Day 14- Menstrual cramps

"Period pains- THIS IS BULLSHIT"

- Sam - 

I thought I would quote myself on that one. Couldn't think of any better words than my own. 

Dustin, I dedicate this blog post to you. 

Over dinner he commented that lately on my blog I've only been writing factual things and no longer about my feelings and what I'm thinking. Okay, well, here it is then... Maybe all the men want to stop reading from this point on.

For the past few days I have had the worst menstrual cramps. I haven't felt this bad in a very long time. I feel nauseous , I've been having hot flushes, my stomach hurts like a mo-fo and all I have wanted to do is curl into a ball and die. I used to get severe period pain years ago, to the point where I'd vomit and once had to visit the hospital. I've been on the pill since which has helped tremendously. But for some reason, this cycle I feel like absolute shit. And I'm wondering if it has anything to do with the Earth Diet? Maybe my body is freaking out because my normal coping mechanisms are not at my disposal (lots and lots of Diet Coke, chocolate and salt 'n vinegar chips.)

Actually, tonight, Dustin pointed out that normally I hide behind all of this with a few big blocks of chocolate and I would eat myself silly. 

This time I am eating... fruit? And vegetables? And..... water.

Today I really really really wanted to overindulge in some creamy Cadbury chocolate. But I didn't!

After the realisation that I did not have any crutch that I can lean on, I decided to look on the internet to see what real food can help alleviate period pain. 

Some of the things I read that can help are ginger, peppermint, kava kava (no idea what that is! Apparently it's grown on islands in the south pacific?), flaxseed, veggies and fruit.

Looks like I'm going to have to try incorporating these into my diet, specifically for that time of month. I already have ginger in my juices.. but maybe I need to try some peppermint or flaxseed. And perhaps I'll try to discover Kava kava???

If anyone has any ideas, please leave me a comment! 

My day:

Breakfast- Celery, carrot and apple juice

Lunch- Apple pie the Earth Diet way

Dinner- Quinoa, cauliflower, beans, broccoli, red pepper, orange juice, ginger, garlic, onion, potato...

Snacks- Bananas

Exercise- Boxing training, but didn't stay too long cos I was hurting. 

Day 13- Baby Mandarins

When I started The Earth Diet I made a decision that I will follow my cravings. That whatever my heart desired I would give it. That I would not be paranoid about whether eating too much fruit in a day is good or bad? Or how many calories am I consuming? Or even let myself feel guilty if I over indulged in any particular food. Earth foods that is. 

After the first initial days of being on the Earth Diet and denying my body of it's usual sugars and processed foods... oh, and who can forget the dreaded aspartame... I found my body begin to shift and change and begin to have a voice. 

When I fill my body with processed foods I am unable to gauge what my body is trying to tell me. Whether it is telling me to eat more greens, or eat this particular food, or "Here! have more nuts!" 

But now it has found its voice, and what it had been telling me for quite a few days now is... "Look!!! Taste these baby mandarins!!! I want more!!!" I literally feel my taste buds have a party as I bite into it's juicy goodness. It is so sweet, so juicy, and also a hint of sour. I feel like I am eating sour lollies from the local 7-eleven! But instead, it is good for me and it nourishes me and gives me vitamins and minerals and nutrients that my body desires... and needs! 

If you do your research on the internet about mandarins... you will find that the number one health benefit is that it reduces your risk of developing liver cancer. It is also a strong source of Vitamin C, improves your cholesterol levels, and help you lose weight. 

Even if mandarins didn't have disease fighting capabilities.. I'd still eat them because they taste so bloody good. 

All you Australians out there... You know what I learnt the other day? In Canada (or North America I guess), they are known as Christmas Oranges. Because fall/winter is their season, and that's when Christmas is! Ho ho ho! 

My day:

Breakfast- Sauteed red pepper, onion, mushroom in coconut oil. Two poached eggs.

Lunch- Banana smoothy filled with all these other fruits that I have no idea about because Dustin made it for me! :) 

Dinner- Chicken, beans, potatoes

Snacks- Cashews, mandarins, apples

Day 12- Celery

"Many kids can tell you about drugs but do not know what celery tastes like."   

- Jamie Oliver-

Growing up I  absolutely hated celery. I remember when I would go to my grandparents house and my nanna would always make this vegetable soup filled with celery. I detested it.  My mum used to always put celery in our salads and I thought it was the most awful thing. I remember one day watching my little cousin eat a stalk of celery and I thought there surely must have been something wrong with her! Who would voluntarily eat such a detestable vegetable? 

