Thursday, May 3, 2012

Post-Raw: Day 3

So it has been three days since I've been off 100% raw and life hasn't gotten easier hahaha. It's great because we got free Mexican food at work yesterday and I could partake in the rice and beans... also today I had a cookie and it was delicious... BUT... I am now constantly worried about what I'm eating. When I was raw, I knew what I was eating was good for me and that I could basically eat as much of it as my body wanted, so my mind was free of that. But I still have weight to lose, so now that I'm free and can eat anything... the world has opened itself to me, while I try to close myself off to it haha. Here's what I ate today:


  • Breakfast: Green Smoothie
  • Snack: Brought grapes, but they tasted terrible, so I ended up eating some peanut butter/chocolate stuff. Unplanned Sin #1.
  • Lunch: A whole-wheat wrap with greens, cabbage, rice and beans, an orange, then Unplanned Sin #2, I got a strawberry cheesecake cookie... oh man.
  • After lunch- my co-workers tried to get me to eat an ice cream sandwich, but I had already snuck in two delicacies... I couldn't do it to myself.
  • Then I went swimming!
  • From 4-5 I had coconut water, some left-over marinated veggies, and 4 or 5 stuffed grape leaves
All-in-all, it was fairly wholesome, but I really wanted to be vegan and as all-natural as possible... and that peanut butter/chocolate stuff and cookie do not fit that description lol. In fact, I like... couldn't get out of those moments without eating one. *sigh* Food has control over me again!

And, today was great, but the first two days not being raw I was not doing so well lol. I got brain fog and was so tired that I couldn't function for awhile. The first day it made sense, lack of sleep- second day, no excuse. And my ADD was just terrible today- I got really overwhelmed in a grocery store and a nail salon. 

My body and mind are definitely reverting back to old ways already- which is lame. On the other hand, my skin has continued to improve and my weight is looking good. I am also super enjoying exercise. So the good and the bad? Just need to find that balance.

Here's to the balancing act!

Monday, April 30, 2012

Day 30- 1 MONTH!

Date: April 30, 2012
Weight: 137
Daily Goals:
------------------------
ü  Meditation/Yoga/Journal: HAD to meditate this morning- my mind was everywhere
X  Daily Physical Exercise: But there's no time!
ü  Limited Television: No time for this either :-)
X  Clean House: Heck to the no. I had other bat crazy mess on my mind.
ü  Of Course, Stay Raw: Hahaha for the most part! Of all days...
----------------------------
Daily Breakdown: IT'S THE LAST DAY! I can't believe it! An entire month raw. If you had asked me to do this three months ago, I would've told you that an entire DAY raw would be a feat. The bug caught me, though. It caught me and wouldn't let go until I caved and tried the whole raw thing, and wow... it happened! It's amazing how everyone's experience was throughout the month... which will all be featured in the viral video I will be making :-) Now... when that will be finished, nobody knows because I am one busy bee.

Not sure if I posted this on here or not... actually I'm pretty sure I did, but I landed that job in New York! And now, making preparations for that has been my life. I have very little room in my life for anything else, but I do need to dedicate a day to making this video happen or else it never will.

Here's what I ate today:
Breakfast: Nothing frozen, so I just ate two bananas and some strawberries
Snack: Grapes that gave me freaking acid reflux. What?? I've barely had any acid reflux problems since I've been vegetarian. I am actually starting to think that it's the workouts I've been doing, because I had some problems with it yesterday as well. Oy vey.
Lunch: Two oranges that SUCKED with acid reflux. The acidity did not help. This is when I caved. I was in so much pain from acid rushing up my esophagus, that I ate a piece of a peanut butter cookie. It was out of SHEER desperation for comfort! I swear! Not trying to cheat, but there was nothing else.
Snack: I was starving, so half a bag of kale chips, a medjool date, and a raw brownie.
Dinner: I wasn't hungry at all, but we were having our last potluck, so eating was pretty necessary. I brought sweet potato french fries with adobo "mayo". Yvonne made a bunch of marinated veggies and fruit salad and then Jackie stuffed dates with almonds and rolled them in coconut :-) It was a fairly simple meal, but it was great to just have conversation.

All of my thoughts about this month are in this blog and on the video that I will be putting up eventually. In the end, though, I have concluded two things:

1. I have a love-hate relationship with raw. I love how I feel/look/etc... I hate all of the work/money/social alienation. When it becomes more mainstream, it will be a lot more enjoyable.

2. This entire month has been a positive experience... even the "down" parts were overall positive. I truly believe that eating raw can lead to optimum health and even stave away cancer and disease... and I am going to incorporate a LOT of it in my life.

Right now I am trying to figure out the balance of raw-vegan that I can keep in my life while being able to afford it and actually having the time to prepare foods. That and I don't want to start eating regular foods and gain weight because I inadvertently add extra calories. Finding the balance is going to be the new struggle... but overall I am glad to be another force of health in this world :-) There's a fairly silent revolution going on and its followers are getting louder and louder. Soon, I hope that raw foods become the main staple in our lives to replace the fried, processed mess that they pass off as "okay". That time is coming :-)... Oh man this is a lame conclusion... I am obviously very tired hahaha.

Okay off to bed.

Here's to healthier, happier, lives!

-------------------------

Raw Sweet Potato Fries and "Mayo"

Saturday, April 28, 2012

Day 28- On the go!


