dude, that is Rawsome!

I have heard of the raw food style of eating a number of times over the years. I have had the pleasure of trying various raw food dishes at different times with raw friends. I always liked it but never thought of ever trying it out myself. I mean honestly, give up cooked foods?! But what about pasta? What about delicious cakes and cookies? What about heavenly veggie stir-frys, not to mention chicken, steak and *gasp* BACON?! What about... well, what about everything? Why would you stop eating all those delicious things? Well, truth is, I am an unwell person. I ache like I imagine a senior citizen does, it hurts to get out of bed, my joints ache and my head aches. I have PCOS which, if you are not familiar with it, is a endocrine disease that causes a plethora of health problems including acne, obesity, intense fatigue, depression and infertility among others. I just don't feel well. I have been wanting desperately to find something to increase my health and wellness and also to change my outlook on life. It is indescribably difficult to be 28 years old and have a body that functions about as well as a ill 60 year old.  So  I was up one night ( thanks insomnia) cruising Youtube and happened to come across the videos of a few different raw foodists. To be honest, I can't even recall what lead me there but there I was. I started watching a few and heard them talk about things like "living foods" and how eating raw ( or being raw, because they really do treat it as a way of being, not just a way of eating) changed thier lives. They said they were ill or sick, they had bad skin, bad digestion and no energy. They stated that after they became raw they were full of energy, full of life, vital. Now, I am not a push over, I am not easily convinced, I was dubious of their claims. Very. However, the more I watched, the more they sort of started to make sense, even if they were not right about what raw food living could do for me, one thing was sure, my method of health was is not working. Period. So what could I lose, honestly?..none of them were telling me I had to buy this that or the other thing ( note: I will provide links below to these videos/blogs, and all of them are indeed selling things, but you don't have to buy them, it is not at all required and they, for the most part, do not try to tell you different) indeed mostly, these people are offering a wealth of information for free.

So it began, I started off with juice. Ok people.. honestly, I have never had juice like this in my life. I bought an inexpensive juicer (Superstore PC brand) and started juicing everything I could get my hands on, combining all sorts of veggies and fruits and spices. Not all of these combinations were good, in fact some of them have been down right repulsive, but the majority of them are delicious like you wouldn't believe. Also, the effects of these juices, which are basically concentrated fruits and veg, are immediate and magnificent. I have dubbed it being "high on the juice". I start every day with a "green juice" (look below for a recipe) and I can say without doubt that it is better than coffee, you get the most wicked, alert buzz...you wouldn't believe it!

I have also been trying various other raw foods including raw nuts and seeds, these I have not quite gotten a handle on yet because one thing that becomes very apparent almost immediately after you begin a predominately raw food way of eating is you digestive system is weak, dude..like..serious. After years of eating mostly processed and refined foods, your tummy has forgotten how to do it's job and when you introduce food that is uncooked and fibrous, and therefore more difficult to break down, your guts are like "WTF?"
That is way I am really digging the juicing at the moment. It takes all the rich vital nutrients, vitamins and minerals out of all that fruit and veg and concentrates it down in to a easy to digest and simple to absorb drink that is so gentle on your tummy yet incredibly filling at the same time.

I have been eating about 50-60% raw for the last week and a half and I cannot tell you how cool it is. I am not sure if it will last forever and I cannot say that I will ever be 100% raw, but that is not a concern for me. I just want to keep trying it out for as long as I can and learning more and more about it. I like that I have found some info on this lifestyle that is not dogmatic at all. There is a lot of dogma in the raw food community about what you should and shouldn't eat, how complicated your recipes have to be and what tools and gadgets you should use, but i don't care about any of that. I just want to see how long I can be RAWsome!! I will be updating this blog as often as it seems fit to do so about how this is all coming along for me and any physical or mental changes I experience. In the mean time, if you want to know more about any of this, please see the links below and here is a great green juice recipe to get you started if you want to try it out yourself, even if you just want to be HIGH ON THE JUICE!!!!

• 1 bunch spinach leaves
• 2 celery sticks
• 1 handful of parsley
• Half a cucumber
• 2 green apples
• 1 slice of ginger (about 1 inch long, less if you don't like ginger)
• spirulina (optional)

Put all ingredients through juicer and enjoy! If you don't have a juicer, peel the ginger and apples and cut all veg up smaller and remove strings from celery and blend well. Blending with not be as smooth and won't be as easy to digest, but it will still be delicious!

Some awesome vids/blogs: 

Raw Radiant Health Youtube channel

 Natasha St. Micheal's awesome vids about all things raw, including raw beauty!

Raw Reform

The awesome blog of  Angela Stokes

Life Regenerator's Youtube channel

 Dan McDonald' s amazing videos..If you want some seriously intense energy and inspiration as well as THE BEST juicing recipes ever!!