How things have changed! In the past year I have learnt to love celery and to appreciate this vegetable in it's fullest. I find it refreshing and I especially love crunching on it. Today I added celery in my juice and I found that it added an extra dimension to the flavour of my juice.

Facts you might not know about celery:
- Years and years and years ago celery was first used as medicine! It wasn't until the last century or so that people started using it for food!
- The World's Healthiest Foods says that the Ancient Greeks used the leaves as laurels to decorate their athletes!

Health benefits of juice: (This has been sourced from The World's Healthiest Foods)
- It is very rich in Vitamin C ! No wonder celery was once used in medicine. Vitamin C helps to support the immune system. So if you feel like you have a cold coming on, start eating your celery! You will probably find that colds are better prevented, or if you do get a cold, the symptoms won't be as harsh.
- Because it is so rich in Vitamin C, Celery is known as an anti-inflammatory food. This is great if you have chronic pain or something like arthritis.
- Celery helps promote your Cardiovascular health. It helps prevent stroke, heart disease and cancer! Wow!
- Reduces blood pressure
- Lowers cholesterol
- Promotes optimal health! Celery contains compounds called coumarins that help prevent free radicals from damaging cells, thus decreasing the mutations that increase the potential for cells to become cancerous. Coumarins also enhance the activity of certain white blood cells, immune defenders that target and eliminate potentially harmful cells, including cancer cells. In addition, compounds in celery called acetylenics have been shown to stop the growth of tumor cells.


So eat more celery! 


My Day:


Breakfast: Poached eggs, avocado, sauteed red pepper, onion, mushroom and tomato.  Celery/Apple/Orange juice

Lunch: Banana/pineapple/apple/blueberry/grapes smoothy

Dinner: Banana smoothy

Snacks: Kale chips, Coconut chocolate balls (Earth diet style!), cashews, pineapple, baby mandarins, Celery

Exercise: Watched tv ;)

Day 11- Glorious Food !!

"If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world."

- J.R.R. Tokien-

Ahhhh! I love food! I love good food and health. I love how food has the potential to either make you healthy or sick. I choose health! 

Firstly I just want to give a shout out to my uncles Ian and Peter. Love you both soo much and I'm so glad you are reading my blog :) I'm so glad that you guys are choosing to live healthy. You're both my inspiration and I cannot wait to see you again. Once we are back in Australia we will make sure we come and visit you. Love you! 

I just want to share with you all what I had today. It was such a tasty day. I almost felt guilty because it tasted so good that I felt like I was eating junk food. And I wasn't. Which I think is fantastic. I think alot of people think that when they embark on a journey of changing their lifestyle and diet, that it is going to be boring and bland food. However, if you educate yourself and actually go out of your way to find the right ingredients, and set time apart in your day to prepare a healthy meal... you'll find that real food is the tastiest and the most fulfilling! 

I slept in yesterday and didn't have a chance to eat breakfast (not good!) so I had a handful of cashews on my way out of the door. After my appointments I then went to my favourite organic raw vegan cafe Gorilla Food and had this....

It was so so so so yum! It was the most amazing chocolate pie I have had. The texture was smooth and creamy and the flavour bursted in my mouth. Some of the ingredients in it was cacao, hempseeds, dates, coconut. I really want to learn how to make something like this. 

And the smoothy was called a "Strawberry zing". It had strawberries, bananas, hempseeds, orange and ginger. Delicious! Every now and then I buy that smoothy on my way into work. Love it!

For dinner I cooked the most scrumptious meal. Dustin loved it. You have to understand something about us here.... I am not good at cooking! Dustin generally always kicks me out of the kitchen and does the cooking for us. But I'm so determined to be able to cook real healthy delicious food, so he let me in the kitchen last night hahahaaaaa. 

We got the recipe from theearthdiet.org, so make sure you check out that web page for other recipe ideas! The meal I made was a Sweet Meat Stir-Fry, for the exact details go to the web page... but basically I made a marinade using orange juice (freshly squeezed!) ginger, garlic, red pepper and honey. The vegetables I used was snow peas, broccoli, red pepper and beans. And instead of using brown rice we had Quinoa. AMAZING. Try it!

