Veganize

When I first became vegan, I really thought it was going to be a struggle and in the beginning it most definitely was. However, it is getting easier and easier. I think the fact that I love to cook and I generally have time to cook, has really helped my cause. When I was eating the SAD (Standard American Diet), food was good but cooking got a bit boring because I found myself cooking the same meals over and over again. Now eating has become more exciting and adventurous for me because most of the time when I cook, it is something new and delicious and the best part is, I don't have to feel guilty about what I am eating.

A lot of time when I talk to people about being vegan, they tell me that they could never do it because it seems so hard and they could never give up meat. They also just have no idea what I do eat and sometimes seem to have a negative image in their mind about "vegan food" as if it is disgusting and repulsive. I completely understand though because I am sure that I felt the same way before I learned different. But let me assure you that I have a love for food and I NEVER eat food that tastes disgusting. In fact, everything that I eat tastes amazing and I generally let as many people as I can try it so they can see that you don't have to sacrifice flavor for good nutrition. I have eaten some of the tofu fake meats, and that stuff is pretty gross so I highly recommend avoiding it. I must add that now, since it has been so long that I have eaten meat, the thought of eating it actually seems weird to me....strange isn't it?

With the cold weather that fall has brought I have been making a lot of soups. Sometimes I just throw a bunch of stuff in a pot and other times I will google something and then "veganize" it. "Veganizing" is fun and easy once you learn all of the substitutes that are out there for vegans. This may or may not be something that you want to try but I decided to make a list for those of you who are interested.

Butter-Earth Balance Buttery Spread
Milk-Almond milk
Parmesan cheese-vegan Parmesan cheese or nutritional yeast
Table salt-sea salt
Cheese-vegan cheese
White flour-wheat flour
White pasta-whole grain pasta
Chicken broth or bouillon-vegetable broth or bouillon
Cream cheese-vegan cream cheese
Soy sauce-Bragg's Liquid Aminos
Sugar-Stevia

I may be leaving out a few but I have used these substitutes for things such as gravy, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, pumpkin cheesecake, apple pie, cream of potato soup, spaghetti, spinach & artichoke dip and many, many more recipes. I would be happy to "veganize" any recipe you have that you want to try to make healthier or pass on any recipes that I currently have that anyone is interested in. So, let me know and I would be more than happy to help!

Eggplant Veggie Medley With Spices From Far Away

Sometimes I get the urge to cook something random. Darek and I went to an Indian restaurant in Orlando yesterday and the food was so delicious that when I got home I was inspired to try to cook something comparable. I tend to have a lot of random ingredients in my kitchen so I put a little bit of thought into it and I came up with something that we will call: "Eggplant Vegetable Medley With Spices From Far Away". It actually turned out quite delicious so I am going to share the recipe with you. Keep in mind that you can alter the portions of certain vegetables or even add a few different vegetables and it will still turn out delicious. I am going to list the ingredients as if you are cooking a meal for 3-4 people.

Ingredients:
1 Eggplant, chopped into cubes
1 8oz pkg of white mushrooms, chopped into medium size pieces
1 white onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
3-4 tbsp safflower oil (you can also use olive oil, safflower oil is just good to use when cooking with high heat)
2-3 tsp curry powder
2-3 tsp ground ginger
Juice from 1-2 lemons
garlic powder (I never measure garlic powder I just put A LOT!)
sea salt to taste
3 tbsp fresh, chopped cilantro

Note: If I was making this again I would add cauliflower and green pepper)

Heat oil in a skillet, add garlic then add everything else and stir! Squeeze the lemon juice over the vegetables as you cook them and cook until the vegetables appear to be done. You may want to add a little bit of water (about 2-3 tbsp while cooking).

The flavors were so awesome and I enjoyed this very much, I hope you will try it and enjoy it as much as I did!

Where Do I Get My Protein & Calcium?

As you can imagine (heck, you may even be thinking the same thing) a question that I get ALL of the time when I tell someone I am vegan is: "Where do you get your protein?" or "Where do you get your calcium?" Before I answer this question I want you all to think really hard about something: have you EVER in your life known anyone that has been deficient in protein? Okay, so here is my answer....