Date: April 28, 2012
Weight: 137
Daily Goals:
------------------------
ü  Meditation/Yoga/Journal: One hour of yoga first thing!
ü  Daily Physical Exercise: Zee joga.
ü  Limited Television: Watched two episodes of Adventure Time- best show ever.
ü  Clean House: Was out all day!
ü  Of Course, Stay Raw: Traveled Raw!
----------------------------
Daily Breakdown: Again, a ridiculous day, so I don't really feel like posting. You know what the crazy thing is- at first I kind of kept this blog/journal to stay sane during this experience, but now being raw is so habitual that I don't even feel like what I did today was a big deal! It was just a day like any other day! Of course, today, I was in Harrisonburg seeing my brother in a show, so I had to pack all of my food ahead of time and spent the entire day traveling. Here was Bebhinn on the go:

Breakfast: Green Smoothie: Spinach, frozen bananas (maybe 1 1/2?), a bunch of strawberries, some bits of pineapple, honey, and Vitamineral Green, ya'll.
Snack: Grapes. Uh DOY
Lunchish: The family ate at Buffalo Wild Wings- when the waitress asked me what I wanted, I told her, "Just a knife please!" She quickly shot back, "You're gonna eat a knife?" I told her that would be too expensive, but if she could spare, I'd like a small plate too. ... ... And this is going to be my life until raw becomes mainstream... so for a very long time haha. Eventually she brought me my "lunch" and didn't scoff when she saw my apples with nut-butter mix. She actually just told me an anecdote about her roommate trying to go vegan, but liking pasta too much. You can probably catch the holes in that story :-) She was sweet, though, so it was nice to not have someone role their eyes at me haha.
Dinnerish: Everyone ate at Outback and told the server that I have "special dietary needs", so I wasn't bothered haha. My appetizer was the new batch of kale chips I made! They turned out better, but I thought they could actually use a bit more flavor... so I'll just have to try again! My second course was an orange and then my main dish was a spinach salad with my spinach dip. I have had my fair share of greens today, I'll tell ya that much. I'm actually feeling pretty bloated after eating so much in a meal haha.
Car ride home: An orange to get the taste of garlic off my breath.


Effects: Interesting effect noticed! My brother asked me if things started to taste differently since I've been raw... at first I told him that I hadn't noticed anything, but then remembered that the water from our faucet has tasted like mold to me lately. My father hadn't noticed, so something with my pallet was able to pick that up. Also, I basically can't stand many non-organic fruits anymore because they just don't taste like anything to me... I have to get organic in order to enjoy them. I had that to a degree before, but it IS even stronger now. I guess my tastes have changed! That and I am absolutely craving things like my morning smoothies and the apples. I gotta say- I love being raw!

Here's to trying to not be obnoxiously healthy...

Friday, April 27, 2012

Day 27- Whistle While You Work


Date: April 27, 2012
Weight: 137
Daily Goals:
------------------------
ü  Meditation/Yoga/Journal: Meditated this morning... was going to do yoga, but sought revenge on the alarm at  4am
ü  Daily Physical Exercise: Body Pump and Body Combat at the gym (making up for yesterday!)
ü  Limited Television: No time! I'm a busy bee.
ü  Clean House: Again, after myself in the kitchen... *fwew*!
ü  Of Course, Stay Raw: LOVING. IT.
----------------------------
Daily Breakdown: Oy- I am exhausted, so I'll try to keep this short and sweet. Yesterday I received amazing news: I have been accepted as a teaching fellow with New York City Public Schools this fall and will be working in a low-income community toward closing the achievement gap in their education system. It is going to be a wonderfully rewarding job, but a stressful one at that- so as you can imagine, I am wired UP. I had absolutely no time to write yesterday because I was trying to get my mind and life in place to move in a month-and-a-half.

Lately, though, when it comes to raw I have, number one, been enjoying the hell out of myself. Everything in life is easier except for one thing: food preparation. I feel as though I spend every free minute uncooking in the kitchen. Between thinking ahead to soak the nuts/seeds, to cutting all of the fruits and vegetables, to washing and drying my own greens, to finally cleaning up all of the equipment. I mean, you gotta use food processors, blenders, dehydrators, yadda yadda, for every recipe hahaha. It is grueling. There's hardly such a thing as convenience food when you are obsessed with variety. For folks who just do raw like eating fruit as fruit and nuts as nuts, life is EASY. For those of us wanting to make chips, dips, wraps, and whatnots- life gets expensive and time is always crunched. Stressed out, but also enjoying my proficiency in the raw kitchen these days!

Here was my day:
Breakfast: Out of greens, so just a regular smoothie + Vitamineral Green! Two bananas, pineapple, and agave nectar.
Snack: Of course! My new/old obsession: grapes.
Lunchtime Meal: Two oranges
2:00 meal (seems to be my favorite every day): Tried to eat the garlic kale chips I made yesterday, but they were disgusting. I made too much flavoring for too few chips. Ick. Making them again tonight, so we'll try em out tomorrow morning!
I worked out!
Post-Workout Snack: Another orange (mostly to get rid of the remaining garlic taste in my mouth...)
Evening Meal: Small spinach salad with shredded carrots and cabbage + some of my spinach dip
Not hungry for dessert, but very focused on preparing food- as always.


Effects: I'm looking thinner, my clothes fit wonderfully, and I am feeling more confident for it. It's like I am gaining myself back. For awhile, I had been so self-conscious that I couldn't let loose and just be me, now that my mind isn't focused on my muffin top or clouded by a caffeine-induced haze... my personality is free. Well, not completely. I think I will feel a LOT better once I lose 15-20 lbs in all, but for now... the world is just a brighter place to live in. I have to continue being mostly raw because this just feels too damn good. It's just too... damn... good.

Here's to SLEEP! G'NIGHT!
-------------------
Raw Garlic Kale Chips Recipe

Wednesday, April 25, 2012

Day 25- You say you want a revolution...


Date: April 25, 2012
Weight: 138... whoooommmp
Daily Goals:
------------------------
ü  Meditation/Yoga/Journal: Meditated this morning! Zen! 
ü  Daily Physical Exercise: Insanity video after work-mini
ü  Limited Television: Busy, busy, busy
ü  Clean House: Again, cleaned up after myself in the kitchen haha
ü  Of Course, Stay Raw: 100%!
----------------------------
Daily Breakdown: Wow! Today has been zoom-zoom all over the place. Being raw takes up some TIME because there's no such thing as hitting up the drive-thru for that quick bite of raw burger. Though I have been meaning to try a raw burger recipe...

