Smoothie Feast Ends-My Conclusions and Zukay Live Foods Quick Review

I made it through my smoothie feast with no cheats! In fact, on Tuesday I saw a piece of pineapple on the table and put it in my mouth, then I spit it out remembering that I am on my feast. I feel my willpower growing with each challenge I present myself with.

The reason I went on this smoothie feast was because last week my husband and I had some company, and we made them some raw jalapeno burgers. We made this twice that week and I gained 7 lbs. I am trying so hard to lose weight, gaining 7 lbs on raw food was a big blow to me. I wanted to make sure I released those pounds quickly so that I could move on with my original weight loss goals. Before last week the scale said 251.8 give or take a few ounces. After last week it said 259!! I was horrified! So now today, I get to step on the scale and see what a 1 week long smoothie feast can do.

Drum roll please... and the scale says....251.6!! And the crowd goes wild! Yay! I completely released the 7 lbs and reached my goal! I am so proud of myself for working so hard, even when I wanted to give up and just eat. Thank you everyone for the support and love. I know I could not have done it without you!

So what conclusions have I made from doing a week long smoothie feast? Well for one, the first few days are the easiest. By mid week I was really craving solid food. But then, by the end it was easier again; it became habit. I definitely think anyone can do it. Plus, creating all those yummy smoothies was such a treat!

I also think that I cleaned out my intestines a little. The first few days I was releasing much more than what I was ingesting. It evened out by the end of the week.

You can definitely lose weight on a smoothie feast. Just about anyone can! I would definitely go longer if I could afford it.

It's a great way to share the gloriousness of green smoothies. You tell anyone you are on a smoothie feast and they almost automatically want to know more. Even kids enjoy learning about the smoothies.

You have to make sure that you are getting enough calories. It's so easy to sip a smoothie or two all day long and only get a few hundred calories. The last thing you want is to put your body into starvation mode. Drink about 4 smoothies, or more each day. I added an avocado or 2 each day in one of my smoothies as well.

Smoothie feasts are a lot of fun! It's easy to stay motivated when you are enjoying yourself!

If I did it again, and I probably will, the one thing I would change is that I would buy even more ingredients. I would buy more non sweet fruit, because sometimes too much sugar is just that, too much. I would buy more high calorie foods. And I may even drink more green smoothies, and less fruit only smoothies. I do think the banana milk that I added about mid week was a great idea!

The first meal I had today was a banana. It was the best banana ever. I also ate a pear, yum yum.

This morning when I went shopping the local natural food store was giving out samples of Zukay raw fermented live products. I tried garlic dill relish, horseradish dill relish, mild salsa viva, and hot salsa viva. It was all really tasty, and I especially loved the hot salsa viva (I love hot and spicy), so I bought some. It was $4.99 for 11.5 oz, which was a little out of my price range, but after the smoothie feast, the idea of trying something new was intriguing.

So when I opened it today, it started to bubble up, a lot. I tried putting the lid back on, but I could feel the carbon dioxide pushing on the lid. For fear of breaking the glass, I took the lid off and some of the salsa spilled over the side. Rory said, "I never thought I would want to eat a salsa that bubbled like that when I opened it". I grabbed a spoon and put a spoonful in my mouth. It moved around on my tongue, splashing and playing, it felt like it was alive. It had a wonderful flavor! If you ever had fermented foods (kombucha, sauerkraut, etc.) it has that distinct fermented flavor, mixed with fresh salsa. This has to be the best salsa I ever had! The best way to enjoy it, I found, was in small quantities. Just adding a spoonful to whatever you are eating gives it just the right touch.

We didn't know what we wanted to put it on. We had no bread or chips made, so I decided to just make a simple guacamole, and put that over diced tomatoes. So it was pretty much a thick layer of diced tomatoes, a thin layer of guacamole, and a spoonful of salsa. It was heaven!

I did some research on the site and found that it is not 100% raw, but high raw. The Zukay website states, "The relishes are almost completely raw. The salsas are also mostly raw, though they do have tomato paste for taste and texture." Even so, I do plan on buying these again for their taste and probiotic properties. If you get any, let me know what you think!

Again, thank you to everyone for your support. The smoothie feast ends here, but the raw food challenge is still very much on!

