To Go 100% Raw or Not?

I am trying to construct a raw vegan diet of practical foods that will give me upwards of 80 gms of protein per day without requiring me to eat uncomfortable volumes of food. By practical I mean affordable, tasty, and easy to incorporate into a meal/smoothie or to eat as a snack. Today I went through some raw vegan websites to get a list of foods that are a complete protein (or close to it). The best I've found so far are:

Spirulina, raw
edamame
hemp seeds
flax seeds
yeast extract spread
pepitas (pumpkin seeds)
cowpeas
whey powder
raw spinach
almonds
pecans

The other issue I'll have to contend with is the volume of food I'll have to consume to get 1400 calories a day. One of the reasons I eat Eggbeaters and tofu is because those foods are higher protein, are filling, and give me needed calories without having to eat a huge amount. Foods like those in the list aren't quite as satisfying because although they will provide calories, I don't see them filling me up like a meal would. And I'd have to eat LOTS of spinach to get a significant amount of protein from it. This makes me think I'll be relying on protein shakes more, but that's no good because even if they are the only non-raw thing I consume, I'll probably have to consume them twice a day to get about 40 grams of protein. I could add raw cheeses from Whole Foods; they didn't seem to hurt me last year.

My goal is not to be raw for political or spiritual reasons, but simply for health, so I don't feel like a failure if I consume protein shakes. Getting protein is more important to me than anything else on this raw diet, because the other nutrients- except fibers- are simple to acquire. The reason I want all raw is because I don't have food cravings when I eat that way. I'm not sure which non-raw foods I'm eating now are triggering the cravings, so I may eliminate them all except oatmeal and see how that works out. I will probably take B12 pills, as vegan sites warn about the low-B2 levels of vegetarians and vegans.

Touched by an Angel?

You ever wish that someone or something would suddenly appear and save you from yourself? Well, I've always thought, in my worst moments, that the only way I'd stop my downward spiral of eating the wrong foods and getting more and more unhealthy was for either a "guardian angel" to step in, or some horrible health crisis to hit me and shock me back to common sense.

Well, I had a taste of the health crisis this week. I've been slowly morphing to a vegetarian/raw diet, but not quickly enough. I'd been feeling tired, sleepy and generally icky for a while and finally went to the doctor, mainly because my nutritionist wanted bloodwork. While there I saw how high my BP had gotten, and the doctor said my breathing problems could be caused by both allergies and sleep apnea. I had the prescription for Allegra filled, but eschewed the sleep test.

I felt decent the next day- not sleepy or as bad as usual. What a nice break! But the following day was strange. I woke up feeling extra tired and knew it would be a bad day. I had to fast for the 10 a.m. blood test so I went to work with no breakfast. It may have been partly because of that and partly because of whatever has been going on with me, but I felt worse and worse with every hour. I felt a tightness in my chest that seemed related to my wheezing, had a headache, was exceptionally worn out, and even had a strange anxiety/panicky feeling and shakiness. I made sure to drink water, and then went to get my blood drawn. I told the folks at work I wouldn't be back that day.

After the clinic, I seriously considered going to the ER, but remembered that I hadn't eaten, so I went to 7-11 and bought a Naked Juice protein smoothie - I was actually going for the natural sugar and carbs for quick energy but saw the protein version (38 gms per bottle) and figured it couldn't hurt. I guzzled that thing down- all 500 calories of it (whew!). Within 15 minutes I felt about 60% better. The chest tightness and anxiety went away. I was still feeling I should go to the ER but I went home to relax instead. I napped for a few hours and when I woke up I wondered again if I should go to the ER because I still wasn't totally well. I decided to go to the grocery store and check my blood pressure. If it was in the danger zone I'd go to the ER. The machine read 154 over 89. Much higher than I've seen it, but, according to the pharmacist, not worthy of an ER visit.

