RawReform

Back in the solid world...

2007-03-14T00:17:12+00:00

Well, well, well, here we are then… 3 weeks have passed since the end of my epic 92 day Juice Feast and it’s been quite some time of transformation and adventure…
I broke the feast in the recommended way, following the protocol of incorporating first soaked dried prunes, then juicy fruits, then salads, over the course of 6 days…this REALLY helped me to keep in a great space about my food intake as I eased myself back into solids…it felt like a huge step to me and I was so grateful that I had this protocol to follow…
A few days after breaking the feast I published a new ebook – ‘A Juice Feaster’s Handbook’ – which explains all the basics of this amazing healing tool, to help others incorporate this into their lives and schedules too…it was a great joy to get this book out there and available for people to access, as there have been sooooo many questions over the last few months from my blog – http://rawreform.blogspot.com - and this booklet is now there to answer all those FAQs…there has been a great response to this new book and lots of people report feeling inspired to juice more or start Juice Feasts themselves… :) Great stuff…
For the first week after breaking the Juice Feast, my daily intake tended to consist of 2 fruit meals, which were mono-meals – just one fruit at a time (esp watermelon – yummmmmmmmm ;) - 2 juices and one simple salad, with perhaps 5 or 6 different ingredients. This felt amazing to me – so simple and delightful – my body was running on super-efficient and clean fuel and I love that feeling…my taste buds were so sensitive at this point and I could instantly feel as soon as my body had had enough of something – I felt extremely ‘clean’ and am enjoying taking my time to chew everything thoroughly – ‘fletcherising’…it felt peculiar to get used to feeling heavier again after eating and I was cautious to make sure that each meal felt like it was fully digested before eating again…it was fun too to just pick foods up and eat them at mealtimes, rather than juicing first – that felt very liberating ;)
I left Costa Rica at the start of March, after 4 months of enjoying the beautiful sunshine, juicy fruits and lush greenery…it had been a wonderful experience and a GREAT place to juice, but was time to get back to the USA for more (solid) raw food explorations…I returned to California and felt kind of like I was walking into ‘The Lion’s Den’ in terms of challenges around food…it doesn’t get more ‘raw food central’ than LA and here I was, re-entering not just LA, but the biggest natural food expo of the year, just about 2 weeks after breaking a 3 month Juice Feast…yep…it was not the easiest of transitions to arrange for myself, but…I survived… ;) lol…my food intake rapidly became much more complicated, as I’d anticipated, but it felt ok and after lots of sampling of new products at the expo, I took a step backwards again towards more simplicity…wow…it’s amazing how quickly things CAN change if I allow that to happen…especially here in LA where the amount of raw food restaurants and producers, farmers’ markets, health food stores and so on is so enormous…there is soooo much to explore, but what I really want to choose for this body is simplicity and not feeling weighed down/messed up by complicated food combos…When I left the States back in November to go to Costa Rica, the main intention that was in me was to Juice Feast and take wonderful care of my own health and well-being for some months – which is what I have been doing – and it feels really great to have done that and now be back in the US again, feeling much healthier and cleaner…
One of the strangest side-effects I’ve noticed since breaking the Feast is that I have started setting off car alarms...lol...not on purpose you understand...it seems as if my energy field has become bigger or more powerful or something, as I literally rarely take a walk anywhere these days without setting off alarms as I walk along the street...it's quite bizarre and I find it very interesting...
It’s all a great adventure and I am thoroughly enjoying the ride ;) Hope you are too…
All blessings,
Angela. xxx

End of A Juicy Era...

2007-02-22T05:25:05+00:00

That's it...it's all over...my ext-RAW-dinary 92-DAY Juice Feast has drawn to a delightful and fulfilling closing point...
it seems at once all so huge and yet so fleeting…

February the 19th was my last full day of juicing...this whole experience seems to have passed so quickly…and yet I look at my chopsticks and eating with them seems like a distant memory, from a by-gone era…lol…
I have been thinking a lot about my desire to keep things simple post-Feast…it is going to take so little to physically satisfy my stomach – that is not really the issue – the issue will be with my mind –the longer I can keep a simple focus on things and remember how easy it has been to nourish this body optimally on plain juices for 3 months, the better…this body doesn’t need complicated foods or recipes – in fact, quite the opposite…long may I remember that…