There is so much misinformation floating around out there regarding protein. It may be hard for many to believe this but I get protein from nuts, seeds, grains, beans and VEGETABLES! Yes, VEGETABLES! Wait....what? Vegetables have protein??? YES! All plant matter contains protein, in fact, plant protein is the only protein that the body needs to build muscle and carry out many other functions. There are nine essential amino acids that your body needs. All nine of these are not found in one plant but all nine are found in plants. All nine of these are found in meat, however, animal protein is a proven carcinogen and is directly linked to causing cancer. Therefore, the healthier choice for my source of protein is plant protein because not only is animal protein a carcinogen but it contains fat and we all know what happens when you eat fat.

My answer to the calcium question is not much different. Calcium is found in an array of vegetables, mostly a lot of green leafy vegetables. Also, not only is calcium from animal sources (namely cows milk), linked to cancer and a very long list of other diseases and ailments but it cannot be properly absorbed by the human body. Therefore, I get plenty of calcium, I am just getting it from a much healthier source that can be assimilated by the body. Ask yourself this question: "Where do cows get the calcium they need to produce the calcium rich milk that they produce?"

I know it is a very popular misconception that "milk does a body good." I believed that for most of my life as I am sure a lot of you have as well. Sometimes in life you go along thinking one thing and then one day you find evidence that that thing is wrong so what do you do? You change your view based on the evidence provided. This is a hard thing for a lot of people to do, especially regarding cows milk. This is because the dairy advertising industry, misinformed doctors and government agencies swayed by profits have done a fabulous job of conditioning us to believe that it is essential that we drink cows milk. I want you to think about this. What other species on the planet drinks milk as an adult? What other species on the planet drinks the milk of another species? Answer: NONE! We are not baby cows and we do not have 4 chambers in our stomachs like cows do. So why does it make sense that we should drink milk? In my opinion, it doesn't make much sense at all. And I grew up drinking milk everyday. Compare a human baby to a baby cow....see any differences? Human milk is perfectly designed for human babies and cow milk is perfectly designed for baby cows. So why are baby and adult humans consuming something, at epic proportions, that was designed for a creature that could not be more different? Not only are we consuming it, but we are being led to believe that it is essential for optimal health that we consume it. I hope this answers your question.

Not only does it not make a whole lot of sense to drink baby cow food but the protein found in milk, casein, has been directly linked to promoting cancer growth. The information about these studies can be found in "The China Study" by T. Colin Campbell. If you don't believe me then get yourself a copy and read it. It will change your life and could very well save it.

I am sure that I have made my feelings on this subject clear. While I know that people will still disagree with me I want it to be clear that you are free to make your own decisions in life. Just ask yourself if the decisions you are making are informed ones. Ask yourself if the decisions you are making about your children's health are optimal for their health and well being? While doctors are there for a reason, serve a good purpose, and generally mean well, they have rarely had more that 1 hour, YES...1 HOUR!!!, of education regarding nutrition. If something does not make sense then question it. The research has been done. The answers are out there. Sometimes you just have to look for yourself.

I hope I have opened some of your eyes on this subject. Either way I still love you all. I just want to do what I can to inform people because I want to help and I genuinely care about people and their well being.

Best regards my friends!

Vegan Life

I started out doing the Hallelujah Diet on August 1, 2011. The Hallelujah Diet consists of a diet that is 85% raw fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds and grains while the other 15% of your food can be cooked. I stuck to the Hallelujah Diet for about a month where I was eating a lot of raw food but I must admit that while I still do eat raw food, I am currently eating more cooked food than raw. For the past 29 years I have eaten the SAD (Standard American Diet). For the past 2 months and 8 days I have been eating a vegan diet. I will not make excuses for why I have not stuck to a mostly raw food diet, basically I just wanted to cook stuff and have found it easier for me to stick to eating healthy when I can cook my food. Let's not get it twisted, if I became ill and was trying to cure myself of a deadly disease or condition then I believe 100% that I would be able to go back to eating mostly raw food and would have the ability to cure myself as so many others have. However, for now, I am going to be vegan.

Have I stuck to a whole food plant based diet 100% of the time for the past 2 months and 8 days? Well, mostly. I have only eaten meat on one occasion which was my class reunion a couple of weekends ago. I went to the reunion knowing that I was going to eat stuff I shouldn't and planned for it in advance by juicing the next day and basically flushing all of the crap out of my system. Sometimes I may go out to eat and have something that has a little bit of cream or yogurt in a sauce. But for the most part I do not eat any animal products.

