Our Raw Journey Continues…
by Melissa, January 27, 2010 | Permalink
Fear not! We have not all fallen off our raw mission - we were just busy chewing 
The beginning of week two has seen quite a few folks dial back on their raw goals for a number of reasons: budgetary concerns (eating all raw and organic veggies can be pricey - and you have to eat A LOT to feel full!), time issues (cooking for a family in addition to separate raw meals is a lot of work) and plain old “I wanted a piece of bread. So I ate it.” dilemmas. On the whole, everybody is feeling quite a bit healthier due to the volume of fresh veggies and fruits that they’ve been consuming - whether they’re part of a 100% raw diet, or as a supplement to a normal diet.
I’ve kept things almost 100% raw, and I feel pretty good! I wouldn’t say that I feel abnormally amazing, but it definitely feels good to get more fruits and veggies into the diet.
Today we have Jen reporting with a little perspective on her raw food diet adventures. Enjoy!
| Okay, not to be too dramatic, but my relationship with food has changed. I went 100% raw last Monday and my body is feeling free… of cravings, of hunger, of fatigue. Restricting what I eat is not new to me; I have been a strict vegetarian since 1987-the only animal products I eat are rennet-free cheese and yogurt and I do 100% of my grocery shopping at Whole Foods. Lately, I’ll admit I’ve been a little bored with my standard recipes and have relied rather heavily on frozen dinners at work. Winter is my worst time of year when I can’t bike as much and eat too many crackers late at night and often pack on ten pounds.Well, it is nearly February and thanks to this raw diet I am NOT craving sugar and carbs at all. It is like some spell that my body has been under has been broken. I always felt like I hadn’t quite reached the next step in my healthy eating journey, and I am starting to realize that I may have had the proportion of fruits and vegetables to grains and proteins mixed up for quite some time. Starting off the morning with a fruit smoothie (my fave is currently spinach/banana/blueberry/frozen mango/acai powder/flax) has proven to be amazingly energizing and filling. I am typically not hungry until many hours later which is very unusual for me–I have never been one to diet or skip meals. I don’t even want my morning green tea anymore and except for the first couple of days, I have pretty much forgotten about my afternoon cup of black coffee and/or dark chocolate bar. I have been eating a variety of delicious salads (just discovered raw pistachios/sprouted mung, adzuki, lentils/watercress/tomatoes makes a rawesome combination and all are very high on the Aggregate Nutrient Density Index scale) and am shocked at what a rush I feel after eating certain foods raw like kale and red chard (the stems seriously are sugar sweet).
So, what does this all mean for the future… frankly, I am hoping to find a way to incorporate what my body has taught me—eat a much higher percentage of raw veggies and fruit. The toughest thing about being raw so far is I find myself cooking separately for my family and then for me (fortunately my 3 year old daughter enjoys helping me mix everything up in the blender or food processor and my partner has tried and liked some things as a side dish) but I am sad that they are not fully benefitting from all of the beautiful nutrient dense and efficient food that I am consuming. I am going to have to get creative to win over my daughter who told me she wouldn’t eat vegetables until she was 4. We’ve bargained down to 3 and a half (okay, she does eat a few but not nearly as many as I’d like) and apparently she was running around tonight while I was at work and shouting “I’m going to eat raw foods all night!” It’s a start. |
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One Response to “Our Raw Journey Continues…”
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February 8th, 2010 at 2:07 pm
I find with my family, I can seduce them with dehydrator treats like my now famous nut bars and my chocolate fudge cookies I make in my dehydrator . It is one way to get them to eat some raw protein. I’ll send you the recipes if you like.