Hi!

First of all, the stone in my shoe is now a little lighter. I have nobody to talk with, I have nobody to support me in all this, I am a pretty lonely boy on 20 years of age, my friends are totally indifferent to the subject of health and vitality. My family is living in a large city eating junk food everyday, barely getting any exercise. I know of none, in real life, that is interested in health. I am so happy that I found this forum, really. I am very grateful and I hope that I will get support and I am also happy to support and help, and share my ideas here.

I first came across the work of Dr. Herbert Shelton and I became a fan. Having read his book The Pristine Way Of Life I continued to read everything I could come across on natural hygiene. I read practically every work of Shelton I could find and I also looked at the work of other natural hygienists, however, the work by Herbert M. Shelton made so much sense. With a marked decline in my own health (which has led me to become a health-seeker) I decided to apply natural hygienic principles to my own life and living. I suffered for a long time from digestive issues, I had a complete mental breakdown and at the age of 19 I was a boy without any vitality at all. Slight acne, depression, digestive issues, bad self-confidence, irritability, yes most of my symptoms of declining health were purely mental. I have always been sure of my symptoms to be of a physical origin though. I have always been sure that my depression was not really from a mental wound, but of a physical character that actually expressed itself in a psychological manner. Mind and the body is actually the same and a healthy mind can only be born out of a healthy body, that is my firm belief and that helped me to overcome my depression.

When I had finished the book by Shelton, I immediately eliminated animal products from my diet. I had earlier on having thoughts of becoming a vegetarian, but being afraid of deficiencies, I had never taken the step to the "other side". What a huge mistake, since now I have learned that deficiencies in a vegan diet actually is just as "hard" or easy to get as when on a standard diet of both plant foods and animal products.

However, my digestive powers were so weak that I could only digest the most simple food. This is when I decided to do a fast. As a very thin person, I fasted over 40 days.(I was maybe a bit foolish since I was underweight before going on a fast, I would of needed a little supervision)

I became completely rejuvenated. Eye-floaters disappeared, my digestion is now working perfectly, my skin is soft and smooth like a baby, my hair became much thicker and glowing, my dry lips and dry skin, my pimpels, it disappeared. My eye-sight became better, so did my smell and taste. I now enjoy all food in its natural state! I need no condiments, no spices and no salt. I can eat a meal of vegetables and fruit and I promise you guys that I enjoy my meal!

As I said, I was completely rejuvenated by my fast and I continue to see improvements in my well-being. I encourage everybody here to read about fasting - it is a very powerful tool.

But all those physical benefits were quite minor compared to the mental benefits. As a previously depressed young person, with daily suicidal thoughts, I can now say that I am, not necessarily happy and satisfied, but I am not unhappy, I am not depressed and I am not suicidal. I appreciate life and I believe in life. I am more optimistic than I ever have been.

I became so enthusiastic that I obviously wanted to tell all my friends and family about it! In my country, Herbert M. Shelton and Natural Hygiene is unknown. We have a little raw food movement but it is very tiny and the movement is sadly lacking in "leaders".

However, I was so enthusiastic that I wanted to tell everybody about it, expecting them to be as interested as I was, and still is. I told my former psychiatrist, who I do no longer visit, I told my mother, father, sister, brother, I told my friends and I was heartbroken when they practically laughed at me. The worst reaction was from my doctor, an old woman that called me a fanatic, that I refused to listen to the professional medical expertis. I was not! I believed in the medical profession until I found natural hygiene.

I see the dysfunction in my own family. They are always tired, suffering from yet minor health problems and I have tried to make them interested in the power of self-healing (diet and exercise) but in vain. It has been so tough for me, having nobody to exchange these ideas with, that I almost had another mental breakdown! Here I come enthusiastic and with a burning passion, and I do not know what to do with it!