How is my weight loss and overall health? I am still losing weight but the weight loss has slowed. My son will be 5 months old in 2 days and I currently weigh 134 lbs (13 lbs under the weight I was before I became pregnant). I feel good about my weight right now but would like to start lifting to get a little more toned. I do feel great though. I have a lot of energy, I rarely feel tired during the day at all and I stay up quite late and have to entertain and infant all day and work sometimes. My skin has cleared up and my mind feels clear as well. Some of my old clothes feel lose on me and I am down 3 notches in my belt. So I guess you could say that things are going quite well.

A lot of people probably think that being vegan is really hard and I can understand why they feel that way because I know I felt the same way at one time. I will not pretend that is is always easy but it does get easier as you learn how to make more delicious and versatile vegan dishes and find the restaurants that you can go to and eat a delicious vegan meal (Indian cuisine is by far, my favorite). The way I feel about my health and my physical appearance and the long term health benefits make it all worth it to me! Sure I have a weak moment every now and then but I eat as much food as I want and I truly enjoy everything that I eat.

I am interested to know something. When you hear the word "vegan" and you visualize someone who is vegan, what do you picture in your mind? I would love it if all of my followers would please post your responses as comments. That would be awesome, I would love to know what you think!

P.S. My better half, Darek, is doing great...he is down 45 lbs and looking and feeling great!

Darek's Results

As you know, the reason that we started this journey was because of Darek's results from his blood profile. Keep in mind that we started this on August 1st, so this is not even 2 months of eating this way. I would like to report that we received the new results from his blood work yesterday. Here are both the old and new results:

Starting total cholesterol: 219
New total cholesterol: 136
Starting HDL: 26
New HDL: 27 (this # actually needs to be higher)
Starting LDL: 159.6
New LDL: 93 <-----THIS IS AMAZING!!!
Starting Triglycerides: 167
New Triglycerides: 81

For those of you who are familiar with cholesterol numbers, this is quite impressive. I don't feel like I need to hark on all of the benefits of making healthy choices, the results speak for themselves. YAY Darek!!!

Zucchini Pasta

I don't know if any of you have an iphone. Well, I don't but Darek does and he found an app on his iphone called "Do Eat Raw". The app was only 99 cents and contains quite a few raw food recipes. This is one that sounded good so we had it for dinner last night and we both enjoyed it very much. The best part about it was that is was very simple with little prep time. I hope you like it!

Ingredients:
2 cups spiralised zucchini (or a little more)
2 cups diced tomato
1 avocado, sliced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tbsp lemon juice
pinch of dry rosemary
pinch of dry oregano
pinch of sea salt
dash of black pepper
(2 servings)


Description :
Place all ingredients into a bowl. Toss to mix. Serve and enjoy!

Tomolive Salad

A while back a purchased a tapas cookbook and I decided to browse through it recently to see if there were any healthy recipes that I could swipe. There are several different sections in this cookbook and they all of the recipes look delicious, there were a select few in the "made with vegetables" section that met my approval. Here is one that I made the other day and loved. It is a tomato & olive salad which I have renamed for my own intensive purposes! Here is the recipe, enjoy!

Ingredients:
(serves 6)

2 tbsp red wine vinegar
5 tbsp olive oil
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tsp paprika
4 tomatoes, peeled and diced
12 pimiento-stuffed olives (I used more than 12 and I sliced them)
1/2 cucumber, peeled and diced
2 shallots, finely chopped (I used onions instead)
1 tbsp pickled capers in brine, drained (I didn't have these so I left them out but I think they would have been a nice addition)
2-3 chicory heads, separated into leaves (I used romaine instead)
sea salt

*I like to give you the original recipe and then tell you how I did it to stress to you how easy it is to modify or substitute ingredients to save you time and money or to simply get creative and use up some of the food that you already have in your refrigerator*

First, make the dressing. Whisk the vinegar, olive oil, garlic and paprika together in a bowl. Season to taste with sea salt. Let this sit for a while to infuse the flavors.
Place the tomatoes, olives, cucumber, shallots (or onion), and capers in a separate bowl. Pour over the dressing and toss lightly. Arrange chicory (or romaine) leaves on a plate and spoon in an equal amount of the salad and serve.

Try it and tell me what you think!