Smoothie Feast Continued and Rebirthing Session 2

I just wanted to check in here with my smoothie feast first. I have still been drinking smoothies all week, but I have only 1 new recipe for you. I liked some of the ones I already made this week so much that I am just repeating most of them! Although today I did have 2 new yummy creations. The first was a curry pumpkin soup that Rory made for me. It was a surprise, so I did not get the ingredients for it.

The second was a cherry smoothie that I made:

2 cups cherries
2 bananas
water
Blend!

Very simple, and very tasty!
I'm not searching in the fridge anymore, thankfully, so I am much more adapted to "smoothiehood". I am also not using the bathroom as much, so I may have adapted in other ways as well. As I promised, I did up my intake of calories the last 2 days. I've added more bananas and banana milk, which should bring me to about 1300 calories, give or take.

I am looking forward to a solid meal. I make food for my daughter, and a salad for Rory each evening, and I really am craving them. I crave solid food now more than I ever craved cooked food! I am really enjoying the smoothie feast, but at the same time, I can't wait for it to be over.

Rebirthing

So Chris came over again this week, and I bravely did another Rebirthing session with him. It started out the same as the first time. I was in a lot of pain, especially in my shoulders, and breathing was a chore, like running a marathon. He kept telling me to keep going, and I hated him for that. I just wanted to stop. But I didn't, I stayed strong because I was determined to find what Rory found his first time.

Just when the session was about to end, and we both thought that I wasn't going to get "there" my breath slowed down, and I started to feel it. I have to say, it shocked me quite a bit, and I think that shock pulled me away from it a bit. I started to feel very light, and each time I took an in breath, I started to rise. I would breathe again, and I would rise another few inches. Then the room disappeared, and I was above the ocean. Each time I breathed, I floated higher on a wave. I felt so wonderful, and free. I honestly felt like I could just float away. Then, I started sinking, and the room came back. I realized I had to use the bathroom (darn smoothie feast!) and it was over.

I asked Rory if that is what he felt, and he responded, "not at all". Apparently I only got a small "drip" of what it could feel like. If only I could let myself go a little more, I would feel it so much more powerfully.

Ironically, Rory's second session turned out to be much like my first, which goes to show you that they can be different each time.

I'll let you know on Saturday the final results of my smoothie feast. I can't wait to step on the scale and see what I have accomplished. My goal is to lose the 7 lbs I gained last week from eating too many nuts.

What's My Caloric Intake on a Smoothie Feast?

Click this pic to make it bigger

I've been getting a lot of questions about my caloric intake while I am on this smoothie feast, so I decided to log into nutridiary.com to figure it out. I used my meal plan from day 3 as my example. I found that I am eating 1122 calories each day, 43 of them from fat. Here is a break down of what I found out:

Calories 1122
Calories From Fat 43

Total Fat 5g
Saturated Fat 1g

Cholesterol 0mg
Sodium 459mg
Total Carbohydrate 282g
Dietary Fiber 42g
Sugars 161g

Protein 20g
Vitamin A 625%
Vitamin C 520%

Calcium 38%
Iron 61%

I realize the calories are low, but keep in mind that I am not exercising this week. I wanted this to be sort of an experiment (hence the title, "raw food experiment") so I didn't want to add another variable. I did some research (not too extensive, but just enough for these purposes) I found that to lose 1 pound per week, you should burn off, or limit your calories by 500. I was eating around 2,100 calories a day before the smoothie feast (except for the "way too many nuts week") so I am obviously eating too few calories. I'm not super worried about it since I feel fine, and I only have 3 more days left, but I do plan to drink more smoothies tomorrow to try to get my calories up. I know that if my body thinks it is starving, I will retain weight instead of lose it. That's the last thing I want!

So today I dank a grapefruit smoothie for breakfast. The first few sips were a little "surprising" because the grapefruit has such a strong flavor, but if you can get past that, it tastes great!

1 grapefruit, peeled
1 banana
water and ice

This was really good, and luckily for me, no one wanted me to share! lol It didn't last too long in my stomach, so I had to make another smoothie about 2 hours later.

1 large bunch of dandelion greens
4 oz spinach
3 bananas
2 cups strawberries

This was good, but dandelion greens can be strong, so a lot of people don't like them in smoothies. The first time I had it in a smoothie I spit it up. haha! But now I love it!

Rory made me another grapefruit smoothie while I was rebirthing with Chris. This one was a little different:

1 grapefruit, peeled
2 bananas
1/2 cup peaches
1/2 cup grapes

This was really good, but to be honest, I had no idea he added the other ingredients. I guess the taste of the grapefruit canceled them out.

