Vegetables and me

My friend Kimberly and her family recently did a 30-day raw food challenge. Her daughter has Type 1 diabetes, and they were able to very quickly cut her insulin intake by half, and then it continued to decline! Needless to say, their story caught my attention.

And then Alyse, another friend, posted this link along with a matter-of-fact comment about how much her health has improved since she started her raw diet: "I love that I have not only healed my body from some pretty debilitating stuff, but that it goes beyond great health to great happiness - and it was the happiness that came first."

My attitude toward nutrition information is extremely skeptical. Nutritionists and the often-corporate-funded FDA have given exactly the wrong advice too many times over the years. But this was first-hand experiential information from a couple of women who are, well, no flakier than the rest of us unschoolers. (In case you can't tell, this is a compliment, K&A! lol)

But the idea of going completely raw... Well, it intimidated me. So I asked them for some advice on ways to ease into it. Kim suggested trying some ready-to-eat salads with raw nuts and picking up some Odwalla juices. Alyse suggested, among other things, the raw foodists' staple, green smoothies. I got started on Monday.

Day one: Had a Wendy's salad for dinner instead of a burger. It had chicken and cheese on it.

Day two: I took advantage of the loaded salad bar at work and had a BIG salad for lunch. Completely raw, which was actually tricky because so many of the things in the salad bar are cooked. They even blanch the broccoli! Snacked on roasted but unflavored almonds.

Day three: Our anniversary. I ate whatever I wanted. Interestingly, what I wanted most during our fancy steak-and-lobster dinner was the side vegetables. I ate so many of them that I couldn't finish my steak.

Day four: Another big salad at work, mostly romaine and spinach.

Day five (today): I had a bowl of cereal at about 11, munched on some of the aforementioned almonds at about 3, and am just finishing up a HOMEMADE salad of romaine, mustard greens, and gloriously un-blanched broccoli.

So, here's the thing. It is too soon for me to notice substantial effects from such a limited increase in raw foods. On the other hand, it has been a substantial increase in green vegetables. And what I'm noticing is:

• Carbs are less attractive (until they're attractive, and then I want them NOW).
• My appetite is reduced.
• I am craving even more greens.

And suddenly the idea of going completely raw is not so intimidating.