Transition -- Day 10

Breakfast: Two slices of Ezekiel toast with coconut oil & a light smear of raspberry-pomegranate french jam. A long espresso on the side.

Lunch: 32 oz. Parsley-Canteloupe-Clementine Live Green Smoothie. Three sliced bananas with cinnamon. A few organic tortilla chips.

Transition -- Day 9

Brekkies: A very pretty creamy Live Green Vanilla Shake made from a smallish bit of parsley (1/2 C.), one small avocado, a 2-inch piece of vanilla bean, 2 bananas, a heaping T. of raw coconut oil, and a bit of Himmy salt. With water, of course. :)
Woulda added ice but discovered I'm out for the moment.

Also made a lovely long espresso I haven't yet touched...the vanilla shake is winning out and I'm going back for refills. *grin*

(Update: Ditched the espresso & did the whole 32 oz vanilla smoothie. :)

Lunch: Open-Face Avo-"Tuna" mash on Ezekiel toast (3 pieces).

(One avocado chunked up with chopped "Bubbie's" bread & butter pickles, organic horseradish mustard, Himmy salt & fresh ground pepper.

Snackies: 32 oz Live Green Smoothie made with Parsley-Red Grapes-Coconut Oil and dash of Himmy salt.

Dinner: Grilled cheese dipped into a bit of tomato soup.

Nightcap: Glass of Malbec with friend...

Transition -- Day 8 (Valentine's Day!)

Brekkies: Two of the fluffiest pancakes I've ever made (from scratch, of course...)

Lunch: 32 oz. of Dark Chocolate Live Green Smoothie, made with parsley and all the same goodies as last night. Delish! And certainly in the spirit of the holdiay!

Let the theobromine flow! :D

Dinner: Spaghetti in a broth of tomato paste sauteed with olive oil, red onion, and garlic, with a bit of parm.

Transition -- Day 7

Brekkies: 32 oz. water blended with 1 T. raw honey, 1 T. Braggs apple cider vinegar, and ice. So refreshing!

Also, my standard of late: Ezekiel toast with coconut oil, raw honey, and cinnamon.

Lunch: Ezekiel toast with 3 local-raised eggs, over easy.

Afternoon: Another 32 oz. of water with raw honey & ACV.

Dinner: 32 oz. Dark Chocolate Live Green Smoothie (3 bananas, 1 cup parsley, 3 heaping T. raw cacao powder, 1 T. coconut oil, 1" of vanilla bean, and dash of Himmy salt).

Followed by dinner out with friend: Large delicate Bibb lettuce salad with sliced cherry tomatoes and a few shavings of parm, with a bit of garlic dressing. Dark tequila cosmo on the side. :)

Transition -- Day 6

I woke up this morning and instantly felt dramatically lighter...when I hit the pavement for my 5:30 power walk, it was such a relief to feel how much less energy it took to move my body! My mind is also clearer and I woke up on my own, before my alarm went off. Good signs. :)

Brekkies: Same thing as I've been having lately: two slices of Ezekiel toast with coconut oil, raw honey, and cinnamon.

Snack: Glass of Parsley-Apple-Grape-Coconut Oil smoothie.

Lunch: Full 32 oz. smoothie of 4 carrots, 1 apple, and leftover greens & red onion from dinner last night.

Also, Open-Faced Avo-Cilantro Sammich: one avocado mashed up with handful of chopped cilantro, chopped small piece of red onion, some smashed cumin seeds, a dash of habanero salsa, and black pepper & Himmy salt.

Dinner: Something raw...can't remember...it's all a happy blur of raw fruit & vedge right now. ;)

But also took my son out to the local watering hole to celebrate his 21st birthday. Had a dark tequila cosmo ("not sweet, pleez"), a bit of his mahi-mahi and a couple of his calamari pieces.

Transition -- Day 5

Brekkies (7:30 am): Two slices of Ezekiel toast with raw coconut oil & raw honey, sprinkled with cinnamon. Long espresso with bit of organic cane sugar.

