80/10/10

I had been meaning to get to this book, The 80/10/10 Diet by Dr. Douglas Graham for some time and finally did. And now that Ash Wednesday, the start of Lent and various traditions to change, give up something and reflect are upon us, my husband and I would like to give the regime a try.

But first, a review.  

The general premise of Dr. Graham's findings are predicated upon the paradigm of Natural Hygiene, or, the 'science of health.' From there he constructs an argument in favor of a raw vegan, high fruit, plant based diet where 80% of the calories come from carbohydrates, 10% from protein and the last 10% from fat.  

Why the ratio? All too often raw fooders fall into the trap of high fat foods such as nuts, seeds, and avocados, leaving would be health enthusiasts in a veritable slump, often reverting back to old, unhealthier eating habits. Also, he explains why excessive protein is damaging to our systems, giving way to potential health problems down the line. Graham posits that eating a higher raw carbohydrate ratio offers people an abundance of energy and potential for health and well-being, coupled with non food protocols of regular fresh air, sleep, sunshine and exercise.

Graham offers menus for the seasons with simple recipes and the freedom to explore what each individual might need to consume calorically based on weight and activity level.  Also, he doesn't shy away from the very real questions that plague raw enthusiasts and those simply striving to do better. He's honest, fair but forthright. 

While I don't agree with some of his rationales for why he thinks we are "meant" to be frugivores, because it simply isn't true (people eat non plants and are sustained), I don't disagree either. Put another way, I simply would rather be walked through the scientific implications and reactions of humans digesting animal flesh, grains, dairy and fruits over time, and definitely over and against comparing what we eat to apes or other animals. While interesting, it's not the strongest argument when there are animals of all stripes of their natural diets like horses, vultures, lions, sharks, etc. I think we can certainly learn about their digestive systems as a supportive enterprise for why human beings are unique, while making the strongest case that because we are unique, we are also set apart from other creatures. 

I think the other reason I wrestle with his paradigms is not because they aren't true, helpful or life changing, but the fact that we are born into a society and culture that is not on board. As someone who eats most of her daily food raw (50% or more), I've experienced the pitfalls he speaks about, and live in a community where people don't value Natural Hygiene like this, can't afford it, hate the idea of it and/or simply don't know what it is. Um, wait . . .who doesn't? 

But I can buy this:

"It is important to understand that foods don't heal us; the body does all the healing. Foods, cooked or raw, simply supply the materials the body uses to perform its various functions.  However, low fat raw vegan foods provide the widest range of high quality nutrients and are, therefore, more likely to furnish the perfect proportion of raw materials needed by the body for healing."Graham, p. 266

So, it is with some eagerness that my husband and I embark on a week long 80/10/10 winter menu plan starting Friday. Wish us luck. The task, it seems, is to make sure we're eating ENOUGH, as Dr. Graham overstates. How's that for Lenten disciplines...eat more, eat well!?!

We'll keep you posted. In the meantime, pick up this book and let us know what you think.   

Easter Weekend

This weekend was wonderful, emphasis on "wonder" and "full."

Every Triduum for us is. 

And along with Gods gifts this past Holy Week, we were blessed to have my husband's parents join us in the festivities. 

As you can see, my son was pretty psyched about it all. 

His jubilance is pretty standard, but as he's demonstrating below, he has a lot of faces he likes to wear. 

So, how was it keeping on track healthwise, you ask? 

Well, there were some concessions made, as Adam's family enjoy more cooked food.

For example, the main course, "Ducken" (minus the "Tur"), was the Easter feast.

It was pretty good, but surprisingly I only had a few bites.

Overall, I was satisfied with our diet (portions, fruit and vegetable options) all weekend, but am looking forward to getting back to more raw. My mind and body are at its best on that diet. 

Nevertheless, my in-laws are very flexible and adventurous, so I was able to try a few raw/vegan dishes on them, too. 

The Almond Butter Brownies, for sure.

And below, this is a mostly raw (minus the eggs) salad. Isn't it beautiful and colorful? 

They enjoyed the Liquid Gold Elixir dressing with this. 

We had a couple of these gorgeous salads while they were here.

I had to snap a picture of the wild rice side as it was tasty, beautiful and ... a feat that it came out as either.

Why?

 Let me put it this way: rice and I have a tenuous relationship.

Conclusion?

Rice is the boss of ME . . .I MUST wait until it is done.  

And I did. This time. 

