Raw Retreats

I'm planning a vacation - a raw inspired vacation! Currently, I'm in the research phase of figuring things out: where I want to go (stay in Ontario, out-of-province, or beyond...), what I'd like to do, and whether I want it to have a detoxification/spiritual experience, etc. Also, I need to figure out whether I want to do this on my own, or bring somebody along with me to experience this trip with me.

From the research I've done so far, some possibilities include:

Tree of Life Rejuvenation Centre (Arizona)
Healthy Eating and Consciousness Program

Live Food Training Program

21 day transformation

Vegan Spirit Vacation

Pacha Mama (Costa Rica)

Body Cleanse Workshop (Earth Cycle)

Ashinah Centre for Awakening (British Columbia)

Luscious Living Raw Food Retreat

The Happy Oasis (Arizona)

Be You Retreat (Colorado)

New Life Retreat (Ontario)

The one thing that I do know that I'd like to experience is good raw food (with perhaps a detoxification experience), and beautiful landscapes to explore. I wouldn't mind some healing rituatuals like massage therapy, daily yoga, etc. The next factor to consider is how long I'd like to go for, and budget...but, other than those details, I can't wait for a new experience!

Where to eat in the city?

Questions that plague my raw foodie mind (yes, my brain revolves around food ;) )

Where can I enjoy a sit down meal?
Where can I have a wholesome snack?
Are there any vegetarian/vegan restaurants that have raw food options?

If these questions plague your mind as well,...the below list (with provided links) is just for you! :)

Raw food restaurants in the Greater Toronto Area:

1. Live Organic Food Bar (Toronto)

2. Rawlicious (Toronto)

3. WOW (Wild Organic Way) Raw Food Cafe (Guelph)

4. Fressen Restaurant (Toronto) - vegetarian/vegan cuisine, but with decent raw options

Juice Bars:

1. Papaya Island (Toronto) 513A Yonge StreetToronto, ON M4Y 1Y3 (416) 960-0821‎

2. Gimme A Squeeze (Toronto) 176A Hampton AvenueToronto, ONM4K 2Z1

3. Healthy Haven 615 College Street WestToronto, ONM6G 1B5

4. The Big Carrot 348 Danforth AvenueToronto, Ontario M4K 1N8P 416.466.2129 info@thebigcarrot.ca

Klean Kanteen Bottles

If you don't live in a vacuum, you've probably heard that plastics do leach harmful chemicals...so, I looked around for a better alternative to using a ridiculous number of plastic waterbottles - other than Nalgene. The 2 alternatives include Sigg waterbottles and Klean Kanteen waterbottles. Sigg waterbottles look amazing, but they are of aluminum construction (and if you do your reading on aluminum, you'll know why it's harmful as well, and they have a questionable inner plastic coating). That left me with Klean Kanteen...100% stainless steel...although they aren't as "pretty" to look at, they are the better alternative!

Since purchasing my very first one from the US (and paying almost as much as I did for the bottle in shipping and duties), I've seen more and more stores carry Klean Kanteen bottles, AND in different colours! I now officially own a collection of these bottles, one for the gym, one for the house (both 40 oz bottles), and one smaller bottle (just because I wanted a colourful one!).

This is a bisphenol A (BPA) free, durable bottle, made out of stainless steel that is made by a company that is actively working towards lowering their ecological footprint by using earth-conscious practices at their facilities. In addition, in 2008, Klean Kanteen became a member of 1% for the Planet, committing to donation of at least 1% of our annual sales to non-profits working to protect and promote the wellness of this one great Earth. VERY IMPRESSIVE!!!

http://www.kleankanteen.com/

my detox experience

The detox process can be brutal for those transitioning into a raw diet....from my experience, it seems as if the more drammatic the change over onto raw was, the worse the detox symptoms. And it took several attempts to get me up to the 90% mark....

I was about 60-70% raw for quite a while...then decided to take the plunge and take out all unnecessary dehydrated foods and nuts and make my evening cooked meal raw. Going low fat and from 60% raw to high 90% range was a real blow on my body. The lethargy I felt, the hunger, cravings, and other detox symptoms like light headedness, some dizziness, and a horrific pimple breakout on my face were the symptoms I experienced....at least what I remember, lol!