I am a poor student so I cannot afford to live on raw food. A raw food diet is pretty expensive, at least where I live. I eat a lot of fruit and vegetables, as much as I can afford. I have added some potatoes, brown rice and legumes to my diet and I am doing well. I am right now eating like Joel Fuhrman and John McDougall recommends, and it works pretty fine. My breath is always sweet, I feel energetic throughout the day, my mind is intact, my stomach runs perfectly, I have certainly discovered new levels of health.

I am grateful to be a part of this forum, thank you!

Thank you sharing your story, very inspiring.

"I am right now eating like Joel Fuhrman and John McDougall recommends, and it works pretty fine"

Can you explain what their recommendations are?

You can make raw food less expensive if you can grow your own indoor, at least some of it.

Sorry if I put this thread in the wrong section! I now saw I misplaced it.

Dr Fuhrman advocates a diet high in micronutrients, so a green salad is like a main dish with nuts. He adds fresh fruit and a little starch like beans to this diet.

Dr. Mcdougall advocates a diet based on starch, much potatoes, rice, pasta dishes etc. which works fine for me some days but I want to have a little more vegetables and fruit in my diet.

I usually eat a breakfast of "fresh" (I live in the north so the fruit is not so fresh) fruit. For lunch I make a salad, a large raw one or/and with steamed vegetables. To this I will have some potatoes or some rice. The dinner is my main protein-meal and varies from beans and rice to fruits and nuts.

My diet is strictly vegan, no animal products whatsoever. I try to focus on eating moderate amounts of food, with not too much fat and not too much protein.

Both Fuhrmand and Mcdougall are pretty successful, having treated many of their patients with success with diet only. So even if their diet might not be the optimal, it is certainly not as toxic and disease-producing as the standard western diet.

Best wishes

"I fasted over 40 days.(I was maybe a bit foolish since I was underweight before going on a fast, I would of needed a little supervision)"


You're referring to a juice fast, right?

No, water-fasting.

"Dr. Mcdougall advocates a diet based on starch, much potatoes, rice, pasta dishes etc. which works fine for me some days but I want to have a little more vegetables and fruit in my diet"

But if you have gone thru a 40 day cleansing fast, why would you eat cooked starch that will most likely clog your digestive system in the long run?

Because there is an economical side to my diet as well, I would of course prefer fresh fruits and fresh vegetables with some nuts over starch but I simply cannot afford it. And I believe that starch got some undeserved bad reputation, eaten without fat and in moderate amounts it is okay, better than animal products I think.

For me cooked starch deserve the bad reputation they got.

There are multiple possible ways to solve a problem.

You could get into sprouting and growing indoor micro greens. It may take some time and effort to setup in the beginning, but you can buy a good supply of organic seeds online and have good daily supply of greens.

[sproutpeople.org]

[sproutman.com]

[www.youtube.com]



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/05/2015 06:46PM by RawPracticalist.

Raw Practicalist, I am so intrigued by your diet and I like your logic. You think so clearly. I am curious how you get enough calories in your diet when healthy fruit is not so abundant, like in the winter.

Can you share an average week of what you eat? I am not asking you to spell it all out. But like how many trays of grass and how many boxes of fruit and things like that. And how long have you been doing this and how do you make sure you are getting enough minerals? If you are not doing fermented seed yogurt, how are you getting B-12? Do you eat seaweed?

To me, sprouts are great for enzymes and protein, but how are they for minerals? Like I was sharing with TSM...I buy some chard and beet greens from the farmers market and some of it is SO salty. You can't get that from sprouts.

I hope you share your pearls of wisdom.

Vitality Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> No, water-fasting.


So you're saying you went 40 days straight, already underweight, without eating or drinking anything besides water with no professional supervision?

That's right. I was perhaps foolish but I believed in nature, I trusted my body. I was desperate and suicidal before I began my fast.

Thank you for your advice I will check that up. Though I live in a very, very tiny apartment, it might work out anyway?