Because I'm a dork and take pictures of every table setting on special occasions, I thought I'd share our Easter dinner table. 

Not sure why. It's nothing too special.  

But humor me...and just move on. 

And move on you shall to the grand finale!!!

The StRAWberry Pie

This stRAWberry pie recipe (seriously, this whole pie, crust and all--which is chocolate almond--is raw) will definitely be up on the blog this week, as I will be remaking and tweaking it. 

But need I tell you that it was refreshingly delicious and decadent?

'Twas.

A blessed Eastertide to all.

He is risen as he said!

Alleluia!  

RAW Banana "Ice Cream"

Since eating more raw and vegan, there is little convention in my mind that says we have to eat dessert after dinner. 

I mean, dessert can BE dinner. 

What's better than that I ask? 

Crickets.

I thought so.

If you followed the Almond Butter Brownie recipe from yesterday, I mentioned topping that sweet li'l sucker with this banana "ice cream." 

Without further adieu, I give you the mind blowing-ly simple compliment to any raw or vegan brownie, cake or pie.  

 Ingredients:

3 frozen bananas

1-2 tsp vanilla

1 TBS cinnamon

1-2 TBS Almond or Coconut milk (not pictured, optional)

It's pretty normal around here for me to buy 5-6 bunches (or is it bushels?) of bananas per week. Aldi's sells them for .44/lb.  It's totally worth it since I use them in smoothies daily, various dessert recipes, and this wonderful treat.

1. So first you peel the bananas and put in a freezer bag. Freeze for at least 3-4 hours. (I have dozens of frozen bananas in my freezer. They keep for a long time that way.)

2. Then take them out, let them sit for about 10-15 minutes for the surface area to soften.

Now break up those 'naners and place in food processor or blender.

Tic, toc, tic, toc . . .I'm sure this step is taking forever.

3. Okay, add the rest of ingredients and blend until creamy, scraping sides down as necessary to get it all into a consistent creamy mixture.

Like so.

That's it, folks! 

Now grab a spoon and taste test that goodness. 

You like?

If you want a chocolate banana taste, you can add and blend in a 1/4 cup of cocoa powder.

Now if you want to get fancy schmancy, grab an ice cream scooper and top your fav raw vegan dessert. 

Add some walnuts.

Then drizzle with a little agave nectar.

Um, folks, is it just me, or does this look decadent and delish, or what? 

Raw-la-mode in the hizzay!

Well, it certainly is delicious.

My boy and I ate this for dinner!

Protein, potassium, fiber and lots of other good vitamins. 

Complete. Success. 

A Consumer (Me) Reports

Have you written us off as crazy, quack-job moms yet? (C'mon, I would if this were me two years ago.)  Some of you might be thinking it's impossible to carry on as we do when you're on a budget. And have a family. And an appetite. And...insert blank.

Hopefully by now we've explained how slow a process this has been for us. Not only enjoying a more plant based diet, but learning how to maximize purchasing live plant-based food (as in, where to get them CHEAP) is our aim.

So what does that look like?

First, for us, this means forgoing the "organic"quality of food for now (To be explained later). Also, starting up our own gardens, and finally, buying only what we need for the week.

Much thanks to my in-laws for sending me a Consumer Reports subscription, since I just received this month's in the mail today. Coincidentally, the cover article talks about "Paying too much" for food. Here's a list of 11 grocers who are ranked as the most affordable.

1. Trader Joe's
2. Fareway Stores
3. Costco
4. Market Basket
5. Stater Bros.
6. WinCo Foods
7. Aldi
8. ShopRite
9. Sam's Club
10. BJ's Wholesale Club
11. Walmart Supercenter

I hope at least one of those are in your areas.

I frequent Aldi's and PriceRite (not listed) for their produce.  They have an excellent selection, and I make a point not to spend over $100/week.  In fact, I believe there was one week I spent under $70.  For a family of three, that's not too shabby.

It should be no surprise that Whole Foods ranked on the very expensive side.  And if money were no object--and if Whole Foods were around here--I'd go.

But back to our other strategies: I'm hoping our garden has a good yield this year as we're planting more than the last: kale, swiss chard, lettuce, cilantro, parsley, basil, beets, tomatoes, jalapeno peppers, butternut and spaghetti squash, peas, carrots, and cucumbers.  This will hopefully off set the GMO (genetically modified organisms) that we consume through the non-organic produce.

