Mono Meals...What's The Deal?

Mono eating is NOT necessary on a Raw or High Raw diet. BUT it does have it's benefits and is highly recommended for ALL lifestyles! It may seem scary at first, and many people will critique your meal...but remember, just because society doesn't approve...doesn't mean it is wrong ;)

~IT is wonderful for digestion!! A single food like apples or bananas require one digestive enzyme to be digested and a specific timing, allowing the process to be quick and easy! This takes up less energy, leaving you full of life :) No food-coma after a high energy mono meal!

~Mono-meals allow you to REALLY focus on what you are eating and why! Are you really hungry, are you fueling your body or causing it harm? Eating a mono-meal of fruit will help you understand the proper 'hungry' and 'full' signals! There is a fantastic feeling of satisfaction when you are full on fruit!

~Eating one food type at a time really lets you discover the REAL taste of food! When we combine numerous foods together, we have no idea what ingredient we are tasting. Mono meals give you the opportunity to fall in love with fruit all over again! As babies, our first meals are mono-meals...breast milk, and then single mashed-fruit meals!

~Mono meals are great for proper food combining. Although most of the modern 'diet' or health world does not acknowledge food combining, it is a very important part of eating & good health! When food is not combined properly it will lead to fermentation, gas, bloating, heart burn, belly aches, and creates an acidic environment in the body. Mono meals make it super easy to avoid such issues, and there is no stress of making sure the meal is properly combined :)

~Makes eating on the go so simple! Grab a bag of bananas, oranges, apples, or slice up a large pineapple, and you are done! So quick and easy! Mono meals are great for traveling as fruit packs easily and travels well! No need to go through the drive thru, just grab a bunch of bananas (or two)!!

~Very little clean up or mess! I love mono meals as they don't require any cooking, planning, and leave little to clean up!

~Mono meals can be very inexpensive and any fruit will do! You can pick fruit that is on sale and save even more money!! A pound of bananas is usually around fifty cents, a 4lb bag of apples is about $5.00, a large watermelon (in season) is roughly $6! Now that is a very affordable meal! You don't need water to go with it or any other drink, you won't be craving sweets after (as the meal is sweet enough)and you will be full of energy so coffee is not needed for a pick-me-up!

Don't listen to those who say eating this way is not healthy or too extreme! They do not understand the human digestive process, that mono meals are actually VERY healthy, and can help heal many digestive issues! Like I had mentioned before, we start out life eating simple mono meals. It is not until we are older that our parents begin adding mixed foods and 'food-stuff' into our diet. Many other species feast on mono-meals. Bears can be found gorging on blueberries for a meal, Deer can be found feasting on apples until they move on to their next meal, and most animals will do the same.

Give mono-eating a try! It DOES not have to be a daily or every-meal thing! But..you may discover it is such a joy to eat this way, and make it a part of your daily menu!

Vegan & Raw Food Diet Breakdown

There are many different vegan diets out there and many ways to stay healthy. Here is a breakdown:

Raw Vegan: Someone who eats 100% raw food! No breakdown of macro-nutrients. They eat plenty of nuts, seeds, greens, and fruit. This diet is great for those who enjoy the creativity of raw food, making everything from Raw Tacos to Raw cakes and snacks!

High Raw: Someone who eats majority raw, adding one cooked meal a day usually at dinner. This is not the same as Raw Til 4 as they have many strict guidelines. This is a more relaxed lifestyle for those who want to transition from a cooked vegan diet to a Raw Vegan diet. The focus is to eat a variety of raw food, and enjoy the best of raw & cooked vegan foods!

 The 80-10-10 Diet: This is a lifestyle book written by Dr. Douglas Graham. It is a 100% RAW diet, focused on Organic, Raw, Whole, Plant foods. It is a complete lifestyle for mind & body, which includes meditation and exercise. He does not allow cooked food, added sugar, starches, garlic, coffee, etc. on this lifestyle. His focus is on cleansing the body using raw whole foods, practicing proper food combining, and mono meals. He does promote eating a large variety of colors and vegetables  to ensure proper nutrition. He does not advocate ANY supplementation like B12 shots or vitamins.

