Raw on the Cheap.

Everyone is always yakking on about how expensive it is to eat healthy, most of the time its people who use it as an excuse. I would know, I used to! I think that really, if anyone, at any income level, wants to commit to a healthy lifestyle, they can. I know this because, as a student, I've lived with a very restricted budget and have been able to eat a high crab raw vegan lifestyle with good planning.

So what exactly is it that I do?

First and foremost, set a budget. Knowing exactly how much you can and want to spend on food is really important so that you can plan out your week's worth of food. I've set this as low as $50.00 a week and had more than food t satisfy my minimum of 2500 calories a day. Was it difficult? You could say that is just required much more planning, and more mono eating. But in reality, mono eating is ideal, so that didn't bother me one bit! I would say that my average spending for food would be $50-$100 a week at conventional grocery stores.

Second, do some research. Nowadays electronic sales flyers are really popular and you can get them directly sent to your email every week. With a limited budget, the best way is to buy the fruit that is on sale. Also, on't forget to check the discount rack! I've found masses of perfectly ripe bananas and other fruit and veggies for a fraction of the price. Another good idea that makes living on the cheap even easier is finding a wholesaler, which I hadn't been able to do at the time. Don't forget farmers markets in the warmer months!

Bananas will be your staple, at under $20.00 a case, they are usually the cheapest and most accessible calorie source you will find. Dates, when in season, are also a great idea. This also means that you will be eating with the seasons, since what's in season and abundant, is usually cheaper. As an example, I literally lived on citrus this past winter, it was amazing quality and super affordable.

Living on the cheap also means that unless you find a good wholesaler or farmers market, you will probably have to stick with conventional produce depending where you live and whats available. A great thing to look up for this purpose, are food co-ops. They have great buying power and can usually get you amazing prices if there is one in your area. You could even start up one if there aren't any already!

I also find that when I ate basically the same every other day I could still have variety every week while buying in bulk which saved money. So I'd have a simple salad every night that has almost all the same ingredients, but changing it up with spices or herbs (if you choose). Personally I can eat the same salad for a week and just change it up after wards. As for fruit meals, the bananas usually are always there, unless I'm feeling something else that week, and those are easy to keep interesting. You just have to prepare them in different ways: whole, smoothie, mashed, nice cream... The frozen fruit plays a vital role here as well, providing different flavor combinations. I like having at least 3 types of fruit for the week, always the best quality ones I can find, in season of course! This means oranges, persimmons, dates, pomegranates and other citrus in the winter. Mangoes, pineapples and the last of the citrus in the spring. Melons, stone fruit, berries and cherries in the summer. Grapes, apples, figs, dates and pears in the fall. With some fruit crossing over seasons, transition time is usually easy as well. This isn't even getting into greens and veggies which are amazing and are also something to cycle.

One thing that did take me time to get to this point is knowing how to cycle your fruit to always have ripe fruit ready to eat while avoiding any waste. I very rarely have any fruit go bad so no throwing money to the compost bin. This is something that you have to figure out for yourself, to see what works for you as an individual or a household.

This is an example of what I would buy for a week's worth of food in the winter/spring:

- One case bananas, $18.
- Small case oranges, $12.
- 2 cases Ataulfo mangoes, $14.
- 6 pack romaine hearts, $5.
- 2x 11 oz baby greens, $5.
- Case tomatoes, $10.
- Assorted frozen fruit, $10.
- 4 avocados, $4.
- Lemon, limes, ginger, assorted, $7.

TOTAL: $80.00
$11.42/day

I also always have backup dates or raisins, which I buy about once a month (about $20 worth) so that I always have available calories around. I always eat at least 2500 calories a day with this, looks like something like this:

Breakfast: 10 large bananas with 2 cups frozen strawberries (1300 cals)
Lunch: 1L OJ with 4 mangoes, blended. (900 cals)
Dinner: Large Salad (500cals)
TOTAL: 2700 calories

Basically, if you really want to do this, you can. There are very little barriers to it. Even transitioning in with rice and potatoes as evening staples keeps it very inexpensive. I spend MUCH less money now eating raw than I used to being a cooked vegan before I found 80/10/10. I'd say that high carb cooked raw vegan is comparable though and depending on what you eat, can even be more inexpensive.