But let's face it. If you're anything like how I used to be, implementing significantly more fruits and vegetables into the diet is going to be a good thing, whether they're organic or not. A swathe of greasy french fries versus a genetically modified apple is a no brainer. Don't get me wrong, getting into the nitty gritty (especially on a cellular level) about what you're consuming and how it affects the body is important, but unless someone has another suggestion within the budget that we're operating from, we're making due. And it seems to be working well health-wise.

I'd love to hear our readers' insights about Agricultural Co-Op's ...what the cost/benefit ratios are, the marked differences are on how it feels eating more organically, etc. We have a couple Co-Ops in our area, but I just can't justify the cost at this stage. Maybe you can convert me!

Blessed Holy Week!

The eyes of all look to you, o Lord

And you give them their food at the proper time.

You open your hand, 

and satisfy the desire of every living thing. 

Psalm 145: 15-16

"You're In Perfect Health."

How many doctors say that to us these days? Has anyone walked out of an appointment without a prescription or referral since they were, I dunno, a fetus? It seems an eye twitch or sniffle has our MD's referring us off to every specialist known to mankind and prescribing a ton of drugs so as to avoid any potential legal infraction.

However, that's what my husband's doctor told him a couple months ago,"Your in perfect health, Adam," after a routine physical.

Quite the surprising diagnosis, since, just a year and half ago, the doctor was singing a more durge-y tune. In 2010, Adam's blood tests came back not so good. His cholesterol was up around 300. Also,  he was suffering from irritable bowel syndrome (Sorry, honey), and headaches. Further, he had a series of dark moles that emerged around the sides of his face. I wish I had a close up picture to show--maybe friends and family can attest. But it was all sort of scary then.

What's crazy is that we exercised pretty regularly at that time. And I thought we were eating well. So what if the veggies we ate were cooked, wilted, marinated and almost mush, but heck, that counted, right? Well, if we're going based on medical blood tests, I'd think not.

Anyway, I kid you not, since we've been eating more raw, all of Adam's ailments have mostly disappeared.  His cholesterol and triglycerides came back GREAT. His IBS and headaches are no more. And the moles? Would you believe me if I told you that even those shrunk and have mostly disappeared? Well they have! And Adam isn't even as disciplined as me. He's also lost about twenty pounds . . .with little effort and even less exercise from before.

Back to Adam's routine appointment. After all the results were confirmed, it was kind of shocking to hear the doctor ask Adam what he was doing to maintain his health . . .as in, the doctor was interested.

"Tell me more about these smoothies and this superfood chlorella that you're taking...Sounds interesting...I'm going to have to look into it."

Yeah. Pretty awesome.

And if you're looking for more reasons to be amazed, check this video out, Reversing the Irreversible, of about 40 people attesting to their own health transformations through a mostly raw diet.

It's sure nice to hear the doctor confirm everything that we've been feeling as of late--great, if not perfect (doctor's words, not ours!) health.

What I Eat

Note: This is a "typical" day, but it certainly varies as I run out of or pick up groceries, and depend on what our garden yields this summer. Also, I am in the process of learning many new recipes . . .so, after Easter, look out!

Breakfast: Fruit/Veggie Smoothie. Depending on what Adam does in the morning, sometimes we share a 72oz blender-ful, in which case, I make more after he leaves.
Smoothie ingredients: A handful of . . .kale, spinach, celery, carrots, bananas, apples, frozen blueberries, mango and spirulina. Add water and blend to desired consistency. Also, I ingest chlorella and astaxanthin (potent superfoods high in antioxidants and tons of good-for-you properties) with the smoothie.

Snack: Almonds, Brazil nuts, walnuts

Noon: Usually I'm still sipping on my morning smoothie. Often I'll dive into a bag of baby carrots and hummus.

Snack: carrots, celery, hummus

Dinner: Large salad. Also, I'm learning a ton of new raw vegan recipes, so this meal changes daily. Knox loved our portobello mushroom meal the other night ...

Treat: Banana iced "cream." Yeah...wait for the post on that. It's delish.

Before bed: Lemon Cayenne Pepper Tea. Yep, that's the ingredients. Hot water, fresh lemon juice and a dash (or three, if you can stand it) of cayenne. Both have wonderful detoxifying and metabolism boosting properties.

This is an "a lot of food" day, which was nothing compared to the junk I used to eat even a year ago. My goal is to really minimize the snack grazing and actually stick to two nutrient dense meals per day. The body really needs to fast a little longer than one thinks- since fasting actually helps it to heal and repair damaged tissue, boost mental acuity and other things I can't think of right now. Ha, mental acuity.  

