DAY 1 ... Observations

Today is the end, or the beginning, whichever way you want to look at it.

I have learnt a lot over the past forty days so here are my observations of the good, the bad and the ugly. Except there really is no ugly.

First things first, because I know you are dying to know. I have lost 14 pounds in 40 days. Some might think that is a lot, or a little, but I'll tell you this. As someone who has been struggling with hypothyroidism and has not been able to lose 2 pounds in a year even with the 'daily wonder drug thyroid medication'. This is not only good, it's a gosh dang miracle.

And, while we are on this, I remember doing those ridiculous diets that teenagers do, all those years back. You always seemed to loose a few pounds, gain a pound, loose some, gain some. Well, this has been steady loss. I have not gained at all during this period.

Now many people say that the weight just falls off when you go raw. I haven't exactly experienced free falling pounds just shedding themselves while I'm standing in line at the post office. But hey, like I've said before, it took me a while to get here, forty days really isn't that long in light of that.

Also, we are all different. If you aren't hypothyroid, if your metabolism functions at an optimal rate, if you are relatively fit and healthy anyway and you do this, I'm sure your results would be even more dramatic. I also believe that if I did this for six months instead of six weeks, there would be a drastic difference.

But for now, I'll take the miracle - thanks.

There have been noticeable differences in some basic things in my life. I've mentioned most of these before sleep, energy, nails, eyes and all that, so you can read earlier 'observation posts' to see those. There really hasn't been a remarkable difference from what I've already reported.

I still have almost daily headaches. Definitely not migraines, which is a wonder all on its own. But just mild, niggly dull headaches. I attribute this to two things.

Firstly exercise. I have a frustratingly tight back. It's so tight it's like a block of concrete. It practically takes heavy machinery to untangle and unlock those muscles. When I do exercise - let's say yoga for now, but really you can substitute anything - they get so shocked that they are being unlocked. They get all confused and sore and grumpy that I'm waking them from their lazy life, and I get tension headaches.

Don't worry, I spoke to a personal trainer/physiotherapist about this, that's what she said.

Somewhat.

She might have been a little more scientific.

Secondly, detox, detox, detox. I know this is happening because I can feel it and also because I go to the toilet 100 times a day. Things are getting shaken up in there. This can cause headaches.

Now I know all the raw food guru's out there (yup, Matt Monarch, I'm talking about you) say the easiest way to speed up the detox and to lose the headaches is by doing coffee enemas.

Yup, and you know what, that's great.

Awesome in fact. I'm thrilled that one of life's mysteries have been solved. It's just that I can't quite get my head around those.

I'm a weak kneed, lily livered, yellow bellied baby and I don't mind you calling me that. But for now, if I'm going to be having coffee, I'll take it in a cup on my back deck thank you.

Enough said on that topic.

Now, I understand that raw isn't for everyone. But what I've learnt these past few weeks, is that you don't have to be 100% raw to make huge improvements. If you just can't give up meat at all (for now), you can try having a huge healthy raw salad with it, instead of a green bean casserole (which lets face it is usually more casserole and less green bean).

You can have a big luscious salad for lunch instead of the tuna mayo sub (heavy on the mayo please!). Or you can do things as simply as cut out the coffee and drink more fresh juices (no, I don't mean Tropicana). Or even better, green juice.

It's really interesting, because one thing I thought would be so tough was giving up the coffee (see earlier post http://pinkpassionflower.blogspot.com/2010/03/adieu-carbs-coffee-and-cheese.html), but it turns out, after the first few days, that's the one thing I haven't even thought of while doing this. Granted I haven't spent two hours sitting in Starbucks just to test my theory, but I'm also not sticking my head in the coffee jar anymore inhaling the remnants of freshly ground beans.

Now don't get me wrong, I've had my fair share of cravings during this little journey. There have been times I've been tempted to duct tape my hands together so I can't open a bag of chips, or drive to the shops to buy something. Fortunately it didn't ever get that bad and somehow I got through it.

But the good news is I have read, that between 3-6 months, these cravings really disappear. I know, don't even tell me how long 6 months sounds right now.

I really believe that as you make these little improvements, you will start to prefer the feeling and taste of eating these foods. I also feel (and don't tell the guru's or they will have the raw food police after me) that if you can't find/afford raw honey for example, it won't kill you to just use whatever honey you can buy. Just don't use white granulated sugar as a substitute.

Now don't get me wrong. I do understand that eating all natural, organic and totally raw is the ideal goal. I also understand that 100% raw is optimal.

However, all I'm saying is that making small changes can be a great way to start, because jumping in the deep end of a forty day challenge is not necessarily the easiest way to go about it. And as you progress and your taste buds change, and your thought process changes, and your shopping habits change, and your view on 'normal' food changes, as you make more of those changes you will be heading in the right direction.

Because let's face it, for the average family who is used to a Standard American Diet, going from barbecued ribs and chicken fried steak on the weekend, to raw cauliflower with a pine nut dressing, is a bit of a shock to the system!