Around dinner time tonight I had a savory smoothie. It wasn't as great as the others I made, but it was still good. At this point in the week, I am starting to run out of ingredients. I know I will make it through to the end, but I can imagine the food will be less and less flavorful.


1 avocado
1 whole romaine head
2 large celery stalks
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup onion
1 garlic clove
Italian seasonings

This was the first real fatty smoothie I made this week. The avocado blends so well in a savory smoothie, just remember to add it last since it doesn't do well with extended blending.

I would like to hear any one's opinion about the caloric intake. Too much, too little, just right, or maybe it doesn't matter since I feel great and it's only 1 week? Please, let me know.

Smoothie Feast Day 3 - Smoothie Side Effects

It's day three and I am still doing very well. Not too many cravings, but I am hungry if I don't have a smoothie to nurse. I've been drinking about 200 oz of smoothie a day.

Day Two meal plan
I woke up and I was already very hungry. Luckily I had made myself a smoothie and put it in the fridge.

2 dates
1/2 cup pineapple
1 handful blackberries
1 cup strawberries
1/4 lb spinach
1/4 lb romaine
enough water to make it blend
This was so tasty!

Later I made a really great savory smoothie (soup). I shared it with Rory and we both devoured it. He isn't on a smoothie feast, so he chopped up veggies to add to his.

2 Tbsp Dulce flakes
dash salt & pepper to taste
1 very large celery stalk (or 2 small ones)
3 tomatoes
2 carrots
1 garlic clove
1/4 cup onion
1 Tbsp chili powder
2 giant leaves of Swiss chard
enough water to make it blend

chop everything up, add some water and blend! This was a great treat, and very filling.

I also had another one of those delicious fruit smoothies from day 1. MMMMM

I felt really good yesterday, like I could run a Marathon. Instead, I decluttered and went through a lot of our old stuff to release some of it. I really do not like owning a lot of stuff, but we seem to have acquired a lot of books. Rory and I went through them and found over 100 lbs of books to take to a used book store. It feels really good to do that. When we move, we will not have the storage space for all those books, and even if we did, I don't want to lug them around for the rest of my life. We still have over 800 books, but I haven't gone through my daughter's collection yet.

We were up so late last night, that I started to feel hungry. I decided to make some banana milk:


3 bananas
2 cups water
tiny piece of vanilla bean pod
1-2 big handful of ice

Oh this was good!

Today I am not feeling as well. I am much more tired, drained, and unmotivated. Rory thinks that I could be detoxing. I hope so! I didn't want to get out of bed this morning.

I started out my day with a green smoothie. It took a lot of motivation to make it, since I was really feeling out of sorts. I was also really grumpy, and no one likes to be grumpy (or likes to be around grumpy people, apparently)

1/2 lb spring mix greens
1/4 lb spinach
2 bananas
1 handful blackberries
1 cup strawberries
enough water to make it blend

This was good, and satisfying. It did bring up my mood, but not 100%
I was still hungry after I finished that, so I made another smoothie

1/2 lb dandelion greens
4bananas
1 cup strawberries
enough water to make it blend


This makes enough for a full blender. It was pretty tasty, and I shared some of it with Rory.

Around dinner time, I had more banana milk. I make mine thick and smoothie like, but if you add a little more water, it would be great over a raw cereal, or a cooked one even.

Side effects that I have noticed so far

I've been going to the bathroom a lot. The first day was the worst, I was doing #1 and #2 every 20 minutes. I was really shocked about the #2. Where did all of that come from??

Another side effect is that I am not sleeping quite as much. I am staying up later and waking up earlier. When I am awake, I have more energy, except for today. I wonder what tomorrow will be like?

My teeth get really grimey throughout the day. I feel like I need to brush them 4 -5 times a day. I thought that I wouldn't need to floss as much, but it's just the opposite, I need to floss more!

I am also looking in the fridge a lot. I'm not hungry, I just want something crunchy in my mouth. I guess this is taking awhile to get used to.

Lastly, I almost always need a smoothie in front of me to feel comfortable. If I haven't had any in about 30-45 minutes, I start to feel really hungry. I wonder if other people have felt like this?


Tomorrow I have another rebirthing session with Chris. If I am not feeling better tomorrow, I may have to cancel. I will see how I feel and let you know how everything goes.

