SparklePlentyinLife

Long Time....

2008-03-24T13:46:00.002-04:00

Well it has been awhile since I have wrote anything in this blog. I have been busy with school, work, escorting Steven back and forth to Tae Kwon Do...which I am thinking of taking this summer to earn my black belt. That ought to be a sight.I went to a raw potluck saturday night. It was very invigorating. It was exactly what I needed. My friend Dara did a demo of several recipes which was delicious. I will try better to keep up with my blog. Things will slow down this summer as I will not take any classes. I'm taking a much deserved break.

In health-

M-

Before and After Pics of 2008 feast

2008-01-21T20:32:00.001-05:00

This picture was taken a week

before Christmas 2007

This picture (in the red shirt) was taken tonight 01-21-2008

Ending after 21 days

2008-01-21T20:21:00.000-05:00

After speaking with my father today (who was also feasting for 21 days) I think I'm going to go ahead and stop after 21 days which will be tomorrow. I do feel this feast had been beneficial for me but I know I could accomplish more if I go longer. As I said in the previous post I know I have a lot more emotional and physical detox to yet experience.
I realized after speaking to my father and listening to his vast wisdom that I am scared to return to eating solids because I am afraid I will return to my emotional eating. It is so much easier for me to fast. Of course I do have hunger pains, detox symptoms, headaches, bad breath that accompanies a feast/fast but I did not have to deal with the emotions of will I be able to stay raw today.
I just can't understand why I can't seem to stay raw but I can go days without solid foods. So I am facing this challenge yet again head on.
The plan is to break my feast tomorrow night and I will face this issue head on and try my best to eat at least 80% raw. I can't keep running from the issue. I need to face it and win this cook and junk food battle.

M-

Day 19 of Juice Feast

2008-01-20T18:28:00.000-05:00

Yesterday I had a weakness and decided I was only going to do 21 days. I even went to the store this morning an purchased organic dates to break my feast.I still have not put a number of days I wanted to continue this juice feasting journey but I have decided today as I write this to continue past 21 days.

I don't think I am mentally and physically ready to come off of the feast. I don't feel that I even have begun to detox emotional and physically. I really need to make sure that I am able and ready to stick to at least an 80% raw lifestyle when I finish this feast.

So with my head held high I march onwards and continue this journey.

M-

Day 13 of Juice Feast

2008-01-14T10:01:00.001-05:00

Well it is day 13 of my feast and I feel really good. No headaches or hunger pains. Today I am drinking:
5000 Volt
OJ
Red Pepper
Hot Pepper
Garlic
Celery
I am also drinking Kale, Celery, Turnip Greens, Apple and Carrot juice. This past Saturday I was at a raw pot luck we had at a local health food store. We had a good turn out of 16 people. My friend Dara and I have been trying to get more people to the pot lucks in our area. The attendance has been very low. I made Okraw Slaw which was a hit and a surprise hit with my son Steven. I am glad I found another recipe that he likes.
I had no deisre to eat even though every thing looked really delicious. It felt really good to be around like minded people. When I explained why I was not eating no one batted an eye lash. Everyone understood what I was doing.
While at the potluck I brought some MSM powder. I am excited about this supplement and I can't wait to see the benefits.
I hope all is well with everyone.

In health,
Michele

Day 6 of '08 feast

2008-01-07T08:36:00.000-05:00

Well it is day six of my feast. I still have not decided on an X amount of days. I feel pretty good except a slight headache this morning. Yesterday I felt really bad and slept most of the day. I didn't drink juice until later that evening and that is I'm sure the reason I felt so tired.
My juices have been celery, carrots, kale, lemon, romaine lettuce, and green apples.
My son Steven helped me last night make my juices. He was so excited but he was mostly in my way and eating all my apples. I'm glad he likes to help me juice as this will be a good way to get him to drink more green juices.
I start school tomorrow so I will be feasting again during a semester.
I hope everyone is having a great New Year!!

In Health,

Michele

Happy New Year!!

2007-12-30T09:52:00.000-05:00

It is the new year...well in two days it will be. I always start the new year off with a fast/feast. This time around I will not be putting a number of days on this fast/feast. We will just see what the body tells me and I don't want to be disappointed if I don't make it to X amount of days.
I received a notice on my door that my apartment complex has changed fitness gyms. This is a bummer as the old gym was less than a mile from the apartment and five minutes away from work. I was able to attend the gym during my lunch break. This new gym is to far. So I will be going to my sisters fitness center at her apartment complex. My sister and I will be training for a 5k run......this ought to be loads of fun.
School will be starting up again eight or so days. I must say it was nice to have the break.
I am off to make my list of nice fruits and veggies to grab at the store to start my juicing.

In Health
Michele

OkRAW slaw

2007-12-05T11:24:00.000-05:00

I'm sitting here munching on a very good simple recipe by Storm from the Garden diet.com
it is very good and I am enjoying it very much.
Okra, corn, avacodo and honey.
I had a good Thanksgiving. To be honest I was not 100% raw but it could have been alot worse. I'm not beating myself up for it because if I do I will feel guilty and spiral out of control.
I've notice the past few weeks I have not been drinking water like I should. So I am on a mission to reprogram myself to drink at least a gallon a day. I'm wearing a path from my office to the bathroom down the hall in the carpet.

I hope all is well with everyone.

Michele

Treadmill

2007-11-14T06:39:00.000-05:00

Well I did it!! I finally got my butt on a treadmill. I finally started (for the 500th time) a Body For Life Challenge. I will be doing this challenge raw vegan of course. I found out my gym is very empty around 2 and 3 in the afternoon. So I took lunch around that time. I have this issue with crowded gyms. I feel everyone is looking at me. I know this is not the case. People could care less but I still have the paranoia.
This morning I did upper body work out at home with free weights. I almost cried when I saw the shoulder exercises. I'm not very fond of them. After class tonight I will finish the work out for triceps and biceps.

