DiscoverRAW

Back in the game, all be it a different sport!

After quite a break, I'm B-A-C-K!!  Thanks to all you lovely ladies who have contacted me asking me if I am ok...it's good to be missed!

2009 so far has been quite a struggle for me with some difficult and emotional times leading to some of the hardest decisions I have ever had to make.  Let me explain...

Last year as many of you will know I left my old job to follow my dream of becoming a raw food coach specialism in emotional eating and weight loss.  It's been a whirlwind journey and so many things fell into place so effortlessly I felt sure I had found my true path in life.  However, since just before Christmas doubts have been setting in about my future and what it may hold.  Financial constraints and the lonliness of working from home without the support and social interaction of colleagues have forced me into a period of self reflection and quiet time.  It has taken some time to come to a conclusion, the right conclusion, but I know now in my heart of hearts that I am doing the right thing. After feeling quite neglected by the universe I believe I am now being looked after and a new path has presented itself to me. 

So, what does all this mean?  It means DiscoverRaw will be taking a break.  I will still be writing on my blog and sending out my eZine 'Destination Fabulous', although this may slip from a fortnightly to an adhoc basis.  What it does mean is that I won't be running group programmes such as Destination Fabulous or The Little Black Dress Programme for the foreseeable future.  I am not saying never, just not right now and definitely not for the next few months. 

So what will I be doing with myself instead?  I find out next week, but it's looking hopeful that I'll be working in a gym as a fitness and lifestyle coach.  There should be an opportunity for me to run weight loss classes as well as be trained as a yoga instructor and learn how to do sports massage to boot!  I'm hoping I might be able to run classes on juicing and smoothie making too! :)

When I sent my CV to the gym I was expecting to just get reception work, however I got a message on facebook from a friend I went to school with saying she was the new manager of the gym and would I like to come and meet her to discuss all the vacancies they currently have. Coincidence? No I felt this was meant to be...!

So the future finally looks bright again :)

I must admit, I have had some black moods in recent weeks.  I've felt lost, stuck, frustrated and even like I've been going backwards.  I know I'm not alone in this, a lot of clients have expressed to me recently a feeling of resistance or of being stuck.  It's not a comfortable place to reside in I can tell you.  My diet has been hugely affected by these emotions too.  I have tried so hard to remain high raw but more and more cooked and comfort foods have slipped in week by week.  I was very conscious of what I was doing.  I knew there were days when only toast would do for breakfast even though I had the ingredients for a green smoothie - that was the last thing I wanted.  I made conscious decisions to just go with the flow for a while.  I almost felt like I couldn't face what was happening to me, I didn't want to wake up to the fact that I may have to go back to my old profession of I.T. I knew this would have destroyed me.  So last week, I started back on the greens, my juicer came out to play for the first time in about 6 weeks and I'm feeling back on track again :)

What was the turning point?  I honestly don't know, I got so low I think something had to give.  I also think the fact that we entered March and the sun came out to play really helped. 

Have you been feeling stuck too?  I really hope not as it's not a nice place to be, but if you are feeling stuck or experiencing resistance then do get in contact with me, I'd love to hear from you.

I'd just like to say a special thank you to some dear friends of mine.  I first met Francine and Tracy on RawFu in August 2008.  I was their mentor for 3 months and we talked on the phone every 2 weeks.  We are now great friends and I love them both so dearly.  I know I have helped them on their journey but I have been so touched by their love and concern for me in recent weeks.  The coaching roles have been well and truly reversed!!  Francine, I can't wait to see you this Saturday and Tracy, Happy Birthday for Sunday - look out for something pink and chocolaty in the post! ;)

Hugs,

Jo x

Does your diet need a shake up?

I've known my diet has needed a shake up for a while now but I've been lacking the creativity and inspiration to do anything about it.  So how do you get out of this rut?

What worked for me, was to empty the kitchen cupboards and fridge and lay out all my raw food items on the dining room table.  Because I live in a house with non-raw foodies (as I'm sure is the case for most people) my raw food items are stashed away in 3 or 4 different areas of the kitchen so as not to get in the way.  So a lot of the time I forget I even have certain items.  Is your kitchen a little like this?

