Raw food, weight loss, health, and life - To your health!

Thinking about diets and weight loss made me think back to a blog post I added, back on June 7, 2008. It was all about my personal experiences with the diet-food roller-coaster, and one of the reasons why I transitioned to a raw food lifestyle. As most of you will agree, “DIETS DON’T WORK!” They just don’t! Oh sure, you might initially lose weight, and even keep it off for a while. But the truth is, unless you change your overall view on health and well-being, and make permanent lifestyle adjustments, you will gain the weight back – and in some cases, gain back a lot more! Or worse yet, you will become quite ill from the diet you did do, causing other problems as well. Your body just can’t keep bouncing back and forth with the weight gain and diet changes, without major long-term repercussions. So doesn’t it make sense to make permanent long-term changes to your health, and not worry about “DIETING”? It’s a lot less to hassle with, and your body will appreciate the consideration. Plus, think of the time and money you will save, that you can expend on other ventures much more satisfying? It’s truly worth giving your full attention too!

Before going any further…let’s get one thing clear. Weight gain is mostly caused from one key factor – the inability to eliminate! Think about it. What is the main purpose of diet pills, diet plans, fasts and cleanses? To eliminate! Because, when you can’t eliminate the food waste that you put into your body, it just hangs around, and has nowhere to go but build-up and take up space – hence ‘WEIGHT GAIN!”

With that all being said, let’s get started with what I consider to be the best option to permanent and maintenance free weight loss – “The Raw Food Diet!” Truly a lifestyle change!

First off, for those of you who are new to the raw food diet, let me simply say this, “The raw food diet is one in which food is alive, unheated, unprocessed – and predominately consists of fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, sea weeds, some grains and legumes”. That’s right, animal flesh and dairy are not a big part of the raw food diet. However, that does not necessarily mean that there are not some options within those categories that can’t be eaten or that should necessarily be restricted – such as raw goat’s milk, bee pollen, honey, and possibly fish depending upon how it’s raised. But for the most part, a raw food diet is a high vegan diet. Basically, you will need to see what works best for you as an individual to determine how extreme you could possibly take it. I personally, consider myself a person who eats a high raw vegan diet – although I do consume bee pollen and raw honey.

So why then is a raw food diet considered to be the most healthful diet? From my research, it is due to basic food science. Our bodies require enzymes to function and live. You could say that enzymes are basically “the source of life”! Without enzymes our bodies could not digest the food we consume, which would then make it impossible to absorb the necessary minerals and nutrients to feed the cells and allow our bodies to grow, move, adapt, heal, function and live!

Since we need to consume things that will provide us with the necessary nutrients and calories to exist, we need to eat those things that can provide this. So we eat animal flesh, plants, seeds, nuts, and such for that purpose. All these things have enzymes. However, some of these things we eat can not be eaten in their natural living state. We are not equipped to breakdown these things, such as animal flesh, in order to properly digest it and benefit from the enzymes and nutrients. So we cook it. That just doesn’t make sense does it? I mean, if we have to eat things that are alive in order to benefit – than why would we cook it? Cooking renders the food DEAD! Obviously, when an animal is killed to eat, or a plant is pulled from the ground to eat, they are basically “dying”…so we do our best to consume them as quickly as possible to benefit from the enzymes, and the nutrients within. Sometimes we will freeze or refrigerate the food to cause the food to be dormant so that we can extend what’s left of its “living” state in order to eat it later. But with animal flesh, it’s more than just storing it for later. We just can’t break it down or digest it in a way that makes it worth the time to consume. Plus, when you eat food that is not alive or fresh, as it tries to pass through the body, it begins to get stuck and ferment, and become highly toxic, leaving you sick, sluggish, and eventually leads to weight gain, and malnourishment. “So why bother?” Better choices would be from the garden and the sea – dark leafy greens, sprouts, vegetables, fruits, seaweeds, nuts and seeds, and grains.

Now, one thing you should know is that seeds and nuts, as well as grains and legumes, aren’t necessarily the best food to eat in its dried, picked state. They are actually dormant – which means that the enzymes and nutritional value are locked within. The only way to release them is by soaking, and allowing them to sprout. It’s as if you have planted them so that they can grow. The difference is you can eat them before they actually mature. It’s important that I explain that to you, because many people will consume way too many nuts and seeds, which are actually high in fat (although a much better choice than processed fats), which leads to weight gain. Also, being dormant makes them more toxic to the body, since it is much harder for the body to digest them. Legumes and grains can also be highly toxic for the same reason. In fact, some legumes and grains should be avoided altogether.

