

[tiggerbounce]

Good morning!!!! I have to go back and edit yesterday's to add my stuff. I was called up for a whacky after hours emergency interview. How funny is that? I keep trying to retire and these things happen.... will be getting more info from them today. It is hotel manager, so that is cool. Probably not as cool as staying home and eating bon bons, but still something new to learn.

Have not had anything to eat yet today.....gettin' there though. I start my mornings with a large glass of very warm water. To me it is relaxing and starts my day with a good hydration. Speaking of good hydration, there is a coconut with my name on it today. :)

I am certain there is a giant glass of oj with my name on it as well though. Soon. :)

Headed to town to restock. That is about 190 miles or so roundtrip total. See you much later today....hopefully I will beat the storm home...

Awesome to see you here!!:throwhearts:

Todays eats:

Orange Juice - 8 oranges
durian ---bwahahahahahahaaaa!!!
brazil nut - 1
greek olives, oil cured --4

[rollerjuicer]

Good morning!
Seeing all the posts is so nice. I don't know anyone else who eats a raw diet, so it's fun to see what everyone else is doing.

I've been 100% raw for three days now and I feel great. I skated for 2 and a half hours last night too and it was amazing! I haven't felt this strong in a long time - it has something to do, too, with finally getting rid of a nasty chest cold I've had for literally 3-4 months. Now that it is on the way out, for the first time yesterday I did my dances without major coughing spells. What a change! Can't wait to get back on the rink tomorrow morning.

Since I'm new to the blog, I also got Alissa's book in the mail yesterday. It's a nice addition to my raw foods book collection. I'm really looking forward to trying some of the recipes. Last night I made a week long list of what needs to start when in order to have things ready by a certain time. That really helps in dinner planning. Breakfast and lunches are easy because I usually stick with juices, fruits, and vegetables, but I like to sit down with something a little more substantial for dinner... so I need to know when to soak, marinate, sprout, dehydrate, etc. For example, I want to try the sliders and buffalo lentil tenders for the Superbowl so I need to start the red lentils today.

So for day 2 of this challenge:
Breakfast - soaked oats with apple + orange/carrot juice
Lunch - celery with almond butter and a banana
Dinner - zucchini/carrot 'pasta' with a red pepper pinenut dressing with a raw superfood cookie for a sweet

Have a great day!

[verbena]

Happy thursday raw lovelies!! :D

I am feeling so much better today, perhaps the weirdness of the past week has been some funky detox!

so far today i've eaten

clementine and an orange
2 dates and a raw brownie
raw italian bread toppped with avocado and tomato - this was delicious!

Will be a big salad for dinner

the sun is shinning glorious today here in the UK and it lifts my spirits immensely :D

[Juicing Juli]

Happy Ground Hog's Day and Day Two of the Challenge!
I was up a pound this morning....not a happy camper!!! Oh well...have to stay focused on the journey and not on the scale! Today is a new day!!

Breakfast: Smoothie..green powder, maca, 1/2 banana, strawberries, cherries,bee pollen, protein powder, almond milk & water. Didn't have greens to add besides kale and I'm saving that for something else.

1 hour tennis lesson...great work out.

Lunch was late: 2 small corn/flax tortillas/crackers, 1 avocado, 1/4 cup taco meat and salsa. Love it.

About to make Alissa's chicken fingers and refried beans!
May be a late dinner too!

[mysticshore]

So far so good here, I'm fasting this morning then later will have fruit, apricots, grapes and a bananna. I have salad or fruit for dinner. I'm reading Raw Food Controversies by Frederic Patenaude at the moment. It's really interesting to see behind the scenes of the raw food industry. It's helping me keep focused on my goals this month. I love how many raw food books have sprung up over the last 5 years.

[carolv]

I love reading what everyone is having. Several posts have made my mouth water. :drool:
I'm going to have to look up banana whip and the italian bread definitely. If anyone has any tips on these or specific recipes let me know.

Today was pretty much a repeat of yesterday. Lot of water as always.
green smoothie - acai juice, oj, almond milk, pineapple, hemp seeds, collard greens
cara cara orange - darker flesh than regular orange and nice flavor
fuji apple
green salad with cider vinegar, cucumbers and cherry tomatoes
finished the raw snickers
raw sesame bread smothered with mashed avocado mixed with braggs liquid aminos
couple of lemon bon bons

[Juicing Juli]

since lunch, I've had one large carrot,
1 more avocado with 2 tablespoons taco meet
4 tablespoons refried beans on my last corn/flax cracker

This refried bean recipe is great! It's with sprouted chick peas! Yum!
I have my chicken fingers in the dehydrator. Anyone make these? They are so darn wet, I doubt they'll be done tonight!!!
Good night my fellow challengers!:kisses:


Happy Ground Hog's Day and Day Two of the Challenge!
I was up a pound this morning....not a happy camper!!! Oh well...have to stay focused on the journey and not on the scale! Today is a new day!!

Breakfast: Smoothie..green powder, maca, 1/2 banana, strawberries, cherries,bee pollen, protein powder, almond milk & water. Didn't have greens to add besides kale and I'm saving that for something else.

1 hour tennis lesson...great work out.

Lunch was late: 2 small corn/flax tortillas/crackers, 1 avocado, 1/4 cup taco meat and salsa. Love it.

About to make Alissa's chicken fingers and refried beans!
May be a late dinner too!

[qwerty988]

Good morning everyone!

Yesterday I had my first blended-salad soup and it was SOOO GOOD I'm making it a regular staple! Here's what all I had:

breakfast: one quart orange/grapefruit juice
2 bananas

lunch: smoothie w cashews, spinach, celery, bananas

snacks: grapes, coconut meat and 2 oranges

dinner: Blended-salad soup: tomatoes, jalapeno, cucumber, celery, avocado, garlic, herbs
flax crackers with tomato slices, olive oil, salt and nutritional yeast

Have a wonderful day everyone -- I look forward to reading all your updates today! :dance:

[rawqueen]

hi

started my raw fooding today.

started the day with lemon water,then had some melon,
will shortly have an apple.

some lovely refreshing carrot sticks for lunch and cashew nuts if I fancy them.

[Traceyraw]

Good Morning Raw Friends.

I think my fruit thing is working. Last night I didn't tire out before the kids. I stayed one step ahead of them all night. Yeah raw energy thats why Im here. We did the family juicing party. My daughter made grape/jalepeno. She drank the whole quart. For my son he wanted apple and he drank some of both.

For the hubby I made a raw V8. carrots/tomatoes/celery/cucumber/jalapeno/ginger/garlic/green onion. I had a big glass of that is was good.

Had to go buy more grapes will be eating them all day. Also brought carrots and banannas to graze.
Oh yeah. Made Chia pudding last night. I will have it for dinner O YEAH :)

I love all of the enthuesiasm. I gets me more hyped to do well in the challenge. Happy Juicing my raw friends.

[rawqueen]

Just finishing my tasty dinner of carrot sticks and almonds...yumm!
good one tracy,stay focused,,,on the outcome:)

[Basenjimamma]

Dang... I did it again..fell asleep before I knew it and didn't get on here to record what I consumed..
So for thursday I ate..

After my weight w.o I had a green smoothie for breakfast, spinach, banana and apple.
Snack was another green smoothie, this time with oranges, spinach and bananas,
lunch was a suedo guacamole of 1/2 of an avocado, with celery and carrots as dippers.

Pm snack was banana and a pear
Dinner was a huge salad with veggies and 1/2 avocado...yumm

Still doing great but I was soooo hungry today, that constant gnawing sensation in my stomach...but I stuck to it and stayed 100% RAW...yeah me :dance:

Will be back later today (promise I won't fall asleep this time)

Have a great day folks!

[rollerjuicer]

Good morning!
Another happy raw day here. All is well. Just got back from my skating workout, which was great. Enjoyed a superfood brownie before I left and will juice this afternoon.
Tonight is going to be a challenge - three of my girlfriends and I are going out to dinner while the husbands watch the kids. I plan on ordering a plain salad and bringing my own olive oil and maybe even a bag with almonds and avocado. It might be a little tough because my friends are big eaters, but I'm hoping it will be ok. After all, we're really going for the company.
And then tomorrow, we're having a pizza night with some folks in the neighborhood. I've already sprouted the buckwheat and will get that in the dehydrator tonight and will start the cheese today. I need to know that I can be raw while maintaining a social life!

Have a great day!!!

[rawqueen]

How does it feel to choose raw instead of supporting the industry of forcing food thru manufacturing and into packages, in an infinite stream of copies? What is the end result of choosing raw? Do we finally start to see the food that nourishes us? Each fruit, each green leaf, each nut, seed and vegetable is like a snowflake – no two are alike. Each one is a unique and exquisite expression.

Enjoy your health it means so much to you and those around you. Take it in during this holiday with love and peace. Notice what happens to your energy with choices you make. Take a yoga class. Have some oxygen for breakfast.
Best wishes to every single one of you!

[Juicing Juli]

Hi Raw Friends;
Today I'm happy and sad. Happy that I'm down 1.5 pounds since yesterday(this just makes me even to my lowest since going raw), but sad because I am so darn dizzy and tired. I think it's still just detoxing.

So for today I had:
Breakfast: 1/2 smoothie (I gave my husband 1 and a half by accident)
lots of ingredients...spinach, strawberries, barleens, raw protein, maca, almond milk and water, bee pollen, pineapple, flax...I add raw cocoa nibs to my husbands because I'm trying to stay away from chocolate until my cold sores heal.

Snack: 1 very small chicken finger, 4 dates, 2 chunks pineapple and the
milk from a young coconut. I was hungry...but this was over the
course of a couple hours.

now to lay down and clear my head while I catch up on Grey's Anatomy that I missed last night! Very low energy today...bummer!

Happy Friday!
:throwhearts:

[verbena]

Juli I've also been feeling a bit dizzy today, i'm hoping it's just detox. hope the dizzyness passes for you
Had a weird dizzy moment when I was talking to my mum today, my head went a bit swirly and then for a short moment my mind just completely blanked and I couldn't proccess the words I was wanting to say, but at the same time my brain was aware that I couldn't find the words i wanted to say, and was thinking 'what's going on??' v. v. weird!

today i've eaten
an apple
a few kale chips
banana, mango and spinach smoothie

salad of brocolli, cauliflower and carrot which a tahini dressing - really good!
a few raw brownies
small bowl of raw maple peacan icecream
couple of spoons of peanut butter.

I've been on a bit of a snack wagon today, my sweet tooth has kept me at the nibbles!

[carolv]

Mmmm:eat....got some great ideas from verbena's post. The broccoli, cauliflower, carrot with tahini dressing sounds great. Will be a nice change from my usual green salad. I'll have to look up the maple pecan ice cream.

I already looked up the raw italian bread I saw from somebody else's post, I'll have to wait until I get some buckwheat to sprout to try it.

Today I've had:
green smoothie: acai and orange juice, hemp seeds, collard greens, strawberries, almond butter, and celery
banana
cara cara orange
green salad: spring mix with cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, slice raw almonds, cider vinegar
apple
lara bar
last of my sesame bread with mashed avocado and liquid aminos, rolled the rest of my mashed avocado in raw nori with apple slices.
green smoothie: almond milk, collard greens, blueberries, honey, apple

[Basenjimamma]

Good Evening peeps..I am back..

Today started rougher but that is because I woke up at 4:30 and laid in my bed waiting for the clock to get closer to 5:30 so I could get up...in other words..was too wired..did a hard spinning w.o on my bike and cooled off with a green smoothie...although I could only muster so much of it as I had added kumquats to it and yikes...nasty doesn't even begin to explain..so I had two bananas to make up for it. =).
Lunch was carrots, celery and cucmbers dipped in 1/2 of an avocado guacamole.
Snack in the pm as some almonds, a banana and a few raisins.

Dinner, which I just finished...a huge Kale salad and two oranges....yum.

See you tomorrow.

[tiggerbounce]

First, tired of preparing cooked meals all day. grrrrr.
Second, wow, chia pudding is FILLING!!! LOL
I made a bowl full and thought, no problem, and dug in. I only finished 1/3 of it, lol.

And, can we say, like 2 feet of snow covering my yard??? And my daughter made a snow Lazy Boy for my driveway. I literally lol'd when I drove up and saw it.

Today:
OJ (9 oranges)
thai coconut
1 bowl of chocolate chia pudding (yes, I munched on it all day and finally finished it. i am stuffed)
tomatoes
green juice
1 Brazil nut
8 greek olives cured in evoo
2 dates
1/2 cup chocolate almond milk (instant)
taste of raw butter I made today


Now, I just hope I do not sprout and need a chia haircut.....

[qwerty988]

ch-ch-ch-chia!

Yestday was a day of BANANA LOVE:

B: 2 quarts orange/grapefruit juice
coconut meat and 5 bananas

L: Blended Salad Soup w tomatoes, jalapeno, cucumber, spinach, celery, garlic, lemon, 1/2 avocado & spices
flax crackers w tomato, EVOO, salt and nutritional yeast

D: 4 bananas
more flax crackers w tomato etc


Tonight is going to be a challenge - three of my girlfriends and I are going out to dinner while the husbands watch the kids. I plan on ordering a plain salad and bringing my own olive oil and maybe even a bag with almonds and avocado. It might be a little tough because my friends are big eaters, but I'm hoping it will be ok. After all, we're really going for the company.
And then tomorrow, we're having a pizza night with some folks in the neighborhood. I've already sprouted the buckwheat and will get that in the dehydrator tonight and will start the cheese today. I need to know that I can be raw while maintaining a social life!

YES, the social life is quite a challenge!! How'd it go?

I brought SAD pizza home for my son last night and hung out with him while he ate it, and got through it with some flax crackers topped w tomato and EVOO and salt -- having read about it here on this thread.... I was suprised how good it was! And I was completely happy to be eating it instead.

Anyhow, good luck tonight!

Have a great RAW day everyone! :heart:

[rollerjuicer]

Hey qwerty and everyone!
Last night was a bit of a challenge, but in reflecting on it, not really. My friends downed a bunch of cocktails at the first restaurant we went to and were a bit disappointed, I think, that I didn't join in. I ordered pineapple juice to have something colorful in front of me. I ordered a plain green salad and a heap of guacamole for its dressing, and that was ok, except that a white mozzarella-looking cheese had been sprinkled on it so it was a bit tedious getting all that off first. I probably should have sent it back, but I'm a little shy about things like that. Afterward we went to a wine place and I had a small taste of a red wine. And after that we went to another bar where more food was ordered while I had another pineapple juice. In all, I'm very happy with how it went - we had a lot of fun telling stories and enjoying each others company and I got to talk about why I was back on the raw diet. And I even got to share that I was participating in a blog challenge and didn't want to blow it. They were very understanding, but it was funny to me when they repeated asked me if I wanted some of their food - quesadillas, chips, onion rings... No!

Tonight we have the pizza dinner with some very nice neighbors and I'm happy that everything is set for tonight for my own raw pizza tonight. The buckwheat crusts should be ready, the cheese is already the appropriate texture (this was my first experience with irish moss) and I have the ingredients for a raw sauce and toppings. So this should be fun.

qwerty - did you make your own flax crackers?? Maybe I should run back to the health food store and buy something in case my pizza doesn't work out for some reason ... but I don't think anything would be ready by tonight... though I could soak the flax seeds for a little bit and get them in the dehydrator for 8-10 hours before tonight since it's only 8:30 am... hmmm... gonna try that now!

Happy Saturday everybody!

[Traceyraw]

Good Morning My fellow raw friends.
Its so nice to be cheered on . Go Raw Go. :cheer:

I ordered a case of organic dates so dinner was 1/2 tub of yummy sweet dates. Im going to use them to make applesauce.

Im going to buy some OJ and grapefruit juice from the orange grove.

On a mission for watermelon. Cleansing is needed for sure. Im feeling really bloated and puffy right now. I can't figure out why. Im holding water like a balloon. I feel like Im going to burst. Monday fasting club is calling...

This go around I am really struggling. Can't figure it out. Im suspecting low Vit. D. levels so Im trying to go in the sun as often as possible. Happy Raw Day.

[tiggerbounce]

Good Morning !!!! Love everyone's posts!

Today does NOT include chia pudding, lol. That may be a once a week thing. And a lot less at one sitting, heh.

I am sipping my warm water, analyzing the depth of the snow on my back patio, and contemplating my foods for the day. I have various mushrooms that need to be used so I am thinking about trying oyster mushrooms and enoki spring wraps for dinner with dh tonight. I also have some durian that needs to be finished, so that is probably going to be on my list. Too bad I do not have any snow recipes as I have an abundance of that! LOL

Here is what I do know I will be having shortly:
OJ
thai coconut, water only - flesh will go to wraps for tonight
durian

[qwerty988]

qwerty - did you make your own flax crackers?? Maybe I should run back to the health food store and buy something in case my pizza doesn't work out for some reason ... but I don't think anything would be ready by tonight... though I could soak the flax seeds for a little bit and get them in the dehydrator for 8-10 hours before tonight since it's only 8:30 am... hmmm... gonna try that now!

Sounds like you did GREAT!!!

Seriously, I have such a hard time keeping my head when I'm out w my gfs over cocktails..... I really don't want to drink any alcohol so for now I'm just avoiding the situation until I'm stronger! You are TRULY an inspiration. :throwhearts:

I do make my flax crackers but I'm not sure they'd be ready by tonight. Maybe try peeling them off the sheets after 6 or so hours so they dry directly on the trays? That might speed things along.

What I'd do if I wanted a backup is use eggplant. I've seen ReneeH make gorgeous eggplant pizzas this way. I'm not sure how she does it, though -- what I'd do is thinly slice an eggplant length-wise, then sprinkle w EVOO, garlic powder and italian spices, and let dry directly on the trays -- might be quicker than flax crackers?

I'm SURE your pizza dough will come out wonderfully, though. Good luck tonight and keep us posted!

[tiggerbounce]

http://i167.photobucket.com/albums/u127/AHarbin88/Smileys/thththcutecheerleader.gif


I have ordered from 7HotDates and liked that. Where did you order from? I am thinking of ordering next month again when I am low on dates.

eta: ok, now I am twitching cuz my daughter's friends are rummaging thru my raw stuff and eating it. Like almond butter smeared on cooked toast. Thank goodness I have a masticating juicer and can make more. And half a small box of dates. And I am having to move my stuff off of the top of the oven cuz they are cooking stuff. I want my own private raw kitchen/room. Where fingers do not get poked into the middle of my dehydrating coconut wraps. arrrrrr.... http://i213.photobucket.com/albums/cc283/mKBy09/Emoticons and GIFs/eyetwitch1.gif





Good Morning My fellow raw friends.
Its so nice to be cheered on . Go Raw Go.

I ordered a case of organic dates so dinner was 1/2 tub of yummy sweet dates. Im going to use them to make applesauce.

Im going to buy some OJ and grapefruit juice from the orange grove.

On a mission for watermelon. Cleansing is needed for sure. Im feeling really bloated and puffy right now. I can't figure out why. Im holding water like a balloon. I feel like Im going to burst. Monday fasting club is calling...

This go around I am really struggling. Can't figure it out. Im suspecting low Vit. D. levels so Im trying to go in the sun as often as possible. Happy Raw Day.

[verbena]

happy saturday raw lovelies!

Today I've been out for a long walk in the snow which was beautiful. looking forward to getting into a hot bath in a bit :)

Breakfast was a banana and mango smoothie

I just munched on a load of kale chips and had to force myself to stop! far too morish!

I've popped left overs from dinner last night (broc, cauli and carrot tahini salad) into the D to have something warm when I get out of the bath as I was craving hot soup when i got in from the cold. thank goodness i had the kale chips there, otherwise I think I would have caved and had something cooked.

hope you are all having a lovely weekend :D

[Juicing Juli]

To finish off my post from yesterday, boy did I eat a lot.
I was on the couch most of the day due to this darn vertigo! I feel crummy all day, but still had my hunger.
I had two more chicken fingers with mayo (I made this prior...yum)
4 more dates
the meat of a coconut
small green salad
2 tablespoon of taco meat with an avocado!!



Hi Raw Friends;
Today I'm happy and sad. Happy that I'm down 1.5 pounds since yesterday(this just makes me even to my lowest since going raw), but sad because I am so darn dizzy and tired. I think it's still just detoxing.