Snack (10:00 am): Large plate of sliced fruit (3 bananas, 1-1/2 apples) sprinkled with cinnamon.

Lunch(11:45 am): Finished off fruit above with a Lydia's Organics Ginger-Lemon bar and a cup of fresh-brewed pau d'arco/nettle tea with raw honey.

Dinner: 4 cups of fresh parsley/kale/carrot/apple/beet juice, diluted with equal part water. Plus a cup of jasmine rice.

Evening: G&J's chocolate/almond bar...not candy. Like a meal, and truly delicious. But already feeling it to be a bit too sweet, as my taste buds have become more sensitive to sweetness.

Transition -- Day 4

Brekkies: Two slices of toasted Ezekiel bread with raw coconut oil and raw honey, plus three bananas sliced & sprinkled with cinnamon. Delicious black espresso with a bit of cane sugar.

Late Lunch: 32 oz. Kale-Orange-Apple-Coconut Oil smoothie. So creamy...

Snack: Lydia's Organics "Ginger Lemon" bar.

Dinner: Large red-leaf lettuce salad w/ red onion, and a cup of jasmine rice with homemade vegetable curry...which hurt my tum a bit. Still feeling it here at end of the day.

I woke up this morning feeling the clarity that emerges with eating a majority of raw foods. My body felt lighter as well. Progress. Am beginning to acclimate mentally to the culture of eating raw.

Enjoyed a smallish dark tequila/pomegranate juice nightcap.

Transition -- Day 3

For Day 3, another good day:

Breakfast: 32oz Kale/Blueberry/Goji/Parsley/Banana smoothie

Snack: Long espresso with, yes I admit it, a splash of heavy cream.

Espresso is still delicious to my taste buds. I have never gone too deep into raw foods without completely losing my taste for coffee as long as I don't eat cooked foods, so I would be surprised if it doesn't start falling away soon. But no hurries. I do enjoy it. And it has always been about taste for me...I don't need it for energy, I don't suffer withdrawal symptoms when I stop, I can go for days without it & be quite happy...and actually don't like the feeling of highly caffeinated beverages. ("What? Doesn't espresso have more caffeine than regular coffee?" Nope. But that's a discussion for another post... ;))

Lunch: Bown of homemade soup made with jasmine rice & veggies

Snack: 32oz Parsley/Apple/Red Grape/Bee Pollen smoothie

Dinner: Gigantic salad of tender red-leaf lettuce. A bit of guacamole made from an under-ripe avocado...yah, I don't recommend that.

Snack: Lydia's Organics "Ginger Lemon" sprouted seed bar.

Transition -- Day 2

Met my goal for the day. Save for a small chocolate cupcake & cappo at Starbucks in the afternoon, some Ezekiel toast with brekkies and a few crackers with dinner, the rest of my meals consisted of live foods.

Breakfast: Blueberry-Kale-Goji smoothie. Toasted Ezekiel bread with Artisana's "Goji Bliss" coconut oil & sliced banana. And a very delicious long espresso.
Snack: Dried Mango-Lime-Chili
Lunch: 3 Bananas, Dates & Pecans
Snack: Cupcake (quite little) & cappo at sbux. Fruit: green grape
Dinner: Spicy guacamole. Wanted to have it with the organic tortilla chips that are usually in the house but there weren't any, so used some regular crackers.

One thing I intend to address, without which I know I will not be able to achieve a 100% raw state at this time, is how to make some good raw crackers & "bread". People who are very big into sweets seem to thrive on all the fabulous raw desserts one can make. I'm not into sweets so much -- I'll enjoy them, but what I crave most are *savory* dishes, not sweets. I love bread in many forms...with a hot beverage, with a sandwich filling, as an accompaniment with soups. When I'm eating a live food diet, I like to make savory sandwich fillers with avocado & sprouts and need something to put them in. Maybe in the future I can rewire my habits & live entirely without with "bready things", but for now, if I want to set myself up for success with a 100% raw lifestyle, I need to incorporate this into my kitchen.