Joy Joy

Woozah!!!!

2007-11-06T06:32:00.001-05:00

Okay I totally forgot that raw cacao nibs have caffeine and is a natural stimulant. So I blend quite a few to make a powder for my green smoothie.
Head to work and swig down my first jar....holy moly!!! I was ready to pull my hair out. I could not sit still. Needless to say I got very little sleep last night.
I am so making another batch this morning!! LOL

I made a decision to hide my weight scale. That is one object that can send me into a spiral of depression for the whole day. I have this bad habit of hopping on it first thing in the morning. I am a little upset by the numbers this morning but I will try not to let it affect my day. I'm going to hide it in the back of my closet.

My mom is going to be my exercise partner. I am excited about that. Exercise will help me tremendously in this journey. Even though I dread the treadmill and elliptical once I get on there and have a good workout I feel a whole lot better.
So we will see how it goes.

M-

Mikey Likes it! He Likes it!

2007-10-28T14:45:00.000-04:00

Went shopping and loaded up on leafy greens for green smoothies. I feel I need more green smoothies in my life :)
I made one with kale, spinach and banana. I leave the kitchen for two seconds I come back to find this:

Kodak moment! Could not let that one get away. Drinking it right out of the vitamix! You can't get any better than that. :)
I am glad he likes it. I have been trying to get Steven to eat more greens. He has not yet found a salad dressing that he likes. So this is perfect.

Got Green Smoothie?

Yesterday I had:

1 Liter of Green Smoothie
1 Lara Bar
Way to much Creamy Portabello Bisque (Ani Phyo)

I can swim in that soup I love it so much.

I am off to study Pre-Algebra...joy..joy!!

Michele

Mushroom Soup and Fish Fry

2007-10-23T06:12:00.000-04:00

Last Friday my place of employment had their annual fish fry. Thousands of people showed up for a free fish plate. I stood all day serving fish and hush puppies to people. While my other co-workers serve cole slaw, potato salad and tarter sauce. We had 2 stations going and it was non stop. I will be honest the fish did smell good but I had no desire for any. I guess I'm not at that stage yet where cooked food smell does not appeal to me.
During my break I had Ani Phyo's mushroom soup....that recipe is awesome!! I love it. I think I'm going to make it at the next raw pot luck we have. my son who loves Campbell's mushroom soup did not like it. He does like the marinated mushrooms though just not the Brazil nut soup.
I usually eat pretty small during the day with juice, fruit and a few veggies and then have a salad when I get home. I think I am going to switch that up. My weight has went up just a little. I think I need to eat my salad during the day and eat small in the evenings before I go to bed whether it be a green smoothie or some fruit.
We will see how that goes.

Michele

Steven's Raw Lunch

2007-10-17T07:10:00.001-04:00

My son Steven

2007-10-15T13:15:00.000-04:00

I wanted to post this video of my son making his fave raw snack of Almond Butter, Agave and Bananas. It so cute. He had a little trouble pronouncing a few words...hey who could sat "transitioning" at 9 years old :)

Juice Day

2007-10-15T06:48:00.000-04:00

Today is juice day! I will be having carrot juice. I will be jucing at least twice a week. Today is going to be a good day. I purchased Angela Stokes e-books how to go raw for weight loss and the physical changes when raw. I am excited to read them. I wanted to read her story. As I have said before she is a very sweet woman.
I missed the Raw Spirit Fest this year....so sad. Schall Adams was there as a demo coach. I am going to make plans to go next year.

In Health,

Michele

Done

2007-10-08T17:48:00.000-04:00

I have decided to quit my juice feast after 40+ days. I am just exhausted. I was not drinking enough juice. It was hard to get it all down. So the lack of juice I was really tired.
I am proud that I have lasted as long as I did. Now it's back to eating at least 80% raw and getting on the treadmill.

Michele

Dreams

2007-09-20T19:45:00.000-04:00

It's funny the dreams I've been having lately. The past few nights I've dream that I ate cooked and junk food and ruined my fast. I always wake up freakin out until I realize that I did not ruin my fast. I went to the library and checked out a few raw books. I need to refresh my knowledge My son Steven has been eating an 80% raw lunch. We just need to work on breakfast, snacks and dinner.
I did purchase to jars of raw almond butter. It was on sale for 12.79. You can't beat that with a stick for raw almond butter. He likes the AB with agave and bananas. He will have that as part of his lunch.
I just realized it has been 29 days...wow. I'm going strong. 63 more days to go.

Michele
Start Weight-231.4
Current Weight- 208.4
Goal Weight- 140.0

Time flies when your having fun.