So for today I had:
Breakfast: 1/2 smoothie (I gave my husband 1 and a half by accident)
lots of ingredients...spinach, strawberries, barleens, raw protein, maca, almond milk and water, bee pollen, pineapple, flax...I add raw cocoa nibs to my husbands because I'm trying to stay away from chocolate until my cold sores heal.

Snack: 1 very small chicken finger, 4 dates, 2 chunks pineapple and the
milk from a young coconut. I was hungry...but this was over the
course of a couple hours.

now to lay down and clear my head while I catch up on Grey's Anatomy that I missed last night! Very low energy today...bummer!

Happy Friday!
:throwhearts:

[Basenjimamma]

Hi peeps..hope your saturday has met you well.
Got a lot done today, took a rest day from my w.o's...so felt a little stir crazy, cured that with my Cricut and some Teacher gifts getting made..kept me busy all afternoon lol.
For breakfast I had two bananas, then I also had some canteloupe and strawberries, for lunch I had leftover Kale salad from yesterday.
Snack was some almonds and raisins, seems to be my staple pm snack, keeps me on the straight and narrow so to speak...and I am also trying to slow down my weightloss....day six and I'm down 5 lbs..wowser..don't want to crash too low, yet I am loving this new skinnier me...as I am working out at the same time I am hoping to actually gain some muscles...
Dinner, just finished by the way...huge bowl of RAW coleslaw, made with homegrown, just picked cabbage, that was delish!! Stuffed now.

Hope all is doing well, no cravings to fight or vertigo to kick..see you in the morning. :wuv

[carolv]

Hmmm... taco meat with avocado, that sounds good. I made taco meat the other day so I will give that a try. Made sour cream to go with it too.

I love to hear how everyone is handling staying raw while going out or being around cooked foods. Very inspiring!

Went out running around today with my husband and went to a restaurant that has decent salads but after sitting in a booth for a good 10 minutes nobody ever came to wait on us. So we just got up and left and went to a steakhouse which is where my husband likes to go anyway (he's a big meat eater). Unfortunately, they don't have good salad choices so I just had a big bowl of lettuce, tomato, and onion with a little bit of their house italian. It was big so I brought some home and ate the rest for dinner.

Today I had:
chia cereal with banana flakes, sunwarrior chocolate protein powder and almond milk
green smoothie: acai and orange juice, water, cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, collard greens, hemp seed, 1/2 apple
cara cara orange
big salad of lettuce, tomato, onion with italian dressing
3 dried figs
had a taste of a couple of things I bought online that were delivered today:
dried cocao bean with dried cocao fruit on it. Sounded interesting but didn't care for the taste so these will probably wind up in some smoothies.
jujubes (chinese dates), definitely different but tasted good.

[Traceyraw]

All these recipes sound so yummy.. :)- Alright Juli on your weight loss. Yeah:

I got my dates on Amazon. ORganic from California. They are not to juicy. Let me know how the 70hotdates are. I love juicey yummy dates. I guess I will use them in recipes.

Im going to juice fast for 24 hours starting 6 pm. I just feel so bloated and yucky. Ive been pounding water so maybe I just time for it to run its course. Im not going to weigh myself all bloated cuz I don't want to cry. :(

[rollerjuicer]

Happy Sunday Everyone!
We had the pizza party yesterday and everything went really well. I had olives during the appetizer, and the pizza I made for myself was really good although next time I will definitely cut down on the Irish moss in the crust. I made the crust tigger suggested to me, an improvised cheese after the one I tried utterly failed because of the strong Irish moss I used in it (my husband took one taste and threw it out without letting me try it!), and then I used Alissa's marinara recipe for the sauce. (I got the book last week and it's great!) Then for dessert, I made a raw chocolate torte for everyone using cashews, orange, cacao, and agave for the cream and a walnut/date mixture for the crust. That drew rave reviews! The folks we had over are pretty solid meat/potato eaters so they were tickled by everything I was able to share with them. They had fun trying to guess what they were tasting.

I am so proud of myself that I was able to socialize both Friday and Saturday, enjoy my friends, and still stay true to being raw. Truthfully, I know that my friends think my choices are a little strange, but they realize that I'm trying to be as healthy as possible and they respect that.

Basen, great job on the 5 pounds! That's really wonderful and I'm happy for you. Was that your goal?

Tracey - I feel you on the bloating. Try not to get too down about it. Seriously, it's a process, not something that is made or broken in one day alone. I've been raw for 7 days now and weight-wise there has been no change. Most likely this is due to the amount of nuts and high density raw food I consume, especially on days I work out. I do eat a lot of fruit and vegetables too and try to consume a lot of water during the day, but I could probably be better about that. Ideally I'd like to get rid of the 10 pounds I put on with the SAD diet since the summer. It all went pretty much to my midsection that I've now named "Vera". But as much as I want to love Vera, my clothes don't quite fit right and I certainly don't want to buy new stuff when I was in my regular clothes just a few months ago. Time to get these pounds off! I was thinking of juicing exclusively on Thursdays (the one weekday I don't workout) so that I could go down slowly (I usually drop a half pound to a pound on days that I drink only juice) and then using the rest of the week to be raw. It would take several months to lose the weight, but that works for me. We'll see. So Tracey, hang in there!!!

Hugs!

One last thing - tigger - it would drive me crazy if folks who aren't raw were eating my food causally. Being raw is so darn expensive most of the time and it's such a pain when I run out of something... so having non-raw folks rummage through my supplies would really bug me!

Oh, and one more thing - I have my first skating competition two weeks from today! YIKES! I started training in artistic roller skating exactly a year ago and my coach thinks I'm ready to compete in a novice event. It's exciting to think about!!!!!

[tiggerbounce]

Wow, looks like everyone is doing great. Congrats on the weightloss, all!
Tracey, I am going to a quick juice fast again, just a day or two as well. Know how you fell. I am having aches/pains/headache like it is week one on the juice fast again. Feels like caffeine withdrawal. :( But have not had caffeine for 3 weeks. I was going to do it today, but I think things will be quieter and easier to do on Mon/Tues.

rollerjuicer, that is so neat that you do artistic skating! How fun! Cheering for you!! And yep, don't skip the soaking and rinsing of the irish moss next time, lol. Good for you for giving it a go!

And it is expensive to have my kids friends rummage thru my stuff, but more importantly, I drive 70 or 80 miles ONE way to get my groceries. Can not run out and down the street for my fruits and veggies and raw nuts. I am glad they are making good choices, but gee.... Which is cool, but I was not prepared to have them become addicted to my juicer and nut butters, lol. They need to place their orders BEFORE I go shopping.

Ok, have not decided what fuels I require to run my body today. I guess it will unfold on its own. I wanted to do some gourmet raw today, but not sure I can handle it. I guess I will just see what happens. May need to save my dehydrated goodies for later this week. I may dabble but juicy fruits are calling me. I feel dehydrated, sort of. Like I want to have about a bushel of oranges or something like that. I am on the hunt for something sweet, wet, and easy to eat. KWIM?

Have fun today! I know some of you will be watching a football game.... :)

[taraleev]

Sorry I have not posted in awhile, I have been really busy the past couple of days, so here is my raw recap:

Day 2: Green salad with cucumbers and apple cider vinegar, a few bananas and apples. I also drank a lot of water throughout the whole day.

Day 3: Green salad again with cucumbers and apple cider vinegar, two bananas and two lara bars, I also had a fruit smoothie for dinner.

Day 4: Started my morning with another smoothie, a raw chocolate banana one. Raw taco meat and raw sour cream. One banana and lara bar.

Day 5: One banana and two smoothies, one for breakfast and lunch. For dinner I had raw lasagna (this is my favorite raw recipe so far).

During the day at work if I feel hungry I grab my raw lara bars and raw pistachios :)

For some reason my appetite has slowed down a lot, on a positive note I have noticed that my finger nails look healthier, stronger and look more white :)

[carolv]

Rollerjuicer - how cool that you are going to be doing artistic roller skating. Now I understand how you came up with your posting name. Congratulations!

raw chia cereal with banana flakes, chocolate protein powder, almond milk
green smoothie: apple, mango, collard greens, water, ginger
raw burgers on flax seed crackers (yummy!)
raw lasagna (yummy again!)
just munched on some dried mango and a dried persimmon I got with my order that came yesterday.
I will probably have a few raw lemon bonbons shortly and that should be it for today.

I can't believe how fast this day and the whole weekend went. Where did it go?
I'll be putting together my raw goodies to take to work tomorrow.

[Basenjimamma]

Hey guys...glad to be back..
Today was just as usual, well not really...wish I had a green smoothie for breakfast, seems to hold me over better than anything else, but instead I had fruits, cantaloupe, strawberries and bananas, lunch was a cabbage slaw, (love them slaws...lol), dinner, which was superbowl type snacks...cut up veggies with an avocado dip with buffalo type seasonings, was really delish...unil it caught up with me...haha, I also had two bananas later in the evening as a sweet dessert. Glad it is over, all this over abundance of really bad for you snacky kinds of food make it hard to be "good"...but I did it, glad tomorrow is monday and another week...workouts start back up tomorrow..jippea.

[qwerty988]

How great to see everyone doing so well!

I got too caught up in other things to post this weekend -- but the only big excitement for me was FINALLY trying the recipe for green popcorn, and it was GREAT! hahahaha -- if anyone doesn't know it yet, it's Phil McClusky's famous cauliflower popcorn that goes like this:


Ingredients:

1 Cauliflower - 1 whole, florets chopped into bite-sized pieces
Nutritional Yeast, - a whole lot, just pour it in, maybe 4-8 heaping teaspoons
Cayenne Pepper, to taste
Sea Salt, 1 teaspoon (this is the original amount listed, but I use much less)
Spirulina, makes it green, 3 tablespoons, 5 if your are hard core
Olive Oil, 2 teaspoons - a bit more if you have a big cauliflower

Put it all in a gallon size zip lock bag (or a reusable Tupperware-type container) and shake until your arms hurt. You can make it cheesier by adding more yeast, greener by adding more spirulina

So I had that on Saturday (YUM) and have already forgotten what all else I had that day. But Sunday looked like this:

B: One quart orange/grapefruit juice
L: 2 bananas, 1/2 avocado w lemon juice
D: Massaged Kale salad w grated carrots and chopped cabbage

Today I'm definitely making some Blended-Salad Soup, other than that it's wide open!

Later gators! :heart

[rollerjuicer]

Good morning!
Petra, I'm with you - I had a great time this massively social weekend that I really enjoyed but I'm also glad it's over!

Turns out ds is not feeling well (he's 6) so he's home from school. This means I can't go to my skating lesson - DRAT! - but it also means that I'll go ahead and make this a juicing day... I think any day I don't skate should be a juicing day, except for weekends, when I enjoy preparing and sharing food with my family.

AND I LOVE SKATING! Thanks so much for the kudos. I can't say enough how this little activity has changed my life in so many positive ways. There is an entire world of people who are involved with roller dance skating (it's like ballroom dance on roller skates) and last year on a fluke I tapped into it and now I'm one of them. It's totally fun and let's me explore a side of myself (a more graceful, beautiful side) I never knew existed. I would highly recommend roller skating to anyone that has a rink with a dance club near them. I'm 40, never skated before January of last year, and have managed to learn basic steps in fast time with a lot of practice that I can now use in elementary compulsory competitions. Again, it's totally fun and low impact and wonderful.

But alas, I don't think today will be a skating day. Sigh. Maybe I can load a movie on the computer and let my son watch while I take my lesson... we'll see. So let me make lemonade out of lemons (PUN INTENDED) and I'll juice today!

One last thing - yesterday I made the raw salt and vinegar chips in Alissa's book. WOW! That will definitely be a staple around here. I also made some quick flax seed crackers on Saturday - a first for me - and that will become a quick essential, too, since topped with avocado and tomato it made an awesome, easy dinner last night. I think I'll experiment with the ratio of flax seed to vegetables (I used carrot and red onion - I think the recipe was also in the book). Quick question though if anyone knows - does soaking the flax seeds for 4 hours 'sprout' them? I don't quite understand that part. I know they need to soak, but does that make them more digestable? I think I'll do some research on that later.

Anyway, I'm off to juice. Gonna start with pear, kale, and cucumber. I have some plump grapefruits that I hope to enjoy for lunch, along with some apple and zucchini. And gazpacho juice for dinner (tomato, red pepper, cucumber).

Have a great day!

[verbena]

Gosh reading this thread is making me hungry, I want to eat some raw lasagne! perhaps i'll be indulgent this week and buy and aubergine/eggpalnt and make it. (I try to eat seasonally)

I can't really remember what I ate yesterday apart from a humungous salad.

today i've had
banana mango and spinach smoothie
an apple and two clementines
there is a bowl of chocolate chia pudding waiting to be snaffled up in a bit, yum yum!
Dinner will be a salad.

I went to eat the last of my italian bread yesterday, but it had gone mouldy! I've never had that happen before. perhaps it wasn't dehydrated for long enough. will have to whip up some more. Think i'll have a go at making some raw burgers too this week

:D

[househugger]

Is there a list somewhere online where they explain the good and bad of non-traditional vegetable parts such as the tops on carrots and radishes, skins on kiwi and citrus, and pea pods. I've always liked peapods and orange rind and wonder what else I've been missing.

Still doing great on raw.

[tiggerbounce]

Good morning! Had a good weekend, although I also had a blasted headache. This week will be a heavy green juice week I think. http://i146.photobucket.com/albums/r251/xyzero123/th_smiley60.gif

q (http://media.photobucket.com/image/drinking smiley/xyzero123/smiley60.gif?o=20)werty, I have seen so many positive comments on the cauliflower popcorn. Have been interested in trying it. I am too cheap though, lol. You are making me rethink my position though....

I have a few leftovers from yesterday that need to be eaten, other than that, I am going to be a juicy fruit and green smoothie demon this week. Hopefully dh will eat most of the leftovers today and tomorrow and I won't have to be responsible. They were really good but I think I need some rehydration for my head this week.

I had two small bagels, water and juice this morning. It will be juice for the afternoon. I am warming some of the bbq neatballs for tonight. If dh eats them I will have more juice, if not, then I will be having those tonight. I have enough bagels, pizza, and neatballs for the entire week for dinner! Enough for 3 small personal pan sized pizzas, two small servings of neatballs, and 6 small bagels left. What I eat at the end of the day will depend on dh and if he eats what I warm for him. I would have liked to do juice only for a few days, but also do not want to throw out the stuff I already made. I did not know that dh was going to treat himself with a cooked food and beverage fest yesterday or I would have made less. Oh well, I will do as much fresh juice and fruits and veggies as I can and keep the dehydrated things to a dull roar this week. And maybe I will get lucky and dh will eat most of them for me. So, that is an overview of my week ahead. :) Juicy!

[qwerty988]

Yes, I'm also finishing off some dehydrated goodies and other produce today and have been inspired to go on a smoothie-fest when it's done!

Just going to do sweet green smoothies and savory-smoothie-soups..... I'm CRAVING super simple, super green.... and this fits the bill! So, I begin tomorrow.

ALSO, I've been inspired by all you spinning/skating jocks and have decided to get myself back onto my beloved NordicTrack -- and hopefully back to the gym for some spin classes once I build up my strength again. Today I began w a solid 25-minute workout, PHEW!

Thanks to you all for being such an inspiration! :kisses:

[Juicing Juli]

Happy Monday My Raw Friends;
I'm glad to see that everyone got thru the weekend raw and standing strong. My attitude is changing into how I am when I'm doing an extended juice fast and that is that cooked food to me just looks dead and unappealing.
Yesterday, at a football party, I saw the buffet and thought to myself,
"how could they all eat that dead, lifeless food???"
Of course I kept my mouth shut and sat and drank my water. I drank 5- 16 oz. water bottles last night. Needless to say, I got a lot of exercise running to the washroom! lol.
Yesterday
I had: banana, pear, collard green wrap with taco meat, refried beans, red pepper, spinach, avocado, basil, cilantro and sour cream. I did get an upset stomach after this...not sure why??/ 10 dried apricots, 2 chicken fingers with mayo and another avocado.

Today, I played two hours of tennis after my green/fruit smoothie.
Just duplicated the collard wrap for lunch!! We'll see how I feel. I did take a digestive enzyme just in case my stomach doesn't like it again!!

I have alfalfa spouts, sprouting , nuts and lentils soaking. Will be making more corn/flax tortillas and crackers later today!

Juli
p.s. today is my 30th day RAW!!! I gave up coffee, wine and of course cooked food. I'm down 12 lbs....have 15 more to go to fit into my old skinny clothes!!! :woohoo:

[Juicing Juli]

o.k. my counting was off...tomorrow is my 30th day!!!




Happy Monday My Raw Friends;
I'm glad to see that everyone got thru the weekend raw and standing strong. My attitude is changing into how I am when I'm doing an extended juice fast and that is that cooked food to me just looks dead and unappealing.
Yesterday, at a football party, I saw the buffet and thought to myself,
"how could they all eat that dead, lifeless food???"
Of course I kept my mouth shut and sat and drank my water. I drank 5- 16 oz. water bottles last night. Needless to say, I got a lot of exercise running to the washroom! lol.
Yesterday
I had: banana, pear, collard green wrap with taco meat, refried beans, red pepper, spinach, avocado, basil, cilantro and sour cream. I did get an upset stomach after this...not sure why??/ 10 dried apricots, 2 chicken fingers with mayo and another avocado.

Today, I played two hours of tennis after my green/fruit smoothie.
Just duplicated the collard wrap for lunch!! We'll see how I feel. I did take a digestive enzyme just in case my stomach doesn't like it again!!

I have alfalfa spouts, sprouting , nuts and lentils soaking. Will be making more corn/flax tortillas and crackers later today!

Juli
p.s. today is my 30th day RAW!!! I gave up coffee, wine and of course cooked food. I'm down 12 lbs....have 15 more to go to fit into my old skinny clothes!!! :woohoo:

[mysticshore]

12 pounds is awesome! It's so easy when eating raw. The weight just falls away. Congrats on making it to 30 days. I'm trying to give up wine for 30 days and it's not easy is it.

I need to buy more fresh food but have enough grapes and salad for today. My appitite seems low, I'm not eating as much and not feeling dizzy or hungry. Hopefully it is allowing healing.

[carolv]

I'm seeing more great ideas...green popcorn, and salt & vinegar chips

Househugger - don't think I've ever read anything on non-traditional vegetable parts.

Juicing Juli - congratulations on your upcoming 30th day raw. WOOHOO! Good for you!


Today's goodies:
green smoothie: collard greens, sample of reishi, zucchini slice, camponato tomatoes, sun-dried tomato soak water, 1/2 apple, 1/2 cara cara orange, oj
baby carrots
banana
1/2 avocado with taco meat, sour cream, and salsa
small piece of raw lasagna
Lara bar
experimented with a fresh juice
original recipe: 3 med. carrots, 2 6-in long cucumbers, 1 med apple, 1 med beet, 1/2 in ginger
This tasted pretty good but I wanted to use some of the many greens I bought on Saturday so I added 1/2 bunch of dandelion greens. WOW! that was too much and my juice was now bitter so I added 2 more small beets, 3 carrots, and oj but it was still bitter. So I put it in the vitamix and added frozen bananas which made it better but I still added some agave. It was huge.
I also had 2 raw burgers on flax crackers, they are small

[Basenjimamma]

Hi and good evening peeps..

I started my day..day #7 for me...with an intense spinning set...after that I had a delish green smoothie with bananas, spinach, pear and some strawberries..yum...I also drank close to 32oz..just after my spinning, my body needed it. Snack was another pear, lunch veggies and an avoacdo dip with "buffalotype" seasonings..was good, but tummy didn't agree...=(..still feeling a little off from it, but can't figure out if it is detox, the spices or simply the avocado..every now and then when I eat avocado I feel sick to my stomach and other times nothing...so odd.
After work I snacked on some bananas, I've had that empty feeling in my stomach all afternoon, you know the kind that makes you think crackers is needed to soak the acid up kind of feeling..well bananas was my go to fruit..didn't eat dinner..but just had another banana and a plum...just want my stomach to feel better, but I am so hungry....what a crapshoot.
Hope I feel better tomorrow..start my weight w.o again and I want to feel A+, since I didn't get one in today.

