March 2012 - 30 day raw food challenge - join ANY day 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 the first of March 2012.

thanks,
Aleesha
Admin

[Evie M]

I'm excited to be the first person to commit for March. I'm off to the gym to walk laps in the pool then make a smoothie for breakfast. Salad is ready for lunch. Another smoothie for dinner.

[robh]

I just found the forum today. I have been eating 80-90 percent raw for about 6 weeks. I have been doing it on my own without any real examples or direction. I am interested to read what everyone is eating. I have already started reading the February posts. I need to find some PC time, outside work, to catch up on previous posts. I have so many questions.

This challenge will be difficult for me. The rest of the family is eating cooked food. To boot, I typically cook the meals. At home, I am surrounded with factory foods and other temptations like fast food sitting only feet away. I also have a standing, weekly, get together with friends where I like to drink some beers. Again, this challenge will be difficult for me, but I am game. :)

Today, at work, I have two large handfuls of spinach and my veggie juice (1 beat, 3 stalks of celery, 2 carrots, 1 cucumber, 1 pealed lime, small piece of ginger, 3 apples, and 2 plum tomatoes). Once I get home, I will have another handful of spinach , a sliced up carrots and cucumber. I may put some pickled jalapeno peppers on it, but I’m not sure if they are cooked and they certainly have salt.

Eating this way for 6 weeks has given me some great results: I’m happier; I have more energy; I think faster and more clearly; and I’ve gone down two pants sizes. I am, however, tired of the same food over and over. I’m excited to explore this forum to see what other ideas I can find.

[BlackKat]

Eating this way for 6 weeks has given me some great results: I’m happier; I have more energy; I think faster and more clearly; and I’ve gone down two pants sizes. I am, however, tired of the same food over and over. I’m excited to explore this forum to see what other ideas I can find.

You will find more things here that you will know what to do with. The abundance of variety is breath taking when you start to see all the different things you can consume. Raw food is more abundant than SAD food in my opinion and I bet everyone here would agree. Congrats on what you've done so far, the fact that you are happier and have more energy is proof itself you are in the right place, yes? Don't worry about getting bored because there are so many things you can do to help with that. Get used to experimenting. Some things will work for you, some won't.. but you'll be learning along the way!
:woot:

----------

Thinking of March just reminds me of springtime. I am excited for that to say in the least! I am dedicating this month to 100% raw. I have had some rough patches along the road recently but I am committed to this right now. I've started my day out with some juice (apple, orange, cucumber, celery, spinach, grapes) and some coconut water. Sticking with lots of salads and snacking on nuts and seeds. Perhaps next week adding in sprouts, and more "gourmet" raw food.

Feeling thankful for March, thankful for warmer weather on the way, and thankful for finding the strength to not give up.

[donnyandcathy]

Today I will be starting March with water, and Kombucha.
First experience with Kombucha, and I'm not quite sure what my opinion is on it, yet :P
I will have water the rest of the day, and may add some coconut water if I feel like I need something late in the day.

I really can't believe it's already March!!! Come on Springtime!! :)
Cathy

[qwerty988]

Yayyy Evie, Rob and BlackKat -- I'm with you and committed to raw for March as well!!! :excited:

I was up VERY early so have already eaten the majority of foods for the day!

I had:

a banana
giant glass of fresh o.j.
redleaf lettuce salad w pecans, mushrooms and cucumber..... w dressing made from an orange, a tomato, a clove of garlic, salt and EVOO
chocolate shake: 2 bananas, an orange, 2 handfulls spinach, cacao, ice cubes........... yum!!!
HUGE bowl of creamy carrot/avocado soup topped w diced tomato and sprouts

I'm marinating some mushrooms and plan on having zucchini noodles tonight for dinner w marinated mushrooms and cashew cheez sauce.....YUM! (Might save this for tomorrow if I'm too tired to eat....)

Hahahhahaa -- I'm sleepy already, gonna be a super early night!

RAWK ON everyone!!!!!!!! I look forward to reading your posts this month! GO US!!!! :cheer: :dance: :encore:

PS: Hi Cathy! I missed your post while composing this one........... great to "see" you!!!

[Denise Nicole]

Joining this month! This morning I had an organic gala apple, and for lunch a huge salad with, romaine, red peppers, green peppers, cucumbers, brocolli, red onions, grapes, raw sunflower seeds, raw walnts, and a simple dressing of extra virgin olive oil, and sea salt.

[blessteve]

Lots of dates for the day.

[PansyLo]

The stuff for day 1 and 2 on Alissa's four week plan is delicious! Not sure about the torte but I'm not a big fan of rich sticky things to begin with. I may be thankful of it if I have an odd craving though.

The pasta is YUM, and strangely like real pasta. The salmon pate is delicious too.

My only concern is the insane amount of nuts that went into it all... I guess it's to keep you full for the first couple of days?

I'm glad I got the book though, those recipes were easy and I could happily whip them up again.

[R'Mila]

Hey Qwerty, do you dehydrate your caulritos? I made some but they got a little soggy after awile. Thx!

[qwerty988]

Hey Qwerty, do you dehydrate your caulritos? I made some but they got a little soggy after awile. Thx!

No, I tried deyhdrating but I didn't like the flavor or texture as much! I like em fresh :heart:

[PansyLo]

Today I had:

Orange juice for breakfast.
Tiny emergency slip up*
Lambs lettuce salad with Alissa's 'salmon' paté.
Alissa's Fettucini Alfredo

I'm thinking of making raw strawberry milkshake for dessert. Strawberry milkshake is my fave (though I've never made it raw) and I'm too full for Torte. I might have a tiny slice.

*my slip up was because I was full at breakfast so just had some squeezed OJ. I then had loads of errands ot run which included walking pretty far. On the way back home I started feeling weak, had low blood sugar and was really thirsty. So I bought some fresh apple and elderflower juice from a shop. It was 100% fruit/elderflower not from concentrate but it was in a carton so it would have been pasteurised. All things considered though I don't feel it was a big deal. I'm not making a habit of it I just needed some fruit juice.

[breathless]

I'm pleased to report I have been 100% raw today. I am trying as hard as I can to keep it up this time. This is not my first attempt at going raw, but hopefully my last.

Today I have had a LOT of food. I'm so worried about gaining weight.

So far today:
green smoothie with orange, banana, and mixed greens
a large honeycrisp apple and 4 dates
a large salad with romaine, spinach, red bell peppers, chopped tomatoes, marinated mushrooms, and an avocado
tomato soup made with two tomatoes, one bell pepper, one avocado
kale chips and flax seed crackers

I think I am eating so much because I am psychologically trying to recreate that very full feeling I get from cooked foods.

Good luck with the 30-day challenge everyone!

[BlackKat]

Alissa's Fettucini Alfredo

Mmm That sounds amazing, which book did you get that recipe out of? Luckily I have both and plan on making lots of new things I have never tried before.

Today I had some kale chips that my friend made, and they were delicious. Sea salt and vinegar.

Also, Qwerty, I want to try the caulritos! I read about them in another post of yours.

[carolv]

Welcome everyone! I am so glad to be here to participate for another month. :dance:

robh - you've definitely come to the right place for support. I've been doing this off and on for a good 4 years. for some people going 100% can be really easy but for most it's quite a challenge. Part of my struggle is also that I still make cooked food for others. But I've found that the longer I keep trying to go 100% the easier it gets. I've learned so much but I still have so much more to learn. And congratulations on your good results from the 6 weeks of high raw. It goes to prove that you don't have to be 100% to make a difference but if you can get those results with high raw imagine what 100% will do for you. Pretty exciting huh? :woot:

donnyandcathy - I'm not a big fan of kombucha but I've only tried it one time. But when I went to a raw food potluck where someone used lemon kombucha to make a salad dressing that was really good.

qwerty - good to "see" you again this month!

pansylo - I think you are correct. There are a lot of recipes with nuts to keep you full and satisfied which hopefully will make it easier for you. I think you made an excellent choice for your slipup. I wouldn't have even considered it a slipup personally. No, it's probably not considered 100% but it's closer than a lot of other choices you could have made.

breathless - good for you to keep trying. That is how I got back to this forum. When you are first trying 100% don't worry about weight. you will suprised how much you can eat and not gain. The very first week when I did 100% I ate almost constantly to help with cravings. I didn't lose any weight but I didn't gain either. Then after that I did start to lose weight and start feeling awesome!

smoothie with green juice, pears, apple, kale, parsley, basil, cucumber, grape tomatoes
lara bar
'sandwiches' from raw italian bread, tahini, spicy sprouts, sliced grape tomatoes, and slices of cucumber (unfortunately I'm not very fond of the 'bread'. I don't have much luck making crackers and bread that I really like. There are 2 crackers recipes that I like fairly well but nothing that has me anxious to make more. I'm going to have to work on that).
last of my raw pizza and some olives. I'm going to try the recipe from juli next from last month's challenge.
banana

[PansyLo]

Mmm That sounds amazing, which book did you get that recipe out of?

Living On Live Food page 381 ;)

It's in the beginners meal plan thing. It's so simple.

The girl I live with came in drunk and was making remarks about the food I've made. But she never eats anything that's not cooked or out a can so she can judge my cooking all she wants.

Edit: Strawberry milkshake is even better than the real thing. I am officially content with life (strawberry anything is my favourite food, milkshake, dessert, jam...)

[ferb]

totally slipped my mind that today was the first (my calendar it's on friday-I got so confused earlier in the week and it threw me off). have had so much on my plate this past two wks that it's slipped up on me. now that having been said here's my FOD- water, ww cereal, water, one slice of a nasty cucumber (I think I'll take it back tomorrow and throw the slices at the produce manager), 3 roma tomatoes (which was to accompany my cucumbers- :( , 2 slips in the late afternoon. more water
well wishes for the 30 day challenge participants. this is my second 30 day challenge (last I let go of #23)

[donnyandcathy]

Made it through the day with the water, and Kombcha. I'm SOOOO hungry though, and can't wait for tomorrow :)
I've been watching Raw Food Recipes on Youtube and getting some great ideas. YUM!!
So glad that there are so many of you joining me in March!!
Night <3

[Basenjimamma]

Hey Marcher's...Good to be onboard with y'all.

Yesterday, day 1 I fell as leep way to early and didn't get on here and record my daily intake...so here it is.

Breakfast was two banana and a mango, well most of a mango, got very full on the bananas.
Lunch was a giant green spinach salad with hempseed sprinkled on top.
Snacks in the pm was fruit and dinner was too.

Today will be a super busy day for me, sitting here in the morning dark and is trying to psych myself up to it...our Annual School Carnival is this evening and my lot is the 27 games we have planned for the kiddos...so YES I am already worn out...I want to get some spinning done this morning, but as of yet...I am not getting myself on that bike....come on P you can do it...lol.

Breakfast and I think even lunch will be huge smoothies, it will provide lots of energy in compact packages, probably bring a a big green salad for dinner and tons of fruit as well...yes, once I leave my house this morning to drop my children off at school I will not be able to come back home again...until the fat lady sings and that won't be until after 9:00 or so tonight...I hope not later...

Have a great second day folks..see you soon.

[Evie M]

Pansy, how did you make your strawberry shake?

donnyandcathy, I'm having mostly water and rejuvelac today. I'm sure I'll fit a salad in sometime today. I've learned so much from youtube. I can't believe how many recipes are out there.

Have a great day, everyone!

[ashabean]

I'm on day 4 of being back almost at 100% raw (slips ups have been a small bit of cheese in the evening with my salad and ago, and a bit of hummus last night).

I've been knocking back smoothies like they are going out of fashion. Tons of greens, avo's and coconut butter.

Really craving red onion and rocket too, learning that too sweet is not for me. I made a strawberry and Banana (and spirulina) smoothie this morning, and it made me teeth so sensitive.

So I'm going to stick to cravings.

I've been trying to get my toddler (18 months) to try some smoothies, but he's not playing ball. But he eats tons of raw peppers, cukes, apple and Bananas.

I'm starting to feel really fine as well. Really alive, positive and full of powerful energy. I'm still tired, but I was up in the night because of my little one.

Raw this time round feel soooo right for me. I am really going to make a month :•)

[PansyLo]

Pansy, how did you make your strawberry shake?

http://veganverite.wordpress.com/2011/02/09/raw-strawberry-mylkshake-for-a-sick-puppy/

I used this recipe for reference. I used raw honey and pure maple syrup and a fresh vanilla pod.

Because the strawberries were frozen it had that nice ice creamy feel to it.

I didn't follow the measurements on there as we don't use cups in the UK and I've never been clear as to what they are. I only used about 7 strawberries but still had a full table spoon of honey/syrup and half of a vanilla pod.

[breathless]

I woke up today with a severely debilitating headache. I have tried taking some over-the-counter medicine, but nothing seems to help. Does that mean I am detoxing? The pain is almost unbearable. Should I try eating something cooked?

carolv - Thanks for the encouragement!

[PansyLo]

^ I think eating cooked food could only make it worse putting more toxins into your body.

It could be detoxing in which case the best thing to do is get plenty of water, eat your raws and take it easy until you get through it.

Or it could be unrelated in which case I'd still recommend the same thing. Make sure you're eating/drinking enough and that you're getting a good mixture of foods and listening to what your body wants.

[BlackKat]

I woke up today with a severely debilitating headache. I have tried taking some over-the-counter medicine, but nothing seems to help. Does that mean I am detoxing? The pain is almost unbearable. Should I try eating something cooked?

I agree with Pansy, eating cooked is only going to halt the detox. It will pass more quickly if you stay strong. But also listen to your body and if it's REALLY unbearable do what you need to do. Chances are the detoxwill lessen over time and you'll start feeling much better. Hang in there!!

---------

Today I had:

apple, banana, grapes for breakfast
raw bar for snack
small handful of brazil nuts and goji berries
salad w/ avocado (spinach, kale, romaine)
for dinner I am craving another salad, and i might make a mango dressing.... choices choices choices...

[breathless]

Thanks, the symptoms did pass finally after I took a couple pain relievers. I'm so glad I didn't succumb. My husband kept telling me to eat something else. "Maybe raw isn't good for you." I said "We'll see." Now I am eating a broccoli brazil nut mash with miso gravy. It's a little too salty for me, but good otherwise. I am glad I didn't eat something cooked. Thanks for keeping me accountable.

[carolv]

Good job of hanging in there for day 2 everyone! :cheer:

smoothie with green juice, oj, ginger, pears, parsley, and baby spinach
someone brought in a lovely fruit tray so I had some apples and grapes
kale chips
celery with almond butter, honey, apple pie spice, and ground flax seed
banana
salad with romaine, spicy sprouts, olives
smoothie with coconut milk, banana, sun warrior chocolate protein powder, vanilla, tahini, baby spinach

[PansyLo]

So today I've had:

Orange juice
Small bowl of lamb lettuce salad.
Small bowl of alissa’s fettucini alfredo.
Pint of raspberry water.
Small slice of torte.
Salad with ‘salmon’ pate
More water.
Some pistachio nuts.

Didn't get through as much water as I normally do but I had a pretty inactive day. Been feeling tired, I slept for 15 hours last night (and most of today). I think I'm going through some sort of late detox.

I've been having a look at the fasting section of the forum (Fellowship of the Fasters! I love that!). That's something I'd be interested in trying out. I feel like I need to properly detox my body and get clear of years of eating SAD food. I'm moving out of my flat in the city back to the country to live with my mum for the summer (maybe longer). By the time I move I'll be a lot more raw food savvy and when I first get there I wont have a job and will probably be mostly helping her get the house in order (she's just moving in in April). It seems like a good time to start a fast. I could do yoga, take long walks and would have peace away from the busy city.

I want to move in April but I'm paying for my flat until June. But when I do move I think it'll be a good thing to do.

[donnyandcathy]

Coconut Water
Green Juice- Kale, Red Cabbage, Cucumber, 2 Granny Smith Apples, Cara Cara Orange, Celery, Ginger, Spinach
Grapes
HUGE Salad with mixed greens and baby greens, 1 Avocado, Dulse Flakes

Need some advice on two things....

I woke up this morning and could not put any weight on my right foot. It felt like it was broke. Very sharp pain from the top of my foot going to my pinky
toe. I know 100% that I did not hit it, or injury it in any way. I thought maybe it was just a cramp and would go away, but it is still hurting sooo bad
tonight. It never stopped hurting all day. Could this be a detox symptom? I don't know what else it could be?? I really hope it's better in the morning.

Second thing is that when I drank the green juice with the Kale, my thyroid started acting up big time. I got a very tight throat and my voice was very
strained sounding. It lasted all afternoon and still feels tight tonight. I don't know if all of you know what I've been dealing with regarding my thyroid, but
my TSH is down to 0.015. My T3 and T4 are normal, so they are not really saying if I'm hyper or hypo. My iodine uptake scan showed that my thyroid
was not up taking any iodine which would show hypo, but the TSH would show hyper.
So anyway my question is... do you think my thyroid is trying to detox and that is just some of the symptoms, or do you think it could be the Kale and
possibly the cabbage making the thyroid struggle more?
If I need to stay away from Kale, which other greens are really strong in nutrients and taste good in a green juice, but won't bother the thyroid?
What are some other greens that you can make Kale Chips with?
I've read so many testimonies that if you are 100% raw then you don't need to worry about staying away from any raw veggie, and these are people that
have healed their thyroid from eating raw and eating foods like Kale, cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, etc.. So, I don't want to stop eating or juicing these
foods if they are not going to harm me.
Does anyone have experience in eating these foods with a thyroid disorder, and if you could tell a difference?

Thanks so much!!!
Cathy

[ashabean]

Start of day 3 (day 5 for me), and I am feeling fantastic! Looking forward to my smoothie, going for a Banana date, with coconut oil and spirulina for brekky. I also soaked up some chia seeds, so I may add them.

I am so curious to see what they are like, the look like frog spawn!

My sprouts are going well, and I can't wait to eat them.

Today I am going to a fair trade event and to buy more Bananas, avocados and red onions from the market. If the weather brightens up I think we'll all go on our bicycles.

Going to try again to coax my boy to try my smoothie.

[qwerty988]

Good morning all!

Hahahahhahaaa -- of course yesterday I just HAD to have a strawberry shake!! Thanks so much for the suggestion PansyLo.... it was DELISH!
I also ate an entire eggplant's worth of jerky for dinner...... a bit of an odd combination, but it worked for me and satisfied my cravings. I love raw!

Yesterday I had:

Breakfast: 2 bananas, a grapefruit
chocolate shake: kale, bananas, sprouts, an orange, cacao

Lunch: Natasha's spicy tomato soup
a banana, 2 oranges

Dinner: Strawberry shake
eggplant jerky

I have a coconut so I'll probably crack that baby open today and go to town! Also just bought more grapefruits and oranges so maybe I'll have some juice...... and I MUST have more of that creamy delish tomato soup!!

I hope everyone's doing okay....... detox can be so harsh, I feel for you Breathless!! :heart

Cathy, I have no experience with thyroid -- have you posted about it generally here? I'm sure there are people who may not be doing the raw challenge this month who would have information to help you!

I CAN address the toe issue -- the EXACT SAME THING happened to me during a juice fast when I first went raw. It was so painful I couldn't walk on my foot for a few days and it felt EXACTLY like a broken bone! But I hadn't banged my toe or anything, had no memory of having injured my foot in any way.... I still don't know what it was, but it sounds really similar to what's happening to you! All I can say is, it did get better but it was gradual and took about a week..... weird!

[mommyliz]

Hello all! I would like to join this challenge! It's been a long time since I've joined a challenge on here. This has always been my favourite forum. I've been back and forth with raw and vegan for years. I'm sick of feeling depressed and overweight and just plain blah, even when eating a 'healthy, grain-free vegan diet. i guess my body just doesn't process cooked food very well anymore. it (my body) is saying, 'sorry, you ate healthy for too long, and now the only thing i want is raw food.

so, i came on here, and saw the challenge, and i'm starting too get excited. i know that if i stick with this for 30 days i will feel AMAZING. my body has been BEGGING me!!!! I think it's about time i listen to it, and stop complaining. After all, I know the solution (100% raw) if i just do it!

i've got tons of AMAZING recipes, but am going to eat simple, whole foods most of the time. i am going to make some raw treats though (nut/date balls maybe, or maybe a blueberry pie...) and some chia crackers, and flax crackers, and cashew cheeze and sunflower hummus and...and...and..HA! i can't wait! yummy food here i come!

I'm going to a birthday party today, so this will be an interesting first day of my challenge!

P.S. my favourite way to make a strawberry milkshake is frozen bananas, strawberries, hemp hearts, and water. don't add all the water at first to allow the hemp hearts to blend well first, then add the rest of the water to taste. the hemp hearts really give it a thicker, milkier consistency. enjoy!

[BlackKat]

Cathy and Qwerty~ I have heard that through detox past aches and pains can come up (not just recent ones but from years ago). Along with eliminating toxins, aches and pains that you experienced long ago can surface and disappear. Sort of like finally relieving some tension that was there and you didn't even know it.. Although this is just a theory it kinda would make sense. Just like anxiety and depression can come about bringing back old feelings, so can old physically ailments.

