Raw Foods and a 3 day Pack Trip Changed my Life

My son, Jesse, was in Europe when he learned about a Raw Foods way of eating. He adopted the diet, and lost more than 20 pounds. He came home in the spring to join me on a 3 day pack trip on our horses. I said, "lets eat the way you eat - I'd like to try it".

We went shopping together for the 3 day trip. We bought an assortment of fruits and vegetables and brought them home. When everything was laid out on the counter, I was overwhelmed by the amount of food. It seemed like way too much! I was concerned that we would waste food, that it wouldn't last in the saddle panniers, and that it would "go bad". I said to Jesse, "I have been planning meals for 40 years Jesse, and there is NO WAY we will eat all of this in three days!"

Jesse replied "Really? Well, I've never done this before, but let me add up the calories and see how much we need to take." He figured at his 6' 2" height and with his metabolism at 20 years old, he would need about 2800 calories a day. He sat there and began to plan his daily menu for the trip and after about 10 minutes, convinced me that we would in fact need to take all the food we had purchased. I was still skeptical, as you can see in the photo, but the next day, we loaded everything into the hard panniers, and headed off into the Rockies on our big adventure.

What happened in those next three days, food wise, began to change my ideas about food and eating in profound ways.

We never cooked anything, yet I have never eaten so well on a camping trip! We had fruits for breakfast, salads and raw vegetables for lunch and dinner, and fruits and veggies in between for snacks. We did end up eating almost everything we took with us - except for a little bit of greens that got soggy when our ice melted on the second day.

Several things occured to me - like a shocking new news!

1) The food was delicious and easy to prepare.

2) The food was so clean! Our dishes simply needed to be rinsed - no soap needed. No fat clinging to the pan....It struck me that I was putting this clean food inside me - instead of clogging my arteries with fat from meat.

3) When I felt hunger, I ate! We ate a lot... and it was a pleasure!

4) I had a lot of energy and wasn't tired even after riding all day long through mountainous country.

5) There was no garbage to haul away. The peelings etc were biodegradable!

After eating this way for three days, I knew I wanted to continue. I felt great! And I had fallen in love with my food. I also lost seven pounds, although I never felt hungry and had lots of energy.

Six months later, I am still losing weight, with very little effort. I weigh less now than I did in my 20's! My jeans are a size 8, and fit like a glove. People are noticing and asking questions, so I tell them this story, and developed this website to offer inspiration and information on how you can do it too.

I'm so excited you're here! Let me know if you have any questions...I'm here to serve you!

My Mother's Death caused by poor food choices

My mother was obese when I was born, and had no understanding of foods and their effect on our bodies. While she loved her family and her 5 kids dearly, she cooked potatoes almost daily, and baked homemade bread almost every week. We had some sort of meat and potatoes, bread, rice, or pasta at every meal. We almost always had a dessert of some sort - ice cream, cookies, pies, cakes. Homemade fried and frosted donuts were her specialty. Mostly, I remember my mom always in the kitchen. Holidays were all about meals and food for her - and a lot of work! Food is love, right?

I could go on and on about how food, eating, and being overweight affected my mother, her marriage, and her life. While she was a loving, caring, ethical, intelligient, and hardworking mother, she ended up with diabetes, depression, and at the end, cancer. Yet, she never tired of telling us that her waist size was 22 inches when she was married. She blamed her overweight on "having babies" and never took responsibility for her food choices. She was ignorant of the connection between what she ate and the fat stored on her body.

I remember the Christmas when we learned my mom had diabetes. She was so sick she couldn't get out of bed. She had a huge boil on her thigh that wouldn't heal, and she couldn't stop vomiting. We took her to the hospital in Bottineau, North Dakota on December 24, 1970, and she was diagnosed with adult onset diabetes (NIDDM or Non-insulin dependent diabetes mellitus).

While she recovered from that acute episode and was given minimal education about food choices, she never really lost any weight or changed her eating habits much. She was totally addicted to her patterns and habits, and didn't have access to much education in our rural community. She began to struggle with anger and depression - mostly aimed at my father.

A few years later, I was in my first year of nursing school when my dad called to say that mom had "passed out" in the store downtown and he had taken her to the hospital in Grand Forks. All of her 5 adult kids showed up at her bedside, from all over the country. We learned a few days later that she had advanced colo-rectal cancer with mets to her lungs, liver, and brain. She died of an insulin overdose a few days into chemotherapy for her cancer. She was 62 years old.

I have struggled with weight gain my entire life. I have been on just about every diet there is, starting at age 15, with a cabbage and grapefruit diet. I have spent all kinds of money on every diet fad going - from amphetamines at age 16, to AYDS (remember those?), to Slim Fast, to the Adkins, South Beach, etc etc etc. The most help came from a program called "Thin Within" which helped to change my self image.

But still, I never felt I was at a healthy weight, and I always felt like I had to deprive myself to diet. Finally, at age 53, my son Jesse introduced me to a Raw Foods way of eating, and everything suddenly changed.

Recipe #1 - Liquid Gold

So this is the salad dressing that changed my life. It's so delicious and healthful, I eat it almost everyday on whatever delicious greens and veggies are available. I just grab what looks good today, mix it in a bowl, and toss this dressing all around. I'm using a big serving spoon to measure my "parts", and I put enough on to enjoy. Not to worry - just eat what you need - start out with less, and add more to your taste.

Try this recipe and see if you don't just LOVE it! This light and tasty dressing is so good, I can't wait to eat my next meal so I can have it again. My mouth waters right now, just thinking about it.