I vowed right then to stop putzing around with the gradually-going-raw thing and jumped back into a high-raw diet. High raw for me is this: every day I will eat raw fruits and vegetables and drink lots of water with lemon or lime juice. In addition, I will include any of the following protein or fiber-rich foods (raw or cooked as appropriate to the item): fish, tofu, oatmeal, Eggbeaters, hemp seeds and whey protein. I have already begun to drink more water, and I brewed tea to give me a non-caffeinated, non-sugary alternative to water. I love diet Snapple, but I'll stay away from its faux-sugar tastiness for the time being. I'm drinking my remaining Pepsi Jazz this weekend, and will not buy any more colas. (I will try sparkling water, though!)

Today I bought some fruits and vegetables, a manual citrus juicer, and a couple of Whole Foods salad bar items. No cheese- that's a miracle, folks! I do love me some cheese, you know. I got parsley for my salads (more nutritious than lettuce) and some raw pecans.

I feel good today. I don't really know why I felt so horrible the other day - I actually imagined at one point that I might be a step away from dying. How could I feel so terrible one day and feel normal the next? All I know is I'm treating it as a wake-up call. A knock on the side of the head from my guardian angel, perhaps. She knows I have to learn everything the hard way.

Hey raw community- I'M BAAAAAACK!!

Just What the Doctor Ordered

I had the most wonderful weekend, hanging out with my friend Cindy. She made a great dinner, of course, grilling mahi mahi and shrimp (see photo), and preparing a healthy coleslaw, couscous, and corn on the cob. The next day we went fishing- one of the items on my "one day I'd like to do this" list. You can't really call what I did "fishing" since I spent most of the time bugging Cindy about how to do this or that, and getting the line caught in the rocks under the water. But I did learn how to cast the line and reel it back in. We didn't catch anything because a storm blew in, but I hope we'll go fishing again and actually catch dinner.

Today I started my new nutritional plan. Following my nutritionist's suggestions, I created meals balanced in protein, starches, vegetables, carbs and fruits. I had 2% cottage cheese with fruit for breakfast. For lunch I made a salad with 2 oz of grilled salmon, tofu, 1/2 oz. of Stilton, and veggies. For dinner I had 4 oz of salmon, some brown rice, and I grilled some bell pepper slices. (Whenever I eat healthfully I feel like an adult. I don't know if that's good or bad...

The longer I stay overweight and less active, the more I worry about high cholesterol, blood pressure and diabetes. I've taken a giant step by making a doctor's appointment for this week. I'm getting bloodwork done, and also checking to make sure I don't have blood sugar problems. I know that seeing the numbers will motivate me to do improve them. I love to compare and contrast my "before" results with the consequences of changing my diet for the better.

I may start my journey back to raw very simply, starting with one raw meal + two less-than-100% raw meals a day. That is easily done by eating a salad as my raw meal. My raw diet this time around won't be like my previous one. I've probably mentioned before that I'm not really into the faux-cooked foods made with raw ingredients, except as a treat (like an occasional meal at a raw restaurant). I don't plan on making raw "burgers" and fake tortilla chips, etc. Those can be fun to do, but the more I process foods into semblances of cooked ones, the more I get away from the reasons I'm turning to a raw diet again. I want to separate myself from the processed foods mentality. Over time I'll be giving up even my beloved sodas and will probably drink only water and teas. I think the only "mechanical" processing I'll do is use the dehydrator to make flaxseed crackers and dried fruit, and use a food processor/vitamix to make smoothies and cold soups.

Found a Nutritionist

A few people at my job love a particular nutritionist and have been seeing her for awhile. I've been watching my pennies since I first learned of her and have rearranged my budget so that I will have enough money to see her this month- I'm very excited about this. This woman is well versed on vegetarian foods and just wrote a book about vegetarianism. One of my coworkers who started seeing her this year looks awesome- he has lost weight and looks generally healthier- he's a walking billboard for healthy eating. He speaks enthusiastically about how his life has changed since learning about eating properly. Well, he's singing to the choir. I know from my experiences with my raw diet last year how wonderful the right diet plan can be. I plan to ask her about vegetarian, vegan and raw diets, and especially about weight loss.