It really helped to arrange everything on the dining table so that I could get a good look at it all.  I suddenly remembered I had some nori sheets, seaweed, bee pollen, green superfood powder etc etc. 

Also, yesterday I met some ex-work colleagues for lunch and they made me a lovely fruit smoothie, with berries, frozen bananas and pineapple juice.  It's so rare I have a fruit smoothie (usually it's of the green variety!) and I absolutely loved it.  It was gorgeous and thick and I ate the whole thing with a spoon, like it was a pudding.

It may sounds incredibly ridiculous but sometimes I just need the ideas shoved in front of my face to mix things up a little.  I do get stuck in a juice/green smoothie/salad rut and days can go by where I eat exactly the same thing.  I used to be like this on a cooked food diet, this is nothing new for me.  I do tend to like what I like and get a little obsessed with a certain food item (at the moment it's radishes!).  Something eventually comes along to shake things up and I am always so grateful for a break to my routine.

This week I have been loving my nori rolls and I've just made a frozen fruit smoothie for breakfast as I am all out of greens.  It contained2 bananas, 3 oranges, a tablespoon of bee pollen, a cup of frozen raspberries and a cup of blackcurrants.  I shared this gorgeous creation with my Mum and again ate it with a spoon like a pudding :)  Frozen pudding for breakfast, yum!  This is what I needed to shake things up and fall in love with raw food again...!!

Here's some ideas of how you can shake up your raw food diet:

• Start sprouting
• Soak some sunflower seeds and make some seed cheese - why not throw in some garlic and herbs or red pepper and sun-dried tomatoes?
• Add some frozen fruit to your smoothies
• Add some bee pollen to your smoothies
• Make some nori rolls, highly nutritious and a lovely change from a salad
• Marinate some mushrooms and add them to a salad for great texture and yumminess
• Work on some great salad dressings, try using avocado or nuts as a base instead of oil, or add some spices and herbs for a different flavour
• Make some raw ice-cream using frozen berries or bananas, or both!
• Next time you go food shopping try some new vegetables and experiment with some great veg combinations, often the most simple is the most tasty - for example fennel and celery is simply stunning with a little olive and lemon juice.  Or add some chopped up sun-dried tomato for anintense sweet flavour
• Flick through some of those raw food recipe books that have been sitting unopened on your shelf for goodness knows how long! Commit to trying one new recipe each week for a month or two
• Marinate different types of veggies overnight for a change to a salad
• Use a vegetable peeler or a spiruliser to create some different vegetable shapes to liven up your salads

Have fun and when you're feeling creative and inspired make the most of it!

Tomorrow I'll be sharing with you my Valentine's gift for 'the bf', he's going to be getting a huge box of raw heart shaped goodies.  So if you like to make home made gifts for your loved ones then come back and take a peek at my creations...

Hugs,

Jo x

Don't under estimate the power of Guarana.....!!!

I think I've always had a healthy skepticism for the powered superfoods that are so popular in the raw food world.  I have tried and tested some favourites such as lucuma, mesquite, maca, spirulina and carob and in recent times I have shared with your my fears about cacao (click here to read this article).  Well, now I have another one to add to the list....!!

Guarana

I first heard about Guarana when I saw that a commercial chocolate bar contained it and it was being sold as an energy boosting chocolate bar (oh please...I feel for the people who buy into this marketing crap!).  I knew nothing of the product and once it had gone in one ear no sooner had it fallen out the other side. 

My second encounter with Guarana was seeing it for sale at the David Wolfe retreat I worked at back on October 08.  I remember asking my friend what it was for.  He delicately replied, if you mix it with maca your partner would be in for a treat!  Nuff said, say no more, I got the gist - lol

I decided to invest in some, in the name of research, a few months back.  I'll be honest, I didn't like the look or smell of it but I did try a teaspoon of it in a smoothie and can't say I remember noticing anything significant. 