One more thing before I love you and leave you. Last night we caught up with some friends at a macaroni and cheese restaurant.. I was able to go, enjoy myself, look at the food, and not want any. I drank a bottle of water and still had fun. When I got home I was so proud of myself. In the past there is no way I would be able to sit there and not try anything or buy my own meal. 

My day:

Breakfast- cashews

Lunch- Strawberry zing smoothy, chocolate pie

Dinner- Sweet Meat stir fry as found on The Earth Diet website.

Snacks- Orange/apple/blueberry/grape juice, cashews, and an apple. 

Day 10- Our deepest fear...

"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.

Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.

 It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us.

 We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be?

Your playing small does not serve the world.

There's nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you.

We are all meant to shine, as children do. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.

 As we're liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others."

 - Marianna Williamson -

I want to be the best me that I possibly can be! I want to live for the now, and I want to shine my light, I want to not hide my beauty any longer. I do not want to sabotage myself, or treat my body poorly. 

The more I look after myself, the more I am able to give myself and help other people. I'm able to function better at work and to be a more positive influence to the youth that I work with. 

When I'm afraid to succeed I hide behind my shyness and I eat junk food knowing that it will make me feel bad. 

When I eat healthy food, foods from the earth; I feel more connected to myself and to my surroundings. I have more energy and more joy to share. 

I'm not going to let the fear of success stop me anymore. I'm not going to let the fear of letting people down cause me to eat foods that don't nourish my body. I get so scared of offending people if I say no to their food or restaurant choices! But if I want to be effective in this world, I have to be prepared to offend people. It gets easier to say no when you choose to let fear not control you. 

I am adequate. I'm powerful beyond measure. I'm brilliant, gorgeous, talented and fabulous.  I will shine. As will you. 

My day:

Breakfast- Carrot/Apple/Blueberry/Grape juice

Lunch: Poached eggs and tomato, bit of lamb

Dinner: Salmon, carrots, celery, red pepper, figs (yum!),  hard boiled egg, spinach leaves, avocado

Snacks: Chocolate balls that I made!,  bananas, cashews

Exercise: Walking

Day 9- Never give up

"The secret of our success is that we never, never give up."- Wilma Mankiller -

I did it!!! I finally did it!!! It took a few trials... but I have finally been able to make chocolate balls that I love! I tried quite a few times, and each time I thought it was so gross. Liana made it look so easy. For awhile there I thought I would never be able to create that perfect chocolate ball and that I was doomed to never be able to satisfy my chocolate cravings. But last night I thought I would give it one more try... and it was amazing. Even Dustin loved it! I took some chocolate balls with me to work today (on day 10 right now wooohoooo!) and I'm looking forward to being able to enjoy them in the afternoon.

So I just want to encourage and inspire you all to never give up! When you try new foods and are experimenting on The Earth Diet and at first you might not like what you taste, don't give up! Keep trying. Play with it for a bit until it tastes the way you love. Or maybe your taste buds are just not yet used to all the fresh Earth goodness! Keep trying until you love it. Years ago the idea of eating raw brocoli would make me gag, but now I love it! I didn't love it at first, I thought it was disgusting... but now I eat it almost everyday and I cannot go without it.

We/I need to keep learning to make new meals, foods, etc if we want to be successful on the Earth Diet. It keeps it exciting ! And entertaining! I'm planning on the weekend to begin to make vegetable juices. So far I have only had fruit juices, but I think it's time to up my game and try maybe a beet juice or begin to have green vegie juices. I read that alot of the nutrients that are found in green veggies, you actually need to chew it at least 30 times to be able to get the full benefits! Sometimes that's just too much. So they recommend that you juice your veggies to be able to get all the enzymes and nutrients out so that it can nourish your body! I'm pretty sure that at first I probably won't like the taste, so I plan on mixing it with some fruit aswell. And then over time I will slowly ween off the fruit and just enjoy a pure vegetable juice! I can already feel my body is excited in anticipation for more nourishment.

So, some encouragement that happened on Day 9 is that my co-worker made a very positive remark! Firstly, he is such a great guy. His wife is studying nutrition at university, and they are a very healthy family. He is always coming into work with salads and smoothies and nuts and other foods that will make your mouth water. I told him what I was doing and he was in full support of me. He told me that already he can see a change in my complexion, that my face looks different.. that it's brighter and looks more healthy and happy! Wow! In only 9 days... Imagine in a month!?

