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 2 ... WOW

It's my second last day. I can hardly believe it.

Never in my life has forty days gone so quickly, or taken so long. Been so easy and been so hard. It just shows you where taking things two hours at a time can get you.

Tomorrow I'll be doing my final Observations. Like the ones I normally do on Sunday.

But for today, I'm just savouring the feeling of what it's like to be here. I'm almost sad in a way. The daily blogging, the total focus on one goal, I'm going to miss it. It's like a child going off to college. The house will be emptier and quieter without my daily obsession with raw food.

But mostly, I'm just proud of myself. Proud that I said I would do it and did it. Proud that I stuck to it, even when the going got tough and the coffee and carbs were screaming loudly for me to just give up and succumb.

And I'm happy. I'm happy for many reasons - one of them being I can have that poached egg on Saturday morning, ha!

I'm just kidding. There is a lot to be happy about. But for now, I'm going to savour, savour, savour this moment.

By the way, total change of subject and unrelated to raw, these flowers are from my sister's garden a few years ago. Aren't they gorgeous?

DAY 3... The protein debate

For years there has been the debate between vegans / vegetarians / raw foodies and those who aren't any of the aforementioned, about protein.

Speak to most young (or old) strapping men about becoming veggie and the first thing they will say to you is 'where do I get my protein? How will I build any muscle?'.

I for one am not going to get into this debate. There are people out there who have way more information than I do on this topic and I just don't like arguing. I also just don't really get the big deal, maybe I'm missing something.

What I will say are two things. Firstly, ever seen a horse, a cow, a hippo or an elephant? They have some of the largest, strongest, leanest and most muscular bodies on this lovely planet.

Now let me ask you another question, ever invited one over for a barbecue? Ribs? Surf and turf?

No, I didn't think so, because they are all vegetarian (actually vegan)! Enough said.

Secondly, no matter what your opinion is, if you try to go raw (which happens to be vegan - although you can be vegan without being raw), you will come up against this question from concerned loved ones, inquisitive friends and very often the men in your life.

My hubby is definitely one of those guys. Whenever we discuss raw, I hear protein, protein, protein. So I did a little research.

One way you can supplement your diet is to take plant based protein powders, usually in the form of hemp protein or brown rice protein (Sun Warrior is supposed to be the best). I like to add these to the hemp seed, banana and cacao/carob shakes I have almost every day.

You can buy most of these flavoured (often vanilla or chocolate), but I don't like doing that, I prefer to have control over my own flavours, so I buy natural and then add carob or raw cacao if I want it to be chocolate or you can add vanilla seeds fresh from the pod if you prefer that.

These are available at most good health stores. They can be pricey though. So I went in search of an online source and found Raw Nutrition http://www.rawnutrition.ca/ . They are a family based business located in the Ottawa Valley.

What I loved about ordering from them, is that not only is the shipping free (in Canada) over $100, but their service was fantastically efficient and friendly.

Okay so I didn't actually talk to anyone from the company, but the way my box was packed, and the little extra details like the food combining chart that was included told me it was friendly! You know. You can see a box that was packed in a caring friendly way can't you?

So that's my take on protein. Love it, hate it, need it, don't need it? Wherever you are, there is a source out there for you without having to turn to meat.

(Picture - Sun Warrior)

DAY 4 ... How Martha Stewart saved my marriage

It's true, and it's the reason I was a little sad to start a raw food challenge.

You see, I came to the kitchen very late in my life. Lots of reasons really. I was never passionate about food, I was always surrounded by people who loved to cook, I was vegetarian, I was super fussy so if it didn't come in the form of a salad, a cheese and tomato sandwich, or tomato soup I wasn't really interested. Basically cooking just did not grab my attention and it's not like I was starving. I did pretty well without ever turning on the oven.

And then, I got married.

The first few weeks of marriage, I heard that question that sends shivers down the spines of women around the world daily. It made my throat go dry and the hair stand up on my arms. 'What's for dinner?'.

I hated those three little words. Boy, did I hate them.

I hated them as much as the five words that often followed. 'It's not like my mother's .......' Substitute any dish on the face of the planet.

'Why didn't you marry your mother?' was my normal response, until I realised this was going to be a very long battle, and I should just get it over with and figure out how to find my way around food.

Normally, I would run straight to my mom, and she would make me tea, envelop me in her love and commiserate, then take me into her kitchen and show me some tricks. The only problem is that my mom lived thousands of miles away on a different continent.

So I did what any self respecting modern North American woman does, I turned to TV. I watched Emeril, and Top Chef religiously and then I discovered Martha Stewart.

Martha walked me through roasting a chicken (I had never touched raw chicken before, remember I was a vegetarian), she showed me what to keep in my pantry and how to plan ahead (sometimes, I still break into a sweat about that) and even got me to make a pork loin (which it just so happens was better than my mother in laws!).