Thank you everyone for so much support! I am really enjoying this smoothie feast so far, and I am excited to see how everything turns out in the end.

Smoothie Feast Day 1

Today was day 1 of my smoothie feast. I'm not hungry by any means, but my stomach feels "light". I can't really explain it, but it feels like my stomach isn't weighed down. I also feel really good. I know it's only day 1, but I feel like I have a little more energy today.

When I woke up I made an entire Vitamix full of green smoothie. That's over 60 oz.

1 whole bunch of parsley, including stems
4 dates
1 cup cherries
1 cup pineapple
enough water to make it blend

It wasn't the best smoothie in the world, but it was good. It took me about 3 hours to finish that. So I made a fruit smoothie around lunchtime.


1 1/2 cup pineapple
1 cup strawberries
1 cup peach
1/2 cup red grapes
1 banana
enough water to make it blend

This was so yummy! I had to make it twice since everyone else had some of it. I ran out of bananas for the second batch, and I have to say, it's much tastier with the banana.

For my "dinner" smoothie I settled for (everything is "settling" after that fruit smoothie!) another green smoothie

1/2 lb spinach
1 cup strawberries
1 cup blackberries
4 dates

This one was pretty good, but a little tart. I can't wait until our bananas our ripe!

I did catch myself opening the refrigerator a lot today, probably looking for something to chew. It's amazing how chewing becomes so addictive!

One downfall to this is that I am going to the bathroom...a lot!

Smoothie Feast Starting Saturday!

Since Jan 1st, I have been 100% raw with no bloopers, cheats, or cravings! Yay for me! I lost 8 lbs in the first week. I did learn something very important about myself this week though. We had a few friends over on a couple different occasions, which lent for making some tasty gourmet raw food. So we made Jalapeno burgers from The Sunny Raw Kitchen. I just love those burgers. I know, I know, I really cannot eat nuts because they give me a stomach ache, but these burgers are just so tasty! We made them twice this week, since we had so much company. Which means, I ate a lot of them.

I ended up gaining back 7 lbs. How annoying is that? I am finally 100% raw and I start gaining weight! Well, lesson learned. Now I know that I should definitely stay away from nuts. I still feel very bloated from the whole ordeal, which lead me to my newest challenge...

Starting Saturday, Jan. 24Th I am going to do a 1 week smoothie feast. I wanted to do a 2 week feast, but I just went shopping and spent waaaay too much money for doing it this week. I don't know if I will have that option next week. Well, anyway, it's my first time, so 1 week will probably be enough. Of course a juice feast is ideal, but even more expensive, and I'm not sure I am ready for that, physically.


Rory says that this feast will help me lose weight and give my digestive system a small break, which gives my body the energy to take care of other things. Digestion is one of the biggest energy drainers of the body, so this week I will have a chance to put that energy to use elsewhere. I imagine that I will have a lot of energy too, since smoothies usually give me a nice burst.

I don't think that I will have too much of a problem with cravings, since at this point I am drinking a smoothie for lunch and breakfast anyway.

Wish me luck! I will keep you posted on how it goes. I'm actually pretty excited, because I love the way I feel when I drink smoothies anyway. Woohoo! Can I start now? :)

Rebirthing with Chris

I had my first Rebirthing session with Chris on Monday, and I have to say that I'm curious to have another one. According to Leonard Orr's website:

"Rebirthing-Breathwork, aka Intuitive Energy Breathing or Conscious Energy Breathing, is the ability to breathe Energy as well as air. It is the art of learning to breathe from the Breath Itself. Rebirthing is perhaps the most valuable self-healing ability that humans can learn. We can not have disease and relaxation in the same space at the same time. Relaxation is the ultimate healer. Every breath induces relaxation. Therefore, breathing is the basic healer. Conscious Energy Breathing is the most natural healing ability of all. This ability involves merging the inhale with the exhale in a gentle relaxed rhythm in an intuitive way that floods the body with Divine Energy."

When I went into this, I really had no idea what rebirthing was. Chris explained to me that he was a trained rebirther and that I would not be the same person once I did it. Well, that wasn't much information, but I was up for a try.

