I beat the alarm clock today, waking up 10 minutes before it was supposed to go off. After getting out of bed I wanted to go to the kitchen and drink some soy milk. I had this insatiable thirst for it. I figured I would be fine after eating breakfast, but the craving stayed with me. I don’t really know why I’m having these cravings for different cooked foods. I read that the crave period usually happens within the first two weeks, but after that it is supposed to subside. I can only attribute it to either rushing into the diet too quickly (skipping the vegetarian and vegan stages) or not eating enough greens. Either is plausible.

Breakfast

Even though I should be eating greens, I don’t think I can stomach them early in the morning. I’ve tried eating salads for breakfast before, but that just made me nauseous. So instead of eating greens, I’ve decided to stay on the fruit path for breakfast and get my greens in later on in the day. For this morning’s breakfast, I had mango, raspberries, and Braeburn apples.

1. organic mango (407g)
2. organic raspberries (154g)
3. organic Braeburn apples (586g)

Even though I felt full after breakfast, the cravings still stayed with me. For lunch I decided to go back to a green smoothie. I don’t really have any other ideas on how to stop my cravings and from what I’ve read, lack of greens is probably the underlying factor.

Lunch

I made a green smoothie hoping the cravings would subside and after drinking it, I felt the cravings settle down a bit. I didn’t crave the soy milk anymore, but noticed I was still thinking about certain cooked foods like rice and bread.

1. organic Braeburn apples (401g)
2. organic pears (528g)
3. green smoothie: organic bananas (332g), organic baby spinach (95g), organic kale (45g), organic blueberries (161g), organic hemp powder (7g), organic coconut oil (2 tablespoons), 3 cups water

As you can tell from looking at the picture, I accidentally overloaded the blender before I had mixed in all the ingredients so I had to pour some of the unfinished product into a glass to keep the blender from overflowing. I then poured myself a second glass of the finished product and then dumped the contents of the glass in the picture back into the blender and mixed it up again. If you’re ever afraid the blender will overflow, don’t risk it, just pour some of the mixture out into another glass and add it back in later.

Dinner

For dinner, I ate some bananas I usually use for making smoothies. They were a little too sweet, but I paired them up with some grapes and that helped dilute some of the sweetness. I ate some peaches as well.

1. peaches (258g)
2. grapes (401g)
3. organic bananas (542g)

I noticed that organic fruit is more perishable than non-organic fruit. Take the bananas for example. If I buy organic bananas, I have to eat them within 3-4 days or else they go bad (turn totally brown). On the other hand, non-organic bananas will last as long as 6-7 days before turning dark brown. I know it’s not what nature intended, but I understand why we genetically modify food – it’s efficient. Not healthy, but if you are a company trying to transport fruit around the world and don’t want it rotting before it’s delivered, you’re going to tweak its genetic code.

Post Dinner Meal

1. green smoothie: organic baby spinach (87g), organic kale (65g), organic bananas (255g), ground goji berries (40g), 3 cups water
2. pumpkin seeds (61g)

Vitals

Weight: I lost .5 lbs. That means I weigh 173.7 lbs.

Body Temperature: My temperature was 97.6 °F.

pH levels: The pH level today was 7.50 pH.

Blood Pressure: Systolic blood pressure was at 123. The diastolic was at 70.

Endurance: I did not run the mile at the gym, but I did walk around my neighborhood for around an hour without feeling fatigued.

Strength: I did not go to the gym.

Cognitive Capacity: Still clear and sharp. No changes besides thinking about cooked foods, which can be a little distracting at times, but not too bad.

Today started out kind of hectic. I woke up 20 minutes later than usual. The power went out in the middle of the night and the incident reset my alarm clock. I sleep in a pitch dark room and cover my alarm clock with a piece of cloth every night before I go to bed. As I sat awake in my bed this morning, I had no idea anything was wrong. I thought I had actually beaten my alarm clock yet again. I went over to it to gloat and check the time but was surprised to see a blinking “5:45.” I realized the power had gone out. I checked my hand watch (the one I never wear) and then it hit me that I was going to be late for work. I dashed to the bathroom – was in and out in 5 minutes. It was the quickest shower I’ve ever taken. I was really behind so I was going to skip breakfast today. I just grabbed my clothes and got dressed quickly. As I was running out the door, I realized today was actually Sunday and that I had plenty of time. I couldn’t help but let out a chuckle.

Breakfast

Having been given a second chance at breakfast, I came back in and prepared a feast. I wanted to eat well knowing that this was the meal that almost wasn’t.