Vitality Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> That's right. I was perhaps foolish but I believed
> in nature, I trusted my body. I was desperate and
> suicidal before I began my fast.


How much weight did you end up losing and how did you feel throughout the fast?

jtprindl Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Vitality Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > That's right. I was perhaps foolish but I
> believed
> > in nature, I trusted my body. I was desperate
> and
> > suicidal before I began my fast.
>
>
> How much weight did you end up losing and how did
> you feel throughout the fast?


I lost almost 30 pounds (15 kg).

My feelings during the fast was mixed. My sight and my hearing became very, very sensitive, which was kind of annoying because I did my fast in a city apartment. I had some low back pain in the first days, the typical withdrawal symptoms. What bothered me the most during the fast was the horrible taste in the mouth. Several times I almost had to vomit because the taste in the mouth, especially after three weeks was so disgusting. Oh when thinking back on it...
But the fasting experience changed my life. There's a before-the-fast and an after-the-fast in my life certainly. I became so connected to everything during my fast, I was so loving and compassionate, I was dreaming a lot of dreams during nights (which weren't long at all, like 3-5 hours) but my mind was so clear that I could literally go through my life.. A very different experience that have had a huge impact on me. When I broke the fast and began to eat, it felt like coming back from a long, long dream. I spent all of my 44 days in bed, doing nothing. No watching tv, no reading, no music (which I did not crave during it). I only laid down, closed my eyes and conserved my energy. I cannot explain what a huge relief it was to get all the anxiety, depression and pain off my shoulders, which happened a few days into the fast. I was so depressed for so many years, and all of this heavy, mental pain just jumped off my shoulders. That was the sweetest moment. To summarize, it was very painful the first few days, very dizzy etc, low back pain, then after a while, the only thing that really bothered me was the bad taste in the mouth. And my emaciated body because it would hurt when I laid down, I had to use like 30 blankets to make my bed comfortable.

But I have nothing bad to say about fasting, it was a bit hard to begin to eat again, that was the biggest challenge, mainly because I was hungry constantly for like 4-5 weeks after breaking the fast, so on a few occasions, I ate too much.

Tai Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Raw Practicalist, I am so intrigued by your diet
> and I like your logic. You think so clearly. I
> am curious how you get enough calories in your
> diet when healthy fruit is not so abundant, like
> in the winter.
>
> Can you share an average week of what you eat? I
> am not asking you to spell it all out. But like
> how many trays of grass and how many boxes of
> fruit and things like that. And how long have you
> been doing this and how do you make sure you are
> getting enough minerals? If you are not doing
> fermented seed yogurt, how are you getting B-12?
> Do you eat seaweed?
>
> To me, sprouts are great for enzymes and protein,
> but how are they for minerals? Like I was sharing
> with TSM...I buy some chard and beet greens from
> the farmers market and some of it is SO salty.
> You can't get that from sprouts.
>
> I hope you share your pearls of wisdom.

There are more with wisdom on this forum than I may have.

I live in the new york area and most food markets have fruits even in the winter. I do eat fruit but they are not the basis of my diet.

I buy the fruits that are in season, when they are not I will buy frozen blueberries and frozen cherries and keep them in my freezer.

I use one room in my house to grow my sprouts and micro greens and they are the basis of my diet. I juice my indoor greens twice a day, in the morning and evening, and do buy other greens that I find nutritious but cannot grow indoor (turnip greens, dandelion greens, and cabbage for juicing). I use some of the micro greens for salads and smoothies.

The greens that I grow are sunflower, buckwheat, peas, corn, wheatgrass, barley grass, spelt grass. And sprouts of different kinds.

For seeds I buy organic sunflower, pumpkins seeds and some nuts (brazil, almonds)
But I mostly sprout or ferment them before eating them.