However, last week, I gave a good friend of mine, a sample of maca and guarana for her to try.  A few days later I received a frantic phone call from my friend, Charlotte, who was in somewhat of a panic about a reaction to the combination of maca and guarana.  She is well used to having green juice of a morning, but on this particular day she had stirred in a tablespoon each of maca and guarana and shared the juice with her boyfriend.  Within 2 hours she was feeling washed out, shakey, nauseous, panickey and had a stomach ache. 

I advised her to drink lots of water and perhaps some soothing and calming chamomile tea.  She did this but then made herself sick and had loose and frequent bowel movements - sorry Charlotte - lol..!! 

Three hours after consuming the juice Charlotte went to bed with a hot water bottle complaining of a 'hangover', she felt washed out, dry mouthed and nervous.  She drank more water and tea and rested in bed for a while.  She visited the toilet several more times and said she felt a bit weird in a 'druggy' kind of way.

Five hours later Charlotte was feeling a bit better but felt she needed some heavy food to get rid of this feeling.  She had some bread and this, as you would imagine,improved the symptoms, as it would have suppressed them. 

Charlotte mentioned how out of control she felt during this experience and hated this feeling.  Of course, as I'm sure you can imagine, I feel terrible about giving Charlotte these samples and then her having this horrible reaction.  I didn't realise she would use such a big dose on the first try, but it was being shared with her boyfriend, so it should have been ok.  Potentially, as I believe the powders were just stirred into the juice, it could be that Charlotte ended up with the vast majority of the 'superfood' powders(!)  Her boyfriend felt a little strange, but no real ill effects as such.

I've since been doing some research into Guarana (I know I should have done this before buying the product, my lesson is well and truly learnt).  This is what I have found out:

Guarana contains a high amount of guaranine, a chemical substance with the same characteristics as caffeine. This makes Guarana a stimulant similar to coffee, which means that it:

• quickens perceptions
• delays sleep
• helps with endurance based activities
• can help to recover from a hangover
• impairs the appetite
• will lead to more frequent visits to the toilet
• causes a higher blood pressure and an increased heart rate
• can make you feel jittery and may prevent sleep at all

It's a popular product to have in energy drinks and weight loss pills.  Guarana should not be used by people who are sensitive to caffeine or xanthines.  People with heart conditions, diabetes, high blood pressure, epilepsy, overactive thyroid, anxiety, insomnia, and kidney disease should only use guarana under the supervision of their doctor.  Guarana beans contain more caffeine than coffee beans!

Sure, this story is just the reaction of one person and there may be many others that take guarana on a regular basis with no ill effects.  It could also be that it was the combination of guarana and maca together that caused the reaction.  Who is to know?  But having both done a little digging we are both convinced it is the guarana that's to blame.

Again, this has given me concern over the raw food industry and what it's trying to promote.  I feel to blame too as I was a part of this.  As mentioned before I really have learnt my lesson from this incident.  I can't imagine getting this reaction from munching on a lovely green salad or some cucumber sticks!  Where is the raw food world going when it's pushing caffeine ladden powders with no dosage suggestions on the packaging?  This frightens me a great deal. 

My guarana is going in the bin (I'm glad I only bought a sample size to try) and I will stick to my principles of a simple diet and just because something is raw doesn't mean it's good for you...

I would be really interested in hearing both positive and negatives experiences of guarana if anyone has any, please use the comments section below or email me at jo@discoverraw.com

Hugs,

Jo x

Find your happy relationship with raw food...

This blog post has been swimming around my head all week and I finally think I've ready to get it out there!  Oh but where to start...?!

Just in case you don't know my background, it is a one of yo-yo dieting, of having a bad relationship with food, seeking comfort in it, thinking that anything that was low fat was good for me, hating my body, feeling magnetically attached to my bathroom scales, the number they revealed dictating my mood for the whole day...I'm sure you get the picture.

So, of course the light bulb went on when I discovered raw food.  I knew it would be the answer to my weight loss problems, I felt it would provide me with more energy but I had no idea how dramatically it would change my life.