1. organic tomatoes (287g)
2. organic white grapes (292g)
3. organic avocado (189g)
4. watermelon (783g)

As I’ve stated in the past, I really like watermelon and would eat it more often if it were more calorie rich. Although it wasn’t organic, I still liked eating it. This meal kept me satisfied for around 5 hours.

Lunch

Around lunch time I started having intense cravings for brown rice. I noticed that when I don’t have my green smoothies, I’m more likely to have cravings for cooked foods. I noticed I hadn’t had a green smoothie on Day 25 and thought it might possibly be linked to that. I immediately got started on trying to remedy the situation, but it was too late.

1. pineapple (882g)
2. green smoothie: organic collard greens (65g), organic romaine lettuce (75g), red watermelon (254g), bananas (228g), 3 cups water

Even after having this meal, I still felt the cravings for brown rice. The cravings were intense (as they usually are) and I couldn’t shake them. I wanted to eat brown rice badly. I took a minute and pulled out my Letter of Resolution. I read it over and it realigned me with my goal. I realized I’d never forgive myself if I quit on Day 26, so I decided to go for a walk outside. I was trying to keep myself isolated from any possible temptation until the cravings wore off. That didn’t happen for around 2 hours, so my short walk turned into a long hike. When I felt the cravings subside, I came back home and drank some water.

Dinner

For dinner I had  some fruit and a green smoothie. I was trying to prevent any other cravings from coming to the surface. A preemptive measure on my part.

1. organic mango (386g)
2. organic blueberries (168g)
3. green smoothie: organic carrot leaves (30g), organic red Swiss chard (65g), organic bananas (283g), organic sunflower seeds (25g), 3 cups water

I felt the cravings dissipate a little after dinner and did not think about the cooked brown rice as much after having the second smoothie. The cravings are a sign that I am lacking some type of nutrients in my body and my body compensates for those deficiencies by making me crave cooked foods. I don’t think brown rice has the nutrients I need, I just think my body craves brown rice because that’s a food it is familiar with.

Vitals

Weight: I gained .3 lbs. That means I weigh 174.2 lbs.

Body Temperature: My temperature was 98 °F.

pH levels: The pH level today was 7.50 pH.

Blood Pressure: Systolic blood pressure was at 125. The diastolic was at 67.

Endurance: I did not run the mile today.

Strength: I did not go to the gym. It was a rest day.

Cognitive Capacity: Clear, like always.

My alarm clock woke me up this morning while I was in the middle of a lucid dream. If you are not familiar with the lucid dream – it is a dream where you are aware that you are dreaming. Not only that, but you can control your dream’s environment and where your dream is heading. My lucid dream started out at as a normal dream, but then changed to a lucid dream as I looked in a mirror. My reflection was an image of me, but I was around 18 years old - I was dressed like a preppy. As soon as I saw my reflection, I realized that this was a dream. For some reason that image of me at 18 did not resonate with me. I knew that my actual age was 28. I also knew that the outfit I was wearing in the dream had been stained at a dinner party. In my dream, it looked brand new, so I figured I had to be dreaming.

As soon as I realized what was going on, I immediately opened the front door, got on my bike, and started flying. I don’t know why I used a bike, it just made sense at the time. I wasn’t very good at flying and the bike wobbled as I started going up. First I reached an altitude of 5 ft… then 10 ft… then 25 ft…100 ft…200 ft…500 ft and…I panicked. The feeling of fear was too real, so I made the decision to come back down. As I was descending, I decided that my friends were going to throw me a party to congratulate me. I just thought it and balloons, cake, and friends appeared out of nowhere. Well, just as I was about to land and go talk to all of them, the alarm clock started whaling. Grrrrrr!

I did not intent to lucid dream and must admit I barely know what lucid dreaming is – that’s part of the reason why I was not able to control my fear during the dream. Like anything worth doing, lucid dreaming requires time and practice to master. I’ve only had the experience 3 times in my life, but this time the dream felt incredibly real. I plan on doing an experiment on lucid dreaming in the future, but had not planned on it happening during my raw food diet experiment.

Breakfast

There have been many pleasant side effects from going on this diet. One is this feeling of positivity and emotional tranquility. I feel like I can achieve just about anything I put my mind to. The feelings of doubt and negativity are gone.

1. organic apples (482g)
2. organic bananas (316g)
3. organic blood oranges (429g)

And it’s meals like this that have helped me with the emotional detox. I ate the whole meal in 15 minutes. Shortly after, I felt the surge or energy that comes from eating raw. I was so energetic – I felt like I could have jumped around all day if I wanted to.

Lunch

For lunch I tried another exotic fruit. It’s called the Lychee fruit, native to China and Vietnam. I was curious to try it, so I bought a few. Today was my first time having it. On the outside it looks much like a pine cone sprout.

