...It's getting real around here.
Today I'm feeling better than I have in quite a few days. This week has been particularly trying. I'd thought my nausea had leveled out, but it surprised me by going into overdrive, and there was a 24 hour period where I wasn't able to eat a thing. I'm having to supplement my diet, which I'll describe in full, and my exercise is more sporadic than calculated. I'm noticing a nasty cycle: Often I'm too sick to eat anything, which weakens my already tired state, making it impossible for me to workout, even though my workouts are one of the only things that can stimulate my appetite at the moment. It's getting tricky.
The worst has happened: I've developed an aversion to my dark, leafy greens. T_T These are crucial in my diet, so I've had to make some adjustments. I've added two supplements into my diet temporarily to ensure I've got enough energy to make it through the day. The first is Garden of Life's Raw Protein. This might be seen as unnecessary, and I agree: for those who are able to eat enough food, there's no need to supplement for protein, absolutely none at all. However, with the aversion to leafy greens (a huge source of amino acids), and my small appetite and inability to keep food down sometimes, it's an extra bit of insurance. At only half a scoop in a small banana smoothie, it's a very concentrated source of nutrients that doesn't require any extra stomach room.
In addition, I am also using Trader Joe's Super Green Drink in my daily smoothie, as well. One scoop of this stuff has 2000 mg of greens such as barley grass, spirulina, chlorella, and also includes both digestive enzymes and non-dairy probiotics, something that I'm having to double up on recently. Did I forget to mention that pregnancy slows your digestion to an almost complete standstill?
Here are some other natural, living tonics I'm relying on in early pregnancy.
Kombucha: Another choice that might be seen as "dangerous", but I've been drinking kombucha for the better part of a decade, and limiting my dosage to just two ounces a day, and this is mixed with ginger juice. It's sort of a last resort, since all of my homemade sauerkraut, kim chi, and other cultured vegetables make me sick to even think about them. Kombucha, however, I'm feeling strongly drawn to, so a light brew is definitely working for me at this time.
Herbal Infusions: I don't usually go a day without my strong herbal tonics, and pregnancy hasn't changed that in the least. I have, however, eliminated my strongly cleansing and adaptogen tonics and instead opted for blends that offer both strong plant based nutrition and gentle uterine toning actions. Some of my absolute favorites for pregnancy are Nettle Leaf for dark, leafy green nutrition, Yellow Dock as an iron supplement, Raspberry Leaf as a uterine tonic, and Dandelion Leaf and Root to prevent jaundice and build a healthy baby liver.
Today's Herbal Pregnancy Tonic:
Fennel (nausea)
Red Raspberry Leaf (uterine)
Oatstraw (calcium/mood)
Dandelion Root (water retention/liver)
Yellow Dock (iron)
Today I was feeling inventive, but I normally like to keep my tonics to three herbs or less. I got some fresh Oatstraw, though, and I was anxious to try it :)
Living the holistic life with Nutritional, Herbal, and Energy therapies
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Sunday, February 5, 2012
Raw Vegan Pregnancy- 6 Weeks, 6 Days Along
Let's be honest- the first trimester sucks. My first child, born back in 2006, gave me very little in the way of morning sickness, but my second child in 2008 was a nightmare of nausea. Interestingly, I was living a high raw lifestyle by the time that second pregnancy rolled around, but it had little effect on morning sickness.
Fast forward to 2012-
It's awful. The worst part is that certain fruits are making me sick just thinking about them! Important fruits! I'm having difficulty with the texture of bananas, which is problematic because they're essentially my rice. Thankfully I finished off the last of the persimmons a few weeks ago, because that melty, jelly like consistency of a really ripe persimmon is NOT as attractive as it was last month. Right now, winning fruits have a juicy, fibrous texture with little potential for mushiness.
Today, I ate:
blood oranges
navel oranges
cara cara oranges
mangoes
blueberries
almonds
When I first was struck with the sickness, I couldn't manage to get in my greens. My digestive system slowed to a crawl, and digesting greens, even shredded romaine, became a complicated stomachache. Fats cause the same response, especially when they're mixed with the greens. Young coconut meat is a winner right now, as is half an avocado by itself. Now, I'm able to get in my greens by having them in a juice made with lemon, apples, ginger, and cucumbers. I picked up some local bok choy and baby spinach at the farmer's market, so I'll be juicing those for the next few days, in addition to the organic romaine hearts I got on sale this week. 3 organic romaine heart for 99 cents. Win.
