80/10/10? Low-Fat Raw Vegan? Raw Till 4?

Recently I have been testing out a new way of eating.  I have switched from a higher fat vegan diet with multiple cooked foods, to a low fat/high carbohydrate vegan diet with mostly raw meals.  I stay completely raw throughout the day until later in the evening.  In the evening I may stay completely raw, eating a huge salad with maybe a half an avocado, sprouted nuts/seeds, or a nut/seed based dressing.  Other times I may eat a cooked meal like a veggie-burger, hummus, potatoes, soup, or rice and beans.  I still try to stay around the 80/10/10 macronutrient ratio, but will up my protein percentage with training (triathlon).  On a hard workout day I will continue to use my favorite supplements from Vega.  At the time being, I cannot call myself a "Low Fat Raw Vegan", however I think Tracy Russel from incrediblesmoothies.com says it best---

"I know what you’re thinking – “That’s not raw!”, and you’re correct. I’m only eating about 80% raw, but I still follow the low fat vegan diet. I would rather eat a cooked, vegan meal made mostly of vegetables and a wheat bun then indulge in a high fat raw meal that is going to make me feel tired and mess up my digestion"

I still plan on aiming for the same macronutrient count, but will still incorporate some non-raw foods into my diet.  Its all about what makes me, and my body, feel good.  

The Redheaded Triathlete

HCLF

If you follow me on my other Social Networks, you would have seen that I am taking a trip this coming Spring.....to.....HAWAII!!!!!  I am beyond excited to be attending the Woodstock Fruit Festival Hawaii 2015 ;-)

I first learned about the Woodstock Fruit Festival through Matt Frazier's blog No Meat Athelete. I had been following this blog for a while and purchased his Half Marathon Roadmap (which was awesome by the way!). In his blog he talked all about different vegan lifestyles, including 80/10/10. 80/10/10?!? What is that???  Dr. Doug Graham, author of 80/10/10, describes this diet as the optimal way of eating for our bodies.  80/10/10 stands for the macronutrient percentage of 80% carbohydrate, 10% protein, and 10% fat.  This is the approximate proportion of macros if you eat mostly raw fruit, greens, and a very small amount of avocado/nuts/seeds.   I, like most people, found it hard to believe someone could eat only raw fruits and vegetables and survive. That is before I listened to Matt's interview with Michael Arnstein. 

Mike "the Fruitarian" Arnstein is an incredibly successful ultra endurance athlete, winning numerous events on a raw food diet. However, Mike does not follow the high-fat raw vegan diet that many have probably heard about. He follows a very high carbohydrate-low fat/protein diet.  Raw fruit during the day, raw vegetables in the evening, and little to no overt fats.  A typical day of food for Mike:

"If I am doing a morning workout, my daily diet goes like this: Upon waking, I immediately drink 2 liters of distilled water. Then I juice two large glasses worth of fresh organic oranges. I start my workout. After my workout, I usually eat one type of fresh, ripe, in-season fruit for the rest of the day, until dinner time. Common ones include oranges, bananas, melons, or apples. For dinner I usually have a large salad of romaine lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, maybe some avocado on occasion. If I have a dressing it is usually just some blended orange. A late-night snack might be grapes, mango, or some other more exotic/seasonal fruit. " Mike Arnstein  

This way of eating seems extremely intimidating, but something I want to try.  I already eat a high-raw diet; tons of raw vegetables and a good amount of raw fruits.  However, this is nothing compared to the amount of fruit in this diet.  Could I really do this?  Well, I am going to try and start out small.  I plan to first start out with huge amounts of raw organic fruits throughout the day and some raw organic vegetables in the evening.  I will, however, allow myself a cooked meal in the evening if I really want it (coined the "Raw Till 4" diet).  I believe this will give me the best chance of transitioning to this new way of eating/living. 

Wish me luck everyone

I will be keeping you all posted ;-)

The Redheaded Triathlete

Featured on The Seasonal Diet Blog

I have some awesome news.  I have been given the honor of being featured on The Seasonal Diet Blog!  The incredible people of The Seasonal Diet (Sarah and Peter) have chosen to interview me as a "Tastemaker".  How cool is that?  It is such an honor, and I feel so blessed for this opportunity. 

