30 DAYS: 100% RAW FOOD

100% Raw Food? That is too crazy! I could never do that?

In order to support a friend who was interested in going raw (because she was feeling tired, down, depressed and frustrated with her current state of health), I committed to 30 days Raw!
Here is my story!

Day 1: What do you eat?

I started with a Pineapple Mango Green Smoothie (Half a blender full of spinach and then pineapple and mango on top) It was tasty and worked I also complemented my day with Avena’s RP3 Super Berry with home made almond milk and frozen berries. No sweat Day 1 was in the bag.

Week 1: Getting bored…

So after my first week all raw, I was getting a little bored of green smoothies, RP3 & Salads. So without the option of going back to old favorite recipes I had to venture out of my comfort zone and try some new recipes. During my last trip to Vancouver Island I was gifted very generously by a raw food chef (who is also a friend), with her onion bread, which was amazing. I needed this in my 100% Raw food journey. I made my first batch of onion bread, it needed tweaking but it was good. This allowed a whole new world of options into my 100% raw food journey. I could have sandwiches! Check out the photo of my first open faced sandwich. I was down 2.5 lbs, eliminating better, and having more energy.

Week 2: Exploring tastes and flavours

I was now on a mission to discover all of these wonderful flavours I was missing out on. I discovered that raw food has a richer deeper taste. It was my sons 4th birthday, and I was responsible for creating a cake and food prep for the party. I struggled with classic cake ideas and my need to keep it raw; although my family was not doing raw with me, I wanted to share my wonderful, healthy, delicious, natural treats with them to help them feel the benefits of my experience. I opted for a 7 layer fruit cake with a new spin. I layered Strawberries, Banana’s, blackberries(My Son’s favorite) Pineapple in multiple layers. Served in Bowls with home made whip cream on top. I used Organic Cream, Vanilla and Raw Stevia but I would suggest making Coconut Cream whipped cream instead, to stay 100% raw. I wasn’t eating the whip cream so I caved for the enjoyment of the greater amount of people.

Week 3: Loving Raw Foods

So I am 14 days into 100% Raw living foods and feeling amazing, I am down 7 lbs, without feeling deprived or missing out, quite the opposite! I am so inspired I want everyone I speak with to try this and experience it! Week 3 was the week I was worried about, I lead a group of 5-7 yr old Boy Scouts, and this coming weekend was a overnight camp out trip. How was I going to survive for 28 hours in a group setting without my own kitchen and appliances?

The best part was my friend who is also doing 100% raw food with me is also a boy scout leader and was going to be at the same camp. We got together and brain stormed; we picked one night,  prepped food, and we made 7 litres of raw green juice! The most awesome green juice recipe called the Lemon Ginger Blast (Click for Recipe) We also made Raw Tostadas, which are essentially corn based, flat tacos, a layer of sunflower seed paste (that tastes like re-fried beans), guacamole, fresh made salsa and a cashew cheese, it is not as hard as it sounds. We ate these while everyone enjoyed the cooked food from camp. Between 7L of juice, RP3 and Tostadas we were all set and easily breezed through camp.

Week 4: Celebration

At the end of week 4 we celebrated with a Raw food feast, We made Chipolte Zoodles (Zucchini noodles) with a creamy yellow spicy sauce covered with a cheese like topping. It was very fitting end to our 30 days of Raw food, to get together and enjoy a raw food recipe we were both interested in trying. What is a feast without a dessert! My friend made a cashew cheese cake for dessert it was soooo good! Raw Gourmet desserts are the highlight of many raw foodists, showing you can be a foodie and still be raw and healthy.

So Why Raw Food?

Their are several reasons for making the switch to raw foods here is the short list

  1. Raw foods taste better with richer flavour
  2. Raw foods are alive and have higher nutritional values
  3. Raw foods are more likely to have enzymes (The key to all health)
  4. Raw foods allow higher absorption levels
  5. Cooked foods damage proteins.

Overall everybody who joined me on this 30 day journey has experienced a huge increase in energy! They all speak of improved moods, balanced hormones, clearer complexions. We have all experienced weight loss without trips to the gym or any cardio sessions.

If it is so good, why stop at 30 days?

If 100% Raw foods can do all of this why would we stop after 30 days?…. We are not going to stop, we have decided to keep enjoying this lifestyle. We are not feeling deprived or missing out, the only feeling I have is sadness about how everyone else is being deprived of experiencing this!