We went into my room where I laid down on my bed while Chris sat on a chair beside me. He told me to breath very deeply, filling my lungs, and concentrating on my in breath. I had to be sure that the breaths were connected, that there were no gaps between the breaths. I did this for an hour, and it was exhausting at first, but the more I did it the deeper I could fill my lungs. I knew that something more was supposed to happen, I could feel it. I was blocking it for some reason. Chris told me that it was self love, I was protecting myself from whatever was supposed to happen. I felt exactly that, I felt that I was protecting myself from the unknown.

The session lasted 2 hours, and when it was over I was a little disappointed that I never felt what everyone said I would feel. Chris said that many people do not feel it the first time, and that we would do more sessions. I did however, feel like I could breath so much stronger, especially with my asthma. I felt refreshed and like it was a whole new day!

Rory was next, and his was much quicker, and completely different. He didn't seem to block himself at all. Of course, I can't explain what he felt, but I could see that he was feeling something. His hands and fingers twisted up and he could not control them and he had a constant smile on his face. I asked him to write a little about what he felt:

"My experience with the re-birthing breathing session is ridiculously hard to describe, if you'd have told me that I was gonna feel the way I did, I would've probably thought "Yeah right". I hear people talk a lot about being "blissed out" well by the end of the breathing exercises, I knew what the heck they were talking about! Amazing experience!! I'd really be at a loss to describe exactly how it felt for me, and as I told Chris, even if I had the perfect words to describe the experience, they wouldn't be able to come close to actually portraying it. Some words that I can throw together to paint a brief picture of what it was like would be, a relaxing yet totally exhilarating, release of physical and emotional tensions, shattering internal walls, and a general vibrating sensation around my heart. Amazing stuff!"

Rory hasn't been the same since. If you knew Rory in person, you would know that he is always happy and positive. Well, since his rebirthing, he has been even happier (if that's possible!)

I didn't have the same experience, but I do plan to do the rebirthing again and hopefully I will experience more the next time.

I just received the Kreativ Blogger Award!

I received this wonderful Kreativ Blogger award and I am so honored to have received it from my favorite artist, Lisa Cole (...seeing stars...)! Thank you so very much Lisa!

Now the fun part is that I get to tell you 7 things that I love, and then I nominate 7 other beautiful people for this award.

1. I love my daughter. I wake up every single morning happy to see her smiling face. I cannot think of a better way to spend my day than to spend it with her. She is such an amazing person and I am so proud of the very young woman she is turning into.

2. My husband, Rory. I love him very dearly. He is the one that holds me together. He always knows exactly what I need and he is always there for me when I need him the most. Rory is an amazing human being, so loving, caring, and especially honest. I trust him with my life, my heart, and my soul.

3. My friends. I have to say that I have some of the most amazing friends. I don't see them very often because of our physical location, but I know without a shadow of a doubt that if I needed them, they would be there for me. They have spread out all over the world since high school and college, so no matter where I go, I know I will have a friend nearby.

4. Music is so inspirational to me. I love music that has a positive message. Michael Franti, Bright Eyes, Aeon Spoke, Phish, and so many others. They all inspire me and show me that there is goodness in the world. There is one song by Bright Eyes that reminds me of my husband so much that it makes me feel so wonderful and loved, even when Rory is not around.

Bright Eyes - First Day of My Life


5. I love nature and the outdoors. I can't say that enough. I feel at peace when I am surrounded by nature. The color of green is so calming, and to be in the forest surrounded by beautiful shades of green, with streaks of bright sunlight caressing the leaves that are already dancing in the breeze...I can't really express how wonderful that is to me.

6. I love creating something that I can be proud of. Making something for a friend or family member that I put hard work into and just looks lovely is a gift to me. Whether it's a delicious raw meal for a friend, a birthday card for family, or a beautiful bag as a holiday gift, making these for other people makes me feel so good.

7. Last but not least, I love meeting amazing people on the Internet. I love that I can meet this wonderful, beautiful woman from Texas, which is sooo far away, and feel like I can have a real friendship with her. I love that I can meet wonderful artists like Lisa when I probably would have never met her otherwise. I love that there are forums like Raw Fu and Give It To Me Raw, where people can talk about their experiences and support each other. And I love writing this blog, in the hopes that someone somewhere might read it and feel inspired to share their story as well.

Well, that's my 7, but I have so many more left unspoken! There is so much in this wonderful world to love!

Now I get to nominate 7 other wonderful people!

1. The beautiful HiHoRosie has such a wonderful and creative blog about her journey with raw foods, and lately about her exciting pregnancy.

