Tuesday, June 15, 2010.....Day 150

Day 150 of the Fruit Feast. Today is exactly 5 months of 100% Raw. Last year i did 7 months but the difference this year at this point is the focus is not so much on the salt, but to stay away from the grains. i was thinking i needed to overcome salt as the next step in my journey (now i still think i will have to eventually), but the next item in my progression was the grains. Being raw without them and with the salt seems very easy. i am feeling really good and strong. My mind is very clear. i want to say this though, NOT EVERYBODY SHOULD GIVE UP GRAINS. i don't believe in a one size fits all health program. Everybody is different. i know people that eat grains and have no problems. But for me, they cause mucous and clog my system. So i need to avoid them. The deal for me was that all my life i was raised on them. Stuff like bread, pancakes, muffins, popcorn, rice, pizza dough and so forth are things i ate from as long as i can remember. Even as a vegan i ate those things. When i began my raw journey in 2004, i still used Ezekiel bread and Bulgar wheat because i thought they were raw at the time. It was last year, when, after i failed in my quest to get rid of salt and got a little discouraged that i really noticed it. i began to eat the Bulgar wheat with the avocado and/or boiled plantain. Now, i was focused on the salt but the wheat caused mucous to come up in my nose less than 24 hours after i ate it. Then i ate the popcorn, rice and home made pizza dough figuring to start raw fruitarian again in January (which i was blessed to do).

Of course i could feel my system getting clogged up and i definitely noticed it in my bowels. This year, after i fell off the salt wagon at my wife's surprise party, i didn't eat any grains. i stayed raw. No mucous, no clogging of my system. Yes, i did feel some water retention, but it was not the same thing. Now, i am still believing that eventually the salt will go, but i am not as worried about it right now. i am very glad that the grains are gone. i loved them, but they did not like me. The nuts help me as an excellent substitute. As long as i don't eat them whole (i tend to overdo that) and just use them in recipes (like the Fruit Fusion). i would like to soak them from time to time, but i never think about it in advance. If a person was interested in going raw from eating dairy and flesh foods, i would begin with just vegan. That is no flesh or dairy but i would use the grains along with fruits, vegetables and nuts. Then progress over time to raw vegan. There are those that jump into raw vegan ism almost from day one, but i find these people are rare. Particularly if they are going to do it for several years.  Most people are not like that but instead progress over time. Some take more time than others. This is my seventh year at this and i am just getting to the point of dumping grains (hopefully for good). In some ways, i believe people want to rush into it because either they are that type of personality and/or they desperately want to lose weight. But honestly if we are talking about making permanent changes for the rest of our lives, perhaps some deliberation, patience and thought are appropriate. i seek to avoid comparing myself to others who have gone to raw vegan because, while i can get some tips from others, everyone is not the same.

2 Corinthians 10:12 For we dare not make ourselves of the number, or compare ourselves with some that commend themselves: but they measuring themselves by themselves, and comparing themselves among themselves, are not wise.

 i find most of the people (some would say "gurus") seem to imply that everyone is exactly like them and so every one's path must be like theirs. While there are many things similar to all humans, there are just as many things different. Anyways, that is my soapbox for the day.

i am fasting today so i will post what i ate yesterday.

Breakfast: 36oz of fresh OJ. 1/2 a large watermelon.

Lunch: 8 raw cabbage wraps.

Dinner: 48oz watermelon-cantaloupe juice.

Spiritual bread: Job 25-28, Jude

Exercise: 500 push ups, 120 chins...50 minutes. 6 games of full court ball with my son (4 games to 2, hey maybe next time kid).

Grace and peace be multiplied to all.

todd