I'm eating little meals as often as possible, which is a huge change from my usual large meals 3 times a day I was used to (and enjoying). But the longer I go without eating, the worse the nausea gets, and trying to eat the same size meals I did last month just isn't going to happen. It's almost as if my stomach shrank overnight!
Today, my workout was
Time Attack- 12 minutes plus warm up and cool down
A series of 5 body weight exercises performed at 20 reps each, as many rounds as you can before the time runs out. Video and details can be found here at BernaciseMe.com
Tomorrow should be a 30 minute run at noon.
I'm feeling less attracted to OJ and more attracted to eating my oranges chopped. I'm just going with whatever I can eat without regretting later.
Fast forward to 2012-
It's awful. The worst part is that certain fruits are making me sick just thinking about them! Important fruits! I'm having difficulty with the texture of bananas, which is problematic because they're essentially my rice. Thankfully I finished off the last of the persimmons a few weeks ago, because that melty, jelly like consistency of a really ripe persimmon is NOT as attractive as it was last month. Right now, winning fruits have a juicy, fibrous texture with little potential for mushiness.
Today, I ate:
blood oranges
navel oranges
cara cara oranges
mangoes
blueberries
almonds
When I first was struck with the sickness, I couldn't manage to get in my greens. My digestive system slowed to a crawl, and digesting greens, even shredded romaine, became a complicated stomachache. Fats cause the same response, especially when they're mixed with the greens. Young coconut meat is a winner right now, as is half an avocado by itself. Now, I'm able to get in my greens by having them in a juice made with lemon, apples, ginger, and cucumbers. I picked up some local bok choy and baby spinach at the farmer's market, so I'll be juicing those for the next few days, in addition to the organic romaine hearts I got on sale this week. 3 organic romaine heart for 99 cents. Win.
I'm eating little meals as often as possible, which is a huge change from my usual large meals 3 times a day I was used to (and enjoying). But the longer I go without eating, the worse the nausea gets, and trying to eat the same size meals I did last month just isn't going to happen. It's almost as if my stomach shrank overnight!
Today, my workout was
Time Attack- 12 minutes plus warm up and cool down
A series of 5 body weight exercises performed at 20 reps each, as many rounds as you can before the time runs out. Video and details can be found here at BernaciseMe.com
Tomorrow should be a 30 minute run at noon.
I'm feeling less attracted to OJ and more attracted to eating my oranges chopped. I'm just going with whatever I can eat without regretting later.
Saturday, February 4, 2012
Surprise! My Raw Vegan Pregnancy!
Nope, it's not a joke- I'm pregnant!
After my difficult journey through my first miscarriage this past October, I've completed a wonderfully cleansing detox followed by a deeply regenerating juice feast in December. Now that January has passed and I've spent some time reaching down deep into my health on all levels to make the necessary preparations, I am once again ready to accept the gift of pregnancy.
Provided that all goes well, this will be my first high raw baby. My last pregnancy was a 50 percent raw, all vegan, all whole foods path, and it was so, so simple. In fact, my birthing ritual lasted a mere 2 and a half hours! I walked for miles a day, even just days before I gave birth. This time, I want to further my goals and record here my experiences, challenges, and successes on a high fruit and greens raw vegan diet.
Don't forget to connect with me here, on Facebook and Twitter to keep up on my fruity pregnancy journey! I'll be posting daily menus, workout routines, difficulties, and basically giving you the raw deal on what it's like to eat a TRUE whole foods diet while creating a human life! I'm looking forward to sharing this journey with all of you :)
After my difficult journey through my first miscarriage this past October, I've completed a wonderfully cleansing detox followed by a deeply regenerating juice feast in December. Now that January has passed and I've spent some time reaching down deep into my health on all levels to make the necessary preparations, I am once again ready to accept the gift of pregnancy.
Provided that all goes well, this will be my first high raw baby. My last pregnancy was a 50 percent raw, all vegan, all whole foods path, and it was so, so simple. In fact, my birthing ritual lasted a mere 2 and a half hours! I walked for miles a day, even just days before I gave birth. This time, I want to further my goals and record here my experiences, challenges, and successes on a high fruit and greens raw vegan diet.
