May 2012 - 30 Day Challenge - Join at any time of the month!

[robh]

TheHealthyAdvocate, welcome.

Smallu, Braggs yes, agave yes, mrs. dash, not sure. Alissa's book has a lot of uses for Braggs Liquid Aminos. I bought the stuff because of her book. I'm glad I did. It makes a great soy sauce. Add Brags, sesame oil and gralic to anything and it's instantly Asian. :) I use the heck out of agave too. I also use raw honey, but I have no problems with it from a vegan perspective.

LexieW, sorry to hear about your slip up. Were other people involved? That's my hardest part. I eat with my friends, wife and kids who all the eat the stuff I cannot. Going out to eat is also hard. These days, I pack a fruit lunch and bring my own salad dressing.

Sorry I have not been on lately. The baby had strep throat. It messed up my free time to post.

Anyway, I'm still here and still 100% raw. Lately, I've been wanting cooked food (not sure why). I went to far as to make almond butter, make jelly, sprout wheat berries and turn them into "bread" just so I could have a PB&J (AB&J?) sandwich. I wish I could say it was good. The bread flopped and the other stuff was just really really flavorful. I didn't get the SAD PB&J experience, but it killed the craving.

I've also been jones-ing for pizza. I made Alissa's pizza a while ago, but it's just not the same as the cooked stuff I made by hand back in the day. I was thinking about adapting the SAD sauce and crust recipes I use to raw ingredients. After the epic bread failure, I'm kinda second guessing that choice. The sprouted wheat berries have a very strong flavor that doesn't jive with what I'm trying to accomplish. I saw sprouted wheat flour in the health food stuff. That has me very curious (mostly curious if it's raw).

Anyway, I'm not sure why I'm having cooked food cravings now after being free of them for so long. 811's would say I need more fruit. I think maybe it's just an indication that I'm not getting something my body is looking for.

Sorry for the rambling. It feels good to get it off my chest.

How's everyone else doing?

[LexieW]

I hear you, robh. And congratulations on your success! You're very inspiring.

To answer your question: yes, most of the time when I slip it's because I'm with other people - specifically, my bf's family. I have no problem fielding questions and potentially insulting my own family, but when it comes to his, I'm still in the phase of doing everything I can to ingratiate myself.

They're lovely people and accepting of vegatarianism, at least... but food is always a big part of gatherings (isn't it in every family?) and sometimes they just get thrown together really quickly, and I don't have time to eat beforehand or bring something with me.

I'm trying to be gentler with myself - this is a marathon, not a sprint. I'm going raw for life, not just to drop a few pounds before bikini season.

I've also accepted that I have some emotional food dependency issues - I crave my comfort foods when I'm sad, or when I'm really happy and want to celebrate. I need to work on changing my mindset, for sure.

[robh]

LexieW, what you said there echos a lot of what I feel. Food is a big part of my social life. I frequently feel left out of the celebration when everyone else is letting their hair down a little and splurging on fatty, high calorie foods that they normally do not eat. Also, I feel like a bummer. My salad and I sit there reminding everyone else that they mistreating their bodies. On top of that, I no longer drink so instead of the red-faced, happy, joking person I would be, I'm the normal, sober (non-fun) version of myself.

Anyway, that's enough negativity from me. :)

I wish you the best of luck with your boyfriend's family. I totally understand the situation. No one want to be labeled as the "raw food weirdo" when you're juts getting to know a group of people. I am sure, in time, they will get to know you and accept you. Then, you'll feel more comfortable expressing your rawfood-ness. :)

I am feeling great today. We were kinda rushed yesterday. We had to go to the store and there was no time to have dinner. I ended up picking up some veggie-based sushi in the store. The rice wasn't raw, but I don't think it's really THAT bad for me (especially if don't eat it all the time). It turned out to be a high-carb (fruit), low fat, low salt day (I didn't have any of the soy sauce). The scale rewarded me this morning with my lowest weight to date: 263 - woohoo! My body seems to go through weight loss spurts. I got up to like 266 just a couple of days ago. I think it was salt, though. That was the day I was playing with nut butters and stuff. The past two days, I've been surprised I'm losing weight so I must be in one of those spurts. I can't wait to see 25X :)

The plan today it fruit and more fruit for breakfast and lunch. Dinner will be a salad with raw ranch.

Good luck everyone!

[LexieW]

Looks like low fat agrees with you, robh. That's great, keep it up!

I cannot wait for this week to be over - stressful, and the stress has been keeping me up at night. What I need is a nice, quiet weekend with plenty of time to enjoy my delicious salads and smoothies.

I'm trying to branch out a little - bought mangoes, kiwi, some red grapes, and sugar snap peas, and clove sprouts. Fall is my favorite season, but I love the food variety of summer!