Over the last three months I have lived and juiced through the ups and downs of green juice rejection, pancreas issues, sugar withdrawals, massive mucus expulsion, intrepid hiking trips, housing upheavals and more… You could probably fill a swimming pool with the amount of juice I’ve consumed…and going by the theory that we ‘go back in time 120 days for each day of juice feasting’, I have gone back in time over 30 years now…which means…I am pre-birth again I guess… ;) well, that’s nice…time to rise like a phoenix again… and so I emerge now on the other side of three months on just liquids feeling clearer, happier, more balanced, calmer, 18lbs lighter and extremely thankful for having chosen this experience…
...and so it was that on February the 20th, I ate solids for the first time in 3 months…and I felt GREAT :)

I woke feeling reluctant that day to get up and face the prunes I’d put to soak the night before…more than anything else, I felt fear of them…lol…I avoided them all morning…
Then the energy started to shift for me…I started to feel like it was my birthday or something – I felt a special glow inside and a joy and appreciation for all this Juice Feast has brought into my life…I did a really enjoyable radio interview with the delightful Dagger of HighVibe.com in New York, which will be available on internet radio next week, then it was time…time to face the prunes…

They tasted sweet and simple to me and felt soft and enjoyable in my mouth...I sat with them in a beautiful Zen garden and reflected on the wonders of this Feast so far and my intentions for eating from here on in...I made a little film of the experience, which you can see below...
I felt SOOOO buzzed after eating…really happy and excited and high on the joy of life…the prunes felt kind of ‘full’ inside me – nothing unpleasant, just a bit unusual somehow…and it was all such a transformation from the fear and reluctance I’d felt in the morning...now I was just delighted with life and the choices I have here…wow, what a great experience…

Here is the link for the Feast-Breaking Video online:

http://video.google.co.uk/videoplay?docid=2055968753902029556&hl=en-GB

and I have also embedded it below for those of you whose browsers will allow you to see it that way…

It has been so much fun to share this message with the world and put this video out there – thank you all SO much for all the wonderful feedback – it has been quite amazing…

I can really anticipate remaining with a high juice/liquids intake post-Feast…I am taking the view in my head that I am pretty much just carrying on with a liquid-y lifestyle, just adding in bits and pieces of fruit etc on the way as I work through the Feast-breaking protocol – that helps me keep perspective…

I completed editing of my new e-book this week too – ‘A Juice Feaster’s Handbook’ – YAY :) Thanks to all those who have already pre-ordered this book – you have all been entered into the prize draw to win one of 6 hampers of yummy raw treats, chocolates and snacks. If you have not already placed your order, there is still time to get an order in and your name into the prize draw – just click HERE to pre-order the book for $10 and you will automatically be entered into the Post-Feast Feast giveaway…
I’m really excited to be able to offer this information like this – there have been so many emails and questions during the course of this Feast and I have combined all of those answers, plus all of the things that I too wanted to know and also came to understand/realise during the course of Feasting, into one volume…I feel it really is an indispensable little guide to Juice Feasting…hurray :)
So, what's next...? Well, I'll definitely continue to blog my unfoldings as I work my
way back into the world of solids, so stay tuned for all my latest news and updates both here and at
http://rawreform.blogspot.com...

All blessings,
Angela. xxx

Into the Final Straight...

2007-02-14T21:54:14+00:00

As I write this, I am 87 DAYS into my 92-DAY Juice Feast...eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeek...REALLY nearing the end now...
So...how do I feel...? Actually, I am starting to look forward to eating again a bit by now…juicing has begun to feel a bit more of a challenge without optimal equipment here in Costa Rica these last few days and the thought of just eating something again, like watermelon, rather than all the extra effort of juicing it, sounds like fun ;) we’ll see…

The last couple of weeks have been pretty full-on for me with lots of travelling - my juicing-on-the-road skills have really been tested to the full, but I have happily and healthily enjoyed it all and come through it to see that I am able to provide well for myself in juice terms, no matter what the situation. I am totally committed to the work I am doing with this juice feast and there is always a solution for every apparent ‘problem’ - I just do my best, working with what I have. :) I feel like a marathon runner with this…I’m so ‘in the zone’ now – the juicing zone…once I got past the initial hurdles and set-ups and mind games to get myself into a juicing framework, then I was just there, in it, nothing to think about anymore…it feels so easy to be doing this now and yet before I started, it seemed like such a big deal…

I am feeling good physically in general at the moment…no swollen tongue issues anymore, no pancreas pains (or rarely), good, consistent energy most of the time, happy, healthy and feeling very tuned in to what my body wants/can handle in the way of nutrition at each moment…feels like a nice place to be…I think back to how much my energy jolted around all over the place nearer the beginning of this feast and see that I am so much clearer and more stable now…nice… :)