If you asked me about 9 months ago I would have said 100% raw is the way to go, no question, it would suit anyone and fix any health going.  In fact if you look back I may have even said those things.  A friend of mine refers to this as the 'raw honeymoon phase'.  You are on a high, you feel great, you have to get the message out there.  But, in my experience this feeling doesn't remain constant.  I certainly still love my raw food lifestyle, I still feel great, I still have good energy, I feel I look healthy and I am very comfortable with my weight and body image.  So what has changed then?  I no longer feel that 100% raw is the right answer for everyone.  I am happy to admit that I am not 100% raw, if I had to give it a % it would probably be 90%, still good right?  You betcha it is...Let's get some perspective here shall we?

I used to stand at my fridge with the door open, eating slice after slice of processed nasty ham.  I would also eat lots of bread, cream cheese and ham sandwiches.  I ate a fair bit of pasta, tinned tuna, tinned sweetcorn, loads of frozen ready meals (low fat of course!).  So do I feel that my 90% raw diet is good, of course it is. 

Why am I not 100% raw?  Because it doesn't suit my mentality or my lifestyle, simple as.  Let's look why...

Mentality- I've come from a diet background, a background of looking at the fat content of everything I picked up when out food shopping, a background of weighing myself twice a day, a background of counting calories/sins/points/carbs (depending on what particular diet I was following at the time), a background of food restrictions, a background of deprivation which always leads to a binge when no-one is looking and a background of food being both my enemy and my best friend. 

Recently, I have felt a little deprived and restricted with my food choices.  This has brought back horrible memories of all that dieting so something had to give.  And allowing myself that little bit of cooked food has made all the difference.  People often say to me, "Are you allowed to eat ......" Fill in the blank.  I reply that I am allowed to eat anything, I make the rules, I choose to not eat meat, fish, eggs, pasta etc.  I have to see it as a choice, otherwise due to my history, I will rebel against it.  Therefore, for me, 100% is too restrictive and hems me into a confined space that I just want to break free from...

When I was at Raw Spirit Festival last year, I went to the speed dating event they put on.  One guy asked me if I was raw?  Yeah... But, was I 100% raw?  No, I couldn't say I was.  He looked at me like I was shit on his shoe!!  Sorry for swearing but I want to get across how annoyed this made me feel.  How incredibly shallow of him...

I've since dropped my desire for a raw boyfriend!  What someone eats is no longer the be all and end all to me.  My boyfriend Alan, eats a SAD diet, I won't change that.  I have no desire to.  He gives me more love than any man ever has done.  He looks at me in a way that no-one has ever looked at me before.  These are the important things surely...?  What it does mean is that there is a level of closeness that we may never be able to achieve, because I know what's it's like to be raw and he doesn't.  But this is no different from my Mum being a devout Christian and my Dad being a devout sports fan!  

For me, being 100% didn't give me a healthy state of mind.  Ok, it made my mental clarity go through the roof, but I honestly don't think I was happy and relaxed.  If I lived in a raw food community then it would be a different story.  But I get invited out to eat, I have an active social life and I am not surrounded with juice bars and raw food cafes to hang out in.  This brings me nicely on to lifestyle...

Lifestyle- I don't live in Hawaii, New York, LA or even London.  I live in a small town in the South-East of England that has a tiny health-food shop where I can buy a few organic beans and seeds.  My closet juice bar was 20 minutes away and this has just shut down and has been turned into an ice cream palour! 

A few weekends ago my boyfriend and I fancied eating out.  We went to a local pub which is more of a restaurant than a pub.  It had just 2 vegetarian options!  I ate a cooked aubergine(eggplant) and tomato stack.  I enjoyed it, didn't feel guilty, didn't overeat, felt fine for it and thoroughly enjoyed eating out with my man sat opposite me just like a normal couple!  9 months ago when I was 100% raw I was with a partner who loved eating out.  Weeks went by and we didn't eat out because of my obsession with being 100%  I now realise how much my decisions were impacting his life.  I feel bad about this now :(

Last week it was my Dad's birthday.  My Mum cooked a roast dinner for them both.  It's just the three of us that live in the same house and the last time we ate together, just the three of us, was Christmas Day, the time before that, I have no idea.  It may not have happened since I moved here back in June 08.  I looked at the food my Mum was cooking and thought about how much I love my parents and how it was my Dad's birthday.  I asked if I could join them (minus the meat) and my Mum's face lit up.  We sat at our dining table, ate similar food, joked, laughed and talked about our individual days, like a proper family.  It was precious.  What usually happens?  I make myself a bowl of salad, they eat together, and I take my salad to my office and eat in front of the laptop, or in my bedroom if I am rushing to go out somewhere. 