-----
juice juice juice!
Alissa's Apple Sauce... I've been on an apple kick lately. Very light and refreshing but felt full.
Salad with cucumber, avo, red bell pepper
Some more brazil nuts and goji berries
I think I will attempt Alissa's Alfredo that Pansy suggested for dinner

Starting tomorrow I have the next 2 days off. I am excited about that because I will be doing a lot of experimenting in the kitchen. Oh yes, there will be a mess made! But it will be well worth it.

Anyone have a favorite easy cookie recipe (that doesn't require a dehydrator)? I am looking for something sweet and dessert like to satisfy my sweet tooth cravings in the evenings.

Hope everyone is having a fabulous weekend so far!

[qwerty988]

Thank you YES, BlackKat -- I believe that's what's happening now with my wrist..... and it aches SO MUCH, aggggghhhhhh! But I guess it's for the best. Seriously it feels just like it did when it was first healing from being broken....... ouuuuccchhh!


Anyone have a favorite easy cookie recipe (that doesn't require a dehydrator)? I am looking for something sweet and dessert like to satisfy my sweet tooth cravings in the evenings.

My favorite instant dessert is from the Rawtarian -- 2-second Halvah! Here's the link:

http://www.therawtarian.com/recipe-tags/raw-sesame-seed-dessert-recipe-halvah

She also has an awesome-looking instant fudge recipe that's on my list to try....

[qwerty988]

P.S. my favourite way to make a strawberry milkshake is frozen bananas, strawberries, hemp hearts, and water. don't add all the water at first to allow the hemp hearts to blend well first, then add the rest of the water to taste. the hemp hearts really give it a thicker, milkier consistency. enjoy!

Welcome mommyliz! :throwhearts:

Yeah I added frozen bananas to my shake, too...... I love them! Hemp hearts sound DELISH in this kind of shake, YUM!!

[mommyliz]

thanks for the welcome qwerty988!

so far today i made a blenderful of banana/spinach/hemp smoothie (haven't finished it yet)
then i made a bunch of coconut/almond/date balls and bars, and had a few
now i'm eating carrots. i'll probably have several whole carrots, and then some apples, maybe with almond butter, maybe not.....oooh then maybe some strawberries.... hope everyone is having a great day!

[mommyliz]

Hemp hearts sound DELISH in this kind of shake, YUM!!

Yeah, they make it a lot creamier. Whenever I add hemp hearts to a smoothie for the kids, then i call it a milkshake...not that they'd know what a milkshake tastes like though, lol.

[PansyLo]

^ Where can you get hemphearts? I'd never heard of them until now.

My skin in breaking out a little. Detox joys. But I assume that I feel way better once this is over with?

I'm supposed to be meeting friends tonight for drinks. I'm undecided about what to do, if I go I'll probably drink. I never intended to give up alcohol entirely, I probably will when I'm older but I'm 21 and I want to have fun, I just intended on cutting it down big time. I don't really want to drink either though, I feel like at this stage it would be a huge step backwards.

I feel like if I let my diet affect my social life too much though I'll just end up giving up on raw all together.

I don't know what the best plan of action for me is.

For this time I might just text them and say I'm not feeling great. I actually do feel like crap from the detox. Then next time depending on the occasion I can choose to go and not drink or drink as a rare thing and do a little detox after?

[breathless]

I think if you want to have a drink socially, it is best to stick with wine. I may be wrong about this, but I believe wine is fermented and not pasteurized.

[donnyandcathy]

Foot still not doing any better. The top of the foot is hurting so bad. I even had to cancel my plans for the day because it hurts to walk on it.
Blackkat and Qwerty, you could be right, but this foot has never been injured. It's very strange indeed.
I was going to start walking on my treadmill again this week as part of my 30 day challenge, this kind of puts a kink in that :( Oh well, I can start walking once it feels better. I don't want
to injure it more.

I think I'm going to have to try an experiment. I'm going to take out all Goitrogenic and Cruciferous Vegetables and Fruits.
After I drank my green juice again today the same thing happened to my thyroid. I know that a lot of people say that these foods can't really bother you if you are 100% raw, and I do want to believe that, but my body is saying otherwise, and saying it very loudly. So we will see what the experiment will show. The only thing is that I'm going to have to find some new greens
that are really high in nutrients for my green juice and smoothies. I tried juicing Romaine once and it was too watery.
Do you know if Swiss Chard would be on that no-no list? I love rainbow chard, so that could be an easy solution.
Please don't say there is not a no-no list when it comes to raw foods, I'm really not trying to debate that.

I'll be back later with today's food once I figure out what I'm going to eat for supper.
I hope everyone is having a great weekend so far!!

Cathy

[qwerty988]

I wish I knew what to avoid for thyroid issues, Cathy..... as for the foot pain, I had never injured my foot either! It was really severely painful, felt just like a break, for no resason at all! I still don't understand what that was about..... ?!

Anyhow I had a great eating day but got an upset stomach, so I'm in bed with a heating pad hahahhaa!

Today I had:

a banana
the other half of strawberry shake (yum!)
one quart of orange/grapefruit juice

Natasha's spicy tomato soup (I put in too much garlic this time, though..... really upset my stomach!)
coconut meat
a banana

small kale salad w cukes, sprouts and shredded beets
banana shake (3 frozen bananas, ice cubes, water, agave, vanilla)

The banana shake helped, but I still feel pretty sick to my stomach so i'm going to call it a night! :heart

[donnyandcathy]

Sure do hope you feel better, Qwerty!!!
Get some rest, and take care of yourself <3

[PansyLo]

Today:

Last of the salmon pate with salad and sprouted sunflower seeds.
Slice of torte.
Last of the alfredo with greens.

I'm craving a banana and strawberry milkshake but suspect my flatmate will not appreciate being woken up at 3am by me using the blender so alfredo and greens it is. I'll have my milkshake for breakfast tomorrow.

[donnyandcathy]

Today I had....
Green Juice with Kale, Spinach, Celery, Ginger, Granny Smith Apples, Cucumber, Cara Cara Orange. I think that was all HA!
Green Smoothie with Spinach, 2 Pears, Mango, frozen pineapple, maca powder, and goji powder.
Flax Crackers
Grapes
Chia Pudding, Lucuma Powder, and 2 Bananas

Now that my kale is all used up, I will try to keep out the veggies and fruits that can mess with your thyroid.
Praying that it will help me feel better.

Night All!!!
Cathy

[carolv]

Pansy - sounds like your future move to the country will be a great retreat for you. As far as your social life, you have to do what you feel is best for you. I seem to recall in last month's challenge that someone went out for drinks with friends and they had pineapple juice but the wine idea sounds good too.

Cathy - sorry to hear about your foot pain. I have experienced unusual pains during detox as well but I don't think I've ever had anything that severe. I certainly understand you wanting to experiment to ease the pain. Good luck!

Welcome mommyliz - I LOVE your enthusiasm! :heart:

qwerty - I'm sorry to hear you aren't feeling well. I hope you feel better soon!

I'm sending a big healing hug to all of you that aren't feeling well or are experiencing pain or any other difficulties with detox :hug

chia cereal with coconut milk, banana flakes, and SunWarrior chocolate protein powder
smoothie with green juice, oj, ginger, soaked dried pineapple and papaya, romaine lettuce, and baby spinach. (It was really good and I drank most of it while I was getting ready this morning and then I dropped it :( What a mess, it splattered everywhere, even got a little on the dog. LOL
Lara bar
DH and I were at a shopping mall today and we ate lunch in the food court. I went over to Subway and had them make me a very nice and very good salad. It was huge!
Salad with lettuce, spinach, tomatoes, cucumbers, green peppers, olives, red onion, oil, vinegar, salt, pepper
2 bananas

[PansyLo]

Pansy - sounds like your future move to the country will be a great retreat for you. As far as your social life, you have to do what you feel is best for you. I seem to recall in last month's challenge that someone went out for drinks with friends and they had pineapple juice but the wine idea sounds good too.

I know I could quit drinking but I really enjoy going out with friends for drinks and to clubs. It doesn't have to be done on a weekly basis but cutting it out entirely would make me pretty left out and it's something I enjoy.

I started this diet so I could enjoy life. To completely veto something that I enjoy even if it isn't great for my health would be to go against what I started this for.

My health, happiness and well being will still be much better off on a raw food diet with occasional partying than it would be eating SAD food and drinking all the time.

I think this is my balance :)

Definitely looking forward to my "country retreat" though it wont take long for me to miss my favourite city. I'll luckily be only a 20 minute train ride from Edinburgh and I'll still know people who I can come and stay with in Glasgow.

[qwerty988]

I know I could quit drinking but I really enjoy going out with friends for drinks and to clubs. It doesn't have to be done on a weekly basis but cutting it out entirely would make me pretty left out and it's something I enjoy.

I see raw as a permanent way of life and I drink wine sometimes. Many people do. It's not a big deal unless you choose to make it so. Enjoy yourself! :heart:

[linparda]

Hi Cathy;
I too have a thyroid problem... used to be hyper, and now I'm hypo. I try to stay away from broccoli and such, but mostly, I have forgotten the list of no no's for thyroid - just taking it a day at a time. I too get a sharp pain in my upper ankle area. I got an arch support and it seems better now. Anyway, good to see another thyroid person here - I'd love to get off meds - at least, that's my plan. For me, today is day 3 - love the food and can't wait to try more recipes! ;D.

[ashabean]

chia cereal with coconut milk, banana flakes, and SunWarrior chocolate protein powder


Carolv, I am so intrigued by your breakfast... can you tell me about the chia cereal? I recently bought some Chia, but how do you make cereal?

Hi Mommyliz, I am new too :–) Your story sounds alot like me, back and forth with raw and vegan over many years, but more off than on. I too have had that feeling my body was begging for raw, which is why I'm back at it.

I have been devouring rocket, avocado's, onions, Bananas, basil, spirulina :–) Also craving sundried toms as well, its that saltiness, taste SOOOo good right now. I am really trying to listen t my body.

Feeling proud to have made it to day 6 of raw, day 4 of the challenge.

[BlackKat]

Qwerty~ Thanks for the Halvah recipe, that is super simple and i made some last night for on the go. They are tasty little things, very good.

Pansy~ Things shouldn't be sacrificed that you really want to have in your life... If you want to have a few drinks with friends socially once in a while then go for it. Anything that takes away little joys in life isn't worth getting rid of completely. If it doesn't seem to affect your physically then it shouldn't be a problem. You've committed to eating raw, but that doesn't mean changing EVERYTHING about you. Do what you like, what makes you happy when you want to.
:throwhearts:

Cathy~ I'm not really sure but I think that organs detoxing and releasing toxins can affect joint, muscle and bone pain as well. It affects the circulation and also parasitic toxification can bring pains that are unexplainable in different areas of the body. Hopefully you guys get rid of this pain by staying raw :-). I think that you will!

-----------

so far:

juice (orange, lemon, apple, carrot, spinach and kale)
salad (kale, romaine, spinach, avocado, hemp seed, cucumber)
smoothie (banana, grapes, berries, kale, chia seeds)
snacking on kale chips

[mommyliz]

thanks for the welcome carolv! i am feeling enthusiastic about this!

hi ashabean! yeah, i went vegan in 1997, and have been back and for with that over the years. both my kids (7 and 4) are vegetarian but don't eat dairy, just eggs from 'happier' chickens sometimes. i've been going back and forth with 100% raw since 2003. i feel and look AMAZING when i eat 100% raw!! i just seem to have a hard time with it for social reasons, and it can be difficult/unharmonious when, say, i make dinner for my family, but don't eat it myself. i've eaten raw for long enough though (my longest stretch of 100% was 100 days) that my body seems to reject cooked food. i guess it's a blessing, as long as i can wrap my head around 100% raw (or close to it) being a long-term thing, and it not causing strain on my family. i think i'm ready this time...wish me luck!

[mommyliz]

I see raw as a permanent way of life and I drink wine sometimes. Many people do. It's not a big deal unless you choose to make it so. Enjoy yourself! :heart:

i like the thought of seeing 'raw as a permanent way of life'... i'm working on this...

[PansyLo]

I see raw as a permanent way of life and I drink wine sometimes. Many people do. It's not a big deal unless you choose to make it so. Enjoy yourself! :heart:

I'm still testing how it works for me. I'm definitely giving it time. This second week I've started feeling a bit rotten but it's just detox (and bad food choices today). I'm going to keep it up for a few months AT LEAST to give it a fair chance. I want to experiment with detoxing and long term effects. I've already started planning how I'm going to eat when I go back to college. If I stop it wont be because I'm giving up but because I've decided it doesn't work for my body or something. I wouldn't give up for the sake of food cravings but for health and wellbeing. I'd probably also end up adjusting it rather than "stopping", I wouldn't be going back to a SAD diet.

The thing is I don't see this way of life as having to stick to someone's exact diet. It's about seeing what works for me personally. Maybe I'll want to stop drinking almost entirely when I'm 30 maybe I'll feel it's right to start again when I'm 37! I just feel like it's designing a life style to fit your own needs and your own health at that specific point in your life. Being raw itself if I find it successful will probably be a lifelong thing. The finer details may change to suit my needs.

I certainly don't want to fall into a fanatic way of thinking and feel like everything must stick to the rules of a certain group (not saying anyone here does that, but I'm sure there are people out there that do which is why rawism often gets a bad rep, celebrity followings etc). I think it's a fantastic lifestyle, that joining a group to learn more is beneficial but I want to stick to the science of it and gather information from different sources and fine tune it to suit me.

I guess that's how I see it. I just want to heal my body, feel vitalised and have lots of creative energy and positivity.

Urrrhh I have a lot to learn still though, bad food mix has led me to feel rotton on top of my detox symptoms. Today is not a good day for wellbeing but at least it was an active day in general.

Today:
Breakfast: Strawberry and banana smoothy.
Lunch: Apple and orange.

Going to bed early as I don't feel well.

On a brighter note I got raw chocolate spread at the health food store as well as almond butter and braggs liquid aminos.

[carolv]

I know I could quit drinking but I really enjoy going out with friends for drinks and to clubs. It doesn't have to be done on a weekly basis but cutting it out entirely would make me pretty left out and it's something I enjoy.

I started this diet so I could enjoy life. To completely veto something that I enjoy even if it isn't great for my health would be to go against what I started this for.

My health, happiness and well being will still be much better off on a raw food diet with occasional partying than it would be eating SAD food and drinking all the time.

I think this is my balance :)



pansy - well said! I may try a drink myself someday just to see if I can even tolerate it anymore. Last time I had a drink (and it's been so long I don't even remember when it was) I do remember I didn't feel the greatest.So I haven't been in any rush to try again but when I see them in a restaurant or pass by them at the store they do tempt me.

[carolv]

Carolv, I am so intrigued by your breakfast... can you tell me about the chia cereal? I recently bought some Chia, but how do you make cereal?

...

Feeling proud to have made it to day 6 of raw, day 4 of the challenge.

ashabean - I know there are a lot of good raw cereal recipes out there on the internet but I took the easy way out and bought Chia Goodness Cereal. I got a good deal a couple months ago from rawfoodworld on the orignal one. I tried the chocolate one when I visited family near Chicago and stopped at Karyn's which is an awesome raw food store, cafe, and restaurant. I'm sure it's easy to make but sometimes I just don't have the initiative to do it. The ingredient list is: chia (Salvia hispanica), buckwheat, hulled hemp seeds, Celtic sea salt. It's made by Ruth's Hemp Foods Inc. (www.ruthshempfoods.com). You can get it on Amazon too.

And Congratulations on day 6 for you! :woohoo:

[carolv]

I'm still testing how it works for me. I'm definitely giving it time. This second week I've started feeling a bit rotten but it's just detox (and bad food choices today). I'm going to keep it up for a few months AT LEAST to give it a fair chance. I want to experiment with detoxing and long term effects. I've already started planning how I'm going to eat when I go back to college. If I stop it wont be because I'm giving up but because I've decided it doesn't work for my body or something. I wouldn't give up for the sake of food cravings but for health and wellbeing. I'd probably also end up adjusting it rather than "stopping", I wouldn't be going back to a SAD diet.

The thing is I don't see this way of life as having to stick to someone's exact diet. It's about seeing what works for me personally. Maybe I'll want to stop drinking almost entirely when I'm 30 maybe I'll feel it's right to start again when I'm 37! I just feel like it's designing a life style to fit your own needs and your own health at that specific point in your life. Being raw itself if I find it successful will probably be a lifelong thing. The finer details may change to suit my needs.

I certainly don't want to fall into a fanatic way of thinking and feel like everything must stick to the rules of a certain group (not saying anyone here does that, but I'm sure there are people out there that do which is why rawism often gets a bad rep, celebrity followings etc). I think it's a fantastic lifestyle, that joining a group to learn more is beneficial but I want to stick to the science of it and gather information from different sources and fine tune it to suit me.

I guess that's how I see it. I just want to heal my body, feel vitalised and have lots of creative energy and positivity.

Urrrhh I have a lot to learn still though, bad food mix has led me to feel rotton on top of my detox symptoms. Today is not a good day for wellbeing but at least it was an active day in general.

Today:
Breakfast: Strawberry and banana smoothy.
Lunch: Apple and orange.

Going to bed early as I don't feel well.

On a brighter note I got raw chocolate spread at the health food store as well as almond butter and braggs liquid aminos.


pansy - again, very well said! I completely agree. I hope you are feeling better soon.

mommyliz - Best of luck to you! I wonder if I will ever be able to be 100% raw ALL of the time. Under my current circumstances I don't think I can but I do at least try to strive for it. I figure the longer I keep trying the more likely it is to happen.


today was a light day for me, I had a headache this morning which is very unusual for me. It's gone now, thank goodness.

This morning I kept my green smoothie in a travel mug. Didn't want to risk dumping it everywhere again. LOL

raw cereal with coconut milk (this cereal is one I found through a previous challenge I did. It is made with maple syrup so it's not 100% raw but it sure is yummy. It's a combo of nut clusters and sweet flax cracker flakes. If anyone wants the recipe I'll see if I can find it for you. My stepdaughter likes just snacking on it straight out of the bag. I'll be making more this next weekend.)

smoothie with oj, coconut milk, the last of my soaked dried pineapple and papaya with the soak water, tahini, ormus supergreens, the last of my baby spinach.

apple with almond butter, honey, and apple pie spice

I made a lot of raw goodies today so I nibbled on various things as I was making them. Made a gorilla sandwich for lunch tomorrow and just finished eating leftover salad mix for the sandwich. The salad was just a mix of baby arugula, baby spinach, and baby leaf lettuce with grated baby carrots and a raw ranch dressing. I added the cucumber guts from the sandwich, and olives. Yummy!

[robh]

BlackKat and carolv thanks for the words of encouragement. :)

carolv, if you can find a link to that cereal, it sounds great! I think I have some coconut milk too.

This weekend was rough for me. When my friend and his wife came over for our weekly weekend get together, I had to explain to my buddy that I wouldn't be having any beers with him. He wasn't too happy about it, but it didn't ruin the evening. I also cooked one of my signature dishes that I love and then promptly didn't eat any (the leftovers are still singing to me from the fridge). When I'm doing the high raw thing, that 10% is typically one meal I take off when we visit with out friends. Only 3 more Saturdays to go. :)

I have been 100% raw though - so far so good.

Anyway, I've been sticking to my boring routine. I make a red juice. I posted it before. It's basically the green juice minus the greens plus a beat (pretty good actually). I eat the greens raw instead of juicing them. They yield such little juice. So I have my red juice and spinach 4 times a day. I added rolled oats (google says they are raw?). Oh, I also found a recipe for salsa (tomatoes, onion, garlic, cilantro, oregano and jalapenos and salt). It's supposed to be boiled, but it's good raw. My grocer had cocnuts this week so I have been munching on that. I also picked up a couple of avocados. Like a lot of you, I love guacamole. Sadly, the avocados are still green currently.

Good luck to everyone. I was sorry to read about the detox and other health problems. I hope things turn up for you all.

[donnyandcathy]

Thanks everyone for the well wishes for my foot, keep them coming ;)

Today I didn't feel like eating till tonight around 7:00pm and I didn't want to eat anything heavy like a salad with avocado, so I decided to just eat
one of my Chia Puddings with 2 very ripe bananas. It was soooo yummy!! I added a little bit of Carob Powder since I'm out of my Lucuma Powder.
I also ate some Grapes, and 4 Dates.

I went to the store and found really pretty Avocados for .89 cents each!! I stocked up because my daughter loves Avocados too. They have been
running almost $3.00 each, so I was very excited ;)

Night everyone!!
Cathy

[carolv]

carolv, if you can find a link to that cereal, it sounds great! I think I have some coconut milk too.



robh - the cereal recipe I have been using is called Crunchy Nut Cereal which was posted in the recipe forum by RawKnitster on 2/22/2010 at 5:22 p.m. You should be able to find it through this link: http://www.rawfoodtalk.com/showthread.php?58480-Best-Raw-Cereal-Ever&p=593450&highlight=cereal#post593450 Sorry to hear the weekend was so hard for you, been there done that too.

I forgot I had an appointment this morning so I have a little extra time this morning which is very rare and unusual so I thought I would check in early.

