Hi Veggies!
I am happy to report I am still on the fruit wagon!
It has been three wonderful days of raw bliss.
Well, aside from my daily soy latte! (Can't do without that!)
I must say it has been relatively easy and quite satisfying.
I now find that if I allow myself to eat naturally (not thinking and calculating and restricting) -- I tend to eat around 2500 calories of raw goodness. I typically start the day with smoothies, and end with salads.
Yesterday's menu:
1) x2 banana mango date smoothies (each one is like a liter)
2) Celery apple grape salad
3) Kale blood orange and pumpkin seed salad
4) Banana - sun warrior raw protein - raw cacao smoothie
80/10/10 and 2600 calories! 60 grams of protein, just under 30 grams of fat, close to 560 grams of carbs!
Today's menu:
1) Banana mango date smoothie
2) Big bowl of apples and grapes (half an Asian pear) --- just nibbled these all afternoon
3) Celery with organic raisins on top
4) Oranges
2500+ calories
I already feel better. I really miss beans and rice, however I feel so good on raw foods...I don't think it is worthwhile. In just three days my sleep has improved tremendously --- it is just more deep. I love it. I also have more energy to chase Seth, and I am not irritable. At the gym I have improved endurance, though my strength remains the same. My belly is poochy from the fruit by the end of the day, but in the morning it appears to be more flat (Probably due to less salt intake!) All in all --- I think we all can benefit from incorporating more raw foods into our diet. As I see it, when the body expends less energy on digestion it can tend to other "work" in the body. It's a win win!
Anyhow, I found a wholesaler in my area named W.R. VERNON. If you are in Winston Salem NC, you must look them up. I haven't actually eaten the produce yet, however I was able to pick up large quantities for cheap. I bought nanas, oranges, grapes, mangoes, and celery! For example --- I took home a 40 pound box of nanas for just under twenty bucks. This will def last me a little longer than a week. I had the guy pick me up a nanas with a little green in them, so they can have time to ripen a bit. I picked up 9 mangoes for under ten bucks. They are beautiful too. The celery was just 0.75 cents per stalk. Even if you aren't a raw vegan, and just like produce it is worth checking these places out. You can go with your friends to buy large quantities and then split them, because you do really save cash. Google wholesalers in your area and see what you can find!!!
From a workout stand point I continue to lift with my husband. He is kind of like my personal trainer. We worked on building back strength today. We did an assortment of rows with all kinds of different hand positions to hit the upper and lower back. We used about four different machines. We also did lat pull downs. We only performed two reps of ten. However, my husband said that is enough since we use a variety of machines to work the same muscle. I only did ten minutes of HIIT on the stair climber today. That's fine because I want to build muscles!
My last bit of advice is watch your fat and embrace your fruit! Fruit is good! Xxxxx
Peace and Love!!!
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Wednesday, February 15, 2012
Raw Desserts!
Happy Belated V- Day Veggies!
It has been a little while since I have updated my blog! I still plan to keep a regular written log of my diet/exercise.
Although I want to quit at times --- I am still playing with the idea of the raw vegan diet. For some reason, I am simply drawn to the idea. Many people boast of clarity of mind, clear skin/eyes, easy digestion, increased energy, and more aside from the obvious health benefits. I am just so curious as to if any of this is true. And it is just so simple. I know the days I was able to commit to it, I guess it was like a five day span, my sleep quality was greatly improved. So I have decided to let loose and have fun. It doesn't matter if I get it right or not --- just as long as I am satisfied, fit and happy!
Anyways, here is a sample of what I ate today:
Breakfast - LATE!!! Soy latte from Starbucks
Lunch - ON the run!!!! Veggie sub at Subway on flat bread w/brown mustard
Snack - 2 bananas
Dinner - Giant celery/apple/grape salad (my fave!)
Dessert - Strawberry brownie bites w/ sun warrior raw protein-banana smoothie (unsweetened soy milk base)
I must must share with you the recipe for the " strawberry filled brownie bites." I adapted this recipe from raw chef Megan Elizabeth McDonnell. (It was posted on a raw forum). Google her for other recipe vids!
Anyways, I changed up the recipe based on what I had in the kitchen.
Ingredients: 4 strawberries / 5 dates / 1/4 cup raisins / 1 teaspoon raw cacao powder (purchased at Whole Foods) / 1/8 cup finely shredded coconut (plus a little extra for garnishment)
1) In your food processor combine dates, raisins, cacao powder, and coconut. The mixture will be sticky.