I like the idea of seeing a nutritionist (who asks you a bunch of questions and creates a personalized plan) much more than seeing the personal trainer with a sports nutrition education who gave me a generic plan meant for athletes. Nothing against her personally (she's very nice) but I'm not in training to become an athlete. I'm just an ordinary Jane who wants to be fit enough to live a healthy life doing things like racquetball, biking, dancing, riding in an airplane comfortably, wearing clothes I actually like, riding roller coasters, etc. I also want to have energy and stamina because not only can my job be intense, my doctoral studies require hours upon hours of research. I don't like drinking coffee or energy drinks in an attempt to keep myself awake (doesn't work anyway).

Because my Sunday weigh-in still shows no weight loss I made a concerted effort to eat less today. I ended up getting only about 1200 calories. I took some nonfat cottage cheese and melon chunks to work for a "late" breakfast, and a couple of hours later had a Cedarlane lowfat burrito for the fiber. For lunch I had Campbell's ham and bean soup - the whole, big can! For dinner I had some broiled cod, a small sweet potato (baked) and broccoli. Today wasn't a workout day, which is good because I'm still nursing my calves from the stint on the elliptical trainer.

I'm feeling good about the healthy foods I've been eating, and the way I've stuck to my 45-minute workouts, which are increasing in intensity every week. I'm amazed that so quickly, 2.5 mph on the treadmill became too slow! I'm also happy about saving for the nutritionist; I'm hoping this will be a major turning point for me in putting me on the path back to raw (and jump-starting my weight loss).

One thing I learned through my Raw Odyssey last year was that the journey to health can be just as fun as reaching the final weight and fitness goal numbers. I tend to envision the future and want to be there already, so I get frustrated. But if I keep in mind how well I've been doing overall - while not aiming for perfection- I can really enjoy the odyssey and have much to be proud of along the way.

Neither Lack of Cheese nor Blisters Will Stop Me!

I hope my personal trainer doesn't see this but I bought feta cheese yesterday. I decided I "can't live without it" right now. I like to make taboule and add feta to it. I also went against her advice and used the protein powder in my smoothie this morning. Why am I being defiant? Well, I eat probably between 1200 and 1700 calories a day including those items. When I cut out the cheese, nuts and protein powder it takes out over 500 calories. That, along with the exercise (I burned over 300 yesterday) will give me a huge calorie deficit. I recognize that I'm just being stubborn about eating the foods I like. I did make one concession though- I bought the brown rice she recommended. I am going to prepare it as if it were taboule and add feta to it!

Yesterday's workout was not especially fun. At the gym I discovered that the little rubber earbud thingies were missing from my earphones- that was enough to make me consider cancelling my workout right then- no music, no workout! But I decided to use the earphones anyway. The sound quality was horrid and make my workout much less pleasant. Plus, my sneakers, which a friend gave me, really are too narrow and were severely hurting my toes. Not wanting to be a wuss or use any more excuses to not work out, I pressed on. After the workout I sat in the nearest chair and took my shoes off. Blisters on both little toes! Today, the blister on one toe is almost as big as the toe itself! I have new earphones, but I won't work out at all today unless I can get some sports sandals that will leave my toes in the open.

So far I'm feeling good about the food. Since I'm considering my diet to be "high raw," eating out is not anxiety-provoking. I just get the salad that looks the tastiest and closest to raw, and make minor adjustments. Last week I ate at a restaurant with a coworker and had the candied walnuts removed from my salad and replaced with sliced avocado. Today I'm having another working lunch and am not anticipating major problems. Later, I have a meeting with my PT to discuss nutrition and I think it's important to tell her honestly what I'm willing and not willing to do. I want to keep the cheese, period. I can live without the nuts. And I think I would prefer to count WW points or some kind of food values rather than doing the visual portion control thing (that doesn't work with food addicts anyway- some days my fist will be a lot bigger than other days!!)

Things are going well so far.

June, 2007

STARTING OVER. AGAIN.
I'm sitting here in my lovely apartment after a 40 minute treadmill workout feeling pretty good: proud, capable and confident! It's been a loooong time since I've done anything decent with my health, and I have been paying the price with all the predictable effects - the weight gain, bad complexion, poor fitness level, lowered energy, not-very-happy-mood, low self esteem, blah blah blah, yadda yadda yadda. But last week I was ready to get back on the wagon, so up I hopped. I have lost about 8 lbs (the first week is always mostly water), and today I started working out.