Which leads to the obvious – the best foods are dark leafy greens, seaweeds, vegetables and fruits!

Well, the next question or concern would probably be, “What if you have trouble digesting vegetables or fruits? Then what?” Well, since I used to fall into that category to some degree, I have found for me personally that smoothies and juices were some of the best ways, and still are, to consume those vegetables and fruits that caused me digestive grief. Plus, from what I have researched, juicing and smoothies is also one of the fastest ways to absorb the necessary nutrients into the body. So you see, you don’t need to heat your food and permanently kill it to eat it!

And, if you think that eating raw and living food will be tasteless and blah – that is so far from the truth! In fact, the only reason why cooked food tastes good is because of all the added oils, sugars, spices, and (with processed foods) the chemicals and preservatives that have been added to make it worth eating. “Get my point?” If you have ever had the opportunity to taste fruit right from tree, or to pull vegetables and greens right from the ground, you will definitely agree that the flavors within are the BEST and FRESHEST flavors you could ever imagine possible! LIVE FOOD TASTES GREAT! So again, why heat your food – why kill it! Don’t get me wrong, I would be lying if I said I didn’t love cooked food. I used to cook and eat a lot of cooked food – and it was great. But truth be told, I didn’t feel great. I felt very bad. For years I had been suffering with all kinds of chronic digestive, bowel and joint conditions – all from food related issues. It was my body’s cry for help and relief. At some point you have to make the decision that the quality of life is better than giving in to unnecessary addictions that serve no purpose but to give immediate gratification. That’s what cooked food does for most people in this day and age. We live in a world of great abundance and phenomenal technology. There is absolutely no reason for people to be forced to prepare and eat foods that are unhealthy – especially not in countries such as the USA. We have OPTIONS!

As I stated in the first paragraph, DIETS DON’T WORK. However, long-term or lifestyle changes to your diet does work. By adapting to a diet high in raw and living foods, there would be no reason to count calories, or to necessarily plan meals, or to worry about when you could eat “dessert”, or spending hundreds of dollars every week purchasing special foods. Just grow it, or pick it, or purchase it from the local farmer or grocer – wash it and eat it! That’s it!

I know many of you have seen all the beautiful raw food entrees and desserts that include dehydrated delights, or specially prepared cuisines. This is considered to be “gourmet” and is more of a way to help those transitioning to a raw food diet, to not feel so deprived and to enjoy the change. I love gourmet raw food. But, you don’t need to eat gourmet food to be raw. Truly food serves one purpose, and one purpose only – to feed and heal the body. The rest is what we make it. So, you can eat simply, to simply live! It’s all good!

If we all took the time to truly analyze how food affects our lives both physically, mentally, socially, spiritually, and economically, we could all see that changing the way we eat could have a positive, global impact for all. Eating healthy comes with healthy body weight, increased energy, overall health and well-being, clear mind, and the ability to function effectively. These physical improvements will help individuals to maintain their health naturally, making it unnecessary for costly health care maintenance. Eating a diet high in raw and living food also eliminates the need for costly diet supplements and vitamins. Proper nutrition – balanced nutrition comes from eating a well-rounded diet high in raw and living food. The money saved from that can be used towards other necessities, like protecting our natural resources. Eating a high raw and living diet will also help reduce the cost of grocery spending. Buying fresh foods from local farmers and grocers also reduces the high costs of living – since the food bill will drop dramatically. Processed foods are very expensive and wasteful. This also helps to protect our natural resources. By not heating food, this helps save on energy, which also helps with our natural resources, and reduces the high cost of living. So you see, there are so many benefits to eating a diet high in raw and living foods. Weight loss is just one small part of it! You want to be GREEN, save the planet, and protect our natural resources – EAT RAW!

A foot note to this article. To make a point of how a raw food diet truly works. Please note my personal experience. I have been raw for about two years now. Since changing to a raw food lifestyle I lost over 30 pounds, and have been symptom free from most of the long-term chronic conditions I suffered from. When making this change it is important to remember, that although in life modifications are inevitable, it does not mean that you can completely stray from what is working for you.