2) Simply take half of the mixture and form into a ball around a whole strawberry. Repeat to make two balls.
3) Roll the balls in a little bit of extra coconut.
4) Place on a plate with the 2 additional strawberries and enjoy!
SO Good! Very rich---and sweet! Without the excess fat! Warning: Dates are not low in calories, and this is not a low cal dessert. However, it is easy.
Here is what I did for exercise:
10 minute HIIT on the treadmill. I worked my shoulder with my wonderful husband. We did a bunch:
Several different shoulder press machines (including the military press machine) and weighted shoulder shrugs.
I love working out with my husband, I am lucky to have found someone who values fitness just as much as I do! (Had to add in a little Valentine's Day mushiness!) Anyways ---
Peace and Love!
It has been a little while since I have updated my blog! I still plan to keep a regular written log of my diet/exercise.
Although I want to quit at times --- I am still playing with the idea of the raw vegan diet. For some reason, I am simply drawn to the idea. Many people boast of clarity of mind, clear skin/eyes, easy digestion, increased energy, and more aside from the obvious health benefits. I am just so curious as to if any of this is true. And it is just so simple. I know the days I was able to commit to it, I guess it was like a five day span, my sleep quality was greatly improved. So I have decided to let loose and have fun. It doesn't matter if I get it right or not --- just as long as I am satisfied, fit and happy!
Anyways, here is a sample of what I ate today:
Breakfast - LATE!!! Soy latte from Starbucks
Lunch - ON the run!!!! Veggie sub at Subway on flat bread w/brown mustard
Snack - 2 bananas
Dinner - Giant celery/apple/grape salad (my fave!)
Dessert - Strawberry brownie bites w/ sun warrior raw protein-banana smoothie (unsweetened soy milk base)
I must must share with you the recipe for the " strawberry filled brownie bites." I adapted this recipe from raw chef Megan Elizabeth McDonnell. (It was posted on a raw forum). Google her for other recipe vids!
Anyways, I changed up the recipe based on what I had in the kitchen.
Ingredients: 4 strawberries / 5 dates / 1/4 cup raisins / 1 teaspoon raw cacao powder (purchased at Whole Foods) / 1/8 cup finely shredded coconut (plus a little extra for garnishment)
1) In your food processor combine dates, raisins, cacao powder, and coconut. The mixture will be sticky.
2) Simply take half of the mixture and form into a ball around a whole strawberry. Repeat to make two balls.
3) Roll the balls in a little bit of extra coconut.
4) Place on a plate with the 2 additional strawberries and enjoy!
SO Good! Very rich---and sweet! Without the excess fat! Warning: Dates are not low in calories, and this is not a low cal dessert. However, it is easy.
Here is what I did for exercise:
10 minute HIIT on the treadmill. I worked my shoulder with my wonderful husband. We did a bunch:
Several different shoulder press machines (including the military press machine) and weighted shoulder shrugs.
I love working out with my husband, I am lucky to have found someone who values fitness just as much as I do! (Had to add in a little Valentine's Day mushiness!) Anyways ---
Peace and Love!
Friday, February 3, 2012
Read your labels!
Evening Veggies!
The weekend is here. Probably the hardest time to stick to dietary plans, so make sure your refridgerator is stocked with healthy foods.
I have been doing some soul searching, and I decided for the time being to apply the 80/10/10 diet (low fat - high carb vegan diet), however to also incorporate a healthy cooked vegan dinner into the mix. I really like the concept, however I am looking for a lifestyle...key word LIFE. And I honestly can not see myself happy with eating no cooked foods forever. So I came up with a happy medium. Thus I will still apply the macronutrient ratio, eat plenty of calories (2500 per day), eat mostly fruits/vegetables/nuts/seeds. If for some reason I feel compelled to take it a step further I will...but for right now...this is best! I never felt like I was "missing out" when I transitioned to vegetarianism. And I certainly don't want to develop that mind set now!
