Day 22

Today got off to a much smoother start than the day prior. I had a great amount of energy and was ready to start my day. These are the days that I live for! I got down my liter while I attempted to catch up on the blog posts. I failed to finish them all, but I did get some good work in on them.

12:00PM
-Green Banana Apple Ice Cream Swirl-

3 md. Banana 315 cal
1 md. Banana (frozen) 105 cal
1 1/2 md. Apple 143 cal
2 Cup Mixed Greens 15 cal
1 lg. Leaf Collard Greens 5 cal
1/2 Cup Water

2 md. Banana (frozen) 210 cal

Total 793 cal

I wanted a green smoothie, I wanted apples, and I wanted ice cream, so I just went for it. Ice cream for breakfast? Definitely! This made 2 1/2 glasses which took me about an hour to finish.

3:30PM
-Avocado Banana-Mango Pudding-

1 Avocado 322 cal
1/2 Avocado 161 cal
2 md. Banana 210 cal
1/2 Mango 67 cal
1 Tbsp. Pumpkin Seeds 40 cal

Total 478 cal

I've really been wanting this awesome pudding for a while, but I just didn't have avocados handy when I was actually in the mood for it's sweet and tart flavor. This is seriously a TREAT! You must try this! Just blend the avocado, a bit less than half of a mango, and one banana. Then just top with the second banana, a few mango chunks, and some pumpkin seeds. Delicious!

4:00PM
-Snack-

1 md. Banana 105 cal
1/2 Cup Pineapple 42 cal

Total 147 cal

Soon after the pudding, I was still hungry, but not hungry enough to make more pudding, so I just had a banana and a bit of pineapple.

7:15PM
-Big Salad-

1 1/2 Cup Baby Spinach 15 cal
3 lg. Leaves Romaine 15 cal
1 Cucumber 30 cal
1 Carrot 25 cal
1 Stalk Celery 9 cal
10 Green Beans 17 cal
1/2 Avocado 161 cal
1 1/2 md. Apple 143 cal
1/4 Lemon 6 cal
1/8 Cup Lentils 70 cal

Total 491 cal

At this point, it is safe to say that a salad like this will almost certainly be a part of my daily diet from here on out. Everyday I seem to add more to the standard salad I used to reach for, and today was no exception. The lentils make this salad, somehow, ever better. And it tastes just as good as it looks, if not better! So good!

8:00PM
-Snack-

1 md. Banana 105 cal

I needed something sweet after the above salad, so another banana went down the hatch.

10:30PM
-Snack-

2 Chunks Pineapple 28 cal

Around this time, I spent 2 1/2 hours in kitchen preparing some food for the work week ahead of me. 2 Chunks of pineapple started the snacking session that helped me get through all of the time spent in the kitchen.

11:30PM
-Snack-

1 Carrot 21 cal
1 Stalk Celery 9 cal
1 Tbsp. Raw Ranch Dip 50 cal

Total 130 cal

I just had to sample the new raw ranch dip I spent some time making tonight. Really, it was so simple.

I just blended 1 cup of soaked (for 4 hours) raw cashews, along with roughly 3/4 cup water, 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, 1/2 teaspoon of both garlic and onion powders, and 1/4 tablespoon Himalayan sea salt. Afterwards, I added 1 tablespoon of both dill weed and dried basil, and blended briefly - maybe 4-5 seconds - just to mix the seasonings throughout. You can blend them together with the rest of the ingredients, but you'll end up with a green ranch, not the white one (with seasoning flakes) as shown above.

12:00PM
-Snack-

1/16 Cup Raisins 27 cal

A little something else to fuel my body.

12:50PM
-Fruit Salad-

2 md. Banana 210 cal
1/2 Mango 68 cal
1.25 Oz. Blueberries 20 cal

Total 298 cal

In order to stop all the snacking I was doing, I made one of my go-to fruit salads consisting of the standard banana, mango, and blueberries combo.


Approximate Daily Totals

Calories
2497 cal

Carbs                    Fat                    Protein                    Total
539.9g                  48.6g                  46.1g                      634.6g
77.64%                 15.73%               6.63%                    100%

Like I said, in order to get my protein numbers up a bit, I am fine going a bit over the 10% for the fat intake. Hopefully it will help me gain some weight as well. Such a good day overall!

And that concludes Day 22!

Day 21

Today got off to a rough start. Although I woke up at a decent hour, I could just not get my body in the grove of things. I had energy and was attentive, I think I was just a bit tired out from the extra amount of activity my body hadn't been used to.

12:00PM
-Fruit Salad-

4 md. Banana 420 cal
1 Mango 135 cal
1.5 oz. Blueberries 24 cal
1 Cup Baby Spinach 10 cal

Total 589 cal


This combination of fruit is becoming a staple for me. Mangos are perfectly ripe at the market I get them at right now, so I plan to take advantage of that. This past fall they were never ripe enough, so I chose not to eat as many. But, oh boy, are they delicious! I used a 1 cup base of baby spinach here as my body was literally asking me for greens. It's amazing how well I can read what my body requires now: something I never thought would be this easy.

