High greens diet

[VeryBerry]

Is anyone here doing a high greens diet?
What do you eat and how much?
What benefits did you personally experience from eating lots of greens?

[wisslewj]

I turned yellow after 1 month on high greens!!

My intake was about 48 ounces a day! (though I noticed when I was getting Vitamin A retinal in my diet that it helped me handle more greens without the "yellowing" side affect, presumably since Vit A must be necessary to make the conversion of B.C. to A.

However, I have also read that too much Beta Caratine (hence greens) can be bad, though I do not recall why of hand.

Jeff

[vgloveforlife]

I don't think too much beta carotene from foods can do any harm since your body discards what you don't need. On the other hand too much vitamin A can be deterimental.

[daisyduke]

I eat a high fruit, high greens diet. I eat about 32 ounces of greens a day. It works great for me!

[Vandy]

It would be impossible to get the necessary amount of calories needed in one day eating solely greens. I eat a high fruit, high veg, low fat diet and this fills all my requirements. I eat at LEAST 2 lbs of lettuce daily. I would consider this "high greens," but I wouldn't do it without the two other factors.

[meinleben]

vandy
how do you get in 2 lbs of greens??....i know you said you eat a salad a day...but 2lbs worth???
can you give a sample of your daily food???

thanks

[daisyduke]

Well said, Vandy! We follow the same program, do the same things but you have a gift for writing and explaining it better than I can.

[wisslewj]

I was eating Dark greens like kale and such with carrots as well, probably why I turned orange/yellow (as did my wife lol)

Perhaps lighter but healthy greens like lettuce and cabbage and celery more than the dark stuff would mitigate the color problem. ;)

Jeff

[LightLover]

Vandy, can you estimate for us how long you chew your food each day?


LL

[Vandy]

I would be delighted to :)

Yes, I eat 2 lbs of greens EACH day, and I recommend this for everyone, as does almost every other serious raw food guru out there such as Dr. Graham (recommends the most), Gabriel Cousens, David Wolfe, etc. It is possible, I promise, and with maybe a week's practice you will have it down. I promise. If my sister can do it in one week, my father in a few days, and me in about 3 days, ANYONE CAN DO IT! Stay positive. If you love this lifestyle (and I am sure you wouldn't be here if you didn't), then you could at least try, right?

I have a scale, and I weigh my greens weekly and sometimes even daily to make sure I get enough. Greens are extremely, extremely important (as are fruits and few fats). Most nights, this will equal about 2 medium heads of lettuce, but if the heads are tiny, I'll throw in a 3rd head. I see no pain in increasing my nutrients, especially if I have a huge exam to study for. It takes me about 45 minutes to chew, but I chew VERY well as to absorb all nutrients. Sometimes I call my mouth the "vitamix" b/c I have learned to "masticate to the max" lol. However, if I am distracted by something or online typing (as I am now , eating can take an extra 20 min. Seeing that it's night time when I eat my salads and I usually check the forums and read homework, my salads are devoured before I know it. I usually ask, "Where did my salad go?! Who ate it?!" Chacho did. Chacho is the name I have given to my stomach b/c he "comes alive" after every meal ;)

Jeff~ I have found that carrots turn me yellowish as well. I no longer eat them, especially due to hygiene principles. "If you were in a perfect paradise, surrounded by fruit from trees that you could grab with your hands, and you could pick lettuces from the ground, why would you look UNDERNEATH the soil for food?" That quote made wayyy to much sense to me.

The joy in eating sufficient greens is that I never find the need to supplement, nor do I worry about it b/c I know I am getting enough NON-ISOLATED nutrients from greens, fruits, and few fats. It sure does leave a lot of extra time to enjoy my life.

[Sunshine9]

I would say I eat a high greens diet. I get them every which way and I like to change it up...

Salads- I like to make a big salad with romaine, red leaf lettuce, arugula, spinach, whatever other tasty lettuce I can find.... with a simple dressing. Lemon juice and maybe a dash of flax oil

Kale salad- chop the kale really fine, massage with a bit of sea salt, add lemon juice, and let marinate all day. Sooo good with some tomatoes & avocado

Green soup- savory version of the green smoothie. I do this instead of a salad sometimes, and basically just blend kale, cucumber, parsley, celery, lemon... ect

Green juice - I drink about 20oz everyday, and it's great. It's all green - kale, chard, collards, cucumber, celery, lemon... I don't think I'll do this forever, but for now I feel like I am re-balancing my body and really gently getting my nutrients in

So that's about 2-4 bunches of greens a day, especially if you include celery, while not a "green" is packed with nutrition and is alkalizing. I also eat small amounts of spirulina and green powders when I feel the desire. I notice that if I neglect the green juice I feel hungry and like i'm "searching" for something all the time. Also it grounds me. With just fruit, or just fatty food, I don't feel complete. Greens are just part of it though, I think we need a healthy balance of a wide array of nutrition to be our healthiest.

I love greens, I always have since I was a kid.