2007-09-09T10:44:00.000-04:00

It is day 18. Time is flying by it seems like. It is already day 18. I was telling my mom yesterday this fast/feast seems more pleasant than my last fast. I've figured out why it's the green juices. My last fasts I have always drunk store brought juices. They did not fill me up. I seem to always be hungry. It is so much better to juice your own juices while fasting.
I went to bed at 1:30 last night I was watching a DVD of the TV series "24". I woke up at 6am. Just wide awake......okay I know thats suppose to happen with fasting. You need less and less sleep, you have more energy, etc. I laid there until I went back to sleep. Like hell I was getting up at 6am.
You know it's amazing what God will do for you. He does give you your hearts desire. He is a wonderful and awesome God. I've been eyeing this new cell phone for me and my mom. Everywhere I looked it was $250.00 dollars or more. I only budgeted about 29 dollars for it because I thought if I renew my contract with Sprint I could get it for that price. Well no it was for new customers only. I looked around for days for this phone at a cheaper price. I finally went to Best Buy. My mother and I walked out of Best Buy with two new Razer phones free!! I was so happy.
I'm going to work on my english paper and make more juice.
Starting Weight 231.4 (08/23/07)
Current Weight 213.0 (09/09/07)

Michele

12th day

2007-09-03T10:19:00.000-04:00

I did have broth yesterday. I think that is the reason for my pound weight gain. Technically broth is not allowed on juice feasting but I wanted some. I am feeling okay. I had to stay up late last night to study. I will be doing that this evening as well. I think I am going to do a salt water flush today.
M

8 Day

2007-08-30T06:16:00.000-04:00

It's my 8th day on my juice feast. Just 84 more days to go. So far so good. I am having a hard time getting in a gallon of juice a day. I seem to only get a bout a liter and a liter and a half on good days. I just can't drink all that juice right now. Maybe later in this journey I will be able to drink a gallon. I took my first Cascara Sagrada herb caps (herbal stimulant) last night while I had a break in pre-algebra and as of this morning it still has not work. I hope it doesn't decide to work while I am at work.
. I do have a lot on my plate with my son's new school which is a 30 minute drive, my schooling in the evenings. I seem to be holding up pretty well.
Starting Weight- 231.4
Current Weight- 220.0

In Health,
M

89 more to go!!!!

2007-08-25T08:45:00.000-04:00

Well I did it!!!
I started a 92 day juice/feast fast.
Why you may ask.
I need to do this. I was spiraling out of control with my eating and drinking habits again. I've come such a long way since January 2005 with finding raw, becoming a raw teacher, losing weight, not drinking alcohol to spiral back down that black hole again.
I needed this journey. I knew I needed to do this. I fought it for weeks. I joined Weight Watchers hoping that would help of course it did not. I fought and fought. I rationalize I would just eat mostly raw and count points with Weight Watchers that was a disaster.
I woke up one morning and turned on the radio to hear a pastor talk about fasting. He said there five reasons you should go on a fast. I had four reasons.

1- Super Calamity
Which thank God this has not happen to me.
2- Major Decision, God's Will
My desire when my lease is up in this apartment in 7 months is to purchase a home. I need to find my purpose according to God's will. I would like to work for my self and go to school during the day so I can be with my son. I need to find that skill and passion to help me achieve work at home success.
3- Spiritual warfare, breakthrough
I want to have a closer relationship with God.
4-Increase Intercessory effectiveness
I want to be able to pray on behalf of my family and friends.
5-Personal repentance, deliverance.
I need deliverance from food addiction and the desire for alcohol.

Those are are the reasons. I had a birthday 6 days ago. I am so grateful to see another year. I think of all the people who were not bless to see their next birthday and I decided I will not see another year of this misery. I owe it to God who has blessed me thus far and is waiting patiently for me to see the light, I owe it to myself, my son who deserves a bless and happy mother.

I read Angela Stokes Juice feasting book. You can check out her website at http://www.rawreform.com/
She is such a sweet woman. She had returned my emails and told me to go forth with this journey. She told me I can do this and I will be fine in school.

I am off to dry skin brush, drink my wonderful green juice of kale, cucumber, spinach,parsley, celery and apple.

In health.

Michele

School

2007-08-21T22:16:00.000-04:00

I started school yesterday. I am taking night classes at a local community college. Pre-algebra...sheesh!
For the past week I have been eating all raw. I made a wonderful tomatoe soup that a friend of mine gave me the recipe. I've been eating pretty much just fruits, salads and tomatoe soup.
My weight.....I don't want to talk about it. I feel in my spirit I am being led to a place that will have a major impact on my yo yo dieting anmd many other things. I have not decided if I want to start this journey as I just started school and my son Steven will be attending a new school this year. I have to really pray on it and see if I am willing to start this journey inspite of all the activites I have going on now in my life.
Once I start this journey I will post what it is. I want to make sure I am mentally able to do this.
Time to go study pre-algebra.

M

Weight Watchers

2007-07-16T21:00:00.000-04:00

I went to Payless this past Saturday and met this girl who lost 85 pounds in a year doing Weight Watchers. Well.....I went and joined yesterday. I had to do something. I am just not sticking to anything. I hope and pray I can stick to this. I think the meetings will help. I am going to set my goal weight to be 160 pounds and once I reach that weight I will start training hard for my first competiton.
I have 29 points I have to eat everyday. So far I ate 23 points. It is 9pm. I have to find 6 more points to eat. Maybe I will have another Smart One meal.
I am going to change the name of my blog since I am not 100% raw at the moment. I have to figure out a name.
My weight has went up again. I declare it comes back on so fast!! I want to delete this blog but I think I need to keep it as a reminder of the struggle I am having with this weight loss. When I do achieve my desire weight I think the blog will be good to keep to see how far I have come.
Maybe someone else will read it that is going through the same thing and see that there is a light at the end of the tunnel. I just hope I see my light soon.

