Where have all the recipes gone?

Remember how I use to post recipes that I've been making? I remember that. Well, I haven't been 'cooking' as much lately. At least not in the way that most of you would be interested in. I've been doing a cleanse sort of diet for the past 3 weeks - now don't get all freaked out thinking I'm crazy (I might be, but this is not the reason). The cleanse was not super extreme, I cut out red meat, dairy, wheat, and sugar. And ate the rest of my food in as close to raw form as possible so as to get the most nutrients and enzymes available from them... I guess that sounds extreme. Anyhow as crazy as it all sounds - I've felt amazing! So much more energy, less sluggish feeling, mental clarity, happy - how can you argue with that?

The cleanse was supposed to last 21 days and be strictly juices in the mornings and at night and then normal meals and snacks during the day, but I cheated a bit and sometimes ate normal food at night too. (And let's be honest, my social life revolves around food and I may have cheated an intsy bit every now and then, but whenever I was making food for myself, I stuck to the 'rules').

Now, the truth is in the aftermath. This last week I have been eating more 'normal' foods - as in breads and a bit of dairy and sugar (still less than before). And I've felt gross. Sluggish. Tired. Bloated... Sick (as in gross, not as in literally sick). Proof enough for me. I'm going back to my old (new) ways. I'd trade a few slices of bread and cheese for feeling this great anyday.

Another interesting side effect of eating really healthy, is that you start to understand and feel what your body actually needs - instead of what convenience or circumstance or social norms 'tell' you that it needs. I find that the healthier I eat, the more aware I am of when I am full and when I am actually hungry and what I am actually hungry for. No more wandering the fridge/pantry trying to figure out what I'm feeling like eating. Cravings are nearly gone. I use to crave chocolate and sugar all the time. No joke, all the time. And now I almost never crave those things. Or bread for that matter. Or cheese. This new way of living is quite liberating really when you think about it in that sense.

I think being aware of our bodies is essential, and its something that I would wager to guess the majority of the population is not very aware of. You would be surprised how many times I ask people for feedback about how a muscle in their body is feeling and they say something to the effect of "I don't know. You're the expert, you tell me." Really? Now how am I supposed to know what your body feels like? After all, perception is in the mind of the receiver, not the giver. I can tell you what the muscles feel like, but I have no idea whether that translates into pain or discomfort in the body of the receiver. Beware of forthcoming shameless business plug: this is one of the many benefits of getting massage regularly - you become more in tune and aware of your body.

Whoa, tangential sidenote flew in out of nowhere... The point is, I'm back to eating healthy again. I got lazy for a while there and started feeling the effects, but I'm glad to be back to the unprocessed, mostly meatless, full of fruits and vegetables and whole grains way of life that I've lived by before and that is just happy. Maybe one of these days I'll post some recipes of things I've been eating on the regular lately. The end.