My, How Things Have Changed!

Sporadically throughout my life I’ve kept daily journals of what I eat, my weight, and measurements. I admit I’ve always been a little overly obsessive, and to this day if I don’t weight myself first thing every morning my whole day is thrown off. Anyway, the other day I can across a food journal from several years ago and I got to thinking about the difference between then and now. I also got to thinking about how my grocery shopping has changed. By most standards my shopping list probably looks healthy, and my new list is maybe a little scary… or confusing. Here are the lists for my own comparison.


Example of a former typical day:
16 oz. Isalean live enzyme whey protein shake
Strawberries
1 can Tuna with mayo on whole wheat Breton crackers
Tortilla chips and salsa
Honey grilled chicken, crispy baked red potato wedges, peas
Large bowl ice cream
½ - ¾ pack cookies (throughout the day)


Example of a typical day in recent weeks:
32 oz. green smoothie (fruit and leafy greens w/flax oil and acidophilus, blended)
2 slices cinnamon raisin Ezekiel bread, lightly toasted with a little butter
1 grapefruit
2 oranges
1 apple
2 pears
raw almond butter sandwich (with Ezekiel bead)
2 large salads (dinner plate piled high with sunflower seeds and bottled creamy French dressing)


Example of typical former shopping list (main staples):
Chicken breasts
Ground turkey
Pork chops
Canned tuna
Eggs
Ezekiel bread
Organic milk
Organic cereal, as low sugar as possible
Rice crackers
Tortilla chips
Salsa
Chicken nuggets
Ketchup
mayo
Frozen vegetables (mixed, corn, peas)
Taco seasoning
Broccoli
Canned soup
Chicken broth
Red potatoes
Roasted, salted nuts and sunflower seeds
Soy sauce
Olive oil
Grape tomatoes
Cucumbers
Canned tomatoe
Flour
Sugar
Chocolate chips
Chocolate (whatever I could get the most of at the lowest price)
Ice Cream
Cookies


Example of current shopping list (main staples):
Apples
Pears
Oranges
bananas
Grapefruit (any seasonal fruit, and LOTS of it)
Frozen fruit for smoothes (mixed, strawberries, blueberries)
Ezekiel bread
Organic baby greens, salad (we buy 3 big tubs from Sam’s at a time, they last about 4 days)
Leafy greens for smoothies (romaine, red romaine, spinach, green leaf, red leaf, etc.)
Coconut oil
Cacao (raw chocolate)
Agave nectar
Nama Shoyu
Bragg’s Liquid Aminos
Nutritional yeast
Dried, shredded, unsulphered organic coconut
Raw almonds
Raw cashews
Raw walnuts
Raw pecans
Flax seeds
Dates
Organic raisins
Olives
Organic, cold pressed olive oil
Grape tomatoes

I think the biggest change in my diet has been my consumption of greens. I couldn’t find any in the food journal I was looking through. On occasion I would eat a small handful of salad with dinner… maybe 2-3 times per month. Nowadays, I get 2 large handfuls (blended for maximum nutrient absorption) in my morning smoothies, plus 2 huge platefuls during the day. I HATED salad my whole life, the very thought or mention of it made me angry. Once I started drinking green smoothies (which hide greens beautifully!) I began to crave salads! It’s a miracle!

Also, my new diet is very light and cleansing. I never feel stuffed or bloated… unless I eat something cooked. I’ve lost a lot of weight and gained a lot of energy. I will NEVER go back to a cooked diet. People really don’t know how much life they’re missing, and that is such a sad thing.