I actually finished off my raw cereal this morning so I will definitely make more this weekend.
I am also working on a smoothie with coconut milk, ormus supergreens, tahini, vanilla, 3 baby bananas

I hope everyone has a great day! :)

[Lucy76]

Ηello everyone! I'm in too.

I find that this thread helps me stay motivated, and offers a lot of support,it's much easier than trying to do it on my own.
So here I am!

:heart

[qwerty988]

The thing is I don't see this way of life as having to stick to someone's exact diet. It's about seeing what works for me personally. Maybe I'll want to stop drinking almost entirely when I'm 30 maybe I'll feel it's right to start again when I'm 37! I just feel like it's designing a life style to fit your own needs and your own health at that specific point in your life. Being raw itself if I find it successful will probably be a lifelong thing. The finer details may change to suit my needs.

I certainly don't want to fall into a fanatic way of thinking and feel like everything must stick to the rules of a certain group (not saying anyone here does that, but I'm sure there are people out there that do which is why rawism often gets a bad rep, celebrity followings etc). I think it's a fantastic lifestyle, that joining a group to learn more is beneficial but I want to stick to the science of it and gather information from different sources and fine tune it to suit me.

I guess that's how I see it. I just want to heal my body, feel vitalised and have lots of creative energy and positivity.

Nobody's saying you should do anything -- or not do anything -- or follow some fanatical belief system! In my experience, ocasionally having alcohol (wine) is not a big deal while following a raw food diet and not worth causing stress over. It's a personal choice and I'm sure you'll figure out what works for you as time goes on! :heart

[qwerty988]

Ηello everyone! I'm in too.

I find that this thread helps me stay motivated, and offers a lot of support,it's much easier than trying to do it on my own.
So here I am!

:heart

Hi, Lucy! Welcome to the challenge!! :heart:

[mommyliz]

Welcome Lucy!

[magglepie]

I'm jumping in a dew days late, but I'm in for March. I went to work out after breakfast, so all I've had is a banana to eat today...

donnyandcathy, I saw you mentioned drinking Kombucha.. I have a few acquaintances that have tried it, and I see it in the grocery store when I go shopping, but I've never had it. How do you find the taste? I always think that I'll try it someday, but I get a little weirded out by the stuff that settles on the bottom.

[BlackKat]

Welcome Lucy!

Welcome Magglepie~ my opinion of kombucha is it tastes like fruity wine with a little tang to it (without the big buzz). There are different flavors so you can try what you think you may like. I am a big fan of the green one. It's very refreshing, and out of the ordinary. I fell in love with it the first time I tried it!

[PansyLo]

Welcome all new challenge starters!


Today was a total write off for me. :thud:

Everyone has bad days. I'll just forget it and have a new start tomorrow.

My job is causing problems to be honest. Surrounded by alcohol, people smoking, dreadfully unhealthy pub grub, fresh coffee and constant encouragement/pressure to eat unhealthily by people who mean well but are way off mark.

That and it's just so long running about with so few breaks that it causes pressure without all of the above.

I might dress up smart and see if there's any jobs going elsewhere this week...

[Cookie Monster Gone Raw]

Hi everyone,

You can count me in for March! I think that going raw for March is a great way to bring in Spring. I have stocked up on lots of fresh veggies and fruits and a few raw snack foods here and there. Recently I invested in a Vita mix, a spiral slicer, and a food dehydrator so I am looking forward to playing in the kitchen. However, for personal reasons I intend on being 80-95 percent raw. I will not discuss my slip ups here but just thought that I would share that I will not be 100% raw. Nonetheless, I am still confident that with this commitment I will see positive changes in my life and I am sure you all will too!

For about a year now I have been doing lots and lots of reading about raw. I have been collecting recipes and doing lots of research about nutrition. A great book that I highly recommend is Becoming Raw, The essential guide to Raw Vegan Diets by Brenda Davis, Vesanto Melina, and Ryan Berry. This book is less recipe based and more nutrition based and compares various scientific studies about raw diets. It is really informative and very interesting, it was an eye opener for me. Also I would like to note that Alissa Cohen is wonderful, I am so very grateful to her for creating this wonderful community here.

I tried going raw for a month last year while I was living in Brazil, and I had a really wonderful experience. All the fresh tropical fruits were wonderful, and for the first time in years I started to loose weight. However, when you are a guest in someone else’s house and in a foreign country it is really hard to say no to new and exotic food, especially when it is prepared just for you. So needless to say I fell off the bandwagon and started indulging in cooked foods. This pattern continued when I returned to the States last semester and I have regained all the weight plus some extra. But needless to say, I am ready to start anew. So count me in for the moth of March.

Last week I kick-started the program transitioning slowly to a raw diet. Now I am ready to go full force. Though you will probably not see me post everyday, as I am a full time student, I will check in periodically to voice my progress and lend you all support.

Good luck to everyone and enjoy the journey!

[PansyLo]

^ Welcome! I love your username! :D

I can totally see where you're coming from with exotic new cooked foods. It's good that you're back to start off again though.

Thanks for the book recommendations. I'd like to check out more books discussing the science behind raw food.



I've had a nap and feel better, I'm going to make up loads of raw meals so I have plenty of food to take into work tomorrow.

I think from now on I'm just going to have to be overly prepared for work as it'll be a battle to stay raw there.

This week I think I might search for a new job in retail rather than bar work.

[robh]

Welcome all the new folks.

Cookie Monster, thanks for sharing that book. I am very interested in the science behind why I feel so good eating this way. Having a fundamental understanding of what's going when we eat raw food will also help me explain it to others.

Today, I am sipping on my juice and skipping the spinach. I caught the flu bug that's going around. I am not going to let it stop me, though. So far so good - still 100% raw - sick and all. :)

[BlackKat]

This morning I wasn't very hungry and in a weird sort of mood:
1 banana
1/2 avocado

Lunch:
Alissa's Waldorf Salad (delicious) Does anyone else make her mayonnaise?? Oh my, it's fabulous I'm hooked!!!
Lettuce, cucumber, carrot, olives, and some more of that mayo wrap

Dinner:
Going to be a big salad
I have a nice bunch of asparagus (not sure how to prepare it though)

[Lucy76]

Hi everyone,

You can count me in for March! I think that going raw for March is a great way to bring in Spring.

I didn't even think about that, but it's so true! Really yummy fruit has started to come out. Strawberries are in season, and I looooove them. Also spring garlic (i don't know if that's the right name, or baby garlic, or green garlic, I don't know, it looks like green onions, but it's garlic, and it's amazing).
Welcome Cookie Monster Gone Raw (great name!!)

So today wasn't the best day for me either, but tomorrow will be perfect i know it! Hang in there PansyLo things will get easier the longer you stick with the diet. The foods that seem tempting now, will be much easier to resist soon.

I had mostly juice and fruit smoothies today, oh and a green salad with lots and lots of olives. They were yummy but really salty, despite all the juice, I'm still thirsty from them.

BTW, my dehydrator is on the way yaaaaaaaaay!! I 'm sooooo excited :dance::dance::dance:
It should be here in about a week.

Good night everyone (it's 12.30 am for me, and my son just fell asleep while nursing in my arms). I'm going to bed too.
:heart

[carolv]

Welcome Lucy, magglepie, and Cookie Monster!

BlackKat - I'll definitely have to try kombucha again, you've peaked my interest with the green one. I haven't tried Alissa's mayo recipe yet but it sure sounds good and would be great on some raw bread that I have. I know if the asparagus is really thin that it is good to eat raw. Sometimes it can be found on a crudite platter. If it's thicker you may want to use a vegetable peeler along most of the stalk to make it more tender. You definitely need to make sure you cut off the very bottom woodsy parts of it. It would be wonderful if you marinate them and put them in the dehydrator for a while to soften them.


Pansy - sorry to hear about your set back today.

robh - hope you are feeling better soon.



In addition to my cereal and smoothie from this morning I had:
apples and grapes
gorilla sandwich
date walnut bar
raw brownie
sea spaghetti with raw tomato sauce and nutritional yeast
raw pizza (new recipe, pretty good)
raw lasagna
dehydrated banana chips

[mommyliz]

welcome new peeps!

today was a great day - wasn't super hungry - had some strawberries, a couple apples, a couple carrots, quite a few lemon coconut balls (YUMMY!!!!!!!!!) and a big salad with mixed greens, avocado, tomato, juice of half an orange, and a little tahini. been sipping on green tea too.

[magglepie]

I always love reading what everyone eats. It's a great way to keep myself inspired :). I have had three bananas today, and I don't remember what I had for lunch. I'll have to write stuff down so I don't forget. But for supper I just finished a HUGE salad with romaine and green leaf lettuce, alalfa sprouts, three carrots, a whole avocado and some cauliflower. Amazing! It was so big I didn't think I'd be able to eat the whole thing, but sure enough it's gone :)

[BlackKat]

BTW, my dehydrator is on the way yaaaaaaaaay!! I 'm sooooo excited :dance::dance::dance:
It should be here in about a week.

How exciting sooo jealous! Which one did you go with? That's one thing i REALLY want...

[kayhat]

Hi! :)
I'm gonna join in too, starting tomorrow, Tuesday, March 6, 2012.
Super excited to start the raw challenge!!
I want to lose a bunch of weight within the next 8 weeks, and raw would be a great way to start!

[donnyandcathy]

Welcome to all the new friends that have joined us!!

MagglePie, the taste 'Kinda' grew on me, but at first I didn't think I was going to be able to finish it. I don't drink alcohol, but I would have to say that it
probably tasted similar to what a wine cooler may taste like?? I may drink another one, not sure yet HA! I know it would be really good for me with my
stomach issues, so maybe I should make myself like it.

Today we went and picked up our 18 year old son from the airport. I'm SOOO happy to have him home. He has been in Texas for 8 weeks
volunteering at a Christian camp. This is his first time away from home, and he was ready to get back ;) He's truly a blessing, just like my other 3.

Today I had ....
Green Smoothie with Rainbow Chard, Coconut Water, 2 Cara Cara Oranges, Yellow Mango (yummy), Pineapple, Cilantro, Maca, and Goji Powder.
Chia Pudding, 2 Bananas, Carob Powder
BIG Salad with 1 Avocado, Dulse Flakes, Tomato, Flax Crackers

My foot is feeling a little better today YAY!! I really wish I could find a good reflexologist in my area. I got to thinking about the health issues I'm having
with my thyroid, and stomach, and wonder what areas on the foot could hurt if you are detoxing in that area, or if something is wrong with one of your
organs, would it cause pain in the feet. Very interesting.

Night <3
Cathy

[linparda]

Welcome all newbies!
I started on the 2nd, and some are turnovers from February...lucky devils;D. I have had to take some aspirin, otherwise I would not have survived my kidney pain over the last few days. Today, I feel better, but there is a little ache in my kidneys - so far, nothing I can't handle. I made the flax crackers last night - they are good, but I think I might pull back on the braggs a little... maybe add an onion;D. Lots of fun experimenting with the foods but as much as I want to stick to the book, I just can't eat that much, and a big salad as well...;D -- so I haven't made the salmon pate yet and still finishing the fetuccini alfredo dressing. I did make the mock blue cheese out of some of it and it is YUMMIE! I know that will be a staple for me. Still munching on the date nut torte too - another staple;D.

Today, so far, in order to get off of coffee, I had Pero with some raw blue agave. I hope to stop that sometime - it's my only nemesis to 100% - and I can't help but wonder what the hot water is doing to my agave:(.

Day 5 for me - can't wait for my vitamix to arrive! -- It's taken me a long time to acquire all the tools, but once my vitamix and saladacco arrive I will be completely stocked!

Love the way I'm feeling, pain and all - I have lost 5 pounds in 4 days! I can't help but wonder where I will land - I would love to lose another 25 but for me, it's all about health, so where ever I land is where I need to be!

Great day to all!

[linparda]

Welcome all new challenge starters!


Today was a total write off for me. :thud:

Everyone has bad days. I'll just forget it and have a new start tomorrow.

My job is causing problems to be honest. Surrounded by alcohol, people smoking, dreadfully unhealthy pub grub, fresh coffee and constant encouragement/pressure to eat unhealthily by people who mean well but are way off mark.

That and it's just so long running about with so few breaks that it causes pressure without all of the above.

I might dress up smart and see if there's any jobs going elsewhere this week...

Good luck with that - I'm sure it's tough for you at times. But you have a great head on your shoulders and I know, if you focus, you will do just fine! I'm rooting for you in your new start;D!

[ashabean]

Still here on day 6 (day 8 for me) :woot: detox is kicking in a lot, but I don't mind that, stinky cold, head ache, sore eyes and really dry skin. Underneath teh 'blah' feeling I am brimming with energy, hope and determination.

Today is a struggle as I am at work (I work 2 days a week/freelance at home the rest), so I don't have access to a blender/juicer/food processor, so what I have brought with me, is all I can eat.

My appetite is shrinking though, just craving smoothies now: Banana, nut, avo, date combo's. Will have that as soon as I get home.

How is everyone else? What are you all eating?

[robh]

Eating raw sure helped me fight the flu. I am back to my normal self in record time.

I too am curious about the dehydrator. I'll need it to make that cereal carolv posted. I'm sure there are multiple threads on the topic. I just haven't gotten there yet. I also, apparently, need to research a juicer. The one I had just couldn't take the constant use and broke last night. I don't see me stopping this raw lifestyle so I might as well invest in it.

I fell off the wagon last night. I was felling ill and just run down. I was craving high-calorie foods and just caved under the pressure. No worries, though, I'm back on that wagon this morning - back to my juice and spinach.

[Denise Nicole]

Today:
Breakfast: orange juice (still learning how to clean the juicer more efficiently, lol), banana, strawberries
Lunch: Huge salad, with mixed greens, avocado, onions, tomatoes, green peppers, cucumbers, mushrooms and brocolli

[BlackKat]

hello detox... did i invite you? I guess I kinda did lol... Today is hard to say in the least. I am feeling super emotional/on edge ALL day today. Ive been eating a lot of fats, I need to cut back. I feel heavy and more sleepy today. More detox symptoms but still the nuts and seeds can be cut back.

I had a raw food bar for breakfast cause I was in a hurry.
Salad and some raw granola for lunch (and it was a sad little salad, at least it was SOME greens)
Dinner is going to be another salad, very plain with lots of veggies.

Maybe I should drink more water, I feel a bit dehydrated (probably from all the nuts) lol.

Blahh, feeling bloated and yucky.

I thank you all for making it easy to stay on tracK!

[carolv]

Welcome kayhat!

Sounds like there is a lot of detoxing going on, hang in there everyone! I too keep experiencing different detox symptoms as I go along. I just take it one day at a time.

smoothie with coconut milk, ginger, blueberries, baby bananas, tahini, ormus supergreens, vanilla (this got really thick had to eat it with a spoon)
kale chips
raw pizza
coconut balls
gorilla sandwich
sea spaghetti with raw tomato sauce, nutritional yeast, marinated mushrooms
banana
raw chocolates (I made these last night and I could eat the whole batch but I won't. I'll savor them for as long as I can) :drool:

[R'Mila]

Carolv, I am interested as well if you have a reference for the chia cereal recipe. Are the banana flakes included in the store bought version or do you prepare that separately?


ashabean - I know there are a lot of good raw cereal recipes out there on the internet but I took the easy way out and bought Chia Goodness Cereal. I got a good deal a couple months ago from rawfoodworld on the orignal one. I tried the chocolate one when I visited family near Chicago and stopped at Karyn's which is an awesome raw food store, cafe, and restaurant. I'm sure it's easy to make but sometimes I just don't have the initiative to do it. The ingredient list is: chia (Salvia hispanica), buckwheat, hulled hemp seeds, Celtic sea salt. It's made by Ruth's Hemp Foods Inc. (www.ruthshempfoods.com). You can get it on Amazon too.


raw cereal with coconut milk (this cereal is one I found through a previous challenge I did. It is made with maple syrup so it's not 100% raw but it sure is yummy. It's a combo of nut clusters and sweet flax cracker flakes. If anyone wants the recipe I'll see if I can find it for you. My stepdaughter likes just snacking on it straight out of the bag. I'll be making more this next weekend.)


Carolv, I am so intrigued by your breakfast... can you tell me about the chia cereal? I recently bought some Chia, but how do you make cereal?

[R'Mila]

Lo, did you just blend some fresh raspberries with water? I've done this with frozen raspberries and sparkling water but not any other way. Sounds refreshing, must try.

So today I've had:
Orange juice
Small bowl of lamb lettuce salad.
Small bowl of alissa’s fettucini alfredo.
Pint of raspberry water.
Small slice of torte.
Salad with ‘salmon’ pate
More water.
Some pistachio nuts.

[donnyandcathy]

PMS type of day for me :P
But, I stood strong and made it through.

Chia Pudding, 2 Bananas, Carob Powder and a little bit of Yacon Powder.
This is the first time I've tried Yacon Powder, and it's pretty good. I would normally use Lucuma Powder, but Whole Foods was out :(
Here is how I make my chia pudding. I slice 2 bananas and layer the bottom of the bowl with them. Next I sprinkle some of the Yacon Powder over the
bananas. My chia pudding is already made and in a glass jar, so I just add some carob powder to the jar and give it a good shake to mix it up.
Now I pour it over the bananas. It is SOOOOOO yummy!! I could eat this ALL day long. It's like the best dessert to me.
For my Chia Pudding, I use 1 cup of homemade almond milk with 2 TBSP Chia Seeds. I let it sit over night to really thicken up.

Green Smoothie with Rainbow Chard, Yellow Delish Apple, Yellow Mango, Cherries, Pineapple, Goji Powder, Maca Powder

Another Chia Pudding like the one above ;) I had to eat this to keep me from going crazy over my family eating pizza this afternoon!! That is my
favorite food, and I always make sure it's vegan and healthy ingredients, but sadly it's not raw.
Had some dates after the pudding because I was still hungry and needed something heavy, yet sweet.

I used Romaine Hearts for "Shells" and filled them with an avocado, Roma Tomato, and some sea flakes.
I also ate a few of my pulp crackers even though I know I need to stay away from them because they are not helping the digestion and
elimination process ;)

Sunflower Seeds

I drank the rest of my daughter's green smoothie that I had made her this morning. It had bananas, rainbow chard, oranges, and a mango.

[rawshay]

Hi Everyone!!! I will be starting the Raw challenge tomorrow. Superduper excited!!!! Headed to sleep so that tomorrow I can be well rested and eating raw :-)

[Cookie Monster Gone Raw]

:heart Thank you all for the warm welcome. I am so grateful to be on this journey with you.:heart

I do not have much time at the moment so I will just report what I ate today.

I started the day with a wonderful smoothie whipped up in my Vitamix:

-spirulina
-a dash of agave nectar
-pear
-blackberries
-banana

For lunch and dinner I assembled a raw pizza of sorts:

-Raw dehydrated Buckwheat Cracker (from café Gratitude)
-layered with a homemade cashew cream (this is delicious, has anyone else tried cashew cream?)
-Toppled with Radish Sprouts, Cherry tomatoes, Zucchini, and Basel

For Dinner # 2 or mid evening snack I had a smoothie made of:

-Coconut water
-Oranges
-Strawberries
-Frozen peaches

My habit has been just to eat as I get hungry, and the fruit goes through the system pretty fast so I will probably have a light snack before bed.

Wishing you all well and Happy Eating,
Crystal

P.S..To those who are going through detox, hold in there and keep your blood sugar up. Maybe eat a banana or two, this helped me get through midterms last week when I was feeling a bit dizzy. When I have a little more time I will write a short post about the benefits that I have already seen by eating raw for just a week and a half.

[PansyLo]

I look and feel dreadful.

Really weird detox symptoms mixing with problems I already had. I'm starting to wonder if I'm trying to do too much at once.

Really weird things like I have pain in my left wrist for no reason. Somebody mentioned before that they felt pain from past breakages? I broke that wrist when I was younger, I don't know if it's related. Totally exhausted and started with over sleeping then couldn't sleep for 3 days. Headaches, some cold/flu symptoms. Skin's breaking out in places. And other odd and varying symptoms.

Things can only get better from here at least! I can see why people quit at this stage, I feel like it's making me feel worse and I'd really just like some cooked food as it's easy, familiar and would make me feel better!

Need to do shopping today. Hopefully some fresh raw food and new recipes will give me a bit more enthusiasm again. Might make a really nice dessert type dish as a treat to cheer me up.

[linparda]

Good morning everyone! I see lots of us are detoxing...yuk! ;D. I am feeling a bit better today, 1 kidney seems fine and the other still hurts a bit - also, still have a bit of a headache, but I do see a light at the end of the tunnel! Today is day 6 for me!! Wow, almost 1/4 through the challenge;D.

I am making the pizza bread and the house smells fabulous! I couldn't help but take a bite and I think I have found another staple - having a dehydrator is really fun - I love the smells;D.

Other than that, I am eating salads with mock blue cheese (love it), tangelos, bananas, still, my date nut torte too. I just don't feel all that hungry - I guess it could be because of the pain of detox. But all is well, and I am 100% - even giving up my pero;D.

Good luck everyone!