I am not a vegan and I encourage those who are to remain vegan maybe one day I will switch to that state. It is a higher level that I have not reached yet.
But my personal view is that veganism is difficult to observe in nature, even cow eat bugs while eating grass. So once a month I drive to a local farm and buy some raw goat milk. Not much just a quarter of gallon that I use just for a week or two. I do have some B12 forte as additional supplements.

I did try seaweeds but I did not feel a difference. I feel like I do not need them. The emphasis on my diet is the growing greens, my little friends at home. When I eat more of them and do cleansing and exercise, I feel better even without all of the seaweeds and supplements.

Yes I do fermenting mostly cabbage, beets, onions, and raw oatmeal

So there is never a lack of calories, I do 40 hours dry fast once a week.

My personal experience is that cleansing diet and exercise are a key to good health. The body has other ways to get nutrients and minerals from the water, air, and earth around us. And we are not just body we are spirit and need to feed ourselves with love, compassion, and wisdom. Morning and evening mediation period of at least 30 minutes filling the body with light,and love. Maybe that is the best food.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 02/05/2015 09:24PM by RawPracticalist.

Thanks for sharing your story. I've been wanting to go on a liquid fast for a while now but never really understood the possibilities of water fasting, and now I will likely fast sometime soon. I tried to do a liquid fast earlier but didn't have enough money for everything - but now I could just work with what I have and water fast the rest of the time.

Coconut water, raw kombucha, algae's, and the juices of pomegranate, cucumber, carrot, and sunflower greens/wheatgrass/broccoli sprouts. Thanks for your inspiration.

"and do buy other greens that I find nutritious but cannot grow indoor (turnip greens, dandelion greens, and cabbage for juicing)."

Where do you get dandelion greens? How much grass/micro green juice do you average daily?

"But I mostly sprout or ferment them before eating them."

How do you ferment your nuts and seeds?

You are welcome! From what I have read, and got explained to me not just from Shelton but other various and modern fasting experts is that the body never go into the same kind of state that water fasting puts the body in, if juices and any form of nourishment is taken. The body never start cleansing as deep on fruit or vegetables juices, as it does during period of absolute physiological rest, so even extended periods of very restricted "diets" will not give the same benefits as water-fasting. There are a few cases when people have got their hearing, eyesight and smell back and I think that would be impossible on calorie restriction. (vegetable, fruit juice).

And among the best benefit that you experience when breaking the fast, is that food tastes x1000 better. I do not use any spice, condiment, salt or sauce to my food anymore. I have absolutely no craving for any stimulating thing, and my hunger is much more manageable and pleasant, I do not "crave" junk anymore. I never get thirsty for coca-cola, I do never crave candy, chips or chocolate, never. It is like I have never tasted it. You really realize how badly addicted you are to food after a fast, because fasting puts an end to the slavery to the table, surely. It is exhausting to see all the people, who have gone on strict vegan diets, raw or not, to be constantly trying to make their diet taste good. They make vegan versions of pizza, hamburger and other different things. They still use spices and condiments, cocoa etc. I do not need that, I really enjoy the food as it is. Not only because I'm hungry when I eat, but also because my taste buds are much more enhanced.

I remember starting to read about nutrition and even if I could change my diet for a few weeks, I would always walk around craving pizza, chocolate, soft drinks etc. which made it all very painful. I have no such worries anymore, I could live on potatoes, but my ideal diet would be fruit, fruit only without nuts and vegetables but I'm afraid it would not sustain me in real life. It is the diet in paradise hopefully!