Thing is...I cannot stand flax seed. Just disgusts me. Very few things make me feel that way, I'm not a picky eater in that regard. But the taste of flax seed...practically gags me. Problem is, in the raw world, flax is the "binder", like eggs are in the cooked world.

Enter...my latest discovery...chia seeds! When soaked, they have the gelatinous quality that flax seeds have, with a much more neutral taste. And they are extremely nutritious.

Am going to try my hand at a chia seed bread or cracker later today.

Transition -- Day 1

Well...I met my goals for the day. Am very pleased!

For breakfast: The afore-mentioned pancakes, made from scratch (organic flour, milk, eggs, butter...the whole nine yards. Chica may still be eating low-vibrational crap, but at least it's "clean" crap. Heh."

For lunch: Blueberry-Kale-Gojiberry smoothie (a full 32 oz). Had the color of squid ink. The color combinations in nature are quite interesting...I love to see how they combine.

Mid-day snack: Raw pecans and jumbo medjool dates.
"What pecan pie wishes it tastes like."

Dinner: Dried Yakon (tastes like smoked, dried apple chips). I just munched on these til full. I woulda made a salad but I was on a roll working at the computer on my new business and didn't feel like stopping.

Evening snack: Some tea made from pau d'arco, dried nettles, and gojiberries, with a side of a few crunchy pecans.

Nightcap: A bit of Argentinian Malbec.

Let me be clear: I may love being raw, but I have no interest in renouncing a glass of wine, my favorite tequila (Jose Cuervo Black Medallion...anyone who knows me well knows this. ;-) or even espresso. The more raw I become, the less I desire these things -- actually, I tend to virtually lose my taste for coffee in any form. But I've acquired an appreciation for a smart cocktail at the end of the day. I pay no mind and have no worries on this subject. I certainly don't go against the grain and try to "give something up" which I enjoy so full-heartedly! Someone who's raw tends to be verrrrry sensitive to alcohol consumption so it has it's own limiting factor.

On that note...tomorrow's another day. :D

Transition to Raw

So, I've been *intending* since last fall to go back to at least an 85% live / raw foods lifestyle...and I've been *intending* since last fall to do a Juice Feasting adventure...

I know I was waiting for my work & financial situation to shift, because of the cost of fresh organic produce. But...meh...not waiting anymore. I'm not in a position today where I could fund a Juice Feast, but I can do Raw well enough.

So, today begins my Transition to Raw. Ultimately, I want my diet to be 100% comprised once again of raw, living and superfoods. For the moment, I'm aiming for at least an 85%. For example, if I'm raw all day but have some bread and a bit of something cooked at dinner with a salad, I judge myself to have hit my mark.

One thing that has got to stop immediately is my reliance on the cooking of starchy things for my family, for both the convenience and the cost-savings. As someone who is *not* choosing a vegan path for moral reasons, I'd rather roast them a chicken than the dead pasty crap that has settled into our recent eating habits...exactly the sort of crap that most people eat a lot of when they are "stretching the budget".

So...am happily saying good-bye to the dead pasty junk, and gratefully digging into my goji berries and hempseeds. ;)

As I'm very much into measuring progress toward achieving all of my goals right now, I'll be posting my daily intake here.

So, starting with today, am off to a most excellent start... pancakes! :)

It'll get better...I promise. Heh.

The fun of ramping up...

The winds of change are a foot, and they're bringing me back again to focus on tweaking my lifestyle to support more orderly use of the energy and time allotted me. More than a tweak, really… the current in the air feels more akin to three years ago when I first started experimenting with a living foods lifestyle. That marked a wonderful watershed of change for me. I hope the next months usher in a similar wave of change. Certainly, this next week has all the hallmark signs of a fun kick-off – lots of new things coming onto the scene. For some reason, I went and ordered a host of items I've had on my mind to purchase for the last 6-9 months.

Ionizer: Yesterday I hooked up my new Genesis Rejuvenator ionizer to my kitchen faucet. Very psyched to be able to flood my body with this alkaline water. Have started experimenting with the acid water produced by the unit, as well…brushing teeth with it instead of toothpaste, soaking sprouts in it.