[robh]

Last night, I had guacamole on spinach. Today, at work, I will be having cut up celery, carrots, tomatoes and cucumbers. Along with that I will be drinking a "spinach shake thing" that I created. It has two handfuls of spinach, two red apples, 1 pealed lime and just enough coconut water to get it all working in the blender.

I need to work kale into my diet. I like this shake thing maybe I can make it half spinach and half kale. The main problem with kale is that the place I get my bulk, affordable veggies doesn't carry it.

[Denise Nicole]

I ended my day with a raw strawberry pie, which was breakfast this morning.

However I have a question for you ... The strawberry pie didn't firm up quite right, although it does stay together, it's just soft. To get that pretty "firm" look, should I have added another banana?

The recipe was really simple (which is why I love it for someone like me, just learning to do recipes). 2c almonds & 1/2 dates (soaked), mix almonds, add dates, press into pan. 5c strawberries, 2 bananas, 1-1/2T of honey or agave blended. Add strawberry halves, let firm up in fridge.

Grocery store was out of kale, so I just grabed collard greens to for chips. Not sure if I like them or not yet, lol

[blessteve]

scored some coconuts. Pretty good. Trying to add more raw all the time.

Guess that is mostly dictated by what is in season and at store.

[qwerty988]

Yumm.... just had the most amazing salad! Red leaf lettuce and spring mix with this dressing blended up in the Vitamix:

1 roma tomato
1 stalk celery
1 tsp salt
1 orange, peeled
1 clove garlic
a few tablespoons EVOO

Pansy, I've had bad pain from a wrist I broke several years ago -- it came on suddenly out of nowhere. It has to be detox and I'm sure the same thing's happening to you. I know it means a deeper level of healing is taking place..... it's hurt for about 4 weeks now, but it does seem to be hurting less this week, if it's any consolation.

I am super busy on a project this week and can't check in as much I'd like.... keep going everyone -- you're doing GREAT!! :cheer:

[robh]

Thanks qwerty. Now I know what I'm doing for dinner. I have all the stuff to make that dressing. I don't have the red leaf lettuce, though. I'll let you know how it fairs on spinach.

[PansyLo]

@Qwerty: Thanks, I'm glad that it's at least explained.

Think I'm going to stray off the Alissa food plan and just eat what I fancy for the next few days. I feel like much lighter food. Spinach, lambs lettuce, fruit juices, maybe try some raw soup. A nice banana and vanilla milkshake. Maybe a really nice dessert as a treat.

It's not even been worth writing what I've eaten the past couple of days. I've just picked at food and not really fancied it.

[robh]

The above dressing is great. It kinda looks like thousand island. "feisty tomato" is probably the best way I can describe the taste. Thanks qwerty.

[BlackKat]

Think I'm going to stray off the Alissa food plan and just eat what I fancy for the next few days. I feel like much lighter food. Spinach, lambs lettuce, fruit juices, maybe try some raw soup. A nice banana and vanilla milkshake. Maybe a really nice dessert as a treat.

Amen to that, I am in the same boat. Maybe I will do a juice fast for a day or something to get me out of this funk. Maybe even just lay around on my day off and rest. My body must be detoxing something awful!!!

I did go to the grocery store and that cheered me up a bit... got romaine, kale, collards, strawberries, oranges, grapefruit, pineapple.... it looks so pretty in my kitchen. Im definitely going to steer away from nuts, bleh...

[blessteve]

Hang in there, don't quit now. It will get better and so will your health.



I look and feel dreadful.

Really weird detox symptoms mixing with problems I already had. I'm starting to wonder if I'm trying to do too much at once.

Really weird things like I have pain in my left wrist for no reason. Somebody mentioned before that they felt pain from past breakages? I broke that wrist when I was younger, I don't know if it's related. Totally exhausted and started with over sleeping then couldn't sleep for 3 days. Headaches, some cold/flu symptoms. Skin's breaking out in places. And other odd and varying symptoms.

Things can only get better from here at least! I can see why people quit at this stage, I feel like it's making me feel worse and I'd really just like some cooked food as it's easy, familiar and would make me feel better!

Need to do shopping today. Hopefully some fresh raw food and new recipes will give me a bit more enthusiasm again. Might make a really nice dessert type dish as a treat to cheer me up.

[PansyLo]

Im definitely going to steer away from nuts, bleh...

It's good to fill you up but a lot of the meals are very nut heavy! And nuts are expensive, I can't aford to be going through bags of them a week. I have made a blueberry cheesecake that's very nut heavy but I'm hoping it'll keep for a while so I'll only have a little each day and that can be my nutty keep full meal.

Today so far:

Orange and strawberry juice.
Tomato soup.
Eating the cheesecake as I was making it.

[carolv]

R’Mila – I gave all I know about the chia cereal in my one post. I was introduced to red banana flakes by my sister-in-law. We both order them from www.renegadehealth.com, just click on store and search for banana.

Cathy – your chia pudding sounds really good and easy. I’ve got a bunch of chia seeds so I’ll give it a try soon.

Welcome RawShay!

Pansy – Hope you are feeling better soon! If you can hang in there it will be worth it.

Denise – I think I tried that strawberry pie recipe from Alissa’s book a long time ago and had the same issue. I don’t think I’ve tried it since but I do recall looking around for tips and I believe there was a suggestion to add coconut oil to and that would help firm it up.


Today I had:
smoothie with coconut milk, blueberries, wheatgrass juice, baby bananas, vanilla
almond date bar
coconut balls
raw pizza
my leftover cucumber guts from my gorilla sandwich the other day
dried mangos
raw brownie
raw lasagna
large apple with almond butter, honey, and applie pie spice
banana

[PansyLo]

Thanks for the well wishes everyone. :)

I ain't giving up! :P

Just mixing up what I fancy to eat, taking it easy and snuggling up with my hot water bottle. I will power through.

:meditating:

[rawsomejen]

I've actually committed to 40 days, so technically I'm in for all of march! So far I'm 2 weeks raw! :excited:

[PansyLo]

^ Yeah while I've said I'm committing for 30day I'm definitely sticking in this thread til the end of march. After that, depending on what I've learnt and how I feel, I might stick around for April to keep getting the community support and advice.

I'm planning a short detox fast in April. :yes:

So while I've technically only committed for 30 day in my head I've already decided I'm sticking it out longer. According to so many people 30days just doesn't seem enough to totally see the effects. I feel I'll need a couple of good detoxes too before I'll feel 110%

I'll need a lot more time to learn more, get completely comfortable with raw food and iron out any problems perfecting a routine diet.

I think long term I'm probably going to keep things simple!

:woohoo:

[qwerty988]

I think long term I'm probably going to keep things simple!

Simple is what works for me! I can have a dehydrated meal every now and then -- but not every day. I'll use a handful of nuts (1/4 to 1/2 cup) for simpler recipes -- maybe thrown into a creamy smoothie or noodle sauce or creamy soup, but I don't make recipes with them usually. Btw, for tomato soup try Natasha's Spicy Tomato -- you can see her demonstrating on youtube..... SOOOOO rich and creamy, with no nuts or avocado, just 3 TBS olive oil!

robh, I'm so glad you liked that dressing!! I'm having it again today hahahahaaaa!

Yesterday I had:

smoothie shake with banana, cashews, vanilla
tomato soup
many many spicy cheezy kale chips
fresh coconut meat
a grapefruit
the Rawtarian's instant fudge
red leaf salad with orange/tomato dressing
smoothie with banana, spinach, sprouts, strawberry, coconut water

RAWK ON everybody!!!! :throwhearts:

[linparda]

Wow. Day 7 for me;D -- Still much pain... but I'll persevere. I agree with everyone - I'm cutting back too - the nuts are waay too much for my stomach. I still want to make Alissa's recipes because I think they will be good to fall back on once I'm over the detoxing - I guess I just want to know my options when and if I get cravings. I still can't face giving up the pero but the pizza bread is amazing! Does anyone know a really good cracker recipe? I'm just not crazy about the regular flax recipe - too bland... any suggestions?

Qwerty - that dressing sounds great - I'm going to have to try it - thanks for sharing! ;D.

Good luck everyone - stay strong. I'm going to drag myself out of bed and have a tangerine... ugh - I feel soooo tired...

[breathless]

I know this isn't the place to discuss our slip ups, but I must confess I slipped up hugely last night at dinner and had a cooked meal and wine. I thought one meal won't hurt me. I've been doing so well. Wrong! I was up all night with a stomach ache. What used to be a normal way of eating for me I realize was hurting my body. My husband, who has been doing green smoothies with me (but not totally raw) was also ill. So, I went 6 1/2 days of 100% raw. Now back to square one.

[robh]

linparda, I know from cooking that seasoning (salty stuff) plays a major role in flavor. After salt, aromatics help. Garlic is yummy, if you want that kinda of flavor. Other aromatics to chose from are onion, challets, celery and carrots. And after that, herb and spices come into play: oregano, parsley, basil, ground pepper, etc. For example, an Italian flax cracker might have salt, pepper, challets, garlic, oregano and EVOO. A Tomato Basil flax cracker might have salt, basil, tomato and probably some garlic. I have never made flax crackers, personally, but this is where I would start if I found them too bland.

I am eating sliced up veggies again today and my green shake (minus the lime which was over powering).

I may withdraw from the challenge. I think high raw is more my cup of tea. I'm already planning on going off raw Friday night. My willpower just isn't strong enough to do this, I think.

[qwerty988]

Wow. Day 7 for me;D -- Still much pain... but I'll persevere. I agree with everyone - I'm cutting back too - the nuts are waay too much for my stomach. I still want to make Alissa's recipes because I think they will be good to fall back on once I'm over the detoxing - I guess I just want to know my options when and if I get cravings. I still can't face giving up the pero but the pizza bread is amazing! Does anyone know a really good cracker recipe? I'm just not crazy about the regular flax recipe - too bland... any suggestions?

Qwerty - that dressing sounds great - I'm going to have to try it - thanks for sharing! ;D.

Good luck everyone - stay strong. I'm going to drag myself out of bed and have a tangerine... ugh - I feel soooo tired...

You're welcome! I think it really is yummy.

I really add a lot to the basic flax cracker recipe. Whenever I juice I save the pulp and freeze it, so I always defrost a freezer bag of that and add it to the soaked flax seeds along with lots of soy sauce or salt, nutritional yeast, cayenne pepper, chili powder, garlic powder. If I don't have any pulp, I process some veggies in the FP and add that processed goop to the seeds: a large onion, a few carrots and celery, maybe a clove or two of garlic.

Rest and know that soon you'll feel much much better! :heart:

[mommyliz]

hey all - i just realized i didn't post anything yesterday. i typed it, but didn't post, but it was still open in another window lol, so here is yesterday's post!


good morning and good work everyone!

try to stick with it through the detox. i know it's hard, but once you start eating 100% raw your body is finally able to start healing itself properly. there is light at the end of the tunnel! big hugs until then :)

yesterday was great. it's amazing to me how much less hungry i am then when i was eating cooked food (mostly grain-free, low fat vegan). i was hungry all the time. some of that is probably because i'm eating more fat now - i love eating this way - it seems so easy - but then i usually start feeling guilty that i'm eating too much fat, and try to eat low fat raw vegan, and feel pretty good, but feel deprived and eventually give in to cravings. i don't really feel deprived when i'm allowing myself to eat some foods higher in fat, but i worry if it's okay long term.

yesterday i had:
a blueberry/banana/spirulina/hemp smoothie
lemon coconut balls (almonds, dates, shredded coconut, pinch sea salt)
couple apples
bit of trail mix
made some of alissa's mozzarella cheeze...yum! - mixed a bit with chopped celery and green onions and tomato and stuffed it inside some tomatoes - delish!
made some mini carrot pecan burgers and had a few with some of the cashew cheeze.
dehydrated a red pepper to put into different dishes.
sipped on green tea and club soda :)

So, that was about tuesdays food. Yesterday went well too. I had a blueberry/banana/hemp/maca/e3live/spirulina smoothie, some apples, some trail mix, just a few lemon coconut balls, and dehydrated red bell pepper halves spread with cashew cheeze and carrot pecan burgers, with a little drizzle of really good evoo and sea salt. YUMM!!! had more carrot pecan burgers with cashew cheeze before dinner, then the kids and i had apples with almond butter and plain celery sticks for dinner. VERY high fat day, but delicious!

Off to get the kids ready for school. Will post later. Have a great day everyone!

[qwerty988]

Now back to square one.

Not square one! Every day you eat raw you give your body a gift. Celebrate your successes -- 6-1/2 days ROCKS!! :kisses:

[linparda]

Thanks so much - you're right - I need to experiment. I did once make a cracker with onions that was pretty amazing. I think I'll try adding some onions to it and back off on the braggs. Braggs to me, seems to have a bit of an after-taste... Thanks robh! So, may I ask, what is high-raw? Is it like 75% raw?

[linparda]

Oh, one other thing I forgot robh - have you tried Alissa's meditation CD? It rocks! I use it every morning before I'm fully awake and I can honestly say that I have had no trouble staying raw and live, even with the pain. In fact, my son is cooking Cinnamon Buns and the smell is almost repulsive! Just a thought;D...

[linparda]

Surely you are kidding breathless, right? 6.5 days of detox! You're not starting from square 1 at all! The first 6.5 are probably some of the worst, I would think - one slip-up? Not a big deal;D. Good luck today - you'll be fine.

[linparda]

What a great idea! I hated throwing that stuff away and in the back of my mind I knew that surely there was something that I could do with all that pulp! One thing that I am learning about the dehydrator is that if you taste your stuff before you put it in the dehydrator you can really tell if you are going to like the final product or not. For some dumb reason, I thought that the taste might change after dehydration... weird - might be a cooking throwback thing. Anyway, pulp and maybe an onion and some spices - and taste before I dehydrate;D. Thanks qwerty!

[breathless]

Thanks, Linparda and Qwerty for your support! I am now eating a fruit salad of pineapple, canteloupe, and honeydew.

[rawsomejen]

I made an AMAZING smoothie out of 1.5 frozen bananas, some frozen blueberries, and some chopped strawberries.
It turned out so good and thick and creamy so I ate it with a spoon like sherbert.
The best ever! I asked myself after 1 taste how I could have ever thought regular sugary SAD food was delicious, because THIS was amazing!
9002
I guess it's the perfect way to start eating bananas again since I usually don't like
the texture of them on their own.

To anyone wary of adding banana to their smoothie:
I hate bananas! I waited til they were very VERY ripe and then thinly sliced them and froze them.
After tasting how creamy it made my smoothie, they will now be on the top of my shopping list!

[rawsomejen]

Isn't it amazing how SAD food now smells terrible? I walked past wendys the other day and I was so appalled by the smell of all that grease lingering in the air.

[linparda]

I know! Gross!! Hey, I like your username;D -- very cool!

[Denise Nicole]

Oh boy, I have hit detox. I'm actually having trouble typing and my body is starting to "short circuit" as I like to call it. My Fibro and RA mimic MS so I knew this was coming when I began the detox phase. Pain walking, numbness in hands, loss of coordination, dizziness, slurred speech, confusion, inability to speak known words, and I can't walk a straight line (I tip over). I woke up with extreme nausea which went away in about 2 hrs. What I know (because I am logging intake) that I am getting enough calories (min of 1450), protein, fats and carbs and the nutrition is spot on (actually it's better than that). I tracked it because of my auto-immune disorder and when I began this detox, I wanted to be sure in my mind that I was covering all my bases, and it was not due to a deficiency. The day before yesterday I had a resting heart rate of 98 and extreme shortness of breath and the walking sideways thing.... that may have been possibly the beginning of the detox. I have been here before, and I need to break through the wall this time!

So today thus far, naval orange for break fast and a huge salad for lunch which included plenty of greens, avo and a simply devine raw ranch dressing (I'm in love, yum!)

I have teacher's conferences tonight .... my daughter can help me walk, but as far as the confusion and sounding like I'm both not to bright and drunk, haha, I think I'll just smile and nod :D

[robh]

rawsomejen, the other day, all the water I've been drinking wanted out so I stopped a a Bugger King to use the bathroom. Everything smelled and even looked greasy - even the people. I was reminded how lucky I am that I don't have to sit down in a public restroom. I didn't want to touch any part of that place. It's amazing how how your perception changes.

linparda, it depends on what is going on, but I like to stay above 85% raw. My vices are social in nature. Being healthy is not manly; nor is it appreciated by your fiends that want you to have a good time. Thanks for the tip on the meditation CD. I've been thinking about getting back into my workout. The CD I use has a fair bit of yoga and meditation during the warm ups. I am curious how your flax crackers turned out. Flax crackers, in general, are on my to-try list.

edit: denise, you must have posted the same time I did. Wow, you are having a hard time of it (as are a lot of people, it seems). Good luck with. I hope you and everyone else feels better soon.

[linparda]

Wow Denise, and I thought I was having a bad detox... Good for you for being up on your feet! Where did you find the raw Ranch Dressing recipe? My son LOVES ranch dressing and I want to try and switch him to raw. I checked the book but I couldn't find it... could be that I'm detoxing and everything is kinda fuzzy...

[linparda]

Ah! Got it! Well, 85% is still pretty good, really. I haven't redone the flax yet, but I will, after I finish the yuckie batch I made... They don't taste too bad with the mock salmon recipe as a dip, but boy, it's a lot of nuts and seeds so I only eat a little at a time.

[PansyLo]

@rawsomejen: That smothy looks amazing!

I have all those things in my fridge/freezer. That could be breakfast!

I agree about bananas. I love the taste of them but the texture of them unfrozen and whole kind of puts me off. I wouldn't really just eat a banana by itself. I love them frozen and I love them in smoothies though!

I just buy bananas in bulk (they're so cheap!!) and freeze them as soon as they're ripe.

Edit: I made the same smoothy but added some greens that I needed to use up. It looks disgusting but it tastes great! It wasn't as frozen as only my bananas were frozen. I think I'll freeze some of my blueberries and have it for breakfast tomorrow too but more like the one above.

[carolv]

Welcome rawsomejen and congratulations on making it 2 weeks! :dance:

linparda - I like Alissa's flax crackers especially as a 'bun' for raw burgers. I found this great tomato basil flax cracker recipe that is pretty flavorful and you can add more seasoning to it as you like as robh suggested.

1-1/2 cups flax seeds soaked in 3 cups water for 6 hours
12 to 15 sun-dried tomato pieces, soaked in warm water for 3 hours
3 medium-sized tomatoes
1/4 cup sweet onion
3 tablespoons hulled hemp seeds
4 fresh basil leaves, minced
2 cloves garlic
2 tablespoons Bragg's liquid aminos or tamari
Combine ingredients, except for basil, in a high-powered blender, Blend until the tomatoes and onions are smooth. Now add the basil and blend for another few seconds to mix it in. Pour out onto dehydrator trays lined with a Paraflexx sheet. Dehydrate for 4 hours at 115 degrees. Score the mixture with a knife and continue drying for an additional 3 hours. Flip onto mesh screen and remove Paraflexx sheet. Dry for an additiona 6 hours or until chips are crispy. Store in an air-tight container.

breathless - I'm sorry to hear how sick you got from that one meal. It's amazing how much cooked foods can affect your health after you've been raw. Don't beat yourself up over one slip up. Going 100% raw is no easy feat for anyone. Good for you for getting right back into raw. :cheer:

robh - good luck with your future at high raw. If I can't stay 100% raw myself I hope to at least stay high raw. Either way, posting in this challenge helps to keep me where I want to be. Otherwise, I would go way off course.

Denise - so sorry to hear about the pain you are experiencing. I hope you take comfort in knowing that it WILL pass. Hang in there! :hug

smoothie with oj, coconut milk, tahini, zucchini, hemp seeds, ormus supergreens, ginger, blueberries, baby bananas, mango, vanilla, wheatgrass juice
banana
raw pizza
coconut balls
raw chocolate
gorilla sandwich
orange
salad with baby arugula, baby spinach, baby red leaf lettuce, cucumbers, hemp seeds, olives, and raw ranch dressing
nibbled on a little rawmio that I ordered and came today, it's a raw chocolate bark with sprouted hazelnuts, yummy! :drool:

[blessteve]

Hang in there! I hope it gets better for you soon. Maybe this is the beginning of a better healthy future for you.


Oh boy, I have hit detox. I'm actually having trouble typing and my body is starting to "short circuit" as I like to call it. My Fibro and RA mimic MS so I knew this was coming when I began the detox phase. Pain walking, numbness in hands, loss of coordination, dizziness, slurred speech, confusion, inability to speak known words, and I can't walk a straight line (I tip over). I woke up with extreme nausea which went away in about 2 hrs. What I know (because I am logging intake) that I am getting enough calories (min of 1450), protein, fats and carbs and the nutrition is spot on (actually it's better than that). I tracked it because of my auto-immune disorder and when I began this detox, I wanted to be sure in my mind that I was covering all my bases, and it was not due to a deficiency. The day before yesterday I had a resting heart rate of 98 and extreme shortness of breath and the walking sideways thing.... that may have been possibly the beginning of the detox. I have been here before, and I need to break through the wall this time!

