Raw Food Detox

 

Today starts the third week of my raw food vegan detox, and the first day I have invited you, and you and you too, to join me. So I thought it would be nice to share a couple of things that I have learned and those things I was reminded of these past couple of weeks.

1. Our bodies are designed to regenerate and to heal itself. When we eat nourishing foods, our cells are renewed and strengthened.

2. We do not eat enough whole foods to live healthily.

3. Raw whole foods, fruit and vegetables have less calories than overly processed foods. That means we have to eat even more. For example, a peach only has between 35 and 50 calories. So eating one gives a boost of energy to a tired body, but eating say 7 or 8 (245 – 400 calories) can sustain your energy until your next meal AND provide you with the proper sugars and vitamins your body needs to function properly, and your cells need to regenerate.

4. After eating exclusively raw food, I no longer crave sugars. Really. Raw foods are so much sweeter than their cooked and processed counter parts. Sometimes it was too much sweet.

I have been a vegetarian for over 12 years now, and if you know me, you know that I have never tried to push my preferences onto anyone, and I will not start now. Neither am I against cooked food. Once my fast is over, I will return to cooked foods. I choose to do this as a fast because I know my body needed a break. The more work I have the worse I tend to eat. Vegetarian fast food is still fast food you know. If however, you are making the choice to join me on this journey this week here are a couple of things I suggest for you to do:

1.Purchase the largest quantity, and best quality fruit and vegetables you can. I bought 10 to 15 of various fruit each, as well as several heads of green leafy veggies. As a side note, buying in bulk will save you a little money.
2.Experiment. You know, the produce you have never prepared before? Give it a try. It is so much easier to maintain a fast, diet, cleanse, or lifestyle change, when you are open to ‘new to you’ foods. I never cared too much for radish or squash, but having tried them paired with other foods, I find I kind of like them.
3.If you are not used to eating a lot of food, which I wasn’t, then you will not be able to actually consume as many calories as you will need to function which will leave you tired, weak and/ or grumpy. Do yourself a favor (and everyone else too) and invest in a juicer or blender. Give it prominent space on your counter and use it.
4.Speaking of juicers, if you are replacing a meal with juice (don’t do this too often unless you are doing it for a purpose), you will need to drink 32 to 64 ounces per meal to have a sufficient amount of calories to function at peak energy. And lastly,
5. Melons, which are in season now, are a great buy! One personal (you know the small one) watermelon, rind and all, juiced is about 34oz and a great start to your day.

As a bonus, here is a video to illustrate what a 2000 calorie day, on a raw food diet, looks like. Enjoy!