And that's partly why I wanted to write this blog. When I was doing my research, most of what I was finding were people who have been 80 - 100% raw for years. And I mean years and years.

It's great talking about the benefits (which I truly believe are monumental) 4 years into it. But I wanted to share what it was like to start the journey. To see the ups and downs of changing from the known to the unknown. Because, that really is the hard part.

I also wanted to show it from the point of view of someone who has come from a regular way of eating, instead of someone who has been borderline organic/raw/health food conscious most of their life.

So, raw food police or not, I stand firm in the belief that anything you do to head in the direction of a raw diet is better than not even taking those steps in the first place. I would also like to think that if more people started to eat like this, all the raw seeds and nuts, the supplements and the organic produce would become more accessible and therefore more affordable to the general population.

But first, you have to change your mindset. You have to change how you view what you eat. And I'll tell you right now, that society as we know it and as it's set up currently does not support you in this. You will definitely be the lone fish swimming upstream. And that is always a hard stream to swim in.

The obvious question then is where do I go from here. Well, my plan is to be as raw as possible as much as possible. I'm not committing to being 100% raw, 100% of the time. But I am committing to being as raw as much as I can be. I have worked too hard to throw it all away now.

I'm also not saying that on Saturday I won't be having a little cooked food celebration - that would be crazy.

One huge lesson I have taken from this is that there are alternatives, you just have to look for them. So, in future, if I want cookies, I'll find a raw recipe for one. I have also learnt, that if you are going to be raw, you really do need a good supply of recipes.

I have mentioned this before and I reiterate, if you are not used to creating raw food either buy some recipe books (yes, they do exist), or find free raw recipes on the Internet (there are many of them out there). I had no idea what you could create with nuts, seeds and raw produce.

Once I started, it was easier to make up my own things, or substitute ingredients, but I would never have known to grind cashew nuts into a flour to make cookie dough on my own - would you?
If you don't have recipes, you will fall back on what you know (which is normally just boring salad) and this will impede your ability to be successful.

So, now you know my aim for the future.

I will continue to post on this site and to update my raw experiences. I won't be posting every day though. So, keep your eyes peeled.

Day 12...I love

Observation Sundays. Taking the time to look back over the week makes such a difference. Especially those weeks when I haven't felt like much has changed, or those weeks I may have been a little ornery (even though that's unusual for me, sometimes it does happen!).

Take yesterday for example. I felt like the week hadn't been that successful until I started writing about it, once I noticed some things had disappeared from my life I realised that it had indeed been a good week. It just didn't develop in the way I had anticipated it would.

And trust me, we always want things to come into our lives, but sometimes things just need to leave our lives instead, that way it creates a space for something new to enter.

The other reason I love Observation Sundays, is because once I've acknowledged my progress - because lets face it, as long as I keep taking the steps, I consider myself to be making progress - it is incentive for me to keep on working hard and to stick with it.

So, this morning, I jumped out of bed at 5:00am - okay, jumped is a bit of an exaggeration, I rolled off the edge, and once I hit the floor woke up pretty quickly - and instead of trying to get back to sleep I went off to my first 6:00am hot yoga class.

I was pretty proud of myself. I've always been a morning person, but for the last few years that has changed and it takes me a long time to get going after waking. Not this morning. By 6:10 I was doing downward facing dog with the rest of the over-enthusiastic crowd. I felt like I'd just been admitted to a club that had previously had its doors closed to me.

But the best thing about it is that by 8:30am, I'd done an hour of yoga, walked the dog, had breakfast and put the washing on. Now that is a great way to start the day. Now, I'm off to build a wooden fence in the backyard. Not bad for a days work.

So you see what a day of observation can do? Yes, it creates little miracles.

DAY 13...Observations

Wow, day 13, I can hardly believe it. I am rolling downhill fast, closer and closer to number 1. Thank goodness. I can tell you that very often on this journey, you feel like this lovely lone tree. Staring out over the Grand Canyon wondering how on earth you will cross that chasm to the other side.

Then, I have to remember that every journey starts with a small step. And more importantly, that every journey is only completed if I keep taking those steps one after the other, after the other.
I realise now that the famous quotes always tell me how to start adventures, they forget to tell me how to finish them.

That aside, today is Sunday. I love Sunday. It means another week has passed. It means I am making progress.

Progress. Hmm, that is one of my observations this week. I feel like the progress is so slow. I was hoping to see some physical results quicker. However, I have to remember that it took me years to feel like this, it is unfair to expect all of that to be unravelled in a few weeks. I guess you can look at it that slow and steady wins the race. But, a girl can still hope can't she?

So, while I feel like I am crawling along at a snail's pace, there are some very good things to report on this week.