People who spend a ton of money being "healthy" are usually the ones going after super-foods and supplements including specialty foods. These things can run up your grocery bill in no time at all and quite frankly, for most people, they are not essentials. All fruits and veggies are super foods in their own right, labeling one as such and selling it for high prices is nothing but marketing ploys from corporations looking for profit. That being said, if you want to live off expensive imported fruit, then yes, it makes for a more expensive lifestyle.

Keep in mind, this is also in Canada. In the summer, I spend less. In countries that grow their own fruit, this lifestyle can be even easier to live on with a restricted budget including the US.

This is just a guideline. Those who need to eat more or have a bit more to spend can definitely find more variety. Buying with others is also a great idea because you can get half cases of different fruit, if that's what you need to succeed. The bottom line, it doesn't take much to be able to do this. Period. You just have to want it badly enough to commit to planning.

Keep it fruity!

April 2013 Goals.

Ahhh the start of a new month...

This monthly goals series is fast becoming one of my favorite ever blog ideas. It's keeping me consistent in not only setting goals, but also achieving them. So moving forwards and upwards is just that much easier!

This month, I want to set some higher and more intense goals, but not so much that I struggle a lot to achieve them. I need to find much more balance in my everyday life, while still making positive changes. This means that setting goals is a bit more difficult because it's requiring a bit more thought into the specifics of it all.

Starting with food as usual, I want to maintain what I've already achieved  while still keeping my attitude about cooked food that I've had in the past month, I have no expectations as to staying raw or not. I'm going to go with the flow and explore it a little. I also have some financial restrictions, since I'm moving at the end of the month to another city, I need to make sure that I can keep on budget this month. I still haven't 100% decided on a green juice feast, which I would want to do for 14 days. I think I might do a short one (3-4 days) this week to re-balance my digestion and then do a 14 day one when spring is truly here and the prices for produce has gone down around here.

This being said, with keeping in mind pushing myself to new levels, I am curious to see how long I can keep up with raw. The way I feel now is that it's become my new normal, even though I live in a cooked vegan household where I see and smell all the healthy cooked vegan foods I used to eat on a regular basis. While I've been tempted a few times, it hasn't been overwhelming to any degree.

Exercise time! Keeping in line with the goals I posted here, I've already started an 8 week 10k training plan, which has me running 3 times a week. Rock climbing has taken a backseat until after the move, so I'm going to be doing more body weight routines to round out my running schedule, concentrating on upper body strength  I also want to start the 100 squats a day challenge again, it was seriously awesome when I was doing it and now is the time to get back into it. This means working out at least 5 times a week and keeping up with it. I can't keep being wonky about this if I really want to get to a half-marathon and Tough Mudder in the fall. Water intake has been consistent enough that I'm happy with saying that I've accomplished it for now.

Sleep. That pesky thing. I'll definitely be striving to achieve the goal I set last month of a minimum of 8 hours a night. Earlier mornings would also be a good goal, since it always translates to me being more organized when I have more time to organize my day.

Spiritually, meditation is my biggest goal right now. I want to be meditating twice a day for at least 15 mins each time. I have had awesome experiences when I do this, even pushing it to 60 minute meditations on weekends. Having a clear mind is essential to moving forward towards your dreams. Yoga is also something that I've been struggling with, so I'm going to set a goal of 20 mins every other day at the minimum. I used to do that everyday on top of a much more strenuous workout routine, so this really should not be a problem. Bonus is that it will help with running!

I also think I need to seriously start working on starting a YouTube channel, I have it all set up, but I haven't uploaded any videos as of yet. This is something I've been wanting to do for far too long and just keep putting it off for too many reasons that just aren't valid. Fear is a powerful thing, and putting myself out there in that way is going to be my new goal towards getting over insecurities. This is a big step for me and I'll probably try a few test runs to see the way I want to set this up. I think just setting the goal of one video before the end of the month is a low end and trying for 2 or 3 is goal accomplished.