2:15PM
-Snack Pack-

1/2 Cup Raisins 217 cal
25 Almonds 175 cal
3 md. Banana 315 cal
3/4 Cup Grapes 78 cal

Total 785 cal

I packed myself a bunch of different snacks to take to the skatepark as this would be my third and last day getting some real exercise in.

2:30PM
-Exercise-
I ended up skating for about 2 hours before becoming fatigued. I could now feel the small aches and soreness my body was experiencing from the good amount of activity I gave it the past few days.

4:45PM
-Snack-
3 Carrots 80 cal

After skating, I grabbed a few carrots to hold me over until I was able to make a larger meal.

6:30PM
-Green Choco-Banana Smoothie w/cacao nibs-

4 md. Banana 420 cal
1/2 Cup Baby Spinach 5 cal
1 1/2 Cup Mixed Greens 10 cal
1/4 Cup Water
2 Cup Ice
2 Tbsp. Cacao Powder 48 cal
2 1/2 Tbsp. Cacao Nibs 81 cal

Total 564 cal

This smoothie has been absent in my diet for quite some time now, which is surprising since it was a very dominant choice at the very beginning of the trial.

8:15PM
-Snack-

1 lg. Apple 116 cal

12:00AM
-Big Salad-

1 Avocado 322 cal
1 Carrot 25 cal
1 Stalk Celery 9 cal
1 Cucumber 30 cal
1/2 Lemon 12 cal
8 Green Beans 15 cal
1 1/2 Cup Baby Spinach 15 cal
2.5 lg. Leaves Romaine 13 cal

Total 441 cal

I was surprised I really didn't get hungry til around midnight, but decided better late than never. After having a similar awesome salad the night before, I could not resist making another. I picked up some green beans today, so they were added to the mix!

4:00AM
-Mid-Night Snack-

15 Grapes 51 cal
1 md. Banana 105 cal

Total 156 cal

I woke up in the middle of the night to a great hunger, so I satisfied it with some fruits. It is interesting to note that right before I went to bed at around 2:00AM, I was actually feeling a bit hungry, but since I was so tired, decided to just fall asleep. My body was telling me something here, as only a couple of hours later, I awoke in order to eat. Then it was right back to bed.



Approximate Daily Totals

Calories
2731 cal

Carbs                    Fat                    Protein                    Total
571.1g                   61g                    49g                         681.1g
75.41%                 18.12%               6.47%                     100%

After getting off to a slow start, this day picked up steam and felt like a decent day overall.

And that concludes Day 21!

Day 20

After sleeping in a bit again today, it kind of took me a while to get up and going. It was Christmas morning, so I took my time to enjoy the morning with family and finally got to eating after I worked up an appetite.

12:30PM
-Fruit Salad-

3 md. Banana 315 cal
1/2 Mango 67 cal
1 sm. Apple 77 cal
1 md. Apple 95 cal
2 oz. Blueberries 32 cal

Total 586 cal

This was extremely delicious, but towards the end, the apples became a bit too sweet for my liking. I finished the whole thing, but next time, maybe I'll go light on the apples.

1:30PM
-Snack-

1 md. Banana 105 cal
1 Carrot 25 cal

Total 130 cal

On my way to the skatepark, I grabbed a small snack and was ready to go.

-Exercise-
Another two hours of skateboarding today was a great workout for my body. I felt much looser and focused today than I did the day before. I assume taking it easy yesterday somewhat helped my body adjust to getting back into the swing of things, not to mention that today was much warmer than the one before.

2:45PM
-Small Green Banana Smoothie-

3 md. Banana 315 cal
3/4 Cup Baby Spinach 8 cal
1/2 Cup Mixed Greens 3 cal
3/4 Cup Water

1 Carrot 25 cal
1 Cup Grapes 104 cal

Total 455 cal

I took a break to snack a bit more to get some extra fuel to finish up the last hour or so of skating.

4:00PM
-Snack-

1/2 Cup Pineapple 42 cal

Upon getting home, wasn't too hungry but needed something to keep me going.

5:45PM
-Big Salad-

1/2 Avocado 161 cal
2 Carrots 50 cal
1 Stalk Celery 9 cal
1 Cucumber 30 cal
1 lg. Lemon 24 cal
3 lg. Leaves Romaine 15 cal
1 Cup Baby Spinach 10 cal

Total 299 cal

This AMAZING salad courtesy of my wonderful girlfriend Kaiti was just mind blowing. She spent some time preparing it and boy did it revolutionize my take on salads. This was like me taking another step in the realm of salads for me. Previously, I added just carrots and celery to my normal bland salad base. This, while only adding avocado and lemon together with the other vegetables, had such a crisp, pure, and simply, magnificent taste and totality to it. This is my new standard for salads for sure!

