Take the RAW Challenge

A raw food diet will make you feel like a new person - rejuvenated, leaner, stronger, more radiant and optimistic. But as much as I can tell you about the wonders you will feel, the only real way to find out is to try it for yourself.

The 2 week Challenge - Give yourself a time period. I suggest 2 weeks, that was the trial period I gave myself when I started, but you can set any length of time that suits you: a day, a weekend, a week, forever (it might happen!). Now set a date and then ...

Eat only Raw foods for your time period.

Tips to get you started:

• Eat a lot of fruit early in the day, its very cleansing.
• If you have a juicer, make fresh juices, especially green juices - so nutritious!
• Stock up on raw foods, so there are lots of things to eat when you get hungry.
• Learn to make green smoothies.
• Learn to make a few raw recipes, for variation.
• Read about the lifestyle, it's simple but can seem very different and daunting at first.
• Find a support system, perhaps a friend to try it with, or someone who already eats raw. You'll find most raw foodists are very supportive, encouraging of the lifestyle and happy to answer questions.

After your trial period - If you continue, your body will also continue to cleanse and heal and the benefits will begin to snowball. If you stop after you're trial period, that's ok too. You're body will have benefited from this cleanse and you may have realized ways to incorporate more raw foods into your previous cooked diet which will also benefit you. Once you feel the powerful cleansing effects food can have on the body it's hard to go completely back, you will be more conscious of the effects of the foods that you are eating.

Beware: Toxin release - As toxins have been stored in your cells, probably for years, are released they enter your bloodstream and circulate until they get filtered by your liver and kidneys and eliminated. While the toxins are still in your body circulating they will cause detox side effects. These side effects are normal symptoms of any cleansing process in the body. These symptoms may include headaches, tiredness, slight cold symptoms - runny nose or congestion, diarrhea, feeling cold. These are temporary, they will go away and you will feel much better than you did previously. Also, not everyone gets these symptoms and different people get them to a different degree. If you look at these symptoms in a positive manner, they can be welcome signs of a lower toxic load on your body.

Build ups of plaque and fat deposits are being eliminated from your colon and the rest of your digestive tract. Your arteries and veins are likewise getting cleared. All of your systems will be functioning better. As more toxic buildup and waste is eliminated, more nutrients can be absorbed. You will feel lighter and better physically as well as emotionally. An emotional detox will happen simultaneously with the physical one. Some people notice their mental and emotional state as the most dramatic difference initially. Feelings of sadness may occur, emotional blockages are being released. These feelings are replaced with feeling stronger, clearer and more optimistic.

Warning: If, due to a heavy toxic build-up in the body - either physically or emotionally, the toxic release is too strong, slow down the input of raw foods. Those with high toxic loads, or anyone with any symptoms lasting over 3 days, should seek the care of a qualified health practitioner.