Blog wise, I want to talk about doing raw on the cheap, juice feasting, fitness regiment and meditation practice. I also want to finish up my anxiety post and get it published on here in the next few days.

Here comes April!! Have a fruitastic month everyone!

Monthly Goals: March 2013

March is always a very busy month in my world. With tons of birthdays, including mine on the 7th, term papers and assignments due, spring around the corner and an imminent move to prepare for before I get swamped by exams in April so that I'm ready for it come May, there is tons on my mind!

So let's get to March Goals!

First and foremost, let's talk food. I am still 100% raw (woo!) and loving it, despite still having some random cravings and having a few bumps here and there. This month I want to start incorporating more juicing into my daily routine. I used to juice a ton and got out of the habit a bit. I find juicing to be amazingly beneficial and plan on writing a post entirely dedicated to it this month. Green juice is definitely my favorite,a nd with greens FINALLY getting cheaper, it'll be much easier to do.

Another food goal, is to try to be more consistent with my calorie intake and up it back to 2800-3200 calories a day. I've been keeping it a little low for my liking around the 2300-2600 mark and I know that I thrive even more when my calorie intake is higher. Also, my water intake has been less than it should be, so with 2.5 liters a day my new goal, I'll be getting enough to stay hydrated.

As for fitness goals, I'll be continuing with the same system I set up (picture below) but with a little more intensity. I'll be rotating all the categories by choosing 2 or more per day, at a minimum of 4 days a week with an ideal goal of 6 day a week. With the weather getting nicer, I might be able to attempt some outside runs!

A big one that I'm more or less introducing this month concerns my sleep schedule. I've always had difficulty balancing this one with all the others. Either I sleep tons, or not enough. I want to concentrate on getting a minimum of 8 hours of sleep everyday, ideally it would be 10, but I want to be realistic and work my self up to my ideal. This means being much more organized and time efficient with everything that I want to do. Less procrastination means more zzz's!! By establishing a specific morning routine, I'll be getting up earlier and exercising more, which means getting to be earlier and actually being tired is much more likely.

Let's see...what else...

Spiritual goals are basically the same, meditation every day for a least 15 minutes and yoga a few times a week, usually at home but I would like to get to a few classes as well to vary it up since I'm doing all of my workouts at home now. I want to explore some new methods of meditation as well, guided, new techniques and positions. 

I wanted to add one more category in these posts as well, a blogging goals section! So this month I want to write another Fun Fitness post, this time about Yoga. I also want to write a post about how raw has helped with my debilitating anxiety and lastly I want to write a post about letting go of the numbers aka the scale. I might have a few more ideas, but those are my must do's for March! :)

Here's to yet another amazing month!!

Monthly Goals: Assessment of February 2013

How did this month fly by so fast!?

It's been pretty intense, although I had reading week to recharge a bit, it was midterms and assignments galore before and afterwards.

Fitness-wise, I didn't attain my goals 100%. I got into the squat challenge pretty hardcore for 15 days, took 8 off then started again. It's amazing how just 100 squats a day makes a difference! My legs are so much stronger and my butt is looking pretty good if I do say so myself! I'm probably going to continue with the trend, but giving myself one day off from them because I did feel like a recovery day would do me some good at some points.

As for the push up challenge, I finished week 1 and part of week 2 of it. At that point I was feeling actual pain doing them and needed to reassess doing them. My form might be less than perfect or my shoulders are too tight are the conclusions I've come to. I will be trying it again, but just starting at a lower level and making sure my form is correct.

Have I said I love rock climbing??? I stayed true to my goal of a minimum of once a week, even going 4 times during reading week. I've improved a lot too! Gone up a few levels and attempted a few really difficult climbs. The running I wasn't as motivated for.

Raw has been going very well! I've fine tuned as I wanted to and am feeling amaazing. Hitting 60 days tomorrow is almost surreal with the struggle I've had in the past. I am still eating overts basically every day, but have taken out most nuts, seeds and spices other than for special meals. This surprized me the most cause it really just happened organically, where I didn't even set a specific intention for it, it just happened that I didn't want it anymore. There are still some things that aren't perfect, like I have been having issues getting good quality fruit, so I'm not eating as much as I should be. But with mangoes coming into season, that should sort itself out soon!!