New blender: After conducting a bit of research, I decided to purchase the Blendtec 3HP Total Blender. Am not just ramping up the smoothies again, but am recommitting to focusing on finishing my first three live-foods books, and having this blender is going to open up some options as to the ingredients I can use and recipes I can make… as well as increasing the nutrition available in the smoothies I make. Apparently, the more powerful blenders actually break down the cell walls of the fruit and vedge components, allowing the nutrients to be more bio-available. Sounds logical to me… am looking forward to seeing how that actually carries over into how my vitality and physical performance increases.

Fitness equipment: I purchased an "Ultimate Rebounder", a 30' rope ladder (for boot-camp-esque speed & agility training), and some "Yoga Toes" which should be arriving any day now. And I also ordered a Kettler Apollo inversion table. Just can't wait to get on that thing. Next week is going to fun trying all these out.

Espresso machine: Even though my consumption of coffee goes way, way down when I jack up the raw (and I'm not a quantity consumer of coffee even now), still I value having the means to make exceptional espresso at home. And since I brought my espresso machine to work last fall, I've been on the lookout for a sale on a replacement machine. Lo and behold, I found a refurbished unit that is less than half the retail price. So, my lovely silver Ascaso "Dream Versatile" is on its way.

New computer equipment: And since our home PC drew its last breath months ago, I resolved to get a new system before I left the consulting world for a permanent position… which is occurring at the end of the month. So I shopped around and found an excellent refurbished (seems that's the way to stretch one's dollar…) Gateway with plenty of power for gaming and music production. Picked up a new 20" widescreen flat-panel monitor and some surround sound speakers as well. So… both the office and the kitchen are experiencing some heavy makeovers this week! Seems everything regarding work & health is undergoing a rapid shift at the same time.

New job: Am staying with the same company, but am assuming a permanent position… and beginning to manage a new project in the next month. It's this professional change, with a potentially more stabilized schedule, that has inspired me to resume working on my live-food books. I am determined to find a way to complete & self-publish the firsts one by the end of the summer.

Dance goals: My continued ballroom dance training and goals are driving much of this health & fitness activity. I started competing again, with five competitions so far since January and three more planned through June. And I'm planning to adding Latin in July to my regular Standard comp events. My schedule is currently so tight that I don't have much time available for travel to the studio to practice outside of my lessons. But around mid-May my schedule will change, and I will be able to start practicing more aggressively. In the meantime, I'm continuing to ramp up some fitness training to improve stamina, flexibility, speed, and leanness..

Since January I started working with a trainer every week with Meridian Stretching & Resistance Flexibility Training. It's been changing and unlocking my body and has definitely improved my dancing. But there's so much more that I want and feel I can unlock. So between the various fitness training plans I have and the increase in live foods, I'm hoping to see even more radical change occur over the next few months!

Days 5 and 6 of 30-Day Raw Challenge

Still maintaining momentum. Feeling great.

Started Day 5 off with a full blender of Green Chocomacananner Smoothie. Then was busy all day -- caught in 4-hour long job interview (whew!) -- and didn't eat much. Stopped at a Salvadorean restaurant on my way home from the interview and snacked off one of their "Desayuno Tipico" breakfast plates, a couple huevos rancheros, some kind of round filled bread ("pupusa"?), a piece of queso blanco. Ordered a cafe con leche but did not drink it. Did indulge in a small bit of flan... heh.

Today, Day 6, I made had some Macadamia-Hempseed Fruit Topping (with organic almond extract instead of vanilla) over fresh strawberries & with fresh sunflower seed milk. Gave some in a cup to my youngest (a high school senior) who really liked it. "Any more?" Nope... mumma ate it all. :-D

Also had half a piece of the all-organic custardy french toast I made for the kids, but honestly... I was sated by my own meal. For late lunch, I made a Creamy Pink Smoothie, and later had a bit of Warm Raw Cocoa. And I had a few bites of the jasmine rice and chicken breasts I made for my boyz for their supper. The day's not out yet, but will probly make another smoothie before heading out for some dancing.

