Week Twelve Summary

Week Twelve and I'm hanging in there.

The drops that last week were so hard to remember to take are starting to be a habit once again.

I was able to pick up a 25lb bag of carrots early on in the week and did my first batch of carrot/apple/celery juice. In Edmonton and Montreal the bags were typically $25 each.  LifeStyle Markets, a large, organic grocer on the edge of downtown Victoria, has them for $30. Serendipitously, I was able to pick up a bag at a local grocery store, a one-time special of $20.

I was going to buy a twin-gear Green Star (link) juicer like the one my sister has. It's a top of the line twin-gear juicer, but the $550 US price tag made me pause. A conversation with a friend of my sister's led to the recommendation of a Lexen (link) unit.

It uses a single auger, isn't as robust, or high quality, but they've done a great job of getting decent performance at the price point of $150 US! That's the one I ordered and have been using. The pulp is a bit wetter than I remember with the Green Star, suggesting that it isn't quite as efficient.

However, for someone on a budget, or unsure if they're going to be using a juicer on an ongoing basis, I would say this is a great machine to start with. One can always upgrade down the road. (There are other machines as well. I will be doing a more in-depth comparison of various machines at a later date.)

The stats for this past week:

                             01/17/10             01/24/10           Change

Weight              129.0 lbs.               127.2                   -1.8 lbs.
A similar weight drop to last week. I'm somewhat surprised that I continue to lose weight. I continue to feel strong and healthy, however, so will continue with the raw food.

Body Fat           17.2 lbs.                 16.3                    -0.9 lbs.

Exactly half the weight loss this week is body fat.

BMI                     20.2                       20.0                     -0.2

A reflection of the weight loss.

Body Fat           13.3%                     12.8                     -0.5%       

Same as above but as a percentage.

Water                62.9%                     63.6                     +0.7%

The increasing water content continues to surprise me, particularly as I'm not making any particular effort to drink more water.

Bone Mass        6.4%                       6.4                       No change.

The bone mass seems to be holding its own.

Week Eleven Summary

Week Eleven and I'm back into the swing of things eating raw 100% of the time.

Psychologically, weaning myself off the Brie cheese, etc has been difficult. (My grandmother was very French and when visiting her as a kid, Brie and Camenbert were served on special occasions.) Every time I go by the coolers where they're kept, I just want to reach in and grab one.

Getting into the routine of taking my drops, etc. has been even more challenging. It's amazing how quickly one forgets what one doesn't like doing. Just before I left Montreal, the naturopath added two tablespoons of Vita Spec each evening to my list of "medications." I'm wracking my brains trying to figure out what it was for, but don't recall at the moment. (I will email my sister to find out.)

He also added 2oz. of Essiac daily. Essiac (link) is proported to be an Ojibwa remedy composed of burdock root, slippery elm bark, sheep sorrel and Turkish rhubard. Rene Caisse, (link) (Essiac is Caisse spelled backwards), a Canadian nurse, obtained the recipe in the 1920's and promoted it against much opposition from the medical establishment of the day.

Her story makes for a fascinating read. There are a number of books out on the market that chronicle her experiences with successfully treating cancer (and diabetes) patients.  Today, partially as a result of her secrecy, there are also many suppliers, each claiming to have the original/best recipe. (The two links above are a couple of entry points into the controversy.)

The Essiac I purchased at the naturopath's clinic was $4/oz. Not cheap. There are do-it-yourself recipes where one can brew up the herbs at home for a fraction of the cost. Unfortunately, I've heard it can be quite a smelly process, so I'm hesitant to take that route at the moment.

I was also able to get a lead on organic, juicing carrots and will follow up with that in the coming week.

The stats for this past week:

                             01/11/10             01/17/10          Change

Weight              130.2 lbs.               129.0                -1.2 lbs.
A much smaller drop this week from the almost 5 pounds last week. I never imagined I'd drop under 130 pounds, but here I am. Looking at myself in the mirror, I notice how thin I am. I feel fine, however, and am happy with my progress, so I'm going to continue.

Body Fat           18.1 lbs.                 17.2                   -0.9 lbs.

Virtually all of the weight loss is body fat. A good thing.

BMI                     20.4                        20.2                 -0.8

A reflection of the weight loss.

Body Fat           13.9%                     13.3                 -1.6%
Same as above but as a percentage.

Water                62.9%                     62.9                   0.0

Water content is holding its own.

Bone Mass        6.4%                       6.4                     0.0

The bone mass seems to be holding its own.

Week Ten Summary

Week Ten and all is well.

I've enjoyed the modified diet. Over the past two weeks, I've indulged in some Brie cheese, Ryvita and other types of non-gluten crackers along with some "Holy Hummous," dip,  a few helpings of cooked, organic rice cereal, and some very tasty lentils made by a friend of a friend. Pretty tame really, but appreciated all the same.

Taking a break at this time of year feels like the right thing to do. And, given my weight loss it also felt good to slow the cleansing process down a little with a bit of cooked food, etc.