Spiritually, I have explored a few new ways to dig deep and connect through various methods, including meditation. Although it hasn't been consistent enough for my liking, I think that the balance I've managed in other parts this past month will enable me to concentrate a bit more on it now. Yoga is going to be more of a priority as well.

Emotionally, I'm still going through a few roller-coasters. I'm still going with the flow and dealing with issues as they come up. I've had a lot of body image stuff come up lately, stuff that's been deeply ingrained for a very long time that I feel needs to be purged and figured out so that I can move on. I've come to realize that although I don't regret anything about my life path because it has led me to where I am today and I am very grateful for that, I am still holding a grudge towards myself for having compromised my health as much as I have. Learning to forgive myself is going to be a process. One that I need to undertake to move forward.

My vivid dreams still come and go, but they are less and less attached to people of my past and more towards vague experiences that aren't quite clear.

So it's been a pretty good month I'll say. I'll be writing about my goals for the next one in the next few days!

Much fruit and love! <3

Monthly Goals: February 2013

In keeping with my New Years resolution to blogging more consistently, I thought that having a beginning of the month post to lay out what my goals are for the following 30 days. Some of them will be related to my NYR's (which can be found here), some will be improvements to what I'm currently doing and steps towards achieving other personal goals of mine. .

First off this month, fitness-wise I'm going to be starting two new challenges. The first one is a 100 squats a day challenge, pretty straight forward and simple. I'll be doing my 100 squats in one set and I have a goal of being able to accomplish them in under 2 mins by the end of the month. Right now I'm sitting at just about 3 minutes to finish them up with a few short breaks of a couple seconds to shake out my legs. Last night, after I did them, my legs were dead, since on top of them I went rock climbing for 2 and a half hours!

The second fitness challenge that I've started is the training regiment to complete the 100 push-up challenge. All the details for that one can be found here. My initial test results was 15 military style push-ups, which to me was a bit of a disappointment really, since I was so sure I could do 20! So, it's probably a good thing that I've finally decided to start the challenge, not to mention all the perks of regularly doing push-ups and other chest exercises. The program usually takes about 6 weeks to complete and is really easy to follow with training 3 times a week and taking all of about 10 minutes or less to do.

I'm going to continue going to rock climbing at least once a week, striving for 2 times and running 3 times a week. I think that concentrating more on fun activities and challenges is really helping keep up with a healthy fitness regiment. Changing it up often keeps me interested and motivated.

Diet-wise I am doing really well with staying raw and low fat, I'm at day 34 today (which is the longest I had been previously) and am well on my way to accomplishing the 90 days (min) that I set out to do in the New Year (Yayyyy!). This month I'm going to fine tune a few things that I feel will help me gain more out of being raw, I'm going to try to eradicate all added salt from daily use and reduce my overt fats to a couple times a week max instead of everyday, just to see how that feels. My salt addiction has seriously been one of the hardest things for me to break, so I'm trying to find alternatives to get me through the initial cravings and the rebuilding of my taste buds (which I believe takes 7 days?).

Spiritually, I want to be consistent with my Meditation and Yoga practices. I always feel at my best when I practice them both for a minimum of 20 minutes a day, if not more. Not only does it seriously help with recovery from rock climbing and running, I find it therapeutic to just take deep deep breaths and concentrate on bliss for those few moments every day. It even helps me the stay in that state for more of my regular day.

The biggest challenge I've had in the past few days is emotional. I've been a bit of an emotional roller coaster to the point that I barely understand myself whereas other moments are so crystal clear it's almost scary. It hasn't been easy and its quite the adventure. I feel like it's something of an emotional purging or something that'a happening, where I'm going through some motions that are damn uncomfortable to get to the other side where I can achieve better balance and clarity (or something, I'm not there yet). I'm basically trying to go with the flow and determine what exactly this all means at this point without attaching expectations.

I've been having incredibly vivid dreams about my past. People and places that I used to be attached to in no specific way. There are some recurring dreams, or themes really and it's been difficult to really determine where they're coming from or really if it has any meaning at all. I guess time will tell.