Juicing Juli..good for you..congrats on your soon to be 30 days..and teh whopping weightloss too.

and I agree...green popcorn...that is a must try..I think. =)

See you tomorrow. stay healthy stay happy, Stay RAW!

[Juicing Juli]

Mystic shore;
Talking about having a hard time without wine...I know what ya mean.
I used to enjoy red wine while making big gourmet meals. Our family has a lot of parties and wine and cocktails are always a part of it.
For me, I made the decision to try to go 60 days without drinking just to get the weight off. It's a great test of your core being. Just like going raw, the first week was the hardest. Now, I do think of it, but am fine without it.
Stay strong! You can do whatever you put your mind to!!!


12 pounds is awesome! It's so easy when eating raw. The weight just falls away. Congrats on making it to 30 days. I'm trying to give up wine for 30 days and it's not easy is it.

I need to buy more fresh food but have enough grapes and salad for today. My appitite seems low, I'm not eating as much and not feeling dizzy or hungry. Hopefully it is allowing healing.

[qwerty988]

Talking about having a hard time without wine...I know what ya mean.

Oh yes, this has been a struggle for me as well. Not so much for the challenges, but when I think of this as a permanent lifestyle -- which in terms of eating I'm really committed to!

AND 12 POUNDS!!!! :wow: Well done!

I'm very inspired -- and excited to see what impact my smoothie-fest and new workout regimen will have on weight loss, which was sluggish last month, grrrrrr.....

Yesterday looked like this:

B: 2 bananas
flax crackers w tomato, EVOO, salt and nutritional yeast

L: blended salad soup: spinach, tomatoes, cuke, jalapeno, garlic, celery, avocado

D: zucchini spaghetti w marinated mushrooms and cashew cheez sauce, 2 oranges

Today I'm already enjoying my first smoothie and it's OUTRAGEOUSLY delish: fresh o.j., 2 bananas, 2 handfulls sprouts, 2 handfulls spinach, 1/4 avocado, 1 tsp spirulina......... OH YEAH........... !

Have a RAWSOME DAY my fellow challengers! :heart

[househugger]

Is there a list somewhere online where they explain the good and bad of non-traditional vegetable parts such as the tops on carrots and radishes, skins on kiwi and citrus, and pea pods?

I googled 'edible plant parts' and this list came up. http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/extension/newsletters/vpmnews/apr02/art4apr.html Now I wonder if there's anyone out there who tries the unconventional food choices -as if going raw isn't unconventional.

[rollerjuicer]

Hi Everyone!

I had a rough day yesterday. I took a nasty fall at the skating rink and I was still so shaken when I got home that I dropped my super heavy tub of raw honey on my favorite fruit platter and it broke into several pieces. Generally roller skating is a very safe sport, but I'm training hard for the competition that is on the 19th, and I hit my front foot with my back foot on a turn and I went flying. Sigh.

Yesterday I made Alissa's quick slaw - can you say AWESOME?? I added red pepper to it... it was just wonderful. And it didn't have any oil - the cabbage, carrots, pepper and red onion took very well to the apple cider vinegar, agave, and carraway seed. I don't usually gravitate to cabbage so it was really nice to have a cabbage option. We belong to a produce coop, which is great way to get us to try different vegetables since we never know what we're going to get... and last Thursday, in addition to a whole bunch of stuff, I found two huge green cabbages in the loot. I would probably never have bought them, so it was fun to find the recipe, try it, and really like it.

But in terms of my raw journey this month, the truth is that I'm eating way too many nuts. I need to make a conscious effort to cut back. My goal is to lose 10 pounds, but I haven't seen any loss at all in 8 days of being raw. I've made a decision that I will juice on all Thursdays all day, which should help me drop a pound a week, but I know I'd drop even more weight if I just cut back on the nuts. It's not even the prepared dehydrated food that's getting me - it's handfuls and handfuls and handfuls of nuts and dried fruit that I grab throughout the day. I think that will be ok once I hit my goal weight, but for right now I really should cut back. So I hope to write back tomorrow that I was able to consume more fresh fruits and vegetables.

For dinner I'm going to prepare the lentil tenders from the book - I've got the sprouted lentils ready to go - and I'll finish off the leftover slaw, too. No nuts there!

Enjoy the day! It's very sunny and in the 50s here in Maryland. Gonna ride my scooter to work today, pick the dd (almost 3) up early from her daycare for a trip to the park, and then help my ds (6) build his lego spaceship once he gets home. And then I hope to enjoy my lentil tenders with the family once the dh gets home. I will make today the best it can be! : ) Hope you rawbies do the same!

And good luck to you guys on cutting out wine! It sounds like it's a bit of a challenge so here's sending positive thoughts your way...

[Juicing Juli]

So, today is officially my 30th day of Raw eating....I am drinking herbal and limited green tea, so I guess I'm not 100% raw, right?
Anyway, when I stepped on the scale today I was down another pound...so
that's 13lbs in 30 days. I am happy. People on my tennis team are starting to make comments about noticing. That brings a smile to my face. I now have 14.5 lbs to go to get back into my 6's which is the majority of my closest! It's been two years!
Today, I had a green smoothie and one pear.
I just received my replacement big bowl to my food processor which is my lifeline! Now I can make recipes. Going to make some crackers!
Hip, hip horray!!!

[Juicing Juli]

Roller Juice:
Reading your report makes me think of myself when I hit my shin with my tennis racquet...no fun. Doesn't make me fall, but it sure doesn't feel good.Then, will your falling tub of honey...I thought you were going to say it dropped on your foot. So, the fact that it broke your fruit platter, that's a bummer. But just think if it would have dropped on your toe or foot!!! You might not be in that upcoming competition.

Don't be discourage with no weight loss. I try to limit my nut intake as well. I try to only have is as part of my dinner or in limited quantities at lunch.Are you drinking a lot of water?
If you only have 10 lbs to loose, then it might take a little longer. I saw a big slow down in my last two weeks.
The other thing if you are working out a lot with your skating...maybe you're not getting enough calories. When you say you eat nuts throughout the day...it it 10 nuts or 30 nuts. That can make a difference. It shouldn't be the dried fruit that slowing you down unless there's more to it than just fruit. I eat dried organic apricots and they are fine.
Oh, if you have detoxing to do, especially your liver, sometimes your body holds onto the weight until your liver is happy. You can eat some dandelion roots or increase your greens in general to speed this along. David Wolfe talks about incorporating the super foods into your diet which also helps with detoxification. If your body isn't in balance, it won't release the weight.
Do reading on the subject. People have to understand that this is about making your body healthy and happy and in turn the weight release will occur when it's ready!!!


Hi Everyone!

I had a rough day yesterday. I took a nasty fall at the skating rink and I was still so shaken when I got home that I dropped my super heavy tub of raw honey on my favorite fruit platter and it broke into several pieces. Generally roller skating is a very safe sport, but I'm training hard for the competition that is on the 19th, and I hit my front foot with my back foot on a turn and I went flying. Sigh.

Yesterday I made Alissa's quick slaw - can you say AWESOME?? I added red pepper to it... it was just wonderful. And it didn't have any oil - the cabbage, carrots, pepper and red onion took very well to the apple cider vinegar, agave, and carraway seed. I don't usually gravitate to cabbage so it was really nice to have a cabbage option. We belong to a produce coop, which is great way to get us to try different vegetables since we never know what we're going to get... and last Thursday, in addition to a whole bunch of stuff, I found two huge green cabbages in the loot. I would probably never have bought them, so it was fun to find the recipe, try it, and really like it.

But in terms of my raw journey this month, the truth is that I'm eating way too many nuts. I need to make a conscious effort to cut back. My goal is to lose 10 pounds, but I haven't seen any loss at all in 8 days of being raw. I've made a decision that I will juice on all Thursdays all day, which should help me drop a pound a week, but I know I'd drop even more weight if I just cut back on the nuts. It's not even the prepared dehydrated food that's getting me - it's handfuls and handfuls and handfuls of nuts and dried fruit that I grab throughout the day. I think that will be ok once I hit my goal weight, but for right now I really should cut back. So I hope to write back tomorrow that I was able to consume more fresh fruits and vegetables.

For dinner I'm going to prepare the lentil tenders from the book - I've got the sprouted lentils ready to go - and I'll finish off the leftover slaw, too. No nuts there!

Enjoy the day! It's very sunny and in the 50s here in Maryland. Gonna ride my scooter to work today, pick the dd (almost 3) up early from her daycare for a trip to the park, and then help my ds (6) build his lego spaceship once he gets home. And then I hope to enjoy my lentil tenders with the family once the dh gets home. I will make today the best it can be! : ) Hope you rawbies do the same!

And good luck to you guys on cutting out wine! It sounds like it's a bit of a challenge so here's sending positive thoughts your way...

[tiggerbounce]

Well, such activities today! Everyone is busy!

rollerjuicer.....sorry about that nasty fall! This just makes you work harder and better. You are going to post some footage of your awesomeness when it is done, right????

Congrats on your new dehydrator, Juli!!!! Good times ahead!!

Wow, I love wine with olives and other foods that should not be named...lol. I believe it is raw though. If you can find it unsulfured. Ok, so who is going to start brewing for us??????

Today I got lucky...dh ate the gourmet stuff and I am freezing the few leftovers I have. So today I have had two bananas and two large cucumber/orange juices. Headed to the juicer to make a hugemungus green juice and then it is salads for dinner with all the fixins. Have been marinating mushrooms all day for a topping for the salads for us. Oh...and in other exciting news....I started my sprouts Thursday night (clover, alfalfa, mustard, broccoli, radish) and they are ready for juicing and salads. Topping the salad off with a pile of fresh sprouts! woohoo!

Ok, off to exercise and down green juice and water. :)

[carolv]

rollerjuicer - sorry to hear about your fall but glad you are okay. I've tried the easy slaw and it is really wonderful and so easy to make. I've taken it to potlucks before and people love it.

green smoothie: banana, blueberries, carrot, collard greens, hemp seed, honey, water
raw cereal and almond milk
baby red bell pepper
salad with baby spring greens, cucumber, grape tomatoes, sprouts, lime juice
banana
dried mango
cara cara orange
green smoothie with 2 small cara cara oranges, banana, strawberries, collard greens, water
2 mini (I'm talking appetizer size) raw tacos made from small corn chips with taco meat and sour cream sandwiched between them
2 mini raw burgers on flax crackers

Hang in there everybody!

[Kam]

I have just started recently and find myself always drawn to the cameo apples and bananas.... I need to put more emphasis on the veggies, hahaha :D I made a broccoli pea salad tonight with onions and carrots and cucumbers, yummmm :dance: Tomorrow I am having an orange-apple-kale smoothie for breakfast and for lunch a salad of cucumbers, carrots, spinach, romaine lettuce, and a dressing I got from a class.
Here's the recipe if anyone is interested:
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 cup agave nectar
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1/3 cup lime or lemon (I prefer lemon)
Then shake them up in a bottle you use for dressing!
These measurements can be adjusted to taste, though, and how much dressing you want.
Does anyone have any other interesting dressings?
I wish everyone a RAWkin' challenge!:woot:

[mysticshore]

How are you today rollerjuicer? I bet you are twice as sore. I hope you recover quickly. I hate getting knocked around. Good luck with the competition.

Today went well with food, I had grapes, apple, salad, nuts and a bananna for desert. I need to buy more as I only have grapes in the house now.

60 days sounds like a great goal Juli, I really hope I can give up alcohol for that long this year. Every night at dinner my drinking voice asks to be fed and I have to hush it up. It's only a couple of hours of cravings but I'm not used to not getting my way. There is a reward for being strong and being able to control ones desires. I always feel fantastic in the morning when I wake up and know I didn't blow it. You are doing so well with your weight loss, you will be back in your size 6's in no time. I don't really have weight to lose now as I've been doing high raw for years and it all just fell away over time.

[qwerty988]

Welcome to the challenge, Kam! :heart:

My standard go-to dressing is similar to yours, only I also add soy sauce (or aminos) and nutritional yeast to the blend. I really love the sweetness of the agave, the saltiness of the soy, the tartness of the ACV, and the creamyness of the olive oil all mixed together and never get tired of it. Plus I'm crazy about nutritional yearst pretty much added to anything!

Yesterday I began my smoothie-fest!

B: smoothie of o.j., sprouts, spinach, bananas, 1/4 avocado, spirulina
L: Blended-Salad Soup: spinach, tomatoes, 1/4 avo, jalapeno, garlic, celery, cucumber
D: Leftover zucchini spaghetti w marinated mushrooms and cheezy cashew sauce, 2 bananas

Workout: 25 mins. nordictrack WOOO-HOOO!

I'm done with all my non-smoothie produce now, so today can be an all-smoothie day! I'm excited to see how that goes.... I'm planning a green fruit smoothie for breakfast, a savory blended soup for lunch, and a banana-cashew creamy smoothie for dinner. I've also decided I can have all the fruit and juice I want during this fest. I'm SO PSYCHED!

Also, I measured myself and saw I lost another 1/2-inch off my waist yesterday! :woot: I guess the exercise is paying off. Just 1-1/2 inches to go for my goal!

Anyhow, there's my report -- I'm looking forward to hearing from everyone else today!

[Basenjimamma]

Good Morning peeps..totally forgot..well I feel asleep before I got a chance..to add yesterdays tally..
Breakfast was some fruit, snack throughout the am was a green smoothie and lunch was a huge Honey Crisp apple and some pears. Snack in the pm as not so good...but still vegan ;(..paid the price and had a tummy ache for the rest of the evening...in other owrds I didn't eat enough earlier in the day so I caved...and I KNOW better...silly me.

Today so far I worked out in the am, before everybody else was awake..after that I drank 24 oz of water and had a siamese banana for breakfast...two bananas inside of one peel...too cool took pictures, I have never seen that before..
Lunch will be a spicy chiptle seasoned guacamole with veggies...yum...longing for lunch already..snacks will be more fruit, need my carbs. =)..dinner...dunno yet, but craving a kale salad..or Alissa's coleslaw like rollerjuice mentioned...love that one and I have cabbage heads growing like weed in my garden..win/win..

See you later...stay RAW..I know I WILL!!

[rollerjuicer]

Hey Everyone, and welcome to Kam (I'm kind of new, too).

Great work qwerty on the inches gone! That's really wonderful news - measurements like that can mean a lot more than numbers on a scale. Great work! I'm sure the working out is really helping with that, too.

Petra, two bananas in one peel? Was that just a fluke? Never heard of anything like that before! Post the picture if you can. And I'm jealous that you have produce in your garden - do you live where it is warm in Texas? It is freezing right now in MD and I am aching for the spring to get here, but we have several months to go.


Mystic, oh my goodness, am I sore. And you should see the enormous bruise under my chin. I look like I got a nice uppercut during a fight. I've started saying "if you think this is bad, you should see the floor!" I was proud of myself for getting up early yesterday to skate since I had fallen the night before... I was a little wary at first but I got into it a little bit toward the end. I'll skate again tonight for a few hours. Can't believe the competition is in a week and half. I'm not exactly ready but I'll give it a try. And maybe I will post a picture or a video... : )

I'm getting a little frustrated at the lack of weight loss. I don't have that much to lose in the grand scheme of things - I'm 137 right now, but I was 120-125 over the summer when I was high raw and juicing almost all the time and I felt great all around. 125 is a good weight for me - at that point, my 6's fit fine and my tops hang nicely. Right now almost all my pants are tight or unclosable and I can't wear a lot of my tops because they are too tight in the belly area and I don't like how that looks. So I'm wearing the same things over and over again because I don't want to buy anything new.

So today I'm going to do a lot of juicing, and maybe a smoothie for dinner before heading to skate. My plan is to juice a lot tomorrow as well. You guys are certainly an inspiration!

So today, the starting plan is:
B: grapefruit juice, with a pineapple/zucchini/lime chaser
L: apple/carrot/romaine
D: pear/banana/greens smoothie

For me, juicing is a great way to shed pounds but it's not always an easy road to take - I get really hungry when I juice. I've done numerous fasts ranging from 3 to 8 days and I'm not sure I want to do anymore of them like that. Ideally, I'd do a juice day here and there, maybe even once or even twice a week, followed by a more 'fresh' approach to raw foods... more fruits and vegetables rather than so many nuts... maybe if I do that for a few months, the pounds will come off. I hope so!

Have a rawesome day everyone!

[tiggerbounce]

Welcome, Kam! That salad looks really yummy!!

Well, siamese banana! Yes, post the pic. That is way to interesting to keep to yourself! :) At first I thought it was a new type of banana, lol. Can't wait to see it.

Rollerjuicer, good for you for getting up and going in early to skate. I bet you were stiff today.

Seeing people post their weight loss is fun and sort of makes me want to get a scale too. But, no....I know myself far to well. I need to avoid. It is bad enough that the doctor is a bad hostess and makes me weigh every time I go for a visit! LOL

Today I mowed some grass and added to my large green juice - giant cucumber, wheatgrass, 3 apples, 4 celery ribs, 1 bunch chard
I had another two 20 oz size bottles of carrot/apple/celery juice
Grape tomatoes
and coming up for tonight....Zesty Tomato Juice with sprouts
Red Seedless Grapes

Throat is better, but still very tender and sore. Ahhhh,...this too shall pass, right?


Congrats to everyone for another fine day!!!

Have a fantastic evening! (I will be soaking in the tub willing my throat to heal...)

[carolv]

Welcome Kam!

Qwerty - congrats on the lost inches!

Basenjimamma - siamese banana huh? That is so cool. I've never seen anything like that either.

rollerjuicer - good for you for getting right back in there and continuing on. I can only imagine how sore you must be.

green smoothie with bananas, carob powder, beet greens, dandelion greens, water
raw cereal with almond milk
salad of baby spring greens, sprouts, grape tomatoes, cucumbers, parsley, and acv
raw brownie
raw crunch bar
green smoothie with banana, apple, pear, beet greens, ormus supergreens, water
avocado with liquid aminos and shredded raw nori
lemon bon bons

[Basenjimamma]

Hey all...first off here is my ginormous breakfast banana, the double yolker, the siamese one.

89758976

it was so big in my hand it was unreal...but it tasted just like normal, just twice as sweet...lol.
I ended up having a so so day, but have recharged and is starting fresh tomorrow with a huge collard green/cabbage slaw as my mainstay in the middle of the day..but first off...P90X baby, starting tomorrow again..I did it for a week or two a while back but got bored, not now..I am in it to win it..so to speak, boredom aside. Will tell you all about it in the morning, setting alarm for 5am wake up call...lol.


Rollerjuice, I am in Hockley outside of Houston, so yes, rather tepid temps..winter garden is flourishing right now and I just planted my seeds for the summer garden in my little seed tray indoors..summers can/is brutal though and many things burn in tehe heat of the day...but we always give it a go...lol.
Have a great evening peeps.

[tiggerbounce]

That is one crazy banana!!! LOL

Thanks for the pic, that is awesome.

I have heard that p90X is brutal. See you at 5am...

[qwerty988]

Good morning, all!

Yesterday was:

B: smoothie with spinach, sprouts, 3 bananas, ½ avo
snack later was a grapefruit
L: Blended-Salad soup
2 bananas
D: More Blended-Salad soup poured over a bowl of bean sprouts
Night snack was choc. frozen banana ice cream, yum!

Also worked out another 25 mins on NordicTrack. It's killer but I'm preferring it to the gym right now, for some crazy reason.... guess I'm having fun clearing out my dvr while I do it. I'm a whole season behind Biggest Loser, so it's fun to catch up!

Anyhow, am psyched and ready for another day of Smoothie-Fest! Have a great day all! :heart

[verbena]

morning raw lovelies!

it's been a few days since I posted, and reading back the posts it's great to see everyone doing so well :D

yesterday i ate

Banana, mango and spinach smoothie
an apple
3 medjool dates
salad of romaine, cuke, pepper and tomato
a whole punnet of lychees which were so delicious!

today so far for breakfast was a banana and peanut butter shake.

I NEED to drink more water, i've been waking up with what feels almost like a hangover as i'm dehydrated. Some days I don't feel thirsty and simply forget to drink. does anyone have any tips on how to remember to drink? (gosh that sounds odd!)

have a wonderful day all!