I know there were a million things on my mind to discuss today, but I spent the evening uncooking for a friend who really needed some healthful camaraderie today and writing folks back-and-forth about their own paths to health! After yesterday's nay-sayers bit, I got a lot of good responses from friends all-over who are doing their own thing to be more mindful of what they eat. Anything from those currently trying to be vegetarian in not-so-supportive households, to those now eating raw for two meals a day, to even a friend who has decided to be 100% raw/juicing  for an entire week. It takes time to relearn health from what it has become in the mainstream public. If you simply add more fruits and vegetables to your diet then you've begun to heal your body and you will feel the difference! Kudos to all those free-thinking health nuts out there!

Here's my day, ya'll:

Breakfast: Green smoothie with SPINACH (because turns out that nasty smoothie the day before had been made with turnip greens. Oh gravy that was... that was unbearable.), 1 banana, 1/2 cup of bluebz, 1/4 mango, 1/2 lime, agave nectar, and, you guessed it, Vitamineral Green.
Shhhhhnack: Grapes. Mmmmmmm :-)
Lunch: 3/4 mango, orange, another orange
Insanity FITNESS.
Shhhhhnack numero dos: mushed banana with dried cherries, coconut, cinnamon, and agave nectar
Dinner: Amazing little friend-date with one of my closest allies on this path to alternative living- Lizz! We had raw stir-fry, veggies with spinach dip, guacamole cabbage rolls, and another batch of those super awesome brownies. All of those recipes can be found in earlier posts! Just did what I knew :-)

Congrats to all of those who have recently made some sort of conscious change in their eating behaviors... We are one sexy, growing community and it's nice to have you as a part of it!

Effects: Well. It's become clear to me that I am allergic to almonds. Not sure if I've mentioned that here in this blog yet, but I am hahaha. Whenever I eat my beloved apples dipped in raw almond butter, half of my lip doubles in size! Soooo... needless to say I'm going to keep eating it hahaha... until May, when I'm switching back to organic peanut butter. The raw stuff is better for you, but I have an allergic reaction and it's a little pricey, so I won't feel too guilty about making that change next week.

Also, as predicted, those pounds came back. Those sneaky little buggers. Whatev- my pants are baggy and people are telling me that I look good, but they can't figure out why. It's cause I'm healthier ya'll. Health-ee-er. Got a spring in my step and vitamins in my system!... That's the spirit...

Here's to the conscious eating revolution!

--------------------------------------
Oh! And I didn't try any new recipes today, but to just give you all a little nugget of awesome inspiration- here's the trailer for the documentary Raw for 30 Days:

Tuesday, April 24, 2012

Day 24- Nay Sayers


Date: April 24, 2012
Weight: 136
Daily Goals:
------------------------
ü  Meditation/Yoga/Journal: Plus some!
ü  Daily Physical Exercise: Moved around ALL day
X  Limited Television: I was exhausted when I got home from work
ü  Clean House: Cleaned somebody else's house...
ü  Of Course, Stay Raw: Mhmmmmm!
----------------------------
Daily Breakdown: So firstly, I finally woke up and did some personal journaling this morning... I open my book and what do I find? $40! Apparently, the universe was happy to see me come back to my soul work haha.

Here's what I ate:
Breakfast: Made a smoothie that tasted like ... machinery... I think the pineapple was bad. So I tossed that and ate a banana, an orange, and some nasty blueberries. Not the most positive start to the morning, but I didn't let it get me down :-)
Snack: The usual suspect: grapes.
Lunch: Fruit salad from dinner last night!
Snack: In starvation mode, I did my apple slices with almond butter/cinnamon/raisin/agave nectar mix and thoroughly enjoyed it. Wanted some more food, though, so had a little bit of leftover Radish/Cucumber/Apple Salad as well :-)
Dinner: "Stir-fried" veggies from Noueveau Raw on top of spinach. Then ate some grapes to mostly calm the halitosis left from dinner haha.

At work today, we ate lunch a little early, so I was starving by the time we left and I made the mistake of mentioning my hunger status out loud. One of my (truly) beloved and well-meaning co-workers commented, "Well, if you weren't just eating fruits and vegetables!"... And I know that's how everybody thinks. Just about everyone I encounter on this diet thinks of me as doing something extreme and completely unhealthy/unnatural for the body, but I just have to look at it from a completely opposite angle. What's more extreme? Eating "food" that has been manufactured in a factory to the point where you don't even recognize half of the ingredients or the food that is naturally found on earth to be consumed and that provides all of a person's vitamins and minerals? On the contrary- I don't think that I am being deprived- I think that the majority of Americans are being deprived of the proper nutrients their body needs and that corporations/the government/ you name it have been misleading us all in what is actually healthy. It's sad when something like Quaker Stila Cookies are considered healthy and real fruit is extreme.

Oh and, when I got home, I ate more and was not starving. That's the beauty of being raw... just eat when you are hungry and keep going until you aren't anymore haha.


Effects: As predicted, I woke up and that magical 10th pound was gone and I'm back at 136. No worries, that's the way weight works and I'm not going to freak out about it. That'll be the day, though, when I can stay BELOW 135. Woop! Hmm... let's see, my skin was the worst today than it's been basically all month. We'll see how that plays out. And, I'm going to say it- I have noticed an improvement in my work ethic since I've been raw! I'm just better at my job and in a better mood. Very interesting! I'm not sure exactly what that's due to, but I am happy to be of better service to those I help.

Here's to not letting the negativity get me down!

Monday, April 23, 2012

Day 23- Did someone say brownies?


