I interviewed people who eat mostly or all raw diets. This is to give you an insight on why and how they live this lifestyle. I will be posting them periodically for you to enjoy and will also have an interview category so you won’t miss any! These are obviously the opinions of the person being interviewed, so use your head and do what is best for you. (Am I supposed to tell you to seek the advice of your health care professional here? Well, if in doubt go ahead and ask them!)
This interview is with SmilingRawDancer on December 20th, 2007. I know her from rawfoodtalk. She was kind enough to be my first interview! Thanks!
Tell us a little bit about yourself. I’m a college student in California. Pre-raw I craved all foods, all the time. Despite the fact that to others I was a "healthy eater," I was overloading on Splenda, low-carb candy, powdered milk, fat-free egg replacers and non-nutritious items. I rarely ate vegetables except iceberg lettuce, and was well on my way to being an obese health food eater. As I became raw, I learned more and more about vegetables, preparation, how to cut various items, and realized how little real food I ate pre-raw. Now people in the grocery store talk to me ALL THE TIME, and ask me questions about the huge amounts of bananas and Thai coconuts I buy.
Are you male or female? Female
What is your age? 19
How long have you been eating RAW? Since early summer, 2006.
How did you learn about RAW? I happened across it while desperate to find some truth about health. It was God’s gift to me.
What does eating RAW to you mean? It means everything. It means eating REAL food, avoiding illness, being a good example to others, and saving animals and the environment.
Why did you choose to eat RAW and why do you continue to do so? It just made sense, and the food is SO yummy…I don’t think I could stop if I wanted to!
How did you transition from SAD to RAW? Cold turkey. I just made the decision, went out and bought some romaine, mushrooms, tomatoes, apples, bananas, ACV and walnuts…the rest is history.
Are you a vegetarian or vegan? Why? How does that effect your RAW lifestyle? I’m a Vegan, I found that Alissa’s method made the MOST sense. There are just so many nasties involved in raw dairy. Cows milk is meant for cow babies. It doesn’t affect my raw lifestyle, really, except that I don’t eat dairy or anything that comes from an animal.
What benefits have you personally noticed from eating RAW? Initially I lost about 20 pounds, but since then I’ve had the stamina to run, bike…live my life. I don’t get sick often, I don’t take antacids or Ibprofrin, I no longer have severe toe infections, and my eyesight has gotten a bit better too.
What is your favorite RAW food or recipe? I LOVE young coconuts, so anything involving those. Raw desserts are just awesome.
What advice do you have for others looking into eating RAW? Just do it. It’s not hard. Just shop at the produce department, buy frozen fruit, and begin researching…don’t view it as an ALL OR NOTHING situation. Sometimes you have to ease into something as you acquire more knowledge about it.
Is there anything else you would like our readers to know about eating RAW? It really is easy. People like to make things complicated, but picking up an apple, or making banana ice cream is simple, and inexpensive. And you DON’T have to eat organic to be raw, do what you can.
Do you have a blog or website you would like to share? I have a raw twitter, www.twitter.com/missraw
Today was good! I enjoy eating fresh foods. I truly do believe that "you are what you eat". I want to be ALIVE! That is why I am eating LIVE foods. Staying away from dead foods is key to overall health. By staying away from man made crap in a box and dead meat, I am ensuring that my body is only getting the best nutrients possible. Instead of having to work through all the dead food, my body can focus on regenerating and continuously healing. Losing weight will be another wonderful side effect! I actually like vegetables now…even radish! Never thought that would happen.
Going Vegan and Raw seemed to be too much for me, so I am going vegetarian and only eating raw dairy. So, if I eat out, I guess I’ll be eating Vegan, b/c I will not eat dairy from any dairy factory farm. Awful! I will only be eating raw milk, cheese and cream from farms I know. This will take more work, but it’s worth it to me. I will write another post on this soon. That is why this is a journey. I have to find what’s right for me.
I Am What I Eat:
-Green Smoothie with an orange, clementine, banana, spinach and carrots!
-An o. red apple
-A bowl of sprouted sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, cut up tomato, cut up avocado and topped with Bragg’s dressing
-A bowl of sprouted sesame seeds, pumpkin seeds, fenugreek sprouts,cut up tomato and Bragg’s dressing to top it off
-Cut up o. apple, slices of raw cheese (had this snack twice today).
-Raw Crackers, apple cinnamon from Kathy’s Krakers in Utah
-Dried o. mangoes
-Synergy Kombucha
I felt great all day and having the apple/cheese snacks and seed snacks helped a lot with hunger.
Did I Exercise Today?
No. OK, I decided to walk outside in the mornings and the weather decides to finally get cold. I have to figure this out! Maybe yoga from home for now? Help!
Overall and Tomorrow’s Goals:
I feel great. I like how I’m eating. I’m proud of myself for being flexible. Instead of thinking "oh, now that I want cheese, so I should throw it all out the window", I am accepting what I am feeling. I’m making good food choices and allowing myself to enjoy those good foods. I just need to keep up what I’m already doing and get some exercise!
I have been deep in thought for the last 2 days. Brandon has done amazing work to get our own website up and going. We want our site to be a wealth of quality information for people like you, who are looking for a better lifestyle. I started a blog to show what changes someone goes through when they are working towards a healthier life and on a weight loss journey. It is my hope, my dream that others can be inspired by my experience.
When I stared this process a few weeks ago, I went from making better choices again, to vegetarian, then vegan and now am thinking about raw foods. I think raw foodists are amazing. It is such a simple way to eat and live. It’s just a matter of undoing the way we have become accustomed to cooking our food. It just takes knowing how to prepare foods differently and having some helpful tools in the kitchen. This is one of the main things that has been swirling around in my brain the last few days. What I have decided is that I am not ready or wanting to go 100% raw. However, I do want to incorporate more raw foods into my diet. I have found some great raw food websites and forums. (I’ll add links on our home page.) By diving into their way of life, I am learning how to eat fruits, veggies, sprouts, etc in a new way.
I have to say that I feel empowered. If we just take that chance to try something new, against the norm or that we are afraid of, we will reap the benefits. If you are thinking, that’s not for me, I will crave or miss this food, but my family won’t eat like this with me…don’t let it stop you. You deserve to be happy, to have an abundance of energy and to feel good. Take that step and let everything else fall into place. You can make the decision, then find ways to deal with things as they come up. If you "slip up", don’t use that as an excuse to give up or binge. So what!!! Move on!!! I know that since deciding to make this change, my taste buds are jumping with joy. Now that I am staying away from processed and fake ingredients, I am enjoying the real taste of real food! I feel like I have double the energy even though I am still being woken up throughout the night by 3 small children. I can feel my body changing. My bowels are more regular ( I know…too much info, but important!) and my organs are most likely functioning better.
See, we all have to do what works for us. We all have different likes and dislikes, lifestyles, values, backgrounds and families! With food though, there are things that we should just simply avoid and other things that are great for us. That is one of the main reasons we are doing this website. To bring information, but keep an open mind to the diversity we enjoy as a human race. Things are not black and white, there is a big area of gray. It is my goal to embrace and support one another towards happiness and health, whatever that entails for each of you.