8:00PM
-Cookies N' Cream Ice Cream-

Ice Cream
3 1/2 Banana (frozen) 368 cal

Brownie
1 Chocolate Brownie (chopped)
1/4 Cup Raisins 109 cal
1/6 Cup Cashews 125 cal
1 Tbsp. Coconut Oil (melted) 130 cal
1 1/2 Tbsp. Cacao Powder 36 cal

Total 768 cal

The day just kept getting better and better. This was definitely the best ice cream or desert concoction I've made to this day in my life. The ice cream is the same that I've made before, and the brownie was actually half of what I had made a few nights ago, which I had been storing in the fridge. I just chopped up the brownie and sprinkled it throughout the ice cream, and again, my mind was blown! Such a great delectable treat!

Since I only had one brownie left, I made Kaiti her very own raw "vanilla" and cacao flavored banana ice cream, topped with cacao nibs. Of course, I let her taste a few chunks of my amazing brownie, which she LOVED, so I promised her that we would make more Cookies N' Cream very soon!

9:40PM
-Snack-

3/4 Cup Pineapple 62 cal

11:30PM
-Green Banana Mango Smoothie-

2 md. Banana 210 cal
1/2 Mango 68 cal
1/2 Cup Baby Spinach 5 cal
1/2 Cup Mixed Greens 3 cal

Total 286 cal

After that ice cream brownie desert earlier, I thought I could get through the night without eating again, but I decided to snack a few more times before bed.

12:30PM
-Snack-

1 md. Banana 105 cal

I guess it was a bit early when I had my desert for the night, so the extra snacks afterwards really gave my body the fuel it was asking for.


Approximate Daily Totals

Calories
2733 cal

Carbs                    Fat                    Protein                    Total
602.5g                  48.5g                 40.5g                       691.5g
80.11%                 14.51%               5.38%                     100%

Again, I ate more today than normal, most likely due to the extended period of exercise that I was able to get in. My body demanded it, so I supplied it. I was a bit over on the fat today, but I think I'm going to stick with that regime in order to attempt to get my protein levels up as well. If I have to go overboard on the fat just a bit in order to get the protein up during the last 10 days of the trial, I'm going to do it. As I've stated before, I would definitely like any weight gain, so I figure I'll give it a try.

And that concludes Day 20!

Day 19

Again, felt great today! Got up a bit later than I have been, but I have off for a few days for the holidays and decided to just stay in bed to get enough rest.

12:00PM
-Green Banana Apple Smoothie-

2 md. Banana (frozen) 210 cal
2 md. Banana 210 cal
1 sm. Apple 77 cal
2 Cups Baby Spinach 20 cal
1 Cup Mixed Greens 5 cal
1/2 Cup Water
1/2 Cup Ice

Total 522 cal

Just a standard, albeit a bit thicker than usual green smoothie. One liter here was gone in only 30 minutes. Yum!

2:00PM
-Snack-

1 md. Apple 95 cal

I just grabbed an apple to keep me over for a bit as I was on my way out to the skatepark to get some much needed exercise.

2:30PM
-Snacks-

4 Almonds 28 cal
1/4 Cup Raisins 109 cal
1 md. Banana 105 cal
3/4 Cucumber 23 cal

Total 265 cal

When I finally got to the skatepark, I was hit with a giant hunger so I ate a little mix of foods and it was time to get some fun in.

2:30PM
-Exercise-
One and a half hours of skateboarding was something I had been wanting to do for quite some time. While my legs really weren't cooperating with me in the cold, since they haven't been used like this for about a week, I decided to take it easy and just try to get my body used to moving around, as I planned to come back to the skatepark tomorrow. Overall, it was very fun and felt like my body got something that I had been depriving it of.

3:00PM
-Snacks-

2 md. Banana 210 cal
2.5 Carrot 63 cal

Total 273 cal

4:30PM
-Snack-

1 md. Apple 95 cal


After skating, had just another apple in order to hold me off until I got home to prepare something larger.

6:10PM
-Green Banana Pineapple Smoothie-

5 md. Banana 525 cal
1 1/4 Cup Pineapple 104 cal
1/2 Cup Water
1 Cup Ice
1 Cup Baby Spinach 10 cal
2 Cup Mixed Greens 10 cal

Total 649 cal

After skateboarding, I stopped at a few stores in order to pick up some fresh produce and was able to spot some pre-sliced pineapple discounted for $.58. I snatched up the 3.5 pounds of pineapple at this steal of a price and got right to work with it, including it in a 1.25 liter smoothie. I finished all of this green goodness in 45 minutes.