Skinny-adillas

As you can imagine, transitioning from a lifestyle of eating anything and everything that you wish to a lifestyle of mostly raw food, can be quite difficult at times. At least it is for me. However, the benefits of this lifestyle keep me going. As you probably already know, I had a baby just over 3 months ago. I now weigh less than I did a year ago when I got pregnant. Also, I am already fitting into my pre-pregnancy clothes and I think I look better in them now than I did then. Not to mention, I feel great and the health benefits that I am gaining are tremendous. I do have a confession though, I slipped up and cheated the other night. I ordered a veggie pizza and ate the whole thing! Even though I felt a little bad about it, I mustn't lie, I enjoyed every slice as I devoured the entire (small) pizza! Since then I have been back on track and sticking to eating mostly raw but some cooked vegetables. One thing that has been a lifesaver for me is black beans. I have been cooking them so I can eat something warm that gives me protein. I came across a recipe today in a vegan cookbook that I bought a while back called "Skinny Bitch In the Kitch" by Rory Freedman and Kim Barnouin. I already had most of the ingredients and it sounded delicious (even though it is cooked) and so I decided I was going to give it a try. I am glad I did because I really enjoyed it. Here is the recipe, I hope you try it and love it as much as I did!

refined coconut oil (you will probably have to get this at a health food store)

whole wheat flour tortilla(s)

Vegan cheddar and/or jack cheese (this can usually be found in the organic vegetable section at a regular grocery store or at a health food store) *in my opinion this cheese does not taste good straight out of the pkg but once it is melted on the tortilla it is quite tasty*

drained black beans (I cooked my own and recommend you do the same so you can ensure better ingredients but you can use them out of a can if you wish, just remember the ones in the can will probably have preservatives and iodized salt)

Salsa (jarred or homemade...I chose not to make any and instead just chopped up and used onion and tomato in place of salsa)

Guacamole (there is a recipe for this on my last post)

*I did not include the amounts of each ingredient needed on purpose. You may want to make one for yourself of make them for the whole family. I seldom cook using measurements anyways because then you can alter it and put as much or as little as you like*

Spread refined coconut oil on one side of each flour tortilla. In a large skillet (with a lid), over medium heat, place tortilla in skillet, oil side down. Arrange cheese evenly on either half of the tortilla or the entire tortilla if you wish. Arrange the beans and salsa on top of the cheese (on only 1/2 of the tortilla). Cover and cook until cheese is melted. Remove lid and fold the tortilla in half with a spatula. If the outside of the tortilla is lightly brown and crispy then your quesadilla is done cooking. Remove from skillet and place on a plate. Cut it into quarters and serve with salsa and guacamole on side.

Delicious and good for you, a double whammy!

Holy Guacamole!

Today marks the 2 week point of when we started the Hallelujah Diet and so far, so good! This new lifestyle is treating me right. A year ago when I found out I was pregnant I weighed 147 lbs. With my pregnancy I gained just over 40 lbs. My child was born three months ago and I am now 146 lbs, 1 lb under my pre-pregnancy weight! This is very exciting to me. I must also mention that I am breastfeeding and that does help with weight loss, but I have lost 6 lbs in just over a week!

Darek and I are also doing a lot of walking. At least five times a week we walk a minimum of three miles. Today we walked 4.8 miles. At first, walking 3 miles would wear me out and now it is a piece of cake and I want to keep going. It feels so awesome!

Yesterday I spent some time at my grandmother's house with my mom and dad. We went swimming and Darek and I cooked dinner. I have been trying to motivate my family to eat a little better as well. We cooked them veggie kabobs and a delicious salad. Kabobs were lightly grilled and included: mushrooms, yellow squash, yellow pepper, red pepper, and onion. Salad included: mixed field greens, cucumber, tomato, onion, and red pepper topped with a dressing that included: minced garlic, lemon juice, balsamic vinegar, grape seed oil, herbs and spices. My father (who like vegetables but loves to eat everything else more) was very pleased with this dinner and said to me "That wasn't bad, I liked that!" Score!!! Spending quality time with the family and being a healthy influence at the same time....what a multitasker I am!

Now, on to my guacamole fix! I was grocery shopping yesterday and I came across a bag of Tostitos Multigrain Scoops. I checked out the ingredients and it was not 100% satisfactory because there was some salt and sugar but not enough to deter me (less than 1g of sugar!). I had been craving guacamole and I needed something to scoop it with so this my choice of a scooper! This is how I made my guacamole:

4 ripe avocados (cut in 1/2, remove seed, remove skin, place in medium sized bowl, and mash with a fork)
2 Roma tomatoes or 1 large tomato, chopped
2 cloves of garlic, minced (I like a lot of garlic!)
1/2 of an onion, minced
lemon juice (apx 3 tbspns, maybe more)
2 tbspns cilantro, minced
sea salt to taste

Mix all of these delicious ingredients together. I always start with a little lemon juice and salt, then I do a taste test and add more if needed.