I am used to living with headaches. Migraines actually. They are a constant companion of mine. And, while they are an unwelcome companion, I get so used to them I wonder sometimes if my week is complete without at least one by my side. I am happy to report that I have not had a single migraine since I started eating raw.
Yes, I have had minor headaches, but not the mind numbing, head pounding, pull down the shades and block out all sound type. I can account for almost all the minor ones (coffee withdrawal, over-zealous stretching, twisted to hard in yoga) and I can deal with those.

For the past few years, I have found it very hard to move my hands easily. They have been stiff, swollen and in constant pain, hard to open fully and hard to close fully which makes typing, writing, and holding onto anything a bit of a challenge. Right now, they feel fine. No swelling, no pain and I can grip things fairly well. If not perfectly, then at least a lot better than I could 6 months ago.

While these may not seem like amazing things to someone else. For me, they are the changes that improve my quality of life. They are the things that make daily life easier.

And while writing this, I have just been reminded that the changes are happening. They are happening in mammoth and miraculous ways. They might not be taking place in the order I was hoping for or expecting, but they are happening.

And that is something to truly be grateful for.

(Photo - mine)

DAY 27...Observations

I have come to love Sundays. Sundays represent another hurdle overcome, another goal reached, another road walked, another step in the right direction - small victories. Yes, I love Sundays because they mean I have survived another whole week on my raw food journey.

So I have decided that Sundays will be my day of observation. A time to take stock. A time to tell you what I have noticed about myself during the week. I have no doubt some of it won't be pretty, but hold your nose, tighten your seat belt and come along for the ride anyway.

I'm still full. Not busting, I overate burgers full, just comfortably, I'm not searching for food, full. Which means I actually have to use a clock to tell me when I should eat again rather than wondering about the protein content of my toenails immediately after a meal.

I am starting to feel more energetic. Okay,so I'm not bouncing off the walls just yet, but I can get more done in a day than I could 1 month ago.

My skin just keeps getting better - softer, smoother, fewer blemishes. Not that I ever had any imperfections, but if I did, they would be disappearing.

I am sleeping like the dead. Seriously, I have suffered from insomnia for years, so a good nights sleep for me is a little like winning the lottery (well, maybe that's a stretch, if I won the lottery I'd pay someone to sleep for me...)

I have been in a pretty stable, good mood for the whole week which in itself is a miracle. Except for last night and the night before when dinner didn't turn out quite like expected and I had a minor melt down, but besides that...

Oh, and I've lost 7.5 pounds in two week. Yup, you heard correctly. I did not make a typo - 7.5.... In the past two years I couldn't lose 1 pound a year, so this is big news.

Here's an exciting one:

I walk every morning. For weeks I have been forcing myself along a beautiful path through the trees and across a meadow and through some more trees, knowing that it's good for me and it's what I need to do, but silently begrudging almost every step.

This week I got to the end of the walk and thought 'That's it? So quick? But I'm having so much fun!!!!'

I know, I used the F word. For FUN in conjunction with walking. So do you know what I did? I did the whole route again and I loved every minute of it. Now that is progress.

I'm finding each day easier. Okay, so I still haven't sat in a coffee shop, or gone out much, or walked past a bakery, but it's early days and I don't see the need to stare into the eyes of the devil if I don't absolutely have to.

And now for some yukky stuff, that I think you should still know. If you are a sensitive flower you might want to skip this part.

You know how they say men sweat, women glow? Well, I've never even been much of a glower. I'm just not a sweaty person, or a person with much body odour at all, I'm more of a dry person. (I realise this is bordering on too much information, but I warned you).

HOWEVER, this week in hot yoga, I have sweated enough to change the water table in several drought ridden countries. Seriously, I could water our whole garden.

And, here's the thing, I stink when I sweat. I mean really stinky, yukky, smelly sweat. So this tells me three things:

1) Sometimes there is a real benefit to having a blocked nose all the time.

2) It sucks being the person next to me in a yoga class.

3) There is some really nasty stuff inside my body desperately making a run for it while I'm giving them the chance.

That is good, good, good. So I will live with the stinky sweat and let you know when it all changes.

And the last uncomfortable observation. My stomach has become super sensitive. Now, I do not have a sensitive stomach. I am the person who visited India and drank water straight out the taps on the street (okay, I was not being magnanimous, I was hoping to get dysentery so I could lose some weight! I know, I have issues) and didn't once get sick. While travellers were dropping like flies around me, I just ploughed through with my iron stomach.

Anyway, I digress. Since I have been raw, I am simply unable to do any yoga postures on my stomach. The whole spine strengthening series, I either want to throw up or pass out and let me tell you, nausea and dizziness are not great companions. Especially when the person on the mat next to you already hates you for your smelly sweat. Quite frankly, throwing up near them would not cement the friendship.

But my stomach is incredibly uncomfortable if I lie on it. I have no idea what it's all about, but I'll let you know when I figure it out.

Well, that's it folks. Observations after week two, and I'm still alive. You see, if I can do it, you can do it too.

(photo - mine)