i have a very unhealthy lifestyle and i am aware of that!

i have been a vegetarian for 16 years and vegan part of that...
i'm not new to hearing about raw foods, but i just haven't been eating so much raw.. it's easy for me to eat rice, vegetables and tofu because i live in asia and it's very cheap... but i can get fruit and vegetables easily too (not organic though)

anyhow i don't think changing my eating habits will be as difficult as getting rid of my bad habits like smoking and drinking coffee....

i started a watermelon only diet today, and the plan was to get rid of the coffee and cigarettes along with it but i just don't want to bad enough i guess...

i thought if i did a mono diet for a few days to a week it would make it easier but it isn't...

my final goal is to quit smoking, quit drinking coffee, exercise more and eat a very high raw diet.. maybe 100 %.. but i quite like the cultural aspect of travelling around asia and trying the different foods..

i don't really know what i am asking here but i guess im just wondering if there is anyone else out there that not only had food issues to deal with but addictions and such as well....
any suggestions would be helpful..

also is there anyone in south east asia ?? esp indonesia

Why do you want to do these things?

everything you do that moves towards your goals is a success... you don't have to be completely perfect in every way tomorrow! Focus on and build on your successes!

thanks thomas!!

well, the main reason i want to make changes is because i'm not very healthy.. i'm not incredibly ill either but i often get colds/flu
i don't have a whole lot of energy..
mentally--- well i could be better

i felt like not even bothering w/ the raw thing because i knew i wasn't going to stop smoking.. but im still going to do it and ill work towards quitting smoking..

it's just something that is so enjoyable to me and such a crutch it's hard to get rid of !!

my plan is to do the watermelon only for a few days then try and do 100% raw w/ a lot of fruit and salad.. if i feel too hungry i might eat some tofu or something.. last time i tried this i ended up really hungry and ate way too many nuts and then felt really sick!!!
okay thanks for the support!

Opinion:

-I hear you. All you can do is what you are PREPARED and MOTIVATED to do on a daily basis. Write down all your goals. Make slots under each for very small goals that you are prepared to do every day! The important thing is that small successes build larger ones.....and big failures...well you get the pictures. Set the stage for success.....that is right for YOU. The only thing stopping a person from achieving great success / love / and appreciation is by their mind comparing their situation to some other situation. It is the attitude of appreciation and now-ness that insures forever-success.

My experience:

-My habits were VERY bad. Smoked for 15 years....drank a lot......ate compulsively....caffeine......some drugs thrown in for good measure. Plus emotional issues (of course). By taking responsibility....and being of service to others....you can go beyond yourself. I took 2 years to transition fully. I figured that would be enough time to make a hit on 20 years of personal physical abuse! Can't change 20 years in 20 days! Ha! ha!

-Very intelligent questions. I know you'll get 100% support from myself and the wonderful folks on this board!

-David Mason

I've also been prey to every bad habit imaginable and I'm still battling a few. Personally I feel that slow change is best and by best I mean best for your body.

I think that its important to realize that a raw diet is extremely cleansing and transforming of your entire body chemistry in time. This means, in my opinion, that when one takes ones diet to this level and continues to do such things as smoke, drink alcohol and etc. that the effects of these "bad" habits are heightened rather than lessened. They (the bad habits) become more detrimental as your body becomes more cleansed and sensitized. There are others within the raw food movement who would agree and of course those who won't. Fred Bisci and Matt Monarch are two examples of leaders in the raw food movement who warn against getting your diet super clean while holding on to a few "bad" habits such as smoking etc.

This follows the same principle that Jordan Rubin (who does not promote raw or vegan) points out of the dangers of becoming too outwardly sanitized or antibacterialized. We need certain exposure to dirt, germs and etc. in order to build immunity against the detrimental affects of these. Becoming too "clean" makes one more susceptible to "germs" rather than less. I feel that the same principle applies to diet.

My feeling is that this is why colonics and such can be dangerous. They can make your colon too clean and thus more vulnerable to toxic attack, UNLESS one is at a place where they've become super diligent in their habits, dietary or otherwise.

So, my thought is that it is best to slowly transition to a clean diet while, at ones own pace, making the elimination of smoking, drinking, puffing (marijuana or etc.) the more pressing priority.

Enormous benefits can come from eliminating junk food, fast food, processed food, meat and dairy from the diet. This dietary transition, in my experience, really aids and assists in pulling away from the other bad habits that plague so many of us. Once you get clear of all that, then its time to bring your body to the next level...so, its a process, like most things worth doing.

hope this helps,

~Kathleen

Wow! Lots of good advice from the previous posts!

I also can relate to the bad habits and the desire to do better. I've been there and done that. I went raw and quit smoking at the same time! Not sure that I would recommend that, though. But then, by the same token - it worked so far. I've been raw and clean for a year and almost 9 months.

One thing that I wanted to point out to you is that smoking is not really enjoyable. We smoke a cigarette to bring our level of nicotine up to a certain point. Then after a while it begins to diminish. Then our bodies tell us that it's time to do it again. That's because we're going through nicotine withdrawal. So, we smoke again, just to relieve the withdrawal symptoms. So we are basically in one of two states. Feeling normal or going through withdrawal. Only we make the mistake of confusing relieving withdrawal with feeling good. It's the same with other addictions - alcoholics and addicts eventually end up drinking or using just to feel normal.

I was still drinking a lot of coffee when I first went raw, now I've cut down to one cup on most days. I just don't like it that much anymore - it has started to taste like a cup of burned stuff!

Sometimes just making a good solid start on improving yourself in one area starts you on your journey. And all journeys start with the first step.

Congrats on the fact that you want to turn things around and take responsibility for your health. You're on the right track! Good Luck!

Life Is Good!

alive!



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/26/2006 02:44AM by alive!.