This situation really has made me think.  We didn't have to eat the same food, I could have eaten a salad with them and we could have joked and laughed still.  But somehow, by eating the same food, we were brought closer together.  They were smiling at me and my Mum loved that she cooked for me for the first time in what must be at least 6 months.  You know how Mum's love to show their love through their food right?! ;)

I think what I'm trying to say is that I'm a normal girl, attempting to live a raw food lifestyle with some odds stacked against me.  I know I'm not alone on this, I'm not asking for sympathy! ;) On the contrary, I hope this makes me appeal to you.

I've realised that in the past I have been too fanatical about being 100% raw.  This has pushed people away and alienated me from those that were once so close to me.  This is so sad it makes me want to cry.  I can't change what's happened, but I would like to think that I've now got some perspective and found a great balance which fits me and my lifestyle like a glove.  This is so important to me.

I have worked with so many clients that have felt they need to be 100% - the all or nothing approach.  I really don't buy into this.  If you do, then that's fine, it must work for you and I'm happy for you.  But please don't preach this to everyone else because it really may not suit them.  The all or nothing approach is, for me, too close to the old diet mentality that I once lived in.  I wanted to find food freedom through raw food, but it wasn't until I relaxed about it that I found that freedom.

I'm not saying that I start the day with a green juice and end it with a Big Mac, nor would I encourage this behaviour in any of my clients.  But if every now and then I eat a vegetarian meal out, or eat some cheese, or some organic oat biscuits, then I do so consciously, with choice and without regret. 

I would also like to point out that I have felt much worse after a raw gourmet meal than a cooked vegetarian meal.  100% raw isn't always the healthiest thing you can do for yourself.  Is a bowl of steamed organic brown rice worse for you than nuts, dried fruit, cacao or a complicated gourmet meal?  I'll leave you to answer this question based on logic and experience...

So many clients I work with don't want to be 100% and when I tell them I'm not 100% I can almost hear the sigh of relief down the phone.  I encourage them to find the regime that works for them.  I ask them to make clear boundaries that will stop them from eating the food they want to eliminate from their lives, but also that won't hem them in too much.  Do I need to be 100% to be a Raw Food Coach?  Of course I don't.  My clients love my approach, they are drawn to me for a reason.  If you want to be 100% raw then I can still support you and coach you but you may feel your resonate more with another coach.  This is both natural and understandable.

I really have finally found a happy relationship with food and raw food.  I've never felt or looked better.  I really hope that if you made it this far in reading my post that you have gained perspective from it.  I hope you have either found your happy place with food or that you soon do.  I find it helps to work out what suits you and fits into your life rather than looking at what other raw food people eat.  Turn the focus back onto yourself and shine like the individual star that you are...

Hugs,

Jo x

Daily Self-Love - The Indulgent Lunch

As part of my Destination Fabulous group coaching programme I am encouraging the practice of daily self-love activities.  This is something that a lot of people are uncomfortable doing because it is so alien to them, they see it as a selfish act or they feel they don't deserve such love and attention. 

We all seem to be very good at giving our love away, but if we don't keep any of it for ourselves, for it to blossom and grow, we will eventually run out of love to pass on to others.  So you see, it's not a selfish act at all and if you're in the practice of giving your love away then you definitely deserve to keep some to yourself and show yourself you are deserving of love each and every day.  You will begin to feel better in and about yourself and will have more love to spread around...so everyone's a winner! :)

Self-love has alway been an important part of my business as I see it as a vital area to work on when trying to break free from emotional attachments to food.  Last year I made self love a big part of my life, but in recent months this has slipped a little.  However, it is the start of my Destination Fabulous programme and the seemingly bottomless pit of abundant love my boyfriend has for me that has encouraged me to consciously give myself at least one act of self-love every single day.  I need to make sure I have oodles of love to give back to him and you guys and still have some left for me! 