M

Doing okay

2007-06-28T06:44:00.000-04:00

I have been eating okay this week. I only exercised once. I am planning on getting a elliptical(sp?) machine so I can do cardio first thing in the morning.
I received a email from Schall (http://www.thehealingmeal.com/) it made me feel better. She said you do not need to be 100% raw to achieve the benefits. I need to hear that right now as I am at the moment struggling staying raw. I am not going to beat myself over it. I am so glad that I found the raw lifestyle.
I have been eating 5-6 small meals a day. Lately it's been:
M1- 1/2 cup Oatmeal, egg whites or protein shake.
M2- 1 apple with 1/2 cup of low fat cottage cheese
M3- Chicken breast, 1 cup of veggies and 1/2 cup of brown rice
M4- Protein shake and apple
M5- Salad
M6- Protein shake

I know I can achieve the results I want with an all raw diet but it will take me longer. I am to inpatient. I believe one day I will return to at least 75-80% raw. Right now I want to lose weight, leanout and build my body.
Since I will be exercising 6 days a week. I have decided to try some supplements. My friend Brenda is giving me samples of some products she distributes. Preburn a pre-work out powder and Afterburn. When I get these I will let you know how they do. I am on a mission. I need to achieve this body by August 2008.

M

Body For Life

2007-06-03T18:19:00.000-04:00

I am starting my first Body for Life challenge tomorrow. I will do two 12 week challenges. Since my son last day of school is this friday I am going to start going to the gym in the evenings. That way I will not have to worry about him doing homework and being in bed at a decent hour. The gym childcare is open until 8pm. So I will most likely go from 7-8 after Steven's Tae Kwon Do classes.

I will be taking my before photos tonight or tommorrow night. I will take photos every two weeks to document my success. As I might have mentioned before I did give my mom my scale. I am going to go by inches and how my clothes feel. I do have an idea of how much I weight. After my first challenge I will weigh myself. I do know I have gained back weight after my Master Cleasne. I just refuse to get back on the scale. If I do it will put me into a deep depression.

I am excited to see how my body will transform.

Michele

MC over

2007-05-21T06:19:00.000-04:00

I lasted 31 days on the MC. My weight went down to 201. I gave my mother my scale after the cleanse so I will not weigh myself.
Now I am going to start exercising. I am going to use the BFL exercise for now and tweak it as I need to. I really want to fo figure competitions. I have had that desire for years now. I never got off my lazy butt to exercise. Well I am going to now. I will be 33 in August. By next August at 34 I want to be able to compete. Can it get done in 15 months? Can I go from 200 pounds to a compete figure? We shall see.

Michele

Day 27

2007-05-05T13:38:00.000-04:00

Just 13 more days to go and I am done with the MC. I am really happy I did this. I did the SWF this morning. It seems I still have a lot of cleansing to do. I need to make sure I do the flushes and teas every day. That will be my goal these next thirteen days.

M

Day 21

2007-04-29T15:08:00.000-04:00

It has been really hard now to stay true to the MC. I am on day 21...but the last few days to be honest I have snuck food in my mouth chewed it up to taste it and then spit it out. I don't know what is wrong with me. Why would I sabotoge myself when I am doing so good. I need to drink more lemonade and water. I have to continue to rid myself of the junk food, cook food addictions. I am drinking my senna tea now. I do need to pray for strength to continue. I feel on the verge of tears. It does seem so hard.

Michele

Juice Feast

2007-04-22T08:01:00.000-04:00

I was really tired yesterday. I went to bed at 5:30 in the evening. I woke up today at 6:15am. I was really tired. I feel really good today. I feel very alert. After church today I will work on getting my apartment together., do some yoga, clean my car out.
After my 40 day MC I will embark on a 20 day juice feast. My last juice fast I mostly drunk bottles juices from the grocery store. This time I am going to pull out the Jack Lalane and start jucing all my veggies. I am thinking of purchasing Angela's Stokes e-book on juice feasting. I am also going to purchase Green for Life.
I am very excited about this. I feel I am coming to terms with my body. I will know longer abuse it like I have in the past. This is going to be a great summer. I am going to transition my son Steven to at least 50% raw. I am going to find a good green drink that he will enjoy so he can have one everyday. Life is great!

Michele

Funny how the mind works.

2007-04-20T13:56:00.000-04:00

When I was raw I was craving cooked food. It seem such a struggle the last month or so to stay raw. I always end up back on cooked food, drinking alcohol and junk food. Now that I am doing the master cleanse my mind keeps wondering to all the delicious raw foods not cooked foods but raw. I am craving my tahini salad dressing with a huge salad.
After this cleanse I feel I will enjoy raw more and stick to it like I should. I think I got it this time around. I really can't afford mentally and physicially not to get it.
This morning like an idoit I stepped on the scale. Major disappointment. I gain back almost 2 pounds..WTF!! I think I have a clue why. I need to do my SWF and senna more often. I need to drink more lemonade and more water and I need to become active. I haven't done the yoga dvd since the first time. I will try this weekend. I really need to go walking it's suppose to be really nice this weekend.

Michele

Day 10 of Master Cleanse

2007-04-18T06:53:00.001-04:00

All is well here. I have not been taking my senna tea or my SWF. I really need to work on that. I am glad I have made it to 10 days. Last night I had real bad hunger pains almost most to the point of nausea. I had to drink some water I had by the bed. I was to lazy to get up to go to the fridge and drink lemonade.I did a yoga tape for the first time yesterday. I lasted about 7 minutes. It is really hard. I'm not giving up though. I will do it agian today.
M

Day 7

2007-04-15T10:58:00.000-04:00

All is well. I am heating up some spring water for my SWF. I do need to go out today and buy some more gallons of spring water. I took senna tea yesterday and it worked in less than 2 hours. That surprised me. It usually takes about 8 hours to work. I am down to 219.4lbs. I really need to force myself to drink more of the lemonade because I am very tired.
I hate the way my breath smells. It is the detox. I can't wait until that is over. Well I'm about to go drink my SWF. Uck!