Variations are easy - just substitute from the list of suggestions and enjoy, or get creative and come up with your own. Just because I love it, doesn't mean you have to, although I bet you will.

My son Jesse likes just plain lime juice and a dash of salt on his salads, other people eat theirs naked! Whatever turns your crank!

LIQUID GOLD SALAD DRESSING RECIPE

1 part Bragg's Liquid Aminos (widely available at health food stores and regular grocery stores)
1 part Bragg's Unfiltered Cider Vinegar
2 parts Walnut Oil
Lawry's Montreal Steak Seasoning to taste, or sea salt and pepper

For variety try these substitutions:

Liquid Aminos: There really is no substitute for Liquid Aminos, but in a pinch, a dash of Namu Shoyu (raw soy sauce) will hint at the flavor. Liquid Aminos are the chains that make up soy protein, and they taste a bit salty - so taste before you add salt.

Cider Vinegar: any fresh squeezed citrus will do as a substitute, especially lime, lemon, orange, grapefruit. To taste. Or try adding for a fresh taste in addition to the cider.

Walnut Oil: "Cold pressed" is the word to look for in oils such as almond, olive, flax seed, or Udo's choice ( a yummy seed oil mix). I've also tried some exotics like macadamia nut oil and others. Oils like these are great for your skin, help with lubricating the body's joints, and are necessary to utilize the fat soluble vitamins. They also provide energy for the body. Use in moderation if you're trying to lose weight.

For seasoning and variety, try adding one or two of the following to the basic recipe:

crushed garlic, basil, cumin, curry, coriander, paprika, cayenne, sun dried tomatoes, or cilantro.

I love any of these, but everyone's taste is unique - so try the taste before throwing all over your beautiful salad greens!! I love to experiment with new taste combos! My sons' French Grandmother, Monique was a wonderful chef who made the most delicious dressings from various combos of these ingredients!

Oui Oui! Bring it on - share the combos you love with the rest of us.

How can I help you?

The main reason I have constructed this webpage is to be of service to you. Please let me know, by your comments and questions, how I might best support you in getting you what you need to be able to adopt a raw food lifestyle.

If you desire the outcomes of weight loss, improved health and vitality, mood stabilization, increased energy, and improved digestion, then raw food choices can be the answer! But it's not always easy to get started.

I am willing to do whatever it takes to support you in this process. Menus, photos, books, videos, recipes, stories, chats, what helps you the most?

I also offer a "quick and easy start"! Live with me for a week and see/eat/experience first hand how easy it is to shop, prepare, and eat these wonderful foods!

What do you need? What works for you? I'm only an email or comment away....

Raw Foods - What's that mean???

"Raw Foods" means different things to different people. Some authors and "experts" are very strict in their definition and several famous writers have published the "rules" that define a very strict vegan (non animal based) raw foods diet.

But my definition is simpler and makes sense to me: I think of raw food as any plant based food that has not been cooked, with the enzymes intact, the fresher the better, organic if possible.

I think of raw food as mainly fruits, vegetables, seeds, nuts, cold pressed oils, greens, and herbs, etc.

Some people eat 100% raw, but I don't. I find that I eat about 10-15% of my calories from non-raw sources, because otherwise I might feel deprived, and eating 85-90% raw allows me to sample occasionally from meats, fish, poultry, and other cooked foods that I enjoy. That way, I'm able to continue this awesome dietary lifestyle, enjoying the many benefits for years to come!

For me, I am not ready to adopt a 100% raw food diet, although there are days when I'm eating 100% raw. I like taking ownership of my choices around food. When people ask me what's "allowed" on my diet, I'm fond of saying "It's my diet and I'll eat what I want". If I was eating by someone else's rules, I would not be taking responsibility for my choices, and would eventually give up as I have on so many strict diets I've tried over the years. I find that it has to work for me and satisfy me, or it's just not going to work in the long run.

The more I educate myself, the more I want to avoid those foods that create ill health, obesity, low energy, and mood swings.

One of the biggest changes for me was that when I started to increase the amounts of fresh fruits in my diet, my craving for refined sugar and carbs just fell away. I think eating mostly raw foods has deeply satisfied my nutritional needs, so that I just don't crave junk foods, carbs, and sugar laden candies or sweets anymore. My food choices are so delicious and satisfying, and I get to have them so often, that I just don't crave the foods that I know aren't good for me.

That expression "you are what you eat" has brand new meaning to me now. Eating beautiful, fresh, mostly organic food makes me feel beautiful! I love shopping for it, I love running it through the check stand, I love preparing it, and most of all, I love eating it!

Introduction to Raw Foods

Hello and welcome to my Website - Living a Raw Foods Life. My goal is to offer tips and inspiration for adopting Raw Foods on your journey to vibrant health, beauty, and new fitness levels.

I hope that this will develop into a place of community, encouragement, and inspiration from others like yourself who are seeking to live life to the fullest. A place where you can ask questions, hear from others, and share your Raw Foods stories, mishaps, and successes.

Why am I doing this? Because my life was changed dramatically almost overnight by some simple choices in my eating habits. Within days, I started to easily lose weight, felt more energetic, and started to get compliments on "the glow of my skin".

As the months went by and I continued to eat mostly "in the raw", I was so amazed with the profound and life altering results, that I decided to share my experiences with my friends, my hospitalized patients, and the world, hoping that many others will soon enjoy the benefits that have come my way.

This simple way of fueling the body is so delicious, easy, and fun! And I know you are going to love the results. Before you know it, you'll be having a love affair with your food too!

So lets get started!