Am experimenting with two recipes for raw crisps and crackers. They're in the dehydrator right now... hopin' at least one of them is a keeper! Will report tomorrow...

Still in search of tasty "live" Bread & Crackers...

Haven't located any buckwheat groats as yet locally. May just need to order them online. In the meantime, am gonna see what I can come up with using what I've got on hand at the moment.

I love homemade bread. It may be that I won't find a "raw" bread that does the trick to my taste, in which case, c'est la vie. I find baking bread from scratch magical. Now that is a living thing, when you've got the dough under your hands and you can feel it springing to life, warming & plumping & smoothing.

But in the spirit of exploring "rawness", I had some flaxseed crackers with my soup at dinner this evening. Extremely flavorful "Matter of Flax", Greek-flavored crackers... with visible bits of black olives in them, bits of red & green pepper, tomatoes, carrots, garlic... very nice.

The thing is, I abhor the taste of flax. Just grosses me out. Can't get used to it. Like the taste of wheatgrass juice. Just not for me. And without flax, making breads & crackers is a tricky business, because soaked flax seed is the "binder" in the raw realm, like eggs are in the baked world.

Must explore other binding options... I've got a dehydrator just itchin' to make full-flavored sprouted grain breads & crackers. Maybe the raw food muse will visit me in my sleep with some yummy inspiration.

Cardio Barre arrived!

I've wanted my very own barre for almost 20 years... since being introduced to Callanetics in the late 80s. Can't believe I've actually got one set up at home, now... Very, very pleased.

The barre actually arrived a few days ago, but one connector was defective so I couldn't set it up. Called up Cardio Barre, and they very sweetly Fed-Exed a replacement part to me, which arrived today! In the meantime, I did the Cardio Barre workout three times (using a chair for support), so when the I finally assembled the barre today I just put on some great workout music and gave it a whirl to see what all I could do with it.

I generally use DVDs to help me maintain momentum and to give me ideas, but I'm far more comfortable coming up with my own workouts geared towards what I can feel my body needs in the moment. I must've spent two hours at my barre today... standing, kneeling, sitting next to it... lying under it... doing leg exercises, seat-work, ab-work, upper-body stretching... you name it! I absolutely loved it.

I've got a Fluidity Bar coming soon -- am looking forward to that, because it's much heavier and will allow me to use my body weight to create resistance and get into some positions I can't manage with a lightweight free-standing barre. But the Cardio Barre is gonna see a lotta sweat... :)

It weighs only 11 pounds, is 4-1/2 feet long, a nice shiny black, assembles in less than 60 seconds, comes in a sexy black carrying bag, and easily moves where I want it throughout my workout, but provides all the support I need for basic barre work. Cost $120 total, including S&H, and came with the DVD and some hand weights. Money well-spent, I say.

Day 4 of 30-Day Raw Challenge

Stayed with the live foods all day yesterday (Day 3), finishing up with a comfy cooked meal in front of a good movie (Mansfield Park):

Started day with fresh juice from 2 Valencia oranges, followed by Sesame Ezekiel Toast with Raw Coconut Oil and Raw Honey. Later I had a cappuccino from Starbucks while I waited at the Apple store to take my sick iPod in for a checkup. Alas, did not enjoy the cappo at all... felt repulsed by the milk, which seems to happen when I jack up the live foods.

The rest of the afternoon I sipped a blenderful of Pink Smoothie (with Strawberry-Red Grape-Tomato) and had a couple bowls of Live Shitake-Miso Soup. Also had a couple Raw Cashew-Pumpkin Seed "Pop-ems"... honey-nut treats I just don't know what to name. "Pop-em" is not cutting it... I need inspiration. But they sure are good. Way better than any of those date-almond nut balls I've had so many places. Am going to have to make a large batch of those things tomorrow. YUM.