Don't forget to connect with me here, on Facebook and Twitter to keep up on my fruity pregnancy journey! I'll be posting daily menus, workout routines, difficulties, and basically giving you the raw deal on what it's like to eat a TRUE whole foods diet while creating a human life! I'm looking forward to sharing this journey with all of you :)
Friday, February 3, 2012
Raw Vegan Fruit Shopping Haul! Frugal Raw Food!
I'm back again with another fruity shopping update, complete with pictures! I had a great shopping week, and I managed to snag something a little more fun than just plain old bananas. But hey, let's not knock bananas, I can't go a day without them! Good thing I found 5 bags of them, marked down, ripe, and ready to eat!
I froze quite a bit of them, especially any that looked like they might not last a few more days without getting a little too soft for my tastes. This week I also picked up a bag of Trader Joe's Very Cherry Blend in the frozen section to make cherry berry soft serve. Yum!
Here's a treat I haven't had in a few weeks, and these ones came out delicious!
These mangoes are pretty big, and I grabbed them for only 85 cents apiece! One of my favorite local ethnic produce markets had a giant pile of them, so I grabbed up 8 of them. I had my first one tonight: so soft and melty, perfectly ripe with no bruises. Just perfect, like honey.
The pineapples this week are wonderful. I know I've got a great pineapple when I can eat an entire one for breakfast and have no sore tongue afterwards, and that's just what I got with these amazing fruits. I picked up 4 of them, and each one was only $1.40
Now, my favorite find. I managed to grab this 30 pound box of blood oranges for...guess. Go on, guess how much it was.
$9.00
Yup!
They aren't all perfectly ripe, and I think it's still a little early in the season, but they're ripening up slowly, and I've been mixing these with my delicious and perfectly ripe local cara cara navels I picked up for only 49 cents a pound. Mixing the two juices makes a beautiful blazing sunset appear in my glass, since the two are so thick with pulp that it's difficult for them to mix together. I am so grateful that I am able to start my day with so much nutrition and energy for mere pocket change! Get on out into your own neighborhood, because you can do the same :)
I froze quite a bit of them, especially any that looked like they might not last a few more days without getting a little too soft for my tastes. This week I also picked up a bag of Trader Joe's Very Cherry Blend in the frozen section to make cherry berry soft serve. Yum!
Here's a treat I haven't had in a few weeks, and these ones came out delicious!
These mangoes are pretty big, and I grabbed them for only 85 cents apiece! One of my favorite local ethnic produce markets had a giant pile of them, so I grabbed up 8 of them. I had my first one tonight: so soft and melty, perfectly ripe with no bruises. Just perfect, like honey.
The pineapples this week are wonderful. I know I've got a great pineapple when I can eat an entire one for breakfast and have no sore tongue afterwards, and that's just what I got with these amazing fruits. I picked up 4 of them, and each one was only $1.40
Now, my favorite find. I managed to grab this 30 pound box of blood oranges for...guess. Go on, guess how much it was.
$9.00
Yup!
They aren't all perfectly ripe, and I think it's still a little early in the season, but they're ripening up slowly, and I've been mixing these with my delicious and perfectly ripe local cara cara navels I picked up for only 49 cents a pound. Mixing the two juices makes a beautiful blazing sunset appear in my glass, since the two are so thick with pulp that it's difficult for them to mix together. I am so grateful that I am able to start my day with so much nutrition and energy for mere pocket change! Get on out into your own neighborhood, because you can do the same :)
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Raw Vegan Fat Free Eggplant Chips!
Wow, this is an easy one, and a classic, too! It gets passed around the raw food forums often and its popularity rises with each new flavor "tweak". However, I'm going to give you the basics, and you can tweak to your heart's content! I make this recipe especially for my young kids and they love it!
These are amazingly simple crunchy little snacks that will give you the crisp of a potato chip in an oil free, potato free, and totally guilt free mouthful. You need only two ingredients: eggplant and apple cider vinegar.
Slice your eggplant thinly, and I mean THIN! A couple of centimeters is good; it doesn't have to be like paper, but the thinner, the better. Lay them out on a glass pan and give them a good soak in ACV. Now, if you like, you can add other herbs and seasoning to the ACV before you pour it on. Nutritional yeast, spice blends like mexican or curry, garlic powder, chipotle powder...if you like it, add it in. But the basic recipe makes a great salt and vinegar style chip. Adding salt is definitely optional and not recommended. The ACV has a great sweet and salty flavor, but a dash of Braggs Liquid Aminos will add a little more depth.