Date: April 23, 2012
Weight: 1!3!5!!! What?!?
Daily Goals:
------------------------
X  Meditation/Yoga/Journal: No, apparently I'm only capable of this on Tuesdays
X  Daily Physical Exercise: Planned it, didn't have time for it.
?  Limited Television: Em....
ü  Clean House: Cleaning up after myself in the kitchen was enough
ü  Of Course, Stay Raw: Big time!
----------------------------
Daily Breakdown: So, first off... I know this is for the effects, but let's get real: I have officially lost 10 pounds!! What?? It's only been three weeks! Here's the deal though, first week, I lost 7 lbs- 5 lbs of that at LEAST was toxins being sent out the tube... if ya know what I mean... Then for two weeks I didn't lose a single pound: frustrating. Now, in two days, everything's turned back around! All of a sudden, three pounds just disappeared! I thought for SURE that I would wake up today back at 138, but no... it just went lower. Now after tonight's dinner, I'm back to thinking that about tomorrow... I am not attached to this weight loss. But... okay I'll save the rest for "effects", but I'm just way too excited.

Here's what I ate!

Breakfast: Green Smoothie with two frozen bananas, a pineapple wheel, half a package of blueberries, some of those greens my father bought me that weren't kale (but mixed in better with the smoothie...), Vitamineral Green and agave nectar. Delish.
Snack: NONE cause I was caught up in traffic court for 3 hours. I was so grumpy without having had food in 4 hours (at that point) I'm fairly certain I came across menacingly to the judge. All went in my favor, though, I guess haha.
Lunch: Leftovers! Veggies dipped in spinach dip and cabbage rolls dipped in guacamole haha. So good.
Snacks: Just ate constantly all afternoon- I was famished. Grapes, an orange, dates, and gnoshed as I unbacked some brownies for dinner with the girls!
Dinner: At Yvonne's:
- Strawberry salsa wraps
- Cucumber salad (dressing was lemon juice and salt... something simply like that)
- Fruit salad
- Another stir fry! That's like our staple now haha.
- And the brownies I made!

We feasted and all got our hair cut, so we're just going to look like all new people by the end of this video.

Updates:
- Tina folded and is no longer raw :-( And then there were three. But she has added more raw foods to her life which is a HUGE step in the right direction. I'm impressed that she made it this far having had it sprung on her last minute.
- I was made aware that agave nectar is one of the most ridiculously processed foods. Will look into that a little more...


Effects:
- My everyday pants fit better than they did when I bought them
- I fit into the clothes I bought in September again!
- Constantly feel lighter
- BMs look much better and come at regular intervals haha.
- When I'm around people eating the SAD Diet (Inform Yourself), I find myself craving what they are eating. But when I'm alone without all of those sensory/addictive factors overwhelming my system... I can actually hear what my body wants... and that's usually more fruits and vegetables! I am CRAVING them lately. What an awesome feeling.

Here's to permanent health... this is the way.
------------------------------

Raw Brownies Recipe (Now calling them Medicinal Brownies. They're raw! They're good for you! eeeeeat.)
Alterations:
1. I tripled the frosting recipe
2. I used brazil nuts instead of pecans cause that's what I had...
3. Definitely used the coconut butter (not oil) and avocado- they made the texture incredible!
4. The frosting is RIDICULOUSLY good! My father has even requested that I make more and he kind of thinks this whole raw thing is nuts. Yum, yum!

Sunday, April 22, 2012

Day 22- Two Pounds!

Date: April 22, 2012
Weight: 136!!!!
Daily Goals:
------------------------
X  Meditation/Yoga/Journal: Okay, I really haven't kept my promise with this one haha
ü  Daily Physical Exercise: Body PUMP
X  Limited Television: Super Soul Sunday, man.
ü  Clean House: Oh yeah, lots of that
ü  Of Course, Stay Raw: You betcha!
----------------------------
Effects: Sooo I'm writing this part first because it's the most exciting. I woke up this morning and the scale tipped at TWO POUNDS lower than the past two weeks! *Celebraaaatioooooon* Now, I know, I know- I will probably wake up tomorrow morning to the number 138 because weight is crazy fluctuating like that, but... I needed this. Being dedicated to something for so long and seeing so little improvement- it gets to be almost too much to bare. But this morning, I felt lighter, the scale said I was lighter, and a smile spread across my face first thing. It was just great! Though... I'm feeling heavier after dessert this evening, so, again, tomorrow morning might not be as bright hahaha.

Daily Breakdown: Here we go!

Sleep in.
Pre-workout meal: an orange.
Work out for about 1h30.
*EXCITING* Post-workout meal: A recreation of one of my favorite treats! A chocolate/peanut butter milkshake! It consisted of: two frozen bananas, two heaping scoops of raw almond butter, twoish tablespoons of Rawcholatl (as in Horchata?) chocolate beverage mix (I'm now thinking it's not 100% raw so... bah, won't use that again until the month is over...), agave nectar, and salt. It tasted pretty darn good and felt awesome after an intense workout.
Snack: Carrots and celery dipped in the spinach dip... yummmm
Dinner: Make guacamole cabbage rolls! Just basically guacamole rolled up int cabbage leaves :-)
Dessert: None of my bananas are ripe yet (which is really what I was craving) so I ate a raw chocolate bar. It's made by Righteously Raw and was an awesome little treat to mix things up. I'll say, though, that I didn't really like it that much hahaha and it weighed me down a lot, but I'd suggest trying it if you are desperate for some dark chocolate.

Great day... had an awesome workout, though my muscles still aren't living up to their full potential, and enjoyed having a chance to rest and recharge.

Here's to enjoying my body at whichever weight it may present itself tomorrow! :-)




Saturday, April 21, 2012

Day 21: Slumpeville Population ZERO

Date: April 21, 2012 (Happy Earth Day Eve!)
Weight: 138
Daily Goals:
------------------------
X  Meditation/Yoga/Journal: No, gosh darnit. I didn't even think about it.
ü  Daily Physical Exercise: Moved around a lot
ü  Limited Television: Meh?
ü  Clean House: Exempt! I was cleaning up a park!
ü  Of Course, Stay Raw: yep. YEP. YEP. <--- Evolution of the "yep"
----------------------------
Daily Breakdown: Super cool day! First of all, I'd like to officially announce that I am no longer in a slump! I can't promise anything for tomorrow, but the slumpish feelings that had taken me over this week have vanished; hence the title of this journal entry. I added the "e" in Slumpeville because I thought it more dignified and apparently my spell-check agreed, because it is no longer underlined in red error tape. ... I just realized that I should probably finish this portion under "effects", so if you are wondering how I'm feelin... tis there... tis there.

