Good results this week!

NUTRIENTS

-Fat ranges from………… 28 to 56 grams

-Protein………………………28 to 41 gms

-Calcium……………………14% to 1,545% RDA (high percentages are due to vitamins)

-Magnesium……………….38% to 107% RDA

-Folate…………………….. 30% to 97% RDA

-Carbs……………………….152g to 216g

-Cholesterol………………..0mg (No cheese!!)

-Potassium………………….1,281mg to 3,270mg (This is low, even with the Centrum

-Calories…………………….1203 to 1508

-B12 ………………………….0% to 100% (0% is due to no animal products. When I take Centrum, I'm at 100%)

-Iron………………………….31% to 150% I only get enough when I take Centrum

-Fiber...............................36g to 50g My Sparkpeople chart tells me this is too much. My intestines would tend to agree!

-Vitamin C........................I get enough regardless of whether I take a Centrum

-Vitamin E........................I don't get enough if I don't take a vitamin

-Vitamin D.......................I get more than enough on vitamin days, not enough without the Centrum

-Zinc................................I get enough only with the Centrum.

WEIGHT LOSS

STARTED WEEK AT: 323 ENDED WEEK AT: 319

TOTAL POUNDS LOST SINCE JANUARY 1ST 2006: 22

CHANGES NOTICED THIS WEEK

My back still hurts terribly in the morning, but it wasn't quite as bad this week as last week.

I don't think my eyes watered at all this week, but I still sneeze occasionally in the mornings.

My tongue hasn't hurt ONCE since I started eating raw!

My lowgrade morning headaches have greatly abated, especially this past week.

I find that I'm not drinking my 8 glasses of water a day. I've read that there is so much liquid contained in the foods we eat on a raw diet that I don't need 8 glasses, but I will still strive to drink at least 6 per day. It is difficult, though.

This week I've adjusted to eating fruit in the morning, but the lower calories have caused me to end the day below my 1,200 calorie minimum. Maybe I'll get some nuts to increase my caloric intake.

Apples appear to give me a stomach ache.

FOODS CONSUMED

The same as last week, plus

nori (seaweed)

portabello mushroom

raw cacao nibs (which I'm still VERY undecided about)

CONCLUSION

I believe my weightloss picked up because I've lowered my overall caloric intake. Last week I lost two pounds eating more per day. I definitely don't plan on eating less than 1,200 to 1,300 calories per day.

I'm concerned about getting enough vitamins and minerals from foods. I cannot fault a raw lifestyle for not providing me with my vitamins and minerals because I really haven't taken enough time to investigate which foods would be good sources of these nutrients (although I've concluded that my B12 needs will only be satisfied by a multivitamin).

I'm still suffering from low-grade diarrhea, which is getting tiresome. I'm not sure how to tackle that, since plant foods naturally have a lot of fiber. I hope I don't just have to get used to it. I should probably go a day or so with no hummus and see what happens, but at the moment, I can't imagine a day without my hummus! That tells you how varied my menu is- not very.

I had a rough time when I was running low on funds and groceries, which caused me to eat the same exact foods for every meal. However, I still love taboule and hummus and bought more of it. The hummus is still not raw, but when I get my blender I will try sprouting some garbanzo beans and seeing if I can make my own, just to try it.

My next goal is to increase the variety of foods in my menu. It's harder than I thought. To that end I am looking to buy an raw cookbook (also called "Uncook Books").

HAVE A HEALTHY DAY, EVERYONE!!