Good Day everyone.
I need a change BADLY. I used to be "vegitarian" but soon degenerated into cheeses, noodles, and many potatoes &/or beans thus I never felt very well and gave up. Now I'm basically a "low carb" guy and feel horrible w/ no energy nor focus!!!

I AM HERE TO ASK/BEG FOR SUPPORT & FRIENDS.

I know in my heart that being fruitarian / raw foodie is the way to go but I need to break this cooked food addiction cycle and make some new friends for support and ideas. I love to eat - guess I wont be cooking so much anymore, LoL!!!

I can ramble for dayzzzzz...... But i believe the best way to start is with a good cleanse cycle and a big organic shopping list.

Help me stay focused, ANY IDEAS SUGGESTIONS will be warmly accepted.

Thank you very much.
banJoe.

Hiya banjoe , welcome tothe forums its great that you are coming to some conclusions about your diet that you want to fix.

go out and go shopping with a plan ! no idea what your age/weight/sex is but figure out what you are going to need to keep your calories up , you dont want to get hungry and then start eating stuff that you dont want to eat

www.fitday.com is a good free site

get a good variety of stuff too and try something new that you havent tried before

...Jodi, the banana eating buddhist

I like banannas!

Thank you Jodi, I will check out the site & I WILL try something new... Let cha kno soon what it is/was

oh, ok, so... for the record;
Almost 50, Midwest Single Guy, ~270#, 6'1"
Used to be an avid winter gym rat & summer roadie bicyclist. Now I'm just lethargic! Anxious to have drive, energy, motivation to get moving again!

OhOh. Just did the FitDay, as Jodi recommended. I am worse than I thought. But It's a starting point.

Thank you Jodi

Right on banjoe ! its really hard sometimes to jump in and get active .. i know for me when i was carrying alot of extra weight (210lbs on a 5'2" frame) that last thing i wanted to do was exercise lol I found though as the excess weight came off the more enthusiastic i was about getting off my duff and doing things. Just find something you really love !

i think once you find your raw groove and load up on all those good energy producing carbs you will find your energy coming back dont be dismayed tho if you go thru a bit of detox and feel worse before feeling better.

i found starting with swimming at the pool a good start ..not hard on body like walking was and i really enjoy the water then i got into cycling ..again easier onmy body then walking.

yea fitday really helps to open the eyes , its a good tool .. there are otheres like it but i find fitday fairly simple

...Jodi, the banana eating buddhist

i wanted to add our dear friend Trive put up a really great list of wraps , here is the link [www.rawfoodsupport.com]

there is a lot of yummy ideas there if you want to tell me some of your favorite foods maybe i can help you find some raw alternatives !

another suggestion is snag yourself a blogspot and journal how things are going for you. It really helps, you can set the blog to only you being able to see it ifyou dont want to share right now. I really found journalling to be really helpful

...Jodi, the banana eating buddhist

Hi Banjoe,

I am new to Raw myself, actually I am just getting started. Was looking at Raw and Vegan cookbooks. The Raw cookbooks I found initially seemed a far leap - dehydrators, nuts galore, etc. Most recently I found the book 12 Steps to Raw Foods by Victoria Boutenko. This book seems to be giving me the bridge to get to Raw as well as a bigger desire to go Raw.

Blessings on your journey . . .

Aen

Blessings to ou too Aenisland its great you found a good book the Boutenkos seem like very genuine kind people

we have a good recipie section here too

and www.goneraw.com has some fabulous recipies

...Jodi, the banana eating buddhist

Thank you sooo much Jodi.
My new food today was a simple pear. It was brown instead of green. It was different, I liked it.
I did start blogging on fitDay.
Probably My all time favorite food is Chorizo. I think that will disappear all together. Oh, & bacon. But actually thinking abt meat now makes me sick to my stomach. Cant wait to get ahold of some cantalope and watermelon!

I have some major food questions. I think I'll start a new thread.