And, just as I was building up my kitchen arsenal, the Kitchen Aid, the Cuisineart, the pastry cutter, the meat thermometre and the silpats. And, just as I was learning (somewhat) how to get the starch and the meat out at the same time without one being burnt or one being cold, I decided to go raw.

So, you can understand there is a little nostalgia. It's like going to university and quitting in your final year.

I have to thank Martha Stewart for saving my marriage, but if I'm honest, these days, it's also quite nice to only worry about whether the dressing has blended enough before I dress the salad.

(Photo - Wikimedia)

DAY 5 ... Carrots and eggs

I said I was going to juice more this week and I have been. Well, a little bit, still not as much as I would like to. I asked hubby to buy me some carrots to add flavour to my juice. I must have been mumbling or something, because he came home with a 10 pound bag and then promptly went on a business trip. Ten pounds just for me, are you kidding me?

Normally I would have a simple solution - carrot cake - and lots of it, which would make everyone happy. Not this time though.

If I had a rabbit - which I wish I had by the way - we would still struggle to get through it. So guess which juice I'm drinking this week?

Yup, 4-5 carrots, one apple, and a 'top of your thumb joint' piece of ginger makes a delicious drink. Actually it's delicious the first time. By the time you have had 6 of them, you start feeling a little um, well, nauseous is a good word. I keep looking at my hands, but they haven't turned orange yet.

At least I'm getting my beta carotene and anti oxidants.

But really, I'm just avoiding the truth here. My chatter about carrots is to hide the real issue.

The real issue is that all I have been able to think about today is having a poached egg on Saturday morning for breakfast. Actually I've been debating whether I will be able to stop at one, or will splash out and have two.

And you know what a poached egg means don't you. It means toast too. You can't just eat them on their own, it wouldn't be right.

I just can't help myself okay. This 40 days suddenly seems like a very long time. And, I can hear those eggs and those little poaching pods calling my name every time I walk into the kitchen. I've shoved them to the back of the drawer and turned the music up louder so I can't hear them, but they keep calling.

What's a girl to do?

DAY 6 ... Observations

Sunday, Sunday, Sunday - love it. So, what have I observed this week.

After falling off the yoga bandwagon, I pulled myself up and got right back on. My body might not be thanking me now, but it will down the road. It felt really good to get back into class. I still agree with my decision though - when your body needs a break, you should give it one.

I think I have come back stronger and more focused.

Now that the end is in sight there has been a definite shift in my perspective. I keep thinking, 'Wow, the bulk of this is behind me, what's another few days?'. That's the big thought in my head, the little thought is the same it's been all along - little by little, step by step - I only take it two hours at a time. That makes it feel like anything is possible.

I would like to do more juicing this week. I haven't been doing as much as I had hoped to and I think it will benefit me to get more of those healthy green vegetables into my system without grazing like a cow all day. So, I'll juice.

I just read an article about doing a 36 day juice fast. Wow, I thought 40 days raw was tough, can you imagine only doing juice? I'm not tough enough for that yet.

Another observation this week is that my nails look fantastic. I've always been blessed with strong nails, but the the past few years they have been more brittle than usual. This week I've noticed how strong and healthy they look. And, they are growing like weeds, which in the nail department is a good thing.

I have definitely deviated from the menu. I just got tired of weighing, slicing, blending, chopping, mixing, mashing and everything else. The advantage of this is that I have eaten simple meals and less of them. The disadvantage is that I still need to be vigilant about getting a range of nutrients.

I am more aware of the taste of simple food. This is very exciting for me. When I first went raw, I noticed that so much of what we eat is heavily salted and sugared that everything else starts to taste bland. I had to spice things up with interesting raw dressings and sauces. Now, I still use dressing, but I am more able to taste the different and subtle flavours in the natural foods.

In the meantime, I'll keep counting down to the big numero UNO!

DAY 7... Rain and hot chocolate

Before I get to the hot chocolate, did you see the number in the title?

7 to be exact ..... I'm well into single digits, only 1 more week to go. I can hardly believe it.

When I began this, 40 days sounded like the biggest number in the world. A number that I might never succeed in reaching. It felt like being asked to count to 100 when you are a little kid and your brain can't quite figure out how to get there. And, no matter how hard you try you always get stuck around 20-something because counting to 100 seems like the hardest thing in the world. It is so far away, and so difficult, and the obstacle of three digits seems insurmountable.

That's how 40 felt a few weeks ago. And now, I'm down to a single digit and I feel like I can just see the finish line in the foggy distance. A finish line towards which I am hurtling myself at a ferocious speed.

That being said, it's pouring today. There has been nothing but driving rain since I first opened my eyes this morning. Oh, and grey skies. Rain and grey skies.

I've already been out for two sopping wet walks with my exercise partner. She enjoyed it, I didn't. She doesn't mind being wet, I do.

And now, all I want is a nice big mug of hot chocolate. A big mug I can warm my hands around while I sit next to the fire and watch the rain pour down outside.

Peppermint tea with blue agave just doesn't have the same ring to it does it? But it will have to do. I'm not giving up now silly.