Kay! So last weekend was Arts in the Alley, this week was Special Olympics, and now this weekend I participated in the DC Servathon with some Bike & Build alumnus! It has been a serviceful week, for which I am grateful :-) I got to wade in a creek picking up trash (and recycling!) at the Marvin Gaye Park in Washington DC. A great time was had by all and the park looked spectacular once we were all finished. We even had a... wait... this is a raw food blog, not a "my life" blog. So sorry. I'll get back to the topic at hand:

Breakfast: Green Smoothie! 1 cup of spinach, 1 frozen banana, 1/2 cup frozen strawberries, 1/2 a mango, a pineapple wheel, Vitamineral Green, and agave nectar.... and some water of course :-)
Snack: Grapes, as per yewj (usual)
Lunch (while others ate free sangwhiches and I didn't even care): 2 oranges and 1 banana
Snack: Two apples and my beloved almond butter/cinnamon/raisins/agave nectar concoction!
Dinner: Leftovers from last night's feast!


Effects: Today, as I mentioned, I just felt great. Usually waking up early on a Saturday morning to go for a drive left me grabbin' a bagel and coffee and just feeling drowsy/weighted down. Not for me today, baby! I felt light, fresh, alert... I was truly at my best this morning. It was easy to flash people a smile and even easier to let the aggressive drivers do their thing without affecting me. I just... loved being raw today! That's good news, especially considering my recent slump... but today I'm all in. Perhaps it's the whole "not being around other people's food" thing. Yeah, that must be it...

The one bit of me that doesn't quite feel right is my throat, which could be acid reflux orrrr my singing at the top of my lungs for about two hours while driving today. Probably the latter haha.

Here's to getting some sleep, exercise, motivation, and oh, did I say SLEEP?.... tomorrow :-)
------------------------

PS- I know I don't have readers, but I feel obligated to share the movie Chimpanzees with everybody. It's this insanely awesome true story about Chimps in the wild... and the whole family will love it while hopefully remembering how important it is to preserve these amazing creatures' natural habitat. Here's the trailer!


Friday, April 20, 2012

Day 20

Date: April 20, 2012
Weight: 1...3...9...
Daily Goals:
------------------------
X Meditation/Yoga/Journal: Nah dawg
X Daily Physical Exercise: N.O.
ü  Limited Television: THAT I accomplished
ü  Clean House: Oh Yeah
ü  Of Course, Stay Raw: As per always!
----------------------------
Daily Breakdown: Oy. I tell you what. I woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning. Mostly, I think, because of my lack of weight loss. I had much too high expectations, and they haven't been met. I'm sorry for getting all negative because I really need to focus on the benefits of this diet (Yvonne keeps telling me that I look thinner and my skin looks great- bless her lol), but I have NEVER been able to stick with something this long... so I was hoping that with my dedication, there would be some rewards. I feel as though there were rewards in the first 9 days, but it has just been a struggle ever since. Perhaps you need to go more than a month to really reap the rewards... and quite honestly I feel as though my life would be of a "lesser" quality right now if I was eating the way I had been... but... I don't know. I'm just disappointed... and my coworkers got Panera today... and a lady exclaimed "Woah- your skin broke out!" when I finally felt comfortable to not wear makeup to school lol. It's been an interesting time.

The GOOD news about today, though, is that my dad and I threw together a little raw shindig this evening in like 4 hours. I made four recipes in four hours hahaha while my dad focused on cleaning up. It was great- well here was the menu:
- Cabbage Rolls with a "Peanut" Sauce (super yummy and very "meal-like")
- Spinach Dip (a HUGE hit)
- Veggies and Raw Ranch Dressing (not a fan)
- """""Mac 'n Cheese"""" (I put extra quotation marks because it was a stretch... and I wasn't a huge fan of this either hahaha)
- Radish/Apple/Cucumber Salad by Yvonne... totes yum!

It was a really nice get-together and a fun way to spend the afternoon/evening. All of the recipes are below!


Effects: Same as per usual, though I did notice this morning that my back has broken out with little pimplies all over. Hope that goes away shortly haha. Besides that, still bummed about the weight thing. If raw won't do it... what will?

Here's to not sweatin' the small stuff! I really need to embrace that lesson.
------------------------------
Today's recipes


Raw Cabbage Rolls  and Peanut Sauce


























Spinach Dip (amazing with red bell peppers dipped in)














Ranch Dressing (only make if you really like dill)















The... Mac 'n Cheese...ish...thing


















Radish, Cucumber, Apple Salad

Wednesday, April 18, 2012

Day 18- How to Cut a Pineapple

Date: April 18, 2012
Weight: 138 conflabbit.
Daily Goals:
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ü  Meditation/Yoga/Journal: Not yet, but the night is young
ü  Daily Physical Exercise: Heading to boot camp!
ü  Limited Television: Two episodes of Scrubs did the trick!
ü  Clean House: Erm... that's a negative ghostwriter (I know it's ghost rider, but my childhood and PBS are one-in-the-same)
ü  Of Course, Stay Raw: Everyday I'm shufflin'... raw
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Daily Breakdown: The day isn't over yet, so I can't speak for this evening. I have a chit-chat date with a long-distance friend later, though, so let's take care of this now. Here's the day!