So today thus far, naval orange for break fast and a huge salad for lunch which included plenty of greens, avo and a simply devine raw ranch dressing (I'm in love, yum!)

I have teacher's conferences tonight .... my daughter can help me walk, but as far as the confusion and sounding like I'm both not to bright and drunk, haha, I think I'll just smile and nod :D

[Denise Nicole]

Thank you so much for all the support, you all are wonderful!



Where did you find the raw Ranch Dressing recipe? My son LOVES ranch dressing and I want to try and switch him to raw.

I did a search and it came up as a free recipe on a site by "rawtarian". I did as suggested and used only half the vineger and also used the maple syrup.

It is as follows per her including the directions:

1 ¼ cup cashews
¾ cup water (or a little more)
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1/3 cup apple cider vinegar (OR LESS!!! START WITH HALF THE AMOUNT)
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons agave nectar (or honey) (or maple syrup)
2 cloves garlic
3 teaspoons onion powder
1 teaspoon dill
1 teaspoon sea salt

Directions

What are the directions for making this raw ranch dressing recipe..?
Well, just throw everything in your high-speed blender and blend until smooth! Easy!


The rest of my day I had:
Dinner: raw almonds, freshly juiced orange, and a cup of broccoli & a roma tomato with more of the ranch dressing.
Snacks: raw strawberry pie, seedless grapes, raw cashews, Kale chips My cals came in at 1373 for today and all my nutrition was covered. My fat came in below yesterday as my cravings are starting to lean towards tomatoes. I'm thinking a low fat tomato soup is in order tomorrow if I stay on this track. :eat

[linparda]

Carolv - thanks so much for the recipe! I blogged both yours and Denise's posts so that I could go back to them and find them easily. My vitamix is coming on tuesday - can't wait!

[linparda]

Yum! Thanks Denise! I blogged it so that I could go back to it - hope that's okay. I am going to try it for my son... ;D

[linparda]

Thanks for the recipes! Well, it's day 8 for me and finally, my kidneys are hardly aching! I still feel tired but much better than I have. I think I am starting to see a light at the end of the tunnel.

Yesterday, I had tangerines, a big salad with Alissa's dressing, a bit of mock salmon with crackers, and some more date nut torte for dinner. I don't really have a good blender yet, but my vitamix will be here soon - can't wait to do some green smoothies! - I feel like I'm eating too many nuts/fat. But, I have lost 5.5 lbs so far and I'm a small person so I guess that's not bad. I heard that there is B12 in walnuts? Is that right? If so, at least I will be healthy.

Denise - I see that you are tracking your calories and fats - is there a certain way or program that you are using to do that? I have a program called NB9 Plus that tracks foods and such. I think I will open it up and see if it will track my raw living foods...

[robh]

carolv, how do you spread the soaked flax seed batter thinly on the dehydrator sheets? I tried my best but it was so gluey that it went on thick. As a result, I ended up with something more like a playable flax leather than flax flakes. I flipped it over (the bottom was still wet) and I'm dehydrating it more. That may save it, but I'm curious how to do it correctly.

[PansyLo]

I feel I'm eating way too many nuts too (I think everyone new does haha). I lost 6lbs to begin with but have been stuck ever since.

I'm trying to wean myself off the nuts and onto more fruits. I don't eat enough fruit.

Frozen smoothies are so delicious, it's just a shame that it's so much effort to do in my blender. Tomorrow I'm going to make Alissa's mashed potato dish. It seems like a filling meal but doesn't have nuts in it from what I remember.

Today:
Green smoothy
Large salad - lambs lettuce, watercress, spinach and other similar mixed leaves, tomatoes, spring onions and loads of herbs topped with some nuts and italian herb dressing.
Slice of blueberry cheesecake
Medium salad
Very berry sorbet (ie all my frozen berries blended with frozen banana, pretty much was rawsomejen made)

Now I'm knackered. My sleep pattern has been totally thrown off by detoxing.

[Denise Nicole]

Yum! Thanks Denise! I blogged it so that I could go back to it - hope that's okay. I am going to try it for my son... ;D

No problem! Two of my kid's (age 19 and 17) tried it and loved it. My 19yo is about 4 months vegan and ranch was one of her favorite foods when she was vegetarian. So this was great for her. My 17yo is ditching dairy due to respiratory issues, and is glad to have it available.



Denise - I see that you are tracking your calories and fats - is there a certain way or program that you are using to do that? I have a program called NB9 Plus that tracks foods and such. I think I will open it up and see if it will track my raw living foods...

I use myfitnesspal.com , there is an online site and I track from my phone using the app. The reason I track as stated above is to be clear in my mind that I am covering my nutrition (due to my auto-immune disorder) and that I am consuming enough calories. I'm current over-weight by about 20lbs, not under, but I'm not focused on losing right now and actually bumped my cals. I'm trying to get raw as a "norm" and get well by doing the "eat what you want, so long as it's raw". I'll let my cravings guide me for now and after I settle into raw, I'll worry about if I need to cut back on the fats (nut heavy recipes) later. I have a feeling that it won't be necessary and my body will tell me what I need.


The symptoms from yesterday are gone, yay! However, my RLS was in full force last night. Understanding that stress sends my body into flares (known as Fibro Flares), this sudden onset of raw is making it go haywire. But like I said, I knew it would, so better now for the next 30-60 days, than on and off the rest of my life. I imagine it will have fewer and fewer the longer I am raw.

So I was in a warm bath for quite some time, getting to bed at 4:30am and up with the little one at 6:30. Kid's have a 1/2 day of school, so not sure that a nap will happen, but I'm certainly going to try when the little one goes down for hers!

Breakfast this morning: oranges and bananas

[Lucy76]

Hello everyone!
Glad to see everybody's doing really well!
I haven't had much time to post the past couple of days.
Yesterday I did a juice fast just for the day, but I got really hungry at night and ended up eating some fruit, oh well :)

Today i had carrot juice and tomato spinach juice for breakfast
zucchini pasta with "cheesy" pine nut sauce, and a tomato and olive salad for lunch
a few really yummy medjool dates for a snack, and lots of oranges
For dinner I'll have a big green salad.

Aaaaaand, my dehydrator arrived:throwhearts::throwhearts::throwhearts:
I'll be making flax crackers tomorrow all day:drool:

[rawsomejen]

For breakfast today, I had my other half of my smoothie from yesterday( I ate it frozen)
9005

For lunch I am having a big romaine salad with cuke cauli salsa and pico de gallo dressing with baby carrots and a glass of kevita living greens (has anyone else tried this stuff? What do you think?).
9004

[rawsomejen]

As a lunch dessert I couldn't resist sampling my avocado ice cream! I only had a few spoonfuls but it was heavenly!*

9006

Oh so creamy!

[BlackKat]

Wow Rawsomejen, those pictures look delicious! getting hungry just looking at them.

Today is much better than the last few days have been. I have had more energy and my overall mood has taken a swing for the better. I am feeling much more positive and upbeat. Having high hopes!

Food for the day:
raw granola w/ almond milk
apple and orange for snack
salad with alfalfa sprouts for lunch
a small handful of macadamia nuts (these things are addictive)
zucchini pasta tonight with Alissa's pesto sauce
few pieces of raw brownie... also addictive :-p

Hope everyone has a great weekend!

[linparda]

No problem! Two of my kid's (age 19 and 17) tried it and loved it. My 19yo is about 4 months vegan and ranch was one of her favorite foods when she was vegetarian. So this was great for her. My 17yo is ditching dairy due to respiratory issues, and is glad to have it available.



I use myfitnesspal.com , there is an online site and I track from my phone using the app. The reason I track as stated above is to be clear in my mind that I am covering my nutrition (due to my auto-immune disorder) and that I am consuming enough calories. I'm current over-weight by about 20lbs, not under, but I'm not focused on losing right now and actually bumped my cals. I'm trying to get raw as a "norm" and get well by doing the "eat what you want, so long as it's raw". I'll let my cravings guide me for now and after I settle into raw, I'll worry about if I need to cut back on the fats (nut heavy recipes) later. I have a feeling that it won't be necessary and my body will tell me what I need.


The symptoms from yesterday are gone, yay! However, my RLS was in full force last night. Understanding that stress sends my body into flares (known as Fibro Flares), this sudden onset of raw is making it go haywire. But like I said, I knew it would, so better now for the next 30-60 days, than on and off the rest of my life. I imagine it will have fewer and fewer the longer I am raw.

So I was in a warm bath for quite some time, getting to bed at 4:30am and up with the little one at 6:30. Kid's have a 1/2 day of school, so not sure that a nap will happen, but I'm certainly going to try when the little one goes down for hers!

Breakfast this morning: oranges and bananas

Thanks again! I am going to check it out. I too, am about 20 - 30 lbs overweight. I am interested in losing weight, but it's not why I'm going raw - I am doing raw for health. I too, am not worried about what I eat, as long as it's raw. I'll deal with the weight thing after I master the raw thing;D - and I want to do it as healthfully as possible.

Someone here recommended a book, maybe it was qwerty? (sp). Anyway, I just wanted to say thanks! Fabulous read on studies and the chemistry of raw and living foods. Very informative!

You guys need to try the pizza bread recipe - oh my gosh it's fabulous! I had it as a wrap for lunch with avocado, cucumber, mock salmon pate and scallions -- amazing!

Oh, and a tangerine for breakfast -- dinner, not so interesting - I had a salad;D.

[carolv]

Hi All!

Sounds like everybody is doing better today.

smoothie with coconut milk, blueberries, ginger, baby bananas, ormus supergreens, mango, tahini
raw food bar
raw pizza
raw chocolates and chocolate bark
gorilla sandwich
raw lasagna
apple with almond butter, honey, and apple pie spice

[rawshay]

This is day 3 for me and I've stuck to 100% raw!!! Today I had about 40 ounces of green smoothie (kale, carrots, apple, banana, blueberries, pineapple, flaxseed, avocado, lemon)for most of the day. Large salad (spinach, romaine, tomatoes, raw sunflower seeds, olive oil, vinegar) for lunch/dinner. Dates mixed with raw almonds for sweet snack....a banana too. I've drank a lot of water throughout the day. I am still so hungry for some reason. Think I may be psychologically craving the feeling of "feeling full/stuffed". Guess I'm going to get a sweet, juicy apple...gotta stay strong! :-)

[ashabean]

Day 10 of the month, day 12 for me. The last few days have been a struggle, really wanted some cooked foot (my nemisis pizza!), but I fought those food demons and survived! I did not cave in. When I tried raw before, I caved each time I craved, so this has been a real victory for me.

I am finding myself fuller on smoothies, been enjoying banana, apple, spinach, cocnut oil, spirulina and wheatgrass powder.

I bought some raw chocolate yesterday, and was quite surprised at how good it was. I also treated myself to a nice stainless steel 40oz bottle.

My toddler is starting to ask for sips of my smoothies :heart:

Tonight is going to be a battle as I am taking a friend out for dinner for her birthday, luckily I am driving so no concerns about wanting a glass of wine, but I am still trying to pick somewhere with good salads.

Been detoxing quite a bit, had 2 days of a nasty cold that suddenly disappeared, and a bad headache yesterday.

I've lost about 5lbs so far :cheer: I am hoping to release a lot more.

How is everyone else getting on?

[ashabean]

As a lunch dessert I couldn't resist sampling my avocado ice cream! I only had a few spoonfuls but it was heavenly!*

9006

Oh so creamy!

WOW! Would you mind sharing the recipe? Is it similar to frozen banana ice cream?

[PansyLo]

@rawsomejen: Did you end up using the one I posted for the ice-cream?

I've not used it yet as I don't have an ice-cream maker or even ice lolly molds. It looks so good though! I've heard it works well.


I wrote a BIIIIG plan for continuing with raw food and doing some deep healing and detoxing until the end of August.

Now I feel a little bit better.

Because even though I feed horrible and want to just pack it in and eat my favourite food again I have a plan. I really want to beat my illness. By the end of August I can decide what I want to do.

Now I'm a little bit optimistic and even a bit excited again. :)

Next time I feel really bad about it I can get started on planning my emotional detox project for June. I want to have a whole booklet of daily tasks laid out for the month so I don't have to worry about them or think them up during the month. I just need to concentrate on healing.

[rawsomejen]

@rawsomejen: Did you end up using the one I posted for the ice-cream?

I've not used it yet as I don't have an ice-cream maker or even ice lolly molds. It looks so good though! I've heard it works well.

I found this one earlier the same day, and i had the ingredients for it so i just went with it. http://www.loveveggiesandyoga.com/2011/05/vanilla-avocado-banana-ice-cream.html

I ended up using an Agave as the sweetener and unsweetened soy milk (ingredients being organic soy and water). I also did not use the vanilla extract.

[rawsomejen]

WOW! Would you mind sharing the recipe? Is it similar to frozen banana ice cream?

I posted the link below. It uses banana and avocado as the creamy base. Enjoy!

[rawsomejen]

I made a BBB( blue, black berries and banana) smoothie for breakfast!
9013

[blessteve]

Trying to eat more sprouts thanks to Mr Raw, his posts talked me into it.

I can't eat to many of them so I started blending them with oranges. BINGO
Lots of sprouts in my morning OJ. Very good then.

[Denise Nicole]

Today is a good day! I only woke up twice last night (I suffer from insomnia and rls) and had no RLS! The best nights sleep in a loooong time. Food tastes amazing, it's like my taste buds woke up. No pain or symptoms since waking up and I had energy and was able to knock out a 30min cardio session on the treadmill. (yay me!) So I broke through wall #1

I'm on a sweet kick right now ... so loving the fruits (did I mention how great food tastes?? haha)
Today
Breakfast: 2 bananas
Lunch - another one of my huge salads, with lots of greens a little avo and a little walnuts. I made a strawberry vinaigrette that is so yummy!

1 1/2c strawberries
1/3c extra virgin olive oil
2T apple cider vinager
2T maple syrup
1/8tsp tarragon
1/8tsp sea salt

Mix in blender ... done!

[PansyLo]

Trying to eat more sprouts thanks to Mr Raw, his posts talked me into it.

I can't eat to many of them so I started blending them with oranges. BINGO
Lots of sprouts in my morning OJ. Very good then.

He's talking me into it too. I know they're good for you I just don't like how they taste (the ones I've tried) and because of that I'm reluctant to growing different ones.

Does blending them with orange help?

[carolv]

carolv, how do you spread the soaked flax seed batter thinly on the dehydrator sheets? I tried my best but it was so gluey that it went on thick. As a result, I ended up with something more like a playable flax leather than flax flakes. I flipped it over (the bottom was still wet) and I'm dehydrating it more. That may save it, but I'm curious how to do it correctly.

robh - sorry, I meant to respond last night and forgot after reading through everyone's posts. How did yours turn out? Did you spread it out over 2 sheets? As I recall it thins out as it dries.

[carolv]

Sounds like everybody is doing a great job of hanging in there. Congrats everyone! :woohoo:

Started out with a huge smoothie of coconut milk, strawberries, blueberries, banana, tahini, ormus supergreens, swiss chard, and hemp seeds
Went out and about with my dh today in Columbus. We stopped for breakfast and I had a bowl of fruit.
Then we stopped for lunch at a natural market (Raisin Rack) that has a fabulous bar. YUMMY!
Had dinner at home:
raw lasagna
banana
raw almond cacao L.O.V.E. cup

[rawshay]

Today has been amazing!!! I drank green superfood this morning and had a banana. Made 8 cups of green smoothie and drunk it all throughout the day. I made the most delicious Raw Strawberry Kreme Cheezecake (from Ani Phyo's Raw Desserts book). OMG!!! This dessert was so delicious that my husband and kids helped me eat every bit of it!!! Yum! If I knew how to upload a pic on this forum, I would. Guidance please???

[blessteve]

Blending helps a lot. I can only eat a few sunflower sprouts before my mouth got a real funny taste.
I put ten times the amount I used to eat in the vita mix with oranges and I never get that funny taste.
I also buy the bird food sunflower seeds cause they are much cheaper, but I do sprout them in the
best soil. I have composting worms (red wigglers) and that soil is nutritionally wonderful.



He's talking me into it too. I know they're good for you I just don't like how they taste (the ones I've tried) and because of that I'm reluctant to growing different ones.

Does blending them with orange help?

[blessteve]

BAD NEWS. Took my son to the movies and had some non raw crap.

Good news, I went right back to raw as soon as we sat in the car I drank
my raw smoothie. I take jars of it every where we go now.
Also the longer I stay raw the worse the junk food taste.
Popcorn and soda taste nasty to me now.

[PansyLo]

^ I think the good news out weighs the bad.

We're all still hanging in here :dance:

I feel more confident now I have a 5 month plan! The real test will be work on Monday. I'll make as much food as I can to take with me. I'm learning from past mistakes and slip ups involving work.

I have all of Sunday to prepare.

[Traceyraw]

Good job on the rebound. Yes your tastebuds do change.

[rawsomejen]

Today is going to be a tricky one....I'm working my first double since I started raw. I Will be at work for a solid 14 hours. Here's what I brought to thrive on:
9023

Since I ate one of the bananas on my way to work, I have with me... 2 bananas, a pint of grape tomatoes, a bag of mixed grapes, an apple, and a small container of fruit salad. Hopefully I brought enough. Eek! I also have a few bags of power tea as my boosters throughout the day. I plan to drink as much water as possible as well
to stay hydrated.*
Tomorrow is my half way Mark...I think I'm doing pretty good at this.:dance:



I planned pretty well! The only things I had that i didn't pack was a handful of carrots, a couple Orange slices and a handful of grapes.

[Denise Nicole]

Happy Sunday! I still feel great :)

Bananas for breakfast (on a banana kick now, lol) .... Most likely a salad for dinner. I am cutting back on the fats as I am just not craving them right now. Trying to find a dressing, thinking no nuts (not craving them), I do want sweet, or tomatoey or avo is ok too.

It's supposed to warm up so I'm going to take the little one to the park. Imagine that? A few weeks ago I could hardly walk due to pain (going on almost two years) and today I am going to the park to stoll the paths and play with my daughter on the equipment. :excited:

[BlackKat]

Denise~ I'm just like you right now Bananas all the way...

bananas for breakfast
almond milk with hemp seeds after my work out
smoothie for lunch (LOTS of greens, sprouts, more banana, apple, strawberries, chia seeds)
fresh asparagus tonight for dinner with Alissa's Zucchini pasta again (can't get enough of it)

Feeling good today! Happy Sunday to all!

[PansyLo]

Not as prepared for work as I'd have liked to be (in the sense that I'm not really prepared at all).

Was going to go out today and get a couple of soup flasks, some groceries and a couple of other things but had really bad stomach cramps so I stayed cuddled up with a hot water bottle then fell asleep.

I have plenty to make a smoothy and enough to make two different kinds of soup but not anything to put it in. Don't even have any old water bottles or anything kicking about.

I could see if I can make it to the smoothy stand in town and back in 20 minutes... if they're busy I wont be able to wait though and would end up with no lunch at all.

...I have an empty 70cl Gin bottle. It's seriously a contender. :LOL:


Oh and I have some spouts soaking. Personal achievement right there. I think I was intimidated to try again because of my history of sprout killing.

[carolv]

rawshay - that strawberry cheezecake looks so awesome!!! :drool: Bet that would be a big hit at a potluck. I have one coming up at work in a couple weeks. I'll have to see if I can find the recipe. I have one of Ani Phyo's book but I don't think it's the dessert one.

blesssteve - good for you for getting right back on track. That's the way to do it. You are rawesome!! LOL :woot:

I still try non-raw things from time to time just to see how they taste to me now. I'm always pleased when I no longer care for the taste of things I used to love but I know are very,very bad. I've been surprised a few times though when I found out I still liked the taste, I was actually disappointed but fortunately, I don't even remember what they were anymore. I am definitely more focused on raw vegan more than I ever have been. How's that for progress?!? :D

Jen - good luck with your long work day. Looks like you have a very good selection to have on hand.

Denise - your progress is amazing and so inspirational. I got started on this whole journey when I started having severe joint and muscle pain. My doctor thinks I was experiencing symptoms of fibromyalgia. I switched to a vegan and gluten, and soy free diet and was amazed that most of my pain went away in just 3 days. Raw vegan helped me get rid of the rest of the pain as well as nasal allergies, oily skin, and so many other issues.

Pansy - Sorry to hear about your stomach cramps, I hope they pass quickly for you so you can prepared for work.By the way, I LOVE the animated emoticons you have been including in your posts, where did you get them? I only know how to use the ones provided when replying. I don't see the ones you are using.

I started off today with the remainder of my raw pizza
HUGE smoothie, my biggest one to date at a full 40 ounces. mango lime kombucha, cucumbers, pears, blueberries, oj, ormus supergreens, and water
made some fresh guacamole and ate some with raw corn chips
for dinner, I tried the chia pudding that Cathy mentioned in a previous post. It was really good and very filling.
I prepared some more raw lasagna today as my stepdaughter LOVES it. I don't know how much of it I'll get to eat but I have plenty of other food and recipes to try.

[PansyLo]

^ If rather than doing a quick reply you click "Go Advanced" it takes you onto a different page. Emoticons are on the right hand side and you can click to see more. All the ones I use are on there.

