Day 2

I'm going to give a brief summary on how I started raw.
I grew up in a somewhat health conscious home. We never had white flours or sugars. Everything was made with honey and whole wheat flour. We always had a garden , I dreaded weeding, and everything was home made. Eventually my mother came across the idea of raw food and decided to go raw. I believe that was about 6 years ago. Shortly after she went raw, I decided to try it. I was about 13 or 14 then and amazingly I went 100% raw over night for about 4 months. It was amazingly easy. I didn't even think about food. Cravings were non exist ant. I just don't think I was that unhealthy then and going raw was just the next step. Long story short, I gave up doing raw when I went on a week long church youth trip and there was nothing raw to eat there. Boy do I wish I had stuck to it then. It's not nearly as easy now as it was then.
I tried it again last March. I went from 80% to 90% raw until I went to Patagonia AZ in October to do an apprenticeship at the tree of life. I was 100% vegan, organic raw from October to December. The experiences I had there were unbelievable. I had such a great time and it truly changed my life. I FELT GREAT.
Well now to catch you up to where I am now, I went through allot of emotional crap on the last week of the apprenticeship. I had allot of emotional, physical, religious and relationship crap that took over my life. I stuck to the raw diet for about a month after the apprenticeship but the emotional stuff caught up to me and I gave in. It also doesn't help that I feel like Ive been living out of a box since December. Anyways I crashed and my need for emotional comfort through junk food gave in.
I weighed 135 lbs. in December and I am now back up to 150 lbs. My acne is back with a vengeance and the mood swings are driving my boyfriend crazy. I feel completely out of control.
I can tell you the only way to feel truly in control, stable and absolutely blissful, is to be on a raw diet. So this is my plan to get back on track and reclaim that inner happiness I so desperately want and need. 10 weeks 100% raw and 80% organic

These are a list of the symptoms I am currently experiencing.
1. mood swings
2. uncontrollable temper
3. really bad acne
4. water retention
5. over weight
6. cellulite on thighs (big sign of toxins in the body)
7. winded after walking only 2 flight of stairs
8. irregular periods
9. chronic menstrual cramping
10. sick every other month
11. lack of energy
12. depression
13. anxiety
14. insomnia
ect, ect, ect, ect

I am hoping that the list of all these issues I am having are down to at least 1/4 of what I have here at the end of 10 weeks. I will keep you all updated as my journey continues.
For anyone starting the raw food life change, your not alone. The movement is getting larger everyday and more and more people are experiencing the same things you are. It's not easy. One of the hardest things Ive had to do in my life. But it is so worth it!!!

10 WEEK CHALLENGE

Okay finally got the computer up and running.
This is the challenge. 10 weeks 100% raw, 80% organic. Along with that I will be training to run a 5K race. I want to eventually be able to run a full marathon but for now, I think the 5K will be enough for me. I am not in good physical condition at all at this time. I'll be doing a week by week update with measurements, fat percentage and symptoms good or bad.
This is the step by step plan I will be following.

Week 1:
Diet: 80% raw, 80% organic, 3/4 gallon water
Exercise:
Mon-run 2 min, walk 1 min. Repeat 10 times.
Tue- walk easy 30 min
Wed- run 2 min, walk 1 min. Repeat 10 times.
Thur- walk easy 30 min
Fri- run 2 min, walk 1 min. Repeat 10 times. Sat- walk easy 30 min
Sat- walk easy 30 min.
Sun-Rest
**Always walk 2-3 min before and after workout to warm up and cool down. **
DON'T PUSH YOURSELF

I will have all my measurements recorded and pictures for before and after along with a food journal. I want to see how successful I will be doing a 100% raw food diet along with training for a marathon. I want to see how well my health improves and see if you really do need to have a high protein ,meat, based diet to participate in high endurance sports or training. I believe that the base of your protein intake should come from a plant based diet,greens, . Victoria Boutenko wrote a very good book where she talked about the benefits of eating allot of greens. It's called Green for Life if your interested. I highly recommend it.
I found the training guide for the 5K on www.runnersworld.com. It's an excellent site to look at if you are an experienced runner or just a beginner and want to hit the pavement and see what you can do.
I will also be posting some video blogs along with my updates. Wish me luck!!!