[qwerty988]

lychees..... YUM!

I use a big plastic tumbler with a built-in straw and keep it filled with ice and filtered water and take it with me everywhere I go. I always add something to it, though -- either lemon or ACV or cayenne pepper..... sometimes all 3! I don't like my water plain.

I also drink it heated with lemon or ACV.

If you have a smartphone, there are apps you can download that will remind you throughout the day to drink your water hahahahaa!

[tiggerbounce]

Throat is worse today. I am going to try a Gorilla Sandwich and the rest is going to be a liquid diet. It hurts to even think about breathing. If it does not make any improvements today, I may break down and have a visits with the doctor. Unfortunately, about three weeks ago I was exposed to mono by my daughter, colds/flu by both kids this week, and noxious chemicals by husband two nights ago. I have not a clue which, if any, are the culprit.

Anyone ever inhale chloraseptic spray? hahahaha! Not doing it, but just saying that it really hurts!

Re: Gorilla Sandwich, I posted up some videos on the forum a few minutes ago on how to make them. In the recipe section. Banana search Gorilla Sandwiches. The music in the second video makes me chuckle. Too loud and to much. The guy is pretty cool though and easy to follow.

[qwerty988]

Sorry to hear about your sore throat!

My son and I both had severe sore throats and then powerful lingering colds about 3 weeks ago.... many people around here (Pennsylvania) were sick at that time, too.

For pain, a warm saltwater gargle works sometimes...... feel better soon! :kisses:

[RawGirl4Health]

Hi all, is it too late for me to join in? I went back to 100% raw yesterday. I suffer from a ED :( I was raw for almost 2 years, then going through a divorce and living w/ inlaws/stress/new job = 30 lb gain in like only a few months!!! :( I am so sad and down. I have been trying tons of diets the past few weeks losing and gaining the same 5 lbs. I am now 172lbs! OMG so, i am now over that shock. I am trying to be kind to myself b/c i can tend to get crazy like do i need 80/10/10? do i need to do food combining? argh. I get so crazy. So, right now, goal is just 100% raw, for 30 days. thats it :)

Im seeing a new guy, LOL and he thinks I am crazy. LOL b/c i just started to see him and like change my diet every single day, LMAO. So, i think I am just always looking for the latest and greatest. I have yet to see such results that I saw on raw like 2 years ago.

I will check in here daily and want u all to never hesitate to whoop my a$$ ok?

Thank you for all the support :) (in advance) and I will do my best to support you as well.

xoxo

[rollerjuicer]

Hey RawGirl and everyone else!
I'm new to the forum too - I started in late January and let me say that I VERY GRATEFUL for it. Everyone here is really nice and I think you could find some good support and advice here. It seems like you've had a bit of a rough patch to say the least... getting back to raw and finding control in at least one area of your life is definitely a great way to start healing and finding balance. And tell you new guy to strap in cuz' this is gonna be A RIDE! In the beginning I think it's totally normal to change plans often because you don't know what's going to work yet.

Tigger - have you ever tried high doses of vitamin C? I mean really high doses? I take a lot of C when my throat starts to feel tight and it seems to work some of the time. Maybe look into it? I take 1000-2000 mg an hour every hour all day when I start to feel something coming on - you know it's too much when your stomach starts to tell you it's too much. As far as I can tell, that's the only negative side effect of too much C. It also controls my allergies very well - I used to get terrible seasonal allergies between March and May and take zyrtec, but with the C, I didn't need to take it anymore. But I am sorry your throat is so ouchy - never fun.

Petra and qwerty - you're giving me inspiration with all that working out. Gonna get on my elliptical tonight. I do skate a lot but it's not the same as doing a cardio routine for 30 minutes in a row. So I think I'm going to get back on that wagon. Do you find that you need to eat more when you workout? (And Petra - that was SOME banana!)

I stayed true to my little mini challenge yesterday and stayed away from nuts and seeds. I juiced all day and then had a lot of fruit and a massive plate of slaw for dinner. This morning I had a banana/pear/spinach smoothie for breakfast and I hope to have a salad for lunch - I'm a little nervous because I'm having lunch in a restaurant with a colleague I don't know very well. He's going to learn a little about the raw lifestyle today, that's for sure!! I'll do a big romaine salad with avocado and tomato tonight. By the way, carolv, what is a crunch bar?

And verbena - I am with you on the more water challenge. I did ok yesterday but I need to remind myself to drink water all the time! Sometimes I feel like I'm going to swim away! : )

Enjoy the day!!!

[Juicing Juli]

Hey Tiggerbounce;
sorry to hear that you still have a sore throat. did you try those herbs by chance? you need to drink a lot of tea (like 6-8 cups a day) to get it up to a medicinal level. Also, I know you don't like honey, but some raw honey with a raw mashed garlic clove....yummy!!! Sounds like your immune system has been challenged. I'll write more privately.
Gorilla sandwich...can't wait to view your video. You are so creative with your pictures and posts. How are you doing those ? Have not mastered posting pictures! I take most pictures of my food with my camera and then post to facebook. Not sure how to load them here.
O.k.
heal quickly!
Juli



Throat is worse today. I am going to try a Gorilla Sandwich and the rest is going to be a liquid diet. It hurts to even think about breathing. If it does not make any improvements today, I may break down and have a visits with the doctor. Unfortunately, about three weeks ago I was exposed to mono by my daughter, colds/flu by both kids this week, and noxious chemicals by husband two nights ago. I have not a clue which, if any, are the culprit.

Anyone ever inhale chloraseptic spray? hahahaha! Not doing it, but just saying that it really hurts!

Re: Gorilla Sandwich, I posted up some videos on the forum a few minutes ago on how to make them. In the recipe section. Banana search Gorilla Sandwiches. The music in the second video makes me chuckle. Too loud and to much. The guy is pretty cool though and easy to follow.

[tiggerbounce]

I think that just plain and simple raw with no worries is a great idea for you. Excellent choice.
Trying tons of diets in a few short weeks does not seem like it would give any of them a chance to really work. Stick with the thirty days to get yourself back on track.

Stress is a definite deal breaker for me, too.

It's never to late to join the challenge!!!! Welcome to the thread!! Excited to get to know you!:dance:






Hi all, is it too late for me to join in? I went back to 100% raw yesterday. I suffer from a ED :( I was raw for almost 2 years, then going through a divorce and living w/ inlaws/stress/new job = 30 lb gain in like only a few months!!! :( I am so sad and down. I have been trying tons of diets the past few weeks losing and gaining the same 5 lbs. I am now 172lbs! OMG so, i am now over that shock. I am trying to be kind to myself b/c i can tend to get crazy like do i need 80/10/10? do i need to do food combining? argh. I get so crazy. So, right now, goal is just 100% raw, for 30 days. thats it :)

Im seeing a new guy, LOL and he thinks I am crazy. LOL b/c i just started to see him and like change my diet every single day, LMAO. So, i think I am just always looking for the latest and greatest. I have yet to see such results that I saw on raw like 2 years ago.

I will check in here daily and want u all to never hesitate to whoop my a$$ ok?

Thank you for all the support :) (in advance) and I will do my best to support you as well.

xoxo

[tiggerbounce]

Yeah, maybe I was not drinking enough. I only had about two large cups of the tea. I will add more today. And yeah, will break down and do the honey, :) .

I upload to photobucket or anywhere really, then I just copy and paste the pics right to the page. If you use photobucket, you copy the bottom link of the 4 choices and then just paste it on the page where you want it. For the youtube videos, I copy and paste the link they give on youtube to embed it. In the go advanced comments you select the add video and paste it there. Hope that helps? Let me know if you have troubles with it.

Qwerty, I really hope that I do not have that!! eek! I want to feel better, NOW. LOL




http://i138.photobucket.com/albums/q273/dianafuhrmann/th_af648215.png (http://s138.photobucket.com/albums/q273/dianafuhrmann/?action=view&current=af648215.png)




Hey Tiggerbounce;
sorry to hear that you still have a sore throat. did you try those herbs by chance? you need to drink a lot of tea (like 6-8 cups a day) to get it up to a medicinal level. Also, I know you don't like honey, but some raw honey with a raw mashed garlic clove....yummy!!! Sounds like your immune system has been challenged. I'll write more privately.
Gorilla sandwich...can't wait to view your video. You are so creative with your pictures and posts. How are you doing those ? Have not mastered posting pictures! I take most pictures of my food with my camera and then post to facebook. Not sure how to load them here.
O.k.
heal quickly!
Juli

[RawGirl4Health]

Thanks ladies :) I may post often at first to keep on track and stay accountable. I realize how much snegetieve self talk i have been doing lately. I printed out some great affirmations. One that I really like is "What I think about I bring about". Simple and effective. I can't wait to be comfortable in my body again and I know it will happen :D i have been here before and been much lower and I KNOW i can do it again, and am absolutely determined to make it happen!! I dont care if its -1lb a week, it will happen and I am going to love myself no matter what. :)

Here is what I have eaten thus far. The one thing I am conscious of is food combining, but I am not going to freak out over every last thing right now.

Water upon waking. (will get lemons for tomorrow as I used to do lemon water religiously).
B: Avocado, Almonds (TJ "raw" aka not really raw, soaked)
SN: Chai Seed w/ a little stevia
L: Salad w/ avocado
D: ?? I am going to store. I am excited to go home and make something delish! I have been looking up recipes all day lol.

As far as how i feel, this is day 2. My weight was 172.5 yesterday and today. Yesterday was a free for all raw day, plus I had two raw sushi rolls (fish) and i had a lot of almonds, coconut etc which Im not sure were even raw. So, Im going to consider today as my starting point, even more so tomorrow when I have fruits on hand.

The thing I already notice is my mood - its really good. I am drinking some green tea b/c i am weaning back off caffeine. I dont want to all out shock my system just yet!

Looking forward to this journey with you all. 30 days. My BF is on board. I am too. And, excited!!

[carolv]

Welcome RawGirl! You will find this forum very helpful. It really helps me to stay on track and gives me great ideas on how to handle social events and food ideas.

Wow! That is an impressive banana and a great picture of it.

I have trouble too sometimes remembering to drink enough water. It's worse when I'm really busy and thankfullly things have been settling down at work so I remember better to fill up my cup now. I wouldn't be surprised if there is an app for that. LOL

Hmmm...I'm definitely going to check out the gorilla sandwich.

There has been a lot of sickness going on around here. I fought a cold a couple of weeks ago but it didn't get too bad. My DH on the other hand has bronchitis, poor guy!

green smoothie: banana, almond butter, beet greens, hemp seeds, Ormus supergreens, water
2 clementines
Lara bar
apple
1/2 avocado with taco meat, sour cream, and salsa
green smoothie: banana, OJ, dandelion greens, parsley, pineapple, strawberries
finished my raw taco meat and sour cream on little gem lettuce leaves with some salsa and a few raw corn chips
lemon bon bons

You can google raw crunch bars, they are really yummy.

[Basenjimamma]

Good evening ladies..

Hope y'all had a swell day today..I sure did..woke up at 5am, had the alarm set, although I laid in bed wide awake at 4am, I still struggled to get up at 5..go figure. Did my P90X Leg/back set...felt great, had energy to spare...and as teh eveing is getting later and later I am starting to feel it in my bum...jippea...love the burn. Tomorrow is Ab ripper X and spinning..phew.

Breakfast was a huge smoothie, enough to split into breakfast and a snack, lunch was a collard green/cabbage slaw witrh oranges...yum. Snack once home again this afternoon was bananas..dinner was more fruit...had enough greens earlier today.

Water...I too sometimes forget to drink enough..I solved that by getting one of those reusable plastic glasses with lid and straw..I now drink anywhere from 32 to 64 oz a day....sipping away while I work, drive or work out...those glasses has been my saving grace...feel so much better when you consume enough water.


See you in the manana..

[RawGirl4Health]

Hey Ladies, I am happy to say I am down 1.5-2 lbs today. I feel good! however I ate a lot of dried fruits w/ celery last night (i know its not the best) and i paid in digestion issues last night. Perhaps TMI but I was in/out of the bathroom a LOT lol. I lost count! Kind of disturbing that I was carrying all that around with me :/ eek. Anyhow, again sorry TMI... I am starting to remember why/how I did raw for so long in the past. I am too nervous about some of the issues I suffered from last time around so I am NOT going to be vegan, but for the time being I am going to eat intuitively. I recall my hair got very thin and clear-ish so just to be on the safe side, I will likely incorporate some raw fish from time to time, and once my 30 days is up I will evaluate and see if I need to do eggs, but I have never done raw eggs, although the yolk in a smoothie doesnt scare me all that much. I follow Denise Minger among many many raw foodists and she has a diet of 100% raw but with added animal products.

I scared myself a little watching some youtube videos bashing raw today. This is probably a form of self sabatage and means I need to do some affirming, because I am likely to go through a lot emotionally and release some feelings. Especially since this is the first week in my whole life that I have been away from my husband (soon to be ex) this long (we saw each other once this week). And the new guy I am seeing suffers from horrible MDD (Major Depression) so I had a big scare with him last night. But, I was feeling healthy so I was able to be there for him. I wont lie though, it is stressful time of transition and im trying to be easy on myself.

I am worried b/c i dont want to get bloated. I really want to avoid that b/c i have a big tummy even when im thinner. But i dont want to be too extreme either and do 80/10/10 just yet, nor do i want to shun fruits and do lower carb raw. For now im just doing what feels right. I have my whole future to adjust right?
Oh as far as the water discussion: I am doing really well. Had some upon waking, and have been drinking lemon/lime water all day. Im doing great there.

ps - I also am doing a parasite cleanse just by eating a large spoonful of papaya seeds each morning, I might do more tonight. I recall doing that last time I went raw it really helped cut the cravings. Speaking of which, I have a really good handle on my cravings so far. I just hope I can survive the weekend when the BF comes to stay on Sat-Sun. (he is a athlete and eats almost only all cooked meat, which doesnt bother me since i eat some raw meat still but does present a challenge if we want to dine out).

Have a wonderful day!

^.^

[Juicing Juli]

Happy Friday! I haven't posted in a couple days because my eating has been out of control. I'm up .5 lbs and I deserve to be up 3!!! Maybe.
I'm staying completely raw, but between pesto stuffed mushrooms and this awesome collard green cole slaw and a ton of avocados laying around, I've been not holding back! Oh, and I put too much oil on my cheesy kale chips.
So, today, I'm back on track with my green smoothie. I drank a little, then put it in the freezer. When I returned from taking my girl to school and shopping at Target it was completely frozen. Glad my glass didn't break. It's been sitting out for 10 minutes and I'm scraping it like it's sorbet. Yum.

I'm very excited because tomorrow I'm attending a raw prep class at a local raw cafe. I'm very fortunate that I have one 10 minutes from my door. I'm toying with volunteering there. It's a very cool concept. All people working there are volunteers and any profits go to Chicago Children's Memorial.
I'll post a link to take a look. Anyway, I'm thinking about starting a raw meet up based there. Still have to talk to the owners about it. The one thing I'm determined to do this time around with the raw life style is surround myself by people who also practice the raw lifestyle. This hub is great...love it...don't want to do without it, but I also need face to face contact with some supporters.
O.k. off to prepare for my daughter's school valentines party. I'm doing a game called Cupid's Arrow challenge where the kids will try to shoot q-tips thru a straw into bowls. Love the internet for ideas!

Plan to juice for lunch!
Making BBQ Chicken fingers too for tomorrow. I've grown to love those!!!

Stay strong people!!!

[Juicing Juli]

T.B.: I'm sorry your throat is worse. Do you oregano oil? This is as strong as an antibiotic (similar to garlic, but stronger) if you have a bacterial infection. Stay away from all sugar including from fruit. Up you water and don't do anything cold....luke warm or warmer. ARe you still doing the tea??
Do you do essential oils?
How about Reiki? I can walk you thru some steps to ease your pain.
O.k. let me know.



Throat is worse today. I am going to try a Gorilla Sandwich and the rest is going to be a liquid diet. It hurts to even think about breathing. If it does not make any improvements today, I may break down and have a visits with the doctor. Unfortunately, about three weeks ago I was exposed to mono by my daughter, colds/flu by both kids this week, and noxious chemicals by husband two nights ago. I have not a clue which, if any, are the culprit.

Anyone ever inhale chloraseptic spray? hahahaha! Not doing it, but just saying that it really hurts!

Re: Gorilla Sandwich, I posted up some videos on the forum a few minutes ago on how to make them. In the recipe section. Banana search Gorilla Sandwiches. The music in the second video makes me chuckle. Too loud and to much. The guy is pretty cool though and easy to follow.

[tiggerbounce]

I am out of oregano oil. Maybe I can steep some and try that?? I broke down and took some Dayquil.
What? No fruit??? That was my entire menu today, LOL!
(eyeing the pineapple setting beside me.....sigh..I suppose the banana whip is out, too?? And chocolate pudding??? Woman's got cravings here!!!)
Still drinking the tea. I let it steep overnight.
Reiki? I would love to know more about that.

[tiggerbounce]

kale chips === raw addiction. yum!!!
Juli, I think Karyn's is in your area as well. http://www.karynraw.com/

I love your idea of surrounding yourself with raw buddies that are local. That is like half the battle. Being able to socialize while raw can be difficult. How often do people say, Hey, let's go hiking! or Hey, let's run to Green Tomatoes!. Nope, they say, Hey, let's run to the nearest steak house or buffet, or bar. It is good to have friends with common goals.

Have fun at your class tomorrow. I think that would be so much fun!

I love the q-tip arrows. LOL. Good idea!

[Juicing Juli]

o.k. last post here until later today...addition you mention...yes, to the raw lifestyle. I have a ton of ideas...teaching/support/business

so, sugar, no matter if its processed or in the form of fruit is sugar. sugar lowers your immune function for a period or time. I'm sorry. I don't know how those fruitarian people survive healthfully. Oh, and you know there are certain fruits, like pineapple (sorry) that have higher sugar than others.
I'd say stick to greens at least today if you can.
The oregano oil...steeping dried...yeah, I'd say skip it. oil of oregano is like a billion plants to get a drop. That's why it's so potent. How much raw garlic are you ingesting??? Maybe increase that with some raw onions....raw honey...straight, not melted in tea.
my daughter has me put the raw garlic in a pill form...but you probably don't have empty capsules lying around. I make my own, so that's on my counter. I'd drop some of this stuff off at your house if you lived closer.
Wheatgrass? Do you have any even in powder form?
Reiki...google it and I'll walk you through it in an email later today.

Karyn's raw is in the city, maybe 45 minutes from me.
The Vegan Cafe is really like 10 minutes from me. I could ride my bike there..weather permitting!!!
Check it out!
http://www.rawvegancafe.org/



I am out of oregano oil. Maybe I can steep some and try that?? I broke down and took some Dayquil.
What? No fruit??? That was my entire menu today, LOL!
(eyeing the pineapple setting beside me.....sigh..I suppose the banana whip is out, too?? And chocolate pudding??? Woman's got cravings here!!!)
Still drinking the tea. I let it steep overnight.
Reiki? I would love to know more about that.

[verbena]

so, sugar, no matter if its processed or in the form of fruit is sugar. sugar lowers your immune function for a period or time. I'm sorry. I don't know how those fruitarian people survive healthfully. Oh, and you know there are certain fruits, like pineapple (sorry) that have higher sugar than others.


Sugar is essentially what our bodies are designed to run on, it is our primary source of energy, it's what every cells uses to function. what evidence do you have for it lowering immune function?

[RawGirl4Health]

Hi Ladies, a quick Q.

If i want to de-bloat, clear up candida, lose weight quickly, do you think i should limit my fruit intake at least just for like the first week? I do very well on low carb that is why im asking. It would kinda be like lower carb raw. I dont get to workout that much, so perhaps it would clear my system out quickly? I can just eat like berries and certain lower sugar fruits and see how i do. Have some raw fish and maybe eggs even. Does anyone here do raw animal products? I will stay clear of raw dairy tho, too addicting for me....

[rollerjuicer]

Hey Guys!
Sorry to post so late - crazy day, starting out with a skate at the rink this morning. And then I hit a make up counter at a mall - getting ready for next week! I've got to 'look the part' so they tell me.