2. Earthmother has one of the most beautiful and inspiring raw food blogs I have found. It's just amazing!

3. LouLou has a very well written blog that I've only recently discovered. She takes really cute pictures and makes some great food for those who are transitioning to raw food, or don't plan to be 100% raw.

4. I found Paulina's blogs one day a few months ago and I thought they were both brilliant. The one that I am nominating is a blog that she uses to write amazing book reviews, which has inspired me to read more!

5. My friend Tawni Lay. She's new to blogging, but she has so much heart, and so much to share.

6. Nibbit is a young woman living in the Netherlands and she is sharing a very detailed, honest and personal story of her raw food journey.

7. Lastly, Rory's blog is very special to me. I never knew that he was such a wonderful writer until I started to read his blogs. He puts so much energy and love into his posts and that just makes me love what he writes so much more.

I was limited to only 7, but there are so many more wonderful people out there that I could nominate. Thank you Lisa for giving me this wonderful award!

Over the flu, and trying out Rebirthing-Breathwork

Well, I've been away for a few days because I had the flu. I don't get sick very often, and it doesn't usually hit me very hard, but this time I could barely get out of bed. I wonder if maybe I was detoxing a bit while I was sick? Or maybe it just happened to be a really mean bug. I'm better now and moving on from all that. I managed to stay 100% raw the entire time I was ill! Woohoo! Actually, being 100% is still very easy for me and I am so happy that I found a way that works for me. I know that when I tried to follow someone elses plan, it never worked. I really think everyone has different dietary needs and the best way to get raw to work, is to find out what works best for you.

So in my last post I said that my friend invited Rory and I to a little dinner party with a special guest. We had a blast, the food was great and the conversation was phenomenal! The special guest was Chris Carlton, who runs the website Purely Raw. Chris is an amazing person who went from 363 pounds on the SAD diet and switched to 100% raw and now looks fantastic at 196 pounds! His story was very inspiring to me. In fact, he shared with me some of the things that he learned along the way that helped him, and now I feel like I'm not alone and I can definitely do this. I've met, in person, someone else that has done it.


One of the very important things he told me was to only weigh myself once a month. He said that if I do it more than that, I will notice my plateaus and become discouraged. This is exactly what happened to me sometime in November. I was weighing myself every day and constantly losing weight. Then, all the sudden I wasn't losing anything and I pretty much gave up. Well, I don't know if I can go a whole month, but I will at least wait every 2 weeks. The last time I weighed myself it said 255 (Yay! that's - 51 lbs) so I won't weigh myself again until the 28th (I hope).

Another thing that Chris taught me about myself is that I have trained myself to breath poorly. For example, being over weight but a lover of the outdoors and hiking, I have often found myself in situations where I am out of breath while others are not. So what do I do? I try breathing differently to hide my wheezing. I have therefore trained myself to breath poorly when I exercise or do extraneous activities. Chris taught me a 20 connected breaths (check out this video for info) routine that I absolutely love and possibly later in the week he will do some Rebirthing-Breathwork with me. I am very excited, and if it happens I am sure to blog about it. In the meantime, I will definitely be more conscious of my breathing when I exercise.

Some other cool stuff happened last weekend before I got sick, but I don't want to cram it all in one blog. I hope no one else is feeling ill out there! I don't take medicines, so what helps me most are steamy showers, garlic, green smoothies, water, and ginger shots. Also, I noticed that if I am able to sleep with my face facing downward, then it doesn't turn into chest congestion. It's not comfortable, but much better than day after day of chest congestion. I would love to sleep on a massage table with a hole for my face!

I feel like a whole new person!

It's been 10 days that I've been 100% raw. Woohoo! I've lost 5.5 pounds and 3.5 inches in my waist in 10 days! I've also been drinking a lot more water, so much has changed for me this year!

Rory and I were watching a video by Freelea last week and she said that she drinks 1 1/2 - 2 Liters of water each morning. I said to Rory, "How could anyone drink so much at once? I can't even drink more than 1 cup without feeling bloated and sick." He told me that my bloatedness after such a small amount of water was not normal, and maybe I am chronically dehydrated. I rarely do drink much water, maybe 1 cup a day and sometimes less. I drink so much smoothie I barely think about water! We decided that I was going to start drinking a bunch of water each day. Starting out kinda small, we filled a 1.5 liter glass bottle of water and decided that I would start by drinking that each day. And I have! I actually do feel much better for it, except that I am going to the bathroom a lot. Rory thinks I am still adjusting to the sudden increase of water, and probably my bladder needs to grow as well. I'm sure in a few weeks I will feel normal again.