[PansyLo]

Starting out prepared with a mega breakfast smoothy and some grapes.

Mega because there's soooo much of it, there's extra after that glass still in the blender. I'll drink what i can and see if I can keep the rest in the freezer.

http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c124/This_Beautiful_Let_Down/Photoon2012-03-12at0623.jpg

Then for lunch I have broccoli soup... which is really just a green smoothy and a banana. So no room in my stomach for temptation!

I didn't take my soup in the gin bottle though it was tempting. I found an old bottle of lemon juice with a dribble in the bottom and rinsed that out. It's 500ml so there's plenty.

[linparda]

Hi Everyone!
Sorry I didn't post yesterday - I think I'm getting a cold... But I'm still here, and still 100%, so all is well;D - I am convinced that it is the meditation CD that is making this so easy for me - I'm cooking a SAD diet for my 14yo son, but it doesn't seem to bother me at all.... weird.

Anyway, yesterday I had a tangerine for breakfast, a green smoothie, (I'm going to make myself another one today), I am still having wrap ups with my pizza bread, avocado, cucumber and that mock salmon. Funny how a few of us are just turned off to nuts... I definitely don't crave them, but I am just trying to finish what I made (I have burnt toast syndrome)...

Anyway, off to do my 3 mile walk ;D - Great day everyone! ;D.

[robh]

carolv, yeah my flax flakes came out fine. I was just freaking out because I didn't know what to expect. sorry. I've actually made the entire cereal at this point. It's delicious; thanks for sharing it.

linparda, I need some meditation, I think. Cooking SAD food for others is a challenge for me. I hope your cold clears up soon.

[qwerty988]

Well, I'm back and newly-recommitted to staying raw and losing some weight, too!

I have a semi-traumatic "milestone" birthday coming up and have done too much celebrating and comfort-eating of late..... especially this past weekend, and I feel SO SO SICK as a result! It feels like a stomach bug or food poisoning, ughgggghhhhh....... plus I feel like I've gained so much weight in just a few days, YUCK!

So, I'm fully back on board as of today!

So far I've had:

- an orange julius smoothie
- mock salmon pate w tomato and sprouts in collard wraps
- avocado chocolate pudding
- zucchini noodles w marinated mushrooms tossed w EVOO and nutritional yeast

All REALLY delish. I'm pretty much done eating for the day, might have a smoothie tonight or some tomato soup, something light.....

SO grateful to have you all to keep me on track and accountable once again!! Hope everyone is doing well! :throwhearts:

EDIT: Yes, I finished off the day with a really lovely smoothie: 3 bananas, a big hunk of cantalope, 4 cups spinach, ice..... YUM! What a blessing to be able to eat this way.

[rawsomejen]

Well again I'm having a somewhat challenging day since I am not home. I left around 1230 to go to visit at my parents house. I packed a lunch bag though!
9029

I brought 2 clementines, a banana, carrots and salsa, cauli cuke salsa, a whole cucumber, a kiwi, 2 tomatoes, and coconut water.

Jeez, long days!

[carolv]

Love the pics! Everything looks so yummy! :drool:

Ah, now I see where the other emoticons are at, never thought to click there. Cool! :D

linparda - the meditation cd sounds like a great idea. I think I have one that my sister-in-law sent to me quite a while ago. I never did listen to it, I'll have to see if I can find it again. I have been doing deep breathing lately and I am noticing quite a difference.

We had to move our clocks up an hour Sunday morning for daylight savings time. I was sure I would be all messed up from it but even though I had trouble falling asleep last night I actually got up pretty easily. First time I've done so in a long time. I only hit my snooze button 3 times instead of like a dozen. And I've been feeling really good all day. :dance:

robh - I'm glad the cereal came out okay for you. I actually will be making some more myself tomorrow. I started everything soaking tonight and have it all stored in the refrigerator.

welcome back qwerty! I was wondering where you disappeared to. Good for you for jumping right back in.

smoothie with kombucha, coconut milk, ginger, cucumbers, pineapple, hemp seeds, and ormus supergreens
kale chips
raw revolution bar
gorilla sandwich
raw chocolate pieces and bark
orange
leftover salad from gorilla sandwich, olives, sunflower microgreens, cucumbers, raw ranch
rest of my raw chocolate
raw strawberry milk shake

[Kim32]

I will love to join this challenge! Here's my menu from today.

Juiced: spinach,kale,green apple,carrots,lemon,and pear.
Juiced: grapefruit,orange,and tangerine
Ate: banana, tangerine, and mango.

Drinking plenty of water.

[rawsomejen]

Ok, while at my family's, I stuck around for dinner and ate a half of a seedless watermelon for dinner and then when I got home I indulged in some of my avocado ice cream ( I don't know how this is lasting so long!).....as I was eating it my SAD bf asks me " is that the good ice cream?" And I surrendered a bite to him. I think he's hooked too but doesn't want to admit it. Hehe


9030

[Cookie Monster Gone Raw]

Welcome KIM32!

Rawsome JEN I just found your recipe for the avocado ice cream, I plan on giving it a try. It sounds tasty!

Sorry I have been out of touch lately. It has been midterms and things have been a bit crazy around here. During this time I have had a few slip ups but I am getting back on trac k.

I just love having a Vitamix in my kitchen it makes raw food so adventurous and fun. Recently I discovered a new secret ingredient, shhhhh…it is TOP SECRET. What is it you ask? It is the avocado. Adding just half an avocado to my smoothies makes them extra creamy and it blends well with just about anything, and you can’t even tell it is there. So don’t tell y boyfriend who does not like avocados that he has been gobbling them up without even knowing it…Hehehehe

Anyhow, congratulations to you all with your dedication to this diet and lifestyle.

Best Wishes,

Crystal

[qwerty988]

I just love having a Vitamix in my kitchen it makes raw food so adventurous and fun. Recently I discovered a new secret ingredient, shhhhh…it is TOP SECRET. What is it you ask? It is the avocado. Adding just half an avocado to my smoothies makes them extra creamy and it blends well with just about anything, and you can’t even tell it is there. So don’t tell y boyfriend who does not like avocados that he has been gobbling them up without even knowing it…Hehehehe


Oh I am SOOOOO with you on the Vitamix! And avocado -- OMG!!! It really adds so much to smoothies. And have you tried adding it to blender soups???? It single-handedly turns any soup into a "cream-of".....

I just tried the avocado-chocolate pudding and it's INCREDIBLE. Next up: avocado ice cream! :throwhearts:

[linparda]

Hi robh,
Yes, I think the meditation will help you a lot. I wasn't able to stick to raw before - but this time, with the meditation, it seems to be a breeze.

[linparda]

Oh how exciting you guys! Yesterday I made the BBQ Chicken and OMG it is so spicy - I think I have to throw it out. I made the zucchini bread too, and hate that as well. I don't know what's up with my taste buds - really weird. But anyway, I am getting my Vitamix today!!! YAY! I think my body may be telling me to go on a juice fast, or at least stick to non-dehydrated foods... not sure. Anyone else having issues with their taste buds?

P.S. - I am making Natasha's tomato soup as soon as the Vitamix arrives;D.

Yesterday I had:
tangerine
banana
salad with mock blue cheese dressing (can't seem to get rid of that stuff - there's so much!)
blueberry pie

[Lucy76]

Hi everyone! I gave my son two big boxes of toys to go through, so I can post :D

Yesterday I had carrot juice, and lettuce and orange juice for breakfast.
Flax seed crackers (that I made with my new dehydrator:dance:) with, a cheesy pine nut sauce, sundried tomatos and avocados, for lunch.
A green smoothie for dessert.
A big green salad with mung bean patties (that I made with my new dehydrator:dance:) for dinner
And last but not least, a huge smoothie made of almond milk, avocado, banana, and cocoa powder soooo yummy!!!

It was a very yummy day, but the past few days my stomach isn't feeling so good. I'm really bloated, and in a little bit of pain, so today I'm just going to eat oranges all day. So far it's been helping. I'll do it for the rest of the day, and maybe I'll do a juice fast tomorrow.

quwerty you've been eating some really yummy stuff:drool:

BTW, does anyone have a recipe for really crispy crackers?
And, is there anything else I can use instead of kale to make kale chips? (we don't have kale in greece :-()

[qwerty988]

Oh how exciting you guys! Yesterday I made the BBQ Chicken and OMG it is so spicy - I think I have to throw it out. I made the zucchini bread too, and hate that as well. I don't know what's up with my taste buds - really weird. But anyway, I am getting my Vitamix today!!! YAY! I think my body may be telling me to go on a juice fast, or at least stick to non-dehydrated foods... not sure. Anyone else having issues with their taste buds?

CONGRATULATIONS on your Vitamix!!! :throwhearts: :wow:

It changed my life -- definitely changed the way I eat. Much simpler now.... it sounds like you're ready to take a break from dehydrated foods for a while anyway! I really enjoy living on smoothies, soups and salads. Dehydrated every now and then is fine, but I can't eat too much of it. It's about finding balance I guess.

[linparda]

Oh thanks so much qwerty! I was thinking that I might be nuts;D - no pun intended...lol. I really think that's what my body is telling me. I made the blueberry pie the other day and that tasted awful too... it's so weird how our bodies talk to us! ;D Guess I'm off to change gears here and see how that goes. The only things that taste great to me are fruits, smoothies and salads...weird. I guess I should throw a few nuts into my smoothies for fat and such, right? I might be better able to handle them that way. Haha, maybe, because I still have about 25 pounds of fat to lose, my body is telling me that I have quite enough fat on my bones and in my body for now...lol;D.

Today, so far:
2 cups of pero
Tangerine

[Lucy76]

linparda it's true your body's talking to you. Too much fat is not really healthy. A bit of olive oil in your salad is more than enough. And as much as I love raw crackers, I can't eat like that every day. Fruits, juices and salads always make me feel better and healthier, so no you're not nuts (pun intended lol)

[robh]

qwerty, congrats on getting back on track. I too had a bad weekend. I hope you feel better soon. Good luck with your “milestone” birthday. When that first digit rolls over, it never feels good. Just think how much younger you feel because you’re eating raw!

carolv, we changed our clocks too. I can’t wait for it to get warmer around here – not mention all the fresh fruits and veggies that follow.

Kim32, welcome.

linparda, I’m making that soup too. I need tomatoes. As far as tasty stuff goes, I made Italian flax crackers last night. I posted the idea back when you were asking about your bland flax problem. They came out really good.

lucy, no kale? That stinks. Spinach is really good for you. Swiss chard is another alternative.

I was 100% raw yesterday and intend to stay that way for the rest of the month. We’re going to a concert Friday so that will be tough. We are supposed to go out to eat beforehand. The plan is to order a salad and pack some raw food to go.

Anyway, today I’m having:

Green smoothie – 1 banana, 2 apples, 4 big pieces of kale

An orange
another banana
a plum
blended coconut
Italian flax crackers
sweet cinnamon nut mixture
dehydrated pineapple
another apple
Natasha's tomato soup for dinner (if I can get to the store for tomatoes)

[Denise Nicole]

I love looking at everyone's food choices! I'm still virtually pain free. Not all my symptoms have disappeared, but a lot have :dance:

I didn't get time to post yesterday, but I had:
breakfast: cantloupe
mid-morning: dates, banana
Lunch: Huge mixed green Salad, zucchini sticks
mid-day: bananas, baby carrots, almonds
dinner: another huge salad with baby spinach and a tomato salad dressing
snack: dates, bananas

1842 calories, fat was slightly higher than I want, protein slighly lower 10% (this is a personal choice of course). I'm off the craving fats phase, in fact I find them way to filling if I eat to much! However, I would like to see my calories come up to about 2500, especially since I am able to exercise again. I plan to incorporate some yummy green smoothies to hit both my protein and calorie numbers.

Grocery shopping today, can't wait to get some more fresh fruits and veggies in the house!

[rawsomejen]

Hmmmm....I made my first green smoothie today!
9033
I'm sure these things do wonders for your body, but the texture just makes me almost gag.

I am trying to force myself through it though since I can't bring myself to throw away food, especially something delicious like these if they were eaten seperately.
Anyone have any tips on how to make this taste better? Long enough to just get through this one.

[mommyliz]

carolv, how do you spread the soaked flax seed batter thinly on the dehydrator sheets? I tried my best but it was so gluey that it went on thick. As a result, I ended up with something more like a playable flax leather than flax flakes. I flipped it over (the bottom was still wet) and I'm dehydrating it more. That may save it, but I'm curious how to do it correctly.

if it's so thick that you can't spread it thinly enough, just add more water to the batter. the thinner you spread it, the crispier you'll be able to make it, though if you spread it too thin it will be like thin crispy chips (not sturdy enough for dipping) instead of crackers, but still tasty.

[qwerty988]

Hmmmm....I made my first green smoothie today!
9033
I'm sure these things do wonders for your body, but the texture just makes me almost gag.

I am trying to force myself through it though since I can't bring myself to throw away food, especially something delicious like these if they were eaten seperately.
Anyone have any tips on how to make this taste better? Long enough to just get through this one.

Goodness -- what was in it? My go-to solution for smoothies is always to add more banana....

A smoothie can and should be delicious!

[mommyliz]

hey all - i've been away for the last few days and super busy all of a sudden, but i've been doing well with the challenge. still eating lots of nuts but lots of fruits and veggies too. went to rawlicious yesterday - a raw restaurant in toronto - it was amazing - loved it!

[mommyliz]

rawesomejen - i agree with qwerty. add more banana (RIPE banana) and if it's frozen banana, even better. if it's too thick, add more water. if you make a smoothie and it doesn't taste good, tweak it until it does. also, try not to add to many ingredients. i usually stick with a couple of fruits, and one type of green plus water, and sometimes i'll add hemp seeds or spirulina, sometimes not. next day, pick a different green (spinach and parsley are my favourites). but yeah, what did you put in your smoothie??

[blessteve]

Lots of salads with artichokes.

[Cookie Monster Gone Raw]

I just made my first smoothie of the day: fresh orange juice, strawberries, banana, goji berries, cashew butter, and spiralina…wow was it sweet, I guess it was because of the orange juice. Though it was tasty it felt more like a dessert than my morning smoothie.

I am not sure what is in the menu plan for today. However, I have lots of options because my kitchen is well stocked with fresh produce.

QWERTY no I have not tried avocado in soup yet, but I am anxious to give it a try.

I thought I would share with you all an article about how GMO Bacillus thuringiensis has been found in human blood: http://coupmedia.org/everything-gmo/gmo-bacillus-thuringiensis-bt-found-in-human-blood-0903?keepThis=true&TB_iframe=true&height=650&width=850&caption=HOME+-+coupmedia.org. Wow, GMOs are really scary stuff. This article is a must read. I hope we are all eating organic produce.

Also, I am not sure if you are aware of how to read PLU numbers but if you are not, you should know that the PLU has a language. Any 5 digit number starting with a 9 is organic, any 5 digit number starting with an 8 is a known GMO, and any other number means conventionally grown. Next time you are in the store take a peak. The other day while I was at Costco I was looking through the produce and I noticed on a package of beautiful vine ripe tomatoes that in BIG red letters they were advertising NO PESTICIDES USED. However, when I looked at the PLU number it started with an 8! Oh I felt like screaming! It is amazing how they get away with being deceptive and devious just because consumers and not educated.

There is a rumor that here in California, next year on the ballot we will get to vote on a bill that will require proper and clear labeling of GMOs. Oh I hope it will pass! Of course, for fresh produce it is already labeled but most people do not know how to read the language of PLUs. However, for processed foods, there is no way of knowing. Some companies take the tactic of saying ORGANIC or no GMOs. However, some GMO food manufacturers use promotional labels like "natural," "naturally made," "naturally grown," "all natural," or other similar deceptive words. Thus, this bill would require clear labeling of GMOs.

I am rooting for this bill but I hope that what happens here is not going to be what happened in Vermont. For those of you who are not familiar with it, in April, 1994, the State of Vermont enacted a law requiring milk products containing rBST to be labeled. Amongst many big corporations Monsanto helped file and fund a suit asserting that the Vermont statute was unconstitutional. They alleged that the law violated their First Amendment rights, and violated the commerce clause of the US Constitution. Making a long story short, the corporations won and Vermont was blocked from their labeling law. However, they did not win because of the commerce clause, they won because corporations are considered people and therefore have the right of free speech and freedom to not speak when they want to. Scary huh?

Here is an interesting fact for you: GMO ingredients are found in an estimated 80 percent of packaged foods in the U.S. And 92 percent of soy crops, 86 percent of corn crops and 90 percent of canola crops are genetically modified.

[Kim32]

Hi. This is day 2 for me and I am surprise that my energy level is still up and I am feeling great.

Heres my menu for today:

Juiced- grapefruit, orange, and tangerine
Juiced- kale, spinach, green apple,pear,carrots,and lemon

Ate- tangerine,2 bananas,1/2 cucumber and tomato.

[robh]

mommyliz, thaks for the tip on the flax crackers.

linparda, If you like raw, spicy garlic, Natasha's Spicy Tomato Soup has lots of it. I do like garlic, but next time I think I will start with one clove and see how it tastes.

[qwerty988]

Good evening fellow challengers!

Today I had:

- massaged kale salad w grated beets and carrots
- mock salmon pate w carrot and celery sticks
- smoothie w bananas, cantaloupe and spinach
- creamy mushroom soup
- a grapefruit
- smoothie w bananas, orange, spinach, celery, cacao and agave, yum!

blessteve, how do you prepare raw artichokes?

See you all tomorrow! Congratulations on Day Two, Kim -- you're doing great! :heart

[carolv]

Welcome Kim! It’s always great to see more people jumping into the challenge.

Cookie Monster – welcome back! And thank you for the info about GMO’s and the PLU number. I did know about the 9 for organics and 4-digit numbers for commercially grown but I don’t recall the 5-digit starting with 8 as being GMO. Good to know. I too am greatly concerned about GMO and try to buy organic whenever I can. It is very scary and I really believe it is the cause of so many diseases and food allergies. More and more people seems to be finding they are sensitive or allergic to wheat products and I wouldn’t doubt it has to do with GMO. :mad:

Instead of nuts to get your fats you can get healthy fats from avocados and coconut oil too. These are my two favorite ways to get them. I’ve heard (don’t know how true it is) that a couple of tablespoons of coconut oil a day can help with weight loss too.

Denise – congrats on making that pain go away! :dance:

Jen – you may need to add more liquid to your smoothies to improve on the texture. It really depends on what all you put in it too. I like my smoothies sweet so I usually always have orange juice, or dates, or bananas, or honey, or agave in it to keep it sweeter.

Liz – LUCKY YOU, getting to go to a raw restaurant! I’ll be visiting family near Chicago next month so I hope I will have a chance to go to Karyn’s, it is awesome too! :eat

smoothie with the rest of my kombucha, oj, hemp seeds, tahini, ormus supergreen powder, collard greens, pineapple, strawberries, ginger, water
Raw Revolution bar - love the chocolate hazelnut
guacamole and raw tortilla chips
kale chips
orange
raw tomato soup (not the spicy one, I will try that later)
raw crust (ordered these) with almond butter and apple butter

I've got raw cereal in the dehydrator :D

[mommyliz]

robh - no problem :)

carolv - yes, i did feel very lucky. toronto is a couple hours from where i live, so it was a treat to get the chance to go.

[rawsomejen]

To all asking; my smoothie was romaine lettuce, mint, oranges,and some blueberry. My guess is that i just didn't blend it long enough. I'm going to try and add bananas to it and see what happens.

[robh]

Today:

kale smoothie: 4 pieces of kale (minus those huge stalks in the middle - yuck), 2 apples and 2 bananas (qwerty's add-another-banana idea really helped)
stalk of celery
an orange
dehydrated pineapple (grocer had whole pineapples this week :woohoo:)
dehydrated apples
dehydrated bananas
left over spicy tomato soup
Italian flax crackers
tonight, I think make some guacamole and dip cucumber slices in it

carolv, on the raw tortilla chips, can you point me to the recipe you use? I am so all over that.

The family is getting interested in what I'm eating. The dehydrator has made fruit interesting for them, I guess. I'm just trying to keep it from going bad (my grocer only sells large quantities). Last night, even the baby was eating the Italian flax crackers. It's nice to see people munching on fruit and such instead of the alternatives. The great part is they are interested on their own. I'm not preaching; I'm just eating. Anyway, good stuff.

I've been doing well on 100% raw for a few days now. I'm feeling great today. I get a raw high, of sorts, when I stick to it for while.

[blessteve]

Been out of town since Sunday. I am staying with my company for a week and they provide Breakfast, lunch and Dinner for free. Free sounds good but the only fruit is under ripe bannanas.

So I brought a Big cooler with my raw stuff. 2 gallons of oranges and spinach in Vita mixer.
2 gallons of green juice and 2 gallons of fruit smoothies. Also I found a whole foods with a salad
bar one block away so I go there for lunch and/or dinner. Still ontrack and feeling good.

