StrawberryJam

Thanks guys for sharing your experiences I'll try that, its going to be a challenge though cause I grew up without eating salads, so to make it enjoyable for me I've gotta add lots of fatty things like avocados, olives, nuts, seeds etc. Should also cut down on thai coconut and coconut oil in smoothies. Why is it fatty foods always taste better?! Guess now I'll just have to train my palette to enjoy the great taste of a clean salad with less of those stuff. I'm also going to try out colon hydrotherapy and see if that speeds up the detoxifying process.

Well breakfast is usually a green smoothie (baby spinach with seasonal fruit), lunch is raw bread with salad/avocado/sundried tomatoes/olives/nut+seed pate filling, dinner is simililar to lunch or sometimes a coconut and fruit smoothie. Snacks are usually things like flax crackers with nut+seed pate, fruit, dried fruit or raw nuts. Maybe I am consuming too much fat with all the avocados, olives and nuts and seeds?

I was on this high protein low carb diet that my trainer put me on, which wasn't working for me. So two weeks ago I decided to go back to my high-carb low-protein raw vegan diet... its great, I love it but I am now getting some pimples and I can see more coming up! I guess its probably a sign of detoxification, but its really killing me cause I've always had really good skin and having pimples is making me really concious in public. I drink lots of water and exercise everyday, I know it cannot be avoided... but thought if I could ask how long your detoxification phase lasted on average then I can be mentally prepared on how long I have to suffer through this horrifying pimply phase. And any tips on how reduce pimples would be great! Thanks

I read on some soy drink carton that soy drink is good for women because its phytoestrogen properties supports women in estrogen. Just out of curiosity, does anyone know of any natural food that raises testosterone levels? I read in a health book that peanut butter can raise testosterone levels, but I don't know if that applies to women.

Yes good point, even though I already drink plenty of water I have not increased my water intake when I started taking protein powders. Last night I drank a large pot of sina tea and that works... except I was at work all day today with a stomach cramp. Marcina... 5 times a day?! I'm loving the sound of that!... will dig into my large stash of flax seeds

I've recently started taking protein powder and its making me constipated. I don't want to take any man-made medication unless I have to so I am wondering if anyone know of natural laxatives from natural food sources. I ate a big handful of prunes and that did nothing. I eat plenty of fruit and vege and drink plenty of water, I don't think its from lack of fiber, its from the protein powder. I'd like to continue with protein powder as i am trying to build some muscles... any suggestions anyone?

We can get oil from nuts, avocados etc, but there comes a time when we do need to use oil, and olive oil is certainly better than other oils... especially if you get organic cold-pressed extra virgin olive oil. I've also read that coconut oil is the best oil to consume, and that it has a much higher heating point than olive oil. So I tend to use olive oil for things like salad dressing or making dips and use coconut oil for cooking. Like many others have already mentioned, everything in moderation is fine. There's always going to be researches that say this is not good for you, that is not good for you... so if we were to cut all those food out completely we might be living on a diet of nothing but green superfoods. There are so many health experts that says different things sometimes we just have to go with our own beliefs (be it research, gut feelings etc). For example, most of us in this forum has taken the belief that we don't need meat and dairy to be healthy... but there are health experts or bodybuilders out there that will say we need to be eating meat and dairy etc.

I personally don't like the taste and texture of tempeh, but love tofu to bits. However I've read health books that says tofu and soy drinks are actually not good for you, and soy products are only good if they are fermented - like tempeh or miso paste. You might like to look at Dr Mercola talking about soy:

Regarding the protein powder... the one I bought is low carb and high protein, but by adding a banana and 1/2 cup of blueberries to it does it then make it a high carb (since bananas have high carb content) protein drink? Would that hinder my fat loss? And DaN, I gotta tell you... I love love love your picture... that puppet is so cute!!

I went and bought some protein powders, started taking them yesterday... all about experimenting and seeing for myself if it makes a difference (well for my body at least, since we are all different). Its certainly convenient... took me 30 seconds to make my filling and delicious dinner... a protein shake with bananas and blueberries. Lean and green, I have seen the vbbf women, they give me great motivation! Marcina has been weight training for 1 year and a half and here I am getting impatient after just 3 months... I need to get it into my head that Rome wasn't built in one day!

Thank you Marcina for the explanation... makes great sense and makes me less guilty for not doing much cardio (I usually only do 20 minutes cardio after weight training). I am so envious of the ectomorphic body types, I'm not sure what body type I am, but its the one with really slow metabolism and I can put on weight really quickly and easily, and its really slow and painful to lose weight. Anyhow I'll persevere, hopefully by this time next year I can post some decent before and after pics.

dontxhide, thanks for the recipe... I made it yesterday, was really easy to make, nice and flexible and yummy! If anyone else is interested in a raw wrap, this is a goer!

After reading everyone's comments I've gathered its sall about experimenting and finding out what works for my body. I've been going so hard at consuming kale and spinach to get enough protein that I did a green poopy the other day (sorry, too much info I know), so must try other things like different protein powders and proper food combining. Marcina, I'm just curious as to why doing cardio would make it harder to gain muscle. If I do both cardio and weights wouldn't I just gain muscles and lose fat at the same time?

I am trying to build some muscles, but I don't take any protein powder anymore because they all make me bloated. Beans, lentils and tofu make me bloated too. I eat spinach and nuts (which is not good as I am also trying to lose weight) for protein . I have been doing weight training for about 12 weeks now and can only see a tiny teeny weeny puney little difference in my muscle growth. My trainer tells me to be patient and that its hard for girls to build muscles. Perhaps I am being too impatient, but if protein powder makes a big difference to muscle building I think I'll put up with the bloating. So my questions is: for those of you that take protein powder, do you find it really makes a big difference to muscle growth? And is it sufficient to just have it once a day straight after a workout? Tim Van Orden doesn't believe we really need protein for muscle growth and he looks really athletic... but perhaps he would be much bigger if he took protein supplements?

Hello Mark!