However, the list of detox symptoms can include: headaches, acne, pain, loss of appetite, diarrhea, and constipation.

What is often recommended to relieve these symptoms is to ease your transition to raw and include a little cooked food or more liquids.

So, to make your transition to raw less painful (detoxifation-wise), by putting severe stress on your body, don't go raw too fast. I recommend reading a lot about going raw before taking the plunge, this way you can make an educated decision about how to go about introducing this diet into your lifestyle. Different sources have different opinions about how to go about going raw....so its all about getting many opinions and drawing your own conclusions.

Once fully transitioned, you will then experience raw food bliss: beautiful skin, a healthy glow, efficiently functioning clean cells, and an efficiently working digestive system....and that's just the tip of the iceberg!

RAW fed pets

This is quite a contravercial topic in the vegan world - how to feed your pets. My position is that my lifestyle choices have nothing to do with the nutritional requirements of my animals, and I think it would be selfish of me to comprimise their nutritional needs just to satisfy my own beliefs. Why have carnivorous pets if I didn't plan on feeding them meat?...

In addition, I think this situation runs far deeper for me than that. The idea behind eating raw (for both humans and animals) is that you are eating "live" food loaded with active enzymes, vitamins and minerals. I eat this way to optimize my nutrition, and maximize my nutrient uptake at each meal....I do the same for my dogs...

I feed my dogs a RAW diet. Their diets consist of organic muscle meat, some organ meat, some raw fruits and veggies, an oil (flax oil, for example), and raw bones recreationally (several times a week). My meat sources are rotated several times a week, because each meat offers a different nutritional profile, and add mackarel or sardines a few times a week for extra bone and oil. There is a science to this type of feeding: certain ratios (meat: bone: phosphorus: fat), the amount of fruit and vegetables to feed, the amount of raw meat required (determined by the dog's weight and activity levels).

In my opinion, any dog owner open to feeding their dogs raw need to get educated before making the switch. First its important to appreciate the benefits of raw before commiting to embracing this dietary lifestyle for their dog/cat....it is the way nature intended them to eat....kind of sounds like the same reasoning we use to explain why we practice a raw vegan lifestyle! : )

New RAW Hemp Protein Powder Supplement

I stopped in to Whole Foods last week and there was a sample stand with a new live food product - Ruth's Hemp Protein Powder.

The product they were featuring was the E3 Live & Maca Hemp protein powder. Given that I'm always up for trying something raw, after reading over the pamphlet and checking out the container label, I bought it!

The ingredients are simple, but offer vital nutrients any raw foodist could benefit from by putting a couple of scoops of this powder into their daily smoothie: Certified organic hemp powder, organic maca powder, organic E3 live (aphanizomenon flos-aquae). Per 2 scoops of powder, you get 14 grams of protein, a daily dose of vitamin D (200% of daily value), and other vitamins and minerals...plus the added benefits of maca powder ; ).

I'm planning on replacing my morning post-workout green smoothie with one of these shakes (made with almond milk, berries, and a banana)....stay tuned for a product review!

Zucchini Pasta...DELISH!

I've become quite skilled at julienning zucchini (with my cheap fancy grocery-store bought tool...but, a spiralizer is in my imminent future!), and have finally decided to explore some new raw pasta recipes! YUM!


I found a great raw pasta sauce recipe from my raw food bible " The Complete Book of RAW FOOD- Healthy, Delicious Vegetarian Cuisine made with Living Foods"(edited by Julie Rodwell). It's a great recipe! Try it and enjoy!

Pasta:
Julienned Zucchini

Tomato Sauce:
6 sun-dried tomatoes, soaked 2 hours
2 cups choped fresh tomoatoes
10 basil leaves
4 Medjool dates, soaked 2+ hours
pinch of paprika
1 red pepper

----> Blend all ingredients with a hand-held blender

To liven up this pasta dish, I thinly sliced carrots, zucchini and brocolli florets to add to my pasta. Overall, I was quite impressed with this recipe! My next attempt will hopefully involve zuchinni sliced by a spiralizer, and a yummy pesto sauce; perhaps with some nut loaf on the side!