Juli - I am totally jealous about your activities tomorrow. It sounds very awesome. Report back how it went.
And Tigger - I TOTALLY feel you about the getting together thing. We're very outdoorsy here, but not many folks are. We have gorgeous places to hike around here, but on a beautiful Saturday we'll be alone on the trails... while at the mall you can't find a parking space. I don't mean to be judgmental, but for me, it's such an inversion of priorities.

We have a health cafe that does a lot of raw a little over 30 minutes away when there is no traffic. It's called zia's and sometimes they have recipes on their website. http://www.ziascafe.com/menu.html The raw chocolate orange torte is simply awesome. I've made it several times now.

I am using today to eat somewhat normally, to see if I can keep off the single pound that came off this week. I need to up my exercise, but I don't want to get hurt in any way before the competition next week so I may hold off...

Today has been all about water, too. I've probably had about 75 ounces so far... gonna try to get to 100 before I go to bed.

B - sesame/ginger cookie with honey and pear
L - banana, another sesame/ginger cookie, carrots galore, grape tomatoes, apple
D - flax crackers with avocado, nuts and dried fruit

Raw girl - I have no idea... I would check out Andrew Saul's doctoryourself.com ... he may have some ways to clear up some of the issues.

L8r!

[qwerty988]

Hi everyone!

So, my big news is: SMOOTHIE-FEST 2012 KILLED MY OLD OSTER BLENDER hahhahahaaaaaa!

So....... I just ordered a VITAMIX! :encore:

Not sure how I'll get by without a blender the next 8-15 days..... but SO thrilled to be stepping up to the big leagues and cannot wait for all those amazing soups and smoothies! Talk about a smoothie-fest!!!!

Today I've been scrambling to get by on bananas, green popcorn and massaged kale salad..... it's fine, but a bit frustrating when I'm all primed for a smoothie-fest and knowing a Vitamix is winging its way to my humble home..... oh well, perfect time to dive into some gorilla sandwiches! :eat

I hope you're feeling better soon, tiggerbounce!

RAWK ON, you animals! :heart

[carolv]

I'll have to look up info about Denise Minger,never heard of her before.

I'm jealous of those of you near a raw food cafe. I don't know of any near me but I can find a few gourmet raw food items around here and there. I am originally from Gurnee, IL which is north of Chicago and I have family there still so I've been to Karyn's a couple of times recently. My last visit there last year we ate in her restaurant and it was absolutely delicious. Thank you for the links and I'll have to definitely try the chocolate orange torte. Sounds perfect for Valentine's day.

Qwerty - congratulations on the vitamix! At least you got the last bit of usefulness out of your blender. heehee! You are going to LOVE the vitamix. I was sooo glad I made the investment in mine, what a HUGE difference. My old blender did okay but it was so much easier to use the vitamix instead.

Juli - love the cupid arrow idea, sounds like it will be a blast.

Today's goodies were:
green smoothie with almond milk, hemp seed, dandelion greens, bananas, parsley, tahini, vanilla
raw cereal with almond milk
raw crunch bar
salad with baby spring greens, basil, sprouts, cucumbers, grape tomatoes, acv
raw brownie
red pepper lime soup
mini "hamburgers" on flax crackers
lemon bon bons

[tiggerbounce]

Sick, but not to sick to function.
If you missed these in the recipe forum.....here you go. A request in the blogs today and I decided to own the challenge....


Rice Cakes


http://i138.photobucket.com/albums/q273/dianafuhrmann/rawricecakesjpg.jpg?t=1328919089


Equal amounts of sesame seeds and chia seeds.
See the recipe section for the how to, etc.
These turned out nice. I surprised myself, lol.

[rollerjuicer]

Morning Raw Friends! and afternoon those those across the pond! : )

I am very happy to report that though I ate everything in sight yesterday, my weight didn't change and I've kept off the lone pound I lost this week.

Water is again the name of the game today - have probably had 2-3 cups so far and want to get it to 5 before eating breakfast.

qwerty - you are going to LOVE your vitamix. Cashew cremes, for ice cream or cheeses are so much easier to get smooth; smoothies take on a whole new dimension because of the harder vegetables you can put in them (like sweet potato); and soups are a breeze and as long as the temperature doesn't get too high, the vitamix will actually warm food. You'll find all sorts of stuff to do. Be prepared, though, for how loud it is! I hope you enjoy it. It was probably a lot of cabbage, and I hope you'll find that in the long run it's worth it.

I went into a small state of shock when I realized how expensive raw tools were. We had to take out a second mortgage (kidding here) when we went raw because we bought our Vitamix (we got a used one), a Champion juicer and an Excalibur dehydrator in the same year - we bought a new machine every three/four months after we'd saved up for it. We got a Cuisinart food processor from my parents about 8 years ago so we didn't have to buy that, but we didn't have most of what we needed to do what we wanted for raw food (we didn't have a juicer or toaster for example). Man, I feel like I'm name dropping here (and I am SO not a brand name person!), but I have found that in many ways the higher quality product really goes a long way. In addition, I've come to really appreciate my mandoline - that wasn't crazy expensive, but it wasn't cheap either - that was the last thing we bought. So it's taken about a year to get a really good raw kitchen going, but I think we're pretty much there - I can make most of the recipes I find. But seriously, it wasn't cheap to buy any of this stuff!

carol - the raw chocolate torte is amazing and if you get started in the morning, it will be ready by dinnertime. The cashews need to soak for about 4 hours (and I also soak the dates for the crust), and then the whole thing takes about 6 hours to set. I've always done mine in little ramekins so that everyone gets their own - it's always been a hit!

Tigger - how are you feeling today? Clearly, by the way, you are a photographer AND chef - the picture is beautiful! And RawGirl - how are you doing?

My plan for today:
B - soaked oat groats, with strawberries and coconut
L - spinach smoothie with banana
D - salad with avocado, pear, walnut and olive oil
snacks - brownie with honey, kiwi fruit, grapefruit juice

One last thing - I've been on the blog almost two weeks, and I wanted to thank you guys for being here! I really appreciate the fact that I can read what you guys are up to and write in every morning, with a plan for the day. Reading the posts gives me ideas and at the same time, I feel there is a sort of accountability to myself when I type out what I plan on doing. So, thank you!

Raw and Roll on!

[tiggerbounce]

"Tigger - how are you feeling today? Clearly, by the way, you are a photographer AND chef - the picture is beautiful! And RawGirl - how are you doing?"

Down for the count, rollerjuicer. Clearly my body wants to chillax. It is full blown miserable now. I get bronchitis just by thining about it, so have been trying to be careful. Doctor says I have chronic bronchitis. As a rv believer, I say nothing is forever. :) The flames in my throat are beginning to subside. My sinuses....grrrrrooooaaaaaaaan. Pain and suffering, heh. Getting sores all over in my mouth. The coughing is deep and hard and making my rib area tender. It is snowing again, so a great day to curl up with some tea, an electric blanket, and a hubby. :) Someone is darn well gonna have to pamper me today. :)

But not nauseaus or in the bathroom as much today. Yet. Progress!

Thanks for your compliments! Not a photographer or a chef, lol. Just tenacious. I did used to be a professional pastry chef/chocolatier. I specialized in custom chocolate work. Never again. I had my own business and getting employees to show up for work or actually work when they are there??? Not happening. It was some very long days for me, especially when I had large orders. For example: 2700 customized gold dusted logo chocolate truffles for one company. By myself. Like I said...never again, lol. It might have been different if I had an equal partner. We could have worked faster and had fun together. It was not fun working from 4am to midnight with little or no help and lots of important deadlines to meet.

I have not a clue what my raw eating choices are going to be today. I see a lot of licorice drops in my future for the coughing and lots of fluids. Other than that, I may not even move off of the counch today. I may grab Chance's laptop once in awhile and see what you are up to though. :) Unfortunately, some of the seeds I started for the garden need to moved to some soil or growing medium today. And I have to attend to my growing sprouts. But other than that, my calander is open for self pity. LOL

That rice cake concoction has given me some ideas that are rolling around in my achy brain though. I will probably mull those around while dozing in and out of reality.

Stay warm and have the most amazing day!

[Juicing Juli]

Vebana;
I should have sent this directly and privately to Tigerbounce since we have been communicating about her health. Sugar, in the form of fructose is something that should be consumed in moderate amounts...effects candida, insulin resistance, feeds cancer, among many other functions. I don't have time nor do I think this is
the space to site medical papers. Everyone is on their own journey and if you believe that high fruit intake is good for you, then so be it. I look at the raw diet from a medical standpoint since I have studied natural health for many years.
Here's an article for the laymen...if you want more detailed statistics, google it.
http://http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-mercola/if-you-want-to-age-gracef_b_700335.html

Tigger, hope you are feeling better!!!



Sugar is essentially what our bodies are designed to run on, it is our primary source of energy, it's what every cells uses to function. what evidence do you have for it lowering immune function?

[carolv]

Tigger - pretty impressive that you had your own pastry/chocolatier business. I guess now you can just be a private raw chocolatier??? :cheer:

Today I had:
chia cereal with banana flakes, chocolate protein powder, and almond milk
green smoothie with orange juice, dandelion greens, kiwis, strawberries, parsley, hemp seeds,
Went to Bob Evans restaurant with my husband and had the fruit plate with no yogurt. It was funny the waitress kept asking me if I wanted a different side with it. Told her nothing else with it when she took the order but she came back and asked again. She did knock down the price for me which was nice. The fruit was on a couple of nice pieces of green leaf lettuce so I ate them and most of my fruit. It was a lot especially after having the chia cereal and smoothie already. So I brought my leftover fruit home.
For lunch I had the rest of my red pepper lime soup and the rest of my mini burgers on flax crackers
Dinner was just another green smoothie with my leftover fruit from the restaurant, mandarin oranges, little gem lettuce, raw tomato sauce that was stuck to the sides of the vitamix from raw lasagna that was just made, a few frozen baby bananas that were on special at the grocery store today, and a bunch of water

[Basenjimamma]

Hi ladies..sorry I forgot to get on last night before I passed out..lol.

Yesterday was a crazy day with spirit store at school, Valentine Parties, and a run to the mechanic as well as the car rental place...all before 5 pm...crazy.

Ate vegan, way to much and now I am paying the price...yuck..why do I do this to myself..every dang week...? Today was better, have been busy doing things I love, working outdoors, I've been making homemade shutters to put up around the windows of our house..so excited, they are looking good..
Just made dinner for my peeps, but all I am craving is water, I don't seem to drink enough water when I am a home...for some reason..
Today I am resting from my P90x, but yesterday I did the Ab ripper X and 45 minutes of spinning...my bum is literally killing me from my leg/back day on thursday...but I am fighting through it..lol.
I've also come to teh conclusion of when I eat nothing but fruit for breakfast I tend to overeat later in teh day..where as if I drink a green smoothie I don'tr nibble or overeat..so solution...green smoothies daily for me from here on out.

Tiggerbounce..I hope you feel better quickly..this must be so hard, I ache for you. =(
See you in the morning ladies.

[qwerty988]

Good morning all!

Going through SEVERE blended-soup and smoothie withdrawal with no blender... feels like I'm just constantly snacking, but at least it's all been raw:

green popcorn
bananas, oranges and grapefruit
massaged kale salads w sprouts, grated carrot and beet
avocado-tomato-carrot-cucumber salad w EVOO and sea salt
frozen bananas w cocao powder
cauliflower popcorn w just EVOO, nutritional yeast, cayenne pepper and salt

Hahahahhaaa HOW MANY HEADS of cauliflower have I been through in the past few days? It's all a blurr.... a big green yeast-coated blur....

Anyway, I'll try to keep better track of what I'm eating today. I'm thinking some kind of gorilla sandwich with a ranch-type sauce mixed in there....?

And I'm so sorry to hear you're still sick tiggerbounce!! I hope you're feeling better today. :heart:

And thanks rollerjuicer -- I'm BEYOND EXCITED about the Vitamix, as I've become so into blender soups! I can't even IMAGINE what the smoothies are going to be like, either.... I never would've thought of sweet potatoes! Also having silky smooth kale and collards..... what I'm really looking forward to is being able to make giant smoothies with tons of greens that can sustain me through to lunch time.... right now my smoothies are pretty dainty one-quart numbers with just a limited amount of greens....

ANYWAY, thinking of trying raw ranch dressing today! It's freezing cold and snowy around here.... stay warm and happy Sunday everyone! :heart

[rollerjuicer]

It's 10:21 and I just woke up! We went to bed late around 12:30am, and I groaned when the first kid came to greet us at 6:15. So I got up to let the DH sleep... but then he met me as I was coming out of the bathroom to tell me to go back to sleep - he took the kids this morning. What a guy!

Today is all about water... water, water, water. Earlier in the week I posted that I was frustrated with my weight because I had been raw for two weeks with no change... so then I took two days to do a lot of juicing and smoothies with salads for meals and I've really concentrated on taking in more water. Five days later, I'm down about 2 pounds and I'm very pleased about that. I've got 5 to go for my first goal, and I'm happy to go slow, and then another 2-5 depending on how things go.

So today:
B - WATER, grapefruit juice
L - WATER, banana/spinach/pear smoothie
D - WATER, raw lasagna/ cashew ice cream

Happy Day!

[Juicing Juli]

hi all:
was thrilled to get on the scale today with a 3 lb weight loss from yesterday....I've been stagnating at the same weight loss for a few days and even went up a half pound. Have to stay focused on the journey and not allow the scale to dictate my mood for the day...it's hard.
so, my total weight loss for 34 days is 15lbs. I have 13.5 to go to be back in my skinny clothes and can't wait.
Attended the raw class yesterday which was fabulous. I'm going to begin volunteering there on Monday for two hours. The instructor and owner said that she encourages people to volunteer to learn more dishes vs. taking a class. She healed herself from Rhumatoid Arthritis and got herself completely off meds.
Came home to make a pizza crust in my tilted open oven. not sure that this got to the right temp. to consider it raw. We'll see.
Today I had a banana, pear, kale salad, collard wrap with avocado, red peppers, a tad of taco meat, lentil sprouts...
trying to focus on water like I did yesterday!
Happy Sunday!

[Basenjimamma]

Hi ladies...and guys too =)

I just made my first Gorilla Sandwich, wrapped it up and am saving it til tomorrow for lucnh..girls at work will be like.." what in the world are you up to now...you crazy rabbit"...lol...they are jealous I have will power to better myself and they don't.

Started my day with 30 oz of water, a huge green smoothie and an intense spinning set.
Lunch was another smoothie and some apples. Nibbled on fruits and nuts throughout the afternoon and now at dinnertime I am just thirsty, will quench my thirst with water and see, maybe dinner will be left off for today..I'll survive, if you know what I mean. ;)

Tomorrow, my first solid week of P90X, and I will start it with Chest/back and ab ripper x..feeling great is about to be upon me.
See you tomorrow.

[tiggerbounce]

Will be back cheering tomorrow. Fever seems to have broken a little while ago.
Yesterday I was soooooo hot. My body was dripping with sweat and I was on fire. I decided to turn off the heating pad. It was not even plugged in to the wall, lol. Heat relief fail, lol. Shower time.

I am feeling incredibly dehydrated and am going to drink as much juice as will uncomfortably fit in my body for the next few days. And coconut water.

Good to see everyone else is doing amazingly well! Wow, Juli, 3 pounds! woohoo!!!

Back tomorrow to see what all of you have been up to.

Good night!

[carolv]

Rollerjuicer and Juli - Congrats on the weight loss!

Tiggerbounce - glad to hear your fever broke. I wish you a speedy recovery.

Today's food:
chia cereal with banana flakes, chocolate protein powder, and almond milk
mandarine oranges
green smoothie - this one was savory which is unusual for me. Contained sun-dried tomato soak water, camponella tomatoes, dandelion greens, parsley, little gem lettuce, cucumber, baby spring greens, and hemp seeds. It tasted a bit salty probaby from the soak water.
Raw crunch bar
Raw lasagna
Avocado with mushrooms and aspargus marinated in liquid aminos with shredded up raw nori
banana

[qwerty988]

Awwww, I hope you're feeling better this morning tiggerbounce..... fevers are wretched. It sounds like you're giving your body the best medicine, though -- you can't do better for your body than fresh juice and lots of rest! I'm feeling another cold coming on, so I'm doing juices today too.

I really love reading about everyone's progress on weight loss! CONGRATULATIONS girls!!! :throwhearts:

It's hard to rememeber what I had yesterday, hmmmmm:

3 bananas, 2 oranges
massaged kale salad w sprouts, grated beets and carrots
1 head worth of cauliflower popcorn
salad of chopped avocado, tomato, carrots, cucumber in EVOO and salt
snacked on coconut meat
cashew "egg" salad..... stuffed in cucumbers, lettuce leaves and a sweet yellow pepper

I'm feeling very disoriented without my blender as I always have smoothies and it's hard to feel really full without them .... I was able to make the "egg" salad in the FP, though. Today I'll probably make some kind of nut pate, haven't done Alissa's mock salmon in a while....

Anyhow enough complaining -- it's a blessing to be able to live this way, eating raw every day. I'm SO grateful to have learned about this lifestyle!

Have a wonderful day everyone.... stay warm! :heart

[rollerjuicer]

Super yucky day today...
I've got some stomach bug... must have gotten it from ds, who was home Friday with it.

I had some fruit and seed/buckweat crusts earlier... need to figure out what to do for dinner.

Hope everyone is having a better day than me! I think I'll head to bed as soon as I can...

[Juicing Juli]

Tigger;
So glad your fever broke and your on the mend. The only good sickness serves is to show our appreciation for our health!!!
The weight thing is crazy and I wish I wasn't so concerned with it. Today, up a pound....whatever.
Played decent tennis today and did two hours of volunteer work at the Vegan Cafe. Made three batches of brownies and then washed dishes for the remaining 1.5 hours. Errrrrrr....I guess they are breaking in the new girl. Mondays are their prep days.

So far today, Green smoothie, small piece pizza with marinara, mushrooms and fresh basil. have of an avacado.
Try to remember to post the remainder of the day tomorrow.
Querty, until you get your blender, can you use your food processor? I know it's not the same, but maybe you can still do a smoothie in the meantime?

Peace.

[Juicing Juli]

Sorry you're not feeling well rollerjuice....maybe you got it from tigger? lol




Super yucky day today...
I've got some stomach bug... must have gotten it from ds, who was home Friday with it.

I had some fruit and seed/buckweat crusts earlier... need to figure out what to do for dinner.

Hope everyone is having a better day than me! I think I'll head to bed as soon as I can...

[carolv]

Rollerjuicer - sorry to hear you aren't feeling well.

Juli - I am so jealous! That has to be a great experience to volunteer at the raw cafe. Lucky Girl!

Green smoothie with celery, almond milk, OJ, pea sprout greens, parsley, hemp seed, pineapple
Raw Revolution bar
Raw brownie and donut holes
Gorilla Sandwich - LOVE IT!!! :heart: I made another for tomorrow. Very filling.
Raw lasagna

[Juicing Juli]

DINNER: small salad, 1/4 of a nori roll up with avocado, red ppr, carrot, kale chips, 1 small bbq chicken finger

Sorry you're not feeling well rollerjuice....maybe you got it from tigger? lol

[scottdc]

Hello there,

I'm just now back to this and I'm easing into a master cleanse to start. I intend to go 100% raw afterward and look into doing a few different sorts of cleanses as well when I learn what I need.

I have come in from working at sea and do not start at my new job until tomorrow and I'm really looking forward to some serious structure in my life that I also intend to focus on making healthy choices.

I changed my pic too since it was an old pic that was up and I'm really surprised at how terribly unhappy I looked in the old. I have a totally new outlook and armed with a raw diet, LOOK OUT WORLD!!!

LET'S DO THIS!

I am so excited and looking forward to the awesome experience of eating raw again...

[qwerty988]

Wooo-hooo WELCOME scottdc!!! :dance:

It sounds like you've got a good plan in place.... how long will you be eating raw before starting the MC?

Yesterday I fought off a cold and ate a ridiculous amount of cauliflower hahahahhaaaa! Taste-testing the cauliritos.... I think I went through 1-1/2 heads!