Of course getting back on board is a bit tough.....

The stats for this past week:

                             01/03/10             01/11/10           Change

Weight              134.9 lbs.               130.2                   -4.7 lbs.
Almost 5 pounds! Now that I'm back on the 100% raw food diet, the downward trend in weight has returned.

In my last meeting with the naturopath, he emphasized how it was raw, vegetables and fruit that provided the nutrition and the cleansing action. Seeds and nuts are also nutritious, but don't assist with the cleansing process. In fact, they are much harder to digest and the reason why they should be eaten only after having been soaked. Both these reasons are why he cautions against consuming seeds and nuts too often.

Body Fat           20.9 lbs.                 18.1                    -2.8 lbs.

A significant part of the weight loss is body fat again this week.

BMI                     21.2                        20.4                     -0.8

A reflection of the weight loss.

Body Fat           15.5%                     13.9                     -1.6%       

Same as above but as a percentage.

Water                61.7%                     62.9                    +1.2%

Amazingly, my water content is continuing to rise, in spite of my inattention to my water intake!

Bone Mass        6.4%                       6.4                       No change.

The bone mass seems to be holding its own.

December Monthly Review #2

Here we are, our second monthly review. Again in no particular order.

Probably the biggest change this month has been the warmer weather here in Victoria compared to Montreal. No snow and temperatures consistently above freezing makes eating raw food so much more enjoyable. Who knows, maybe I'll try Mexico next and see how that feels!

I imagine it would have been possible to go through the Christmas/New Year season eating 100% raw. In the big picture, however, I find giving myself a bit of a break has made this whole process more manageable and enjoyable. The trick of course, is getting back on board when the time comes.

When I started this process, I was on the high end of my weight range and had a bit of a paunch that I wasn't happy about. Thirty pounds less, that is certainly no longer the case. Last month I had to replace my belt, this month I had to get new jeans. Now that I'm on the low end of my weight range, I definitely feel lighter and more comfortable in my body.

Last month, I mentioned that tossed green salad all day, every day was starting to wear thin, and that I needed to start researching raw food recipes. Well, I've started that process with a book on Salad Dressings and the discovery of some interesting raw food sites on the Web. (More on that later.) I've also been stocking up on spices, etc. and am starting to do a little experimenting. So far, so good.

I'm quite amazed at how much time and energy this process takes. I've read about people who go on a 100% raw food diet while continuing to work full time. I don't know how they do it. I find that between sleeping in and going to bed early, the research, the (almost daily) shopping for fresh food, juicing, food preparation, drops, etc. the day goes by extremely quickly. I imagine that one day this will become second nature, and that I will be able to do it much more efficiently and quickly. For the moment, however, I find it takes up a significant part of the day.

Many sources speak to the power of carrot juicing to cure cancer and other serious diseases. Somewhere along the line, however, my carrot juicing slowly came to a halt. I definitely need to get back to a daily intake of 20 oz. of carrot juice.

Week Nine Summary

Week Nine. It feels good to be starting the New Year with this new diet. I'm also pleased the changes to my diet so far have been minimal.

It's taken some time and effort to get set up anew here on the west coast. Fortunately, I did order some items ahead of time, one of which was a book on salad dressings. Salad Dressings for Life (available from Hallelujah Acres) http://ecommerce.hacres.com/Educational/Recipes-Books has proven to be quite helpful. I also went out and bought a wide assortment of spices and herbs which has made it possible for me to make a number of tasty dressings.

These dressings, Orange-Tahini,  Lemon,  Russian,  Avocado Tomato,  Tangy Mango  etc. have gone a long way toward creating a sense of variety in the salads I've been having. This is particularly important when raw vegetables are pretty much the only things one has to work with.

I'm not much of a cook, so having a few recipes, some of them quite simple, has boosted my confidence and encouraged me to be more intentional and adventuresome around my "cooking."

The stats for this past week show an interesting change of direction:

                             12/27/09             01/03/10           Change

Weight              133.7 lbs.               134.9                   +1.2 lbs.

Interesting how the introduction of cooked food quickly changes one's weight.

A few years ago I spent about a month in a health spa in Mexico. I lost about 25 pounds and arrived back in Canada weighing about 140 pounds. Once home, I continued to eat well but, unlike Mexico, cooked food was a bigger part of my diet. I put on one or two pounds a week. Within six months, I was back to my old weight of about 165 pounds.

I'm no doctor, but this anecdotal evidence (along with the resumption of weight loss in the coming weeks once I return to raw food) strongly suggests that a raw food diet goes a long ways in assisting a person lose any unnecessary weight.

Body Fat           20.3 lbs.                 20.9                    +0.6 lbs.

Half the increase is fat. Not totally surprising as I've indulged in delicious Brie cheese and hummous this past week.

BMI                     21.0                        21.2                     +0.2

A slight increase due to a slight weight gain.