[Smallu]

Congrats, Rob!!!

I fell off the wagon two days ago. I got a pinched nerve in my back this week and something about being in massive pain plus being on pain meds plus having a bunch of food in the house that I shouldn't eat (my husband is far from raw) and running out of produce made me crave lots of salty snacky things and particularly protein (hummus, baked beans, etc.) and crackers. As a punishment, my body put back on the 3 pounds that I had lost I'm going to get back on the bandwagon tomorrow - it's payday, so I'll be able to stock up on more raw food. Also, I'm finding that being on exclusively raw, organic foods is really expensive! Do you guys have any tips for cutting costs?

[LexieW]

It's okay, Smallu - like you said, just get back on the wagon. You can do it!

As far as expense... I actually found that going raw or mostly raw was about the same in price, for me. Maybe because I shop almost exclusively at Trader Joes...

Do you shop at a big commercial market? They are frightfully expensive. Try finding foods that are in season (much easier as we transition to summer!). If fruit starts to go bad, freeze it and use it later for smoothies. Try to find a local farmers market and shop there, if you can.

[robh]

Smallu, it's a personal preference, but I don't mind eating non-organic fruits and veggies. That helps lower costs too. Do you have any farmer's markets near you? or road side stands? you'll find good deals there. Here's another idea:

http://www.careersingrocery.com/inde...Links/CatID/43

Search by zip code to find a wholesaler near you. The site is for career opportunities but it's still handy for those of us in the US looking for places to shop for fruit in giant quantities.

These places supply grocery stores. Grocery stores all want under ripe produce so it can sit around for a while. Go to one of these places and ask them if they any ripe fruit you can buy (the stuff the grocery stores won't buy). They will want to sell it so you'll get a deal. You'll end up buying more than you can eat (you buy by the case), but you can always freeze it.

I've never done the wholesale thing. I have this funky produce chain near me that trucks stuff in from Latin America. My bananas are about 1/2 the size of the Dole bananas and they have a sticker that says "product of Columbia". They sell huge bags of fruits and veggies for a buck or two tops. I'm pretty lucky in this respect. If anyone is in the Eastern PA region, "Produce Junction" has 5-6 locations in this area.

LexieW, sorry to hear about your stressful week. Friday is just around the corner. :) I'm pretty stoked about the weekend. We are going to see Battleship with some friends. It's a sort of birthday celebration. I'll be 35 on the 22nd of May.

[LexieW]

Another May birthday! Let us know how the movie is, robh. I actually work in the film biz and know the writer of that movie, so I'm really hoping it's a fun summer flick

And yes, I'm stoked for the weekend. I actually might try to go back to the Korean spa... so relaxing on so many levels.

[robh]

That movie looks really good. I've been waiting for a while.

I made a nice salad last night and figured I'd share:



It's got romaine, spinach, spring mix, yellow gooseneck squash, zucchini, baby carrots, tomatoes, craisins, raw ranch, raw pumpkin seeds, guacamole and salsa. It was yummy!

Yesterday, I had a lot bananas, a few oranges, a couple pears, lots of water, this salad and some dehydrated banana chips (yum) for dessert. The guacamole and the raw ranch where the only forms of fat I ate (include a tiny bit of salt too).

I'm starting to wonder if it's unrelated, but I got on the scale this morning and it said 260. I had to weight myself 2 more times because I just didn't believe I'd lost 3 lbs over night. I must have been holding water or something. To say the least, I'm pretty excited about it. This is no surprise as I have a lot of weight to loose, but I went through a 2-3 week period where the scale didn't move at all.

My food plan today is going to be a repeat of yesterday. I have a watermelon and a pineapple that I NEED to cut up. They are getting really ripe. That'll probably be the only change.

That 30-day mark is coming up for me. It's pretty sweet that I've been raw for the entire month of May. Well, there are things like that little bit of rice I had with the sushi and the oatmeal in my zucchini bread, but I don't count that stuff. I have not said: "OK, I taking a meal off and eating with you guys." this month. I used to do that on a weekly basis up until like just a few week ago when I committed to 100% raw.

Anyway, I'm rambling. Good luck everyone. :)

edit: one last thing. I have been feeling REALLY good the last few days. I've been feeling awesome ever since I went raw, but there is a noticeable spring in my step and a huge smile on my face the past couple of days. Maybe as you stick to this thing for longer, your body continues to improve and you start to feel more alive than ever before. It's great. This "raw high" is why I do this. Getting down to a healthy weight is important, but honestly it's secondary to feeling like a million bucks all the time.

[LexieW]

This "raw high" is why I do this. Getting down to a healthy weight is important, but honestly it's secondary to feeling like a million bucks all the time.