Jodi, do u still cycle? I have an email addr that only avid cyclists understand. It starts w/ (giantshimano). My giant is my old faithful, cant wait to get 'er out again. Used to have a Colnago - What a dream she was!!!!

Thanks Jodi

Yes but i just cycle for a bit of exercise and summer day pleasure I am familiar with Shimano yes

everyone teases me about my 20 year old mtn.bike. its a dinosaur but i still love it ... if bikes could talk ...

there are dehydrator versions of vegan bacon and sausage .. its all about the spice really

bacon made from eggplant [www.goneraw.com]
(if the bacon is not smokey enough for you , you could add some liquid smoke..its not raw but its got flavor )

and

Sausage:

2 Medjool dates pitted
½ teaspoon fennel seed
1 cup walnuts
1 pinch crushed red pepper
1 dash ground red pepper
¼ teaspoon EACH salt, pepper, oregano, basil


Make the sausage: Process the walnuts till chopped. Add dates, fennel, basil, oregano, salt and peppers and process until it comes together but still has texture. Put in dehydrator or let the mixture set awhile to meld the flavors until a texture you like. add more zingy spices that you like .. this is something personal to taste


theres also this tacomeat recipe from goneraw .. that might do ina pinch [www.goneraw.com]

...Jodi, the banana eating buddhist




Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/29/2011 11:57PM by Jgunn.

wow Jodi, great suggestions. tyvm! i will try it, i love workin in the kitchen & i am anxious to try all these new recipies. i dont have a dehydrator (yet!) but i'm going to soon. i also want to sprout some nuts & try nut-yogurt

i found my first dehydrator on freecycle .. it was one of those round ones with stacking trays and it worked perfectly adn was FREE !! try looking around for one on there.. no sense putting out alot of money for something if yu dont knowif you will use it lots

i used mine lots and replaced it with an excalibur followed by a sedona

grow your way into this


i just finished sprouting some hazlenuts .. they are so yummy ! they might be called filberts too in your area

...Jodi, the banana eating buddhist

I'm also new to the Raw food world. Today is actually my first day eating only raw, uncooked, unprocessed food. Overall, I feel okay. I've been going back and forth between vegetarian and vegan for over 10 years, but I didn't feel my best and wasn't satisfied with my overall health.

I'm excited about this journey and I'm anxious to see where it will take me because I believe now is the time to get my health in balance in order to balance other areas of my life such as over eating, anxiety, financial instability, and failed relationships.

I'm the only person that I know personally that is willing to partake in this new lifestyle so I know how importance it is to have support and encouragement. Perhaps we can provide that for each and as I discover more and more each day I will be happy to share any tips to help you along the way.

Ash

Greetings Ash welcome to your first day !!

I agree about achieving balance in your other areas of your life (over eating, anxiety, financial instability, and failed relationships) diet is just one part of the whole pie right?

Good luck on your journey and just holler if you have questions

...Jodi, the banana eating buddhist

Hello everyone. I am super new to all this, a week actually. I came to raw because i am middle aged, fat, high blood pressure etc and I feel horrible. Around the turn of the year i decided to do something about it, did some research and came to the conclusion that I am a walking toxic waste dump and vegan raw was the answer, hope IM right!
This is my 8th day, blending green smoothies etc. , eating humus and lots of plant foods and I must be detoxing because i feel like my head is going to fall off. ANYONE KNOW HOW LONG THAT LASTS?

Welcome!

Try this in the morning BanJo,

Revive Body and Soul Juice
1 Apple,
2 Pears,
1 Cucumber,
1 Lemon peeled,
3-4 Carrots
2 Celery Stalks
1 stalk of Bok Choy (stem and all)
1 Kale Leaf (stem and all)
1/3 Cup Alfalfa Sprouts
Cut up into pieces and juice-so simple.

Mother Nature has never tasted so good

Balancing Mind, Body and Spirit with Love, Light and Health,
Kelly Vaccarelli
www.LivingFoodVillage.com
www.facebook.com/livingrawfoodvillage