Vitality Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> You are welcome! From what I have read, and got
> explained to me not just from Shelton but other
> various and modern fasting experts is that the
> body never go into the same kind of state that
> water fasting puts the body in, if juices and any
> form of nourishment is taken. The body never start
> cleansing as deep on fruit or vegetables juices,
> as it does during period of absolute physiological
> rest, so even extended periods of very restricted
> "diets" will not give the same benefits as
> water-fasting. There are a few cases when people
> have got their hearing, eyesight and smell back
> and I think that would be impossible on calorie
> restriction. (vegetable, fruit juice).
>
> And among the best benefit that you experience
> when breaking the fast, is that food tastes x1000
> better. I do not use any spice, condiment, salt or
> sauce to my food anymore. I have absolutely no
> craving for any stimulating thing, and my hunger
> is much more manageable and pleasant, I do not
> "crave" junk anymore. I never get thirsty for
> coca-cola, I do never crave candy, chips or
> chocolate, never. It is like I have never tasted
> it. You really realize how badly addicted you are
> to food after a fast, because fasting puts an end
> to the slavery to the table, surely. It is
> exhausting to see all the people, who have gone on
> strict vegan diets, raw or not, to be constantly
> trying to make their diet taste good. They make
> vegan versions of pizza, hamburger and other
> different things. They still use spices and
> condiments, cocoa etc. I do not need that, I
> really enjoy the food as it is. Not only because
> I'm hungry when I eat, but also because my taste
> buds are much more enhanced.
>
> I remember starting to read about nutrition and
> even if I could change my diet for a few weeks, I
> would always walk around craving pizza, chocolate,
> soft drinks etc. which made it all very painful. I
> have no such worries anymore, I could live on
> potatoes, but my ideal diet would be fruit, fruit
> only without nuts and vegetables but I'm afraid it
> would not sustain me in real life. It is the diet
> in paradise hopefully!


Yes, I have heard similar things, but I don't think adding juices necessarily negates the benefits of a water fast, it just takes longer to achieve the same level of deep cellular cleansing. Still very cleansing nonetheless. Plus with the algae's you get the benefit of trapping toxins in the colon and preventing their re-absorption. Perhaps I'll begin the week with juices and strictly water fast when I run out of produce.

jtprindl Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> "and do buy other greens that I find nutritious
> but cannot grow indoor (turnip greens, dandelion
> greens, and cabbage for juicing)."
>
> Where do you get dandelion greens? How much
> grass/micro green juice do you average daily?
>
> "But I mostly sprout or ferment them before eating
> them."
>
> How do you ferment your nuts and seeds?

Local health food store has many organic greens, I will buy from them twice a week the greens I find very nutritious and I cannot grow myself.

I drink one large glass or one pint of green juices in the morning and most of the time in the evening too. Grass juices are 2 to 4 ounces morning and evening.

For lunch at work I may take with me a container filled with frozen blueberries and cherries and one banana ( I do eat fruits). It is not like I am that hungry at noon more like chewing on something.

For seeds fermenting, I use mason jar and wash the seeds, and put them in and let them ferment for 3 to 4 days. I will them blend them. Very nutritious. You will feel the energy right there into your system a minute after eating them.
Most recently I have tried raw oatmeal fermenting, they are so filling.


But seeds are fruits so I do eat fruits but not sweet fruits.

Other things that I juice once a week are root vegetables such as potatoes. Sometimes onions and cucumbers.

I squeeze one or two lemon or limes into warm water every morning. first thing.

And raw fresh coconut, I eat one per day. I found a good local supplier.

Life is good. Life is a blessing.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 02/05/2015 10:16PM by RawPracticalist.

Yes and I think even a short water fast on a few days is very satisfying to overcome cravings for old habits. One author's work I read, Dr. Hay, said that a 7-day water fast was very good to undertake to get rid of unnatural appetite and cravings, and to create new habits. It is a wonderful feeling to be hungry on wholesome foods.

Whatever you do, good luck and I hope you find and achieve incredible levels of health and happiness!

"Local health food store has many organic greens, I will buy from them twice a week the greens I find very nutritious and I cannot grow myself."

Do you mix the grass juice with other greens? Which greens do you juice the most?

"I use mason jar and wash the seeds, and put them in and let them ferment for 3 to 4 days."

What do you use to ferment them?

"You will the energy right there into your system a minute after eating them."

That's how I feel after royal jelly - the effects are almost instantaneous.