8:30PM
-Snacks-

1 Stalk Celery 9 cal
1 md. Orange 62 cal
2 md. Banana 210 cal

Total 281 cal


I just ate a bit of food until I was satisfied.

10:45
-Snacks-

2 Carrots 50 cal
1/2 Avocado 161 cal

Total 211 cal

A bit more of the same here. Just snacking until not hungry.

12:00PM
-Green Banana Blueberry Ice Cream Swirl-

3 md. Banana (frozen) 315 cal
1 md. Banana 105 cal
3/4 Cup Baby Spinach 8 cal
1 Cup Mixed Greens 5 cal
3/4 Cup Water
2 oz. Blueberries 32 cal

Total 465 cal

Instead of it getting it too late, where I might end up snacking all night, I decided to make another ice cream-smoothie concoction to share with my girlfriend Kaiti, as I have really been digging these. This one didn't turn out as well as the others because I decided to add just a tad more greens towards the end, and the end result was a bit of a stringy consistency in the "green" part of the drink as the blender didn't really mix everything completely.


Approximate Daily Totals

Calories
2856 cal

Carbs                    Fat                    Protein                    Total
686.5g                  25.4g                41.9g                       665.5g
87.39%                 7.28%                5.33%                     100%

Average numbers, yet still not where they should be.  Overall, I ate a bit more today than usual, but considering I got a good amount of exercise in, it seemed to be just what my body was asking for.

And that concludes Day 19!

Day 18

After drinking my liter of water first thing today, I was able to actually think about things and realize how much different and better my body feels compared to say a few months ago. Today was by far the best day I've had so far in my trial. My vision felt vivid, my thoughts were focused, and body ready for the day ahead.

11:45AM
-Snack-

2 md. Banana 210 cal


Was very hungry but did not feel like preparing anything yet.

12:15PM
-Green Banana Smoothie-

4 md. Banana 420 cal
2 Cups Baby Spinach 20 cal
1 Cup Mixed Greens 5 cal
2 1/2 Cups Ice

Total 445 cal

Just an hour later, I made a liter of basic green goodness which went down in two very full glasses within just 30 minutes. The ice here provided a nice thick texture compared to my earlier previous more watery ones.

4:00PM
-Snack-

2 md. Apple 190 cal


It was a while since I last ate, but I wasn't too hungry here.

6:00PM
-Bananas and Veggie Snacks-

1 Cucumber 30 cal
3 Carrots 63 cal
4 md. Banana 420 cal

Total 513 cal


Finally, I was hungry. Because I was feeling lazy this morning before work, I just grabbed a bunch of bananas to bring to snack on throughout the day. These four bananas with the veggies provided me a great amount of fuel to get to the end of the night.

8:00PM
-Snacks-

20 Almonds 140 cal
1/4 Cup Raisins 109 cal
1/4 Cucumber 7 cal
1/2 md. Apple 48 cal
2 lg. Strawberry 12 cal
2 sm. Strawberry 4 cal

Total 320 cal


I was able to get out of work a couple hours early, and on the car ride home, I finished up most of the snacks I brought with me to work, aside from the last 3/4 of a cucumber that I just threw back in the fridge to eat later.

12:15PM
-Green Banana Apple Ice Cream Swirl-

                                         

2 md. Banana (frozen) 210 cal
2 md. Banana 210 cal
1 md. Apple 95 cal
1 sm. Apple 77 cal
2 Cups Baby Spinach 20 cal
1 Cup Mixed Greens 5 cal
1/2 Cup Water

2 md. Banana (frozen) 210 cal

Total 827 cal

These ice cream-smoothie hybrids are becoming a definite favorite of mine! Instead of mango like last night, I opted for an apple flavor tonight. About one liter of green smoothie gave me about 3 glasses with the ice cream mixed in. Finished it all in 45 minutes.

-Exercise-
No extra exercise today as I was just a bit tired after work, even after getting out two hours earlier. I took the extra two hours I was granted to take catch up on a few things around the house.


Approximate Daily Totals

Calories
2505 cal

Carbs                    Fat                    Protein                    Total
605.3g                  21.3g                 38.9g                       665.5g
87.48%                 6.92%                5.61%                     100.01%

These numbers pretty much represent what I average daily so nothing major to report here.

And that concludes Day 18!

Day 17

I woke up extra early today, as I had to get some paperwork over to the human resources office at my job, which is located about 20 minutes out of the way from where I actually work. I want to make a note that even though I woke up early (from what my sleep schedule was like prior to undertaking this trial and starting my job), I had an awesome amount of energy! It really feels great to feel so full of life all the time! After waking at 9:30AM, and drinking my liter of water, I prepared everything I needed for my work day before eating.

