8 Daily Essentials

L u n c h F r o m H e a v e n . . .

...Not that I would recommend eating a chocolate bar for lunch every day but it can't be SO bad to indulge now and again, can it?

The past few days have been happy ones. I think I'm done with stress, I'm giving it up. Ok, so I might not ever be able to COMPLETELY give it up but though I might have some days that are more taxing than others, I don't want to loose sight of the joy in my life. I want to relinquish the things, people and activities that cause me more unhappiness than happiness. I want to simplify and purify my life. I want to ENJOY what I'm doing and not feel rushed and overwhelmed. If I'm busy I want to be busy doing things are care about and find worthwhile. I'm excited for my next cleanse (September 21st) and even more excited that BOTH of my roommates have decided to join me! They really are awesome.

Today I had a one hour break between classes so I decided to walk to the co-op where I bought some coconut water and the most AMMMAAAZZZZZZZiiiiNGGG raw chocolate bar. Sweet mother of god I think I just found my new weakness. ohhheemmmgeee, it was so decedant and satisfying. Then I loitered in our local bookstore for the rest of the hour where I bought a housewarming card for my momma to congratulate her on her new place in New Mexico. I also sat there and read some of Kris Carr's Crazy Sexy Cancer. Man oh man, I can't even say enough great things about that woman...what a story. Her book is beautiful and full of so much positive energy and tips that ANYONE...let me correct that, EVERYONE should read and incorporate into their lives. When I'm not so broke I think I might buy it.

After my daily commitments were over I hung out with my roommate on campus and we walked home together. Then I had some green tea with agave and a big salad with some new fancy greens, avocado and dressing I made last night. The dressing was tahini, garlic, sesame oil and juiced ginger. Damn, that stuff will k n o c k your socks off.

After this simple but lovely day here are 8 things that I've decided I want to make habit of:

Eight Things For Every Day

1. Leafy Greens
I don't want to set unrealistic goals about my greens intake but I definitely want to get some leafy greens in every day!

2. HTP-5

Ever since I heard about HTP-5 being able to help with binges I've been curious to see how effective it actually is. I'll never really find out unless I'm consistent though so I need to make a point of it.

3. Green Tea

I go back and forth on the caffeine debate but all in all I think the natural and minimal amount in green tea is a great way to kick start my energy and keep me feeling full. Plus, it's SO refreshing!

4. Water

They say most raw foodies don't really NEED to drink water since we get so much in the fruits and veggies we eat. Regardless, I like the way that water keeps me feeling satiated, especially if I want to stop eating late at night. Drinking water is a good alternative.

5. Walking

Walking is a great stress reliever and is just all around good for your body. I try to walk as much as possible. It's recommended that adults walk 10,000 steps a day (about 5 miles). Since there's a pedometer in my phone I keep an eye on it and achieve this minimum pretty much every day. I walk back and forth to school (about a mile) at least once a day Monday-Friday so that definitely helps. I want to start making it a goal to walk 10 miles a day though by adding an evening walk on as many nights as possible.

6. Music

Just seems like a given, really no explanation necessary. Music makes me happy :)

7. Sleep

I'm still waiting for the raw energy to enable me to survive and thrive on 2 hours of sleep a night. Right now that's not the reality and I need to allow myself the 6-8 hours that my body is asking for.

8. Laughter

Is the best medicine, take daily.

Groceries & Smoothies

Here is a picture of all the wonderful things I got at Chico Natural Foods yesterday. The bad news is, they're not hiring :( but it's always fun to shop there so I still left happy. So far today I've already made two amazing smoothies. The first is a simple blend of spinach and bananas which is a recipe from Green For Life. The second was a mix of 9 little apriums, 1 banana, a tsp of MSM and some agave. Both were super refreshing and satisfying.


Cheers to Ten Fingers!
I didn't use finger bananas this time but that's where this recipe got it's name.



Te presento Aprium-nanna Smoothie



Not Pictured: 2 bananas, 11 oz of coconut water & a heaping, lovin' spoonful of cacao

(To be eaten for dinner)

In other news, I'm planning to start a master cleanse on June 25th which I'm very excited about. There is another member of Give It To Me Raw who wants to start the cleanse on the same day so it will be good to have someone to share the experience with. I believe it's her first time too.

I've been looking at a lot of raw recipes and I want to try so many new things including hummus, chocolate mousse, ice-cream and a sandwich with Love Force bread (which I've yet to try), some type of nut butter, bananas and honey. That would be a take on one of my favorite cooked foods...yum.

After reading Raw Faith's Blog I've been thinking about the idea of "heavy raw foods". When I first started exploring raw foodism just over 6 months ago, my raw diet was very heavy in nuts and seeds. Now I feel like that just weighs me down. I also have a tendency to binge on these dense foods. I'd prefer to fill my diet with light, refreshing, satisfying foods and pretty much cut out nuts and seeds for the most part. I will still throw them in a recipe ocasionally but don't want to make them a focus. I still need my fats and proteins but oils are a good source of fats and I will look into more protein sources. Of course dark leafy greens are great but I need something more concentrated...maybe spirulina.