Missing Raw Foods

I miss my blog and I miss eating mass quantities of raw foods.

Lately, I've been eating green smoothies almost every morning and raw salads for lunch. I have greatly reduced the amount of SAD foods I eat now that Ruthi has been born. That sounds awful. I should have been eating better while pregnant--for Ruthi and for me! I gained 45 lbs during pregnancy due to being primarily sedentary (especially after I stopped serving at a local restaurant at 7 months pregnant) and giving in to every single craving-- and I am ready to get back in shape.

Today, I am committing to this:

* 75-80% raw
* Exercise aerobically at 3-5 hours per week with at least two days of strength training (all major muscle groups)
* Yoga. Throughout the week when I can take the time to relax and have everything quiet.

And, as part of my desire to have holistic health and wellness:

* Bible time every day--I need to get back into the Word!
* Novel reading with the husband (right now we plan this once a week)
* Playing with my dog instead of just being annoyed with him...because he's awesome and I love him.
* Studying for my Literature in English GRE subject test so I can go to grad school!

5k-my new goal!

Well, I received a magazine in the mail a week or so ago and just happened to be flipping through it when I found 3 training schedules. One for a 5k in 6 weeks, a 10k in 12 weeks, and a half marathon in 18 weeks! So, I e-mailed Andrew and went searching the internet for a local 5k that will take place 6 weeks from now. I found one! Awesome.

This is a picture from the first and only 5k I've done. I couldn't run the whole way.

We are going to try to train up and get ready for this awesome run. It benefits our local YMCA (Andrew used to work there and so did my sister-in-law and her husband!) and this shoe drive called Soles for Souls. We're super excited. My only goal for this first 5k is to be able to run the entire thing in less than 30 minutes. Cross your fingers!


I wasn't sure what types of food raw people need to eat so I looked up some articles and came across this one which looks really helpful.

It says to eat almonds for vitamin E, oranges for vitamin C, black beans, salad greens, bell peppers, bok choy, and onions for antioxidants, and berries. There were a lot of non-raw options like chicken and eggs, but what they said for raw foods it seems like I get plenty of them! Yay! That makes me feel good!

Another article says berries, bananas, and broccoli are excellent for runners!

Basically, it looks like Andrew and I eat good running foods all day long. I'm surprised I can't run farther than I currently can! Well, don't worry folks, we will be running 3.1 miles on July 10th here in our hometown. We are looking at other nearby cities to see if maybe we could enter a few 5ks! That would be fun.

I'll let you know about our progress! Today is our first day of training (and its going to be HOT and HUMID outside! eep!)

Enjoy your day!

Monday Update-30 day challenge

HELLO!

So, I must admit, I don't really feel much like I've been on a raw/living food challenge. As of today, our raw intake has fallen to about 75%. I mean, I still think that's pretty good! Because:

1. I feel great
2. I stopped using face-wash to wash my face, and my acne hasn't been an issue
3. I crave green smoothies and healthy stuff pretty regularly
4. I don't feel deprived like I did jumping into 100% raw
5. I have felt freedom to experiment and EAT real food -- you know, like gorging myself on an entire batch of guacamole and not feeling bad about it--because I had a green smoothie for breakfast and a light salad or lettuce wraps for dinner.
6. I have officially lost 8lbs and counting (only 12 left to go!)
7. Andrew and I have almost completely stopped eating at restaurants that don't have local, organic produce and foods.
8. We are eating slower and eating smaller portions.
9. I have incredible power when I jog...power I'm not used to!
10. I don't nap nearly as often.
11. I'm not lethargic.
12. My brain works better.
13. I'm not retaining water like I used to.
14. I have more energy.

I could go on, but I will spare you. Basically, I am most excited about the weight and feeling awake and less lethargic. Its an INCREDIBLE feeling. Speaking of food, though, I am feeling pretty hungry!

At the end of May, I am going to take my measurements (I did it at the beginning of the month) and will let you know if those have budged at all. Surely they will have, since I have lost pounds. We'll see!