All in all, it's been a pretty intense month and I'm looking forward to seeing how this one turns out.

Here's to another month of discovery and challenges!

Fun Fitness: Rock Climbing!!!

Sometimes, when you think exercise, it's with a sort of excited dread where the results are definitely what you want, but the means may not be all that exciting. I've gone through that time and time again.

Now I want to redefine my fitness regiment. It's SUPPOSED to be fun, exciting and addictive. It should be thought of as a time in your day where you get all worked up to face an awesome challenge where pushing yourself to new levels is accomplishing goals and getting you to be proud of yourself.

For some people, going to the gym does that. I've been that person once or twice. 

For many others, that just doesn't cut it.

Well let's change our attitudes and find something that gets your heart pumping and makes you happy AND fit!

I have a few activities that do this for me, one of the newest is....

ROCK CLIMBING!!!

I am seriously addicted.

The pics are actually from my first time at a rock gym, in Toronto. I absolutely love going there and have yet to find an equivalent here in Ottawa, but I am definitely working on it. 

I have this tendency to prefer activities that use my lower body strength  and even though legs are definitely used in rock climbing (apparently I don't use them enough, working on it!), it does require quite a bit of upper body strength. The soreness the next day is quite satisfying!

I've been top roping mostly, which does require a partner. But even if you don't have someone to go with you can go bouldering. Bouldering, which I've only really tried once, is just as awesome and in my opinion more difficult than top roping. It's a killer workout and has you concentrating much more on technique from the get go. 

I seriously recommend going to try it out, who knows, you might get as addicted as I am!!

80/10/10: The Raw Food "Bible"

My first introduction to the raw food lifestyle was from the well=known and popular 30bananasaday.com crew. AS much as they're forum is absolutely amazing for newbies and veterans of the lifestyle alike, I found that it really was essential for me to read the book that cemented it all. Besides being a wealth of information on why choosing this way of eating is the best, it's a great guide on how to transition, what to eat and how to succeed long term.

I call it the "Bible" of raw foods beause it really breaks down the lifestyle to the basics and explains in easy to understand terms how our bodies work and why a carbohydrate based diets works best for the human body.

As much as it advocates being a raw food fruit based vegan is the ultimate way to fuel our bodies and minds, it isn't strictly advocating it. The secret lies in the ratios of macro nutrients over time of 80% or more carbohydrates, 10% or less protein and fats.

After having experimented with this lifestyle for the past 2 and a half years, I can definitely say that I feel the best I ever have following that macro nutrient intake, even better when it's high or completely raw foods based.

The book comes with a high recommendation not only from me and the 30bananasaday.com crew, but from most of the raw community as well as the author of "The China Study" (another recommended read of mine of which I'll talk about in another post). It has basically everything you need to get started on thsi path to amazing health, along with the many online resources that are growing every day written by advocates of the lifestyle. 

I volunteer my personal copy to anyone who wants to check it out!

Woodstock Fruit Festival 2012

Wow.

Now 2 days after the last day of WFF 2012, I'm still awed by the amazing vibe of such an incredible event. First off, many many thanks got to the people that made it all happen. Micheal Arnstein started it all and many others made it the incredible life-changing event that it became. They are the true pionneers of this movement and deserve so much gratitude and appreciation.

I'm going to try to find the words to describe it. I don't think there's truly words to do this, EPIC comes close but it misses the deep connection, the crazy positive vibes, the out-of-this-word amazing people, the durian parties, the inspiring and inflamming talks...

I went there not exactly knowing what to expect. I wanted to connect with like minded people, learn as much as I could, do some personal work involving decisions on what I was going to do next and other things. I did all this and more, I truly discovered what I wanted, I discovered what a true community is, what it feels like to be truly accepted and accepting of everyone around me. It's an incredible feeling to know that, to feel that.

At WFF, there is a sense of how the world really should be. That simple, and that amazing.

I think that the event is truly leading the way to change. I strongly suggest to anyone who is anyone, no matter your background, diet, views, and feelings about the lifestyle, to sign up and see what it's all about. I say this because it's a place of true discovery, where everyone is invited to be exactly who they are and nothing else. To try something that may seem INSANE. I thought it was. Then I tried it. And I am never turning back.