PROGRAM AND GOALS

Fitness
To get me back into the gym, I found a personal trainer. Today was my first meeting with her. She recorded my BMI, measurements and starting weight. I have to get a doctor's release before we truly begin to work out, but she wants me to do 40 minutes on the treadmill at only 2.5 mph, 0 incline, 5 days a week. As my cardiovascular fitness improves we'll increase the speed and incline level. Eventually we'll add weights and do a 30-minute circuit training type of workout (ugh). I can only afford her once a week right now, but that's all right.

Weight
My initial weight goal is to lose about 30 lbs in three months. My overall goal is to reach 160 lbs by the time I earn my doctorate in 2009.


FOOD
Although my goal is to eat a "high raw" (not all raw) diet, I am starting out cautiously. Last time I started raw I jumped in with both feet and lost 25 lbs in one month, and about 1/4 of my hair. I want to lose weight quickly, but not with that kind of side effect! I'm still growing my hair back and it looks better, one year later. I stopped wearing a wig last month- scary move, but a happy occasion.

My previous raw diet was very low in protein so this time around I plan to ensure that I get enough of it. Since I love nigiri sushi, I will be getting some of my protein raw. These past two weeks I've been having a fruit smoothie with protein powder every morning, low-fat vegetable or vegetable/bean soups for lunch, and then salads with some sort of cheese for dinner. For a snack I eat raw cashews and almonds. My trainer wants me to stop eating cheese and nuts, and to not do protein supplements. She recommends I eat oatmeal, egg whites and brown rice, all of which I am willing to do for a little while as I establish myself in this new health routine. She knows I am avoiding all red meats and fowl but I didn't go into the whole future raw thing with her- I'll do that later!

Now, I'm not sure if I like what my trainer is having me do for food: she uses the volume method for determining portion sizes rather than counting calories or food values. I mean, how do you determine an index finger's worth of olive oil? She admits that this is "ambiguous" but wants me to try it out before I completely reject it. We'll see how it goes but I am already not overjoyed with the foods or the portion-control method.

HOW TODAY WENT

I am SO out of shape it is pitiful. She did a stress test on me and wanted me to stop when my heart rate went back down to 119, but it never went below 130! My resting pulse was 80. She set me up to do 40 minutes on the treadmill at 2.5 mph. When she left, I experimented with raising the incline to .5 and then 1, and raising the speed to 2.7 - just little changes to see how my heart rate was affected. She wants me to stay between 117 and 144 beats per minute and I did that, but overall I only achieved 1.75 miles in 41 minutes. I'm very impatient and want to go faster than that, but I know I have to start slowly. The good thing is that I can only get better, and it'll be fun seeing the improvement. My arms and my neck are a little sore, and I'm sure my legs will be sore tomorrow, but my iPod will help to distract me from pain when I work out tomorrow.

Well that's it for today. I'm about to see what I can eat for dinner! A fist-sized portion of something...

GOIN' RAW!

I spent the night contemplating this WW thing and decided to morph over to a high raw diet now rather than doing it more slowly. I remember how eating raw last year helped me to feel less depressed, cleared up my skin, and helped me deal with the desire to overeat so I figured, why wait any longer? I shopped for fruits, herbs and veggies for salads, and got low fat cottage cheese and organic nut butter for extra protein. I have extra virgin olive oil and avocados to make sure I get my good fats in. I bought fresh squeezed OJ rather than a bunch of oranges because I know I'm not going to spend time in the morning squeezing orange juice. I will start with these, and eat up the remaining 3 or so frozen meals I have in the fridge. I feel better already!

Now, tonight I'm going to be eating a very non-raw dinner with a friend. She is grilling steaks and roasting potatoes, and we'll have bread and dessert. All of that would be allowed on the WW Flex plan but I have to count points and would have to eat small portions to keep the point value low. I'm going to still count points with my high-raw plan as well. Right now I'm allowed 36 points a day, and 35 extra points over the course of a week. It should be very interesting to see how many points I manage to take in on a high raw diet. I'm guessing it'll very hard to make 36 points and that I'll settle into whatever points work for me.