10:45AM
-Very Green Banana Smoothie/Milkshake-

5 1/2 md. Banana (frozen)     578 cal
1 1/2 Cups Baby Spinach       15 cal
2 1/2 Cups Mixed Greens       25 cal
1 1/4 Cup Water

                               Total     618 cal


This smoothie was similar to yesterday's breakfast smoothie, except I used all frozen bananas, and just added water to get the consistency I wanted. This one made nearly 1.5 liters and took 3 glasses worth to finish up.

1:30PM
-Veggie Snacks-

1/2 Cucumber      15 cal
3/4 Stalk Celery     7 cal
1 sm. Carrot        21 cal

               Total     43 cal


I really enjoy snacking on vegetables. They taste great and hydrate me well.

1:45PM
-Fruit Snacks-

2 lg. Strawberry       12 cal
4 md. Strawberry     16 cal
1 1/2 md. Apple     143 cal
1 md. Banana        105 cal

                 Total     276 cal

This fruit gave me just the right amount of energy to get through the morning and into the first hour of work.

2:45PM
-Snacks-

1/4 Cup Trail Mix           204 cal
1 md. Banana               105 cal
Handful of Goji Berries     50 cal

                        Total     359 cal

Was hungry again only an hour later so I ate some more until I was full.

6:15PM
-Green Banana Smoothie & Veggie Snacks-

4 md. Banana                    420 cal
1 1/2 Cups Baby Spinach     15 cal
1 1/2 Cup Mixed Greens       15 cal
1 1/4 Cup Water

1 Cucumber                         30 cal
3 Carrots                             63 cal

                             Total     543 cal

This was almost exactly the same smoothie that I had for breakfast. I even used frozen bananas to make it, although by the time I got around to actually eating this one, the consistency had changed from it sitting in my car. This was just over 1 liter of smoothie, and I finished it in about 20 minutes alongside some more veggies on my lunch break.

7:45PM
-Snacks-

1/4 Cup Trail Mix     204 cal
Goji Berries              25 cal
1 md. Apple              95 cal

                  Total     324 cal


I felt like snacking again so I did so until I was full.

10:30PM
-Green Mango Banana & Ice Cream Swirl-

2 md. Banana (frozen)     210 cal
2 md. Banana                 210 cal
1/2 Mango                       67 cal
2 Cups Baby Spinach       20 cal
1 Cup Mixed Greens           5 cal
1 Cup Ice

2 md. Banana (frozen)     210 cal

                         Total     722 cal

This was awesome! I had the idea for it in the morning when I woke up and couldn't wait to get home and try it out. I just made a normal green smoothie (with mango) which made about 1 liter, and then I whipped up some banana ice cream to layer throughout the smoothie and add to the top. A few mango chunks sealed the deal, and 1 hour later, I finished 2 1/2 glasses worth of this amazing meal.

Just wanted to (finally) include a proper photo of what the banana ice cream is supposed to look like when done. Once you try this fluffy goodness, it is just TOO GOOD to resist!

-Exercise-
After working extra hard the day before, I was a bit sore today so I didn't push it. Nothing more than what I would do during any day's work.


Approximate Daily Totals

Calories
2885 cal

Carbs                    Fat                    Protein                    Total
664.3g                  32g                   51.8g                       728.1g
84.29%                 9.14%               6.57%                     100%


Aside from obviously eating a lot more than usual, everything looks normal here. Great day for sure!

And that concludes Day 17!

Day 16

Today started off pretty normal. I woke up around 10:30AM, drank my liter of water, and after letting it set in, got to "breakfast."

12:00PM
-Green Banana Smoothie-

2 md. Banana (frozen)     210 cal
3 md. Banana                 315 cal
2 Cups Baby Spinach       20 cal
1 Cup Mixed Greens           7 cal
1 Cup Ice

                          Total     552 cal

I used a couple of frozen bananas here as I wanted a thicker, more dense smoothie. The frozen bananas, coupled with the single cup of ice provided me exactly what I was looking for and made just under 1 liter which was about 2 full glasses. Finished them both in about 30 minutes.


2:50PM
-Snacks-

1 lg. Apple          116 cal
1 md. Banana     105 cal
1/2 Cucumber       15 cal
3/4 Stalk Celery     7 cal
1 sm. Carrot         21 cal


              Total     264 cal


Along with an apple and banana, I put down half of the pictured veggies as a quick snack.

7:00PM
-Veggie Wrap & Green Banana Apple Smoothie-

1 leaf colard greens        11 cal
3 Baby Carrots              12 cal
1 Stalk Celery                 5 cal
1/2 Cucumber               15 cal
1/2 Avocado                161 cal

4 md. Banana              420 cal
1 sm. Banana                90 cal
1 lg. Apple                   116 cal
1 sm. Apple                   77 cal
2 Cups Baby Spinach     20 cal
1 Cup Mixed Greens        5 cal
1/4 Cup Water
1 Cup Ice

                       Total     932 cal

The wrap here is the same as the one eaten the other day, which I hadn't gotten a photo of. This one was smushed into the ziplock, and ended up falling apart on me as I ate it, but brought with it a nice taste. It was basically just like eating a small salad in a very compact way. The smoothie I made was just like any other green smoothie (with apples) I've ever made. so instead of showing another green concoction, I decided to take a photo of the smoothie ingredients pre-blended to give you an idea of the amount of food contained within. I finished 1 of the 1.5 liters here in about 20 minutes, as I only get a 30 minute break for lunch, and after walking to the ski lodge and getting settled in to eat, I wasn't left with much time.