Body Fat           15.0%                     15.5                     +0.5       

Same as above but as a percentage.

Water                62.0%                     61.7                    -0.3%

For the first time, a very small downward change. Not sure if it's a reflection of the weight gain, or the diet.

Bone Mass        6.4%                       6.4                       No change.

The bone mass seems to be holding its own.

Week Eight Summary

Note: 1/16/10. My apologies for the delay, a combination of Christmas holidays and some technological challenges in my new location. I hope to catch up over the coming week.

Week Eight. Two months have come and gone, and I'm delighted to say that I'm doing pretty well.

A few days after my lemon fast I started feeling more energy, and that has continued through to today. I don't seem to need the same 10 to 12 hours of sleep as I did in previous weeks. Eight to ten hours seem to be sufficient these past few days.

I've decided to take a break from Montreal (and the snow) to visit friends on Vancouver Island. My Christmas Eve flight to Victoria went well. The airports were busy, but not unduly so.

I prefer to consciously take a break from the raw food diet than to find myself overwhelmed and in a moment of frustration "fall off the wagon." Given the temptations of the season and the challenges of preparing a new place with the appliances and food necessary to continue with my diet, I've decided to take a modified approach the last week of December and the first week of January. No big changes really. A bit of cooked food I wouldn't otherwise have, a bit of cheese and other nibbles, that sort of thing.

The electronic scale used for the measurements this week is made by the same manufacturer, for the same company, but it is a different model than the one I was using in Montreal. (I'm sure that the results will be essentially the same as those I would have gotten in Montreal, but I felt I should note the change.)

The stats for this past week:

                             12/20/09            12/27/09           Change

Weight              134.4 lbs.             133.7                   -0.7 lbs.

A very slight drop this week.

Body Fat           21.0 lbs.               20.3                    -0.7 lbs.

Another week where 100% of the week's weight loss is body fat. Amazing!

BMI                     15.7                        21.0                    

This new scale puts my BMI index much higher. Not sure what is going on, but since it is a calculated field (based on height and weight) I will just go back to the previous weeks and do the calculations manually.

Body Fat           21.1%                     15.0                   

Same as above but as a percentage. (Another calculated field which seems off. I will review and adjust if necessary.)

Water                61.5%                     62.0                    +0.5%

The continued rise in my water percentage continues to amaze me, as I know only too well I've not been drinking a lot of water in the course of the day. I can only attribute this to the water content in the raw food, and the absence of coffee, which is a diuretic.

Bone Mass        6.4%                      6.4                       No change.

If I continue with a healthy diet, this very slight deficiency in bone mass will slow down and eventually rectify itself as the body becomes more alkaline and the levels of calcium start to rise from eating raw food.

Raw Food Heaven

Yesterday, my sister and her husband treated me to supper at one of the 100% raw food restaurants here in Montreal -a celebration of my progress to date/Christmas present combo. A lovely gesture on their part. Thank you Susie and Michel.

Crudessence, Crudessence.com/en/services/restaurant, is a tiny, hole-in-the-wall establishment located on a side street near Mont Royal. A small, light green sign, easily missed, marks the entrance. A wide variety of raw food cookbooks line the wall on the right of the entrance, a small kitchen in the back, eight or nine small tables for two, a classical guitarist playing in the background, and a lovely, friendly, waitress busy with guests and take-out orders greeted us when we arrived about 7 p.m. 

 The restaurant has a minimal amount of decor; The real art work is the fabulous food, and gorgeous presentation.

It would have been nice to have had a few more dishes to try out. Unfortunately, they were out of the soups and the Japanese-themed dishes. I substituted an entree for the soup included in the daily special -a nachos style creation with side dishes of avocado and tomatoes diced and marinating in an olive oil dressing. There was also a tasty paste-like spread with sliced radishes and cherry tomatoes for garnish. 

The main dish was the Om Burger. A lovely creation and quite filling. Using various spices they did a fabulous job of recreating the taste one would expect of mustard, ketchup and mayonnaise. The resemblance was uncanny, and yet, it tasted even better. 

The salad mostly consisted of tiny slices of cauliflower with a dusting of seaweed throughout. A bit of red cabbage done up in long strings and finely crated carrots for color. One of the dressings, was made with coconut water, agave syrup, and carrigan seed powder. It had a very unique taste. I quite liked it.

Dessert was a cocoa-banana crêpe. From what I gathered, Brazil nuts and bananas are mixed together into a purée, which is then poured very thinly onto Teflon sheets and dehydrated. The crêpe was filled with sliced, ripe bananas, with chopped hazel nuts sprinkled throughout. The outside was decorated with a cocoa sauce. 

The food was delicious, beautifully prepared and presented and a fitting celebration of my time here in Montreal. It is also an inspiration and challenge to me to stretch myself to find creative ways to make raw food more fun and tasty. (The one qualifier is that much of the food is quite rich. Ironically, eating like this every day would probably not be that healthy.) 

Anybody out there with a favourite recipe they´d like to share?