When the holidays came around in 2008 I began to fall off the wagon a bit. I gave in to my emotional addictions (a topic for a future article), with “comfort food” and began to eat “lightly processed” organic corn chips. I also began to eat way too many nuts, and consumed way too much “raw junk food”. Just because something is packaged “raw” does not mean it is necessarily healthy to eat – at least not a lot of it. The “raw” junk foods are mainly produced for transitioning purposes. But at some point you need to be honest and realize that unless it’s living and raw – it’s still not truly RAW FOOD. Because of my emotional behaviors, and consuming these foods, I have put on at least 15-18 pounds of this weight – which I’m not proud of. I am personally “transitioning” again to release this unnecessary and unwanted weight. I am also dealing with my emotional addictions to assist me with avoiding this type of relapse in the future. This proves to me that the raw food diet works for me, and that it has to be a life-long commitment.

I mean every word when I say the best and most healthful diet and lifestyle is the raw food diet. I am at my best when I live as close to 100% as possible. You don’t need to be a purist, but you do need to be honest with yourself and with your body’s needs to have the best health ever, and to enhance the quality of your life. Here’s to your health! Eat RAW!

Rawkathon, website updates, personal achievements

Wow! I just finished watching/listening to the first night of the Rawkathon. Let me tell you what, it was absolutely fantasmo! I can't wait for tomorrow night's next set of interviews. I love listening to Mike Adams. That man has so much good stuff to say, and really makes you think! I was so glued to my computer when he was being interviewed. Then I got to hear Gabriel Cousens - another great Raw Inspiration! I'm telling you, I really got a lot out of this program! So many more to go!!!

If you haven't signed up for it, you need to do it right away! Seriously, you don't want to miss any more!!! It's worth your time, and it's FREE!!!





So, while I've been listening/watching, I've also been working very hard on updating my Raw-Riffic Food site, that I started over a year ago. I finally realized that I need to start focusing as much time as possible on doing the things that give me most pleasure, peace of mind, and have the most impact on my life and others. So, that's my deal...I spent most of today updating the Resource tab of the site. I literally spent about 5 hours on this. I know, wow! LOL...when you get the chance check it out and let me know what you think. Thanks...



On another note, you probably noticed that I recently released my first eBook called "Raw-Riffic Food's 101 Super-Charged Juices, Shakes & Smoothies...more than just a raw recipe book". Well, this is an endeavor that I've been working on for several months - and I'm happy to say that it's done, and I think I did a pretty darn good job. The book is colorful, informative, resourceful, and packed with 101 super-charged recipes! I think you will enjoy it! At least I hope you would! If you're interested, you can link here to purchase a copy, it's only $14.95 for the PDF eBook. Don't forget, that means you will need Adobe Reader to view the book. If you do take advantage, please send me your comments on what you think about it. I love feedback!


So, on another note, we are getting close to the end of Bunny's Raw-Fu 100-day challenge. Since starting the challenge I have lost more weight, and have stayed 100% vegan, and about 95% or more raw - I feel great! I'm down to 152 lbs., which means I have lost over 30 pounds since I went raw last year! Yeah!!! I can't wait to start the next challenge!



I know I haven't listed any recipes lately, and that I'm away from my blog more than I'm blogging - but the truth is I've been very busy with work, my son's school activities (band mom), and working on the book. Plus, we, like many Americans, have directly suffered from the hardships of our economy, so I've been dealing with that. But I'm hopeful and certain that we will get through this...just a matter of patience, faith, and action!

Well, it's late, and I need to get to bed a little early tonight. I've got a big week ahead! I will do my best to blog again real soon!

Thanks for stopping by, and have a great week!

Peace!

- Debbie

The "diet-food" rollercoaster (my story and thoughts)

Recently there have been several articles within the raw food community regarding the diet scams that have been popping up with misleading testimonials. In fact, one of the diet pill companies was actually trying to misuse the “before and after” testimonials of some very well known raw-foodists. It just amazes me what people will do for the almighty buck! But it proves even another point. And that is, “DIET PILLS AND DIETS DON’T WORK!” Because if they did, that company wouldn’t need to lie about the success of it’s product by using other people’s testimonials, and lying to the public about it. It truly amazes me.

Reading about all this made me start thinking about my own self, and how over the years I allowed myself to be so mislead by promises of quick weight loss, and feeling super healthy and energetic. My “diet” life has been one major rollercoaster ride after another!

