Raw on the Run

All the brown paper bags are various veggie/nut chips and
crackers. The bar in the front is a Raw Revolution peanut butter
cup bar. To the left of that are sprouted garlic sunflower seeds,
and to the right is a live pumpkin bar. Comment for more info.

Throughout the majority of the time I've been exploring the raw food world I've been on a break from school and work, sitting at home being antisocial, absorbing everything I can through books, YouTube, articles and blogs, and applying my knowledge at the stores and in the kitchen. It has been a wonderful time. Like, seriously wonderful. As I've mentioned in previous blogs, I'm feeling well and happy, my weight is quite rapidly getting back to what it used to be, and I'm learning a lot. Somewhat out of the blue, and without much forethought on my part, I found myself within the span of a few days going out to two movies, socializing, getting back at the gym and feeling very busy compared to what I had gotten used to. This has been incredibly fun, but has also been a huge lesson in the importance of scheduling your food preparation and eating times around your activities as well as bringing healthy snacks with you when you go out. On many of the last several days, my food consumption dropped to something along the lines of 1 green smoothie and a coconut water protein drink for the entire day. Oddly, I didn't find myself feeling hungry and I'm not sure yet what's up with that (queue Saturday Night Live "What's up with that" skit music), but it seems potentially unhealthy. I do tend to trust my intuition and try to listen to my body, and to that end I think it was fine. In the long run I would feel differently though, and want to at the very least be on the lookout for such potentially unhealthy patterns. On the other hand, many believe that a calorie restricted diet increases longevity, and there's much out there to back this up. I suppose for now I could think of it as something along the lines of a brief fast. What I hope to take from this, especially as I'm watching the days of work and school rapidly drawing near, is to always have a stash of raw food on the go; stuff like flax crackers, dried seaweed, dehydrated fruits and veggies, raw nuts and seeds. I actually have all the snacks pictured above, but forget to bring them with me. I'm headed to Dallas tomorrow for a few days and will take those along. These are quite pricey to be buying as a fix-all, but luckily I invested in an Excalibur food dehydrator and think this will more than pay for itself as I make super nutrient dense homemade flax crackers and the like. I'm really excited to play around with the dehydrator. In fact, I'm currently using it for the first time ever dehydrating apples that I soaked in lemon juice for a minute and then covered in agave nectar and cinnamon. Hope they turn out and I can take them to Dallas with me. See? Learning my lesson... ;)

Long slow run: 7.3 miles, 90 minutes, 781 calories

On a more positive note, I present to you Raw on the Run part II! I've been feeling really well at the gym lately. When I run, I can tell the difference from having dropped some weight, and my knees seem to be getting better from said weight loss and/or the stretches and exercises I've been doing for them. Also, I've finally been getting in some resistance training and am feeling more and more confident that you can get plenty of protein from this type of diet. Yesterday I did a 7.3 mile run, the farthest I've done in probably close to 2 years, and while I was quite exhausted from it, I felt just as good or better than other times I've pushed myself so hard. I even had the energy after 80 minutes to work up to an 8.5 mph sprint, which is approaching my max speed. Before the run, I had a high calorie fruit smoothie, knowing I'd need the energy for a long workout at the gym. I also brought a big bottle of water with lemon juice and molasses for some extra fuel to keep me going through the run. Sounds weird, I know, but it seems to work. Also, raw blackstrap molasses is high in iron and the vitamin C in the lemon helps the body absorb this iron more readily. Then on my way home, I stopped at the health food store for coconut water (a good recovery drink). I ended up drinking a good 16 ounces of coconut water with protein powder, then running to my friend's where I stayed for several hours, and eating an apple on the way home (Hey! I guess I did prepare a little!). So my total food intake was a smoothie, an apple, and two drinks, basically. Along with a 700+ calorie burn from the run, I don't know if this is great for the potential weight loss, or just really unhealthy. When these types of things happen, I do at least try very hard to make what little I do eat is very nutrient dense and catered to my activity for the day. On a minimal exercise day I eat lots of dark leafy greens and veggies and less nuts, seeds, avocados and fats. On a big exercise day I'll try to get more carbs and proteins, as well as minerals and electrolytes to refuel my body.

Anyway, looks like I'll always be learning, and I think this is as it should be!

Until next time...
Much love
Devan