"And raw fresh coconut, I eat one per day."

Plain?

Vitality Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Yes and I think even a short water fast on a few
> days is very satisfying to overcome cravings for
> old habits. One author's work I read, Dr. Hay,
> said that a 7-day water fast was very good to
> undertake to get rid of unnatural appetite and
> cravings, and to create new habits. It is a
> wonderful feeling to be hungry on wholesome foods.
>
>
> Whatever you do, good luck and I hope you find and
> achieve incredible levels of health and happiness!
>


It would definitely be for a deeper level of cleansing and many other potential benefits I've read about. Fortunately I do not have any cravings for unhealthy foods, I've been 100% raw for a while.

That's great then!

jtprindl Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> "Local health food store has many organic greens,
> I will buy from them twice a week the greens I
> find very nutritious and I cannot grow myself."
>
> Do you mix the grass juice with other greens?
> Which greens do you juice the most?
>
> "I use mason jar and wash the seeds, and put them
> in and let them ferment for 3 to 4 days."
>
> What do you use to ferment them?
>
> "You will the energy right there into your system
> a minute after eating them."
>
> That's how I feel after royal jelly - the effects
> are almost instantaneous.
>
> "And raw fresh coconut, I eat one per day."
>
> Plain?

After the lemon and lime juice, I will open a fresh raw coconut (not the mature one) and drink the water. After that I will go for my 30 minutes meditation.

Then when I come back I will juice the grasses and drink the 2 or 4 ounces and wait then juice the indoor greens or the local bought greens.

I rotate the greens, I do not juice more than two at a time. It could be pea greens and sunflower in the morning, and evening it could be dandelion and celery juice, next day may be turnip and ...

Fermenting is done with simple clean water nothing is added to the water.

I use to buy bee pollen and royal jelly, I may go back to doing it but it is difficult to find a good supplier not feeding bees with sugar.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/05/2015 10:25PM by RawPracticalist.

Raw P wrote:
I use one room in my house to grow my sprouts and micro greens and they are the basis of my diet

Tai:
Nice. I have a greenhouse in a box that I haven't built yet. I tried growing trays in makeshift mini greenhouses and the little animals found ways to get in, so I have only made grass juice sporadically. To have a devoted room creates the organization to make it a dependable and consistent food.

Thanks for sharing.

"Fermenting is done with simple clean water nothing is added to the water."

So you just soak seeds for 3 or 4 days? Why does that produce fermentation?

"After the lemon and lime juice, I will open a fresh raw coconut (not the mature one) and drink the water. After that I will go for my 30 minutes meditation."

How do you the flesh of the young thai coconut, plain?

When you put seeds in water and close the jar, the soaking take place for a day after that if you do not remove the water from the jar, fermentation starts and living organism will start filling the jar. Try it. Some people will put a starter in but you do not need to. If you are not careful you may get non beneficial bacteria, so you need a clean medium and the seed should be carefully washed with no foreign parts.

Yes I drink the water plain, and later I will eat the flesh if any is inside.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 02/05/2015 11:03PM by RawPracticalist.

RawPracticalist:

your posts make me very happy to read. Yes, soaking seeds in water for 4 days is enough to ferment them. You will not get the same benefit as soaking the seeds in amylase rich rejuvalic, but you will still get a potent cocktail of lipase and protease. 2/3 isn't too bad. Keep an eye on your iodine, + seaweeds serve many important functions.

My lunch today is fermented walnuts and non fermented coconut with dulse and hydrilla algae. I try not to have coconut too much because the nutrition profile is not near what the seeds are, however l will have nuts and coconut a few times this week for a change.

I'll try and get back to this forum tommorrow about the B12 stuff in Tai's thread. Got lots on my plate at the moment.

www.thesproutarian.com

"Yes, soaking seeds in water for 4 days is enough to ferment them."

So you just soak for 3-4 days and then consume?