I have successfully made it three weeks into my raw food journey. It has been a very interesting road thus far, with various ups and downs.
The thing that keeps nagging at me is, "Am I doing this right?" Even though this is quick to come to my mind - especially after experimenting with rich desserts or recipes that call for lots of nuts - I am also quick to remind myself to be patient with myself. I'm sure there are lots of things that I could be doing better, but I'm also confident that those things will come easier and easier to me with time.
Weight Loss
I have lost some weight, but I don't know exactly how much. I'll be honest and tell you that it hasn't been as much as I would have expected (thank you, rich desserts and recipes that call for lots of nuts). However, my husband (the only person who gets to see me *ahem* naked) assures me that my body is changing, even if my pants aren't as loose as I'd like them to be.
I don't actually know how much I've lost because I stopped using a scale a while ago because I tend to get obsessive about the numbers. Likewise, I'm seeing that I'm starting to get a little obsessive about how fast I'm moving into smaller jeans. But, then I have to remind myself that although the weight loss will be a very welcome side effect of this lifestyle, that's not why I'm doing this.
This is especially important for me to keep in mind because I don't want to give myself more reasons to get discouraged. And let's be honest - going raw is hard enough without the extra baggage.
Speaking of Extra Baggage...
I also mentioned in an earlier post about my....uh..."movement" issues. I was surprised to see how quickly and how fast my plumbing stopped working. It wasn't that fabulous to begin with, but the herbs I'd been taking for months to help with that were no longer doing the trick. Then, to top it off, I ran out of said herbs.
I had two long, miserable weeks of experimenting with different things (sans the herbs), until I finally just ordered some herbs. Well, when I say it that way it makes it sound like I did it grudgingly. But really, I'm just the world's biggest flake and I didn't get around to it any sooner than that.
My favorite herbal formulas are Dr. John Christopher's. His lower bowel formula has been my long-time number one choice, but I ran out a while back and was just using cascara sagrada in the interim. When I finally placed my order for the good stuff last week on Vitacost.com, I only found a formula called Dr. Christopher's Quick Colon. This may be the same thing with a different name (it has changed a few times over the years), or it may just be a stronger version of his last formula. I don't know, but I've been taking it for a couple days, and the name truly says it all. I love it.
Speaking of Movement...
I'm also working to get more exercise into my lifestyle to help support my lymph system. This is especially important to me since I know that I'm going into major detox mode. I want to do everything I can to keep the pressure off of my liver because the liver's first priority is to process hormones. If it's working on that, then everything else gets dumped back into your blood stream, which is why women tend to get a bit crabby during certain times of the month.
Well, since I have hormonal issues all 30 days of the month, it's like walking uphill both ways. I'm always battling those mood swings. Even though I'm confident that, over time, this raw food lifestyle is going to help me with that, I'm also aware that it may do the opposite in the short term as my body is detoxing and putting more of a load on my liver.
That's why I'm also taking Dr. Christopher's liver and gallbladder formula. If I don't have that, then I take other herbs that I know are good for the liver - my favorite is milk thistle. Actually, I've almost been primarily on milk thistle and chaste tree berry (also known as vitex) this last year, and I've seen amazing results with my mood swings.
On the raw food diet, my mood has not been as stable, but I also stopped taking the chaste tree berry a couple weeks ago (but that's another story for another post). So, I don't know if my ups and downs are more because of the transition, or because I stopped what I know was working. Either way, I'm confident that I will move towards greater stability as my journey progresses.
Just as a side note, I also recommend Dr. Christopher's blood stream formula, and his kidney formula - or other herbal formulas that would support those systems. This just about covers all of your avenues of elimination, and your body could really use the help.
My Secret Weapons
The last thing that I'll share about these last three weeks and my current transition is that I'm really finding that the list of 6 things I do to combat my cravings that I mentioned in my last post are really saving my life. There's not a single thing on that list that I could do without. I am amazed that I have gone this long without getting off the train, and it's been relatively easy, compared to what I was expecting.
Of course, I have to give my husband kudos for that because he is taking this journey with me. If I didn't have him backing me up on this, I don't think I could do it. If I was having to either cook or watch him eat all those cooked foods we used to share, I think I would have been lost in a pile of nachos and donuts by now.
So, thank you to him, and good luck to any of you who are also beginning this amazing transformation.
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