Scattering some thoughts about new chapters.

From start to finish, my trip to the UK has truly been full of ups and downs and a fair amount of introspection interspersed with pure avoidance of introspection. Funny, I went for a class with Russell James, ended up with that plus:

-a class with Chad Sarno
-several small adventures
-a peek into the naughtier side of London nightlife -- entirely unplanned and somewhat awkwardly unwelcomed!
-a taste of all but one of the raw restaurants (I'll have to save what I think is called "The Lizard Lounge" for my next trip!)
-several bouts with non-raw food
-a few unlikely new friends, including two Hungarians!
-my first ever missed airline flight
-feeling more lost than ever (that would be related to the flight but it's a bit related to life too)
-questions about whether I really want to be raw
-questions about whether I really want to move forward with the business I'm beginning
-thoughts on finally closing a chapter of my life (too personal to share all of that on the net!)

Gollee! Quite a surprising mix for me.

I had so many thoughts about closing a chapter in my life, and I think I've had more non-raw food in the last week than in the last couple years. On a trip born out of wanting more knowledge regarding raw food.

What gives?

As always, purely emotional. I can tie every moment that I had something to different emotions related to really closing that chapter and to starting new ones that fit me better.

Fine enough. But here's my problem. I claim to be a raw foodist. And I even avoid the questionably raw food items in most cases. Does this make me a hypocrite? Do I NEED to be perfect? Can I have a business that is related to raw food? Does that fit? Am I not "walking the talk" as they say?

Truthfully, I don't know the answers now.

As it has always been, I am not committed to raw food. I AM, however, committed to health. I believe the two are nearly equal (assuming other parts of life are in tune to healthy vibrations!), but it seems I have some work ahead of me yet. I just hope it doesn't feel like work. I love Europe -- which could very well be home one day, for sure -- but I have been aching to buy an ice cream machine and didn't want to buy it here while it's not home. I don't know why, but that is the ONE thing I really, really desire these days. I feel like I'm depriving myself, even. Geez, that's right, add that to the list. I had a scoop of "real" ice cream while I was there too. I hope confessing means I won't get sent to raw food hell. Ha! It's really the texture I've been missing, thus the desire for an ice cream machine.

All these scattered thoughts full of confessions and half-shared news and events. That would be how my mind operates after a few days of cooked. Really. And it's killing my efficiency. I got dumped with more work than usual on Friday. A bit annoying, to say the least.

If you're reading this, you've managed to get this far (bless you), and you have an ice cream machine, please thoroughly enjoy an extra raw scoop for me. And send me the recipe. Seriously. I'm going to put in an order in the next few days to arrive before I get "home" for my new machine.

If you don't have an ice cream machine, AND you've managed to get this far (bless you twice), I feel your pain. I encourage you to seek help or a machine. And don't let all the VitaMix affiliates out there tell you that you can make ice cream with it. It's a lie! The texture's not the same.

Ah, and veggie sushi. Add that to my airport sins.

Wonderful news

My last post, I was feeling a little under the weather. I was doing so much planning and not taking enough action to follow my dreams and create a business that would bring me joy. And I really wasn't listening to my body.

Well, that has all come to an end. I have a graphic designer and programmer working on those details with my website that were just taking me way too much time. I have had great experiences working with both of them before for different projects, and they're giving me great rates. Thank goodness!

On top of that, I have been communicating with several home owners all over the world (but mostly in the Southeast USA)... In less than a week, I will have a fully working website with offerings. I'm SO excited! I'll be hosting raw food vacations only in the most beautiful places. Did I mention that I'm excited?

Well, the OTHER good news is that, as I've discovered in the past, following my dreams is the most alkaline and healthy thing I can possibly do for myself. I feel a million times better. I'm still eating 100% raw but also have been eating only when I'm hungry and only what my body really wants. It's just so much easier to do now that I've made the decision to follow my calling, full speed ahead!

More actions, less planning (Say "no" to an action plan!?)

I guess it's just not normal to be so far away from a person's home country. I have some friends that are American here, but I really just feel so alone these days!

AND on top of it all, I'm not thrilled with my job at the moment. There's just too much to do and a lot of it's not fun. I really want to be following my passions, but it just takes so long to build clientele that on some days I feel like that's too overwhelming to accomplish the things I want.

I also have been eating high fat these days, don't know why. I'm pretty sure my body is asking for food but not THAT food.

