Shopping!

I made it through day one! There were so many blogs going through my head today, but alas, I am so, so tired now; I wish I would have taken the time to write when I was inspired. Lesson learned! I also have a mild headache. I think it is due to not drinking coffee- I feel the same way when I'm eating a SAD diet (Standard American Diet) and I cut out coffee. I normally drink A LOT of coffee.

Today was a ton of fun - I went to Earth Fare and bought a great deal of raw food yumminess! Bananas, apples, corn, avacado, romaine, tomato, onion, jalapeno, tahini, curry powder, garlic, almond butter, mango, limes, almonds, macadamias, brazil nuts, etc. etc. etc. 

I also cheated - well, sort of. I got some pre-made raw food deliciousness at Earth Fare. WOW. They had raw, living flax crackers, sun burgers with manna bread, lasagna and desserts. I got the sun burger/manna bread and lasagna. The lasagna was AMAZING. I ate half and saved the rest for lunch tomorrow at work - where I will be eating outside the house for the first time. 

I have to say I feel SO blessed that there are so many raw food choices at Earth Fare. SO MANY. That means that if I'm out and I want to drop in and grab something convenient, something already made, something novel...it is on the way home from work. That makes me feel really good. They keep all their raw foods in the refrigerated section, freshly made, and quite gourmet! Tomorrow I'm going to check out Green Life to see what they offer for raw.

Today I grazed. A little this and little that. For dinner I made raw burritos and could only eat half. I also had a Lara Food Bar. 

I love these bars and have eaten them for a long time. I carry them on me just in case I need to eat something when I'm on the road or in a hurry. It makes things easier, but so do bananas and apples. ;) It's just nice to be able to grab something that is healthy and delicious.

It definitely feels like raw food cuts back on the overstuffing that can happen when I am eating for emotional reasons. I'll eat way more of bread, butter, cheese, etc. than I will of spinach, kale, tomatoes, bananas, etc. Plus, I'm getting more nutrients and don't have asthma after I eat.

I found today that I craved sweets...so I am going to get some raw cacoa. Oh! Speaking of which, I found this AMAZING company here in Asheville - Ulimana. They have amazing raw cacoa (pronounced: cuh-cow) products. If you don't know about the amazing healing properties of raw cacoa, then you should definitely check out this graph:

And if that doesn't make any sense, check out this article from Natural News: 

Examining the Properties of Chocolate and Cacao for Health

There is also a great book on this, called Naked Chocolate. 

I've been examing, studying, reading about, watching videos about, surfing forums about and dreaming about the raw foods lifestyle for a long time. I have worked with many of the leaders in the raw food community as well...so I know more about this than most people going into the raw food diet. I've attended raw food potlucks...and have made some amazing cranberry/spinach stuffed portabellos and spinach quiche in my day...but I just never said 'okay, I'm doing it'. I've even followed the diet for a few days here and there, but never with the idea that I would actually say, "You know what, this makes sense to me and I'm going to do it for my health."

Speaking of my health, here are the health stats of the day:

Albuterol Inhaler: Once upon rising, once this afternoon -- and I'm breathing great right now. That is a HUGE drop.

I did not take Alavert allergy medicine today. I have been taking it every morning for so long (because I wake up all stuffed up and have to blow my nose a thousand times) that I think I was becoming immune to it. I had started taking it 2 times in one day, which you aren't supposed to do, but by evening I needed another. Today, nothing. No Alavert. YAY!!!

I'm aware too that the Singulair they put me on is helpful for allergies and asthma. I have 28 days more to go on that prescription. Only 4 days to finish off the prednisone.

Other than a headache and other *unmentionable* signs of detoxing, I felt great. The worst thing was being sleepy.