I wanted to post a couple of videos on here of what Liana and Sarah are up to on their Earth Diet challenge.

The first is of Liana making a beautiful chocolate slab. I thought it would be appropriate after my success in finally being able to make a chocolate ball. Hopefully soon I will be able to make a slab similar to this and enjoy it (I tried on the weekend and it was a complete failure hahaa). This is just an example of some of the foods you can enjoy, and know that it is beneficial for you. 

The second is of Sarah that just recently posted. The day before she did this video she had to break the Earth Diet (for personal reasons) and this video is about how her body responded to this. I was amazed, and encouraged. It reminds me of Day 7 for me when I had a small slither of a cake, and immediately I had a splitting headache. My body completely rejected it, even thought it had only been 7 days since I had eaten foods that were not from the Earth. Although this video is different than the rest, I hope it inspires and encourages you also to see how preservatives and chemicals were not designed to be in our bodies.

Enjoy :)

My day

Breakfast: Protein shake, cashews, orange

Lunch: Kale chips, steak (I feel like I'm eating toooooo much meat blegh)

Dinner: Lamb

Snacks: Cashews, chocolate balls (See The Earth Diet website for recipes), banana

Day 8 - Jojoba Oil

"Jojoba Plant"

I wanted to share with you all one of my best friends when it comes to skin and hair care. Jojoba Oil. I have been using Jojoba oil for a couple of years now, and it has quickly become a part of my daily beauty regimen.

Firstly, what is Jojoba Oil ?

It's not actually an oil, but it is a wax that is extracted from the seeds of a jojoba plant. The plant is found in Arizona and in parts of Mexico. What is pretty amazing about this is that the structure of the oil/wax is very similar to human sebum. Structurally and chemically, it is the closest you will find to human sebum than any other natural product. That's why it is so good for your skin! (and hair!)

You'll find in most products such as moisturizers, shampoos, conditioners, lip balms that they have some jojoba oil. But it is best to use jojoba oil when it is in it's 100% pure state. I use 100% organic Jojoba oil. If you go to a store to buy it, you should be able to tell the difference in quality in that if it's in it's pure form it will be a golden color, and if it has been processed it will clear and transparent.

The one on the left is what you want to avoid! On the right is Jojoba Oil in it's purest form. That's what I use!

If you would like to know where I buy my from, feel free to ask. I havn't actually ever found it in a store before. I always buy mine online.

Anyways... Why do I love Jojoba oil?

I pretty much use Jojoba oil for everything... I use it for make up removal (excellent for that!), as a face wash (makes my skin soooooo smooth), massage oil, lip balm, in the shower I like to rub my whole body with it- makes your skin soft and supple!

One of my favourite uses is as a hair treatment. You can either put a drop or two in with your shampoo or conditioner, and it helps leave your hair soft and shiny. Or what I like to do is I massage my scalp with it. It is VERY good for dry scalps and dry hair. So, I massage my scalp and I pour a whole heap all over my hair. I comb it through with a tooth comb and then I generally leave it over night. Or you can wash it off in a hour. Don't be alarmed, you will look like you have dipped your head in a bucket of oil! But the next morning, when I wash it out with Shampoo... My goodness... My hair is so so so soft, it is silky, it is extra shiny. I generally find that I receive a lot of compliments for the next few days. I like to do this about once a week. I love it!

For those of us that live in colder conditions... I find that my skin get soooo dry and scaly! After a shower I love to moistourize my body with Jojoba Oil. I have found it to be so helpful and I no longer get the dry and scaly skin.

For those that have acne... It is perfect! It does not clog pores and if you do some research on the internet, you will actually find that it helps fight against acne. It is non-toxic, non-comedogenic and non-allergenic. 

And lastly!! It is antibacterial! Surprisingly, when bacteria and fungus come into contact with Jojoba Oil they will die!


So that's my day 8! I'm loving it and I'm so excited for what Day 9 will bring! :)

(Can you tell I'm in a much happier mood than yesterday?)

My Day:


Breakfast: Protein shake, pinapple/orange/apple juice

Lunch: Kale chips, cashews, almonds

Dinner: Steak and green veggies

Snacks: Plums, pinapple, mandarins

Exercise: Got all the way to the boxing gym... started getting ready... only to realize I forgot my sports bra! So didn't work out :)

Day 7 - Feeling sad

"However long the night, the dawn will break"

- African Proverb -

Today is much different than yesterday. It has been a horrible day. I feel so discouraged and sad. Not too long after I wrote Day 6 we received some "news" from Immigration. It seems that our application may take longer than we first thought. It absolutely sucks and I'm in so much self pity right now.