To make me stick to this I will be twittering about it and updating my facebook status with daily self-love activities.  So if you would like to follow me on twitter or add me as a friend on facebook to keep tabs on me then please feel free.  I hope it inspires you and calls you into some self-lovin' action!

So, what about this indulgent lunch then?  After reading Karen Knowler's Ezine on Monday I couldn't get Booja Booja ice cream out of my mind.  So, I drove to my local health food shop to see if they had fixed their freezer.  It had broken down over Christmas and I don't even want to know what happened to all the tubs of ice-cream that must have been in there, I just hope they found a happy home and weren't wasted! :(  So I had to have a Booja Booja free Christmas - lol.  But on Monday I was in luck and bought myself some vanilla and ginger ice-cream.  Both absolutely delish, but I was a little gutted they didn't have chocolate or pecan and maple syrup flavours!  So fast forward to today, I'm sat at my desk, it's lunch time and I'm worried I'm not going to fit in the hours yoga session I promised myself as my self-love activity of the day.  And then ping!  Into my mind comes the ice-cream :)

So here's my indulgent self-love lunch:

A beautiful glass of berries, with vanilla Booja Booja ice-cream topped with cacao nibs and bee pollen :)  What a welcome indulgent break from a salad...it was sooo goood!

You see self-love can be a very small thing or a very big thing.  It can be as little as buying yourself a juicy mango and eating the whole thing to yourself, savouring every last juicy drop and letting it dribble down your chin!  Or it could be having a massage, a hair cut, a night out with your girlfriends or a weekend away.  So long as when you are doing it, you are mindful of amazing it is making you feel and you remind yourself that you deserve this treat because you are FABULOUS, then it counts as self-love!

So go have fun but remember to tell me how will you be showing yourself some lovin' today...??

Hugs,

Jo x

 

Citrus Love

I have a new favourite juice...and it's all about the citrus fruits.  Apologies if you can't tolerate citrus fruits.  I feel sad for you, they are at their best this time of the year and I'm making the most of it, I simply can't get enough of them!

I've mentioned before that my best kitchen inspirations come when the fridge is a little bare.  It makes me try new things as I have to make something from the bare bones of the fridge and fruit bowl or go hungry!  The pressure is on and this is when I produce my best work...lol :)

So the 'Citrus Love' juice is very simple and literally tastes and smells of sunshine.  This was very welcome this morning as it was so dark and gloomy :(  I'm talking about the weather, not me!  I'm feeling very sunny at the moment :)

Why not brighten your morning with some liquid sunshine...?

5 oranges with the rind cut off (keep as much pith as you can), 1 large grapefruit with the rind cut off (keep as much pith as you can), 2 rounds of pineapple and 200g of spinach.  That's it, juice the lot up and sip the sunshine and notice how fresh you mouth feels.  The pith of a citrus fruit is highly nutritious so try to juice as much of it as you can.

D-E-L-I-C-I-O-U-S!

Hugs,

Jo x

Christmas 2002 vs Christmas 2008

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here’s me in December 2008 compared to December 2002.  What a difference!  I remember being so unhappy and so unhealthy in 2002.  I was stressed up to my eyeballs in a job I hated and was pretty much drinking a bottle of wine a day to suppress my sadness and escape from my own reality.  Fast forward 6 years and it’s as if someone has turned the lights on! 

 Never in a million years would I have worn an orange dress in 2002 – life seemed so much safer in brown and black...I could hide myself away from the world and from myself :(

 

Life is so different now I'm happy and proud of who I am, my appearance, my lifestyle and how I have turned my whole life around in the last 5 years. 

 

If you are keen to make huge changes in your life in 2009 then why not join me on my new group coaching programme - Destination Fabulous 2009.  Get ready to dream big and find the fabulous person that's longing to burst out from within you.  I'll help and support you all the way...

