94 days and counting.....

Oops....

2010-02-09T14:57:00.000-08:00

I cheated. I should have labeled this 30 days and counting because that is as far as I made it. BUT...before I label myself a complete failure I must say that I have completely changed my eating habits. I do still juice carrots, beets and apple each morning for breakfast. I still eat spinach, cabbage salads each day for lunch, however, I do tend to have the warm stuff for dinner.

I have gone back to my vegetarian ways. I eat nothing with a face. I have not been consuming cheese as I did in the past and have only had 1 cup of coffee since December 28. I feel good eating this way. I felt good eating raw it was just too restricting...

A new day...

2010-01-08T17:06:00.000-08:00

today as I sat across from my husband in a restaurant and watched him eat fried shrimp, french fries and clam chowder I did not have the urge to jump across the table and tackle him. I never thought I would be here... in this place of not "sneaking" french fries. I can honestly say I feel better. No "glow" yet, but I know it is right around the corner. We are of to LA for a few days. I am packing many raw snacks and will find a few salads and juice drinks along the way.

Cheese...

2010-01-08T08:25:00.000-08:00

got the best of me. I knew I should have bought the shredded and not the chunk. I only had 2(pretty thick) slices. The guilt was strong and I vow never to buy chunk cheese again.

I did weigh myself today and was pleasantly surprised to see a 5.5 weight loss. I felt like I was gaining because I have been hungrier and eating more than normal. Apparently when you are only eating green stuff it does not stick with you. My cravings for snacks has subsided. I now realize just how much I was snacking. If I can just get past the cheese craving I will be set.

I have started looking forward to my next salad. Who would have thought??

Morning yum....

2010-01-06T08:23:00.000-08:00

I have been mixing flax and greens into my morning juice. For those that have been asking where I get my protein...here it is.
Today I thought I would try a beet juice. It was rather red and now so is my tongue. I am looking healthier by the minute. I added 2 carrots, 1 beet, 1 orange and half of an apple. It was pretty good and beets are a good source of calcium, iron, vitamins A and C and folic acid. You can't beat a beet. Go juice one today.

I also wanted to add that I was right about the Chinese chicken salad I ordered for dinner last night. I asked if they could substitute spinach with the romaine, leave off the chicken, Chinese noodles and dressing. She looked at me like I was crazy(and so did Rick) Some say I should have just asked for a bowl of spinach. But...that would not have been as much fun!

Cheese...

2010-01-05T14:15:00.000-08:00

I miss cheese. I could eat an entire 5lb chunk of cheddar right now. My good friend (who is on a restricted diet) told me that these cravings will go away within 2 weeks. Week 1 is up and week 2 is rounding the corner. I can't wait for this craving to be gone. I have given up coffee, dressing and pasta with no problem. It is all about the cheese for me.

Today I had a spinach, apple, carrot shake for breakfast.

I enjoyed some carrots and snow peas while at the park with friends.(I so wanted to grab the goldfish from the little ones)

Lunch was spinach, soaked beans, red onion, cabbage salad with balsamic.

Dinner will be tricky. I have a mystery shop and believe I am going to order the Chinese chicken salad, minus the chicken, wontons and dressing. I can't wait for "the you freak look" from the server as well as my hubby.

Day 7...

2010-01-04T09:29:00.000-08:00

Today I noticed that the circles under my eyes (the ones that have been there for 2 years) are not as dark. Could it be the carrot juice? I think maybe the orange of the carrot is turning my skin a nice orange hue.

My meals go like this....

For breakfast I have an orange, carrot, apple, strawberry juice with 2 scoops of veggie powder.

For lunch I typically have carrot sticks with a homemade salsa or a cabbage or spinach salad.

For dinner(my favorite) a HUGE spinach salad with red onion, snow peas, red pepper, carrot, chick peas and add anything else I can find in the fridge.

Snacks consist of raw nuts or a piece of fruit.