1. peaches (448g)
2. organic blueberries (130g)
3. organic raspberries (175g)
4. organic Lychee fruit (196g)

Peeled Lychee Fruit

The inside of the Lychee fruit looks like that of a peeled grape. The texture and taste is also similar. Unlike a grape, a Lychee fruit has only one seed in its center. The seed looks like a large kidney bean and has a smooth shinny surface.

Dinner

For dinner I felt like having a big fruit salad so that is what I made.

1. organic pears (519g)
2. organic raspberries (132g)
3. organic bananas (283g)
4. organic peaches (267g)

I usually like to keep things simple, but tonight I just felt like I wanted a large fruit salad. It took me around 15 minutes (including measuring the weight of the fruit) to prepare this feast. I ate it in under 20 minutes.

Post Dinner

1. pumpkin seeds (45g)
2. sunflower seeds (58g)

I ate these seeds to keep me from getting too excited. I wanted to feel energetic, but not to bounce off the walls. I noticed the seeds help to keep the energy from being released all at once. They have a stabalizing effect. That and eating just a few seeds keeps my hunger at bay for at least six hours.

Vitals

Weight: I lost .2 lbs. That means I weigh 173.9 lbs.

Body Temperature: My temperature was 97.9 °F.

pH levels: The pH level today was 7.50 pH.

Blood Pressure: Systolic blood pressure was at 123. The diastolic was at 70.

Endurance: I ran the mile with ease today. I felt so well rested I could have ran a second mile with no problems.

Strength: I lifted the weights with ease at first so I decided to add another +5 lbs on to the current weight I’m lifting. That brings me to a total of +15 lbs of weight since beginning the experiment. I felt the weight was challenging, but I still got through almost all my sets. I did not finish all the reps for the squats or the calf raises.

Cognitive Capacity: I really feel like my mind is clear. I can’t even remember a time when I’ve been as sharp in the past.

I woke up feeling kind of mellow this morning, so I took my time getting ready. I was in a contemplative state of mind and as I prepared breakfast my thoughts drifted toward my childhood. I remembered the spring time of 1986. I was 5 at the time and living on my grandparents’ enormous farm.

My grandparents would leave early in the morning (around 4 am) to go work the land. I would wake up around 8 am and would be free to roam the farm until 6 pm. I was the king of the place, a Huckleberry Finn of sorts. I would eat whatever had been left out for me, then go untie our guard dog. He would proceed to follow me around as I picked fruits from trees, made mud pies, and got into mischief. Being on the farm at that age was a liberating time in my life. I felt so free and happy then.

I don’t know if the raw food diet was responsible for releasing this memory into my system, but something certainly made it come to the surface and I don’t know what else it could be. I haven’t made any other changes in the past 24 days. What I do know is that I really enjoyed this memory. While eating my breakfast, I felt like I was back on the farm being that carefree happy-go-lucky kid.

Breakfast

I still enjoy eating simple raw foods because of their convenience, but there are times when I want to prepare some fancier meals. After the experiment is done, I will be taking a shot at a raw food lasagna recipe that I found online. Hopefully I can make it as good at the chef who created it.

1. organic mango (651g)
2. organic bananas (259g)
3. organic apples (422g)

I ate the whole meal in under 10 minutes.

Lunch

I know you are expecting me to deliver some new found insights, but lately it’s just been smooth sailing. I’m running like a finely tuned machine. I almost feel like an Olympics’ athlete – minus the sprains, aches, and pains. Just as agile, quick, and powerful though. No mental pollution. No negative emotions. All the old barriers and doubts seem to be a whole lot smaller. Yes sir, welcome to the good life.

1. mixed fruit salad: organic raspberries (316g), organic bananas (293g), organic kiwi (165g)
2. organic grapefruit (676g)

After finishing this meal, I noticed one new development. I was able to eat a lot more than I was able to eat at the beginning of the experiment. For a while, I used to feel bloated when I ate a large portion of raw foods. Lately I’m able to consume similar sized portions (as when I first started) without feeling bloated.

Dinner

For dinner I had some pumpkin seeds, some blackberries, some peaches, and a liter of green smoothie.

1. organic blackberries (160g)
2. organic pumpkin seeds (72g)
3. organic pear (177g)
4. organic peaches (395g)
5. green smoothie: organic baby spinach (74g), organic rainbow chard (86g), organic bananas (278g), organic ground sunflower seeds (37g), 3 & 1/2 cups purified water

I’ve been trying to incorporate more seeds into the diet. I noticed I feel more grounded when I eat seeds along with the fruit and vegetables. I still have energy, but it feels like I’m more in control of how it’s used. When I have fruit alone I tend to be more rambunctious. I shoot more from the hip - making decisions without weighing the pros and cons. That’s not how I want to conduct myself, so I’m going to make a strong effort to eat more seeds with my meals in the future.