Other than that, I ate:

Massaged kale salad w sprouts, grated carrot, sunflower seeds
2 bananas, at least 2 oranges
snacked on dates, pineapple chunks and coconut meat
walnut pate in romaine leaves with sprouts and tomatoes

Still toughing it out without a blender, yikes......

Here's to everyone getting back to 100% HEALTHY again! :throwhearts:

[rollerjuicer]

Hey Everyone, and welcome Scott,

Still yucky with the stomach thing. Ugh. Wish I was more excited about being raw, but with this sour stomach it's a little tough.

Today, though, I had a seed/buckwheat crust with almond butter and honey to help me with my brief skating workout (the competition is on Sunday!) and then I had a big salad with raisins and walnuts for lunch. My stomach isn't happy with the choices, but I wanted to eat something before coming to work.

Hope you are all doing better than me!

[Juicing Juli]

Happy day on the scale.
I am down another pound from the 3 I lost since last Sunday!!! Incredible! I think I know now what's happening. I'm having nori wraps and my thyroid is thanking me for the extra iodine.
Grand total since Jan. 9th is 16 pounds. Again, I'd like my happiness not to be weight driven..but it's nice. 11 more to go!!!

Had a green smoothie for breakfast...played two hours tennis...did poorly.
walnut taco meat, avocado. Oh and I made the raw brownies. Very rich but awesome and easy.
Let me know if anyone wants the recipe...super simple and takes 5 min.
Tonight I'm making a ceasar salad!!! Trying a new recipe.
Making my two valentines steak and garlic shrimp. I miss seafood!!!


Rollerjuice, get better!!!
Querty, glad you didn't let that cold beat you! let me know how the ranch dressing is!!! And if you love it, please post on the salad dressing post!!!
Scott, welcome back!
Here's to another wonderful raw day and happy Valentines Day!!
:heart
Tigger..where r ya? feeling better, I hope?

[mysticshore]

Congrats on the weight loss, 11 pounds to go sounds very doable.

Today I've had an apple but don't have much else in the way of raw food except some nuts. I need to be more organized! I'm staying home waiting for some furniture to arrive but will stock up asap. I need more grapes...

Hope you are better today roller juicer, get well soon!

[Basenjimamma]

Y'all are all doing so good...awesome..although yuck on the stomachbug rolleruice...hoping you feel better tomorrow and taht food finally sounds better again. =)

My day started way too early with spinning then a set of teh butt bible w.o..after that I devoured a green smoothie, made so much I had teh remainder 20 oz throughout the day as my snacks. Lunch was finally my gorilla sandwich.....love it, will be making those again and again...lol. Dinner was so so...caved and had some vegan "valentine foods"...

Tomorrow will be a new day and I refuse to let this day get me down...

Alarm goes off early in the morning to get up and do P90X arms/shoulders + ab ripper X...probably won't be able to walk when this is all said and done, but I will be fit as a fiddle...lol.
Have a good evening peeps, see you in teh am.

[qwerty988]

Good morning all!

YOW..... barely survived Valentines Day and totally fell off the raw wagon! No worries, back with a vegeance today hahahahahaaaaaa!

When oh when will my new blender arrive?????????? I'm really at a loss without one.

Oh well, think I'll have a high fruit day today to make up for yesterday, and a few salads..... I'm also trying some yummy cashew-date-lemon dehydrator cookies.

Has anyone tried the gorilla sandwiches without organic cukes? I haven't been able to find any around here..... but was thinking I could just peel the cuke?


Querty, glad you didn't let that cold beat you! let me know how the ranch dressing is!!! And if you love it, please post on the salad dressing post!!!

Haven't tried the ranch dressing yet, decided at the last minute to use the soaked cashews for mock egg salad (YUM).... but if you want to try, it's already on the salad dressings post courtesy of DebB!

Have a great day everyone and CONGRATULATIONS on the awesome weight loss progress!!!! :heart:

[Juicing Juli]

Happy Wednesday!
I cooked yesterday and today for my daughter's classroom and staff (40). I did a taco bar: turkey, beef, refried beans, lovely salad, homemade guac and salsa. This was my holiday gift to them. It was fun, but hard not to taste the meat. Coming from a cooking background, I know that you need to taste everything for seasoning and then re-season. My daughter helped me with this part. At a certain point I had to help...I tasted then spit it out. Not totally raw, but whatever!
Today so far, a green smoothie, half of avacado, walnut pate and salsa.
My dehydrator is here in it's box!!! Will open it now!

Stay strong people!
Juli

[rollerjuicer]

Hey Everyone!
I hope all is well! I was raw this morning with nut butter and honey on a seed cracker, but got stuck this afternoon in a cafe without supplies and had some sunflower/flax bread for lunch. Will do a big salad tonight to compensate. I think there must be something in our water!

[mysticshore]

I had trouble yesterday as well. I wanted to eat fruit but there was nothing in the house. I had nuts for lunch but by 11pm I was hungry and there was only 2 week old tomatoes in the house so I ended up going off plan. I will make sure I buy up good today. I'm fasting now and am happy to do that until I get to the shops. I'm craving raw and loving it!

[carolv]

Hi Everyone,

I didn't post yesterday because I wasn't feeling well. Had a horrible stomach ache and had to come home early from work. It was so bad I had to take something so I took an immodium pill and I did start feeling better but was exhausted. So I came home and slept. I feel much better today. I don't know what is was, must have been some kind of bug.

scottdc - welcome to the challenge!

rollerjuicer - I hope you've gotten rid of your sour stomach.

Juli - congrats on the extra weight loss and figuring out how nori helped you out with it. It's just amazes me how certain types of food can have such a big impact on your health. I would love to see your brownie recipe. The one I use is very easy too so I'd love to compare them. I really miss seafood too but I remind myself I don't need it. So far it's working. Hope I can persevere. I have to cook for my husband so I taste the food to make it seasoned okay but I don't think anything of it. It's just a taste so I don't seem any harm in it and it doesn't throw me off track.

Qwerty - organic cucumbers aren't easily available to me so I used english cucumbers (seedless wrapped in plastic) so I know the skin wasn't waxed. It was really good. I also tried a regular cucumber from the store which I thought about peeling but it didn't seem waxy to me so I left it on. It was okay but the english cucumber was much better. I'm going to make more when I can get my hands on organic.

Yesterday I had:
green smoothie with oj, banana, cucumber, carrot pulp, strawberries, hemp seed, parsley, pea shoots
kale chips
fresh fruit
dried fruit
flax crackers
lasagna

Today's food:
green smoothie with strawberries, coconut water, almond butter, pea shoots, parsley
clementines
banana
gorilla sandwich
part of a fig bar with some almonds
raw crunch bar
raw lasagna
raw brownie
banana

[qwerty988]

carolv, I'm so glad you're feeling better!

I'll DEFINITELY pick up one of those big plastic-wrapped cukes today.... thanks so much, what a great idea!! I was thinking of stuffing one w massaged kale, avos and tomatoes with a cashew ranch dressing.........hmmmm...... maye I better pick up a few hahahahaa!

Yesterday I was just grateful to be back on track and not in holiday mode! Even just a slight indiscretion leaves me feeling crummy the next day. ANYHOW, yesterday I had:

1 banana, 2 oranges
one quart orange/grapefruit juice
one flax cracker w ¼ avo spread on it
spinach, tomato, avo and sprout salad w creamy orange-garlic dressing (nice!)
massaged kale salad w sprouts and grated carrot
several lemon-cashew cookies

Today is shopping day, so I should have lots of new fruit and veggies. Also just made a big batch of flax crackers, so hopefully those will get me through until the blender arrives!

All of you hug your blenders today!!!! Hold your blenders close and tell them how much you love them...... you don't want to go even a day without one hahahahahaa!

Have a wonderful RAW DAY everyone!! :throwhearts:

[Juicing Juli]

Hi all;
Quick post here.
Today I had a quick hand shaken smoothie with not much in it since I was in a rush.
After a two hour tennis drill then 30 minute weights, I ran to walmart for an avocado. I was famished!!! I sat in my car with a plastick fork and spoon feeling like an animal.
Lunch was at my raw Vegan Cafe in town...I had an awesome little spinach salad, fruit salad with the most awesome drizzle of what I'm guessing was a cashew /cinnamon, agave goodness. My main course was to die for...egg salad on a bagel.
I approached the owner about starting a Meet up there.
She's all in. I need to be around raw peeps.
I brought home an order of raw lasagna....tasted a bite...omg!
bite of a brownie too.

Recipe:
2cup pecans
10 mejool dates
1/2 cup raw cacao
teaspoon vanilla (I used a half of a bean)
1-2 tablesoon agave
pinch of salt.

process nuts for 1 minute..while processor is on, slowly add dates ( a few at a time), then continue with the rest of the ingredients. Only process another minute from the time you started the dates. Stop, scrape sides and blend another 20-30 seconds.
Yum!!!


Oh and for whatever reason (brownies!) I am up 1.5 lbs today.
Whatever....
Nori in some form tonight!!!
Peace!

[carolv]

Qwerty - LOL I LOOOOVE my vitamix :kisses: I'm thankful every day for it. It has been amazing.

Juli - Thank you for the brownie recipe, I'll give it a try. Sounds like you had a rough start with the food but you really made up for it didn't you? The food from the raw cafe sounds awesome! Glad to hear your plans for a raw meetup is off to a good start. Location is really important as I found out when I tried to hold them before.

Green smoothie with coconut water, oj, hemp seed, pea sprouts, parsley, strawberries
banana
gorilla sandwich
pizza was brought in for work today boy did it smell good but they brought in salad too so I made a plate of shredded lettuce, tomato, mushrooms, and a little italian dressing
I'll be making raw pizza and raw italian bread this weekend.
fig bar with almonds
raw lasagna
raw brownie
kale chips
banana

[ngum]

Hello everyone! I just started eating raw on 13th February, i planned my own 30 days challenge, to see if i can continue after, but to do it in a company more fun and i think might be easier. though so far so good. have no problem gulping down green smoothies and chewing green salads.
going to make avocado-mango salad right now!

[Juicing Juli]

Welcome ngum!!! This whole forum is a place for support...especially in the beginning. There are a lot of great resources out there on the internet.

Today, I had a few scoops of a green smoothie and some tea. I say scoops, because I froze my leftovers from yesterday, so it turned into a frozen treat. I should have forced myself to eat something because I had a tennis match today and did not do well. My knee blew up last night and today I should not have played, but we were short players as it is.
Ate a pear for a snack then came home at 3pm ravenous and ate 3 pieces of pizza with marinara, mushrooms, red pepper and asparagus. Yum!!!
Looking forward to a homemade ginger salad for dinner while the others have take out chinese!!




Hello everyone! I just started eating raw on 13th February, i planned my own 30 days challenge, to see if i can continue after, but to do it in a company more fun and i think might be easier. though so far so good. have no problem gulping down green smoothies and chewing green salads.
going to make avocado-mango salad right now!

[carolv]

Welcome ngum! I hope you have a successful challenge!

I had stomach cramping again this morning. I don't understand what is causing it, this is really weird. I hardly ever have any stomach issues anymore so I'm really at a loss. I had to pop an immodium pill again before it got too bad. Shortly after I was feeling hungry but was afraid to eat or drink anything. After a couple of hours I ate again and I've been fine since then.

green smoothie with oj, coconut water, kiwis, leftover bagged salad for my greens, cucumbers
raw cereal with almond milk
kale chips
flax cracker
coconut and almonds
raw lasagna
bananas

[Basenjimamma]

Hey all..

Sorry it has been a few days, been struggling with my commitment, but staying vegan and mostly raw if not all raw on most days since my last post...today I am waking up with such a sore throat...yuck...will eat some canteloupe for breakfast to see if the vitamin C will boost my throat healing powers.

I made a gorilla sandwich a few days ago and I am now hooked, loved it, so I am making another today, with massaged kale, tomatoes, maybe an olive or two and whatnot in it.
Snacking on fruits, fruits and fruits, fruity carbs is my friend...keeps me on track..dinner will be some greens...maybe a salad, or some miso soup with spinach...gently warmed to still remain RAW.

Have a great day folks. see you in the morning.

[qwerty988]

Keep it up B-mamma...... you're doing SO well! What an inspiration -- I wish I could get in half as many workouts as you! Always remember this vital life lesson: weebles wobble but they don't fall down :kisses:

Good morning everyone!

Well the clouds have parted, the sun is shining, the birds are singing in the trees because MY VITAMIX HAS ARRIVED!!! :throwhearts:

OH YES... and just in time for the 3-day weekend! :throwhearts:

I've got my son and one of his friends camping out in the livingroom, but as soon as those sleepy teens wake up it's BLENDERFEST!!!! Today I'm making cream of mushroom soup and chocolate-banana ice cream.... it's going to be so much fun!!!

carolv, I hope your stomach's settled down! Any idea what caused it yet? My first thought.... could it be flax crackers? Hmmmm.... or some weird kind of detox?

Speaking of which, I've got some weird detox happening right now.... my left wrist, which I broke 5 years ago and which has never caused me any pain since, has been aching and really feeling sore ever since my juice fast last month! Also I've been oil-pulling with cocounut oil a few mornings a week (GREAT for the teeth) and have noticed that on the mornings I do, I suddenly get this rumbly-chest-mucus-cough thing happening a short while later...... WEIRD.

Anyhow, here's what I can remember eating yesterday:

2 bananas, 2 oranges
flax crackers w tomato slices, salt and EVOO
gorilla sandwich
massaged kale salad w sprouts and grated carrots
whole head of cauliflower's worth of cauliflower doritos
Blended salad soup w kale, tomatoes, avocado, celery, cuke, garlic, jalapeno, spices in new Vitamix wooooo-hooooooooooooo!!!!

Well, I'm off to go stare at my blender. Have a most excellently RAWESOME DAY everyone..... !! :heart

[Juicing Juli]

Happy Saturday All:
I'm making a change today. Instead of having so much whole foods, I'm going to add two juices to my diet and see what happens. Since my knee blew up, I'm going to focus on anti inflammatory foods.
For breakfast I had a juice of :Orange, apple, water melon and rind, papaya, collards, spinach....it was strong tasting..not too sweet. I had a little snack of kale chips.
Sun is out here...it looks like a beautiful day!
Petra, stay strong and listen to your body. Every day is a new beginning. I give you a lot of credit for all of your exercise!
I worked out 5 xs this week and now my knee is out of commission, causing me to go to my chiropractor!!!

[carolv]

Petra - Congrats on hanging in there! I hope your throat feels better soon.

Qwerty - ALL RIGHT! I'm so happy for you! I would be lost without my vitamix.

Juli - Juicing sounds like a great idea. I hope your knee heals soon.

I had a great day. Got a haircut which was long over due and I really like it. My hair is longer than it has been for years. I've had pretty short cuts for a few years now my hair is just above my shoulders now.

We stopped at a vegan restaurant after but we were too early they weren't open yet. Boohoo! I was really looking forward to eating there, they have a few raw dishes. It's not too far from work so I may have to run over there sometime to pick something up. They aren't located in the greatest area which is probably part of why their prices are pretty low, I looked up there menu online. It's called the Loving Hut and supposedly it's a chain, has anybody heard of it?

Then we went to Raisin Rack which is a local store similar to Whole Foods. They had a great salad bar and they make fresh smoothies and juices and a lot of vegan and vegetarian choices. It's not as big as whole foods but they've got a really nice selection of stuff.

Chia cereal with banana flakes, chocolate protein powder, and almond milk
small green smoothie with almond milk, chocolate protein powder, banana, handful of chopped romaine.
Salad from salad bar at store
For dinner I had another salad at home with romaine, raw sauerkraut, cucumbers, mushrooms and asparagus marinated in liquid aminos.
Raw revolution hazelnut chocolate - this is a new flavor for me that I found at the store. YUMMY!
banana

[Bananna]

ok, I think this is where I need to be...the blogging area is not nearly as active. Will prep tomorrow and start Monday. ....is the gorilla sandwich the one with the hollowed out cucumber? ...oooh how I miss raw and all the fun it is! Can't wait. :)

[Juicing Juli]

yes, although I have yet to make it due to lack of organic cucumbers in my area, I watched the video that Tiggerbounce posted. If you go to youtube and search "gorilla sandwich" you'll find it there. But it sounds like you already know about them.


ok, I think this is where I need to be...the blogging area is not nearly as active. Will prep tomorrow and start Monday. ....is the gorilla sandwich the one with the hollowed out cucumber? ...oooh how I miss raw and all the fun it is! Can't wait. :)

[qwerty988]

Welcome banana! (Btw I love your ice cream, hahahahaa!) (Please pardon my lame joke!)

It's all been a Vitamix blur...... but I'll try to reconstruct what I had today:

- Smoothie w two whole oranges, a cup of almond milk, vanilla and agave..... NOT QUITE the Orange Julius experience I was hoping for, any suggestions?
- a grapefruit
- incredible creamy garlic mushroom soup in the Vitamix, OH YES!
- sprout sandwich: flax crackers spread w avocado, onion slices and LOTS of sprouts
- an entire head's worth of cauliflower doritos. This recipe has continued to evolve.............. I'm seriously into this right now.

Too full for dinner, I think this is it for the day.....

I hope the juice is working for you Juli! Also that your knee gets better soon -- is it keeping you off the tennis court?

carolv, I've heard of the Loving Hut! It's very strange but this is a chain of vegan restaurants run by a Buddhist group I was just discussing in another thread -- a group lead by this really cool meditating/vegan/Buddhist chick they call the Supreme Master Ching Hai. I'm not at all into the religious aspect of it -- but we have one here in Pittsburgh and it's one of the VERY FEW vegan restaurants we have so I've learned about it.

The food is good! Consider yourself lucky if yours has raw vegan options, though -- not all do.

Well, that's my report for today! I look forward to hearing from everyone soon. :heart:

[Aleesha Sattva]

Keep up the GREAT work of being raw everyone!!!

[carolv]

Welcome Bananna! I think you will definitely find the support you need here.

Qwerty - maybe it is the ratio of oranges to almond milk that's not quite right or maybe you need to use just the orange juice and not the whole orange. I've had a smoothie that reminded of the Orange Julius before but it was just primarily orange juice and almond milk. The mushroom soup sounds fantastic, what a great idea. And thank you for the info on the Loving Hut, very interesting.

I was feeling really good today and then it happened yet again, my stomach cramps were back. Talk about frustrating! I can't figure out what it is, is it a bug? detox? food combining issue? I just don't know. The last 2 times it hit me in the morning but today it was this evening.

raw cereal with almond milk
juice of cucumber, celery, orange, pear, apple
raw snack bar
smoothie with oj, coconut water, pomegranate juice, banana, strawberries, romaine lettuce

[scottdc]

I have not been on here since my last post and need to get on here daily so's I can feed off all the good you all have to offer. Last week was stressful in that I was starting a new job and a family emergency to travel for. I hit a bump in on the road trip but have been eased into my cleanse which I'm doing now and really enjoying it because I know that provided I do the cleanse earnestly when I ease back into raw the benefits will be even greater. I am doing the master cleanse and it'll be my 3rd time around. I'm transitioning from vegetarian to raw and having taken a job ashore I am now ready to begin healing myself from within with raw. I cannot wait until day 61 since last time I went raw for 60 it was during my sailing days where I was traveling between home and work which was heck on my diet as far as consistency goes.

Here is to hoping everyone is doing well and remember to enjoy the journey.

[mysticshore]

I've been having watermelon and grapes today. Need to buy some fresh vege's, the ones I have right now are last weeks and one thing I've learnt about raw is it has to be super fresh to be inviting to eat. I bought grapes today and they have been super yummy.

[carolv]

scottdc - that must have been quite the challenge to be raw while you were at sea. Talk about tough. Kudos to you for making it 60 days under those circumstances.

I was feeling just fine today, no stomach pains thank goodness.

smoothie with almond milk, date water, tahini, Ormus supergreens, vanilla, chocolate protein powder
kale chips
raw food bar
raw bread with sprouts, tomatoes and cucumbers
smoothie with almond milk, clementine oranges, Ormus supergreens
celery with almond butter, honey, and apple pie spice

[Juicing Juli]

So Scott, if you can be raw at sea, we can all be raw with the multiple resources at our finger tips. If you don't have stores in close proximity, the internet has so many options.
Querty; No tennis for me for sure this week. as I type, I have an ice pack on my knee. went to my chiropractor today..he said my ACL seems in tact, but urges me to get in for an MRI because I may have another torn ligament (MCL) or one of the my miniscus. I see my Otho tomorrow. Thanks for checking in.

today, my 10 year old and I volunteered at our Raw Vegan Cafe in town. Super bunch of people. I made dill cheese and pizza cheese. She helped with both and did some other prep work. they feed their volunteers which is a super nice perk. Anyway, it was lovely.