I spent my day training with the likes of Dr. Graham, Ellen Livingston and others, barefoot hiking, swimming in the lake, having picnics for every meal on the grass, listening to speakers on so many topics, stargazing, playing and discovering. I got high on Durian, and bonked, sounding like a insane person because I wasn't getting enough sleep (too excited and too much to do, but that was just me ignoring my body's limits, a lesson learned!). I slept under the stars one night, a night definitely to be remembered.

Although I forgot to take pictures, I have so many memories permanently engraved in my mind.

So, now I say, I hope to see you all there next year.

Actually, I'm expecting it!!!

Walking the Talk: Day 10

I almost can't believe it's already been 10 days since the beginning of my summer challenges! Things have settled in and routine has taken over at this point. Eating fruit makes me feels absolutely amazing. Eating tons of it, even more so!!

Taste the rainbow :P

It seems that the more often I go 100%, the easier it gets. I had some detox symptoms that we're annoying at first, like the headaches. But now the detox has become more of a background noise, drowned out by the awesomeness that is being a high carb raw vegan. 

I'm not sure about weight loss, I weighed myself on day 2, but wont be doing it again until after day 30. I'm much more focused on inches and feel. That being said, I've already lost 1.5 inches off my waist! I feel stronger from training consistently, but I still feel like I can do more fitness wise. My goal for the next 10 days is to really push it on the training, running 3x a week and strength 5-6x a week. 

The best thing of it all? The clearness of mind. Brain fog isn't only annoying, it really prevents you of being the best you can be. My candida definitely didn't help with that either! I barely feel my usual symptoms of that as well, basically it's under control. 

Just like DR always says: take care of the essentials: Sleep, Sugar, Water. With those in sufficient quantity, you can take on anything.

Fruit on!

Taking care... of your life.

One thing that I hear much too often from people is that they don't have the time.

...

How can anyone not have time for their health?

I admit I was one of these people at one time. I simply didn't care. But at least I could admit that. Denial is the worst possible place you can be. When in denial, you are taking away any possibility of improvement. 

My message to people in denial? Get over yourself, and get it done. Stop complaining and use that energy to get healthy instead. Stop making it a chore and make it fun! If any kind of victim attitude comes up, I walk away, or tell the person straight up if I think they can handle it. Harsh? Maybe.

 Making changes is EASY when you stop thinking that its SO difficult! The key to it all? Baby steps aka transitioning. Make small changes for the long run instead of drastic ones for the short term.  AND don't be afraid to ask for help!

Over the past 2 years I have made the baby steps to where I am today. With 50lbs of weight gone and 20 lbs to go I have discovered the path to ultimate health and I am getting there at my own pace. My health has steadily got better and better, although I can't say I never hit a wall. Just keep going!!!

OK, so todayyyy.

Exercise:

23 intense mins on bike (did 8k in 19mins!!)

8 mins vigorous training on Concept Rower.

Food:

750ml Banana-Rasp Smoothie

1 cup Raisins

1L mango smoothie

Homemade sushi

I keep forgetting to track my water intake, today was 2.5 liters :)

See ya tomorrow!!

Transitioning and what it means to me :)

One of the biggest questions in the high carb raw world is what is the best way to transition to this new lifestyle and diet. I absolutely believe in a take it day by day pace. I first began experimenting in the whole raw foodist world just over a year ago and I have had a few frustrating moments caused by detox, impatience and a misunderstanding of my body and certain of it's functions.

Detox can be an enemy to anyone going trough a diet change, be it from SAD(standard american diet) to any level of veg or even just including more whole foods to daily meals. This is your body getting rid of toxins that are usually stored in fat or other tissues. And to get rid of them they have to go through your blood system again to get to your eliminating organs and out of your system. This causes symptoms that can be unpleasant and so make the process difficult, more for some then others. If you look at your past lifestyle, most of us have abused our bodies with processed foods, alcohol, drugs and other habits. This takes time to heal and its the main reason why I absolutely believe in transitioning from one step to another at your own pace.  I'd rather someone making small changes and succeeding than have someone try to change it all overnight and fail and thus lose faith in the the process.

