Week 1 + 2 as Raw Vegans

We have successfully made it through week 1 of our raw vegan diet challenge – woo hoo! This is a big accomplishment for us because it is said that the first week is the hardest as many individuals are resistant to change. So now that we got that out of the way, it should be smooth sailing right? *hopeful laugh*.

Challenging ourselves physically and mentally has been liberating and seeing the changes in each other so far is pretty cool. As we have completed 7 days of fully raw, we have documented each day with some initial thoughts to take note of. So let’s get into the diary of Britt & Alex’s 31 day raw challenge!

DAY 1 – Today was pretty easy and we are pleasantly surprised at how satisfying raw food is. We think our bodies may be in an initial shock mixed with a high adrenaline rush due to the fact that we were interviewed by channel 7. The whirlwind of unexpected activity took our minds away from food. Neither of us had hunger pains or felt that we were missing out on flavor. Our Food Nerd meals today consisted of sprouted buckwheat hazelnut cereal with a cashew/coconut/date milk, pizza slaw salad with green peppers and sun-dried tomatoes, and sprouted lentil tacos. We are feeling very content and satiated. So far so good!

DAY 2 – Uhh we spoke too soon. Today has been brutal! We both equally are suffering from an all day migraine. I, Brittany, have the chills – almost flu-like symptoms. Looks like the caffeine withdrawals are kicking in. We were warned that this could be bad but we’re pushing through it. On a good note, breakfast was unbelievably delicious – Food Nerd’s chocolate covered strawberry overnight oats. It’s 8:00 pm and I am off to bed hoping to sleep this away!

DAY 3 – Feeling 80% better but still lethargic and fuzzy-minded. To help with the caffeine withdrawal, I, Brittany have been substituting with green tea and Alex with Four Sigmatic Chaga Mushroom coffee. An interesting thing to take note is that as soon as we awake, we are hungry. In turn, forcing us eat breakfast and fueling our bodies with the proper nutrients it needs in order to thrive. Before, we would pour a couple cups of coffee which would curb our hunger but dehydrate our bodies in the process. Today, we experienced the first signs of detox expelling from our bodies – we’ll keep this G-rated here, but you get the point! Dinner tonight was Food Nerd’s spiraled vegetable pad thai, yum!

DAY 4 – We woke up this morning and didn’t feel a tad bid of lethargy. Not only did we feel back to normal, but we felt better than normal! Our energy was through the roof. Alex’s typical eating schedule used to be a protein bar in the morning and not eat anything until dinner time. Now that he is consistently fueling his body, he feels supercharged all throughout the day. We even went to the gym at 9:30pm and both worked out until 11. We tried Sunwarrior protein powder for the first time and loved it! (Yes, they have raw protein powder and we like chocolate flavor). After an intense workout and quick protein shake fuel, we still felt energized and ended up taking down the Christmas tree lol. Our eating agenda today from Food Nerd’s was peaches and cream overnight oats, bacon Caesar salad, and sprouted lentil tacos with avocado and tomatoes!

DAY 5 – Again, we both felt energized when we awoke and didn’t need any tea for a little kick. We are both down a few pounds but haven’t noticed any significant physical changes YET. We took a day trip to Canada and found an all raw vegan restaurant outside of Toronto. We experienced some pretty incredible food including nachos, a Mediterranean platter, burritos, carrot cake and almond butter cups – we splurged but it was all so freaking good! We went to Starbucks later on and picked up an iced passion tea (make sure you say unsweetened and plain so that it’s just the tea bag) – very refreshing and 0 calories! Our Food Nerd meals today included sprouted buckwheat hazelnut cereal with cashew/coconut/date milk and apricot cabbage slaw salad!

DAY 6 – Woke up on point and ready to conquer the day. Our digestion is extremely different then before, but in a good way. I, Brittany, am noticing my skin on my face has been super clear all week! We have been keeping apples, bananas, dried mango, carrots and celery in our kitchen for whenever we need a quick snack. Before going raw, our snacks would be something crunchy and salty… empty carbs like pretzels or crackers. Now, since we only have what we listed above, we are starting to crave those if we are in need of a snack. What happened to us?! lol. Our habits are changing! Our late lunch consisted of a large green smoothie containing frozen bananas, dates, Sunwarrior chocolate protein powder, 4-5 cups of spinach and almond milk. We were treated with a bowl of spirulina nice cream at the Food Nerd Headquarters and discovered that we are obsessed with spirulina – tasted like cotton candy ice cream.

Overall, we had a pretty good first week and we are excited to see what’s on the menu for week 2 and what benefits it will bring us. I, Brittany, have been slowly working on recipe-testing and hope to put out a raw recipe next week! Living in a climate that is currently 30 degrees makes the idea of eating cold food not so appetizing. This is something we just needed to get over our ‘stuck in our own way’ mindsets and move on. We often thought how wonderful a hot bowl of vegetable soup would be or even a simple sweet potato. Before we would crave vegan junk food, now we are craving cooked whole food plant-based! Crazy how our palates are changing.

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Week 2 is officially in the books and we didn’t know it was possible to feel this good. It’s like we have this secret to tell everyone but can’t explain it because you need to feel it for yourself.

Since our detox symptoms have subsided entirely and every day is becoming more of a ‘norm’ for us, we figured it would be easier to publish a summary instead of day-by-day entries.

We first want to make note that week 2 has brought us a taste of the almighty physical changes that we were so looking forward to! We were a bit disappointed after week 1 because we expected the extra baggage to instantly drop. But the process has started and we couldn’t be more relieved. We both are noticing that our mid-sections, arms and legs are tightening and toning. Plus, the scale doesn’t lie!

This may sound a little ‘woo woo’ but fruit and vegetables taste completely different to us then what they used to. An orange is like a refreshing dessert and lettuce has an almost sweet tasting crunch. Our tastebuds are 100% changing and it’s nice to have the ability to appreciate the true taste of natural foods.

Hunger levels? We eat when we’re hungry and stop when we’re full. We never get that super uncomfortable full feeling like we used to which is a huge benefit! We are never starving either. The consistency is nice and it allows us to fully function at our peak all throughout the day.

One of the most interesting and unexpected changes is that our cravings are gone! Any obsession over cooked food or vegan pizza has magically disappeared. Pictured below, we did in fact make a raw pizza and it was delicious! If we’re craving something sweet, it’s an orange or an apple. If we want something savory, kale chips or raw nuts. Keeping it simple.

What about those coffee cravings you may be wondering… They are gone too! We are both officially avid tea drinkers now and look forward to cups of tea throughout the day.

*Ladies* I, Brittany, always get a migraine before my monthly cycle and that headache typically lasts 2-3 days. This has happened my entire life but for the first time ever, I had no symptoms! I almost couldn’t believe it. This is because most females are deficient in nutrients and vitamins so when their monthly cycle comes around, their bodies are even more depleted. My headaches were caused by a hormonal imbalance so by consuming a raw vegan diet, I was able to combat the disproportion. Huge win!

Week 2 has been very insightful to say the least and has us questioning a lot about the world, the purpose of food and ourselves. We have pushed our mind and body to a limit we didn’t know we could and we are successfully managing. Not only managing, but thriving. January has been a very productive month for us as well. With the constant energy and positive moods, we are spending a lot more time working on growing our business and less time thinking about food. Excited to begin week 3 and unlock even more changes!