Here's an older post, from August 2008, about modifying one's diet to experiment with attaining even greater health. ?I know the before/after pics, alone, are inspirational enough to live a raw vegan lifestyle!

*blows kisses to everyone*

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One of our readers, Julie, asked me to update her on what kind of diet I m doing and why I m doing it. The last time I publicly made changes with my diet, I received many similar questions. So, I figured maybe it would be a good idea to respond to her question here on the blog for anyone else wondering the same thing.

I did explain, in a long post, about experimenting with my diet being important to me.If you didn t read that entry, it will answer a lot of your questions. For many of you, I think I know what you are thinking: ?Wendi was pretty much morbidly obese, her health was horrible, but she s now healthy. Why would she change anything with her diet when she has already found what works ?

Well, it s true. I am extremely healthy compared to how I was before I started consuming raw foods. Here are some pictures to show the changes, to motivate some of you currently struggling with eating more raw foods?

After only 10 months raw!

After one year raw!

I believe a raw food diet has allowed my body to heal itself of so many ailments more than I probably ever even knew I had. I went on the raw food diet as an experiment, to see if it would really work. Well, as I found out (and I m sure it s evident to you, too), it works! I m healthier than I think I ever was, even when I was at a healthy weight when I was younger.

So, the question you have comes up again, right? ?Why make any changes if you ve recovered your health ? The main reason is because I know I don t feel as good as I could feel. I don t feel 100% well (even though I feel 1000 times better than I ever did before). I am still not overflowing with energy, my skin isn t as clear as it could be if I was fully well, my weight is still a bit too much for my height and bone structure (but, trust me when I say if I never go down another pound I am completely happy with my weight!), my menstrual cycles are still not 100% regular (I still spot between cycles), I occasionally still experience some problems with my heart, and my bloodwork still shows that I m a bit low in iron, B12, and definitely deficient in Vitamin D.

Could I live happily for the rest of my life with just those small issues? Sure! I still feel so much more alive, healthy, vibrant, and filled with even more love than I ever did in the past. However, why not see if I can obtain an even higher level of health? I d love to clear up all of the small issues I mentioned above, and feel even more alive and healthy! If I didn t have any of those issues, would I still experiment with my diet? Maybe, but it would be for a different reason.

Currently, my goal for my body is to be as healthy as I can be so that I can live a long, energetic life and experience as much as I possibly can before my time is done here. If my body was 100% healthy, I might experiment with the different versions of the raw food diet, just for some variety. Currently, however, I am experimenting to see if I can get to an even greater level of health. Imagine if I can eliminate all of those small issues that remain having more energy to do even more fun things with my life will be worth the current experimentation with my raw diet, don t you think?

Don t be shy to speak up. If you think it s wrong that I m experimenting with my diet, if you are concerned for my health in any way, let me know. I appreciate the love and concern that has been shown to me. I respect your opinions, and I am open to hearing your concerns. I don t claim to know everything I am here learning as much about myself as you are about your own self. Life is fascinating so much to learn and do and enjoy!

I d like to end my response with a little more about my health and why you shouldn t be too concerned about my experimentations with my diet. I never experiment with my health without consulting a doctor. I am seeing a fantastic holistic doctor who fully encourages me to follow my instincts on what I feel is good for my body. She monitors my health through blood tests, physical exams, and thorough holistic exams (taking into account all aspects of what makes up who I am body, mind, spirit, emotions). I figure if I m experimenting, I may as well document my journey in case I stumble across something that may be helpful for others to know. It s always good to have some hard scientific facts/results to back up my story.

Thanks for all the emails and comments I receive from all of you. It means a lot to me that you take the time to read my blog and reach out to me.

I love all of you very much!

Wendi

XOXOXO