Normally when I feel like this I like to over-indulge in chocolate and sweets. Oh my goodness I am really struggling right now. I'm working late at work tonight and all I want to do is run down to the store and buy myself a nice big chocolate bar. I even tried reasoning with myself as to why I deserve this and that Cadbury chocolate is oh so healthy for me. Just a few minutes ago I got off the phone from Dustin, begging him to tell me it's okay for me to buy a Kit Kat. He just kept encouraging me telling me that I'm strong and that I can fight this.


This is the first time in a week (A week!? Can you believe I've done this for a week?!) that I have had serious cravings for this!


Now.. okay... onto a confession. It was dinner time (at work), I'm feeling very down on myself and the world, and then.. it turns out to be a kids birthday! A birthday cake comes out, we all sing her happy birthday, she blows out the candles... We cut the cake... And a piece is offered to me. And I ate it. Argh! I don't even like cake! If I was going to screw up like this, why couldn't it have been with chocolate!?


You'll never guess what happened after I ate the cake... I had a splitting headache! It's been 4 hours since I had a few bites of the cake and my head is pounding. It came on straight away and just won't go away.


I'm so frustrated!


If anyone has any encouragement or advice or comments or anything.. Please, I need to know I'm not alone! And that I can do this.


I just wish work was over so I could go home to bed and fall asleep and let another day come....


Sorry that this blog post today is so depressing.






My Day:


Breakfast: Protein/banana shake


Lunch: Pineapple/apple/grape juice


Dinner: Green salad


Snacks: That dreaded cake that caused this splitting headache, mandarins, bananas, almonds, carrots

Day 6- Excitement

"Get excited and enthusiastic about your own dream. This excitement is like a forest fire- you can smell it, taste it, and see it from a mile away."

 -Denis Waitley-

I'm loving the Earth Diet. I never actually thought I would love it this much. If anything, I thought it was going to be harder and more boring. I thought I'd always be hungry. I thought I would always be thinking about the foods I'm missing out on.

But it is so fantastic! It is so fulfilling! It feels good knowing that you are doing something good for yourself!

For the past few mornings I have been waking up and I have been feeling so excited. I'm excited to see the changes in my body. I'm excited to see the changes in my energy levels. My emotional state. Dustin has already mentioned to me that he can see I have so much more energy and vitality! This excites me! For as long as I can remember, I have been someone who is always so fatigued! To get through a day is normally a struggle. But now when it is time for bed I'm still buzzing around. I'm loving the new me. And I'm so excited to see what I'll be like next week, next fortnight, next month! 


It's been exciting to try new foods and to experiment. Day 6 I experimented by trying to make a chocolate nut slab. Did I like it? Not at all ! It was so bitter. Maybe I made it wrong. Maybe my taste buds need re-adjusting. Whatever it is... who cares! It was exciting to try! And I'll keep on trying until I can make a chocolate treat that is to die for and that I love.


This is exactly what I need for my life right now. It has been so de-stressing. A little about my situation... My fiance and I live in Canada. He is Canadian and I am Australian. Let's just say, I hate the cold. And in Canada it is f.r.e.e.z.i.n.g! So we've been here for just over a year... and we are hanging to be able to go back to Australia. But we're waiting on Immigration. We have applied for a partner visa and now we are just sitting here playing the waiting game just waiting for Dustin's visa. Once he gets his visa we are leaving here and moving back to Australia. But we have no idea when this is going to happen. It could happen today... or it could happen in 6 months. Basically living in limbo-land sucks. It is stressful. At times depressing. Especially when you're on facebook and you can see all your friends back at home enjoying a summer! When outside it is either raining or snowing. It's hard for us to make plans for our lives (including planning our wedding!). Basically this whole waiting thing had sapped any source of excitement I've had, it's been a very frustrating process.

But since being on the Earth Diet it has definitely given me something to focus on and to be excited about again :) We will keep you posted when we get our visa!


My Day:


Breakfast: Banana/Apple/Pineapple/Grape/Blueberry smoothy. Yuuummmmmm!

Lunch: Quinoa dish with coconut oil, red pepper, onion, mushroom, garlic, tomato, beans and broccoli.