Have you ever been at a big amusement park, where you paid a lot of money for a thrill ride, waited for at least an hour, only to get on the ride, have a quick thrill, and then it’s over within seconds? It’s great, and it sucks all at the same time. Yet, for whatever crazy reason, you go and you pay, and wait in line again, for those few seconds of euphoric pleasure. Well, that’s kind of how I look at diets – or dieting, so to speak. You see, get hyped up about a great new diet. They say it’s the best, and you hear all the testimonials, and you’re like, “Wow, I need to do that!” So you go and you spend hundreds of dollars, and weeks of your personal time, using the “diet” plan you bought into. At first, you feel that the money and the wait were worth it. Only to discover shortly afterwards, that it was no big deal, and you are right back where you were…and sometimes even more let down.

I know first hand what I’m talking about. For years I have been on that “diet” food, or “diet” pill, or “diet” regime rollercoaster. I spend so much time, money, energy, thinking, “Wow, hey, I’m losing weight.” But then within a few weeks, and only about 5 pounds maybe a little more, the ride stops. The weight stays, and slowly…but surely, it creeps up again. Then, worst off, I feel disappointed, cheated, depressed, and fatigued, and sometimes broke, because I got fooled again by the diet food rollercoaster!

Just to give you an idea of how many “diet-food-park rides” I’ve been on, here’s a little list:

- 5-HTP
- Alli Diet Pills
- Atkins
- Beverly Hills Diet
- BioSlim
- Blood Type
- Caffeine
- Carb blockers
- Chitosan Supplements
- Chromium Supplements
- CLA
- Colon cleanser products (commercial)
- Cortislim
- Counting Calories
- Counting Carbs
- Counting Fat
- Cytolean
- Dexitrim
- Diet Pills Containing Ephedra
- Diet Pills Containing PPA
- Diuretics
- Ephedra
- Fasting (but not the healthy way – basically starving myself is more like it…)
- Glucomannan Supplements
- Green Tea
- Herbalife
- Hoodia Gordonii
- HydroxyCut
- Kellogg’s Special K
- Laxatives
- Lean body meal replacement
- Mega-Thin
- Metabolife
- Nestlé’s Sweet Success
- Noni
- Phen-Phen
- Quickslim30
- Slimfast
- Soup Diet
- South Beach
- Spirulina Supplements
- St. John's Wort Supplements
- Subway
- Susanne Somers Diet
- Tonalin CLA
- TrimSpa X32
- Ultra 90
- Ultra-Slim
- Vegetarian Diet
- Weight loss patches
- Weight loss teas
- Weight Watchers
- Xenadrine without Enphedrine
- Zetacap

I’m sure you get the jest of what I’m getting at. You can see how I probably have spent thousands upon thousands of dollars over the years on this crap; and all the time wasted, and the harm I have caused my body from all that. It just goes to show you, “DIETS DON’T WORK!!!” The only thing that does work is feeding your body “REAL LIVE LIVING FOOD”, CLEANSING IT REGULARLY, getting SUNSHINE, taking OXYGEN (you know, “breathing”), and drinking “PURIFIED WATER”! So, the bottom line, “RAW FOOD” is the ticket! But not for a week, or a few months, or even a few years. It has to be a lifetime commitment to take care of yourself, and live well, eat well! I’m not saying you have to be a purist. I am saying that you have to make conscious effort, and just “live it”! I can promise you, it will make the world of difference. In fact, the next ride you get on will truly be euphoric! And it won’t be costly, it won’t be disappointing, or tiring, or short-lived. It will become the ride of your life!

I’m no raw food coach, or nutritionist, or expert of any kind. For that matter, I’ve only been truly living this way for almost a year. I’ve toyed with it for many years, but never took it seriously. I just know that although, “yes”, I have emotional attachments to food – but truthfully, I only feel my best when I simply eat living food! You just need to get over – I need to get over, the need for eating whatever it is that you, me, we are being subjected to at the time (i.e. television, radio, restaurant drive-bys, the influence of friends and family).

I hope that I never lose sight of my healthful goals, and that I continue to stay focus on what is truly important for good health and physical, and mental well-being…living food is where it’s at! I mean that!

Well I’m done standing on my soapbox for one day. I just had to share that with all of you. I think it’s important to understand what we go through when we get caught up in trying to take shortcuts with our lives. It’s costly, it wastes time (what an oxymoron), its potentially dangerous, and most of all it just doesn’t work.