This is simple, tasty, and one more way to make it easier for me to continue on this journey! Enjoy!

Fast & Friendly Five Dollar Footlong Fix

I was on the go today, a little crunched for time, and had not prepared anything healthy to eat in advance. So what did I do? I went to Subway. Here is what I ordered: A footlong veggie sub on whole grain wheat bread. They always ask you what kind of cheese you would like. No cheese for me Mrs. Subway lady! Toppings included: spinach leaves, lettuce, tomato, onion, cucumber, green pepper, oil & vinegar. If you usually like mayonnaise then you may want to ask them to go a little heavy on the oil and vinegar. You can also ask them to add extra of any of the toppings and they will be happy to. As you may know, their bread is delicious and it sounds nutritious with a name like whole grain wheat. I am just not 100% sure of all the ingredients obviously so I do not have a clue if there is anything in that bread that I shouldn't be eating. But honestly, if eating whole grain wheat bread from Subway is the worst thing you do then you are doing pretty dang good in my book!

If you are not used to eating this way then this sub may not sound too appetizing to you but I can assure you that it is. I have had these in the past (before I ever knew about the Hallelujah Diet) and would let my friends try them and they were always pleasantly surprised at how good they are. So, if time and pre-planning is your problem then here is a simple solution that will make you feel good when you are ordering it because the girl (or guy) making your sandwich and the people around you in line will see that you care about your body and health and who knows, you may even motivate some of them to try to be healthier!

P.S. You can get veggie subs like this anywhere that makes subs. For my Florida friends, Publix makes a mean veggie sub as well!

Curious Carissa's Crazy Carrot Question!

It's not actually a crazy question, however, the word "crazy" worked well with the alliteration so I went with it! As far as this program goes, skipping breakfast is not a bad thing. Until noon everyday your body is in cleansing mode. You can eat, but your body doesn't necessarily need to eat. One who typically does eat breakfast everyday may need to wean themselves off of it (like myself) because your body is inefficient at regulating blood sugar levels. I know this is contrary to everything you have ever heard because we have been taught that "breakfast is the most important meal of the day," but if your body is regulating blood sugar appropriately then you don't "need" it.

Carrot juice did not sound appealing to me at all at first, it sounded pretty gross. I was really surprised at how much I liked it, it is actually very sweet. We do have a "Jack Lalane" juicer. Darek is the one who typically uses it and it has never turned the carrots into carrot mush so I am not sure what you were doing wrong with the apples Carissa! Lately he has been adding collard and turnip greens to the carrot juice and I know that sounds really gross but it truly isn't. You can't even taste the greens at all and there are so many added vitamins such as calcium, vitamin A, vitamin C, iron, etc. A lot of people get concerned that you aren't getting nutrients with this type of program, especially for me since I am a breastfeeding mom, but these nutrients are much more adequate than diary since your body cannot assimilate the calcium in dairy as well because it is pasteurized.

The reason that juicing the carrots yourself is more beneficial is because they contain live enzymes and after 24-48 hours after juicing they oxidize, breaking down the enzymes. Yes Carissa, I have tried the Bolthouse Farms drinks and some of them were yummy. I have never tried the carrot one though I would imagine that it does not taste too bad. If you are not going to juice your own carrots then a Bolthouse Farm drink is definetly a better option than having Coke, but that is ultimately your decision my friend. Like I have said before, making changes where you are replacing something bad with something better (even if it doesn't fit this program 100%) is never a bad thing.

Ice Cream You Scream

My friend gave me an idea the other day and then I saw a recipe that was similar to what she was saying and I wanted to share the result with you. Now, this is not 100% Hallelujah, however, it is still very healthy and I am not expecting my followers to do this program 100% anyways.

I know a lot of people have a weakness for ice cream and I found a way to make it healthy! You will need the following:

1 frozen banana (peel, slice, then freeze)
1 cup of frozen strawberries, raspberries, peaches, or any fruit you like
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/4 cup to 1/2 cup almond milk

In a food processor, pulse fruit until coarsely chopped (you will have an easier time accomplishing this if the fruit is chopped prior to being frozen). Add vanilla extract through top of food processor. Then, add the almond milk a little at a time until you get a creamy puree.

Serve, and enjoy!

This was so simple and your kids will love it! One way to make it easier to live a normal life while getting healthy at the same time! I hope you try this and love it as much as I did!