Even being 100% raw, all these things are affecting my health. I'm getting a tiny bit of a belly. I feel like my body is protecting me. The funny/strange thing is that I've been going to Bikram yoga regularly, and using my body weight for strength and flexibility has been an amazing experience. My legs and arms and back are becoming more shapely. It's quite strange to be developing a bit of a belly at the same time!!!

I'm really brainstorming, trying to figure out an action plan. But maybe that's the problem. Maybe I need to do more actions and less planning. Hmmmm... there's a thought.

Aw well.

Spending LESS money now on raw!

What a strange change has been happening to me these days. I have switched to mostly organic and have been listening intently to my body telling me when I'm full, hungry, thirsty, etc.

My costs have gone down!

I'm just not as hungry. I feel full and satiated with less food. Some part of me wants to eat more just "because I should." But I have so much energy and life!

Mind you, for the last couple months or so, I have been doing less frequent vigorous exercise. I still walk plenty, but that would take very, very fast walking or several hours to get me a little tired these days. So, I'm sure that my body is become more efficient and simply is not expending too many calories. That's got to be part of it. BEFORE I switched to organic, I had noticed that I didn't need huge amounts of food to fill me up.

Organic just tastes better? Or is it the garden sorrel?

Yesterday, I made the choice to buy most of my food organic. I may have to make some exceptions since organic food supply is not so easy to come by, but I'm not sure about that just yet.

In any case, yesterday, I bought a green that looked familiar, but it is most definitely new to my taste buds. I looked up the Hungarian translation to see what it is in English = garden sorrel?! Um, OK. I never heard of that. So I looked it up, and here is what I found: A Botanical Website

Some interesting info on that site about the plant itself and cultivation. Makes me really wish I had land and a garden!

Anyways, it's not just this sorrel that has me pumped. I also got some tomatoes yesterday that were the best I have ever had.

My food has not tasted as good recently, and I think this was what I needed. The good thing, is that I was satisfied after a small amount of food last night and so far today. Not super small, just less than usual when my body said "Whoa, there, I've had enough."

So, I listened. And... funny thing, my blender is broken, so I just had a green salad for breakfast instead of a green smoothie! LOL, what a funnily, perfectly what I wanted... breakfast.

Tips for Good Skin (Very Detailed!)

I wrote the following several months ago. Since then, I have been following my own suggestions and think I can say that I have morphed into someone with consistently "flawless" skin!

I have a confession to make. I've been 100% raw for almost a year, and my skin still isn't perfect. Besides my vanity, this just drives me bonkers because I feel like I do too much of the "right stuff" to have anything less than flawless skin. Mind you -- it actually is pretty nice. Just not PERFECT. High standards. I know.

In any case, I really mean to, but I have NOT been exercising every single day. I think this is a big part of it. I've been googling like mad and using my head, trying to think of ALL of the different pieces to this puzzle.

Here's what I came up with:

Re: digestion/elimination/detoxification...

Under normal circumstances, the body is able to eliminate toxins from the body via urine, feces, exhalation, and perspiration. Thus, the major organs involved in elimination are the kidneys, liver, colon, lungs, and skin. In addition, WBCs (white blood cells) of the immune system are designed to neutralize microbial toxins. The liver is the organ primarily responsible for breaking toxins into harmless byproducts, which are eliminated into the stool or through the kidneys into the urine.

The previous was found here: http://www.innvista.com/health/microbes/toxins.htm

The bolding is mine.

So here's what I figure...

Our body has a few ways to get rid of wastes and toxins. The primary method is through the feces. (Hint, hint: Green smoothies! Info here: Basic Green Smoothie) The liver and then kidneys turn additional toxins into the "harmless byproducts" which are then eliminated through urination.

If this is not working well, then the skin is up next. Pimples! Rashes! Dry patches! And skin that just... doesn't... radiate HEALTH!

So, based on everything I have been looking at and have learned from experience, questions, books, and posts, here is my personal take on the things that "matter" and help for good skin...

Top Priority: Eliminate through feces!

Drink those green smoothies!

EVERY DAY!!! REALLY.

Have some ground flax every day.

Have an apple a day. (We want to keep the doctor away anyways, right?!)

EXERCISE! DAILY! It helps move the bowels and digestion.

Dry skin brush. It helps with circulation and thus digestion and the bowels. (Face AND body!)

8-10 cups of water daily. Who hasn't heard this?! No excuses!