Today my son was in daycare and I decided to go to Whole Foods. I am happy I did because they were selling organic oranges for about 80 cents/pound! I stocked up for sure! I love apples from Whole Foods too. Mmmmm! I can not wait until the spring and summer because then I can do some shopping at the local farmers market, and probably pick out cheaper organic produce. I also bought a nifty solution called REBEL GREEN which can be used to clean fruits/vegetables, ridding them of chemicals, pesticides, and other unwanted yuckiness transferred on the surface of the food during production. Unfortunately, I thought I bought vegan cheddar shreds, because on the label it boasted no badness whatsoever, including lactose. HOWEVER! some "veggie" cheeses actually contain casein, which is a milk protein!!! I opened the package and used some of the cheese before realizing this! It was good...but I will not be buying this product in the future. Transitioning to a veggie based diet is a process or journey, therefore I know eventually my diet will be 100% animal product free. No use in sweating the small stuff OR wasting food. That's just not my style. That being said, vegans must check labels carefully! Hell, we all should! You need to know what you are consuming! I know for a fact DAIYA brand cheese is vegan. Alternatively, simply stick to whole foods in their most natural state.
Here is what I ate today:
Breakfast = 4 banana/strawberry/3 date shake
Snack = 5 banana/strawberry shake
Lunch = celery/red pepper/tangerine soup
Snack = Unsweetened organic soy milk w/espresso
Dinner = Vegan (almost) style tacos and grapes
(Organic wheat tortillas, vegan boca crumbles, lettuce, avocado, fresh salsa, tofutti "sourcream", veggie cheese)
Calories = between 2000 and 2500
76/12/12
Here is what I did in the gym:
Legs legs legs. I am still healing my arm. Leg press, machine squats, knee flexion/extension machines, abductor/adductor machines, calf raise machine. I am thinking about beginning a daily yoga practice for flexibility! However, I will elaborate on that much later.
I just want to leave you with a tidbit about exercise and SEX! I was reading the magazine Fitness. There was an article which discussed an experiment regarding women/self image and exercise. In the article, women who saw magazines with thin models had decreased libido than women who did not. In other words, insecurity and poor body image equals unhappy sex life. However, self satisfaction and confidence of course, is a plus. Another interesting factoid was that satisfaction improved following exercise due to blood flow, which of course prompts "desirable responses." All in all --- I took away that you need to be happy in your skin no matter where you are in your fitness journey. Also, this is just another reason to work out. Not to be raunchy but a healthy sex life is part of overall wellness for many of us. And I am all for that!
Peace and Love!
The weekend is here. Probably the hardest time to stick to dietary plans, so make sure your refridgerator is stocked with healthy foods.
I have been doing some soul searching, and I decided for the time being to apply the 80/10/10 diet (low fat - high carb vegan diet), however to also incorporate a healthy cooked vegan dinner into the mix. I really like the concept, however I am looking for a lifestyle...key word LIFE. And I honestly can not see myself happy with eating no cooked foods forever. So I came up with a happy medium. Thus I will still apply the macronutrient ratio, eat plenty of calories (2500 per day), eat mostly fruits/vegetables/nuts/seeds. If for some reason I feel compelled to take it a step further I will...but for right now...this is best! I never felt like I was "missing out" when I transitioned to vegetarianism. And I certainly don't want to develop that mind set now!
Today my son was in daycare and I decided to go to Whole Foods. I am happy I did because they were selling organic oranges for about 80 cents/pound! I stocked up for sure! I love apples from Whole Foods too. Mmmmm! I can not wait until the spring and summer because then I can do some shopping at the local farmers market, and probably pick out cheaper organic produce. I also bought a nifty solution called REBEL GREEN which can be used to clean fruits/vegetables, ridding them of chemicals, pesticides, and other unwanted yuckiness transferred on the surface of the food during production. Unfortunately, I thought I bought vegan cheddar shreds, because on the label it boasted no badness whatsoever, including lactose. HOWEVER! some "veggie" cheeses actually contain casein, which is a milk protein!!! I opened the package and used some of the cheese before realizing this! It was good...but I will not be buying this product in the future. Transitioning to a veggie based diet is a process or journey, therefore I know eventually my diet will be 100% animal product free. No use in sweating the small stuff OR wasting food. That's just not my style. That being said, vegans must check labels carefully! Hell, we all should! You need to know what you are consuming! I know for a fact DAIYA brand cheese is vegan. Alternatively, simply stick to whole foods in their most natural state.
Here is what I ate today:
Breakfast = 4 banana/strawberry/3 date shake
Snack = 5 banana/strawberry shake
Lunch = celery/red pepper/tangerine soup
Snack = Unsweetened organic soy milk w/espresso
Dinner = Vegan (almost) style tacos and grapes
(Organic wheat tortillas, vegan boca crumbles, lettuce, avocado, fresh salsa, tofutti "sourcream", veggie cheese)
Calories = between 2000 and 2500
76/12/12
Here is what I did in the gym:
Legs legs legs. I am still healing my arm. Leg press, machine squats, knee flexion/extension machines, abductor/adductor machines, calf raise machine. I am thinking about beginning a daily yoga practice for flexibility! However, I will elaborate on that much later.