Soak these for at least a few hours or as long as you can, and then dehydrate overnight in your dehydrator or oven on the lowest setting with the door cracked open. I put mine to dehydrate around 7 pm and turn them off around 10 in the morning, but my dehydrator doesn't have a heat dial, so you can experiment at home. The great thing about these is your can't over-dehydrate- the longer you let them go, the more Pringles-esque they become!
I've only used the larger Mediterranean eggplants, so I do not know how an Asian eggplant will fare. It might be better, or it might not work at all! If you try it that way, be sure to post your results!
These are amazingly simple crunchy little snacks that will give you the crisp of a potato chip in an oil free, potato free, and totally guilt free mouthful. You need only two ingredients: eggplant and apple cider vinegar.
Slice your eggplant thinly, and I mean THIN! A couple of centimeters is good; it doesn't have to be like paper, but the thinner, the better. Lay them out on a glass pan and give them a good soak in ACV. Now, if you like, you can add other herbs and seasoning to the ACV before you pour it on. Nutritional yeast, spice blends like mexican or curry, garlic powder, chipotle powder...if you like it, add it in. But the basic recipe makes a great salt and vinegar style chip. Adding salt is definitely optional and not recommended. The ACV has a great sweet and salty flavor, but a dash of Braggs Liquid Aminos will add a little more depth.
Soak these for at least a few hours or as long as you can, and then dehydrate overnight in your dehydrator or oven on the lowest setting with the door cracked open. I put mine to dehydrate around 7 pm and turn them off around 10 in the morning, but my dehydrator doesn't have a heat dial, so you can experiment at home. The great thing about these is your can't over-dehydrate- the longer you let them go, the more Pringles-esque they become!
I've only used the larger Mediterranean eggplants, so I do not know how an Asian eggplant will fare. It might be better, or it might not work at all! If you try it that way, be sure to post your results!
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
Congratulations, Giveaway Winners!
Congrats to both of our winners! Your packages will be sent out ASAP!
If you haven't been notified at this point, I'm happy to tell you that you'll have another chance to win a new prize shortly. In the meantime, keep an eye on this blog through Facebook and Twitter to be the first to know about new giveaways, as well as important news in holistic health, nutrition, and herbal medicine!
Facebook
Twitter @kombuchadiva
If you haven't been notified at this point, I'm happy to tell you that you'll have another chance to win a new prize shortly. In the meantime, keep an eye on this blog through Facebook and Twitter to be the first to know about new giveaways, as well as important news in holistic health, nutrition, and herbal medicine!
Twitter @kombuchadiva
Sunday, January 22, 2012
Mono Banana Diet? Raw Vegan Banana Island!
Sounds crazy, right? Who in their right mind would eat nothing but bananas?
People who want to lose weight, detox, and kill junk food cravings!
Mono fruit diets are an amazing way to give your body a chance to catch up with all the poison it's been carrying around for years! This isn't pseudoscience- every day, your body is exposed to toxins, from inevitable chem trails from overhead planes, to avoidable like pesticides on food and chemicals in shampoos. Your body does have a wonderfully complex and capable system of detoxification and elimination for naturally occurring toxins, but when it comes to the man made toxins it simply throws it's hands up in frustration and resorts to storing this sludge in your fat cells. For years.
Going on a mono diet can give your digestive system and well deserved break, giving your body a chance to play catch up with all the gunk caught up in your gears, so to speak. The average American is carrying literal pounds of fecal matter in their intestines, and eating a pure fruit diet will help to loosen up the debris and carry a lot of it out.
When you eat one food and one food only, it really gives your taste buds time to think. In our modern culture, we thrive on thrill, and we jump from one food to the next looking for a new, flavorful pizzazz to hit our tongue, even in the span of one meal! Appetizers, side dishes, main course, dessert...all of it adds up to over-stimulation in the brain, and one big check that your digestive system simply can't cash. The human stomach was not designed to properly digest thirty different ingredients at once! By eating one nourishing food for several days at a time, you'll be re-training your tongue to recognize chemical additives and so-called "natural flavors" for what they are-nasty!- and letting your digestive system play it safe with just one ingredient, which can go a long way to healing a multitude of stomach and digestive symptoms.