Breakfast: Amazing raw smoothie consisting of 1 cup of kale, some Vitamineral Green, a frozen banana, a pear (should peel it next time), half a mango, half of a lemon, and a squeeze of agave nectar. Best one I've made YET. Idea from the Green Smoothies App :-)
Snack: Grapes, grapes, and more grapes
Lunch: Rest of my mango and some freshly sliced pineapple! (Ever since learning how to cut pineapples I'm basically addicted)
Snack: A hoard of kale chips (really need to make more...), two dates, and my sliced apples with almond butter mixed with cinnamon, raisins, and agave nectar. I had a case of the munchies dude.
Dinner: That is yet to be seen... probably salad-inspired.


Effects: So! I'm beginning to think that I have unrealistic expectations. I got into this whole raw thing to first and foremost gain complete health. I wanted to know what true health felt like and I believe I am on my way to that. My brain is clear, happiness is easier, and an entire side of my face is acne-free. Awesome. BUT. I kind of superficially wanted to lose a good amount of weight. I expected 10 lbs my first month and I lost 7 in the first 7 days. That was great, but my weight has been completely stagnant for 11 days. That's not computing for me. I guess that I am actually eating enough calories in plant-based foods that I am maintaining my current weight. And, of course, my current weight is better than the initial pound-age, but I believe that those pounds were more gunk in my system than fat. *le sigh* It is a superficial thought, but it's a real one haha... though I should be very grateful for what raw has brought me.

Here's to fruit in the face of mac 'n cheese!


The life-changing video on How to Cut a Pineapple!

Tuesday, April 17, 2012

Day 17- DECEPTION ALERT

Date: April 17, 2012
Weight: 138
Daily Goals:
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ü  Meditation/Yoga/Journal: Woke up at FOUR A.M to do yoga this morning. So- big, fat check!
ü  Daily Physical Exercise: Zee yoga.
ü  Limited Television: Yeah had barely any time, but enjoyed a tad bit just after work.
ü  Clean House: I cleaned the dehydrator and cleaned the house of those I babysit...
ü  Of Course, Stay Raw: Or did I?...
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Daily Breakdown: THE number one first thing I have to mention is that we've all been deceived. Yup! Remember that Hail Merry product I mentioned in an earlier post? The Choco Macaroons? They're not 100% raw! On the front of the packaging, it lists an assortment of health facts about the product... the first one being RAW. Well, the fine print on the back actually states that half of the ingredients are, indeed, not raw. If you have some raw ingredients in a product and some not-raw in ingredients... then your product is not raw. That salad at McDonald's with raw lettuce, raw tomatoes, and a package of ranch dressing cannot be labeled raw because it's NOT. So- please do not buy this product if you are attempting a 30 Day Raw-Vegan Cleanse. They are still delicious and fairly nutritious compared to the other guys, but really- deceiving.

      Here's my day:
      Midnight- Wake-up and turn off the dehydrator
      4:00am- Wake-up and do YOGA
      Breakfast- Smoothie with cantaloupe and strawberry.. not a winning combination lol
      Go to work :-)
      Snack- Big 'A' thing of grapes
      Lunch- Two rather large oranges
      Snack- A kagillion kale chips, some dates, and... alas...  a Hail Merry not-so-raw macaroon
      4:00- Babysitting!
      Dinner- A rockin' salad with spinach, corn, avocado, onions, salsa, and my cracker-wrap thingies.

   
Effects: Twas a good day! I think being raw helped me through my exhaustion today because otherwise I would have indulged in some caffeine and gotten antsy. Today I had just enough energy to get me through. I have received compliments about how my skin looks- the inflammation is downtown baby! As in.. it's down... not as much. I am still have cravings like crazy, but I'm amazed at how full I am by two oranges at lunch. I almost didn't finish them! It'll be nice to have some cooked food, but I am so much more aware of what I really need now. Awesoooome.


Here's to calling out false advertising!



Day 16

Date: April 16, 2012
Weight: ---------
Daily Goals:
------------------------
XMeditation/Yoga/Journal: I wanted to lie and say I did, but honestly... there wasn't much time today haha
ü  Daily Physical Exercise: Beefed it ouuuuuut. 2 mile jog then Insanity Plyo
ü  Limited Television: There was no TIME. I was so BUSY.
ü  Clean House: I cleaned up after myself in the kitchen... and that was a huge mess, believe me.
ü  Of Course, Stay Raw: Yerp!
----------------------------
Daily Breakdown: So. It was the first day back at work after Spring Break... and honestly it was nice to have somewhere to go today. Spring Break, for me, was a 'staycation' and, quite honestly, pretty boring, so I was happy to be back at work! Down side? I forgot half of my food. Oyyyyy. I feel like I've gone back to Day 1 haha. So I was pretty hungry at work and... oh yeah... confession. I cheated for the first time today. It wasn't a HUGE cheat, but it was definitely a huge moment of weakness haha. You see, my boss's mother is an awesome cook and on rare occasions, she sends him with goodies for US. WELL. Last time she sent something I was, get this, on a detox. Yeah- so I couldn't eat it. Come in to work today and what do you know? I've gone raw so OF COURSE she sends in a treat haha! It was this like... five flavor pudding thing with chocolate shavings and oreo bits... and one of my coworkers, chowing down on some, exclaimed, "If you could have a food 'O' this would be it!" That did it for me... I... had a spoonful. A spoonful! And honestly, that spoonful hurt my stomach hahaha, but it was delicious and I regret nothing.
Here's the food scoop:
   
     Breakfast: 3 bananas
     Sinful pudding mishap
     Snack throughout the morning: Trader Joe's Raw... Trek.. Mix? I think it's called?
     Lunch: 2 oranges
     EJERCISIO!
     Food food food: Some kale chips, grapes, then I made some crackers that turned out to be more like wraps... so I wrapped some salad veggies in one
     Dinner with the ladiessss: Salad with wraps, some 'o that raw stir fry from before, and Jackie brought a tropical fruit pudding that was delish!