Vitamineral Green or some sort of green powder (Optional -- but I believe it helps from my short experience with it and how it seems to really help move my bowels!)[Edited later to note that I believe it to maybe be helpful but am not certain.]

Rebound or Jump rope! This helps the lymph nodes, circulation and thus -- getting everything moving!

Edited to add: Oil pull! This is actually to help with getting rid of toxins. It is great! I have a blog post that explains the reasoning and the how-to behind this. You can find it here: Oil Pulling How and Why

Next priority: Don't add MORE toxins! And keep the stress at bay!

Eat (100%-ish) raw! (I know, I know, it goes without saying. But I had to say it!)

Breathe deeply and consciously EVERY day at some point. This helps to breathe better all day. Which is good for stress and for circulation.

Eat organic if possible.

Drink filtered water.

Don't use chemical-filled products (i.e. shampoos, conditioners, soaps, laundry detergent, facial cleanser, etc.)

Consciously relax the face muscles. This is another de-stressing technique.

Limit your time on the computer. We all love RFT and RFC , but we are made to have a life away from the computer screen sometimes!

Get some fresh air. This really helps with destressing. Even when it's cold. For crying out loud, just put on a jacket and whatever other amount of cold-weather gear it takes!

And about the above, if you're not in a cold climate ... Well, no excuses! Get outside! You need all the sunshine + Vitamin D you can get in that case.

Stretch for 5-10 minutes a day. This helps with circulation and destressing.

Exercise every darn day. Even if just for a few minutes. Usually a few minutes turns into a few more once you get moving anyways!

Some other skin-specific remedies to add:

Fasting periodically for some period of time. (Even if it's just for 12 hours or one day). This gives the organs a chance to continue cleansing. This is helpful because skin problems really are usually that the liver and kidneys need a break or a chance to cleanse.

Cucumber juice. Alissa Cohen has a recipe in her book specifically for skin that is something like this (sorry if it's not exact; this is from memory and how I do it!): 2 cucumbers, 1/2 red pepper, 2 carrots, 1 apple, a touch of ginger

External remedy: Put honey on skin (a light amount to cover entire face), let it sit for about 20-30 minutes. Rub some warm-hot water and brown sugar into skin to remove the honey. (Thanks to a Brazilian chick at the local spa!)

So, these are my suggestions, and they work. Please, please leave comments if you have tried-and-true suggestions you would like me to add and want to share with others. :)


Edited to add: My good friend Joz has reminded me about "beauty sleep." I actually didn't know whether to put this under the tips about elimination or those about stress. Early to bed, early to rise ... makes a difference for elimination AND stress!

Getting through Emotional Detox and Eating Carbs

A gracious young woman on RFT (www.rawfoodtalk.com) is going through a really tough time at 3 weeks into raw food. She is sad and depressed and also wanting some more carbohydrates (other than just fruit). I won't name her here out of respect, but I think the information I posted to her could be useful to someone else:

First, I'm sending a hug out to you! You are most definitely going through detox. When we hold in emotions or stuff them down/protect ourselves (even subconsciously) by having a glass of wine or munching on chips, pretzels, cheese and crackers, etc... our body honors our actions by not letting us feel the entirety of the emotions. But then they're stuck until our body is ready to let go of them. Eating raw is so cleansing and healing that you're at a point of cleaning out the old emotions too.

Emotional detox is very real and sometimes painful. Trust your body. Love yourself. You will get through this an (emotionally) healthier person and certainly happier too. If you are a religious person, ask your higher power for the strength to get you through. If you are not, tell yourself OUT LOUD, "This is temporary. I will get through this. I deserve to be truly happy." And that is what will happen. You will find that, if you allow the healing, you will probably be happier than you've felt in many years. For no reason!

As for your desire for carbohydrates, I have an answer for you! Do you have Alissa's book? If you do, look up the burger bun recipe. (If you don't have it, feel free to send me an email by clicking on my name. I'll send it to you rather than posting it here.) It has sprouted buckwheat groats in it. If you have not already tried it, it is very filling.

You can use the burger buns as a pizza crust, a bread, burger bun, it's even the calzone recipe's outside! As well, I sometimes sprout buckwheat (takes less than 24 hours and is the easiest sprouting process!), then add some oil, spices and salt (not a lot!), then dehydrate. BAM! Popcorn! It's filling in the say way as eating bread or other carbs and can also be added on top of salads for a crunch, etc.

Did I mention that you're going to get through this?! You are!