Down another pound today!! Total of 17 since Jan 9th and only 10 more to go!! Yipeeeeee.

Carolv...happy you're feeling better today. My step daughter just ended a 3 week stint of similar symptoms. So be happy yours is over sooner.

Peace,
Juli

[scottdc]

I was on my time off when I did my first 60 days. I used to get a day off for everyday worked so it would accumulate and I had just worked all summer and had over 90 days off coming to me. I am now done with the comings and goings to sea and really not knowing when and such after 16 years I've decided it was time to do something else on the beach for work. I am taking a massive leap of faith and a pay cut, which'll be fun to see how I survive with my spending habits. I feel this going raw again will actually help me save money over the long run. I used to eat out quite a lot and now I'm looking forward to making stuff for myself. I'm fortunate that last time I did this I really went all out and decked out my kitchen with some great tools to help when I could afford it. I have taken a job which is alright for now since I see it as an opportunity to at least allow for some structure in my life which was sorely lacking. Go figure a sailor without any real direction... I am not disappointed for spending so many years doing something I feel I was unfit for, or at least grew to become unfit for (a career at sea). I was able to with the last company I worked with meet up with a Captain who was a raw fooder who had been for years and he sparked a light at the right time. I then went out on my own and educated myself with some books and dvds on the raw food and here I am again ready to get right!

[qwerty988]

Good morning all!

CONGRATULATIONS on another pound, Juli -- you're just FLYING towards your goal!! Good luck with the MRI, too. Please keep us posted!

carolv I'm glad your stomach is settling down..... it's so weird when that stuff happens and you don't know why! Also thanks for the suggestion on the Orange Julius, I'll try and play around with the proportions and use just the juice instead of whole oranges.

Last night I had SUCH a delicious creamy chocolate shake...... with frozen bananas and cacao and spinach and agave.... it was amazing. A little while later I had a big bowl of cauliflower doritos and I just thought: I LOVE RAW! How else can you have doritos and a chocolate shake for dinner and still feel GREAT afterwards???

Anyhow yesterday I had:

B: 2 bananas, a grapefruit
flax crackers w avocado, onion and sprouts

L: creamy tomato soup YUM!
more flax crackers w avocado, onion and sprouts
a banana

D: chocolate banana/spinach shake
1/2 heads worth of cauliflower doritos

Today I'm thinking of making lots more soup...... creamy mushroom and blended-salad. I didn't have many greens yesterday and I'm CRAVING them today.....

Really still in awe of the Vitamix! Might try some cacao/avocado pudding today.......

Have a great RAW day all! :dance:

[qwerty988]

Keep up the GREAT work of being raw everyone!!!

Thanks Aleesha! :heart:

[carolv]

Juli - good luck at the ortho, hope it's not too serious. Your volunteer work at the cafe sounds awesome. And what a great deal getting to eat there for your hard work, that is awesome! Wow, 3 weeks of stomach cramps, yuck! I'm very grateful I only had a few short bouts with it. Today I was fine again although it was a little touch and go this morning, I had a big smoothie that I was sipping this morning and then had a Lara bar right after because I wanted to make sure I wouldn't get hungry before I headed out for a dentist appointment. My stomach was feeling a bit weird for a while but it settled down. Maybe I have just been eating too much at a time, that always was a problem for me.

scottdc - good luck with your new job, sounds like you have quite a challenge ahead of you. But it sounds like you are ready for it. And good luck with going raw, since you did it before for 60 days it should be pretty easy for you to do it again. I did it for 30 days straight before then tried to stay high raw but am finding I need get more focused on it again. It really does get easier over time to do it. And it's pretty fun experimenting with different recipes.

qwerty - I LOVE your enthusiasm above the raw foods. You are so right, with raw you could eat whatever you want whenever you want. I could have desserts all day long if I wanted and not feel guilty or feel awful afterwards. That's a great reminder of one of the many benefits of eating raw. I've got to try more soups, yours sound fantastic.

smoothie with almond milk, strawberries, hemp seed, ormus supergreens, tahini, vanilla, dates, agave
Lara bar
met friends for lunch and didn't plan ahead, had an oops there but got right back on track.
Big banana and a smaller red banana
avocado with mushrooms and asparagus marinated in liquid aminos with raw nori

[Juicing Juli]

Hi all:
Carol and Querty! Thanks for your support. It's funny how my weight has been...down a pound or two, up a pound. I generally continue to go down, but I do go up here and there. Oh well.
I had my ortho apt. had X-rays that showed the start of two bone spurs and the lessening of the cartilage. He thinks I have a tear in my medial meniscus. This is good news since I thought I might have a major tear in a ligament. I'll find out after my MRI this next Tuesday. If it comes back positive, then I will have outpatient surgery and no tennis for 6 weeks thereafter.

Scott, many people have been raw for a period then fall off the wagon..including myself. One important thing that I have re read this time and sank in is that you have to have raw support. This forum is great. For me, I need to hang out with people who are raw. Look for classes or meet ups if you can find them. This is my plan at least.

Today:
Green smoothie with spinach, cherries, cacao nibs, bee pollen, raw protein, kale, spinach, maca, coconut water, coconut, almond milk... yum! Filled me until later afternoon!
apple
totilla chips with egg salad, avacado
dinner: zucchini pasta with alfredo...omg!!! I posted the recipe in the recipe section.
Now, I'm going to make a cup of roobious or ginger tea and go to bed!

[kkcmama]

New here... Breakfast smoothy~ Power mix, Spouts Clover and Alfalfa, Artichoke (fail) Bananna, 1/2 Granny smith apple, 1tsp Spirulina, 1 tsp Maca, 1 Tbls Flax Oil, Bee Pollin
I work at a school, I ate from the salad bar, 1/4 Orange, 2 pieces Celery, 2 baby Carrots
Dinner Juice~ Beet, Romaine, 1/2 Apple, Lemon, Cloves, Cinnamon.
after workout snack~ Orange Beet, Cucumber, 1/2 apple, Lemon

[qwerty988]

Hi and welcome kkcmama! Your menu's looking good......... YUM! What kind of workout do you do?

I am having to RECOMMIT to raw right now because I TOTALLY caved and gave into a craving last night GRRRRRRRRRRRRR.........

So today I begin again.... I love and forgive myself for this minor indiscretion and start AFRESH, RENEWED in my commitment to love and nourish my body with the good raw foods it deserves!

Today so far I've been having only the yummiest things:

- chocolate shake w spinach, frozen bananas, cacao and agave
- cauliflower doritos
- sweet red grapefruit
- AMAAAAAZING creamy mushroom soup, OMG

I'll probably have another big bowl of some kind of veggie soup and probably more c-doritos too hahahahhaa! Also I have some zucchini for noodles and now I'm thinking ALFREDO............

Also, what's roobious tea?

[Basenjimamma]

Hey guys..

so excited to finally read everyones great posts...been out of pocket for way too long...life, PTO an deverything in between is eating me up slowly...but I am still trucking along, remaining mostly RAWkin'.

I am also on my second week of P90X and that is slowly but surely carving me...loving it so far..

Today I madea huge green smoothie for after w.o snack /breakfast, 48oz of green goodness...kale/collard greens/plums/bananas and pears....it was divine.
Lunch was a huge salade with romaine, more collard greens, tomatoes, cukes, green onions and raisins..that was delish too. snacked on some bananas and now I am about to gear up for my P90x x2 of the day...abs and arms/shoulders...
Have a great evening folks, see you tomorrow.

[carolv]

Juli - glad to hear it's not as serious as you feared.

Welcome kkcmama!

Qwerty - good for you for jumping right back in! That's the way to do it! It's not an easy thing to just give up everything you have been so familiar with for so many years. It's a constant struggle for me as well but participating in challenges like this really does help. And as Juli mentioned if you can surround yourself with others for support it makes a huge difference. You really are addicted to the cauliflower aren't you??? LOL ;)

Basenjimamma - glad to hear you are still hanging in there and congrats on week 2 of P90X. Way to go!!!


Smoothie with coconut water, hemp seed, ormus supergreens, large banana, 2 frozen baby bananas, vanilla, and tahini. This was sooo good!
clementine oranges
fuji apples with almond butter, honey, and apple pie spice
donut holes and raw brownie
raw pizza and drizzled some ranch dressing I made from the recipe forum, yummy!
banana

[helen2207]

Can I please ask how you make banana ice cream?

[qwerty988]

Can I please ask how you make banana ice cream?

Hi, Helen! Just put frozen banana pieces in your blender or food processor and whir until it's got the consistency of soft-serve ice cream. You can add lots of other ingredients to vary the taste -- cacao powder, frozen berries or other fruits.... I like agave and cinnamon and a splash of vanilla. You can add some water or nut mylk to soften it up a bit or make blending easier.

Anyhow, good to see everyone doing so well! Today it feels like I ate A LOT. I had:

- 1 banana
- big bowl creamy mushroom soup
-1/2 head worth of cauliflower doritos (yes carol I am SOOOOOO addicted to these, it's shameful hahahahhahaa!!!)

- 2 oranges
- flax crackers w avocado, onion slices and sprouts
- chocolate-banana-cashew smoothie

- big bowl of broccoli soup

That's it for me today, I'm DONE eating!! Have a bad sore throat, hoping to feel better tomorrow and will start working out again SOON.

For now.... crawling off to bed, yo! :kisses:

[Basenjimamma]

Hi again.

Today was rough on me...not diet wise, but physical wise...our school is having a Carnival next week and we are down to crunch time, and it doesn't mix well with homework for the kiddos, regular work, house chores and all the other things that need to happen...thus I am so tired.
Woke up this morning still struggling with a sore thick throat...so I didn't get my spinning done...decided to let myself rest a little.
Had a huge green smoothie (bananas, spinach, pears and plums) for breakfast and snack throughout the day...lunch was a delish salad with romaine, collard greens, snowpeas, tomatoes, cukes, olives and peppers...
Snacks through the afternoon has been fruits...so far so decent.. =)

See you in the morning again...have a great evening.

[carolv]

mmm...banana ice cream sounds good right now, but I'm done eating for the day. I haven't made it in a long time. Sooo easy to make as Qwerty described. My problem is I don't usually keep banana around long enough to freeze any. And when I do they often go into smoothies.

I hope everybody feels better soon. I'll be so glad when summer is finally here and we get rid of all the sickness that's going around. Plus I'm really looking forward to warmer weather. Winter has been great this year, very mild here but I looove the warmth and sunshine that summer brings.

smoothie with coconut water, hemp seeds, kale, 1/2 apple, tahini, ormus supergreens
spring mix salad with cucumber
lara bar
salad with romaine, broccoli sprouts, spicy sprouts, cucumbers, grape tomatoes, raw sauerkraut, and raw ranch dressing
raw italian bread
raw chocolate truffles

[Juicing Juli]

hi all;
Very tired today....got a short upper body workout in.
Ran around most of the day and at 5:00 I had to shut my eyes while I was icing my knee.
Had a green smoothie that I just loved. Instead of putting in the crunchy coacao nibs, I put in the powder..what a big flavor difference.
Lunch a big salad of arugula, zuc. and red cabbage with a thinned version of leftover alfredo sauce. Very good.
snack...pesto mushrooms, cheesy, sweet potatos
dinner: two small nori rolls
lemon bars with lemon drizzle..
to bed!!!

Everyone needs to celebrate their successes and not focus so much on failures or blurps along the way!! Here's to another Raw day!!!
:kisses:

[qwerty988]

Greetings my fellow challengers! :throwhearts:

Wow, it sounds like there's some really nice eating happening around here.... cheesy sweet potatoes? OMG, recipe please. Alfredo sauce, lemon bars.... and I want raw sauerkraut and ranch dressing on my salads!!!!!!!

Truth is I'm so deeply in love with my Vitamix right now that almost everything I prepare is a soup or a smoothie... so be it! I must say my skin is LOVING this, I've seen a real difference the past few days.

Today I had:

1 banana, 1 grapefruit, 2 oranges
Huge bowl of Natasha's Spicy Tomato Soup........ oh YES, it was amazing!
1/2 head califlower doritos
INCREDIBLE green smoothie: 4 leaves collard greens, two handfulls sprouts, mango, frozen banana, o.j. This was my first non-savory green smoothie in the Vitamix and it was SOOOO GOOOOD!
1 banana
guacamole with flax crackers

This should be it for me today.... although I might have more cauliflower :D

Keep up the good work my intrepid compadres! You inspire me every day. :heart:

[Juicing Juli]

Hi guys!
Querty...the cheesy sweet potatoes... I had a recipe once, not sure if it was from Alissa or not. But, basically, you cut your sweet potato really thin like for a chip. Toss them in a little olive oil , salt and nut. yeast then dehydrate. I'm trying to come up with the right amount of time until crisp. Mine have some out chewy, so I'm thinking more time dehydrating. They still get eaten without a doubt.
Glad you're enjoying your vitamix! I say the same thing about my dehydrator! lol

this morning...smoothie ( I have no greens aside from lettuce) strawberries, banana, green powder, coacoa powder, maca powder, alfalfa sprouts, water, almond milk...it was good. My new green powder from Trader Joe's is berry flavored...very good.

corn tortillas with avocado
salad of arugula, red cabbage, red onion, cucumber, olives oil and acv dressing
pear slices
1 lemon square

I feel like some days I eat a lot !

The first half of the day my knee didn't bother me....second half, not the case. Boo hoo. I'll be happy when I find out the results even though I know them in my heart.

I have pizza crust in the dehydrator and am about to make pizza cheese!!! Can't wait!

love and light,
Juli


Greetings my fellow challengers! :throwhearts:

Wow, it sounds like there's some really nice eating happening around here.... cheesy sweet potatoes? OMG, recipe please. Alfredo sauce, lemon bars.... and I want raw sauerkraut and ranch dressing on my salads!!!!!!!

Truth is I'm so deeply in love with my Vitamix right now that almost everything I prepare is a soup or a smoothie... so be it! I must say my skin is LOVING this, I've seen a real difference the past few days.

Today I had:

1 banana, 1 grapefruit, 2 oranges
Huge bowl of Natasha's Spicy Tomato Soup........ oh YES, it was amazing!
1/2 head califlower doritos
INCREDIBLE green smoothie: 4 leaves collard greens, two handfulls sprouts, mango, frozen banana, o.j. This was my first non-savory green smoothie in the Vitamix and it was SOOOO GOOOOD!
1 banana
guacamole with flax crackers

This should be it for me today.... although I might have more cauliflower :D

Keep up the good work my intrepid compadres! You inspire me every day. :heart:

[carolv]

Hi everyone,

Glad it's Friday but I'm dealing with a UTI (urinary tract infection). I've been getting them more and more frequently lately. Doc told me because I had a complete hysterectomy years ago that my body is not producing enough estrogen and the mucous linings in my body are too thin. So I don't have that protective barrier to prevent infections. She did tell me drinking a LOT of water would help. Unfortunately, I haven't been drinking very much water lately, hence the UTI symptoms appearing. I'm drinking a lot of water now hoping I can flush it out. I can't (and don't want to) be on estrogen therapy because I have severe endometriosis and estrogen feeds it. I will go to urgent care if I absolutely have to but I'm really hoping this will pass.

smoothie with coconut water, hemp seeds, ormus supergreens powder, pomegranate juice, tahini, kale, blackberries, strawberries
1/2 apple
raw pizza with raw ranch dressing drizzled on top
donut holes and brownie
Drinking lots and lots of water so not very hungry so just munched on some raw cereal for dinner.

[Juicing Juli]

Hey Carol:
Sorry to hear about your UTI! If you google "natural remedies for UTI" you'll find some great ideas including unsweetened cranberry juice (health food store)..you can also get a concentrated cranberry syrup to add to water. This might be good to keep on hand if this is a reoccurring problem. Of course, with all infections, it's good to increase your immune system...you can google this too.
But there are many more things you can do to give your body added support aside from HRI or drugs.

I just made a chocolate smoothie...yum...coacao powder with a lot of added yummieness!
I'm about to start making onion rings coated in dehydrated almond pulp and almond milk. They'll be ready tomorrow.
Happy Saturday Raw Queens and Kings!


Hi everyone,

Glad it's Friday but I'm dealing with a UTI (urinary tract infection). I've been getting them more and more frequently lately. Doc told me because I had a complete hysterectomy years ago that my body is not producing enough estrogen and the mucous linings in my body are too thin. So I don't have that protective barrier to prevent infections. She did tell me drinking a LOT of water would help. Unfortunately, I haven't been drinking very much water lately, hence the UTI symptoms appearing. I'm drinking a lot of water now hoping I can flush it out. I can't (and don't want to) be on estrogen therapy because I have severe endometriosis and estrogen feeds it. I will go to urgent care if I absolutely have to but I'm really hoping this will pass.

smoothie with coconut water, hemp seeds, ormus supergreens powder, pomegranate juice, tahini, kale, blackberries, strawberries
1/2 apple
raw pizza with raw ranch dressing drizzled on top
donut holes and brownie
Drinking lots and lots of water so not very hungry so just munched on some raw cereal for dinner.

[qwerty988]

Hey Carol:
Sorry to hear about your UTI! If you google "natural remedies for UTI" you'll find some great ideas including unsweetened cranberry juice (health food store)..you can also get a concentrated cranberry syrup to add to water.

True, anytime I've had UTIs I've gotten very fast reflief from taking cranberry pills. You can also juice fresh cranberries, great with apple juice!

[blessteve]

I am in. I was going to wait for March but why wait. This is by far my longest attempt at eating raw.
I started Nov 16th and I am always adding more raw food. Started with Veggie juice and fruit smoothies.
Later I ordered 40 lbs of dates on line. Now melons, salads sunflower sprouts.

The easy stuff. last time I think I failed cause of all he fancy time consuming recipes I was doing.
Now I am keeping it simple. Eat the food like mother nature intended.

Steve

[PansyLo]

I tried raw a few years ago and failed very quickly because like many others I was trying to mix up elaborate raw recipes and despairing over money, lack of equipment and weird ingredients I had never heard of.

This time I'm glad I found this forum and have been able to learn a lot more about how people can really eat raw on a day to day basis.

I'm now on day 6 and feel really enthused! I've started to notice a craving for heavy starchy comfort foods but I've also started to notice feeling of just general better well being and energy. Although this could be partly because I'm really excited about trying new things and learning more as the process goes on, I feel like if I didn't have this extra energy I wouldn't be so excited.

Keeping it simple and delicious. Aiming to drink more water and hoping to solve my cravings with some good avocados/nuts/mushrooms etc.

[carolv]

Juli and Qwerty - thank you so much for your advice. I have actually been taking cranberry pills daily but increased the dosage when I started getting symptoms. I've been drinking water almost constantly and I feel much better today so hopefully this will work. But I will google other remedies as well just in case.

Welcome blessteve and pansylo! Glad to see you jumping right in. You're right blessteve, why wait? The sooner the better right?

pansylo, I also have had some cravings lately for starch comfort foods. Don't know why, but they've been on my mind. I just try to focus on something else that is okay to have and it passes.

Today is the first time in a long time that I didn't start the day out with a smoothie.
chia cereal with banana flakes and raw chocolate protein powder
lara bar
salad with romaine, grape tomatoes, cucumbers, broccoli sprouts, spicy sprouts, raw ranch dressing
couple of raw truffles
HUGE fresh juice with carrots, celery, red bell pepper, parsley, cucumber
raw corn chips with a small avocado and salsa
munched on a few dehydrated banana slice and a piece of dried mango

[qwerty988]

Good morning and WELCOME to blessteve and pansylo! :throwhearts:

Carolv I'm SO glad to hear you're feeling better! That's a very painful condition... when I do have it I just scarf those cranberry pills non-stop till it's gone!

