In The Raw
Posted by Kathy Lyons, aka Jade Lee in Jade Lee, tags: diet, eating, exercise, food, Jade Lee, kathy lyons, nuts, raw food diet, vegetables
A miracle has happened to me. Yes, a flat out miracle. I’ve found a diet that WORKS for me. Believe me, no one is more shocked. I’ve been on lots of different diets, most of them somewhat half-hearted. Mostly, my theory has been exercise to death and then eat what you want. That worked for a while until body parts started breaking. Knees, wrist, hip, feet. You name it, I’ve had pain there. And medication.
But the moment I started empty nesting, I began shifting my eating habits. Not out of intention but laziness. Yup. LAZY. That’s me. I hate cooking. Let me restate that. I HATE, DESPISE, DETEST and LOATHE cooking. So, I began eating fruits and vegetables because they required no cooking. My husband is a gem in that he will make a sandwich for himself or happily pick up semi-fast food on his way home. So, if I don’t want to cook, I don’t have to. And guess what? I didn’t want to.
So I began eating what I later learned was called a RAW DIET. All live food. Fruits, nuts, and veggies. And it turns out, it’s one of California’s newest diet crazes. Who knew I was being trendy? I thought I was lazy.
Well, this January I ended up going 100% raw. The reasons for this change are myriad, but it comes down to the energy work I do in my spare time. Everything has a vibrational rate. The higher the rate, the easier energy healing goes. Living foods have the highest rate. Dead foods have low rates. Ergo, eat living/raw food. Plus (added benefit), live foods tend to be alkaline (basic) as opposed to acidic. Diseases including cancer have a hard time living in alkaline environments. Since raw food reduces body acidity, it can have enormous health benefits.
In any event, I went raw. I bought a blender and have a smoothie for breakfast, huge salad at lunch, and whatever I feel like in the evening. Oh, and nuts all day long. (I LOVE NUTS!) I can eat all I want, whenever I want. But I’m not nearly as hungry, and the weight has been coming off. About 2 lbs a week which is a steady, safe pace. Plus, my energy work is better than ever. By a huge margin! Caffeine and dairy were the hardest to give up, but I really haven’t missed them that much.
Here’s my problem. This is supposed to be a LIFE STYLE choice, not a temporary diet. I’m doing fine because I’m sitting at home, writing my newest novel and going no where. Easy to not eat pasta and cheesecake because no one is offering it to me. What do I do when I travel? What about when a friend asks me out to lunch? My good writing reward was usually a lunch out with Elizabeth Hoyt at the end of the week. That’s gone now too. Do I really want to eat salad every day? That’s no fun when there’s chocolate mousse in the offering.
So…my question to you is what have you done when dieting AND dining out? Does the diet go out the window? Or do you typically find a compromise? And what about conferences? A week away on rubber chicken? Forget the diet, that gives me the heebie jeebies just thinking about it!
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I started counting calories last summer and decided to do it part time. Kind of strange, but it worked for me. I would be on my “diet” during the week at work (I pack breakfast and lunch anyway), and just didn’t worry about it on the weekend. If we did eat out during the week, I’d hit the restaurant’s website ahead of time and plan out something yummy and calorie-controlled to order. After 4 or 5 months, I realized that I was actually watching portions and strategizing healthy meals on weekends too. Not that I’d forgo a slice of birthday cake when offered, but if I ate too much I’d know right away since my body would be upset with me. I’d rather feel good, so I avoid some of the food pitfalls I used to wallow in. I lost between 10-15 pounds, which doesn’t sound like much for some, but put me back to where I was in college, and I’m maintaining it with very little conscious effort.
I think if you get used to eating healthier and it has become a true lifestyle change, then a day (or a week) of going “off” the diet won’t truly break the changes that you’ve made. You will come home from the conferences, after all. And you might find yourself ordering salads everywhere because the rest of the restaurant offerings have stopped looking so good.
Good luck, and congrats on the weight loss & healthy eating!
Hi Jade, kudos to you for taking the weight off while going raw. You really know how to title things, huh? Yep, my mind totally went there, and this is a Blaze blog after all…LOL!!!!
I don’t really diet, so my responses won’t help you at all. I am on the one where you work out till you drop and eat all you want. I really need to make a lifestyle change in that regard, but chocolate is so hard to give up. And my comfort foods, Cheetos and ice cream, are just too good. One day, I am sure I will make a change because I hate to cook too. Living on a boarding school campus helps me a lot. Food is available whenever I need it, so no worries there. I think that they are starting to hit that trendy new diet you were talking about. They really cut back on the acidic and fatty foods. I miss fried chicken terribly. I hope that you had a wonderful day today. Talk to you later.
Peace and love,
Paula R.
Congratulations on making such a wonderful change for the healthier! As someone who no longer lives within lunching range of my critique partner, I can tell you that I miss it terribly! You deserve that friend time, so I vote you enjoy the lunch and order a salad.
Have never been much of a dieter, but have tried to incorporate more healthy foods over the last few years. I don’t think I could ever give up coffee. I’m too attached!
Well…I fell off the diet over the weekend. Big family event for my father’s 75th birthday. And yeah, I did eat salad a lot of the weekend, but there was this birthday chocolate… Anyway, I’ve re-dedicated to living raw, so we’ll see if I can hold on to it again. Thanks for your words of support everyone!
Hi Jade,
Oh don’t give up now! I am so proud of you! I am a veggie lover also. I don’t eat all raw stuff but I do eat lot’s of fruit, vegetables, nuts, salads, etc. I love apples and always take them with me wherever I go. If I go on a trip, I take my small softsided cooler, with ice pack and apples inside and a knife to peel and cut it with. My suggestion to you is to take your food with you in a cooler. That way if your without any options of eating healthy wherever you are at, you have a backup in your cooler. It sure has come in handy for me a multitude of times. I just refreeze my ice pack whenever a freezer or refrigerator is handy. Many blessings to you!
Congrats on the weight loss!
I haven’t heard a lot about the raw/living foods diet, but I’m way over here on the east coast- maybe it just hasn’t reached us yet…
Even when I’m dieting, I always need to have some sort of “treat” throughout the week, whether it’s lunch out or a piece of candy, whatever. I probably lose weight a little slower, but I know I could never keep it up if I felt I had to stay away from things a love.
My hubby did the ‘raw diet’ before it was cool, too! He loved it, and looked fantastic (if I do say so myself)! It was hard to maintain, especially while he was traveling. And conferences? Very tough. So, he just did the best he could in any given circumstance. And he never beat himself up over it. It was a great compromise! You know, he never called it a ‘diet’ either. It seems that when you call it something, then someone can call you on it. He just did it and it worked!
With all the upheaval in our lives the last year and a half, he (and I) have really gotten out of our groove food-wise. We’re working on getting back to what we want. Our biggest obstacles now (besides mental) are the difficulty of obtaining and the price of fresh foods here!
Congrats on the improvements you’ve already made! Woo hoo!