9:00PM
-Snack-
After work, I finished the last 1/2 liter of the smoothie on the drive home.

Upon getting home, I spent 1 1/2 hours cutting very overripe bananas, which were emitting an extremely strong odor that was almost making me sick to my stomach. I was cutting them in order to possibly preserve them by freezing them before they went rotten, but after peeling and cutting over 60 bananas (an hour and thirty minutes later) and putting them into ziplocks, I did some research and discovered that the smell which was making me sick was actually a gas that the bananas release naturally.When not allowed to vent freely, the build up of gas can cause fermentation. Because the bananas were still in the plastic bags that I purchased them in, the gas they were releasing was building up in the bag, and starting to ferment the peels of the bananas, causing some to crack open, and thus fermenting some of the actual bananas also. This process is not extremely dangerous, as the fermenting naturally creates higher amounts of sugars in the fruit, as well as increases a specific type of bacteria (a good bacteria) which helps clean the colon. The higher amounts of sugars however, can lead to some side effects, such as "odorful" flatulence as well as the urge to "go number two" more frequently than normal. Not wanting to experience either of these symptoms, I will keep the bananas in my freezer for now and use them only if I absolutely must. I plan to discard them when I can restock and replace with more healthy ripe bananas. Lesson learned!

12:15AM
-A Little Bit of Everything-

1 1/4 Cup Grapes    125 cal
1/4 Cup Trail Mix     204 cal

1/2 Pear                   60 cal
1 sm. Starfruit           22 cal

3/8 Cup Raisins       163 cal
10 Almonds               70 cal

                   Total     644 cal



My taste buds were everywhere here, so I just went to town. In addition to what you see here, I also had a half of a juicy pear and a very small starfruit.

-Exercise-
Today I put some muscle into my work, doing a lot more shoveling than was required and choosing to stand rather than sit during my "warm up" periods at work. Felt great to get my muscles moving and helped me stay warm the whole day (even though it was a warmer day in general).


Approximate Daily Totals

Calories
2392 cal

Carbs                    Fat                    Protein                    Total
535.4g                  37.3g                 39.4g                       612.1g
81.28%                 12.74%              5.98%                     100%

Very decent day overall.

And that concludes Day 16!

Day 15

I had an alarm set this morning, but had a very rough time actually getting out of bed. I finally was able to get up and get my liter of water into my body around 11:15PM and was hungry just a bit later.

11:45PM
-Green Banana Mango Smoothie-

5 sm. Banana              450 cal
1 md. Banana              105 cal
1/2 Mango                    67 cal
3 Cups Baby Spinach    30 cal
1/2 Cup Water
2 Cups Ice

                      Total     652 cal


Just a regular green smoothie. I decided to add a bit of flavor with a half of a mango. Made just over 1.25 liters and was gone within 45 minutes.

2:20PM
-Exercise-
I had a bunch of energy still remaining from the big smoothie this morning and ended up taking a 3 1/2 mile walk.

3:45PM
-Small Green Salad & Fruit Salad-

1/2 Cup Baby Spinach      5 cal
2 lg. Leaves Romaine      10 cal
1 Cucumber                    30 cal
1 Stalk Celery                  9 cal

1 md. Banana                105 cal
1 lg. Banana                  120 cal
1 sm. Banana                  90 cal
1 md. Apple                     95 cal
4 md. Strawberries           16 cal
20 Grapes                       68 cal

                        Total     548 cal


After my walk, I was extremely hungry. I grabbed a regular sized banana to snack on as I prepared a nice small greens salad and a bit larger fruit salad. They were even more delicious than they looked! Finishing both of these took me nearly an hour.

4:40PM
-Snack-

1 extra sm. Banana 72 cal

Right after I finished up my salads, I was still just a bit hungry so I grabbed another very small banana to fill me up in order to hold me over until later.

7:15PM
-Green Banana Smoothie/Shake-

2 md. Banana (frozen)     210 cal
2 md. Banana                 210 cal
2 Cups Baby Spinach       20 cal
1 Cup Ice

                         Total     460 cal

I went into making this smoothie with the idea that I wanted a thicker more dense flavor. Instead of watering it down so much, I simply used two frozen bananas and only 1 cup of ice, which gave me powerful flavor of the spinach and the sweetness of the bananas I was looking for. Made only 3/4 of a liter, but I managed to get two glasses out of it. Finished them both within 25 minutes.