I'm also STILL having solid bowel movements...after 87 days of juice feasting...lol...quite amazing...I remember David Rain mentioning before I started this that by Day 80 of his first feast, he was still having solid bowel movements. I was so surprised and yet, here I am too, over 80 days in and in the same position…it’s so curious…I can definitely feel there is still a lot of cleansing work for this body to go through yet…I can imagine I will enjoy to take a break from juice feasting after this, get back into the world of solids for a while, then return to juice feasting again at some point in the future…

I was so excited to announce a new prize giveaway in the RawReform Newsletter recentl y. It is a ‘Post-Feast FEAST’ giveaway, to celebrate the imminent end of my feasting and the prizes include an amazing range of yummy treats – here’s a re-cap for those of you who didn’t yet see it…
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Larawlicious Raw Treats offer a box of their simply divine Goji Goddess Hearts (see pic). These luscious raw sweeties are chewy and cacao-free. (If you want to order some for Valentine’s Day, get your order in quick to info@hunabku.biz)

www.lydiasorganics.com have gifted us a selection of their fabulous dehydrated goods, handmade with love. Yummies include apple-ginger bars, savory trail mix and grain-less apple cereal.

www.RawLiving.co.uk have donated a mixed selection from their best-selling range of raw chocs and trail mixes - hi-crunch, whoosh, be the change, bullet ride, hi-trail goji and magic mix.

www.TheRawChocolateCompany.com offer up a bundle of each of their outstanding bars – Cacaobars, Sunberry and Vanoffe (my personal favourite raw food treat ;)

www.TheRawFoodWorld.com is offering a mixture of the delicious Raw Crunch bars in Wild Blueberry and Wildcrafted Goji Berry flavours.

www.Yaoh.co.uk want to share with you some of each of their award-winning hemp seed raw snack bars – tropical, apple and cinnamon and date/walnut flavours.

It will likely be a long time yet before I personally get back round to eating things like raw snack bars and chocolates – it’s going to be prunes, juicy fruits and salads for me for a good few weeks yet... So, in the meantime, you may soon be the lucky winner of a lush bounty of raw snacks to enjoy on my behalf ;) Each hamper contains at least £15/$30 worth of treats…yummmmmmm… :)

HOW TO ENTER THE GIVEAWAY
All those who pre-order my upcoming E-Book – ‘A Juice Feaster’s Handbook’ will be entered into the draw to win one of the prizes. This insightful e-book outlines in an easy-to-understand format, the who/what/when/why and how of Juice Feasting, whether you’d like to do it for a weekend or the full 92-Days…

This E-Book will be published around the end of February, when my Juice Feast is over. At that time, all pre-orders will be fulfilled for the e-book and if you are one of those picked, a taster hamper of treats will be winging its way to you too, along with your new book.

To pre-order YOUR copy of ‘A Juice Feaster’s Handbook’ for just $10 and be in with a chance of winning, CLICK HERE.

PLEASE remember to provide your postal address with your order, so that we can get your celebration hamper to you if you are one of the lucky winners picked at random. The winners will be announced in the next newsletter.
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by this time next week, I’ll be back in the world of solids...wow...strange to imagine...
wish me luck ;)

All blessings,
Angela. xxx

Going Native in Costa Rica...

2007-01-31T18:30:36+00:00

wow...the end of January already and I now have fewer than 20 days of juice feasting left...eeeeeeeeek...I feel a bit anxious about re-entering the world of solids to be honest...it feels so easy to me to be on liquids like this - the boundaries are so clear - and I have concerns about things getting messier and more complicated for me once I eat solids again - I like this feeling of light, clean energy...I feel good that there will be a 'feast breaking protocol' for me to follow though, so that I have some structure to guide myself with as I wean off of juice...

A friend has been visiting for the last week or so here in Costa Rica and it's been fun to explore different juice recipes and ideas with him - we have been doing the 92-day juice feast simultaneously - him up in Washington State though in the US (very cold in winter, unlike Costa Rica) - he likes very hot food, so I've been getting some serious shots of chili pepper and so on in my juices - it's fun, after making juice by myself for so many weeks, to play with flavours with someone else...we hadn't seen each other for a few months when he arrived and he said I seemed much smaller and 'sleeker' than before juice feasting - I have indeed lost somewhere in the region of 15-18lbs during this feast and feel much lighter and healthier...
We've been proving to ourselves that juicing 'on the road' while travelling very light is also possible...we went to visit healing mud baths in the North, carrying only a bare minimum of luggage and survived very well and happily, on mainly fresh orange juice and coconut water...I enjoy trying out different challenges like that...I've been learning better how to use the local buses too, to show my friend around and enjoying flexing my Spanish language muscles more, as he speaks little Spanish, so...overall, it's been a great time of exploration this last week or so for me ;)

Lately I've been enjoying:

sugar cane sticks - my favourite juicy treat
simpler juice combinations
the fading of my pancreas pains
a steadier, more consistent flow of energy
fewer sugar imbalances
beautiful films like 'Little Miss Sunshine' and 'The Masai Princess'
my peculiar body odour of a few weeks back diminishing

Hurray for Juice Feasting :) I look forward to enjoying the last few weeks of this amazing adventure...