Dinner: Chicken

Snacks: Banana smoothy, baby mandarins

Exercise: Trying to keep warm ;)

Day 5- Kale Chips

My day was going fantastic until I hit the night time. Dustin and I decided we'd stay home to watch movies. Now, normally when we watch DVD's at home I'm armed with nachos, chocolate and Diet Coke! At first we both struggled on what to do for our late night snack, and then I remembered something I've tried from a co-worker. 

KALE CHIPS !!! 

Kale chips are known to be the healthiest chip you can eat for a snack. 

How do you make them??? 

First, you need to preheat your oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).  And line your baking dish with baking paper.  (If you are a raw eater, apparently you can use a dehydrator for the Kale? I don't have a dehydrator though..)

Second, remove the leaves from the thick stems, and then tear the leaves into bite size pieces. 

Thirdly, drizzle the leaves with olive oil and sprinkle with sea salt. 

And lastly, bake until the edges are brown but make sure they don't burn! It should take about 10 mins. 

Voila, you have a late night movie snack! 

Here is Kale before:

And when they are Kale chips:

It doesn't look like much but trust me, they are delicious!

According to The Worlds Healthiest Foods, Kale stands out in three ways. It is 1) antioxidant nutrients, 2) anti-inflammatory nutrients, and 3) anti-cancer nutrients in the form of glucosinolates. If you want read more about this then click here!!!

How great is that!!! A movie snack that is full of antioxidants, it is pain fighting, and it helps prevent cancer! You couldn't get better than that. 

My day: 

Breakfast:  Buckwheat pancakes... check out the recipe on The Earth Diet website.

Lunch: None

Dinner: Steak and veggies

Snacks: Banana/orange/blueberry/pineapple smoothy, Kale chips, apples, bananas, rasberries, almonds

Exercise: Walking :)

Day 4- Preparation

"Before anything else, preparation is the key to success." 

- Alexander Graham Bell-

I feel like today has been a great day! I feel positive, energetic, excited and at peace. However, I have to admit... at the beginning of the day I broke the Earth Diet!

How?

Today was my day off from work. I slept in, woke up at about 10am... was absolutely starving. And there was nothing in the house for me to eat. Except... some bread. And after having some crazy dreams (the dreams were about Kit Kats and Diet Coke!) I felt so vulnerable and I made myself some toast with honey. At least the bread was more on the healthier side, it was very nutty and full of whole grains. 

Anyways, I realised after that that if I want to be successful on The Earth Diet then I need to be prepared! It's all about preparation! If you are going to go out, you need to know how long you will be out for and if you are prepared for it! Otherwise you'll end up working yourself into starvation and you will eat whatever food is there for you. 

I didn't let myself feel down or guilty, but decided I'd learn from this and move on. 

Despite having to get fillings done at the dentist, I ended up having a fantastic day! I caught up with a friend and she told me about a supermarket here- Whole Foods Market. Oh my goodness! When I walked in I felt like I was in heaven. It was a supermarket much bigger than any normal supermarket... and it stocked healthy, organic foods! And it was environmentally friendly too! They had a body section, and all the soaps/shampoos/conditioners/etc were all natural and organic and good for you! They had everything and anything you could think of! It was amazing! I will definitely be doing my weekly shop there from now on! They even had a health food cafe and a juice bar! On our way out we brought ourselves some yummy smoothies! So good! 

My day:

Breakfast: Toast and honey! (ahhh!)

Lunch: Apple pie... the earth way! I had this delicious desert at Gorilla Food

Dinner:  I made this delicious meal tonight... Quinoa, coconut oil, beans, broccoli, tomato, onion, red pepper (capsicum), mushroom. Yummmmmm

Snacks: Baby Mandarins, Banana/Raspberry/Apple Juice Smoothy, Chocolate Hazelnut Truffle from Gorilla Food

Exercise: Lots and lots of walking! 

Day 3- Water

"Water is the best of all things"
Pindar (C. 522-C. 438 B.C) Olympian Odes

Water!!!! I love it!!!! 

Day 3 was such a good day! It was the first day that I didn't have a headache, I felt less cranky, and I felt awesome!!! I also have a new appreciation for water! 

I've been drinking water so much, and I'm loving it. I literally feel it in my cells! Water is known as the life source to our world and ourselves. Without water we would have nothing, and be nothing. Water makes the world beautiful! Water is what gives life to our animals, the trees, grass, flowers, fish, whales, and ourselves! 

