going raw.

Over the past months I have been feeling overly dependent on caffine and sugar (AKA mountain dew) to get me through my afternoon lull. I have been feeling like I am eating too many proccessed foods and its time to change that. I am going raw. What exactly does that mean you ask? well, I am improvising on the raw diet that basically states you eat food in their natural forms, combining them to create meals other than salads or soups and put a large focus on eating the foods that your body needs, not so much the food your body thinks it wants. I am going to begin (as soon as i get the book) a 21 day detox cleanse and then re-incorporate certain foods back into my diet. I will be making lots of smoothies over the next couple of months and hopefully will notice a change in my energy levels, sugar/caffine cravings, and overall appearance. I am already half way there as i am not a meat eater, and so i am excited to use this time to explore the world of vegetables i often ignore. I want to eat un-ordinary vegetables, i want to like wierd vegetables and i want my children to be introduced to them as well.
After the cleanse i am going to bring whole wheat flour back into my diet but intend on keeping most sugar out of it. I also will be eating dairy products as I dont think almond milk will cut it forever. Eggs too will be on my list of foods because they are a huge staple in this family. Some raw foodies do not even cook their food as it looses nutrients when you cook it, i however will cook because i cant imagine always eating cold or room temperature food. now, dont get me wrong i will still spoil myself occasionally (becaues metling pot chocolate fondue is too good to pass up forever) and i will eat normal foods i eat now when this raw option isnt an option.
The other side of this comes down to economics..fresh.produce is so much cheaper than proccessed and pre-prepared foods! now i know i am not going to convince justin to eat parsnips, but perhaps the boys and i going raw on the meals he isnt with us will shrink our grocery bill by a couple dollars a week. additionally, we are planning a hefty size garden this year and will be reaping (haha pun intended) the benefits of that as well.

so, ill keep you posted. in about 10 days you will probably hear me say i hate it and all i want is a mountain dew but that is the point...and i will survive and be better off for it.