My diet at the moment consists of fruit for most of the day and a cooked meal for supper. I also have better and worse days. I also love to cook and experiment in the kitchen and introduce people to the vegan lifestyle, which is one thing that slows my transition to 100% raw as well. But it is a goal of mine, but if it takes me 3 years to get there, then I'm absolutely fine with that because I will get there one day as I believe it to be the healthiest and most ethical lifestyle and its definitely for me. And so, from now on I will be including low fat cooked recipes and things in this blog to basically help spread the word on veganism as well as fruitarianism. They are both part of my life and both very worthy of my attention. Besides since they are both part of my life at the moment, I like to write about them.

So if you are a meat-eater, and you just decide to eat more whole foods and less meat, then you've definitely made a step in the right direction! One step at a time works as long as you have your steps and final goal in mind and you're always progressing then in my opinion you are on the right path. My transition from SAD to veg was easy, it was an informed decision. Besides, there's tons of alternative out there that make the transition easy if you want to keep "meat" in your taste palette for the first while. The best way to do it? Educate yourself! Read books or browse the net for reason the be veg, for scientific research or even just for forums to ask questions and gain knowledge. Also, there are plenty of documentaries and interviews to watch for free on the net. Go at your own pace, for some people the overnight thing works, others it takes longer.

Start now :) Go check out Earthlings for an ethical reason documentary or read The China Study for a scientific take on it.

Avocado Bliss

Well now that was a much too long break from blogging. I really must make it a priority that it doesn't happen again!

Last week, I experimented a bit with the many uses of avocado. Not only is a delicious fruit, it packs some pretty powerful properties that help skin and hair look and feel amazing. In the past, I've used creams and masks and special oils, etc to make my hair look vibrant and beautiful as well as oh-so soft to the touch. I've used harsh shampoos and "conditionners" to maintain that look and keep it clean. I've now been 4 weeks without the use of any shampoo or product in my hair other than organic cold-pressed extra-virgin coconut oil and the occasional argan oil application. I'll write more about my experience with that in another post (soon :) ) Noww I want to share with you the experience I had with an avocado and lemon hair mask.

The process is extremely simple, if a little messy. But hey, that makes it fun :P I simply mashed (way tooo much) avo with a generous squeeze of lemon juice and a generous splash of water. The exact amount doesnt really matter, go by feel and also with the length and thickness of your hair, just don't use a ton of avo, you shouldnt need more than half of one. I then wrapped my hair in a plastic bag (yay re-using) and then in a towel, the first to retain moisture and the second to keep it warm. Then I sat out in the sun for about 20-25 min. Off to the showet to rinse annnnnnnd I wasnt sure about the results. My hair was absolutely softer and shinier, but still felt greasy. So I think that a second rinse (or if you use shampoo it should be fine from the first wash) was needed and after I did so, my hair felt amazing. Softer than any expensive chemical filled treatment I had ever used before as well.


Next up in this line of experimentation will be a papaya mask, on both hair and face. Mmmmm papaya is one of my all time favorite fruit!

I think the best thing to be taken from this is that 1. avo is awesome. and 2. There is NO need to spend a ton of money on treatments and products with extract of this or that. Simply use the sources of these and you'll get much better results, and your wallet, your skin/hair/body and the planet will love you for it. :)

Happy Fruitarian Day!!!

So today is the official International Fruitarian Day, celebrating fruit lovers all over the world!

So I'm sure the question is: why fruitarianism?

The fruity lifestyle is all about vibrant health and care for other life. I eat fruit to be healthy, to have a clean body and mind. The toxins that are present in a SAD(Standard American Diet)  tire our bodies and lead to cancers, heart disease and other forms of toxemia. In a 100% fruit lifestyle (that which I am striving for), when you buy organic produce, there are no or trace amounts, of toxins that are introduced within our diets. That way our bodies are clean and function optimally, leading to higher energy and to better fitness. There are tons of stories of people having cured disease, lost weight and become the healthy vibrant individuals we should all be!