I just want to leave you with a tidbit about exercise and SEX! I was reading the magazine Fitness. There was an article which discussed an experiment regarding women/self image and exercise. In the article, women who saw magazines with thin models had decreased libido than women who did not. In other words, insecurity and poor body image equals unhappy sex life. However, self satisfaction and confidence of course, is a plus. Another interesting factoid was that satisfaction improved following exercise due to blood flow, which of course prompts "desirable responses." All in all --- I took away that you need to be happy in your skin no matter where you are in your fitness journey. Also, this is just another reason to work out. Not to be raunchy but a healthy sex life is part of overall wellness for many of us. And I am all for that!
Peace and Love!
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
Happy February!
Hi Veggies! Happy February!
Today is the 1st, and the 1st day of my daily log. I am so proud of myself today, because I adhered to my diet.
Today I started off with a workout after drinking about 500 ML of water. It worked out well! I used the stair climber and treadmill for forty minutes. Interval training, like always. I worked out my quads with the knee extension machine and seated leg press.
By the time I finished up at the gym ... and my son and I got home, it was already 1130, but I still felt okay! Working out on an empty stomach was great. I felt like I had more energy.
First thing: Unsweetened soymilk w/espresso sprinkled with cinnamon :-) --- pre workout
Brunch: Strawberry/banana/date shake (I know I said I wasn't going to mix nanas and strawberries, but it's what I have in the fridge!)
Snack: V8
Lunch: Strawberry/banana/date shake
Dinner: Salad: Butter lettuce, cucumber, grapes, apples, celery with avocado/herb/lemon/date dressing
Snack: Orange
That may not seem like a lot, but both shakes together were over 2 liters! Over the course of the day I took in about 2000 calories (85% carbs 9% fats 6% protein). You also may notice I drank a V8 today, and this is because I am on a medicine which actually induces hyponatremia (or low sodium!), thus my doctor ordered me to drink V8 once a day since my diet contributes VERY little sodium.
As I reported earlier, I will continue to take a multivitamin, and vitamin D. My doctor also recommended 15 minutes of sun three times a week because taking the supplement ALONE, will not replenish my stores. We need the sun's energy to activate vitamin D!
I actually have quite a bit on my mind today about emotional eating, and body image acceptance. But --- I will save this for another day.
I am trying to make a practice of going to bed early, and waking my son up earlier, so we can all sleep well though the night. He recently developed a practice of waking up at 3AM singing at the top of his lungs for an hour before falling back asleep!
As always,
Peace & Love
Today is the 1st, and the 1st day of my daily log. I am so proud of myself today, because I adhered to my diet.
Today I started off with a workout after drinking about 500 ML of water. It worked out well! I used the stair climber and treadmill for forty minutes. Interval training, like always. I worked out my quads with the knee extension machine and seated leg press.
By the time I finished up at the gym ... and my son and I got home, it was already 1130, but I still felt okay! Working out on an empty stomach was great. I felt like I had more energy.
First thing: Unsweetened soymilk w/espresso sprinkled with cinnamon :-) --- pre workout
Brunch: Strawberry/banana/date shake (I know I said I wasn't going to mix nanas and strawberries, but it's what I have in the fridge!)
Snack: V8
Lunch: Strawberry/banana/date shake
Dinner: Salad: Butter lettuce, cucumber, grapes, apples, celery with avocado/herb/lemon/date dressing
Snack: Orange
That may not seem like a lot, but both shakes together were over 2 liters! Over the course of the day I took in about 2000 calories (85% carbs 9% fats 6% protein). You also may notice I drank a V8 today, and this is because I am on a medicine which actually induces hyponatremia (or low sodium!), thus my doctor ordered me to drink V8 once a day since my diet contributes VERY little sodium.
As I reported earlier, I will continue to take a multivitamin, and vitamin D. My doctor also recommended 15 minutes of sun three times a week because taking the supplement ALONE, will not replenish my stores. We need the sun's energy to activate vitamin D!
I actually have quite a bit on my mind today about emotional eating, and body image acceptance. But --- I will save this for another day.
I am trying to make a practice of going to bed early, and waking my son up earlier, so we can all sleep well though the night. He recently developed a practice of waking up at 3AM singing at the top of his lungs for an hour before falling back asleep!
As always,
Peace & Love
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