M

Day 5

2007-04-13T12:19:00.000-04:00

Just 35 more days to go woohoo!!
I made another gallon of my lemonade. The gallon I made monday lasted until Thursday. I put less syrup this time and a little more cayenne pepper...boy what a kick that pepper has. I have not been able to do the SWF except once. I will do one tomorrow morning. I still haven't done yoga. I am going to go throught some boxes I have in my living room from moving and make room to do my yoga. I am excited about that. I have notice that I do not drink as much lemonade. I mostly drink it at work and when I get home I have a habit of not drinking anything. I really need to work on that. Now that the weekend is coming up I am sure I will be drinking more.
I will work on a video when I get my camera back. I am lending it to a friend who is going to the Bahamas. I want her to take pics of the Anna Nicole sites...I know..I know...but I really want to see it. :)

In health,
M

Day 3 of Master Cleanse

2007-04-11T12:16:00.000-04:00

I am a little irritable today. It seems like everyone and everything is getting on my nerves. It does not help that it’s raining today. I had intense hunger pains earlier to the point of actually hearing my stomach growl. It’s my fault for not drinking anything when I got home last night. I had no liquids at all when I got home around 7:30pm. I just did not feel like drinking anything. I was to lazy to make my tea. I need to really get my gallon of water in everyday. I stayed up way to late last night watching “The Workout” on the Bravo channel. I just did not feel sleepy. I should have been unpacking my apartment.
I am down 2 pounds.
I need to go to bed early tonight so I can get up to do my salt water flush and yoga. That will be my goal tonight.

M

Day 2 of Master Cleanse

2007-04-10T07:01:00.000-04:00

I am on day 2 of my 40 day Master Cleanse. I am a little tired but that is to be expected.
This fast I must say it is different than my juice fast I have done in the past. I am looking forward to all the great things I have read about the Master Cleanse. Google Master Cleanse to learn more. I have to get to work will post later.

Michele

One lazy chick!!

2007-02-20T15:23:00.000-05:00

Boy I am one lazy chick! It has been forever since I posted. I have got to do better.
My 40 day fast only lasted about 21 days. I decided to fast at least 7 days every quarter.
I have been very inspired reading Angela Stokes blog about her 90 day juice feast. I would love to do something like that. Of course with a 9-5 and the hustle with city life it's just not gonna happen. Maybe when Steven and I are able to visit exotic places and I can relax my body, mind and spirit I will attempt one...well at least a 40 day.
I have been really depressed lately with where I stay. I will be moving out next month. My son and I are really looking forward to the change. I am going to get rid of a ton of stuff. I am such a hoarder. So we will be starting over fresh next month.
I am more adament now in trying to get my son to at least 80% raw. With this move no junk food will enter our new apartment.
With this new apartment I get a free gym membership of a gym up the street. I am excited about that. I am going to buckle down with my fitness.
When I move into my new apartment I will be posting more and will be posting videos of me and my son's journey.

Michele

Day 7

2007-01-01T13:36:00.000-05:00

All is well here. I am down 12 pounds. I feel pretty good. I am helping my son work on his science project about popcorn. We have to count how many kernels different brands of popcorn leave un popped. It is tough to count the popcorn and not want to lick my fingers. I am getting through it.
I am about to go and drink some senna tea. Hope everyone is having a great new year!

M

Day 3

2006-12-28T20:47:00.000-05:00

So far so good. I just finish drinking some senna tea. I just hope it works before I go to work in the morning. I watched about half or more of Jinjee and Storms documentary video. It is really good. You can pick up a copy at http://www.TheGardenDiet.com
Tonight was funny. Like a bad mother I brought pizza home for my son and my mom. I had in my purse 2 tangerine. My son devoured the tangerine. He was begging for more. He did not even want the pizza. When I get my act together I know it will be easy to transition Steven in to a raw vegan lifestyle.

Michele

Day 2 of fast.

2006-12-27T20:58:00.000-05:00

Today was pretty good. I did have the usual headaches. I just had juice and tea. Harris Teeter had collards buy one get one free. I guess the whole new years thing where you eat greens on new years. I will be having a green drink.

M

40 Day fast!!

2006-12-26T07:02:00.000-05:00

Well it is time to get in gear. I am starting off the new year with a 40 day fast. I am very excited. I have crept up to the horrid 200's again. This will be the last time. I am also going to try harder to transition my son to a mostly raw diet. I am very excited about this new year coming up. I will also try to post a video diary of my fast and of Steven's raw transition.
I am also going to write more on my blog and stop being lazy, finally get the ACE personal trainer home study, try yoga, move out of this horrible apartment, have a closer relationship with God....boy I'm on a roll.
Today is day 1 of my 40 day. I will keep you posted.
God Bless.
Michele

Day 2

2006-10-17T21:21:00.000-04:00

Today was a good day. I did drink 3 cups of coffee with a energy drink called Mochatonix and it had me a little jittery. I need to give up the coffee. I had a salad for lunch and apple for snack. When I got home this evening I had a big salad. I really do enjoy salads. I am going to try to stay off the scale and only get on it once a week. This morning I did get on it and I was 203lbs. I lost a pound from yesterday.

Back on track

2006-10-17T06:50:00.000-04:00

Okay I am back on track. Today is day 2. I fasted until about 8pm last night and then I had a salad. My tahini dressing came out to vinegary. That's what I get for not measuring. I have decided to just weigh myself just once a week. We will see how that goes. I know how I am I will mist likely be on the scale everyday. I have gain so much back. At the height of my last fast I was down to 187lbs. When I weighed myself yesterday I was 204lbs AARRGGGG!!! I am so sick of this cycle.
I really wanted to weigh around 160 Christmas time....well really 135 to 140. Since I screwed up so much. I doubt that will happen. I am not going to fast right now for any long period of time. Maybe next year. I am going to fast once a week.