All love,
Angela. xxx

January update - just where DO I get my protein...? ;)

2007-01-21T23:40:01+00:00

Well, day 63 of juice feasting for me as I write this and life...is...amazing...
I keep marvelling at just how functional I am for someone who has not eaten for over 2 months...lol...
I am feeling great and going strong - feeling somewhat alarmed that there is less than a month left for me of this juicy journey in fact...

The last couple of weeks have seen a flurry of activity for me, including a great online radio interview with Sally Jessy Raphael, which produced waves of controversy and feedback, mostly around the all-pervasive 'where do you get your protein from' query of those un-accustomed to living raw...listen in for yourself here...

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=6501742535334801864&pr=goog-sl

The pancreas pain I had been dealing with a few weeks back seems to have more or less completely receded with my move over to much less sweet juices - mainly greens, coconut water and watermelon juice these days...I have also moved through some bizarre cleansing symptoms in my mouth of raised bumps and green film on my tongue, plus an open lesion at the side of my mouth...

I held my first juice feasting demo in Costa Rica a few weeks back, at a beautiful yoga studio, which was great fun, passing the message on to others interested in health...plus I moved house in the middle of January too, to the other side of San Jose where I'm currently living - I am feeling delighted to be renting my own little place for the first time in my life :)
I've been working out where to get my veg and go jogging etc over here in a new neighbourhood and loving it - it feels much quieter, greener and cleaner here, with wider streets and more people walking about, rather than driving...

I was also delighted to realise recently how liberating this juicing experience is for me in the fact that

it frees me from thinking about food...

...almost completely. That is something I do not feel I have experienced in my life as an adult. As an obese overeater (21 stone at my biggest), my mind was more or less nearly always ‘in the food’ – if I wasn’t actually eating, I was thinking about food and when I would next eat and what I would have and so on…SO much of my time and brain space and energy went into things related to food…life was lived for me literally like a series of opportunities to eat…What I experience now is that juice feasting frees me from that whole pattern. Now, on just juice, I feel SO liberated from all that. It’s so simple. No obsessing. This is a revelation for me…I have unconsciously moved into a space where I have SO much more time, energy and space in my life to use on more constructive things than thinking about food…I am truly grateful for that…I can also feel pretty much secure that my body is getting all that it needs, as my intake is so nutrient dense, I feel and look vibrant and I simply don’t crave anything…wow…what a blessing…

So, onwards I go with 29 days of juicing left...CHEERS :)
all blessings,
Angela. xxx

92 day juice feast...

2007-01-04T19:24:49+00:00

On 20 November 2006 I started a 92-day juice FEAST in Costa Rica. Not fast…FEAST :) This is a new concept in cleansing, which ensures the feaster gets all their daily calories (e.g. around 1500/day for an average woman) directly from freshly-made raw juices.

Usually when fasting, many people become low in energy and feel weak, on this juice feast my life goes on with as much energy and creativity as usual…

My main reason for doing this is that even after four and a half years having raw food lifestyle, I felt I'd reached a 'plateau' with my detoxing. I’ve lost around 12 stone since going raw, reversing morbid obesity, but still have old toxins and strange fat deposits to clear that weren't shifting with a raw lifestyle alone.

I felt I wanted to take it to the next level. Then David Rain of www.nutrientdensenutrition.com told me about juice feasts. I was dubious at first, but listened and it started to make sense. I decided to take the leap and clear out all the old clutter once and for all - any parasites lurking, old toxins, liver complaints etc...so...here I am...46 days in as I write and loving it :)

So far I’ve lost around 15lbs, experienced incredible releases of old matter from my colon and seen my skin become more radiant. I seem to be healing old pancreas issues too, which I’m delighted about.

I’ve been blogging my adventures at http://rawreform.blogspot.com and along with a readership that grows daily, this blog is attracting much media interest. I have an interview lined up on Sally Jesse Raphael’s radio show in a few days, in New York, along with another planned feature for Current TV and interest from various magazines.

I’m delighted to be able to share this message of healing and wish everyone a vibrant and joyous 2007 :)