High Carb Vegan: Eats approximately 80% of it's calories from good quality carbohydrates, raw or cooked. This can be confused with The 80-10-10 Diet by Dr. Douglas Graham, but it is not the same. Dr. Graham does NOT advocate eating ANY cooked food, added sugar, eating dates as a meal, or eating ANY starches. Although the macro-nutrient breakdown is the same, or very close. This lifestyle focuses on high energy, high quality foods which reduce cravings.

Raw Til 4: This is a very specific eating lifestyle created by Freelee from 30BananasADay. It is focused on eating high carb/raw until 4pm, then having a large cooked meal. This diet is strict and has many rules, like tracking every calorie and staying at a minimum of 2000 for women. This is a breakdown of macro-nutrients of 90-5-5, or 80-10-10. This lifestyle does promote B12 shots, but no other supplementation.

30BananasADay: This is a 'raw' lifestyle that many people confuse with The 80-10-10 Diet, though it is not the same. This is a breakdown of 90-5-5, staple foods include bananas and dates. This lifestyle allows coconut sugar and Stevia drops to help sweeten food. There is little focus on variety or greens or any other vegetables. There are strict guide lines of calorie counting, 2500/women 3000/men, using cronometer. Also this lifestyle uses smoothies as meals, unlike The 80-10-10 Diet which focuses on eating whole foods (fruit/veggies in their natural state). Many 30BAD members drink banana/date smoothies as meals. This lifestyle does promote B12 shots, but no other supplementation.

Vegan: Vegans focus on eating a balanced diet of plant foods including raw/cooked/processed options. There is no break down of macro-nutrients. This is a diet for those who want the freedom to eat whatever they want (plant-based) including Tofu, almond milk, coconut ice cream, desserts, etc.

Acid/Alkaline Diet: This is a diet focused on health, creating an alkaline environment in the body. The average person (SAD Diet) eats majority acid forming foods which breeds illness and disease. The goal of this lifestyle is to eat 80% Alkaline foods and follow proper food combining rules for optimum digestion, and 20% acid forming foods. This is usually a vegan diet, high raw, but some chose to still consume flesh (which I DO NOT recommend). An Acid/Alkaline Diet can help heal, increase energy, and improve digestion! This is also great for those who are athletic as it can help improve performance! This lifestyle dos not promote ANY supplementation as vitamins, supplements, and powders are acid forming and can do more harm than good.

There are many lifestyle options out there, it is important to research and understand what each one entails and pick one or 5 that work for you! There is NO perfect vegan lifestyle or diet, for everyone, you MUST do what feels best for you! I follow a mixture of a few! I eat High Carb, High Raw, Acid/Alkaline and The 80-10-10 Diet. I do a mixture of all 4 as I find all have great benefits. Keeping my fat low 10% (and under) has really helped improve my mood, reduce PMS, and increase my energy. I don't focus on exact calories, just on eating lots of fresh raw food, keeping my diet at 80% alkaline and 20% acidic. I try to EAT most of my food versus drinking too many smoothies. I don't enjoy drinking my meals...though a smoothie on the go is a great option!

Change can be hard. Here are 6 tips to help!

Making healthy lifestyle changes can seem overwhelming and difficult. Many people give up when the going gets tough and never reap the benefits which come with a healthy lifestyle! Though some can just jump right in and embrace their new life, others need to take many small steps to get there!

Here are six tips to help you along the way!

1. Research and Read! It is so important you really understand what you are getting into! There are many self-help books out there, fitness, food, natural hygiene, etc., so go and do some reading! I read The 80-10-10 Diet, The Thrive Diet, and The Plant Powered Diet when transitioning to a vegan diet. I also studied vegan/raw food/acid-alkaline food with The University Of Natural Health. I wanted to be sure I understood my new diet & lifestyle! Become an expert!!

2. Get online and make new friends!! If you are adding fitness or changing your diet, the internet can be a great place for support! Facebook has thousands of groups to join, with people on a similar journey as you! I followed The Banana Girl Diet page, Freelee The Banana Girl, Raw Til 4, FoodNSport, and FullyRaw! It is a wonderful way to socialize with people living a similar lifestyle!