Allaboutwater.org tells us that:

• Roughly 70 percent of an adult’s body is made up of water.
• At birth, water accounts for approximately 80 percent of an infant’s body weight.
• A healthy person can drink about three gallons (48 cups) of water per day.
• Pure water (solely hydrogen and oxygen atoms) has a neutral pH of 7, which is neither acidic nor basic.
• Water dissolves more substances than any other liquid. Wherever it travels, water carries chemicals, minerals, and nutrients with it.
• Somewhere between 70 and 75 percent of the earth’s surface is covered with water.
• Much more fresh water is stored under the ground in aquifers than on the earth’s surface.
• The earth is a closed system, similar to a terrarium, meaning that it rarely loses or gains extra matter. The same water that existed on the earth millions of years ago is still present today.
• The total amount of water on the earth is about 326 million cubic miles of water.
• Of all the water on the earth, humans can used only about three tenths of a percent of this water. Such usable water is found in groundwater aquifers, rivers, and freshwater lakes.
• By the time a person feels thirsty, his or her body has lost over 1 percent of its total water amount.

Since quitting Diet Coke I have been able to drink more water. And already I feel the difference. I feel alive, refreshed and energised!  

My day:

Breakfast: Protein shake, bananas, eggs

Lunch: Chicken, brocoli, carrots, cucumber, mixed lettuce leaves.

Dinner: Potato

Snacks: Macadamia nuts, almonds, cashews, apples, bananas

Exercise: Boxing, followed by the sauna! 

Day 2- Patience

"Learn the art of patience. Apply discipline to your thoughts when they become anxious over the outcome of a goal. Impatience breeds anxiety, fear, discouragement and failure. Patience creates confidence, decisiveness, and a rational outlook, which eventually leads to success."
- Brian Adams

Day 2 was about patience for me.  I am so excited to be on The Earth Diet; not only for my health, but also because of what I can learn about myself and about the world. I have found that when I take away all the garbage food from my life I am better able to have clarity. I feel more connected to my surroundings... and it's only day 2! How exciting!

I'd like to think of myself as a patient person. To be a Youth Worker I feel it's a quality that you need to have, especially when working with high risk youth. Not a lot of things bother me, even the most annoying of all people I could spend hours with. But for some reason, Day 2 I lacked patience. Every little thing was pissing me of. Interactions I had with people were hard to bear. All day I just wanted to punch myself in the face! I was so cranky and tired and didn't want to be around people. I feel like it's because I'm detoxing from all the poison I have been drinking. The headache I had was worst than the first day (understandable). I was tired... probably because Diet coke was my pick-me-up drink (I'm not a coffee drinker. I'd either drink water or Diet Coke) I felt so frustrated with everything.

By the afternoon I had to sit myself down and give myself a little pep talk. I realized that for years and years and years I have been filling my body with garbage. How can I expect to suddenly feel awesome only after 2 days? I need to be patient with my body and with myself. I can't expect my body to heal over night. I have to let it do it's thing and purge all the toxins out of my body. In the meantime, I'm going to have to try and practice patience extra hard when I'm around people! (God, I feel sorry for them)

I desperately wanted to go boxing after work. But I felt like I had to listen to my body. My body was telling me it is exhausted (probably working overtime to get rid of all this shit!), I had a cranking headache, and my muscles felt weak. If I hadn't given myself the pep talk earlier, I probably would have felt like giving up and thinking that eating from the Earth and being healthy is all bullshit. 

I went home and rested. I was craving potatoes (normally I don't let myself eat potatoes) so I cooked some. Had a hot bath. Dustin and I spent some time talking about the Earth Diet, watching The Earth Diet You Tube videos, and then I went to bed. I went to bed feeling positive and excited knowing that my body is in the midst of cleansing and healing itself!

My day:

Breakfast: Protein shake, bananas

Lunch: Chicken, mixed lettuce, carrots, broccoli, cucumber

Dinner: Home made fries (good comfort food!), Chicken

Snacks: Macadamia nuts, almonds, cashews, apples, bananas

Exercise: None

Day 1- Diet Coke withdrawals

So, yesterday... what a day!

By lunch time I had gone 24 hours without any Diet Coke. And my goodness! I was headachey, bitchy, tired and I felt so negative. I had so many emotions going through me! As a result, I think I overcompensated by eating alot of (earth) food.

