eating raw

Ok. Eating raw - not for me. I think I am just too much of a foodie. Vegan for an entire MONTH was easier than this because I got to cook - try new ingredients and recipes - etc. I guess I am on here to admit failure. Although the fast and first couple of days were an excellent jolt for my body. The cravings are diminished, I have much less hunger, and I'm eating so much better. And I do feel better - including my sleeping. I've only had a half a cup of coffee this morning (before this I was drinking more than a pot a day), had some fresh fruit for breakfast, and am making grilled pork with a huge veggie stir fry for lunch.

I'm disappointed in myself - that I didn't follow through with the 5-7 days - but it really isn't for me. But I also realized I have nothing to prove to anyone with it. And I'd rather just make healthy choices all the time than try to cleanse. I do see the need to reduce all refined carbs and fats in my diet. So that's what I'll concentrate on. Easy with a fridge full of veggies!!!

So I can probably call the experiment both a failure and a success. I'll go with that.

Day one - prepping and fasting!

First, I have to apologize. I realized today that we do indeed have a holiday party next Monday, which means I will not be doing the cleanse for an entire week. I'm disappointed in myself for not remembering, and then considered putting it off for a few days. But a few factors are making me move forward with a 4 day cleanse instead:

• I already did the weaning of the caffeine and was half way through the fast
• Yesterday I purchased 40$ of fresh produce
• I'm thinking that maybe doing a 4 day cleanse is a good first try. 

I am doing this raw food cleanse at absolutely the wrong time of year. Buying  GOOD produce in Wisconsin during the winter is near to impossible, and what I did find was so crazy expensive. (Green bell peppers were .89 EACH - something I get 3/1.00 during the summer!) Depending on how this goes, I can see myself doing more raw food eating during the summer. Or at minimum adding raw food days to my diet. We will see!

So I am 15 hours into the 24-hour fast. I am hungry, with a tiny (caffeine) headache, and I am peeing constantly. (Sorry for the TMI.) To keep myself busy, I've been prepping fruits and vegetables like crazy. While good - it is keeping me very busy - it is also bad - as I handle the scrumptious fruits and veggies that can not be touched for another 9 hours. sigh

So here is how I spent my morning...

These are only the things needing prep. The fruit bowl is full of apples, bananas, and pears. The fridge has two kinds of sprouts, greens, and cabbage to boot! So I'm ready to embark on this experiment. I'll keep you posted!

T minus 8 hours until my first meal!

Early shopping done

I get very frustrated at how expensive fresh produce is!!! Eating healthy can be very expensive. In the past, I've countered the expense of produce by using whole grains, dried beans, etc., which are very cheap. This whole raw food cleanse is going to cost me a pretty penny. 45$ spent on produce today - I am hoping they will last me the first 3 days? My family will eat some of them as well... so hard to tell.

I will spend the rest of the afternoon prepping veggies and fruit. Planning to start the pre-cleanse 24 hr fast tonight after dinner. Which means tomorrow is fasting, first "meal" of fresh fruit will be tomorrow night, and then fruits and veggies starting Saturday.

I have mixed feelings. I LOVE fruits and veggies, so that is not an issue. I just need to realize what the next 7-10 days will entail.

I only had 1 cup of coffee today - hoping that it will help with the caffeine headache I forsee tomorrow. I am glad I decided to do it tonight - the fast - so that I can deal with any detox side effects alone tomorrow, rather than with the family home.

Here we go!

Starting the year off with a cleanse

Yep. Seems drastic, I know. But I've done cleanses before - and really loved how they make me feel. They tend to break my bad habit cycle and allow me to make some changes. I've decided that this time I'm going to try a raw food cleanse. I've done a bit of research - planning on starting the cleanse on Saturday - which means that I need to start prepping immediately, cutting down on my caffeine, sweets, and fatty foods and meat. I'll eat lightly over the next two days - eating bland foods to prepare me.

The cleanse will begin with a 24 hr fast starting after dinner Friday night. I will hopefully do the cleanse for 7-10 days, eating raw, whole fruits and vegetables. I'll post my findings over the next few days, and my luck either good or bad!

2014, another year to improve!

What would a blog changing one's life be without a new year's post?

I am of course thinking of my "resolutions", though I prefer not to call them that. I prefer to think of the beginning of  a new year as just that - a beginning, a NEW beginning. A chance to start fresh!

And for my health - that is simple. Because I'm so bad at putting myself first, and I do not take care of myself like I should.

I want to focus on:

• drinking water LOTS of water
• getting zumba back into my life
• cooking more grains and veggies for my family
• creating family time around physical activities like hiking, biking, etc. 

I want to focus this year on making choices that feed my body, just like I feed my soul, treating it like the gift it is from God.

Here's to living a good life in 2014!

Making choices~

Today's cooking included the challenge of using up some of the produce I'd amassed over the last week - either from my garden, the farmer's markets, or as gifts. For both meals, I was able to make enough of the meal a substantial vegetable dish, that I could do a vegetarian day for me, with added protein for the boys.

Lunch was fried up bluegill (thanks to my son's fishing yesterday), with a vegetable parmesan on the side using my eggplant and zucchini in tomato sauce, and pear crumble for dessert. Dinner was crock pot pork chops with roasted cabbage and potatoes.

I loved that I had a variety of vegetables to work with, and was able to create yummy dishes without recipes that the entire family enjoyed. The kicker was being able to fill up on veggies instead of meat. Makes for a happy woman.

Summer eating

Summer makes it SO easy to eat well. At least for those of us who enjoy fruits and veggies. :)  Each week, I hit at least one farmer's market, and I also have an extensive garden of my own. I find it so easy to get a huge variety of produce into each day's diet. My hope is to keep up the variety in order to ensure whole health.

This morning I had frozen strawberries and grapes for breakfast. Lunch will be minestrone LOADED with veggies (summer squash, zucchini, peas, beans) and a cucumber radish salad. Dinner will be a stir fry of zucchini, summer squash, red and green peppers, onions, garlic, and tofu.

I am also in the heart of harvesting - and preserving - our garden for the winter. This week I'll can grape juice (hoping for 7 qts) and salsa, and I'm drying plums as I type.

Hoping you all take advantage of the opportunity at this time of year to eat well. The vitamins, minerals, and fiber you'll get from all this amazing produce cannot be beat. Especially in this part of the country, upper Midwest, where our growing season is really only 3 months. Take advantage of it!