Effects: Ahhhh I'm going to make this short and sweet because I have to go, but basically exercising today was a real chore. It was so bad, it was like I couldn't even try.. and I just had to go through the motions and get through it. I brought this up with the ladies, and they told me that I wasn't losing muscle mass or anything- it's from the effects of detoxing. It fatigues you a bit because your body is so concentrated on cleaning itself out, perhaps it doesn't have as much energy as before? Oh and also, the body is getting used to not having the same amount of protein and whatnot. Hmmm... well I'm going to try to keep exercising and hopefully it gets better. I don't really need to be fit until mid-May, so if it doesn't get better, I'll start adding in those beans and rice mid-May to beef my body back up.

Here's to stopping at one spoonful of pudding!

Sunday, April 15, 2012

Day 15- Halfway there!

Date: April 15, 2012
Weight: 139
Daily Goals:
------------------------
ü  Meditation/Yoga/Journal: This journal...
ü  Daily Physical Exercise: Moving around ALL DAY
ü  Limited Television: Twas fairly limited...
ü  Clean House: Cleaned up after myself?
ü  Of Course, Stay Raw: Yerp.
----------------------------
    Daily Breakdown: So! It has officially been over two weeks! I don't think I've made it this far on a "diet" since my almost constant diet in high school haha. Life is good, but I tell ya- I'm starting to crave fake-world food more than ever now. I just. want. to eat with everyone else! It's AWESOME to eat raw with a group of people. It's STINKY to sit with a group of people who are eating tacos and pull out some cantaloupe. And truthfully, it doesn't feel like I've been doing this for two weeks- it feels like I've been at it for a month. Not sure I'm going to keep this up completely after the month is up, but I know for sure that I'm going to keep raw as a regular staple in my life because it feels too darn good. Here's the food breakdown:
-
     Breakfast: Green smoothie made like I normally do, but this time the flavor was BLUEBERRY.
     Snack: Grapes
     3rd Eating Period: Cantaloupe
     4th Eating Period: Une salade that was gross, so I'm not going to even tell you what was in it. No one should go through that eating experience ever again.
     Snackage: Kale chips like woah and Hail Merry Choco Macroooooons! These are INCREDIBLE. (Buy them at your local Wholefoods or order online!)
     More Food: Ate a banana

T   I mentioned that I was moving around all day- Today was Arts in the Alley! Basically helped paint a building in  Fulton Hill. That neighborhood is looking gooooOOD with all the murals lining the streets. I think what's being done in that community is simply beautiful and it warms my heart to see so many dedicated to the well-being of the folks living there. I hear they have an awesome sense of community and that it's a wonderful place to live- I totally believe it.
 
     As for the rest of my day, I made chips in the dehydrator. Not sure how they turned out because I had to leave the house before they were ready. Recipe below!

    Effects: Um you know, ever since starting this, I didn't get the energy BOOST that I was expecting, but I CAN say that my head is so much clearer. I just haven't gotten any brain fog or anything of the sort... it's like my body is primed and ready for anything, so it's just letting my brain work which is a really nice change. Also, I rarely fart and haven't had serious bloating at all. Today, the skin on my face isn't inflamed and actually looks pretty nice. There's still a bit of acne hanging around, but so far- so better. My poop (because I know that everyone is hanging on the edge of their seats to hear about it) has been a lot... more... normal haha. Actually that's a lie, it's still kind of weird. I have to do some research on that because "everything comes down to poo"! I am, as I stated above, craving food like crazy, but I've been able to hold onto this project. If I was just doing this just because, I would have faltered by now, but the nature of this project has kept me steadfast! I am proud to at least say that.

Here's to Hail Merry Choco Macroons! For they keep me satisfied and my wallet lite....

----------------------

Nouveau Raw cracker recipe:
Ingredients for Cherry Tomato Marinara:
  • 2 1/2 cups halved cherry tomatoes
  • 1/2 cup sun dried tomatoes, soaked
  • 2 Tbsp cold pressed olive oil
  • 1 clove garlic minced
  • 2 tsp dried oregano
  • 2 tsp dried basil
  • 2 tsp raw agave syrup
  • 1 tsp himalayan crystal salt
  • 1 cups flax ** see below
  • 1/2 cup ground flax **see below
Preparation:
  1. Soak the flax seeds in a medium sized bowl with about 3 cups of water.  I usually soak mine over night but today I just let them soak for about 4 hours.  You want most of not all of the water to have been adsorbed with the flax gel that it creates.
  2. To make the Marinara, place all of the ingredients into a food processor and process until smooth.
  3. Add the sauce to the already soaked flax seeds and stir well.
  4. Now add in the ground flax and mix well making sure you don’t have any clumps.  Set the mixture aside and let it stand for about 15 minutes.  This will thicken it up.
  5. With a measuring cup, pour 2 cups worth on to the non-stick teflex dehydrator sheet and spread out evenly.  The thinner you spread it the thinner and crisper the cracker will be.  I personally like a thicker cracker so I leave mine about 1/4″ thick.  This better should make about 4 cups worth so you will need to dehydrator trays.
  6. Dehydrate at 105 degrees for about 4 hours.  If it is dry enough, flip the teflex sheet over on to the mesh sheet and peel the teflex off.  If seeds are sticking to it as you try to do this, it’s not ready to flip.  But if it is ready, flip it and score into the desire cracker size and sprinkle salt on the crackers.  Return to the dehydrator.
  7. Continue dehydrating until nice and crisp.
  8. Store in a glass sealed container on the counter top and watch them disappear!
How do your crackers stack up?

Friday, April 13, 2012

Day 13- Wake-up call!

