Since the end of December, I had been TOTALLY greened out. Like any lettuce near my lips would make me want to hurl. My body completely rejected even the thought of eating greens, so I trucked happily along, with mostly fruit and sprouts.

But in the beginning, especially, I became deathly paranoid. I read about all the wonderful health benefits of greens and really started to question what I was doing. I've also seen several threads pop up in the following months with people who get into "OMG FRUIT IS FANTASTIC!" mode, and then have similar questions/doubts.

People tout the ways of 80-10-10, which can become a very rigid way of planning from day to day.

So, I thought I would follow up to these panics with my own experience!

After about *four months* of nearly zero greens (romaine was okay in small quantities, nice and watery), guess what! I randomly started wanting greens again. I had no idea whether this would happen or not. All the long time raw vegans advised just to listen to my body, and that the desire would return. Months ticked by, the paranoia steeped.

Fruit is fantastic. I'm not bashing high-fruit at all. I feel wonderful when I eat it. It's so refreshing, I feel so calm, I wake up positive every morning and cannot be exhausted. It also triggered a major sinus cleanout that went for about two weeks. I made awesome progress on the raw journey with lots of fruit and no greens. Fruit was all I wanted and all I needed. It tasted like heaven.

The past few days, however, I've been enormously grouchy and headachey. I want to sleep a lot. Fruit is good, but I don't have the incredibly wild desire that I did two weeks ago. I went out on a limb and had some exquisite salads at a raw restaurant... and wow! Just like magic, my stomach glowed on the inside, and I was suddenly ready for greens again. I've been making mixed salads with a lot of green sprouts (sunflower and pea shoots), and lettuce wraps--it's grounding, relaxing, takes the headaches right away, and helps when I feel grouchy.

So, for whatever reason, after FOUR MONTHS (it can take time!), my body is ready for the greens. It completed whatever it was doing with the fruit, and is waving a flag, saying, "Hey! Minerals! Phytonutrients!" or whatever other uncatalogued joys exist in the world of lettuces. Greens just make me feel like the earth is giving me a giant hug, and that's exactly what I need. Organic greens also feel a lot lighter in my stomach, digest and combine more smoothly.

I guess while things like 8/1/1 are excellent guidelines, it is possible to reach for balance over a wider frame of time. Especially in the beginning--I'm going on 5 months 100% raw--everyone's needs are so different depending on life histories. I may have my fill of salads again and not want them for a while, but I have to say, all the long term raw foodies are right--just listen to your body!

Honestly, why would you want to argue with yourself? Whatever you need will feel wonderful when you need it. Period (provided it's fresh, whole, and raw :O ).

Great Post!!
Our closest relative in the animal world (the Chimpanzee) likes
a 'balance' of approximately 50-45...Fruit to Greens....with a
few additional things like Bark and Grubs. Also, they never eat
after mid-afternoon until the next morning....WY

Quote

Posted by: phantom (IP Logged)
Date: April 30, 2008 10:31AM

Honestly, why would you want to argue with yourself? Whatever you need will feel wonderful when you need it. Period (provided it's fresh, whole, and raw)

I totally agree.

phantom Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------

>
> People tout the ways of 80-10-10, which can become
> a very rigid way of planning from day to day.

I think you are confused on what 811 truly is. It is not to be a game of number following on a day to day basis. You DO NOT need to eat greens daily, you DO NOT need to do anything daily. Go months if you like without greens or fats or whatever. 811 gives you guidelines to understand where to start and what works in general guidelines. You need a foundation to start, then incorporate how you progress and what works for you.

This is a drawback of 80-10-10 unfortunately. People zero in on it like a set of rules.

I like listening to my body better then rules.

At the tree of life where they put you on this phase 1 no fruit only greens three months everybody including me got angry and volatile with each other the whole time and gained weight

8-1-1 isnt about any planning or being rigid

Eat ripe juicy produce. period.

done. dusted.

If you feel drawn to greens now...munch em.. intuative eating..rocks dude

Why do you want greens now? I'm assuming that you are in the nothern hemispere and it's spring. Now all the wild greens are soft and juicy, like, dandelion is more edible now than at any other time of the years. So I think it is natural to go on a greens binge in spring.

I don't like days without greens. Greens are about as close to magic in the diet as it gets.

But on the other hand I am pretty sure that if I ate nothing but greens and fat for months like Suvine I would rip somebody's head off. And get fat, too.

I get most of my calories from fruit. But I also like as a minimum 1/2 of a very large head of romaine per day. Usually more than that.

I did try some wild dandelions in a salad the other night and they were YUM! =)

Maybe I am just harmonizing with the seasons. I chowed down about three bowls of salad for lunch today. Anyway, it feels awesome to eat what your body needs when it needs it, fruits or greens.

I use 80/10/10 as a guideline. I don't weigh or measure or count anything. I did one of those online calorie/nutrient counters for a month early on and occasionally check what a day here or there adds up to but I don't have the time to get too rigid about it. The 80/10/10 guidelines make sense to me. And I probably end up about 80/10/10 most of the time... but over the course of a week. If I had to weigh or measure or count... uh, that wouldn't work for me. I'm into the EATING of food, not all the other stuff.

Part of eating unprocessed food, for me, is also NOT processing it to death with my mind. I'm trying to eat what my body needs to eat and I'm not subscribing to anyone's needs except my own.

I see here and other places that some people become so enamored of the labels they have chosen for themselves that they lie about what they eat. I hate to seem like I am belaboring a point I have made before... but maybe this point is worth belaboring. Why are some people afraid to admit that green leafy stuff is not in the fruitarian category? Why are some people elavating some forms of raw/vegan and closign their own body/minds to other forms that may be wht they need in the future? (I am not saying YOU do this or have done this, etc.)

I don't care if YOU need a raw/vegan diet of X, Y, and Z, and I NEED a raw/vegan diet of A, B, and C.

[www.google.com]

[www.google.com]

Guess the Tree of Life isn't for me! I do not believe in the one-size-fits all approach.

Generally, people who espouse rigid (religious, dietary, political) advice end up lying or getting very angry (and projecting that at others) at some point, to cover up their "transgressions."

re: chimpanzees... [lessonsforhope.org]

Let us (lettuce!) know what you are and are not eating. I'm always interested in what works for people. I assume what works will change for most people over time.


Lee

[www.dhamma.org]

I don't really eat them, my life is magic. If someone gave me a romaine leaf I will eat it, but thats enough for me.

I like your attitude.



Love this food!!!

I am new to raw foods, what is 80-10-10?