Since beginning on this path, I've noticed a huge change, I've lost weight, I've so much more energy. I am becoming the athlete I used to be as a teenager. I have a clearer mind, I can deal with issues with ease, things I didn't want to face before. Is it difficult? Well to be completely honest, it definitely isn't easy. Going through Detox after years of abusing our bodies is easy for some, and more difficult for others. But it is worth it's weight in ripe papayas (or gold, whichever you deem more valuable :P).If you want any more info, just message me! I'd more than happy to talk about it with you :P

So Today of all days, have some yummy juicy fruit and celebrate good health!! I know I will!

What I've learnt over the past week :)

So yesterday was day 5, also the day my body decided that it didn't want anything to do with OJ anymore, so I did a 24 hour water fast to end off my cleanse, although I don't usually like the whole water fast idea, this was a totally natural move because it's what my body decided. I obviously mostly stayed in bed and lounged around all day, giving myself the total rest I felt I needed.

I did drink a ton of water though, I'm guestimating 6 Liters total, but I wasnt really keeping track, I just kept drinking and drinking and drinking. (A few years ago this would have never referenced to water!)

So The awesome things I got out of cleansing this way: less bloating, clearer skin, clear mind, more energy, getting into the habit (again) of drinking more water, better digestion (so far anyways), no more brain fog, much better mood... I'm sure I haven't felt all the benefits just yet since I'm just easing into to eating solids again. (I've had a whole watermelon today so far) But I do have to say, it makes one appreciate a variety of food sooo much.

I'm also back on the fruity wagon! There is nothing better than amazing fresh juicy fruit!

Another reason I decided to stop the fast today is because I'll be doing my first 5k on Sunday, and accomplishing that undercarbed would be suicide. So I'm carbing today and tomorrow to be ready for an awesome day! Sunday is also the Ottawa Veg fest, which I missed last year!

Have a great weekend!!! :)

And continuing onto Day 3.

Alrigthy, so today started off good, but I must say it's been a difficult evening. This is when determination comes in handy to get through until bed time! I've had salt cravings again, although no headache :) Also had dry mouth, which is weird to me since I'm taking in ALOT of liquids, but also could just be from chronic dehydration, which most people nowadays have.

Si I got 3.5 liters in again today, with 3 liters of water. Tomorrow i plan to up the OJ to 4 liters minimum. It's really important to keep it up because if not then you actually get hungry, which isnt very conductive to the whole thing since cravings can be your worst enemy. Wait not not can be, they really are.  So keep up the OJ!

I also did a nice 30 mins of yoga to stretch out and get moving a little. Sweating helps release even more toxins, which is the whole point of doing a cleanse.Keeping a positive attitude is still easy, good sign that all is well :P

Let's see what tomorrow brings :)

Cleansing day Numero Uno.

It's that time of year again, the one here everyone is thinking about cleaning out and starting anew, SPRING!  And so I'm taking this opportunity to cleanse my body, give it a little break after having put it through some tough times, mainly school stress, lacking exercise, etc etc.

And so I've decided to go the orange juice cleanse way. 7 days of homemade fresh orange juice, lots of water and some hardcore determination to get rid of food addictions and give time for my body to heal damage caused by a bad past lifestyle. Also a great way to get myself back onto the fruit wagon!

SO today being day 1, I've had 4 liters of orange juice(about 30 oranges) and 3 liters of water. And yes, frequent trips to the washroom are part of the game.

This is my supply for about 4 days :D :D Looks yummmyyyyy :)

I'd say there's about 130 oranges total. It's funny too cause the guy at the store looked at me like I was crazy when I said I wanted 2 cases! Wonder what he would've done had i bought all 3 cases that I actually need for my weeklong affair with oranges...



 So let's talk serious things now: detox effects for day one. Just a slight headache and a strong craving for salt, but my stubbornness is taking care of that affecting my resolve. Another point: this isnt for weight loss, of course it's usually a welcome side effect but the whole point to this is to clean out toxins so that afterwards it's easier to eat a clean diet and easier to get back into shape.

 As for exercise, just an hour light walk, runnind a few errands and soaking in some much needed Vit D.

Sleep is very important in normal circumstances, but when "fasting" it's a key element to detoxifying your body! So i'm off for a good 8 hours!