3. Commit!! You must make a commitment to make the change happen! If you continue to make excuses for your old habits and bad behaviors, you will not succeed, focus on the new! I made a commitment to follow a vegan lifestyle, though it wasn't always perfect, I focused on my commitment and didn't look back!

4. Set goals! If you have a diet goal(vegan, raw food, vegetarian), weight goal, running goal, or muscle building goal, make sure it is realistic. Give yourself an appropriate amount of time to reach it and keep track of your progress. If you are not sure what a realistic goal is, meet with a Personal Trainer or Health Coach to help you!

5. Give yourself a high five :) What I mean is, be kind to yourself and praise all of your hard work and effort!!! We usually focus on what we didn't do and forget to celebrate what we did do!! Every goal you've reached, every little step you've taken deserves a high five :)

6. Don't quit after one slip up! It is not easy making huge (or small) changes in your life. You may even slip up...it happens, we are all human! I remember the first time I drank a latte with a dairy base, I didn't panic or quit my new diet completely. Fuck it-what's the point now!?!? is not a healthy attitude to have and it will get you NO WHERE! Focus on the rest of the day, making the BEST choices you can! If you skipped a workout...well, tomorrow is a new day and another opportunity, don't give up because you slipped up!

Life is full of opportunities and new adventures, go out there and discover how you can make some wonderful changes in your life! Change is great, it can up your eyes to a whole new world and possibly bring positive health improvement in your life!!

A letter, An apology, And A Promise

While having a conversation with a yo-yo dieter, I was saddened to hear how difficult it was for her to gain control of her eating habits. A part of me wondered why...as I am very aware of what I put in my body, and why I chose not to eat certain foods. I LOVE to feel good (and looking good isn't so bad either). So yo-yo dieting is not for me. Diets don't work...lifestyles work! Diets come with excuses, disappointment, sadness and weight gain! But...like most women it took me some time to learn this... and some people just take longer.

My advice to her was: write a letter to yourself NOW! Today, while you have hit rock bottom. Now, while you feel tired, uncomfortable, and don't like what you see, or how you feel. Now...that you have done this to yourself. You need to make a promise to YOURSELF that you will stop abusing your body! She looked at me and said...'I SHOULD, and then read it whenever I want to abuse food, or don't want to exercise'.

I hope she does. We easily make excuses for our bad habits...'what's the harm in having a few glasses of wine', or 'what's wrong with having chocolate chip pancakes for breakfast' and 'tomorrow I'll do better'. There is a great saying 'people love to hear good news about their bad habits' and many yo-yo dieters live for this. The moment a silly article says chocolate is a 'health food' they go out and binge! So maybe it's time to be honest with yourself. Apologize to yourself for treating your body like crap, for creating illness, for not exercising, and for the years of abuse. Make a promise to yourself. To take great care of yourself...and how you never want to feel this way again! Keep this letter. Read it often, add to it. Write a new one, update it...whatever it takes for you to feel truly connected with YOURSELF.

So I wrote a letter to myself, to my body...

Dear body,

I haven't always been kind to you. I spent years eating nutrient- poor food, consumed alcohol, under-ate and over-ate, over-exercised, and not exercised at all. I didn't care about the long term damage I was doing. I only cared about the moment...but I have grown up and am doing what I can to treat you like the wonderful home you are!

I am sorry I took you for granted, and I am sorry I didn't see how amazing you are. I was not taught to love you, to take great care of you, and to fuel you with the best food possible. Like most people, I just assumed you'd always be here, and I didn't have to worry. But I know that is not reality. I now understand how important you really are, and I HAVE to take great care f you!

I promise to always do my best! I promise to fuel you with fresh, healthy, raw food as much as I can! I promise to never abuse you, and to listen when you need rest, listen when you need MORE fuel, and to never take you for granted!

I promise to keep you strong & healthy. I want to live in the best home possible!

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to do better! Thank you for being patient and giving me time to learn. Now that I now better, I WILL do better! I promise!

Yours Truly,
Me