>I'm almost embarrassed to write about this, because I've been on
>veg-raw for so long and only just got up the determination to take the
>plunge Jan. 1.
I think your post is full of exactly the kind of stuff veg-raw should
specialize in!
>I needed the pat New Years starting point to get going,
>but otherwise have decided January is a pretty dumb time to start. For
>one thing, it's cold (yeah, even in Santa Barbara). For another, there's
>a more limited amount of stuff in season.
I hear you! Citrus citrus citrus. Unless you can afford cherimoyas...
>Thirdly, there's our upcoming
>trip to the in-laws' in Florida. I haven't had the nerve to tell her about
>my change, since she's seen me through a number of dietary changes
>already and must think I'm quite a kook!
You _are_ a kook. Face it ;)
>Anyway, progress report:
>days 1 - 5:snip>day 12 (right now): today I'm having my first crisis.
Everyone's transition is different, but you are not alone in experiencing
discomfort early on. Living thru it with the knowledge that it will be
unpleasant for a time is really about all one can do. Bob A says it was
months before he got over the hump, and Melisa would tell you it was years
for her (though usually making exceptions, so _of course_ it wasn't easy
:)). What makes a person live through the detox, etc. (as opposed to ending
the discomfort with a return to a normal diet) is still pretty mystifying
to me...
>I'm trying to
>remember why this seemed so important.
This is a good thing to get into _now_ instead of 5 years down the line
when you become so identified with being a rawist that the whole issue is
lost! Wards H&B interview #3 is almost required reading in this arena.
>The only positive thing I can
>say is that I've lost 4 pounds and my clothes feel looser. The lack of
>variety is getting to me, and I haven't got the inspiration to try some
>interesting recipes. I'm even getting sick of apples.
Apples aren't exactly the most exciting of foods, but it is great to get to
know the different varieties while all raw. These new "Jonagolds" seem even
worse than red delicious--bummer, because Jonathons are one of my fave
apples. Fujis are the sweetest, no? Rome is always considered a baking
apple but I think its great eating...
Are you enjoying dates at all? Raw in-shell peanuts?
>The only thing that
>still tastes great to me is my morning smoothie (fresh reamed orange
>juice (with most of the pulp and membrane), a handful of almonds
>soaked 24 hrs., 1 banana, assorted frozen fruit).
I find that the earlier I start eating, the more hungry I am all day! Go
figure. But I have come to skip breakfast, which makes a fruit lunch seem
much more tasty, and after several hours, veggies/salads might taste even
better. Personally, I must avoid snacking on fruit all day, or I'll be
disatisfied at mealtime. "Hunger is the best sauce" as they say...
>My sense of smell
>seems too acute. I say "too" acute because I can smell as well as
>hear my husband eating tortilla chips in the next room and it's torturing
>me!
Hahahahahahaha! ROTFL. Walking down the suburban streets at 6pm and it's
like a dog sticking its head out the car window sniffing, sniffing,
sniffing! "Oh yuck, ring baloney! Mmmmm...italian!" etc. Wait till you get
on a plane and the snackpack of Planter roasted peanuts is distributed and
the air quality in the cabin plunges! Instantly you suffocate in everyone's
peanut breath.
Seriously, cooked meat often tortures us with its smell! In the long run
the acute smell business is a lot of fun. I smell the different wines at
the xmas meal, the fixings, etc. All very interesting. So I don't eat it: I
can still smell it, for pleasant or for worse.
>I went out to Fresh Choice (west coast salad bar chain) for lunch
>and even the wider variety of raw veggies there didn't satisfy. Like, I
>like red bell pepper, but only a few bites. How can instinctos afford to
>eat according to the taste stop?
That's why I'm always whining about veggies (and part of why I eat salads:
keeps the veggies interesting enough). Besides an instincto can smell
his/her way through the produce department to get a sense of what they are
on to. The big salad bar places are great after a time away from veggies,
but in the end, if you can't find a raw food that is tasty, your body may
want a rest from food (a fast)--which might be likely during a cold as
well...all much easier said than done, of course!
>Anyway, folks, I need words of encouragement. How soon can I
>expect to feel an improvement in well-being? Should I have
>transitioned a little first with steamed potatoes or rice or whatever?
>Any encouragement/advice would be most welcome! :-)
>Sorry to whine so much... :-/
You're not whining! Keep us posted. Seeing as how no one responded to your
post, you might have a clue to how many veg-rawers are trying to eat all
raw. So, yeah, here's some encouragement: it ain't going to kill you to try
for a few weeks (you'll always have the rest of your life NOT to eat all
raw). The worst that could happen is that you'd learn some stuff about
yourself. When all is said and done, most people do not settle on a 100%
raw diet. If you use adherance to an all-raw diet as a measure of your
worth/success/beauty/eugenic capability/etc you might have more fun with
the experimenting...
Who knows? (but you'll notice I didn't tell you to go out and eat a rabbit!
:) ;)
Cheerleading in his bumbling way,
Kirt
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