Keepin It Real

I believe with every fiber of my being that this "diet" is the way one should eat to achieve maximum health and wellness. That being said, I must make something very clear. I am not trying to deter anyone if you are thinking of trying this lifestyle, but as I am sure you can know, this is not easy the easiest thing in the world. I have been going strong for over a week now but I will not pretend for a second that I have not had the urge to drive through Taco Bell, order a bean burrito with extra cheese and sour cream, and scarf it down. I will not pretend that I have not daydreamed about eating a big juicy cheeseburger topped with bacon, blue cheese crumbles, grilled onions and a ton of mayonnaise and then chasing it down with a big, bubbly glass of coke or sweet tea. I have had these types of thoughts often. So far I have managed to overcome them. I often think about how I would feel afterwards and that seems to help.

I would compare this to quitting a drug addiction (not that I have ever had to kick one of those!). It is very similar because as you may know, food is a form of a drug (at least some foods are). This takes a lot of discipline and if Darek was not also doing this then I don't believe I would ever make it. This seems to be easier for him than it is me and I am assuming that is because of the bad results from his blood work. I am still going to continue because I know it's the right thing to do. Not to mention, I can feel my waistline shrinking more and more each day which is cool!

Knowing that I may help motivate others is also helping me to stay disciplined. I just wanted to be clear that I am not some super powered health freak with awesome discipline. I have cravings just like anyone else would. I just wanted to keep it real!

¡El Chopped-o a la Ensalada-o!

This is a cabbage chopped salad that I made the other day. I just chopped up the following ingredients and mixed them together:
Cabbage, spinach, romaine lettuce, carrots, tomatoes, scallions, green pepper, and cucumber.

The dressing was a totally random concoction that I pulled out of my pantry: lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, grape seed oil (olive oil will work just as well), garlic powder, onion powder, turmeric, sea salt (and probably some other random spices that I had on hand). It is fun to play around and mix things together to make your own dressing. You always want to include some type of vinegar and oil, other than that you can add whatever you like. Just make sure not to get too carried away with strong spices like oregano and thyme...I made that mistake yesterday! If you mince fresh garlic and add lemon juice (freshly squeezed or all natural, not from concentrate-you can find this in the produce section) and let the garlic soak in the juice for a while it will extract a lot of the garlic flavor and then just add some oil and any other spices you like!

BAM!

Answers for Amy

Yay! I started this blog last night and already have followers and comments! I am happy to see that people are showing interest so far. Here are answers for the questions I have gotten so far:

Q: Is it expensive to get started?

A: That depends, it could be. If you already have a juicer, blender and/or food processor then it won't be too bad. Tupperware in a variety of different sizes is also essential. Just think about how much money you spend now at the grocery store buying meat, cokes, dairy, and all of the other things that you pay money for that don't go along with the diet. If you are no longer buying those things, but instead spend your money on fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds, then there shouldn't be a difference in your grocery bill. If anything, it may be less money but you may have to start shopping more frequently because the foods are fresh and have a shorter shelf life than processed food that contains preservatives.

This lifestyle may be more time consuming, but I have found that this also evens out a bit because you are no longer spending time cooking food. You are just spending time chopping and preparing things in advance. It does require a bit more pre-planning though, which leads me to my next question.

Q: How do you pack a lunch for your child to take to school?

A: This will depend a lot on what kinds of foods your child likes that fit into the diet. If they like a good variety of things then this should be simple, assuming that you have already prepared some things the night before. I would pack things like nuts or seeds (raw and unsalted of course which are actually much tastier than you might expect). Most kids like sunflower seeds. You could also give them almonds, pecans, walnuts, or whatever other kind you can find that they like. That will give them the protein they need that most people are concerned about when you tell then you aren't eating meat. Other options include bananas, apples, or oranges. I think it would be fun to have a little container or fresh mixed fruit such as: blueberries, strawberries, pineapple, grapes, watermelon, and/or any other of your child's favorite fruits (avoid canned of jarred fruit as it contains a lot of excess unnatural sugar and preservatives).

I have been making a lot of chopped salad lately. I just chop whatever veggies I have on hand into small pieces and mix them together. There are also many recipes for homemade dressings. If your child likes salad then put a small chopped salad in their lunch box with a small container of dressing. You can also chop up carrots, celery, cucumbers, broccoli, cauliflower and pack them as well. I will look to see if I can find some sort of veggie dip that is all natural but so far I have not come across any. If you are not planning on doing this diet 100% then you can put veggie dip in there. I think it is better to eat vegetables with dip than to not eat vegetables at all. Just do the best you can! Veggie wraps and sandwiches are also an option. Use whole wheat bread or wraps with tomato, avocado, cucumber, lettuce, etc. Carrot juice is also delicious and kids may find it fun because of it's bright orange color. I hope this helps!