Yesterday was an uncharacteristically light eating day for me as I was too busy running errands much of the day and just didn't feel HUNGRY.

I did have a WONDERFUL smoothie with an orange, some mango, 3 bananas, brocolli stalk, collard greens and some cacao that gave it a nice orangey-chocolate vibe.
I also had a few bananas in the evening and a 1/2 heads worth of cauliflower doritos

Not like me to eat so little, so today I plan to make up for it IN SPADES! I have a butternut squash all ready to be turned into soup and some mushrooms that will be soup as well.

I also have a craving for a massaged kale salad with a dressing made of orange/garlic or mango/garlic.... weird.

I've always heard that the longer you're raw, the less you eat and the more you're drawn to simpler foods. I'm not sure if this is happening to me, but I have noticed myself feeling more full lately, for longer periods of time and on less foods. The reason for my habitual over-eating is rarely physical hunger anyway -- these raw foods are so delicious I overeat out of greed mostly hahahahhaaa!

But I notice recently I AM more drawn to soups, smoothies and simpler snacking -- even before that Vitamix arrived! And these foods for whatever reason are keeping me physically full longer. I think after 7 months my body's finally calming down and accepting that the good stuff is going to keep coming, so it isn't after me to keep frantically shovelling in the nutrients hahahahaaa!

One last thing -- I've been oil-pulling and yesterday a friend suddenly commented on how white my teeth are and wanted to know what I was doing to get them that way. I was so shocked! I didn't think anyone would notice.

Well that's it for me -- have a RAWESOME DAY everyone!

[PansyLo]

I've been full on enthusiasm all day again today! ^_^

Not sure if it's anything to do with the raw food itself or whether it's just taking on the challenge in general that's put me in good spirits. I have way more energy and enthusiasm right now though.

I went and did my food shopping and my fridge looks so cool! I have big jugs of water in the bottom, one with strawberries and mint and the other with lemon slices. This is in efforts to drink more water and it's working a treat. :)

The rest is just fruit and veg fest. Yay.

I found that waitrose not only do raw honey (though expensive stuff!) they also do loads of bags of sprouting things! :) They had chickpeas, sunflower seeds and a mixed bag.
Does anybody go by the ratings on the raw honey? Mine is just +5 because it was on offer but you get +10 and +15 which are very expensive. Apparently it's the measure of anti bacterial activity present. Is it worth getting the +15 at about £16 if you're not using it too often?

Also they had like 8 different kinds of dates. I just picked little ones that looked yummier...

[Juicing Juli]

Welcome Blessteve and Pansylo!!!

I was happy on the scale today..day 48 and I'm down another 2 lbs to make my grand total 19 lbs. Yippee! 9 lbs to go to get back into my skinny clothes.

Very tired today due to partying last night. Went to a fundraiser for a friend who has cancer....was a big thing...400 people in a small bowling alley pizza/bar. Scary. I was a good girl. I find that if I eat well before going to a party, I have no temptations. It held true last night. But when I got home at 11:30 I ate a couple pieces of pizza. It is so good.

Today,
Pear, bbq potato chips (some raw brand from w.f.), 3 dates, 2 pieces pizza, kale chips.
Going to make alfredo sauce for zucchini pasta with an arugula salad with loads of stuff.
Also have onion rings soaking in almond milk for my fried onion rings...can't wait for those!

If anyone wants and incredible pizza crust and pizza cheese recipe let me know. I'm going to make another recipe of this to take on vacation. Leaving this Friday and a little nervous about staying raw on the road.

Querty: I too, have a problem with overeating! Definitely hard when you are such good food. I have to work on that!!! It's such a common problem. Good to hear that your hunger is lessoning! Every day is different for me.
Hey, where is Tigerbounce??

Juli:heart

[qwerty988]

Hey, where is Tigerbounce??

Good question!!!! hahahahahaha I'm missing her, too :heart:

And sorry: CONGRATULATIONS!!! 2 pounds is HUGE sweetie!!!!!!

[carolv]

Qwerty - wow! it's awesome how much oil pulling is making a difference for you. I need to check into it more. what oil do you use, is it sesame?

I also have issues with eating too much and eating when I'm not really hungry, and eating too fast. I've got a lot to work on.

Congrats on the weight loss Juli! :woohoo:
I'd love to see your recipe for the raw pizza. I've got a couple of pretty good ones but always love to see and try more.

pansylo - I'm not familiar with the grading of the honey that you are describing.

I guess I'm trading my usual smoothies for great big cups of fresh juice this weekend. I'll be back to smoothies during the weekday.

chia cereal with red banana flakes and sunwarrior raw chocolate protein powder and coconut milk
BIG juice with cucumber, carrots, celery, pears, limes, red bell pepper
snacked during the afternoon on dried bananas fresh from the dehydrator (yum) and some dried mango
raw pizza with raw ranch dressing
dried persimmons
raw truffles

[PansyLo]

Wow the food you guys eat sounds amazing! I'd love to hear the recipe for pizza too even though I probably don't have the equipment to make it yet, I could keep a note for future.

I probably ate way too many nuts and too much avocado today. It was that post shopping "I want to eat everything I just bought it all looks so good!!!" snacking that was the culprit.

There have been good things too, I've met my target for drinking more water. I had two jugs in the fridge and I drank them both plus refilled them at points. This is huge for me I never drink water.
I also discovered that I LOVE dates (like a caramelised fruit of yum!) and I'm not so keen on dried mango. Maybe just need to find the right thing to eat it with.
All those nuts and heavy raw foods completely obliterated my craving for bread/pasta/heavy starchy food.

I've lost 4lbs since starting and I'm not going to weigh myself again until next weekend.

:woohoo:

[Basenjimamma]

Hey guys and Happy Sunday..

Love coming on here after a hectic day and read all the posts from y'al, it is so uplifting and inspiring..

I've been struggling with my thick sore throat what seems forever now...however my hubby says it hasn't been that long lol...go figure...but it is getting better, think my high fruit intake is helping clear it out.

The last two days I've made porridge out of fruit and some flaxseed, it has been so good, as a option to my constant green smoothies. I used 2-4 celery stalks, 1 pear, 1 apple and 1 plum, stuck it in my small foodprocc. and gave it a whirl..after it was blended yet chunky I added 1 tbsp ground flax seed and some cinnamon...sooo good and a different way to consume breakfast for me, since I mostly drink mine in smoothie form...this is spoonable.
Lunch was salads both days, with romaine, kale and collards..light vinegrette dressing and some raisins too, oh and sunflower seeds.

More fruit in the pm as snack and dinners.

Tomorrow my third week of P90X starts...jippea...I am ready.

[Juicing Juli]

pizza recipe:
Crust:
3 cups sunflower seeds
1/2 - 3/4 red bell pepper
1/4 cup Italian seasoning
1 TBS dried Basil
1 TBS dried Oregano
4-5 cloves garlic
2 cups ground flax
2 - 2 1/2 filtered water
Put everything except flax and water into f.p. blend until you have chunks(appx. 2 min)
slowly add water...stop, scrape sides, blend
Empty mixture into big bowl...fold in flax.
Spread into mini and larger sized pizza shape apprx. 1/4 inch thick. Dehydrate at 105 -110 degrees for 10-15 hours.

Pizza cheese:
2 cups soaked cashews
1 squeezed lemon
2 tsp. dried basil
2 tsp dried oregano
1 garlic clove
3 sundried tomato
1/2 cup water
dash sea salt
slice tomato into strips, give garlic rough chop...put all except water in f.p. blend 2 minutes, slowly add water, stop, scrape sides, taste and adjust seasoning.


Welcome Blessteve and Pansylo!!!

I was happy on the scale today..day 48 and I'm down another 2 lbs to make my grand total 19 lbs. Yippee! 9 lbs to go to get back into my skinny clothes.

Very tired today due to partying last night. Went to a fundraiser for a friend who has cancer....was a big thing...400 people in a small bowling alley pizza/bar. Scary. I was a good girl. I find that if I eat well before going to a party, I have no temptations. It held true last night. But when I got home at 11:30 I ate a couple pieces of pizza. It is so good.

Today,
Pear, bbq potato chips (some raw brand from w.f.), 3 dates, 2 pieces pizza, kale chips.
Going to make alfredo sauce for zucchini pasta with an arugula salad with loads of stuff.
Also have onion rings soaking in almond milk for my fried onion rings...can't wait for those!

If anyone wants and incredible pizza crust and pizza cheese recipe let me know. I'm going to make another recipe of this to take on vacation. Leaving this Friday and a little nervous about staying raw on the road.

Querty: I too, have a problem with overeating! Definitely hard when you are such good food. I have to work on that!!! It's such a common problem. Good to hear that your hunger is lessoning! Every day is different for me.
Hey, where is Tigerbounce??

Juli:heart

[PansyLo]

Today was TOUGH!

I work in a restaurant/bar. I packed plenty of food for lunch and snacking through the 10 hour shift but managed to accidentally leave it at home!!

I only get one lunch break and it's only 20 minutes, then I get 10 minutes later on. I had to run to a mini supermarket and just pick up a couple of little packets of ready prepared fruit and a tiny pack of veg sticks (it was very slim pickins!). After that I only had time to eat the veg sticks. I was absolutely starving for the rest of the shift while surrounded by the smell of cooked food and having to take meals out.

I got the fruit bags out to sneakily snack on while working but I really don't like fruit, especially that stuff prepared in packets, it just has this watery off taste so I only finished one. At least I drank pint after pint of water throughout the shift.

The temptation just to order a huge cooked meal as soon as I was off the clock was very much there but I got home to where the lunch and snacks I had meant to take were waiting for me in the fridge.

Now I'm just exhausted. Not got any energy today at all but I suspect that was from half starving through 10 hours of work on my feet and not getting as much sleep as I would have liked to last night. I got through it though.

[Juicing Juli]

Pansylo:
You did have a tough day! In the beginning preparation is really key. Hopefully, your next long work day will be easier with the lunch that you bring in. It's too bad you couldn't just have a salad there. Anyway, the first week or so, you're detoxing from a lot. There's a section on this site about it. Being tired is a common outside of working 10 hours on your feet!

Hey, concerning the pizza recipe I posted. You can put it on a pan and put it on the lowest setting in your oven with the door cracked. This is what I a lot of people do before getting a dehydrator.
Hang in there!


Today was TOUGH!

I work in a restaurant/bar. I packed plenty of food for lunch and snacking through the 10 hour shift but managed to accidentally leave it at home!!

I only get one lunch break and it's only 20 minutes, then I get 10 minutes later on. I had to run to a mini supermarket and just pick up a couple of little packets of ready prepared fruit and a tiny pack of veg sticks (it was very slim pickins!). After that I only had time to eat the veg sticks. I was absolutely starving for the rest of the shift while surrounded by the smell of cooked food and having to take meals out.

I got the fruit bags out to sneakily snack on while working but I really don't like fruit, especially that stuff prepared in packets, it just has this watery off taste so I only finished one. At least I drank pint after pint of water throughout the shift.

The temptation just to order a huge cooked meal as soon as I was off the clock was very much there but I got home to where the lunch and snacks I had meant to take were waiting for me in the fridge.

Now I'm just exhausted. Not got any energy today at all but I suspect that was from half starving through 10 hours of work on my feet and not getting as much sleep as I would have liked to last night. I got through it though.

[carolv]

basenjimamma - glad to hear your throat is starting to get better.

Pansylo - congratulations on the weight loss and the increased water intake! WAY TO GO!!! :woot:
And you should be very proud about how well you did at work after forgetting your lunch. That's a very tough and unfortunate situation. I don't know that I would have made it. I get VERY uncomfortable and grouchy when I get really hungry. I guess that's why I am almost constantly eating. Although I have noticed that is diminishing a little bit. I'm trying to be more conscience of how much I'm eating and how often.

Juli - thanks for the recipe. I'm going to try it this weekend, the sunflower/flax crust sounds really good.

I'm back to starting my day with a smoothie.

smoothie with coconut water, pomegranate juice, hemp seeds, tahini, kale, parsley, red bananas, and strawberries
pear
baby carrots with raw ranch dressing
salad with romaine, sauerkraut, grape tomatoes, cucumbers, broccoli sprouts, spicy sprouts, and the last of the ranch dressing I brought with me.
LoveForce raw bar (first time I've tried them and they're pretty good)
raw pizza
banana
dried mangoes

We are into the home stretch of this month's challenge. WOOHOO!!! :woohoo:

[PansyLo]

^ I'm not too bad when I'm hungry I got through it but my work colleagues knew all about it I was pretty much winging about it from about 12 til 4!!

Guess who's Living On Live Food book arrived this morning! I've been out at appointments all morning/afternoon but I've just got in and I'm going to have a good read for a bit.

I think I need to try and budget my food a little better. I just went shopping on Sunday and spent £50 I'm already writing a list of things I'm needing. I'm just eating so much! I suppose the more expensive things like bags of nuts/seeds, raw honey etc are going to last longer it's just that my flat was pretty much empty of food when I started this and I need to buy a lot at once.

Bit behind with some bills though so I'm going to have to find a way to budget this diet a little better.

Edit: I'm really glad I got the book even though money's tight! I wish this had been the first raw food book I ever bought.

Off to do more food shopping : | eeekk.

[qwerty988]

Hi everyone!

Ahhhhh, I'm sorta glad it's the end of the month...... I love eating raw but I'm a bit tired of writing everything down every day hahahhaaa!
Today I had:

Amazing chocolate shake: 3 bananas, 1 orange, 2 handfulls spinach, 1 handful sprouts, 2 Tbls cacao, ice cubes...... YUM!!

Salad of diced avocado, tomato, chopped carrot and cucumber tossed in EVOO with just some salt....... nice and simple!

Lunch was a banana followed by massaged kale salad with sprouts, grated carrots and beets..... the dressing was SO GOOD: fresh o.j., garlic, salt, a roma tomato and EVOO

Mid-day snack was a savory smoothie: 1/2 jalapeno, 2 tomatoes, 1/4 avocado, 1/2 red pepper, spinach, 1 stalk celery along w some salt, cumin and curry..... DELISH!

Not sure about tonight..... either another smoothie or a redleaf lettuce salad w more of that orange/garlic dressing, I'm hooked!

Well, that's all for now. Later gators! :throwhearts:

[carolv]

pansylo - I know what you mean about the expense, it can get quite expensive if you're not careful. My only advice is to concentrate on what is on sale or what is in season. Nuts, superfoods, and gourmet ingredients can really get you so you'll want to work on those gradually. Try to keep it as simple as you possibly can and it shouldn't be too bad. I know there are good tips you can find through various raw websites on eating raw on a budget.

qwerty - I know what you mean about having to keep track of everything but honestly that is what keeps me from straying away from raw foods. If I weren't keeping track I would be more likely to just eat whatever was handy, good or bad. It helps me stay focused. Plus posting what I had during the day really holds me accountable because I don't want to have to admit that I did stray. Overall I've done really well this month but can always do better. So I'll be doing this again next month. I have to say that the longer I stay 100% more the more I notice how SAD foods affect me if I do stray. I either find that I don't like the taste of it anymore or I don't feel well after eating it. Plus in Alissa's book she says that if you stray (actually I think she said cheat) even a little bit you have to start from scratch. I think that is so true because depending on what you have that is not raw, you may experience more detox symptoms. And depending on what they are, do you really want to go through that yet again? I keep telling myself no, and I think I'm actually starting to listen to that advice.

smoothie with coconut water, pomegranate juice, tahini, hemp seeds, sunwarrior supergreens powder, dried pineapple, dried mango pieces, kale, parsley
almonds
carrots with raw ranch dressing
raw pizza
raw truffles

[PansyLo]

It's now day 9! ^_^

I'm noticing my skin looks more even and just a little nicer. And I've had dark circles under my eyes since the age of about 14 and somehow they seem to be gone!
That and I've been noticing A LOT more energy.

I try to only weight myself once a week so I don't know what my weight's at. I've eaten a lot more nuts in the past few days. Probably too many. My rule is to just eat what I want when I want but I think the amount I've eaten in the past few days is excessive and maybe partly due to laziness. They're delicious and easy to snack on but it would take me 10 minutes to whip up something that's more veg or fruit based.

[qwerty988]

I try to only weight myself once a week so I don't know what my weight's at. I've eaten a lot more nuts in the past few days. Probably too many. My rule is to just eat what I want when I want but I think the amount I've eaten in the past few days is excessive and maybe partly due to laziness. They're delicious and easy to snack on but it would take me 10 minutes to whip up something that's more veg or fruit based.

Yayyyyyyyyyyy -- You're doing GREAT!!!!

One thing that helps me with nuts..... I don't limit the amount I can eat in a day, but I DO limit the way that I eat them. I consider them to be ingredients only and never snack on them as is. However I add them freely to soups and smoothies, or use them in recipes and nut pates, and NEVER worry about limiting my amount when eaten that way.

It's a silly "rule" I imposed because I love them too and have a hard time controlling myself otherwise!

Anyhow, keep up the good work! :cheer:

[qwerty988]

qwerty - I know what you mean about having to keep track of everything but honestly that is what keeps me from straying away from raw foods. If I weren't keeping track I would be more likely to just eat whatever was handy, good or bad. It helps me stay focused. Plus posting what I had during the day really holds me accountable because I don't want to have to admit that I did stray. Overall I've done really well this month but can always do better. So I'll be doing this again next month. I have to say that the longer I stay 100% more the more I notice how SAD foods affect me if I do stray. I either find that I don't like the taste of it anymore or I don't feel well after eating it. Plus in Alissa's book she says that if you stray (actually I think she said cheat) even a little bit you have to start from scratch. I think that is so true because depending on what you have that is not raw, you may experience more detox symptoms. And depending on what they are, do you really want to go through that yet again? I keep telling myself no, and I think I'm actually starting to listen to that advice.


Agreed! I'll be joining you in March :kisses:

[Juicing Juli]

Hi guys and happy leap year!
I'm excited to say that although, I will be posting in other threads, I'm done with the challenge. I'm not good about writing what I eat down since I eat so much during the day. Although I'm a little anxious about traveling on the raw diet, I think I've got the routine of eating 100% raw down.
I enjoy chatting with you all and I wish you the best of luck!

today, smoothie with my 100% ingredient list!!!
later will be making a lot of corn/flax tortillas/crackers and pizza crust for my trip!
more onion rings. These are so incredible. I think I posted that I wasn't that crazy about my first recipe of almond pulp and flax...but I do really enjoy them.

Wishing you all lots of success and positive strength!
:cheer:

[Basenjimamma]

Awesome Juli...sounds like you got it going on.

I've been here....yet not here, if that makes sense.

Still doing the RAWkin raw thing, just not always remembering to come on here and record everything I eat..I vow to be better in March though.

Today I started my day with P90X, and then had a huge green smoothie, after that I nibbled on banana dipped in hemp seed, lunch was a huge green salad with evoo/vinegar dressing..snacks, more fruit..

See you tomorrow...

[carolv]

Juli - it's been a pleasure 'chatting' with you during the challenge and thank you for the great advice, tips, and great recipes that you shared with us. I'll miss you in this forum but it sounds like you are doing great and well on your way. Have a good trip and good luck with your raw meetups! :throwhearts:

basenjimamma - bananas dipped in hempseed? What an awesome idea, never would have thought of it. This is what I LOVE about this forum! :heart:

My sister-in-law reminded me about how good ginger is for you as an anti-inflammatory and I know it's good for your digestion too. So I'm going to try to make sure I add fresh ginger to my smoothies.

Smoothie with oj, pomegranate juice, kale, parsley, basil, ginger, hemp seeds, banana, dried pineapple and papaya (soaked), ormus supergreens (wasn't sure how this was going to taste but it turned out really good)
salad with romaine, grape tomatoes, cucumbers, parsley, basil, broccoli sprouts, spicy sprouts, acv, and a little raw ranch I had left over.
raw brownies
celery with almond butter, honey, and apple pie spice
raw pizza - this pizza was okay but needed a little something more so I actually added a few olives to it
apple with the rest of my almond butter mix that was leftover from earlier
the last of my truffles, boohoo! (I'm a chocoholic so I'm going to have to make more raw chocolately treats, at least I still have raw brownies to save me, lol)
2 bananas

Looks like I'll be 'seeing' most of you again for the March challenge. See ya there!