Just pitful!!

2006-09-05T19:08:00.000-04:00

I am so pitful. I don't even know where to began. I am not even going near the scale for a few weeks. I tried to eat all fruit today. I came home and ate a ton of Lance crackers. God only knows what is wrong with me. I will try again tommorow and eat fruit and drink my carrot juice and drink tea.
We will see. I know as soon as my cycle is over I will get my butt on the treadmill....how many times have I said that over the past months.
Please pray for me :)
Michele

Plateau

2006-07-29T09:27:00.000-04:00

Well I am at a plateau now with my weight. I am around 192-194. I want to get down to 185 before my birthday August 19th.I have to exercise. I am going to start taking supplements to get my ass up and get on the treadmill. I know raw foods suppose to give me great energy and I should be able to exercise just eating raw....well I am lazy as hell. I need all the help I can get. I don't feel it is cheating on my raw lifestyle to much. I still will eat 100% raw.
I am going to start out with this product. It's called Mochatonix. I love it. I use to take it a few years ago.

It will give you energy, mental alertness and heightens your endurance levels. I will start Monday or Tuesday whenever the product comes in. I will let you guys know how I do.

2006-07-01T09:55:00.000-04:00

Well it has been awhile. I completed my fast. I did 18 days. I went to a family reunion last week and totally fell off the wagon with raw foods. I ate cooked and junk food. I did not eat meat though. I am back on track now. I was really discouraged about falling off wagon and I was talking to my father what he said made sense to me. I can’t let it be a burden to me. If I fall off the wagon I can’t beat my self up for it just get back on. That is what I did I am back on and I am fine. It was really hard on the road to eat raw. All the places we stopped were convenience store and fast food restaurants. At the reunion I have not seen this family in over 11 years I did not want to isolate myself from them. I ate cooked greens and some pasta…..oh yeau and a few sweets. I feel at peace with myself. I know I have accomplished a lot with my fasting and raw food lifestyle and I will accomplish much more

Before and after

2006-06-10T23:00:00.000-04:00

Here is a couple of before and after pics. I have lost 61 pounds so far. I still have another 50 to go. My goal is not that far off!!
This color pic was taken April 18th, 2006. The black and white was taken today June 10th, 2006. Just under 2 months raw! What a difference!!

Finally under 200!!!!!!

2006-06-09T07:00:00.000-04:00

My fast is going really well. I have been fasting for 12 days. I really don’t know how long I will go for. I know it will at least be 20 days. I did have a rough time the other day with detox. I was really nauseas and I had to throw up (Excuse the gory details) nothing but mucus came out ugh. I feel really good though. I still am not drinking enough water. I am working on that.

This morning I weighed 194.8lbs. I am so happy to be under 200lbs. I have been over 200lbs since my son was born and he turned 8 last Monday. I am still slacking on the exercise. I really want to conserve my energy. When I am back to raw foods I will hit the treadmill and weights. Off to work I go. Have a good day!

Fast

2006-05-31T05:54:00.000-04:00

Well I have decided to do another juice fast. Spirtually I need another fast. I think I am going for 25. If not 25 at least 20 days. Today is day 3. One thing I have to remember is drink water, water, water. My last fast I had a hard time drinking lots of water. During a fast you can lose your appetite as well as thirst. Keep me in your prayers as I embark on this journey.
M

Eating out

2006-05-28T17:41:00.000-04:00

Well let me tell you about my lunch at a Mexican restaurant. I did not want to go in the first place but my co-worker begged me and said she would pay. So I was thinking I could get a salad. I had my own tahini dressing in my purse.
I asked the waiter if I could just have lettuce with celery, carrots, bell peppers and jalapeños. I see on the menu the different veggies they put in the burrito. So I assumed I could get it on some lettuce. The waiter tells me they could not do this. I hand him back the menu and tell him thank you and headed to the front to talk to the manager. I told him what I wanted and that I do not want anything cooked. I want the veggies raw. He nodded his head on agreement and said you want the veggies fresh? I said yes.
I get back to my seat and a few minutes later they hand me a plate with lettuce, 2 slice tomatoes, sautéed onions and sautéed bell peppers. What the hell?! Who eats a salad with cooked onions and bell peppers. I just did not feel like arguing. I just ate the 2 tomatoes. I was ticked!!! Next time I will make sure they get it right even if it means sending the order back a couple of time.

Workouts

2006-05-23T20:25:00.000-04:00

Yesterday during my lunch hour I went to our fitness center and did 20 minutes on the treadmill. I really need an IPOD. Holding my CD player was just not working for me. This morning I could not get my ass out of bed to walk on the treadmill but I did do my legs during my lunch hour. American Council of Exercise is coming to Winston Salem in November. I just knew I would be able to take the test to become certified. I have not even purchased the study kit yet. So I saw that they are coming to Charlotte in Feb. 2007. I think I can do it by then.
I made a pizza this weekend it did not turn out great. I guess practice make perfect. I know exactly what I did. I put Olive oil on the dehydrator sheet. The bottom of the pizza was smushy. I guess that's an old habit from cooking.
Today I had about 3 bananas, a kiwi and salad (x2 lunch and dinner). I also popped a few fudge balls. I LOVE those things.
Well I need to get to bed so I can get up at 5am to climb on the treadmill.

M

Vitamix! Vitamix! Vitamix!