I weighed myself today and I have not lost any weight. I think I am eating too much fruit and not enough greens. Tomorrow I am going to try a green shake. Sounds lovely I know. This shake is spinach, celery, tomato and an apple. Yuck!

Day 6....I think.

2010-01-03T20:04:00.000-08:00

Well....I made it. I lasted through a fun weekend and pretty much only ate raw. I say pretty much because I did sneak a bit of dressing on my salad. But, for anyone that really knows me, knows I do not like raw cabbage and so I think I did pretty well. While at the resort I ate many apples and 3 cabbage salads full of snow peas, red and napa cabbage, carrots, cucumbers and plenty of H2O. I feel that I am hungry all of the time and always thinking of my next meal. I hope this will pass. Rick is going to be a guest blogger this week because he needs to get his frustration out. He thinks I have gone mad. Please comment on his blog and tell him I am fine and just want my "glow."

Lesson learned.....

2010-01-01T10:22:00.000-08:00

I was happy to learn that I could drink wine while eating this raw food. Wine is fermented and not cooked. Last night I enjoyed a couple of glasses of vino while bringing in the New Year and this morning I am realizing that if you are only eating veggies and fruit the wine may harm your head. No more wine for me!

Also, the reason we cook food is so that it does not taste like dirt/earth. One example is garbanzo beans. I LOVE them(cooked) I read that I could soak them for 15 hours and they would be a wonderful snack with a light crunch. I tried a few last night and they tasted like dirt. I just looked at them this morning and wanted to vomit. Could be the wine....but I think it is the beans.

Day 3....

2009-12-31T08:21:00.000-08:00

I am starting the raw diet early. The cabbage soup made me break out and my skin looks bad. I do remember this from the last time I had it.

I just enjoyed a carrot, strawberry and apple juice this morning and looking forward to some home-made guacamole and veggies for lunch. For dinner it will be a spinach salad with lots of veggies and a spicy jalapeno dressing. Yum!

Tomorrow we are leaving for a couple of days at La Costa Resort. I am super excited to prove to Rick that I won't break down. Wish me luck!

Day 2...

2009-12-30T15:41:00.001-08:00

I am still eating the cabbage soup ALL day long, however, I do make a family juice breakfast. We all look forward to it in the morning. Tomorrow I am spicing it up with some greens. We will see if I can trick Rick and Allie.
Today I purchased this amazing book. It is not only full of great recipes but also some interesting stories. The author, a bit like me, stumbled on to the raw diet. She describes herself now as full of energy, requiring less sleep, great skin, clear eyes and a "glow" about her. I can't wait to get the "glow" back.

Day 1

2009-12-29T18:09:00.000-08:00

Rick came home last night and saw the cabbage soup and begged me not to do this. He believes that when I diet...he diets. I knew I would get this response from him and so I made a lasagna. I hope it lasts him a week. Knowing I was not going to back down from my commitment he grabbed Allie and they locked themselves in a room and started wrapping and writing. They emerged with a gift for my birthday. I refused to open because I still have 5 days until my big day. I was given no choice but to open it and was happy to see a gift card for a stay at La Costa Resort and a spa treatment. Rick gave me a big grin and said "see you can't start this diet...lets go and have some fun." Well...I did start the diet and I also looked up raw food restaurants and was able to come up with a few. He will be so surprised!

Today I ate an apple, pear and carrot juice for breakfast.
For lunch dinner and as a snack I had BIG bowls of cabbage soup.

The (hopefully) new me...

2009-12-28T17:56:00.000-08:00

The New Year is upon me and so is my birthday and flabby butt. I have decided to challenge myself for 94 days with a "raw diet." I know that if I have any chance of sticking with it it will be because I am blogging about it. Tomorrow is day 1. For 4 days I will eat this yummy(barf) cabbage soup and vegetable/fruit juice from my new juicer. After the detox and a little "raw research" is complete I will post some photos and stories about how my self challenge is going. Cheers!