Un Petit Raw Update

“In any case, other than my desire to hear more about your adventures in raw foodism, the real question here is this: how do you balance a raw food diet with cupcakes? Can I make this a positive change without abandoning the classic cheese and cracker combo, chocolate and cupcakes on valentines day, and even, once and awhile, a sandwich? Please let a girl know!”

I have had lots of requests for information about what I’m eating, how I’m feeling & my thoughts on the rawification process in general, so I am bowing to the pressure! Here’s a mini-update. I am going to embark on some raw coaching soon with the fabulous Karen Knowler (otherwise known as the world’s premier raw food coach!), but not for a couple of weeks… so here’s what I can tell you at this stage.

The first major thing I’ve noticed is the impact of eating raw on my skin. I have never been plagued by spots or anything like that, but do get the occasional blemish. I always figured it was just because I’m in my early 20’s & that’s what happens — oh, & I always kind of thought, at the back of my mind, that maybe if I had the perfect skincare routine, it would be better.

NEWSFLASH. If you’re eating lots of raw fruit & vegetables & drinking heaps of water, you could slather your skin in motor oil & it won’t make an inch of difference. I swear, & I know this sounds totally obnoxious, but my skin has been amazing. I took some photos of Simon & I at the NGV the other night & I was incredulous at how clear our skin looked. I’m only getting spots if — shock horror — I eat cupcakes, cheese, or cooked stuff (bread, pasta, etc.). But if I don’t eat that stuff, my skin is as pristine as I’ve ever seen. It’s incredible to me, because I always thought that whole “eating junk is bad for your skin” stuff was only partially true, but never put a lot of stock in it. Now that I’m making an effort to eat things that are good for me, I’m really noticing the difference. I am a believer!

Eating raw can be a pain in the butt sometimes but if it guarantees me great skin, I am sold.

I also usually get hormonal break-outs, & I have about a week a month where my skin is hugely dissatisfying. Well, this month, my skin was more well-behaved than I’ve ever seen it. It’s a blessing from the skies! I also found I was in much less pain & had practically no cramping. Rock.

I have more energy too. I used to be big on napping, & at least one nap a day was normal for me. Well, that has been drastically reduced. I’m just not interested in sleeping in the day any more! I have energy to burn. Sometimes I’ll have a lie down but that’s only if it’s been a draining day or I didn’t get much sleep, & this is happening less & less. Another thing I’m finding is that if I make an effort to drink a lot of water, I can work & work & work & not need (or want) a break. This is great news because I love iCiNG & everything around it, so the more love I can throw at it, the better!

Having said all that… this past week or so I’ve been a bit iffy on the raw thing. I think mostly because I am a very picky eater & so there are a lot of vegetables & fruit that I just don’t like. (I am working on tapping out all of my food issues, because it’s really limiting me & stressing me out.) Of course, only liking about 5 of 1000 vegetables makes eating really difficult, so I have been reverting to familiar (cooked) food & paying the price (basically, I feel terrible).

I’ve noticed that when I’m not eating a lot of fruit or vegetables, as has been the case recently, I have been forgetting things a lot. The other morning I had about five separate thoughts which involved doing something — & as soon as I went to do it, I forgot what it was. They weren’t difficult things to remember either: check cellphone, check weather forecast, etc. That scares me, actually. I always used to think I was “forgetful” but could it be that eating too much processed food was turning my brain to mush?!

I’ve also found that the things I used to love (garlic pizza bread, soup, etc.) really don’t have any flavour any more. They mostly taste like lard or salt. Sometimes they just taste like cardboard — so my taste buds are definitely changing. I ate a pain au chocolat the other day & all I could taste were hydrogenated oils. Blech!

I have also been VERY emotional, moody, apathetic & anti-social. While some of this is just due to stuff I am processing at the moment, I have absolutely no doubt that the reason it is so huge in my mind is because I’m not eating good food. Oh, & my skin looks terrible! Boooooo!

It’s been really interesting to go from normal food to raw & back again, because I can see how differently my body operates depending on what I’m eating. I have always just viewed food as fuel, but now I am highly aware of how the quality of the fuel affects us.

Tomorrow we’re going to go to the market & stock up on vegetables & fruit. We’re pretty low on stuff at the moment. I’ve decided I need to stop viewing unfamiliar food as an enemy & instead embrace it & be open to experimentation. This has historically been quite hard for me but with the power of tapping I know I will prevail!

To answer the original question, yes, you can definitely make a positive change & still eat your favourite old foods. Just don’t be surprised if they start to seriously lose appeal!