Date: April 13, 2012
Weight: 140 (fluctuaaationnnn)
Daily Goals:
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ü  Meditation/Yoga/Journal: First thing this morning!
ü  Daily Physical Exercise: Frickin yoga PLUS a 30 mile bike ride okaaaaaaaay
ü  Limited Television: Until the evening when I was WIPED
XClean House: No, no I did not.
ü  Of Course, Stay Raw: Doin' great with this one
----------------------------
Daily Breakdown: Wowzer- what a full day! I definitely needed this. Here's the food breakdown for those who may use this as a guide:

Breakfast: Regular ole smoothie, no greens. Didn't feel it this mornin'. Frozen banana plus strawberries, honey, and, okay, Vitamineral Green.
2nd.. meal: 2 bananas
Shortly after: corn with some leftover tomato sauce, onions, sundried tomatoes, and zucchini. Interesting little creation.
During bike ride: Raw Revolution bar
After bike ride: A thousand kale chips and a banana
Dinnery: Grapessssss

Yeah today was pretty cray cray. Woke up first thing and soaked some cashews for the kale chips (recipe below!) and then went straight to doing yoga. Twas delightful! After getting ready and such.. and more such, I eventually prepared the kale chip stuff and shipped it over to Yvonne's to use her dehydrator! Well, wouldn't you know it- she was leaving for the BEACH! So with her infinite generosity, she allowed me to borrow it for the weekenndddd. SCOOOOORE! Needless to say, my house smelled like sour cream and onion (again, see recipe!) for six hours straight. Making... SOMETHING else tomorrow!

Okay now for the nuts part- as some of you (if anybody ever reads this, ever) may know, I rode a road bike across the United States last year. By August I had some pretty beefy quads. Well.. I got back on my bike today to do a standard 30 mile ride and... oh man... GREATLY underestimated my current cycling abilities. I was actually in pain after 20 miles. 20... miles. Last summer, I would ride for an average of 70 miles a day and finished four centuries! Oh man. Not good. My mind, for a fleeting moment, went to that place of "is this raw food's doing?" but then images of Freelee from www.rawfitbitch.com started circulating in my head and I only had myself to blame for getting out of shape. As of today, I am officially kicking up the exercise regime! Well, tomorrow I might not be able to walk and that's just fine.. I can sit that one out haha, but I'm seriously going to pick it up. Never going through that embarrassment again!

Effects: Sooo it appears that my weight is back up two pounds. No worries, weight fluctuates and that is to be expected. Also, I worked out like crazy today, so I am hopeful for the near future when it comes to that. Yvonne told me that she lost another two pounds and I can definitely tell! We are starting to look gooooooood. Um, nothing too drastic really... except maybe my performance on the bike today, but again- I blame my out-of-shapeness, not the food at this point. If Freelee can do it! So can I.

Here's to being buff.
------------------------------
Nouveau Raw obsession...


Ingredients:
  • 1 head of curly kale, organic
  • 1 1/2 cups raw cashews, soaked for 2 to 3 hours
  • 4 Tbsp lemon juice
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 3 Tbsp raw apple cider vinegar
  • 1 Tbsp onion powder
  • 1 Tbsp black peppercorns (fresh ground)
  • 1 tsp sea salt
Preparation:
  1. Wash and de-stem your kale.  Starting at the bottom of the kale, strip away all leaves leaving behind only the stems. Tear leaves into approximately 2- to 3-inch pieces.   Make sure you get as much excess water off of the kale as possible.  If you don’t it will make your sauce “soupy”.  Set aside.
  2. In a blender, combine all the ingredients and blend until creamy.
  3. In a large bowl pour your sauce over the kale and evenly coat.  Use your hands for this job.  It is easier and more fun!
  4. Place the kale on the non-stick Teflex sheets that come with your dehydrator.  Spread the pieces out.
  5. Dehydrate on 105 degrees for approx. 6-8 hrs or until dry.  I tend to pull mine out before it gets 100% dry because I like it a little chewy.
  6. Store in an airtight glass container and be ready to nibble non-stop till the last crumb is gone!

Thursday, April 12, 2012

Day 12

Date: April 12, 2012
Weight: 138
Daily Goals:
------------------------
ü  Meditation/Yoga/Journal: I'm doing this journal... I'll do some more before bed :-)
ü  Daily Physical Exercise: Babysat today... 'nuff said
ü  Limited Television: Read a book instead! Though, I'm going to need a new book soon because I just about finished it haha
ü  Clean House: Went on a cleaning SPREE! Woot!
ü  Of Course, Stay Raw: As always :-)
----------------------------
Daily Breakdown: Oy vey! Spring Break is getting stressful, I tell ya. But I constantly have this rock of stability called raw-vegan and it's kept me saner than I would be on all that processed mess.
Breakfast: Green Smoothie! Apple, banana, and frozen strawberries plus the usual kale, raw honey, and Vitamineral Greeeeeeen.
Snack: My new obsession, almond butter mixed with cinnamon, agave nectar, and raisins... of course with apples to dip! For the record, raw apples usually give me trouble and I'm slightly allergic to almonds, so I have a stomachache for about 5 minutes after eating this. I should probably stop eating it, but I love it so! ... Worth it.
Lunchish snack: Orange slices
Random Snacking: Dates
Dinner: Spinach salad with the rest of my guacamole, two small carrots, half a shredded zucchini, onion, garlic salt, and grape seed oil. I doubt the garlic salt and grape seed oil are considered raw, but I can't get too caught up in those details... after all it's the nutrients of the food that matters most, right?
Dessert: Some leftover banana ice cream!


Effects: Hmmmm my skin is a little worse-off today... had two small ones that turned to big ones. But that's my own fault because I tried to pop them last night, so.. TMI? I also felt a bit fatter today haha. Skin issues, bloating, sounds like I'm starting my you know what! But I'm pretty sure I'm not, so perhaps it's just one of those days. Luckily, one of those days on any other diet feels like sh*t, but it wasn't too horrible being raw.

Hoping to start losing weight again, though! For some reason, I'm expecting miracle weight loss on this diet, and that is probably something I should be more realistic about. Most of the weight thus far has been just gunk leaving my body- I'd love to see some of the extra plump start whittling down haha. *sigh* Perhaps a bike ride will help egg that along tomorrow?

Here's to realistic expectations! ... .?