Post-Dinner Snack

1. raw organic almonds (91g)

I ate these in order to add some fat in. Dry puffy skin is not pleasant and it’s a good reminder that I need to eat more fats.

Vitals

Weight: I lost .3 lbs. That means I weigh 174.1 lbs.

Body Temperature: My temperature was 97.7 °F.

pH levels: The pH level today was 7.50 pH.

Blood Pressure: Systolic blood pressure was at 126. The diastolic was at 68.

Endurance: I did not run at all today.

Strength: I did not go to the gym today.

Cognitive Capacity: No new developments here. I feel much like I did on Day 23.

Another glorious day! I felt amazing all day today. I feel like every cell in my body is a member of a symphony – graceful, synchronized, and powerful. Each one sending out positive energy that blends into a wonderful composition of joy. It’s hard to believe I ever ate normal food. With good feelings like this, who would want to?

It’s a shame that more people don’t know about the raw food diet. When I talk to strangers and they ask me where I get my vibrant energy from, I let them know it’s from the raw food diet. As soon as I tell them my secret, I can see their facial expressions change. They either become skeptical or scared. They think I’m going to pop out a bottle of Goji berry juice and force it on them for $49.99. I think it’s amusing, so I do my best to break down their barriers without being salesy.  I usually talk about the benefits of the raw food diet and then let them form their own opinions.

Breakfast

I had mixed feelings about buying the papaya fruit again, but I decided to give it another chance. I wanted to make sure I did not like it before I turned my back on it for life. To my surprise, this papaya tasted better than the last one I had on Day 20. I had not planned on it being so wonderful, I even made a salad to dispense the weird taste I thought the papaya would have.

1. organic papaya (376g)
2. mixed fruit salad: organic blackberries (173g), organic raspberries (171g), organic blueberries (129g), organic bananas (255g)
3. glass of water

This meal was satisfying and I felt rejuvenated after eating it. I feel better and better with each passing day. It seems like I’m happier and more carefree than ever before. It’s not just a mental state of mind, it also has a lot to do with what I’m putting into my body. Since I’m only giving my body the best, that’s how it makes me feel – like I’m the best me I can possibly be.

Lunch

I finally found a store that sells organic raspberries at a discount. It’s a little mom and pop shop that competes with Whole Foods. So far the mom and pop shop is doing a good job and is getting a majority of my business. They carry a wider selection of organic foods, the food is fresher, and more affordable – so I only go to Whole Foods to buy harder to find items like raw cocoa and Goji berries.

1. organic pears (626g)
2. organic raspberries (168g)
3. organic kiwi (241g)
4. green smoothie: organic bananas (326g), organic spinach (73g), collard greens (68g), 3 cups water

While storing raspberries in my fridge, I found out that you should only purchase raspberries if you plan to eat them within a couple of days. Otherwise they will become soft and moldy if left in the fridge for longer periods of time. Raspberries are anti-oxidant rich and research on their properties suggest that they contain ellagitannins – which are compounds that have cancer inhibiting potential.

Pre-Dinner Smoothie

green smoothie: organic baby spinach (88g), organic rainbow chard (71g), organic bananas (215g), organic Goji berries (24g), organic pumpkin seeds (19g)

I made another green smoothie after reading a passage from Victoria Boutenko’s book Greens for Life. It’s a great book that stresses the importance of greens in your daily diet. It takes the “eat your greens” advice to a whole new level and should be part of every raw foodist’s collection. I would definitely recommend picking it up if you plan on trying the raw food diet.

Dinner

1. organic apricots (533g)
2. organic mango (607g)
3. organic bananas (339g)

Today I ate some tangy apricots for my main meal. I also paired them up with some sweet mango and bananas. Eating this way makes me feel great and puts me in a more peaceful state of mind.

Vitals

Weight: I lost .2 lbs. That means I weigh 174.4 lbs.

Body Temperature: My temperature was 98.1 °F.

pH levels: The average pH level today was 7.50 pH.

Blood Pressure: Systolic blood pressure was at 124, which is a great improvement over where I started at the beginning of the 30 Day trial. I’m still in the hypertension category though. The diastolic was at 72.

Endurance: I rested today.

Strength: I did not go to the gym today.

Cognitive Capacity: I feel great mentaly. I feel clear and focused. My mind never tires. On the Standard American Diet, if I had a busy day, I would feel mentaly exhausted. The raw food diet leaves me with brain power to spare.