2006-05-19T20:21:00.000-04:00

I finally received my vitamix. I LOVE it. I don't know how I ever lived without one. I made my usual dressing with it and I made Steven a smoothie. The smoothie consisted of a banana, strawberries, blackberries, orange and I snuck in a few spinach leaves. He liked it!! Mikey liked it!! :)
Tomorrow I am making a pizza for my mom. We will eat it Sunday after the crust dehydrates. I talked to a personal trainer today because my ultimate goal is to compete and become a personal trainer myself. I want a body like this.

These beautiful ladies are Cathy Savage girls. I hope to one day attend her camp. The personal trainer was as sweet as a raw pie but she proceed to tell me that I can't eat raw forever and I will have to have meat in order to exercise heavy. She said the best source of protein is meat....sigh..here we go again. I know I can get a body like the Savage girls eating raw. What do you guys think?

M

24 Days!!!!

2006-05-09T19:42:00.000-04:00

Well it has been 24 days since I have been 100% raw.
I have been away from my computer I stayed with my mother while my sister was on vacation for her birthday. Hoochie! Anywho I made angel hair pasta for my mom with the saladacco that I ordered. I also made raw ravaoli(sp) it was really good. I also made fudge balls. My son did not like any of the stuff I made. I don't know what I am going to do with him.
I ordered my vitamix off ebay. Very excited about receiving that.
I weighed my self yesterday and I am at 207.0. I am very excited almost under the 200's Yes!!
I thought I would feel differently. For so long I have wanted to lose this weight and now that I am I am not really excited as I thought I would be. Does anyone have an idea what the hell is wrong with me? Maybe when I hit under 200 I will feel something.

Just ordered Saladacco

2006-05-04T06:13:00.000-04:00

I am excited I just ordered my saladacco and some raw carob powder. I want to make fudge balls with the carob powder and angel hair pasta with the saladacco. I can't wait to get it. I paid 10 dollars for 3 day shipping . It better be here in 3 business days.
Still searching for a vitamix. Will most likely get from ebay. I just have to make sure there is a manufactred warrenty on it.
Off to work I go.

M

Treadmill!

2006-05-01T06:22:00.000-04:00

Well I finally got my lazy butt up and got on the treadmill this morning. I only did 10 1/2 minutes but hey that is better than none. I hope to work myslef up to 20 minutes of HIIT. I did run for 45 seconds at 6.0 speed.
Now I am going to have some green juice mmmmm.

M

D@mn Olives!!

2006-04-28T06:12:00.000-04:00

I loovvveeeeeee olives black and green. I just recently stopped eating the green ones and have been just eating black ones. I'm going to have to give those up to. Number one they are not raw. They are the only thing that is holding me back. I can eat a whole jar/can in a sitting then I wonder why my scale has jumped up 2 pounds.
Sooooo today I am renouncing the olives! Olives be gone! No more. Either raw olives or no olives. I think I will wait until I have more weight lost to even eat the raw ones.
The other day me and Steven made coconut macaroons. They were good a little sweet though. I think I put to many dates in.

This is Steven forming them and putting on the dehydrator tray.
Off to work I go. Will write later.

Day 10

2006-04-25T19:48:00.000-04:00

Today was a really good day. I made a banana, orange and mango smoothie this morning. I handed my 7 year old son a cup praying he would eat it. He asked what it was I told him and walked out the room. I did not want to hover over him with anticipation. He ate it and asked for seconds! Thank God! So now I think that will be his breakfast and fruit on other days. One meal down.
I had a a smoothie for breakfast, orange for snack, salad for lunch and a salad for dinner. Two bowls of salad :) with my favorite dressing.
I woke up this morning at 4:56 am. Do you think I got up to get on the treadmill...no. I have got to get in gear. Tomorrow I think I am going to do a colon cleanse. I should drink tea tonight but I am to full now. On a empty stomach I might drink the 32 ounces of warm salt water that is described in the Master Cleanse book.
We will see how tomorrow goes.

Michele

Day 7

2006-04-22T21:06:00.000-04:00

Today was a good day. I went and brought some ingredients to make some more salad dressing. I brought a few ounces of raw walnuts, some coconuts flakes. I am trying to find some raw carob powder on line so I can make some fudge balls.
I spoke with a lady at a yoga place to see about holding classes there. She thinks the owner would let me. So I will call her Monday and see. My mom wants me to make her a pizza and calzone. I am going to tackle the pizza for her sometime next week. I want her to go 100% raw she is depending on me to make the food for her.

I ate salads all day with my dressing. I weighed myself. I am 214.0. I weighed in the afternoon so I am most likely less than that. I do not know exactly what I weighted when I started my challenge. Last time I weighed myself I was around 223.0. Still need to hop on the treadmill. I am aiming for Monday.

Michele

Day 4

2006-04-19T18:36:00.000-04:00

I ate so much the past few days that I am still kind of full. I only ate a orange, apple and banana today. Of course it is only 6:30 pm now. I think I am going to make a dressing and a big salad ummmm. I did not get up to exercise this morning..laaazzzzyyyy. I am looking forward to the energy that I will have from eating so healthy. I want to pop up at 4am full of energy so I can get my butt on the treadmill.
I'm going to make my salad now and Steven wants a orange and banana smoothie. Speaking of smoothies I tried a green smoothie this morning. It had spinach, apple and water. My blender sucks. It did not turn out well at all. I have got to get a vitamix!
I keep forgetting my weight scale at my moms. I think it is a good thing. I am to obessive about my weight and I do not want to get discourage if the numbers on the scale don't move. I know that inside I am making wonderful changes.
I went to the library and checked out The China Study, Sprouting Handbook by Ann Wigmore and another Raw Gourmet book.
I'm going to go make that salad and Steven's smoothie and start to read .