By the afternoon I felt so negative about everything. I was pissed off to all the naturally skinny people out there and I was pissed off that I decided to challenge myself like this. I was thinking thoughts like "What is the bloody point in all of this?" I had to remind myself that I wasn't just doing this for weight loss... but I was doing this for health. For ME.

I'm a professional youth/social worker, and I had to keep telling myself that how can I set a good example for these young people and to care for them if I cannot even care for myself. You cannot love someone else fully, until you can learn to love who you are. By eating garbage food and drinking poisonious drinks (yes, Diet Coke is pure poison!), that is not demonstrating love to yourself.

I realized that for years I have put others before myself in a negative way. I would go to a party... and I would feel obliged to eat all the finger food, "because they paid for it". Or, a friend will want to catch up for lunch, and they feel like McDonalds so I will do that "because they want to eat that". Or even as a Youth Worker, where do most Youth Workers take their kids? To Mc Donald's or other garbage places like that. (oh my gosh I was craving a cheeseburger so bad yesterday)

When I got home last night I found a can of Diet Coke in the fridge. I was freaking out. I desperately wanted it. But I fought urges all day!!! Unfortunately, I caved in... cracked open the can... had a sip... My fiance, Dustin, caught me. He ran over to me, grabbed it off me and proceeded to pour the drink down the sink. You'll never believe my reaction! I started wrestling with him, I was crying, and I was banging my fists on the bench! After he emptied the drink, he turned to me and said "Take a look at yourself Sam. You're a drug addict. You may not be addicted to illegal drugs, but you're addicted to this shit!" I then, with tears in my eyes, put myself to bed (at 9.30pm. I was exhausted) and had a little cry (haha!).

I'm so grateful to Dustin! He is my inspiration for this journey! Thanks honey.

My day:

Breakfast - protein shake, bananas

Lunch - Brocoli, cucumber, carrots, avocado

Dinner - Home made fries (felt desperate for carbs! But it's okay, potatoes are from the Earth and I cooked them Earth friendly!), chicken

Snacks - Strawberry Zing juice (from my favourite Raw,Vegan, Organic Cafe... check out Gorilla Food for their menu!), Chocolate ball and biscuit (Gorilla Food), Mandarin, carrots...

Exercise - Went to my boxing gym and vented my frustrations out on the heavy bag! I then sat in the sauna for about 20 mins, just letting myself sweat out toxins.

The Earth Diet

Okay... so here it is. I'm beginning The Earth Diet.

Basically, it's about living off the foods provided by the earth. No more chemicals. No more preservatives. There are a few things I'm not willing to give up just yet... my whey protein shakes (but when the tub is finished I won't buy anymore!), the birth control pill and the occasional glass of alcohol! I'm not even going to allow myself to feel guilty for not wanting to give these things up... For years in my life I lived under a cloud of guilt, feeling guilty for everything I did or did not do, I am not prepared to feel that way again.

Other than that, I will have anything and everything that the earth gives! Meat (yes, I'm a meat eater), eggs, veggies, fruit, nuts and all that yummy goodness!!! I feel like it has been a transition, and I have gotten to a place where I'm loving raw veggies and eating more fruit. Only a couple of years ago I would have never even thought to eat raw veggies. A couple of years ago I was much heavier and unhealthier also!

I'm excited to explore and learn more about healthy eating too. In the past year I have taken up a great interest in nutrition and what that looks like for me. I realized that over the years I have abused my body and treated it with so much disrespect. It's time that I love my body and nourish it and treat it the way it deserves to be treated. I'm tired of battering it and making it feel like it isn't beautiful. My body is beautiful and I need to care for it!

The biggest hurdle I am going to face is giving up Diet Coke. I have been a Diet Coke addict for more years than I can remember. I have tried quitting in the past and it has always been horrendous. The withdrawal symptoms are the worst. But I know that once I get through the first week I will be okay. I was planning on beginning the Earth Diet on the weekend, as I know to expect headaches and crankiness. etc. But this morning as I was chowing down morning chocolate and a can of Diet Coke I felt so disgusted with myself that I knew I had to start today. So I poured the rest of the drink down the sink and began.

My goals are:

• To feel good
• To lose weight (I am still slightly overweight)
• I want to try and take a photo of my face everyday so that I can see the changes that eating from the Earth will do. I probably won't post this though until I actually see significant changes ;)

Okay that's it for now!
Cheers,
Sam