So I just finished week two of my raw vegan cleanse and I’ve got a lot to share, if you haven’t read my first update yet you can find it here. First off let me share some daily journals to give you an idea of how I spend my day and what I ate. At the end of the post I’ll share my conclusion and overall review of week two! Again I’ll be sharing some pictures of the foods I’ve been eating throughout the week to give you an idea of the things I eat on this raw vegan challenge.
Day 8:
After returning from yoga I realised I still didn’t have bananas as ripe as i’d prefer them to be, but stubborn as I am i still decided to make a smoothie using the semi-ripe bananas, which was an epic fail. When I went to the store I decided to buy and try some raw vegan cracker made from seeds and sprouts, I wasn’t a big fan but with a nice cashew based spread, they were ok! So in the afternoon while writing the blog post for week 1 I had some of the crackers with a cashew spread and some sprouts. In the evening I had a big salad and some additional snacks.
Day 9:
My bananas were still semi-ripe but i still decided to make a smoothie using banana, pineapple and blueberries because I really need to get in more food. At lunch I ate 2 kiwis and a pear combined with a date/nut bar and as a snack before dinner i had some kale chips and raw chocolate. Before dinner I helped my grandparent remove their couch from their apartment. For dinner I had a salad. I’m still figuring out how to eat enough food but my energy levels are quit stable.
Day 10:
Today I ran short on time in the morning so I ate a banana and date bar before leaving the house. I quickly went to the store to get some coconut yoghurt which I would eat for lunch with some kale chips and date bar. When I came home I tried a piece of some raw vegan “cheesecake” bites I’d been working on and worked on another recipe for a salad dressing/sauce. At dinner I had a salad with the sun dried tomato aioli sauce i’d been working on.
Day 11:
For breakfast I did a happy dance as my bananas were finally perfectly ripe, my day started out awesome! Today I had the day off so I decided to go out and walked around the city, where I decided to get my nose pierced. At lunch I had another smoothie bowl and for dinner a salad. The day was perfect and I felt great.
Day 12:
At this point my bananas are ripening one after another so my mornings start off great! Had two smoothie bowls and a salad throughout the day. I worked on some recipes and played some Wii U.
Day 13:
Friday is the start of my weekend and I always start my day with a yoga class. After coming home from yoga I made a smoothie bowl and had some grapes. After breakfast I walked around the city with a friend and bought more grapes (they were really good) and a gift for my nephew who’s turning one tomorrow. For lunch I had some coconut yoghurt, grapes and some of the raw crackers with a raw sun dried tomato spread. I finished a post for raw “bounty” bites, which were yum! And for dinner I had another salad.
Day 14:
Today my nephew turned one and for breakfast and lunch I had a smoothie bowl for breakfast and lunch. As snacks I had some of the bounty bites I made the day before.
Observations:
- One of the things I’ve been struggling with during my first weeks going raw is getting in enough food! This week this was a lot easier then last but its still something I need to monitor, because it’s very easy to not eat enough and binge on date bars and other raw vegan snacks. When I eat two big smoothie bowl, I’m not craving other foods and they keep my energy levels stable throughout the day.
- This bring me to the second point! I’ve noticed that when I do get hungry, its very easy for me to buy some date bars, kale chips or other raw vegan snacks, which (besides the date bars) are very pricy. Besides this I find this diet to be a bit more expensive then my normal lifestyle, because rice, beans and potatoes are more expensive then organic fruits and veggies. Of course I do eat a lot of vegetable and fruits on my normal lifestyle but not nearly as much a I do now.
- Another thing I’ve noticed and that I’m happy with is that my eczema is drying out and my skin stopped breaking. This to me is major! I really hope that by the end of this challenge my eczema has completely disappeared.
- Also I never thought I’d actually get used to being on a raw food diet, I mean i’m a major foodie, emotional eater and absolutely love to cook and eat delicious warm and spicy foods. But after only two weeks in I am actually getting used to the idea of not cooking food at night and having a salad instead.
- Which bring me to the next point. Although I am getting used to eating salads at dinner, I am still missing the variety of dishes that I normally have, but this doesn’t bother me too much.
- I struggle a lot when I’m outside of the home and looking for a place to eat. Again I noticed that every corner of the street has a fast food shop but finding good raw foods is still like looking for a needle in a haystack.
Conclusion:
Every day that passes it gets a bit easier to be on this raw food diet. At this point I can say that its not as hard as I initially imagined, although I would never be doing this during winter, ever again. One thing thats very important for me is to have plenty of ripe bananas so I can make quick smoothies and keep myself full and satisfied. Next week I really need to cut down on the raw vegan snacks and focus more on getting in enough food.
I think I’m finally getting used to the whole raw food diet!
Bless