Thanks for the reminder! I've experienced it too, though in the past my habits would always lead me back to eating a bit of cooked food and the raw high would leave.

I've been doing really well the last two days - green smoothies (I'd never thought of using fresh OJ with the greens - so much better!), salads with differing greens, tomatos, avocados, beets, spring peas, and lots of various fruit.

Have a great weekend, everybody!

[Leoncio25]

I am Leoncio.

I was searching some website on google then I find this,Its a great website and I love the content of this site,
You can Watch Your Latest Videos, TV Shows (Series) and Japanese Animation (Anime) Online Free.
manga, animation, japanese animation, anime, animated girls series, anime girls shows, anime girls series, tv shows, tv series, tv programmes, watch online, stream online, watch tv online, watch tv in UK online, watch tv in USA online, online free,videos free, shows free, anime free.

manga

You can Visit at:

http://ReelTuner.com

[magglepie]

Today's been just sort of blah. I woke up with stomach pains (gone now, probably due to indigestion or something) and haven't really been hungry. I ate a ton of food yesterday, and had a banana earlier, but I couldn't finish it. It looks like today might just be a fasting day for me.... That's ok.

[Smallu]

Happy Monday, everyone! Thanks for all the support and suggestions! You guys are so awesome. Yes, I have to buy organic because it's important for me to "vote with my dollar" and I don't agree with putting pesticides and fertilizers into the environment :/ So, yes, I do most of my shopping at Whole Foods, PCC, or Central Market -- all of which are expensive. I also have a weekly produce bin delivered from Full Circle Farm - I like to buy local, straight off of the farm when I can to support the local organic farmers and to get the freshest food, but it's expsensive, too. I also grow my own, but have a very teeny tiny backyard and am not very far along in developing it. I do have some lettuce/chard/collards coming up and about 40 strawberry plants that are just starting to flower. I feel like I'm having to eat 2 bunches of greens per day to get my protein and TONS of fruit throughout the morning to stay full; I think that's what's driving my produce bill up. I definitely like the idea of contacting the wholesalers! I'm going to check that out for sure!

So, I'm back in the game today; I'm all restocked and re-grouped. I have felt so awful and unhealthy since I fell off the wagon. It was less a choice of getting my butt back in gear but a necessity. I suffer from fibromyalgia and got a lot of relief when I was eating only raw foods, but the last several days that I slipped have really taken a huge physical toll on my body. I'm excited to be back on board and hope to be feeling better in just a matter of days. This morning I made a green juice for breakfast (broccoli, lettuce, carrots, celery, orange, appler, ginger, garlic). I'm going to have a grapefruit and a peach and some walnuts soon for my mid-morning snack. Then I made a huge bowl of Ani Phyo's Vietnamese Cabbage Salad that I will devour for lunch. I can't WAIT!

My cats have been really unhealthy, so I started them on a raw food diet last week (Darwin's Natural Pet Foods). The turn-around in my 6-pound, 12-year-old Himalayan in just a few days has been amazing. He had to have all of his teeth pulled 6 years ago due to severe dental disease, a common problem in the breed. He has suffered from chronic colitis all of his life and was recently diagnosed with polycystic kidney disease (another problem associated with Persians) and my holistic vet said that the processed kibble was taking a toll on his kidneys now that they are starting to age/worsen. He has dropped two pounds in the last 18 months He's starting to fill out a little bit (I can't see it on the scale, yet, but I can feel it), has stopped the excessive drinking/urination, is no longer constipated/bloated and has his appetite back. Now that I'm offering him raw food he won't touch the kibble he's been eating for the last 10 years!! My tabbies coats are getting shinier and I'm hoping to get them down to 9 pounds from 12. Turns out a raw food diet is as healthy for our pets, potentially, as it is for us...which I guess makes perfect sense :)

[LexieW]

Happy Monday, everybody! I stayed raw this weekend - woohoo! I got that raw high that robh mentioned, and I love it. My body is showing the benefits, too: my skin is glowing, my eyes are bright and the whites are very white, my body is ready for swimsuit season

One tricky thing, though - how does one eat kiwis neatly? I brought one to work...and I had to put it back in my lunch box. I have no idea how to eat it!

[Smallu]

Congrats, Lexie! The neatest way to eat a kiwi that I've found is to cut it in half (not lengthwise, but crosswise like you would a grapefruit), then take a spoon and scoop out the fruit. The shell forms its own bowl which is really handy. Here are some photos: http://hambaba.com/notes/best-way-to-eat-a-kiwi.html

I'm feeling much better today after just one day back on the raw diet. My chronic pain is better and I lost a pound overnight and my skin is clearing up. It's amazing what happens when you give your body a day off from toxins and processed/cooked foods.

Have a great week, everyone!