Michele

Full of Food and Knowledge

2006-04-18T22:12:00.000-04:00

I am stuff with good raw food and raw food knowledge. I had such a great time with Schall Adams. She is truly a blessing. I really hated to see her go. I have met some wonderful people in the Level 1 chef class.
So my plan for tomorrow is to try to get up early to walk on my treadmill before work, make myself a green smoothie. I might just take fruit for work tomorrow. What I need to be do is get off this computer and go make a salad and dressing for work....but I'm going to bed.

Michele

Day 2 (30 day Raw Food Challenge)

2006-04-17T22:42:00.000-04:00

I am stuffed and tired. I was at the Level 2 chef class all day today. We started around 9am until 9 pm. We made all kinds of foods. Schall kept us busy we made a lot of recipes. We made oatmeal. ravaoli, fudge balls again, tacos, chocolate shake, calzones, pizza and alot more. I am so tired I can't even remember it all.
I went to Target and purchased a 8 cup food processor. I really did not have the money to get it but I will have to sacrifice something..maybe the heat bill..ha! I made Steven some banana icecream in it tonight. He had 2 kiwis and a couple of bites of the ice cream. I will most likely give him the banana ice cream in the morning for breakfast. It will be a whole lot better than Captin Crunch.

Michele

Day 1 ( Raw food 30 day challenge)

2006-04-16T10:32:00.000-04:00

Today is day one of my challenge. My mother has my scale so at the moment I do not know what I weight. I guess it is a good thing. I am obsessive about getting on the scale every morning. Last time I weighted my self about a week ago I was at 219.0 lbs. Before I did a 30 day fast at the end if December 2005 I weight 247.0 lbs. My goal is 140-145lbs in 6 months. That is around 75- 80 lbs. It rounds out to about 13 pounds a month. It can be done. With this raw lifestyle I know it will melt off. I just need to do my part in eating right and exercising.
Earlier I had a spinach salad with just cherry tomatoes, black olives(non raw), jalapenos (non raw) and mushrooms. I used this awesome tahini dressing I made that Schall told me about. It taste like blue cheese.
I will make a green juice later with my Jack Lalanne juicer. The juice consists of:
Romaine lettuce
Apples
Celery
1/2 lemon
Ginger to taste
mmmmm good

Here is a pic of my pride and joy. He is part of the reason I am going raw. I need to live to see him grow up. His diet is horrible he eats way to much sugar. For breakfast it usually cereal, pancakes, waffles or fruit and cream oatmeal. Lunch is whatever it could be a TV dinner, chicken noodle soup from a can or ravaoli from a can or he could eat any of the breakfast items again. Dinner...ha yeau it's about the same thing. And I wonder why he is hyper, can't concentrate in school. I know, I know it is my fault that is why I am turning it around now!

Alissa Cohen Level 1 Class with Schall Adams

2006-04-16T08:36:00.000-04:00

Yesterday I attended a Level 1 chef class taught by Schall Adams. I must say it was very enlightening. The recpies are so easy to duplicate. At the moment I do not have any equipment except for a dehydrator. So I am in the process of finding a food processor and a vitamix. I also want a champion juicer.
Yesterday we made Coconut Macaroons

1 1/2 cups raw coconut flakes
2 large dates (soaked)
1/4 cup Agave Nectar
1 tsp Vanilla

Pulse all ingredients through a food processor just until dates are finely processed. It will be a stucky dough. Form into patties and dehydrate at 105 for 5-6 hours.

These were soooooo good!!

We also made Banana Ice Cream yummmm.

Peel and freeze bananas. After you take the bananas out the freezer let them sit out for a minute and then try to peel them. My fingers were so cold trying to peel the bananas right away.

With a Champion Juicer or any juicer that will homogenize run the frozen bananas through with the "blank" on. As you can see it can also be done with a food processor. We also made strawberry and raisin and walnut toppings. My son loved the ice cream.

Mock Salmon Pate on celery sticks

A delicious pink pate with a hint of salmon flavor! I eat this all the time on top of a large salad with a vinaigrette dressing. It’s such an easy pate to prepare and oh so delicious!
2 cups walnuts
2 stalks celery
1 large red bell pepper
1 large scallion
½ -1 teaspoon sea salt
Combine all ingredients in a food processor and blend until smooth.Serving suggestions: This can be served on a plate as is, over a salad, rolled up in a green leaf, or spread on crackers

Angel Hair Pasta and Marinara Sauce

Angel Hair Pasta
3-4 Large Zucchini

Marinara Sauce
2 1/2 CupsTomatoes
12 Large Sundried Tomatoes, Soaked
3 Organic Dates, Pitted and Soaked
1/4 Cup Olive Oil
4 Cloves Garlic
2 Tablespoons Parsley
1 Teaspoon Celtic Sea Salt
1/8 Teaspoon Cayenne

Spialize the zucchini in the Saladacco and then Pour the Angel hair zucchini pasta into a large bowl.

Place all of the Marinara ingredients into a food processor and blend until smooth. Next pour the smooth sauce from the food processor onto your angel hair pasta which is in the large bowl. Now serve.

We also made Chile and onion dip.

I did not get a picture of the chile or onion dip. I was to busy eating.

This is Andreu cutting up the red pepper for the chile. Andreu is an inspiring raw gormet chef. He has a powerful testimony of how raw foods has improved his life. Once I get the link to his myspace from him I will post.

This is me and Schall. I look really big in this picture this shirt did not help matters either. I am really looking forward to the weight loss aspect of this raw lifestyle.