The challenge is over. After 4 days of being on a raw food diet, we can say that the diet certainly was a challenge, but was it worth it?
I personally felt different. My body felt light and healthy. I lost all craving for sugar. (I did not have any cravings for dairy or grease, but I generally do not consume those products so I cannot attribute those factors to the raw food diet.) I woke up this morning to wanting to eat my berry breakfast, but today with a crossiant, but alas I was out of berries. That will be quickly changed so I can maintain my fruit consumption first thing in the morning.
One of our customers joined us in our challenge. Here is what Jan had to say about her experience: "
I have been using the detox recipe found in a magazine I bought at the
Healthy Grocer. 2 cucumbers, 1 green apple, kale, romaine lettuce, parsley. I
have been feeling a lot better and my sugar levels have gone down."
A few weeks ago I watched Forks over Knives. While I always thought highly of a raw food diet, my support for such was heightened after watching the documentary. After doing 4 days of the diet, I completely support a raw food diet for those who are looking for a light cleanse, have health issues or looking to loose weight (but under the care of a physician when undertaking this diet). I believe our daily diet should always incorporate an abundance of fruits and vegetables and particularly during spring and summer, should be consumed raw. In Ayurvedic medicine, you cool the body when it is too hot and warm the body when cool to keep a balance in the doshas. Raw food which would be cool or at the very least, room temperature, would make sense for the coming warmer months.
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4/10/13 1:27pm
Just a few hours left until our 4-Day Challenge is complete. Here is a list of books we recommend when trying a Raw Food diet:
Rawlicious
Ani's Raw Food Kitchen
Eat Smart Eat Raw
Raw Food for Everyone
Rawsomely Vegan!
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4/10/13 Susan's report 7:17am
How is everyone's raw food diet going on our last and 4th day?
I have reaffirmed the notion that coconuts and I do not get along - even in small amounts. So, I have opted to not eat the raw granola this morning. We will see how long I last. Maybe I will skip ahead and munch on some almonds.
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4/9/13 Susan's report 10:05pm
Day 1 was the hardest day to adjust to the diet. I finally realized how much carbs and sugar I eat throughout the day that keeps me full, but without the nutrition of fruits and veggies. Day 2 and 3 were the easiest for me, but I think being in bed sick helped. Being sick and still keeping with the challenge, by meals were easy and meager. Breakfast was still a fruit bowl with raw granola followed by a banana. Lunch and dinner were salads (baby greens, cucumber, sprouts, snow peas with a homemade vinagrette of cold-pressed olive oil, Bragg's raw apple cider vinegar, manuka honey and sea salt) with Dr. Flaxer's crackers followed by celery and nut butter about an hour later. Snacks throughout the day were dried mango, grapes, and almonds. By the end of Day 2, any sense of being hungry was gone. By end of today (Day 3), despite congestion, my overall feeling of health was restored. I had no craving for sugar or chocolate and vowed that sugary and chocolate snacks would be restricted to once a day when the challenge was done. In all honesty, I don't know if I will stick to that promise because now I know your body craves what you put in it. If you are eating loads of sugar, your body will crave more sugar. If you are eating healthy foods, you are going to crave healthy foods.
On my journey, I found this great website for Raw Food recipes:
http://www.therawtarian.com/
http://www.rawguru.com/raw-food-recipes/
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4/7/13 Susan's report 12:04pm
Last night I realized I could not have my beloved hot tea for 4 days. I think I drank 12+ cups of hot green tea last night. I never thought I would miss tea more than chocolate.
I woke up this morning to little produce in my fridge. I should have gone out the day before, but it didn't occur to me how I might wake up Sunday morning with little I was able to consume. So in a need to gather my breakfast, I grabbed a few carrot sticks from the kitchen and went shopping.
My breakfast Sunday morning:
Handful of Strawberries halved
Handful of Blackberries
Handful of Blueberries
1/4 Cup Raw Granola (buckweat groats, sunflower seeds, dates, sesame seeds, hemp seeds, cacao, coconut cashews, etc.)
1/4 Teaspoon Raw Manuka Honey
In the past 24 hours of considering this diet, here is my plan of action:
Juice first thing in the morning
Eat every 2 hours
Eat a bowl of fruit with raw granola and honey (for medicinal purposes) daily
Lunch will be an easy - salad
Dehydrated foods can be incorporated in small amounts
Snacks will consist of dried fruits and raw nut butter and celery or apples
Dinner will be the most complex meal of the day
It will be interesting to try more raw foods that are pre-made as I experiment over the next few days. So far it seems like coconut is a staple in everything (and of which I seem to have a mild allergy to).
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A few brave staff members have decided to take on a Raw Food diet for 4 Days. Starting on Sunday, they will bravely go where no staff member has gone before.
We invite you to follow our progress and join us. Click here to join the 4-Day Healthy Grocer Raw Food Challenge. Follow our progress daily and visit our Facebook page and Twitter page to read more from others joining the challenge.
Let's meet our challenger:
Susan Kiskis
Susan is the Marketing Coordinator with a fascination for chocolate (O.K.-anything with sugar). Susan will be giving up her Chocolove Toffee and Almond bars and focusing on raw food creations without using a dehydrator. Susan has been a vegetarian for 20 years and is almost dairy free.