Best of all, when you choose to mono a moderate to high calorie, high nutrition fruit like bananas, you can rest easy knowing you'll be meeting your basic needs for maintaining energy and health. Unlike strict water fasting or low calorie cleanses, you can safely eat as much as you like. In fact, you can eat as much as you can! It's nothing to eat 20 bananas in a day, and an adult woman would just barely have her caloric needs met, depending on the size of the bananas and her activity levels! Since bananas are low water, high calorie fruits with loads of fiber, you'll never be able to overeat. This can be an incredible healing journey for those who struggle with distorted eating patterns and fear of food. No need to count calories- count bananas to make sure you're eating enough!
A mono diet is one of the best compliments to a full body cleanse. If you are taking a pre-packaged cleanse like those from Dr Natura, or the simple herbal liver healing or gentle detoxification tea blends I create, a mono fruit diet is one of the best things you can do to ensure your cleanse gets as deep as possible. Lighten the load on your body and let it heal!
After some time passes, you'll want to increase your consumption of greens and other fruits, but while you're in the detoxification stage, you'll be drawing on your own stores of fat, B12, and other nutrients, so there's no need to worry about "building up" while your bod is in the process of "breaking down" a lifetime of illness and improper treatment. There are "banana island" support groups on raw vegan websites all over, so find a couple of people to share your experience with and let go of your fear of achieving true health!
Worried about what to eat after your cleanse? Or troubled by the sheer amount of herbal detoxes and supplements out there? I do offer private consultations as a certified Nutritional Consultant and Master Herbalist, so if you can't find help in your area, I would love to help you reach your health goals.
Facebook
Twitter
People who want to lose weight, detox, and kill junk food cravings!
Mono fruit diets are an amazing way to give your body a chance to catch up with all the poison it's been carrying around for years! This isn't pseudoscience- every day, your body is exposed to toxins, from inevitable chem trails from overhead planes, to avoidable like pesticides on food and chemicals in shampoos. Your body does have a wonderfully complex and capable system of detoxification and elimination for naturally occurring toxins, but when it comes to the man made toxins it simply throws it's hands up in frustration and resorts to storing this sludge in your fat cells. For years.
Going on a mono diet can give your digestive system and well deserved break, giving your body a chance to play catch up with all the gunk caught up in your gears, so to speak. The average American is carrying literal pounds of fecal matter in their intestines, and eating a pure fruit diet will help to loosen up the debris and carry a lot of it out.
When you eat one food and one food only, it really gives your taste buds time to think. In our modern culture, we thrive on thrill, and we jump from one food to the next looking for a new, flavorful pizzazz to hit our tongue, even in the span of one meal! Appetizers, side dishes, main course, dessert...all of it adds up to over-stimulation in the brain, and one big check that your digestive system simply can't cash. The human stomach was not designed to properly digest thirty different ingredients at once! By eating one nourishing food for several days at a time, you'll be re-training your tongue to recognize chemical additives and so-called "natural flavors" for what they are-nasty!- and letting your digestive system play it safe with just one ingredient, which can go a long way to healing a multitude of stomach and digestive symptoms.
Best of all, when you choose to mono a moderate to high calorie, high nutrition fruit like bananas, you can rest easy knowing you'll be meeting your basic needs for maintaining energy and health. Unlike strict water fasting or low calorie cleanses, you can safely eat as much as you like. In fact, you can eat as much as you can! It's nothing to eat 20 bananas in a day, and an adult woman would just barely have her caloric needs met, depending on the size of the bananas and her activity levels! Since bananas are low water, high calorie fruits with loads of fiber, you'll never be able to overeat. This can be an incredible healing journey for those who struggle with distorted eating patterns and fear of food. No need to count calories- count bananas to make sure you're eating enough!
A mono diet is one of the best compliments to a full body cleanse. If you are taking a pre-packaged cleanse like those from Dr Natura, or the simple herbal liver healing or gentle detoxification tea blends I create, a mono fruit diet is one of the best things you can do to ensure your cleanse gets as deep as possible. Lighten the load on your body and let it heal!
After some time passes, you'll want to increase your consumption of greens and other fruits, but while you're in the detoxification stage, you'll be drawing on your own stores of fat, B12, and other nutrients, so there's no need to worry about "building up" while your bod is in the process of "breaking down" a lifetime of illness and improper treatment. There are "banana island" support groups on raw vegan websites all over, so find a couple of people to share your experience with and let go of your fear of achieving true health!
Worried about what to eat after your cleanse? Or troubled by the sheer amount of herbal detoxes and supplements out there? I do offer private consultations as a certified Nutritional Consultant and Master Herbalist, so if you can't find help in your area, I would love to help you reach your health goals.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)