8:50PM
-Ice Cream Chocolate Brownie-

Ice Cream
2 md. Banana (frozen)                210 cal

Brownie
1/4 Cup Raisins                         109 cal
1/6 Cup Cashews                      125 cal
1 Tbsp. Coconut Oil (melted)      130 cal
1 1/2 Tbsp. Cacao Powder           36 cal

Chocolate Topping
1/2 Tbsp. Date Paste                   24 cal
1/2 Tbsp. Coconut Oil (melted)     65 cal
1/2 Tbsp. Cacao Powder              12 cal

                                     Total     711 cal

Now I've been waiting to make something fun like this! It only took me about 30 minutes to make everything and it was well worth it! I was really craving some desert type food today, and this couldn't fit the bill better. For the brownie, finely chop (in a blender or food processor) the 1/6 cup cashews until in very small pieces. Add the raisins and blend for another few seconds until well mixed. Add the coconut oil and cacao powder and continue blending until a ball forms. I would suggest using even less coconut oil than I did as my brownie was a bet wet afterwards. If you like it more dry, try adding only 1/2 Tbsp. or less. Press the brownie mixture into a store-able container and sit in the freezer while you make the topping and ice cream. For the topping, simply remove the seed of one date, chop up into a small bowl, add water as needed and smash with a spoon to form a paste. Mix 1/2 Tbsp. Coconut Oil, and 1/2 Tbsp. Cacao Powder into the bowl and whisk until a dark chocolate sauce forms. The ice cream is simple, just blend the frozen bananas until fluffy and creamy. Take the brownie out of the freezer, add a scoop of creamy ice cream, top with chocolate sauce, and enjoy the amazing treat along with the rest of the ice cream!
Note* The coconut oil causes the sauce to harden over the ice cream due to the coldness of the ice cream. If you prefer, substitute olive oil and the sauce will remain liquid.

1:00AM
-Small Salad-

1/2 Cup Baby Spinach     5 cal
1 Cucumber                  30 cal
1 md. Apple                  95 cal
6 Baby Carrots              24 cal

                       Total     154 cal

Since I awoke late this morning, it would make sense that I'd still be awake at this time. I had this calorie light salad in order to fill the void in my stomach in order to get me through the next hour or so until I could fall asleep. It was a lot of food despite being so low in calories, so it did the job perfect.



Approximate Daily Totals

Calories
2597 cal

Carbs                    Fat                    Protein                    Total
573.6g                  41.6g                 40.1g                       655.3g
81.10%                 13.23%              5.67%                     100%

Pretty average numbers here. Glad to see my fat intake has been hovering right around above 10%. This means I'm getting what I need to retain my weight and then some, which is my goal here. I want to gain weight.

Very delicious day overall! Lots of beautiful food complimented the perfect flavors. I really think displaying the food in a visually pleasing manners helps the mind anticipate the flavors more, which makes the consumption more enjoyable.

And that concludes Day 15! Officially half way!!!

Day 14

Being my first day of two off from work, I decided to wake at a reasonable hour, and get the day started right. I woke at about 10:30AM, but after drinking my liter of water, I wasn't hungry for quite some time.

11:30PM
-Veggie Snacks and Fruit Salad-

1 Stalk Celery               9 cal
4 Baby Carrots            16 cal

3 md. Banana            315 cal
1 md. Apple (sliced)     95 cal
1 md. Orange              62 cal
6 lg. Strawberries         36 cal
1/4 Cup Grapes           51 cal

                     Total     584 cal


This was awesome! I haven't ever wanted to eat celery and carrots for breakfast. I don't know if I was more excited on just the fact that I realized I'm now in love with these two veggies or that the food all tasted so good! Not to mention, look at all those colors! Beautiful!

4:30PM
-Green Banana Apple Smoothie-

5 md. Banana              525 cal
2 md. Apple                 190 cal
3 Cups Mixed Greens     22 cal
2 1/2 Cups Ice

                       Total     737 cal

This made 1.25 liters which took me an entire hour to finish. This is basically the same drink I brought to work yesterday that I hadn't had the time to take a picture of. No surprise, it looks just like any other green smoothie!

5:30PM
-Snack-


5 Grapes 17 cal

Right when I was finishing up the last glass of the smoothie, because I drank it over the course of an hour, I felt my taste buds wanted just a bit more sweetness. I grabbed a bit of grapes which did the job.

6:30PM
-Exercise-
30 minutes of stretching and strengthening warmed me up and got the blood flowing nice. I planned on taking a walk afterwards, but instead was really hungry so I decided to eat.