I have been following this blog for a while now and it is definitely one of my favorites. Written by one of my favorite couples, The Seasonal Diet is full of great information about healthy eating and living--vegan style! They create various challenges throughout the year with totally rockin prize packs for the winners of the challenges.  I love how interactive Peter and Sarah have made their blog. These two have influenced me in many ways, and have caused change in my life for the better. New foods and habits have now entered my life and I am so thankful ;-) 

If you haven't already done so, go to theseasonaldiet.com and check out this awesome blog. If you like what you see, make sure you join the Tastemaker community and get yourself the cookbook!  You will not be disappointed!!! 

And don't forget to check out my interview with Peter on their blog 

Thanks Sarah and Peter 

You guys rock! 

Dipping My Toes into Juice...Cleansing That Is

Juice cleansing has become a topic talked about more frequently in our society. A day of only juice has always mystified me. I could not imagine consuming only juice for an whole day.  Although, it would be kind of cool to try it, right?  Maybe a sort of challenge. See if I can put mind over matter, or fiber in this case hehe

I made my first green juice while doing The Seasonal Diet's Weekend Cleanse. My SD Weekend Cleanse started off with warm lemon water and then a green juice. Being a complete coffee addict....not having a piping hot pour-over to begin my day kind of scared me. Luckily, the green juice pulled through! Power to the Plants :-) Sarah and Peter made a how-to video about using a blender and nutmylk bag to make a juice. I loaded up my Vitamix and blended all that plant goodness! Next was to Cleanse started off with warm lemon water and then the green juice. Being a complete coffee addict....not having a piping hot pour-over to begin my day kind of scared me. Luckily, the green juice pulled through! Power to the Plants :-) 

The SD Weekend Cleanse went great.  Sarah and Peter did an excellent job setting up the meal-plans (amazing recipes!), had great advice, and introduced a few new things into my life.  Such as Aloe Juice, facial masks, and even oil-pulling.  This weekend challenge was a great introduction to cleansing and a great way to ease into it. Check out this weekend cleanse if you are new and want to start out easy with good direction ;-)
The two homemade juices were super-tasty, and they seemed to give me an immediate energy that I did not expect. Maybe I could do a day of juices!

What are the odds that a new, local juicery would be opening up at the same time that I was thinking of cleansing? Totum Juice offers fresh, unpasteurized, cold-pressed juice made daily from local produce. Now this is what I am talking about. A group of local people, using local produce, to make unbelievably good products. I had to give these guys a shot.

I hoped on their website and began browsing the offerings. Should I try the Hulk? The Rise 'n Shine? Hmm decisions decisions... They all sounded pretty good, but I was unsure of which I would like the most. What do you do when you cannot decide? You get a mixture!  I decided to order their MidTown (Intermediate) Cleanse which included 6 different juices: The Hulk, Rise 'n Shine, 7 Wonders, Jus Beet It, Sweet Greens, and Deep Greens. With my order placed, I patiently waited for my lovely package to arrive. 

I came home one evening and found a package on my porch. It was here. And it was on! Tomorrow marks the day of my very first all juice cleanse. Let's do it 

My Day Cleanse:

0730-Woke up and read

0815-Glass of water 

0845-15 minutes of yoga

09-Glass of warm lemon water

0930-10 more minutes of yoga and 10 of Jai Release Meditation

0950-Glass of water 

1000-Hulk Juice

1015-Shower-time

1045-Left for farmer's market 

1130-Bottle of water

1230-Rise 'n Shine juice 

1330- Bottle of water

1425- 7 Wonders juice at the Coop Grocery 

1530- Bottle of water 

1615- Jus Beet It juice 

1700- 1/2 Glass of water

1815- Sweet Greens juice followed by the Deep Green juice (combo'd these)

2045- 15 minutes of Jai Release Meditation

2100- Lay down for bed 

Each and every one of the Totum Juices were outstanding!  I have tried decided which one was my favorite, but cannot decide. Each time I think I come close to selecting one, I think about a different one and think "actually I think that juice was best, no wait that one".  Genius combination of ingredients. Great work Totum :)

Surprisingly, I did not feel hungry during the day of no "food". I figured I would feel hungry only drinking things throughout the day. I also thought that I would feel out of energy, but not the case at all. I raved with energy after each of the juices!!  Not only did I make it through the day, I blasted through it. This juice cleanse was a great experience and I may do another one in the future.  

I want to give a huge thank you to Totum Juice for providing me with incredible juice. You have now made me a huge juice fan, and I am a proud supporter of the company. 

Check them out at totumjuice.com and get your juice on!! 

@totumjuice
Totum Juice FB
Totum Juice IG