Q: What do I eat for lunch?

A: A lot of the things that I mentioned above are all things that I would eat for lunch. Sometimes I just snack all day. I will eat a banana, then some nuts, then a small salad, then some honeydew. I just depends on what I have. If you are at work and you want to go out to lunch then there are a lot of options as far as restaurant food. I know Amy, which is who asked me this question, works in Lakeland. Palace Italian Restaurant has one of my most favorite and delicious salads of ALL TIME! The Ensalada Caprisiosa salad (I may have spelled that incorrectly, sorry) contains: mixed field greens, queens olives, tomatoes, and a very generous amount of artichoke hearts, and roasted red peppers (it also comes with cheese and croutons but I just ask them to leave that off and I add onions to it which is never a problem). Their artichoke hearts and red peppers are homemade, have big chunks of garlic and herbs on them and are delicious. Then I order it with the balsamic vinaigrette dressing on the side. You can really go to any restaurant and find something that you can eat, you may just have to modify it a bit.

These are my suggestions and I hope that this helped!

What the Heck am I Eating?

As soon as we left our nutrition class we went to Publix and loaded up on all sorts of yummy produce. We ate salad for dinner that night. Day 2: We had salad for lunch and dinner. Day 3: I woke up feeling lethargic and shaky. [FYI: When you eat crappy and then start eating good, your body will start to flush out all the toxins and the other nasty junk that is in your system and you may not feel too hot. Drinking a lot of water is helpful.] I was like a "hobo on a ham sandwich" as I ran to the kitchen and scarfed down a banana and an apricot in under a minute! I started feeling better as my blood sugar returned to normal. Then I made, you guessed it, yet another salad for lunch that day. I forced about half of it down and then realized that if I continued eating nothing but salad, I would NEVER make it with this diet. So what did I do? I turned to our little friend Google to find some recipes. I typed in "raw veggie recipes" and I got tons of websites with loads and loads of recipes for preparing raw food. I starting copying and pasting the ones that interested me to a Word Document.

For breakfast, I always drink yummy carrot juice first. I wait a little while and then I will eat some sort of fruit: bananas, blueberries, grapes, strawberries, honeydew melon, watermelon (you get the idea). I love fruit and I don't know many people who don't love at least some sort of fruit, so this part is really easy for me. Even if you don't want to do this diet you can switch from cereal, or whatever you are currently eating for breakfast, to fruit in the morning and I guarantee you that you will lose weight. (If you are diabetic you want to be careful though b/c of the sugar). As far as the diet goes, natural sugar is okay. I bought some honey and I started making herbal tea and adding organic honey to sweeten it.

Now the journey with the new recipes has begun!

What The Heck is the Hallelujah Diet?

DISCLAIMER: Bare with me as this post will be one of the longest ones you see on my blog as I am giving all of the important information about the diet to give you a good overview. I will not get too in depth and I promise that my future posts will be more fun and entertaining! 

Let me start by saying that this is called a "diet", however, it is really a lifestyle change. Some people may think I am crazy as they learn more about the diet and I am perfectly okay with that, being a little crazy is fun! Let me also say that I LOVE FOOD! I am not a picky eater and I truly love just about everything, as does Darek. My motivation for doing this is to support him in getting healthier, to be a good example for my son and also because I want to live a long and healthy life so I can watch him grow up. Also, keep in mind that I am not telling anyone what they should do, especially because I know that this "lifestyle" is not for everyone. I am just going to present the information that I have learned (from people who are much smarter than myself....they have to documents to prove it!). If you decide that this is something you want to try all the time or even part of the time, good for you & your health. But it's your life and I think everyone should do what makes them happy. Even if you have no interest in doing this at all, my hope is that you at least learn something new and interesting. So here we go......

We attended Dr. Robinson's nutrition class on Monday August 1, 2011 at 4pm. The class started out with Dr. Robinson sharing how the diet got started. A man named Rev. George Malkmus found out he had colon cancer and after losing his mother to cancer, after she chose to battle it with the traditional chemotherapy and radiation treatments, he decided he was going to find another way to treat himself. He believed that the treatment is what killed her, not the cancer. He turned to his Bible for answers and came across a passage in Genesis 1:29 And God said "Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed and its fruit. You shall have them for food 30 and to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the heavens and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has breath of life, I have given every green plant for food." And it was so. (This was only one of the many references in the Bible that talk about eating this way). So, Rev. Malkmus found the answer that he was looking for. He was to eat only vegetables, fruits, seeds and nuts (mostly raw) and by eating this way he cured himself of cancer. His next goal was to leave the ministry and start spreading the word about this new lifestyle change to help others live healthier lives and heal themselves as well. Thirty years later he is alive and well and hasn't had as much as a sniffle since he started the Hallelujah Diet. 