7:15PM
-Trail Mix & Banana Sandwiches-

1/4 Cup Trail Mix          204 cal

2 md. Banana              210 cal
2 lg. Leaves Romaine     10 cal

                       Total     424 cal


Here we have basically the same bagged trail mix I took to work the other day, as well as these really nice, yet funny looking, banana "wraps." I read another blog some time back about these wraps and had forgot about them until I recently stumbled back upon the same page while doing some research. It seemed bizarre to me at first, and I honestly said to myself "No way. That seems silly." But I went ahead and tried them tonight. They aren't as amazing as the person had described them, but they are a nice change of pace. If you've ever wanted a crunchy banana, try these! I know it seems silly, but they actually taste pretty good.

8:00PM
-Snack-

1/2 md. Banana 55 cal

Like I said, I had planned to take a walk after stretching, but after eating, I decided to cut up a "few" bananas to freeze for ice cream and smoothies, as I still have about half of the 130+ bananas I bought for myself the other night. I ended up cutting and freezing 32 bananas total, which might not seem like a lot, but try peeling 32 bananas, slicing them all up, and slipping them into ziplock baggies. I should have taken a picture of the finished product here as it was a thing of beauty, but maybe next time! Anyway, after about 30-45 minutes of standing in the kitchen NOT preparing food, I was a bit tired for a walk and decided to sit back down. While cutting the bananas, I snacked on about a half of a banana.

10:20PM
-Awesome Salad-

2 Cups Baby Spinach     20 cal
3 lg. Leaves Romaine      15 cal
1 Cucumber                   30 cal
1 1/2 Stalk Celery           13 cal
4 Baby Carrots               16 cal
2 md. Mushrooms          10 cal
1 lg. Apple                     95 cal
1 Avocado                    322 cal

                        Total     521 cal

The "Awesome Salad" truly was AWESOME! As I've recently discussed, I really need to open my variety of foods. Although this salad consists mostly of foods I've already eaten during the trial, I really haven't gone and made them all into a salad like this. I'm very happy I did, as this is one of my favorite salads I've ever had! Up until this point, the salads I've made were boring and simple, and really were only eaten to satisfy my urge for some crunchy vegetables. I don't know how else to explain how good this salad really was. It was delicious and really opened up my eyes to the possiblites with combining live foods in salads!

11:30PM
-Snack-

1/8 Cup Raisins 54 cal



Just needed that bit extra sweetness to get me through the night.



Approximate Daily Totals

Calories
2392 cal

Carbs                    Fat                    Protein                    Total
520.4g                  47.8g                 38.1g                       606.3g
78.13%                 16.15%              5.72%                     99.99%

The numbers here are normal, as usual. Need to learn how to get the protein up one way or another. Research has been failing me though. Only choice I've really found at this point is to look into "Superfood" powders but honestly have no room for it in the budget right now. Hopefully someone will enlighten me on how to get more protein without overdoing the fats.

Today was overall a great day. Nice and easy and very enjoyable. Recently however, I've been having the worst cravings in the world. I did some research on cravings and how to make the transition to RAW in general, and a lot of it has to do with the memories you relate to the craved foods. All of the things I find myself craving are, in fact, very nostalgic for me. These include pizza, general tso's chicken and tofu, nachos, vegetable sushi with rice, and a few other things - but not many. I could go on for hours about why these foods mean so much to me, but I won't bore anyone with that.

I don't really want food when I smell it. I mean, I have been smelling everything I can't eat lately. Most of it smells "dead" or repulsive. I used to love cheeses, but now they smell sour and spoiled. Chips and breads smell like nothing or... "stinky" is the best word I can use. They just smell unnatural. Meat on the other hand smells very tasteful, probably because it is loaded with preservatives and the artificial flavorings I've grown so fond of over the years.

I really don't think I am ready to say goodbye to the foods I crave and have such fond memories of. I feel that in time I definitely could find the will to leave them behind, but in reality, right now I'm just not ready. I know this makes me sounds weak or like a quitter, but I've said before that I was not coming into this hoping to go completely 100% RAW. I came in with an open mind and have really experienced so much that I will never look at non-RAW food the same. At the same time, I feel there is a certain mental health involved that would ultimately be negative for me in the long run if I denied myself what I am craving for too long. It's something that needs to be cautiously looked at, but I intend to stay in control.

After the trial is up, I plan to return to eating cooked food, however, I do not think I will ever be able to stop eating mostly RAW. As of now, I am considering adopting a diet where I maybe eat 1 or 2 cooked meals a week for a little bit, in order for me to get my final time with some of my nostalgic foods. But really, who knows? I'm only just about half way through this trial so a lot can change! Maybe my cravings will get worse because, in my mind, the foods are waiting for me at the finish line. Maybe eating more live foods will curb the cravings and get rid of them completely. Only time will tell. Regardless, I know I will feel wonderful, even more so than I do right now, both from the cleansing I've done for my body, as well as from knowing that I went 30 days RAW, accomplishing something 6 months ago I would have never thought possible for myself.

And that concludes Day 14!