[Denise Nicole]

Yesterday:
Breakfast - bananas
Lunch - huge salad with a tomato dressing
Mid day-apples, dates, bananas
Dinner- mixed veggies (broccoli, cauliflower, carrots)
Snack -bananas, juiced orange, almonds

Not a good day, pain wise. I'm barely able to walk and my hands are painful to use as well (certain movements for hands). I need to decide if it's just a fibro flare, a detox, one of the foods (I recently re-introduced nightshades and yesterday, re-introduced cauliflower), or the steriod shot the Rheumatoid Arthritis doctors gave me wore off. I can only receive them 3x's per year. She wanted me on hard core meds (suppressing the immune system and opening me up for infection and cancer) and warned the shot would wear off, eventually making it so most I can no longer walk without extreme pain(will need a cain and eventually wheel chair). The latter I'll know in time I suppose. So I need to figure out about the former three ... for today, I'm probably not make an adustment. But after a day or so, I'll eliminate the nightshades.

That all being said, I'm on the right track with the diet, and am determined to prove them wrong. So I'll make the adjustments necessary to live well! I need to get those smoothies in today for sure! :D

[qwerty988]

That all being said, I'm on the right track with the diet, and am determined to prove them wrong. So I'll make the adjustments necessary to live well! I need to get those smoothies in today for sure! :D

You're doing such a wonderful job! I don't know anything about your condition, but I've heard time and again of miraculous results from a raw diet. I really do believe it can cure anything.

Have you seen the documentary "The Gerson Miracle"? It's available on Netflix for streaming if you have it. It's about the Gerson Institute and how they cure people from cancer and other "incurable" diseases with juice therapy, supplements and raw foods.

I hope you feel better today! :heart

[qwerty988]

Today:

kale smoothie: 4 pieces of kale (minus those huge stalks in the middle - yuck), 2 apples and 2 bananas (qwerty's add-another-banana idea really helped)
stalk of celery
an orange
dehydrated pineapple (grocer had whole pineapples this week :woohoo:)
dehydrated apples
dehydrated bananas
left over spicy tomato soup
Italian flax crackers
tonight, I think make some guacamole and dip cucumber slices in it

Yayyy -- I'm glad the banana thing was helpful to you!

And I'm SO SORRY about the garlic in the spicy tomato soup recipe! I forgot to mention that I usually use less -- especially if the cloves are large.... one time I made it and the garlic was SO STRONG my stomach was upset all day! My bad..... :thud:

[rawsomejen]

@robh .....I can completely agree about not having to preach. I notice people at work starting to bring healthier raw veggie snacks with them. I think I started a revolution!

[rawsomejen]

Thanks to everyone who recommended I add banana.

Green smoothie take 2:
9035

Sooo much better. I added ice too so I know that's helping! I'm virtually gulping this thing down now.

[robh]

qwerty, no worries. It IS called a SPICY tomato soup, after all. :) Next, I'm gonna try that mushroom soup you posted. I'll go look it up before my next grocery run.

Denise, sorry to hear you had a bad day. I cannot imagine what you must endure. I too have learned that raw food and vitamins can cure a wide variety of illnesses. I hope it works for you.

jen, that's awesome. I had the guys at work trying my flax crackers yesterday. lol They all think I'm nuts.

[Lucy76]

Hello pepple!

I had a green smoothie for breakfast today, lettuce, orange banana.
For lunch another smoothie, almond milk, raspberries, banana, pea protein, and also a huge green salad with almond parmesan and black olives yummy yummy yummy!
For dinner another smoothie, with orange juice, more lettuce, banana and strawberries, and some more strawberries,
and then another smoothie with allmond milk, banana and cacao powder. Really delicious!!
I guess it was a smoothie kind of day...

Denise Nicole, hang in there, you 're doing such a great job! :)

I sprouted some buckweat, so I can make crackers tomorrow, or maybe pizza... I don't know :eat

Robin I'm starting to cook less and less, so the family has no choice but to eat more raw lol! It won't do them any harm that's for sure. ;)

[linparda]

Haha! Thanks Lucy;D.

I loooooooooooove my new Vitamix! Can't imagine how I've gotten along without it. My son said, "It's not a blender, it's an annihilator!!!!" ;D. So I'm backing off the recipes and trying to make it simple. I did, however, cheat a bit last night with some blue cheese dressing - but that's it - other than that, I've been good. Can't wait to experiment more with my vitamix;D.

[carolv]

robh - I really do like Alissa's flax seed cracker recipe in her Living on Live Food book. I made it about a month ago and I do still like it. However, I found this awesome recipe in a Purely Delicious magazine back in 2008. This is the one I posted in this challenge on March 8.

I really love both Alissa's and this recipe as a 'bun' for raw burgers which I usually make mini size because they are easier to eat that way and just so darn cute.

My sister-in-law really loves this recipe too and she adds a bunch of garlic which is a little too much for me sometimes. Like any recipe you can play around with to suit your taste.

It is awesome that your family is becoming interested on their own. That will make it so much easier for you.

It's also awesome that you are getting that raw high. That is not something I have experienced yet. I think it will just take a lot longer for me to get there. I think my body still has a LOT of healing to do.

blessteve - :wow: You are doing fabulous! Good for you for bringing all of that juice and smoothie. And how great is it to have a Whole Foods so close to where you are.

Denise - I'm sorry to hear about your pain. You have such a tough struggle but I am sooo impressed by your perseverance. I wish you well!!! Like Qwerty, I am a BIG believer in raw foods for healing pretty much everything.

Jen - glad to hear the extra banana helped your smoothies. Sounds like you are on a role now.

Lucy - "I'm starting to cook less and less, so the family has no choice but to eat more raw" - LOL that's one way to get them to try raw.

I stayed up way to late last night trying to get some things done so I had a really hard time getting out of bed this morning and had to rush out the door to leave for work and didn't have time to make a smoothie. BooHoo! :sadtears:
spirulina energy bar
banana
rest of tomato soup
gorilla sandwich
picked up a few things at store during lunch and got olives, mushrooms, and a little bit of artichokes from their olive bar (don't know if all is considered raw or not, I know artichokes aren't but I didn't have very much and it was yummy)
I made the mushroom soup when I got home and ate a bowl. It was VERY good but the one large clove of garlic I put in it was a little to strong for me. I'll finish the rest tomorrow.

[rawshay]

So excited that I have been able to stay 100% raw since I joined this challenge 9 days ago!!! I mostly drink green smoothies throughout the day and will grab oranges when I'm wanting something sweeter. Today I'm going to eat fruit throughout the work day (apples, oranges, bananas) and then a large salad when I get home. I made taco meat (from Ani Phyo's Raw recipe book) and will eat it with the black seseame bread from her book that I made....or I may just eat the taco nut meat on my salad. I hope you all have a great day and that you enjoy your delicious, healthy raw goodies throughout the day!!!

[qwerty988]

Congratulations, rawshay!!! YUM -- I gotta try that taco meat recipe, I keep hearing about it!

Carolv, I'm sorry about the garlic. But I'm psyched you liked the mushroom soup! I absolutely ADORE it.

So inspiring to see everyone doing so well! I'm pleased to report I made it through my birthday yesterday on raw. Celebrated with a nice long hike in the woods with friends and then out for smoothies after.... it was soooo nice!

I ate A LOT yesterday, though. (Still woke up looking thinner this morning hahhahahaa!)

- chopped salad of avocado, tomato, mango, cucumber, jalapeno, red onion
- a grapefruit
- smoothie of banana, spinach, kale, celery, cantaloupe, cacao, agave
- broccoli soup (meh, didn't love it)
- mock salmon pate w carrot and celery sticks
- smoothie of blueberry, banana and pineapple
- red lettuce/spinach salad w red onion, tomato, carrot, broccoli and creamy orange/tomato dressing

Have a GREAT DAY everyone!!! :heart:

[Denise Nicole]

Good Morning! I'm still in a lot of pain and on a gain (5lbs so far). I'm thinking my body is going bonkers and attacking everything in site thus the flare, the weight gain would come with stress (physical) and lack of sleep (due to pain). Instead of doing what most people would do ... which is give up and go back to the previous way of eating, which didn't work. I'm going to try to push it a step further and juice a few days or more. My system which is so messed up needs a a recharge I think. I stumbled on a huge sale at the grocery on there "oops to much" bin and bought bags of fruits and veggies from .75-$1 each. Perfect for my juicer. I think coming back on 100% raw whole foods will be a smoother transition (for me) after. Thanks for all the support, you all are wonderful!

[Lucy76]

So inspiring to see everyone doing so well! I'm pleased to report I made it through my birthday yesterday on raw. Celebrated with a nice long hike in the woods with friends and then out for smoothies after.... it was soooo nice!

That is sooo cool!!! What a great day! Happy birthday Querty!!:cheer:


Today has been a really yummy day so far.

I had dandelion and apple juice for breakfast
and then... I had the most amazing lunch. Yesterday at the fruit market I bought dandelion, but it was different than the usual kind. The lady said it's called 100 leaf dandelion. It's a lot shorter, and really really tender. I bought it for juicing, and to boil for the kids, but it was so cute, I had to try it raw, and it was delicious!! I ate it with a bit of garlic salt, olive oil, just a tiny bit of balsamic vinegar (not raw though) and some really yummy raw hummus! It was great!!

then I had a carrot juice and a banana for a snack, and right now I'm having a smoothie made of oranges banana and goji berries. Only I made it too thick and I'm eating it with a spoon lol.
For dinner I'll have some marinated broccoli, and some coconut dates that i've had my eye on for a while.

Have a rawsome day everyone!:woot:

[PansyLo]

Morning all!

I'm still here and raw! Just haven't checked in because I've been busy and probably will be for the next few weeks as I'm on holiday! :)

I've encountered a few problems. I went to a flatwarming party a few friends were having and drank alcohol. I said before on here that I wasn't going to stop drinking completely, just do it very occationally to celebrate, not drink socially on a weekly basis.
I felt DREADFUL the next day. I didn't even drink that much and got extremely drunk and was a wreck in the morning. I have never been so ill from a hangover! When showering I had to jump out of the shower soaking wet to throw up!

I was also a lot more inclined to go out to get some kind of SAD food while drunk or eat SAD food in the morning.

I think it's going to be problematic whenever I drink now that I'm raw. It's really put me off doing it. I'm going to honestly struggle to find ways to be social and go to celebrations with friends without drinking anything but I think if I continue it's going to just set me back every time I do it!


Another problem I'm facing is what to eat while staying with my brothers for the weekend! They don't even have a blender. My simple stable of smoothies and simple raw meals really revolves around the use of a blender.

I wont have a whole lot of ingredients on my hands either, I wont have say Braggs or raw honey or celtic sea salt as those are the sort of things I buy and use small amounts of. I wouldn't be buying them for a weekend stay.

[robh]

Hang in there Denise.

Tomorrow (pay day), I'm going to buy Alissa's book, Living on Live Food. I assume this website is the best way to do it. I'd like as much of the money, as possible, to benefit this site.

Today at work:

* green kale smoothie with apples and bananas
* a plum
* flax crackers
* roma tomato
* orange
* cucumber
* blended coconut with sweat cinnamon nut mixture
* bag of dehydrated snacks: pineapple, apple, pear, banana

Tonight at home, I'm not sure what I'll have. I ate my last ripe avocado last night. I have to wait for the others to ripen. I'm so addicted. I've got onions, tomatoes, celery, garlic, cucumber and boat loads of fruit. I'll probably just experiment until I make something edible.

[PansyLo]

^ It's fantastic. :)

It's very reasonably priced on this site, so if you're in the US I think it would be the best way to get it.

I had to get it off Amazon because the cost to get it posted to the UK was an additional $50! But I Alissa will still get money out of the books she sells even if bought else where so I think that was a much better option for me!

[EJCMom]

I know I'm a bit late to the party, but I just learned about the 30-day raw challenge on Monday. So, I've been doing a little research, and it looks like my husband and I will be jumping in with both feet starting on Monday. We're really excited to start feeling better and having more energy. I'm a little nervous because I've never been much of a veggie eater. I'm looking forward to trying new things and discovering the variety that this way of eating has to offer. I'm sure I'll have lots of, "Is this considered raw?" questions, so I hope that's okay. :-)

[robh]

Pansy, thanks for the info. I can't wait to see what all is in her book.

EJCMom, welcome to the site, welcome to the challenge and congrats on trying raw food! Eating veggies isn't so bad. It just has to be raw. It doesn't have to taste bad. There are recipes all over this place for sweet things, savory things, crispy things... I balance my meals with fruit, yummy concoctions from this site, and, yes, veggies. Then, for the stuff you really can't sit and eat, there are smoothies. Toss the kale/spinach/chard/etc in the blender with enough bananas and apples and you will be able to drink it! anyway, you probably know this stuff if you've been reading the site. GOOD LUCK!

[qwerty988]

Welcome, EJCMom -- please don't be shy about asking questions as we're all just figuring this stuff out together!

And thanks for the birthday wishes, Lucy! It was indeed a really great day. :heart:

I'm getting hit with some detox today, yucky headache and some joint pain, I guess my indiscretions of last week have finally caught up with me....

Today I had:

- red leaf/spinach salad w broc, red onion, sprouts and creamy orange/tomato dressing
- smoothie made of 3 bananas, celery, spinach, orange, cacao, honey
- mock salmon pate w carrot and celery sticks
- Natasha's spicy tomato soup

I'm heading to bed very early but will definitely have at least one more smoothie -- I'm thinking of a cashew/banana shake, yum! Or maybe I'll just curl up with a big bowl of chocolate-avocado pudding.... something dessert-y anyway.

Yesterday I committed to reaching a weight loss goal by June 1st, and I feel confident I can do it just by staying raw! :woot:

See you all tomorrow!

EDIT: I ended up having a grapefruit and a yummy strawberry/cashew mylkshake for dinner.... YUM!

[robh]

qwerty, happy birthday and congrats on staying raw on your birthday. You are stronger than I am. This is post 3 in this thread for me today. It's borderline obsessive. I, however, had to wish you a happy birthday. I felt bad because I intended to say something in my first post.

[Longredhair]

I started raw on Feb. 26. I just found this challenge! I am hoping for some help and inspiration to continue. I am doing ok. No desire for cooked foods at this time. I have a Vita-mix. Will be purchasing a juicer in a couple of weeks and still not sure which one to get. I have a Nesco dehydrator given to me by my dtr-in-law. I haven't used it yet. I need help in that too!

PS: I evidently found this site in 2008 but never made a lifestyle change until last June after having a heart attack. Then I went to a vegan diet and 2 weeks ago decided to finally try a raw diet.

[PansyLo]

^ Welcome :) You're off to a good start having a vitamix and a dehydrator! I'm jealous! Good luck.

@EJCMom: Welcome! It's never too late to join. It's any time of the month. :) Don't worry, I've asked sooo many dumb questions. Everyone here is really helpful and supportive so ask away.

@qwerty: May be a little belated but Happy Birthday!! :fruitline:

[dwish11]

Hi everyone! It's the 15th, halfway through the month and I am starting on raw! I've been about 40-50% raw for the past 2 weeks, but I'm obviously not feeling the amazing and fantastic effects with so much cooked food! My goals are to get my energy back, battle my demons with food, and my weight. I'm a college athlete, and I'm in a very weight conscious sport. I've been through soooo much with my body image and my actual weight. It's time to face my food addiction! I truly believe raw is the answer and I can't wait to take the journey with you all for the rest of the month.

[carolv]

Robh - I looked at your question to me again and realized you asked me for the tortilla chip recipe and I was thinking flax cracker (must have them on the brain). So sorry I didn't answer your question correctly. Actually the raw tortilla chips are ones that I bought at the natural foods store I go to near where I work. They are locally made and very good. I've tried to make my own but I have never been successful with them. Of course, buying them is quite expensive so I've only done it one time so far.


Rawshay - Congrats on your 9 days!!! I LOVE Ani Phyo's recipes. I've had her taco meat one before and it's delicious. I have a standard one I tend to use but now that you've mentioned hers I think I'll try it again. I don't remember why now I didn't make hers my main go to recipe. Guess I'll find out when I look at it and try it again.

Qwerty - Happy Birthday! Glad to hear your day went so well.

Denise - good luck on your raw journey and dealing with the pain! I am very hopeful that you will be successful.

Pansy - So sorry to hear about your reaction to the alcohol. I myself have found that I can't seem to tolerate it any longer. Even though it still sounds good to me I don't think my body will agree so I have decided that I will no longer indulge. There are many non-alcoholic options available anymore, at least I've noticed them at restaurants I go to that have a bar.

Welcome EJCMom! You are so lucky that it will be the two of you working on this together. Support is key to be successful. And feel free to ask whatever you want, everyone here will their best to help you out. We are all learning so much from each other. That is why I LOVE posting here. As far as eating veggies, my advice to you is to concentrate on the ones you know you like and over time start trying new ones. As your taste buds change you should find that you like things that you never did before. And keep in mind if you are blending and juicing that is easy to 'hide' things you don't like so you can the benefits from them without really noticing the taste.

Welcome Longredhair! And congratulations on your lifestyle change and for giving raw a try. You will find that it is very healing. It is great that you have a vitamix, it was the last piece of equipment that I got and I can't imagine being without it. I don't juice very much (at least not yet) and just have an old juiceman II that I got for free from my sister-in-law years ago. I'm not familiar with the Nesco dehydrator but if it allows you to set the temperature then you should be good to go with that. Most dehydrator's that are available at the stores get too hot too use for raw foods. Typically you don't want to go above 115 degrees. Although I have heard that you can go as high as 145 degrees for the first hour or possibly two if the food has a lot of moisture content. But you would have to be careful about that so as not to destroy the nutrients and enzymes.

smoothie with coconut milk, oj, hemp seeds, leftover salad lettuce,cucumber, banana, swiss chard, and parsley
whole food bar
broccoli, baby carrots, and cauliflower dipped in raw ranch dressing
banana
cherry and orange sponge with cream (don't remember where I found this recipe but it is very tasty. If you have irish moss this recipe calls for it. this is the first time I've actually used it)
rest of my very garlicy mushroom soup (I think I might use just a small amount of garlic powder next time or just a very small clove)

It's hard to believe it's the 15th of March already. Good job everybody! :dance:

[carolv]

Welcome dwish11! I just saw your post after I posted mine. I hope you find all of the support and encouragement you need here. Raw foods really are amazing!

[Cookie Monster Gone Raw]

Happy Belated Birthday Qwerty and congratulations on sticking to raw on your special day!

Denise Nicole I am so sorry to hear about your pain, you are brave to stick with it. I admire your determination. I hope this phase passes for you quick and that your health returns soon.

CarolV thank you for the friendly welcome back! I am glad that you were familiar with the PLU language and I am glad that I was able to share some new information with you. Yes, I too believe that GMOs are responsible for so many food allergies and sensitivities. I am glad that more people are speaking out about GMOs, I really hope this labeling law passes.

Linparda That is so cute what your son said about the Vitamix, how old is he?

Blessteve Good Idea to bring your vitamix, a few weeks ago we were on the road and did the same thing as you. It was a lifesaver!

Lucy I am really curious about this 100 dandelion you are talking about, can you post a picture?

Oh my Goodness Pansy! I am so sorry about your experience that sounds awful! I understand your frustration about this raw lifestyle being socially awkward. However, I think you should be forgiving with yourself. I have some friends who have been raw for almost 13 years, they have 3 sons and 2 of them are not raw. So when these two sons come to visit they compromise and make cooked vegan meals so that everyone can eat together as a family. One time I asked my friend about this and she told me that she is raw almost 100% of the time. However, there are situations where she will allow herself some flexibility and so she does not find it important to stress out over percentages because she is confident that she lives a healthy lifestyle.

EJCMom welcome to the challenge that is wonderful that you and your husband are doing this together. I look forward to reading your posts in the thread.


Longredhair I am glad that you found us! I believe that the raw food lifestyle is one of the best choices we can make for our health. I too have been reading about it for a few years (I like to educate myself before I do anything), and only about two weeks ago started the full transition myself. Welcome aboard!

DWish it is awesome to be rawsome! Welcome to the challenge. I am sure that you will start noticing changes quick; I know that I have in just two weeks!

So here what I ate today:

Opened some Mexican Coconuts, drank 16 ounces of fresh raw coconut water and harvested the meat by throwing it into the Vitamix to shred/grade it.

Morning Smoothie: Coconut water (8 oz), 1 TBS of coconut meat, 1 TBS of avocado, 1 banana, 1 small mango, frozen pineapple, wheat grass, and coconut nectar.

Snack: Black current tea with 2 raweo chai cookies (these are delicious, you should try them)

Snack #2: Three Grapefruits blended with strawberries in my Vitamix.

Dinner Açai Bowel (brought back memories of Brazil): 3 packages pure açai pulp, 1 banana, coconut nectar = blended together in Vitamix. Topped the bowel with sliced organic strawberries, a small handful of raw granola, and 1 TBS of coconut meat.

Bedtime snack: 1/2 handful of raw curried cashews.

Well goodnight everyone!

[qwerty988]

Thank you for the lovely birthday wishes everyone!!!!!

:kisses:

[Denise Nicole]

Thank you so much for all the encouragement!