For dinner, made some tortellini for the kids, with fresh tomato sauce, and had a bowl of that with a small glass of shiraz.

Today, Day 4, started straightaway with an unusual craving for eggs. I'd just picked up some gorgeous gigantic eggs from a local farmer, so I cooked a few up in some olive oil & enjoyed them with Ezekiel bread and a long espresso. It was all live the rest of the day, save for a bit of chocolate at the end of it all.

Made a nice Live Shitake Soup with Butternut Squash, Red Pepper, and Hempseed. Comforting and very filling... felt absolutely stuffed afterwards, and has lasted all evening.

Altogether, am pleased with how things have gone so far...

Day 3 of 30-Day Raw Challenge

Skin beginning to develop that inexplicable softness that comes with eating high-raw. It always amazes me how quickly that emerges. The skin is truly a barometer for what's going on within one's body.

So, today, I'm feeling completely clear-headed, energetic, focused, ambitious, very "alive", and with normal hunger. Awesome.

Yesterday (Day 2) was easy & enjoyable. Enjoyed some non-raw bits & pieces in the evening, but for the most part I'm craving live food and eating lots of it. Most of the day was spent consuming a large Chocomaca Hempseed Shake and a bowl of Coconut-Grape Soup with Strawberries and Macadamia Nuts, with leftover soup in a glass like a smoothie. I was TOTALLY fired up by the coconut... WOW. That stuff is magical. Lots of productivity, with energy to spare.

In the evening, I had a small toasted ciabatta sandwich with turkey, arthichoke, and red pepper. And I closed out the day with a Vanilla-Peach martini made with organic Italian peach nectar and vanilla vodka.

Day 2 of 30-Day Raw Challenge

Made it through very easily yesterday at nearly 100% live foods.

What I ate:

Chocomacananner Sprouted Cereal Shake
Vanilla Macadamia-Hempseed Topping over Strawberries
Live Butternut Squash Soup w/ Avocado and Pistachios
Most of a small slice of Sicilian pizza

Unexpectedly went out to dinner with friend in the evening, and thus grabbed the slice. Light bread, small bit of sauce & cheese... exactly the sort of bready thing I crave on a daily basis when I'm high-raw. Usually a bit of toasted Ezekiel bread helps out, because of its rich nutty-meaty flavor & texture.

Am looking for buckwheat groats right now so I can sprout them & try to make some live buckwheat crackers, which I can eat with avocado/sprout spreads & savory pates made from the leftovers of the morning's nut milk. But... need to nail down the right bread or cracker recipe for that to work.

I slept perfectly-wonderfully-peacefully last night. Feel clear-headed, energized, and very motivated today. Started things off with a Chocomaca Hempseed Shake, and making an espresso now at 11am.

(Edited to add: Only got a few sips into the espresso before dumped into the sink. Started to catch in my throat & not wanna go down. Unthinkable... but true.)

In search of great live Bread and Crackers...

I'm on a mission to create tasty live bread & crackers at home with my dehydrator... it's the one missing piece that drives me crazy when I try to go full-out 100% raw. I just need bread-y things, and crunchy things to scoop up dips & such.

Have pulled out one of my live food books for some recipe ideas. Nothing I've ever tried has ever.really.hit.the.spot... but I do believe it must be possible

Day 1 of 30-Day Raw Challenge

Stared things off with a handful of raw cashews and a Chocomacananner Sprouted Cereal shake . With a long espresso on the side.

Not giving up coffee unless it gives me up... as it has done before when I've gone high raw. Those who know me know that when it comes to coffee, I'm all about the flavor, not the caffeine. I don't drink it to "wake up" or for energy -- I just think a well-brewed cup of espresso, macchiato, or cappuccino is one of my favorite taste pleasures on the planet. It feels good in my body and I suffer from no ill effects if I don't partake.

But I seem to lose the desire for coffee the more I consume live foods so... am paying it no mind until that happens. A girl's gotta have some vices...

Actually, I don't think of my enjoyment of coffee as a vice. So I better start coming up with some other ones. Heh.