Dr. Robinson followed this story by telling us about how he also was diagnosed with colon cancer 9 years ago. When he went to his doctor to see what the solution was, they wanted to cut out part of his colon, replace it with a colostomy bag and start the chemo and radiation. Dr. Robinson said "No thanks!" and went on his way to find a better solution. That is when he found out about the Hallelujah Diet and since then, he has cured his own colon cancer and dozens of his patients who had cancer, diabetes and several other ailments. Now in his 70's, he teaches the class for free because he is so passionate about this and wants to help others life a healthy life.

The main idea is to consume only vegetables, fruits, seeds and nuts and you want 85% of your food to be raw and the other 15% can be cooked. These foods in their raw form contain live enzymes which give your body the essential building blocks that it needs. When the food is heated and cooked the enzymes are killed. Also, there are five white foods that cause cancer and should be avoided, MEAT, DAIRY, SALT, SUGAR, and WHITE FLOUR. MEAT contains white fat and the average American consumes 50 pounds of fat (cholesterol) per year! This fat clogs arteries, ultimately causing heart attacks and strokes. DAIRY is pasteurized which means it is heated to 160 degrees or higher, changing the calcium to an inorganic form which can not be absorbed by the body. SALT is toxic to the body and only organic sea salt should be used. SUGAR is concentrated and changed from it's original form and is a drug. 10 tsps (the amount found in 1 soft drink) will immobilize the immune system and 30 tsps will shut it down for a whole day. WHITE FLOUR is bleached sometimes with a bleaching agent similar to clorox and is hazardous to your health.

The final component to this diet is consuming carrot juice (squeezed fresh with a juicer) and barleygreen (which is also called barleylife or barleymax). Fresh carrot juice did not sound appealing to me at first, but it was surprisingly sweet and delicious! Barleygreen is a super food and one of the most important components of the diet (especially is you are trying to cure a deadly disease such as cancer). I believe in the barleygreen but it is quite expensive so we are not doing that part of the diet at this time. If you want more info about that then you can google it and you will find it all over the web.

That pretty much sums up the components of the diet. If you have any questions then please feel free to ask and if I don't know the answer I will do my best to find it.

Why The Heck Am I Blogging?

My significant other, Darek, and I were recently introduced to the Hallelujah Diet. I started randomly making comments about some of the things that we were doing with the diet on Facebook and I had some friends ask me to start a blog about it, so here I am!

Before I tell you about the Hallelujah Diet I am going to tell you why we started it in the first place: Darek & I had our first child, a baby boy named Drake, this past May. Soon after, Darek applied for a life insurance policy (b/c it seemed like the "responsible" thing to do!). A few weeks later, his blood work results arrived in the mail and to say the least, things did not look good. High cholesterol and elevated liver function at 32 years of age. Not good news. We were both quite shocked because Darek has always been athletic and in good health. We attributed this to the "sympathy weight" he had gained while I was pregnant, to make me feel better about myself of course! After feeling a pain in his upper right abdomen a week or so later, he decided to pay a visit to our family physician, Dr. Robinson of The Robinson Family Clinic in Lakeland, FL. Dr. Robinson was referred to us by my chiropractor, Dr. Stratton, and we started using him when the baby was born. We really like him and his approach to health. He is an MD, however, you could categorize him as somewhat of a Holistic doctor; he takes a natural approach to healing rather than just writing prescriptions and sending you on your way. Darek left the doctor's office with instructions to do a liver and gall bladder flush which included organic apple juice, disodium phosphate pills dissolved in water, and a lemon juice and olive oil mixture. He also gave Darek a book to read and suggested he attend his free nutrition class a week later, which we did and that is where we learned about the Hallelujah Diet. 

This is the beginning of our journey and this blog will take you along with us to share our transition into this new lifestyle. Included in this blog will be recipes, pictures, and progress. Please feel free to ask questions as my whole goal is to help others by sharing this information and hopefully motivating you to lead a happier and healthier life! Enjoy!