I made it through a half day of juicing yesterday. I'm planning better and having some pre-prepped. I have a learning curve apparently! haha

[qwerty988]

I have a Vita-mix. Will be purchasing a juicer in a couple of weeks and still not sure which one to get. I have a Nesco dehydrator given to me by my dtr-in-law. I haven't used it yet. I need help in that too!

Welcome!

The Nesco dehydrators are generally given positive reviews on this site. I think the square one is considered the best, but the general consensus is they're definitely adequate -- and in your case the price sure was right hahahahaa! If you get seriously into dehydrating, you can always upgrade later.

I just got a Vitamix and LOVE LOVE LOVE it -- you're off to a great start!

[Denise Nicole]

I forgot to ask! How do you use the pulp left from your juicer to create crackers or bread?

[qwerty988]

I forgot to ask! How do you use the pulp left from your juicer to create crackers or bread?

Every time I make a (less sweet) juice blend, I save the pulp in freezer bags. Then when I'm ready to make crackers, I defrost a bag (approx 4 cups of pulp.) While the pulp's defrosting, I've been soaking my flax seeds in water. After several hours when the pulps defrosted and the seeds are all goopy, I simply pour the pulp into the seeds and stir and add any other spices I like to the mix. Then I spread it on trays and dehydrate.

I'm rooting for you on the juice fast!! It's an exciting adventure. :throwhearts:

[EJCMom]

Good morning, everyone!

Thank you all for the warm welcome. :-)

Well, we were supposed to start on Monday, but we've been so excited about it, and gradually adding more and more raw food the last few days, that we decided to just jump in with both feet today. Ha!

So far, I've had a smoothie with: 1 banana, 1/2 a peach (it was the last one so the hubby and I split it), avocado, blueberries, chia seed, red kale, and water. It was pretty tasty. I think I'll have another smoothie for lunch and just snack on fruits and veggies as I get hungry throughout the day. My goal is to snack on at least one veggie.

Now for a couple of questions: The first is: Are coffee and tea considered raw? On the one hand I think they probably aren't because they get too hot, but on the other hand...well...I guess I'm just hoping that they are okay. :-) I've been trying to phase out coffee (which, as a Pacific Northwesterner is akin to removing a limb) and I'm down to one cup a day sweetened with agave. But I'm crossing my fingers that the one cup will be okay. If it isn't, that's fine because I'm committed to being 100% raw for these 30 days.

Next question: When I first started looking into this I saw a lot of people mention Larabars as a great on-the-go kind of snack. I see that they are vegan, but it doesn't say anything about them being raw on the package. Does anyone know if they are raw?

I'm so excited to have found this forum. I can see that it is a wonderfully supportive group! :throwhearts:

[rawsomejen]

I didn't make anything for breakfast since today was my (un)cooking day!
I knew I'd be tasting everything and it would add up to a meal anyway.

Today I made more marinara and salsa along with cabbage pate' and vegetable chowder.

9037

I'll probably pack a bag with carrots, apples and oranges for work too.

[Cookie Monster Gone Raw]

Rawsomejen your food always looks so Yummy!


The first is: Are coffee and tea considered raw?

EJCMom From everything that I have seen, coffee and tea are a personal choice. I know of plenty of raw foodists who make herbal teas on a regular basis. However, if you are worried about it you can always make sun tea. Though it is a good idea to limit coffee, I would recommend that you cut it out once you have adjusted to your new diet. It can be difficult to transition to raw and you do not need to be fighting coffee withdraws while you are doing it. On that note, I know that I have seen a recipe in one of my raw uncookbooks for cold pressed coffee, I will see if I can find it for you.

Sorry I can not help you out with the Larabar question as I am unfamiliar with them.

Good Luck :cheer::cheer::cheer:
-Crystal

[carolv]

CookieMonster - I've tried the raweo cookies and I agree they are delicious. I love trying different raw snacks when I get a chance. It just inspires me to know the kind of things that can be made that are raw and good for you. The acai bowel sounds really good.

EJCMom - Sounds like the two of you are off to a great start. I don't believe either coffee or tea are considered raw but, especiallly the way you have cut down on it and use only agave in it, I would say you are definitely on the right track. We've talked quite a bit in this forum about lifestyle and doing the best that you can. If giving up something as basic as this causes you to go off track because of cravings or lifestyle then you would be better off just sticking with it and maybe gradually work it out of your diet. I occasionally have hot tea and even more rarely decaf coffee. Speaking of teas, if anyone follows Alissa on OpenSky, she had an offer a couple of weeks ago for some whole food bars and a tea. So I would say herbal teas are still acceptable on a raw diet.

Lara Bars used to be raw but they were bought out by a big company several years ago and are no longer considered raw. I still eat them though because they are really convenient, pretty inexpensive, and have very few ingredients, though I do stay away from the ones with peanut butter and chocolate in them. But I really try to minimize how often I have them and try to get truly raw bars whenever I can.


smoothie with coconut milk, oj, hazelnuts (leftover from truffles I made last night), sunflower microgreens, and pineapple
banana
orange
apple
raw lasagna
broccoli and baby carrots with raw ranch dressing
cherry and orange sponge with cream
raw truffles

[melissa2979]

Hello my name is Melissa I'm new to the whole raw living but heard of all the great benefits to going raw. Can anyone tell me how to get started. I brought a juicer and I'm going to start working out too. Thanks anyone that can help.

[qwerty988]

Good morning all!

wow I'm on a crazy work schedule but wanted to post what I had yesterday:

- smoothie: 3 bananas, celery, spinach, orange, cacao, honey
- massaged kale salad w/sprouts, grated beets and carrots
- redleaf lettuce salad w chunks of avocado, cuke, tomato, red onion, sprouts topped with creamy mango/chili dressing (yum!!)
- strawberry/banana/cashew mylkshake

Hi Melissa and welcome! My advice for getting started is to just jump in! Start eating raw fruits and vegetables, salads and juices. Keep reading threads on this site for more recipes and examples of what other people are eating every day. Alissa's books and dvds have tons of recipes, information and even a meal plan if you feel you need one. There are also recipes available online and videos on youtube. I would definitely start with learning how to make a green smoothie, if you haven't been making them yet -- do you have a blender?

Happy Saturday everyone! :throwhearts:

[PansyLo]

Are coffee and tea considered raw?

No, coffee can be particularly bad because of the amount of caffeine etc too. And the beans are thoroughly roasted and if not drinking freshly ground, highly processed.

I've cut out coffee. Commercial regular teas can also be less than healthful but there are lots of herbal teas that are FULL of health benefits and usefulness.

I'm a collecter of tea! There's so many different varieties with different benefits and properties that it's definitely worth trying to get into instead of coffee.

It's a personal choice though. :) With some things you need to find a balance to suit you.

Discoveries of the week:

http://botanicalcuisine.com/ on this site there is an offer to download 6 free ebooks that are raw food orientated if you like the site on facebook. One of them is on tea which is what made me think of it. There's lots of recipes and info in them. I wouldn't have paid much for them but from what I've flicked through for free they are absolutely fantastic. Go on and have a look.

For people in the UK who are not totally sprouting savvy yet but want to get more in their diet Marks and Spencers do a "Sprouted Pea & Bean Salad" there's peas, a couple of different beans and chickpeas all raw and sprouted. The dressing is in a side pot so just chuck that, add your own and you've got a great raw snack on the go and an easy way to get sprouted foods into your diet.

[rawsomejen]

Happy Saturday everyone! :)
Even though I haven't had time to post everyday, I am proud to say I've been raw for 24 days now! Yay! I'm glad everyone here has helped me stay focused and motivated. :)

@Melissa2979 as qwerty said, just dive right in. I did this overnight and it has made such an impact on my life. I promise it will be worth it...... We are all here to help answer any questions you might have, and we're all learning new things.

For breakfast today I am having a bowl of blueberries, goji berries and a navel orange.

For my work bag I have packed a container with my fresh salsa, cucumber slices, edamame with himalayan salt, some cauli cabbage pate' and fruit salad with mango, blueberries and kiwi.

I'm also taking some coconut water..... I cant get enough of that stuff!
9038

[BlackKat]

Today:

-Smoothie (banana, kale, spinach, maca, chia seeds, sprouts, wild berries, strawberries, almond milk and a weee bit of cao cao)
-Giant salad w/ more kale, spinach, collards, sunflower seeds, sprouts, cucumber, bell pepper, broccoli (on a broccoli kick right now for some reason ;-), some almonds, flax, avo,
-a few oranges, pineapple
-kombucha
-Haven't decided what I want for dinner yet, I may pick out an easy recipe to make.

I made some kimchi and pickles this week, they are marinatin in the fridge. Can't wait to have some.

[carolv]

Welcome Melissa! You can get a lot of information from the different forums here on rawfoodtalk. If you don't have Alissa's book, Living on Live Foods, I would highly recommend getting it. It has a lot of great information and wonderful recipes to get you started.

raw breakfast crusts with apple butter
chia cereal with banana flakes, sunwarrior chocolate protein powder, and coconut milk
smoothie with coconut milk, oj, blueberries, strawberries, cucumber, swiss chard
tortilla chips and guacamole
tomato soup (spicy recipe but I didn't make mine spicy) I think I put a little too much salt in it but I added chopped parsley and chopped cucumbers in it and it tasted perfect.
raw truffles

[qwerty988]

Good morning fellow challengers!

Really feeling fantastic and enjoying this lifestyle so much, I just feel so grateful to have been guided on this path! :heart:

Yesterday I started adding a tablespoon of chia seeds and 1/4 an avocado to my morning green smoothie. I eat most of my food in the morning and then usually have nothing after lunch.... my hope was if I made my smoothies more filling, I could shift this pattern, but NO.... hahahhahaaa that's just who I am and how I eat!

Yesterday I had:

- HUGE green smoothie with 3 bananas, orange, celery, spinach, kale, sprouts, chia, avocado, cacao, honey and lots of ice!

- HUGE bowl of Raw Angel Mom's shredded sweet potato salad. It was amazing -- creamy and delish, really reminded me of a SAD cole slaw/potato salad type dish. I made it with shredded sweet potatoes and cut up celery, onion, cucumber and red pepper. Then I added a sweet, salty, creamy cashew sauce........... OMG SO GOOD hahahahahaaa!

After that, I didn't eat anything for the rest of the day, I was so totally satisfied! Took a nice long hike in the woods, hope to do the same today.

Carolv, I'll have to try adding chopped parsley and cukes to the tomato soup -- that sounds great!

Have a wonderful Sunday all! :heart

[linparda]

Hi everyone;
I'm still here, and still raw, except for a few mistakes...:(... but I think it was all because of alcohol! - so I'm done with alcohol starting today. I didn't have big mistakes - more like a few crackers, a piece of cheese - just appetizers - and not much. The alcohol was organic red wine.

Anyway, new day, new me. Question for anyone - is anyone having trouble losing weight? I am stuck at 135 and I haven't been able to move after the initial 5 pounds - any suggestions? I know about cutting down on nuts and sweets, and I have done that, but with no luck...

Ciao!

[qwerty988]

Hi everyone;
I'm still here, and still raw, except for a few mistakes...:(... but I think it was all because of alcohol! - so I'm done with alcohol starting today. I didn't have big mistakes - more like a few crackers, a piece of cheese - just appetizers - and not much. The alcohol was organic red wine.

Anyway, new day, new me. Question for anyone - is anyone having trouble losing weight? I am stuck at 135 and I haven't been able to move after the initial 5 pounds - any suggestions? I know about cutting down on nuts and sweets, and I have done that, but with no luck...


We should start a NO ALCOHOL THREAD hahahahhaaa! Seriously, whenever I've slipped it's always been because of socializing/drinking. I decided after my last slip that I wasn't going to have any wine until June 1st and then will decide whether or not to quit drinking forever.

Five pounds is a substantial loss at your size. How long have you been raw?

[PansyLo]

^ I agree!!

I've fallen of the wagon. Combination of staying with my brothers (there isn't even a blender here!) and yes, alcohol.

This knock back is so substancial than I feel like I'm having to start all over again. :(

I have quite a lot of social events on the calendar right now and every single social event we have involves getting drunk. I don't know what the alternative is yet, to simply not go? To try and get my friends to do some sober activities too? To learn to attend but not drink (as bad as it sound I'm not even sure how that would be possible)?

I'm feeling hungover, rough and need a good way to jump back into the raw lifestyle. :sadtears:

I don't want to revert back to my old ways but I'm in danger of doing so.

[qwerty988]

^ I agree!!

I've fallen of the wagon. Combination of staying with my brothers (there isn't even a blender here!) and yes, alcohol.

This knock back is so substancial than I feel like I'm having to start all over again. :(

I have quite a lot of social events on the calendar right now and every single social event we have involves getting drunk. I don't know what the alternative is yet, to simply not go? To try and get my friends to do some sober activities too? To learn to attend but not drink (as bad as it sound I'm not even sure how that would be possible)?

I'm feeling hungover, rough and need a good way to jump back into the raw lifestyle. :sadtears:

I don't want to revert back to my old ways but I'm in danger of doing so.


You can jump back in anytime just by eating raw foods again! If you can't manage it at your brothers, just get back to eating raw when you get back home.

As for drinking, I think all your suggestions would work. Sometimes you can choose not to go where you'll be tempted to drink. Sometimes your friends can join you on sober activities. Sometimes you can go out with friends who are drinking but not drink. (Really as long as you're relaxed and comfortable with what you're doing, nobody really cares if you drink or not.) And sometimes you can decide it's worth it to go ahead and have the alcohol.

Here's a video of Natasha St. Michael, one of my fave raw food coaches, on the subject of raw food and alcohol:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=atOvUpxhWA4

[PansyLo]

^ Thanks for sharing that! She had some good tips there. I think I can relate a lot to what she's saying in that I don't want to stop partying, having fun, having wild nights and staying up til dawn etc I just don't want it to carry on having the impact that it's having on my health. I don't want to be that friend who's quit drinking and makes is boring to go out with either. So I like what she's saying.

I can also relate in that the first time I drank again after going raw I felt HORRIBLE. I got drunk really fast and just felt brutal the next day.

It really emphasised just how bad it is for me if so little could make me feel like that.

I've now drank 3 times this week (flatwarming party, a leaving party, st patricks day), I've totally fallen off the raw wagon as a result and i'm not really feeling great about it. I think it's good that I've tried it and realised that my old lifestyle was affecting me a lot and that I still do want to change it. I have a birthday party on Friday and I can already say that I'm not feeling like drinking at it. And you know, when I go out and I drink I can easily spend £60 in a night, all my pay from this week is already gone if I stopped drinking I could be saving so much money. Wasted energy too, I rarely do anything productive when I'm hungover, if I could go out and have the same fun but not have to lose a day feeling rubbish in bed I would be gaining some great extra time in my weekend.

It's not even the drinking I enjoy, it's the friends, dancing and mad antics.

I'll try going on Friday and not drinking and see how it works out!

Maybe for the rest of the time I'm staying at my brothers I'll try and eat lots of salad, juice and herbal tea. Get some fresh fruit, maybe a pineapple! Yum. See if I can find an easy way to make juice without a juicer of any sort...

I'm going to check out some more of Natasha's videos. :)

[sar-RAW]

Hello Everyone!

I've been 100% raw since February 27th, for a 30-day detox. For my last week, I am juice fasting and finishing strong. I am going to the gym 4 times a week working out anywhere from 45 - 65 minutes.

My results thus far have been very minimal, I have lost 5 pounds, but still wondering when I will start seeing further results!

[carolv]

linparda - sorry, I really don't have any tips for you. When I first tried raw I was eating so much that my weight stayed the same. I didn't start losing weight for a couple of weeks of being 100%. Everybody's different so I'm sure it is only a matter of time.

pansy - good luck with the drinking and socializing issue as well as the raw foods situation at your brothers. Sounds like you are coming up with some good plans.

qwerty - that was a really good video you shared with some great tips. I'll have to check out more of her videos.

sar-RAW - congratulations on your successful raw journey! I'm jealous of your workout plan. I hope to make that type of committment myself. You don't mention what you are trying to accomplish with the raw diet. Is it mainly just weight loss or something else? If it's weight loss, you will need to be careful of being dependent on the scale. Depending on what your workout entails you most likely are gaining muscle mass while losing body fat. Muscle weighs more so your scale may not be moving or not moving much because of this. Have you taken body measurements to see if you are losing inches? Or have you noticed clothes fitting differently?

smoothie with coconut milk, oj, swiss chard, pineapple, and parsley
breakfast crust with almond butter and raspberry jam
tortilla chips and the rest of my guacamole
the rest of my tomato soup with the parsley and cucumber chopped up on it - I think you will like that extra texture qwerty, I sure did.
truffles

[qwerty988]

Good morning all!

I'm fasting with the Monday Fasting Club (from yesterday at 2 o'clock until today at 2 o'clock, since that's when I usually eat my dinner) so I don't expect to have much but tea and water today! I guess a smoothie at 2.

Yesterday I had:

2 oranges
HUGE smoothie of 3 bananas, orange, grapes, avocado, celery, sprouts, chia seeds, spinach, cacao, honey
flax crackers with tomato slices drizzled with evoo and salt
flax crackers with guacamole
Natasha's spicy tomato soup

pansylo & carolv - I'm so glad you enjoyed Natasha's video! I think she gives some really great advice. And of course I'm a HUGE fan of her spicy tomato soup hahahahaa!

Have a WONDERFUL Monday fellow challengers! :heart

[robh]

I haven’t posted all weekend. For my raw food lifestyle, the weekend went downhill Friday night. As linparda, qwerty and pansy pointed out, consuming alcohol and trying to be raw is not wise. I should probably watch that video. I have huge problems in this area. The good news is Saturday morning on, I have been 100% raw and I’m feeling awesome again. Alcohol won’t be an issue again until Saturday.

Longredhair, welcome to the raw food lifestyle.

dwish11, raw food has given me loads energy. As for cravings, there is a lot of tempting food in my house. These days, I walk right past it. It is awesome (rawsome?) to have the food addiction monkey off my back. Eating SAD food leads to eating more SAD food. It is a cycle, but it can be broken. Be strong, you will get there.

melissa2979, I started with a juice fast. The “green machine” juice recipe seems to be the basic one. After 10-14 days, the craving went away and my body really started to respond. Once I felt the difference, I decided eating raw was not a diet, but a new way of life. It is still new to me and there are days that my resolve is tested and broken, but I will NEVER go back. That’s how good this feels. Good luck, I hope you get here too.

Carolv, I’d like to make my own tortilla chips as well. I’d like to get some organic, raw corn and give it a try. The hardest part is probably the thickness. I know you need a tortilla press for to make the cooked variety. They sure would do good with some guacamole!

Raw Cookie Monster, do you buy your wheat grass or grow it? I’ve heard it’s great for you, but I don’t know how to get it.

EJCMom, on work days, I drink 2-3 cups of coffee. Lately, however, I am down to a single cup each day. I am eating less and less of certain foods. Maybe coffee is one of those things that I won’t NEED eventually. I do not feel coffee interferes with the benefits I experience from raw food. Eating raw does make the coffee more intense. I get huge caffeine buzzes these days.

Rawsomejen, what is in your vegetable chowder?

Qwerty, I’m gonna have to try that sweet potato salad. Thanks for posting it.

Today:

* lots of water
* drinking my smoothie 3 times a day: 1 cup of water, 1 banana, 2 apples and 2 huge handfuls of spinach all blended together (switching it up to spinach instead of kale this week).
* breakfast: 1 pear, 1 orange, 1 banana
* lunch: chia seeds soaked in a mixture of blended coconut meat and coconut water
* snacks: dehydrated mango, pear and apple slices and Italian Flax Crackers (http://www.rawfoodtalk.com/showthread.php?67830-Italian-Flax-Crackers)
* dinner: a banana, an orange, and a salad with roman lettuce, baby carrots, cherry tomatoes, broccoli florets, sliced up avocado and raw salad dressing.


raw salad dressing:

1/2 cup soaked cashews blended with 1/4 cup olive oil, 1 peeled and de-seeded cucumber, 1 stalk of celery and 1 tablespoon of onion soup mix. if you won’t want to use soup mix, add your favorite fresh herbs and some salt.

[rawsomejen]

@robh.... This is a link to my chowder : http://www.rawfoodrecipes.com/recipes/creamy-garden-chowder.html

I subbed a cuke for the zucchini and I also added tomato.

[appifanie]

Hi everyone, I'm back again! Vegan for 7ish years and I've tried raw a few times and I keep falling off the wagon (even after meeting quite a few famous raw vegans, including Alissa and Stacie). Like Robh, coffee is my sticking point (I'm weaning down though!). I get migraines and any deviation in my diet causes tons of pain, but I'm on a new preventative med so I'm trying some changes :) I will be 35 on the 30th and I've always looked young but I'm looking less young than I was. Also, my mom has cancer and I don't ever want my kiddo (she's 5 and awesome) to have to go through what I'm going through.

So far today I've had:

Vitamix Juice - an orange and a bunch of strawberries and ice
An apple and raw almond butter
A banana
Green juice - kale, apple, cuke, lemon

In my future I see that ranch dressing mentioned earlier in the thread and something with my ripe avocado and maybe a creamy smoothie with bananas and almond butter and peaches.