Another thing I've been doing different is I changed the way that I eat, completely. I've done this 100% thing before, but last time it was pure agony. I was always hungry, grumpy, tired, and craving cooked food. I seem to have low blood sugar, so when I am feeling hungry, I get really irritable. I would wake up in the morning and I had to cut up fruit and put it in a bowl with maybe some milk. It took time, and in that state of mind, I didn't have time. It really messed with me. It's always been easier for Rory because has has more options with raw food. I can't eat nuts and seeds, so everything I ate was different. So finally I would have my breakfast, but then a little bit later I was hungry again, so I did it all over again. When it was time to make food for my daughter, I was hungry and always ended up eating some of hers. I always felt like I was hungry on 100% raw food, and so I figured maybe it wasn't for me.

Oh, but it is! This time, I have done none of that. I don't have cravings, feel hungry, tired, or grumpy. I don't even want cooked food. In fact, the last time I even thought about it was when I decided to give up the food I was making for my daughter and just say no!

What I've been doing really isn't that amazing, or difficult, or anything. I pretty much wake up, grab a banana and some water. Then, about 1 hour later I am usually hungry again, so I either eat another banana or some other fruit. Around noonish I make a big blender full of green smoothie. I used to share it among my family and only have 1 glass, but now I am selfish and I drink the whole thing myself. This takes about 1 hour. I don't really feel hungry again until later in the evening, so then I make a big giant salad. I always liked salad, but I hate the same old salad. So I make different dressings, or I marinate something, whatever it takes to make it different. I eat a lot of salad, and usually Rory makes me some sort of yummy smoothie to go with it. This is really working for me. I just eat when I am hungry, stop when I am full. I have to eat much more often, but Rory says that I am going to boost my metabolism this way. Yay!



Of course, raw food has a reputation of giving a person a lot of extra energy. With all this extra energy, I've been exercising a lot more, and getting tons more done around the house.

Tonight Rory and I are going to a friends house for a raw dinner, with a special guest. I'm not sure who it is yet since it is a surprise, but I know that he lives in Britain and he is a raw foodie. He has a website, but my friend wouldn't tell me who it is so I can't relate it. When I find out, I will definitely post about it.

I hope that you are having a great weekend!

My Vision Board

Today I made a vision board. It's my first one ever and I did it on my 2009 weight loss and exercise goals. Vision boards are pretty much a representation of what you want to happen in your life over the designated period, and it is done usually through pictures and quotes. For example, if I was interested in purchasing my dream home, I would put a picture on my vision board of what my dream home looked like and then it would appear in my life. The idea is to find pictures that have a lot of meaning to you and then to look at your board each day and really meditate on those things happening to you. It can also be used as a reminder of what you need to do to make those things happen.

On my vision board I started out with the quote, "I can do this...I know I can. It's just going to take time a patience." I chose that quote mostly because the last time that I tried losing weight I lost 42lbs, but it seemed to come off so slow to me, and I gave up. Imagine where I would be if I didn't give up! Which leads me to the next quote by Robert Schuller, "A year from now you may wish you had started today". I'm sure that rings true for a lot of people in a lot of areas of their life, and it definitely does for me. Looking at that quote every day will remind me that I want to do this NOW so that in a year from now I can look back and be proud of what I accomplished. The last quote that I chose states, "Your body keeps an accurate journal regardless of what you write down". This one is important for me because I found that many times I am in denial about what I have eaten. For example, I may eat something horrible for me and I will either block it from my mind like it never happened, or I will look for all of the positives in the food and ignore the negatives, "French fries are healthy, they are made from potatoes!"

The pictures on my board include: people running, which is something I have always wanted to do, people doing step aerobics, which I used to do and would like to get back into, and of a woman doing yoga, I love yoga. I have a big "Curves" logo because I love to exercise with other people and I read a lot about Curves and found it interesting. When we move to Connecticut we will be only 1.79 miles from a Curves and I am planning on joining. There are a few barriers to jump over before I can, so I made sure to add that in hopes that it will help me reach that goal.