Why Be Dense?

What do we actually mean by saying we eat "nutrient dense" foods? Well, simply put, nutrient dense foods are foods that give us the maximum health bang for our buck: meaning, all of the nutrients, vitamins and minerals necessary for our bodies to function, be nourished and energized, without all the added calories.

AND nutrient dense foods truly satisfy us ...but I'll get to the satisfaction part in a minute.

Specifically, we're talking about fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, and sprouted grains.  

So take a cupcake, for instance. It has nutrients (carbohydrates, mostly), but is not as nutrient dense as it is calorie dense. Cupcakes cannot nourish us as well as a large, fresh salad. Makes sense, right?

Yet even cooking nutrient dense food above 118 degrees Fahrenheit destroys many important enzymes, and thus, many of the nutrients. (Though, I'd argue it's better to eat a plate full of roasted asparagus than a pizza.) You know what I mean.

Raw chocolate "cheese" cake

This is often why people overeat when they have a largely cooked and non-nutritious diet. Their bodies are craving the nutrients it needs, so paradoxically, they will overeat on foods they find psychologically comforting (french fries, burgers, etc) to achieve that full or satisfied feeling. But they are really denying their bodies true sustenance.  And we all know this invites health problems like obesity, diabetes,and  heart disease ...but even various degenerative diseases like osteoporosis, cancers, and chronic fatigue. You can visit our resources page to check out these references.

Also, something I learned that blew my mind is that being obese is actually the body's way of keeping itself alive! It's actually a survival mechanism. Meaning, when we eat poorly, our body needs to do something with the unusable junk, or toxins (not just an overabundance of indigestible saturated fats) we put in it. It simply can't eliminate them all, so it actually stores them in our fat cells. Of course, this catches up with us quickly if the diet doesn't change.  Exercise can certainly help with some of the detoxification, but exercise cannot put nutrients in us.  Nutrient density is essential. In fact, many people report almost an immediate positive response after having just ONE nutrient dense smoothie or raw meal!  It's as if the body is shouting, "THANK YOU!"

However, it's not all roses.  While there are positive responses to dietary changes, there can also be negative ones as well ...where people often feel worse before they feel better. These are detoxification symptoms resulting in a healing crisis, also called a Herxheimer reaction. The symptoms vary from headaches to irritability, acne, muscle aches, fever, chills, and so on.  I can attest that all of these have occurred and been an ongoing process for me personally over the last year as my weight steadily comes down. And it has, in a way I've never experienced before.

Now getting to the satisfaction issue--I've found that my palate has completely changed. Do I still have certain cravings, yes. But often those are satisfied by simply smelling that greasy fried chicken. I know what you're thinking, but I've found that I feel better in the long run by denying myself that one bite (because let's face it, it's never just one bite) and instead overeat on salad, greens and other beautiful new dishes that I make because I actually crave more fruits and veggies now.

Raw spring rolls

So am I Raw Food Vegan purist? In theory, yes. But in practice, not quite. The cravings come, and sometimes aren't denied. And I'm okay with that, as I hope you all are, too, in your own personal journeys. The last thing anyone needs to feel like is a failure after a meal. This is why "cold turkey" converts are very rare. Plus, Get Dense is not about "food religions," but trying new and better foods for the best health possible.

Success most often occurs as people are able to implement one or more good thing into their diets per day or week, and eliminate a "bad" thing slowly, too (the latter may take longer, who knows).  I still eat some food that I'd like to eventually eliminate (meat, dairy, wheat, canned and non organic produce) but there are certain budgetary constraints that I am working with, along with social pressures. I'm sure most of you can relate.

As Charissa and I carry on in this trek, our conversations are constantly ebbing and flowing from how much raw to cooked food we have, how we're exercising, how it makes us feel, what we'd like to try in the future, etc.  It's good that we have each other as support outside of our spouses ....even though our hubbies are on board, too.

If there's any advice that I can offer, it's that--find someone who supports and even shares your health and wellness goals.  Maybe it's an internet support network. Maybe it's Get Dense. Charissa and I appreciate the feedback, so we'd love to hear from you. Any questions, please contact us at getdense@gmail.com

All that's the dense response of what getting dense it all about. Probably stuff you're all doing without even realizing it. Meanwhile there are so many who are caught up in the pleasure trap, simultaneously overeating and staying malnourished. We've been there.  Join us as we learn our way to healthier habits, recipes and fitness.