It's funny looking at the photos above and thinking there is 6 years between the photos being taken.  I certainly don't think I look 6 years older in the top photo.  If anything I think I look younger and certainly more alive and happy.  I'd like to think this shines through.  I honestly feel I am reversing my body clock and the fact that I have attracted a gorgeous boyfriend who is 6 years younger than me just adds to my theory!

Talking of which, it's been interesting of late having a new man in my life.  It's made me realise I've been living in a raw food bubble for the past 8 months which has made things very easy for me.  No one to 'cook' for but myself.  Not a lot of eating out, lots of raw food friends to hang out with.  But no dates, or eating with the 'in-laws' or other such awkward social situations.  Well, all this has changed and I'm actually relishing the new situation as it's a good lesson for me.  As you may know I'm not too strict with myself and will eat cooked vegetables, cheese and perhaps rice in social situations.  My social life is important to me and I would never turn down an invitation for fear of not complying to my raw food principles. 

So, New Years Day was an interesting occasion.  I met my new man's family and some family friends.  I was completely thrown in at the deep end and met them all at once.  When I was asked what I did for a living, Alan and I looked at each other and giggled knowing the flack I was about to receive...  Why flack?  Well I was surrounded by meat eaters, there were chocolates and sweets in every direction I looked and a few people with weight and health problems.  They were such fun and once I had told them what I did the questions came thick and fast and they teased me constantly.  They said my eyes must have lit up when I walked in the room at the number of potential clients I saw before me! 

I really enjoyed the experience of being with people who knew nothing about raw food and putting the humour aside I think they were quite interested even if it was just intrigue.  We had lots of laughs about how you can squeeze milk out of a nut and there was a bit of a panic just before dinner about what they could feed me.  But they prepared a lovely salad for me and I felt very at home and loved by their special effort. 

Alan has now tried some of my raw food creations but draws the line at drinking anything that is green - lol.  I was totally gutted last night however, I made him an almond mylk and he didn't like it!  He's the first person I have ever known not to like nut mylk, I just don't get it.  To me this is about as good as simple raw food gets.  Oh well, as his family kept saying to me on New Years day - 'Each to their own love, each to their own!'

Hugs,

Jo x

 

Destination Fabulous - Here me out...!

Hey guys,

Just thought I would record and post a video for you all to hear more about my amazing programme - Destination Fabulous - that starts next week.  Will you be joining me for the most F-A-B-U-L-O-U-S start to 2009 you could possibly give yourself...?  I sure hope so, it could just lift you up a level and move you on to bigger brighter days......

It all starts on 15th Jan and there are just 9 places left, so don't delay, act today.  I promise you we'll have a ball...expect nothing less :)

Hugs,

Jo x

Start 2009 with a bang with the Destination Fabulous Programme...

Let's start 2009 with a bang!  Let me help you make 2009 the year that raw food leads you to your Destination Fabulous!

Have you over indulged over the festive period and feel a million miles from where you long to be?

Are you ready to step into new shoes this year and strut your way to your Destination Fabulous?

If you are ready for total transformation then this could be the year to make all your dreams come true.  With my help and expert guidance you could be strutting your way towards a sexy, sassy, sparkly and stunning new version of you...now doesn't that sound like the best present you could give yourself this new year?

If you're ready to find your fabulous self in 2009 then click here to read more...

Happy New Year - Are you ready to walk in new shoes?

Happy New Year to you and welcome to 2009!  I have a great feeling about this year.  2008 has ended on a complete high for me and so it is that I move into this new year with a fresh new outlook on many things and a new man in my life!

Here's a mini vision board for myself in 2009 and hopefully for you all too.....

2009 is going to be juicy-licious!

2009 is going to be full of love.... 

 

2009 will be full of sparkle and so will I....

 

I feel like I'm walking into 2009 with new shoes and I want you to join me.  Are you ready for major changes in your life?  Does your raw food journey need to step up a level?  Are you struggling to deal with emotional eating? How about stepping into some new shoes and walking a different walk this year?  Look out this weekend for a big announcement from me, a special newgroup programme - Destination Fabulous 2009!