I also have a picture of a hiking trail because I would love to go on an extended hike with my family this year. Maybe a few days or weeks. I also have a home garden picture on the vision board because I would love to be able to grow a garden when we move to Connecticut in the Spring. There are a few pictures of beautifully fresh fruits and vegetables so that I can manifest abundant fresh produce into my life.

The last picture I have is a woman measuring her waistline. I want to have a much smaller waistline by the end of 2009!

I did my board on my computer and printed it out two times. I put on near my computer and the other on the bed stand beside my bed, that way it will be the first thing I see in the morning. I also made it my screen saver and desktop picture. This way, I will never forget! I am going to see if I can get my daughter to make one for herself tomorrow, and maybe even Rory will make one.

If anyone else has a vision board or plans to make one, I would love to see it! Sharing my board with other people helps me to make these things real to me.

Personality Test Just for Fun

So I did a personality test today and found that I am an INFP (A Dreamer). In other words, "INFPs are introspective, private, creative and highly idealistic individuals that have a constant desire to be on a meaningful path. They are driven by their values and seek peace. Empathetic and compassionate, they want to help others and humanity as a whole. INFPs are imaginative, artistic and often have a talent for language and writing. They can also be described as easygoing, selfless, guarded, adaptable, patient and loyal."

http://www.mypersonality.info/personality-types/infp/

You can do one here:

http://www.mypersonality.info/


Imagine there's no Heaven
It's easy if you try
No hell below us
Above us only sky
Imagine all the people
Living for today

Imagine there's no countries
It isn't hard to do
Nothing to kill or die for
And no religion too
Imagine all the people
Living life in peace

You may say that I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will be as one

Imagine no possessions
I wonder if you can
No need for greed or hunger
A brotherhood of man
Imagine all the people
Sharing all the world

You may say that I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will live as one

Just Say No

One of the hardest parts about raising a child that's only about 70% raw is making her dinner. Tonight I made her a box of Mac N Chreese (a vegan mac & cheese) and a green smoothie for dinner. Very often when I make the mac n chreese, I dish out a small portion for myself. Mostly because I don't fell like making something seperate for me, and the mac n chreese is convenient. Well, tonight was no different in that respect. I made her a big bowl of it and then put a little in a bowl for myself. I though, "Gee I've been 100% raw today, this will totally ruin that for me". Then I thought, "Oh well, I already dished it out, now the bowl and spoon are dirty, and besides, I'm very hungry". So at this point I added a bunch of pepper to the food in my bowl and stirred it up. My next though was...actually I don't think I had a thought, it was more of a reflex...I just put the bowl down on the table in front of my daughter and walked away. I poured a big glass of the green smoothie for myself and ate a big, juicy pear.

This is a major break through for me! About the only few times I eat cooked food any more is when I am making food for someone else and I feel like "I might as well eat some". I actually said "no" and found something else! I know I can keep this up, especially since, lately we've been super stocked up on raw produce.

If you make cooked food for other people, how do you resist the urge? Please, let me know how you keep yourself above the boiled water?

Man loses 430 lbs and raw food update

Today was a great start for a beautiful new year! The last few days I have been eating 100% raw with no complications and no real strong cravings for cooked food. Today though, I did eat some pretzel sticks at my moms house, but only because I was super hungry and she had no raw food available. As soon as I came home, I was craving a green smoothie and drank 48 oz of one in just a few minutes.

We didn't really do much for New Years Eve this year. Rory worked until late last night, and very early this morning, so we just kinda hung out. Of course, we made sure we were locking lips at 12:00!

I also have a small cold, but amazingly I hardly feel it at all. The only time I really notice that I have the cold is when I am really sleepy or when I just wake up. Once I am up and lucid, I feel great. I love eating healthy.

I did find on the news today that a man lost 430lbs! Congrats on the loss of the weight, but I was a little disappointed in the method that he chose. He decided to go with gastric bypass, which is great for him since he had so much to lose and he had to do it quickly. But what really got me worrying was when he said "I want people to feel inspired when they look at me". I really don't think that surgery is very inspirational. Maybe people that weigh 640lbs do desperately need it, but the majority of the people that are 50-100 lbs overweight have so many more options, and when they use them, it actually is inspirational. I am truly inspired by people like Philip McCluskey, my friend who goes by Earthmother, and even my husband, all whom lost the weight through their own willpower and desire to be healthy. That is truly inspirational to me, and that is what keeps me going on my raw path. Thank you to everyone out there who inspires myself and others to do the same.