Day #6

Wow. Almost a full week into this raw food experiment and 101 day yoga challenge. Penni decided to change the name to "Raw Food Rehab" - which I think is a more catchy title.

I have done yoga 6 consecutive days! 3x Baron Baptiste video and 3x Bikram audio cd. And tomorrow I go back to the studio after a 3 week hiatus.

Today also marked my first day of no dairy. Yesterday I decided that I am going to give up dairy cold turkey for a full year. Now I'm probably going to have to play it by ear as far as items that contain dairy as an ingredient. And I may have butter occasionally. But definitely no cheese and no milk, or really *any* obvious dairy, for that matter. I know that I can do this. I gave up diet soda for a full year and now it's not even an option for me. It's time to give dairy the boot as well.

I am planning to make a couple of Alissa Cohen's recipes tomorrow. Maybe I will post a couple of pictures if they turn out well. I want to have yummy raw food choices on hand so that it's easier to stick with the program.

Anyway, so far so good. I will be weighing in tomorrow so we'll see just how good. ;))

Day #4

Well, still struggling a bit on the diet front. I seem to keep making excuses for why I want to eat things that I know I shouldn't. The good news is that these deviations are limited. And I have been doing yoga every night.

But I know that to get the results I want I really need to get my eating habits in line. Exercise is only half of the equation. I have been drinking a green smoothie every day for breakfast. But then today I had Mexican food for lunch complete with the cheese I've intended to swear off.

HMMM. I know that planning plays a big role in whether I succeed or fail. So this weekend I will try to make a bunch of recipes from Alissa Cohen's book so that I have yummy raw things on hand to eat at all times. I will also get back on track with eating a big raw salad for lunch every day.

I am committed to doing this. Now or never. So what the heck have I been waiting for!?!!

Day #2

As you can see I have posted some very scary before pictures. I shudder to look at them now but I know that I will eventually want documentation of the dramatic changes in my physical appearance. I am completely confident that I will lose all the weight I want to. And I will do it in a healthful manner so that it never creeps back to bother me again.

I got off to a little bit of a rocky start on the diet front. The past couple of days have been a little rough. But I'm pleased to report that I am full speed ahead on the workout front. 2 days of yoga under my belt and 99 to go. ;))

My Big Fat Raw Experiement

So tomorrow I will begin Penni Shelton's "Big Fat Raw Experiment". She will be advising a group of us guinea pigs as we embark on a 10 week journey into cleansing and weight loss through eating raw foods.

The backbone of my meal plan will be:

32 oz green smoothie every morning
Big raw green salad at lunch
20 oz raw juice in the evening

I will also be trying some of the raw recipes from Alissa Cohen's book, the Pure Jeevan e-book, the Raw Fu website and, of course, from Penni's website. I am going to try to eat high raw for the duration of the experiment.

The timing is perfect because I was already toying with the idea of doing 101 consecutive days of yoga starting June 1st. Now I've decided to go for it and to combine a high raw diet with the yoga.

My weekly workout schedule will be:

Bikram - 4x per week at the studio
Baptiste - 2x per week at home w/ dvd
Bikram or Baptiste - 1x per week at home w/ dvd or cd

I had such a great visit with my family but I ate and drank a little too much. And I got my ankle tattoo, so I haven't been doing yoga. I guess that I should be happy that I only gained back 5 pounds because it could have been a lot worse. ;))

Today's Weight: 207.5

Here are my starting measurements taking fully clothed and wearing a bra:

Bust (around fullest part): 42"
Waist (around smallest part): 37"
Hips(around fullest part): 48"

I promise that I will post before pictures in the next couple of days.