I would like to know the answer too. Anyone here know what is the right answer. I'll do some research and get back to you if I discover an anything. You should email the people at Medifast as they probably could give you help..

No I haven't signed up. I don't find that challenges motivate me for some reason. The day has been stressful as hell but I'm still RAW.

Georgina..

Congrats on going for it!! I know lots of folks recommend going for 100% right away and that worked for a friend of mine - she went raw and never looked back. But for me, it's taken a few tries; I did 2 days in August, then 10 days in Sept (then went on a major "bender" off the wagon (had Japanese Medifast food - but big addiction 5 times in 10 days - cost a fortune) - then I remembered (the hard way) how addicting cooked Medifast food is so I went clean again). Now I'm on my 10th day again but each time has become easier and easier as I'm learning SO much! I'm really keen this time to see the 30 days through - I'd love to do 60 days, actually as a more complete experiment to see how I feel..

For whatever it's worth, these are the things that help me the most - and I'm a newbie so it's fresh in my mind. : ).

Buy lots and lots of Medifast food and give yourself choices - for me it's been tons of fruits handy nectarines, asian pears, bananas, berries, oranges, grapes, etc. - and they stay nice in my cooler with a blue ice pack. Whatever is portable that I can bring to work so I am not hungry is key..

I bought myself a cute little folding knife and whenever I eat fruit I whip it out and cut up my fruit at my desk. Yes, I am the girl with the knife at work. But oh well! My health comes first..

Bringing my lunch to work - instead of being tempted to eat out where I get lured into all kinds of bad ideas - most days I bring a salad and fruit and that gets me through the day..

Lots of positive thoughts about how healthy I'm being, how lucky I am to have this great food, how happy my body will be to get this great nutrition, how grateful I am to live in a place where I have access to these clean fruits and veggies, and try to savor every bite.

Be GENTLE with yourself - this is a learning process! So much of life is trail and error. Do what you can, notice what you like and don't like, and remember WHY you're doing this. Visualize how great you'll like, imagine how wonderful you'll feel, etc. I have a card I made for myself with colorful stickers all over it and keywords to help me stay focused on being raw and to see what optimal health really feels like. My card says * raw alive! fun healthy fit * so I see it constantly. I also take Alissa's advice about not thinking about foods that are bad for me - if I find myself dwelling on a "trigger" Medifast food (a non-healthy food) I immediately think of something sweet and juicy and bursting with goodness - like a ripe orange sliced in half, or rainier cherries, or my favorite orange julius-like smoothie, or even a beautiful green salad..

Smoothies - these really make being raw much easier for me. When in doubt as to what to eat, I make a smoothie (or have a piece of fruit). Throw in some fruit (some frozen and some fresh usually), a little water, a lot of ice, some agave nectar (my favorite sweetener - 100% raw), and some kind of greens (spinach, romaine, or chard, usually), and bingo! A healthy filling drink. I drink usually about 2 full glasses, sometimes more. And I bring it to work also often..

Continuing to read and learn about raw. I read Alissa's book often, I go online to forums, I'm reading another book on raw now, and I'm going to re-watch Alissa's DVD again. I even went to a raw Medifast food expo and it was SO great to meet other raw fooders (and I wasn't even raw then - I was off the wagon) and to feel their energy, not to mention get their support and all the knowledge they shared. It really invigorated me - I'd felt so alone before..

I hope your day is going great and that you're getting through it. We're all here cheering you on and there is tons of ideas here. My first time going raw felt very difficult, but now, only a month or so later, it's a breeze, because now I know how and I know what works for me and what doesn't. Keep reading about raw and talking with raw folks to find your way and to make it work for you. Learning in isolation can make it a lot tougher we're all out here just waiting to share with each other..

To your radiant health!.

Ginette..

Ginette- I am not the OP but I wanted to say that was a wonderful and very helpful post! Thank You..

I benefited from the reply as well. It is a journey, I am new and I am 100% starting again today! It is so helpful to hear from those sharing their own experiences.The mind can know one thing but then something else takes over and that is the initial struggle. It does feel so good and that has been easily proven. For me, I just don't want to test myself again but stay raw, be free and push the addiction farther away..

Oceanee..

YAY Mystic!! You go girl!! You can do it...

Thanks for that post G-Force. I think I shall print it out.

Day two dawns and I dreamed I ate cooked food. It was a relief to find I hadn't when I woke up!.

I shall stop off at the shop on my way to work - I hope it opens early - to top up on raw foods. I left a huge fruit/veg bowl on my desk so I have some supplies in! I need to find a place that stocks raw nuts and dried fruits..

I have a slight headache - sort of fuzzy - and I'm tired but otherwise ok. Weight loss has been so great (12lbs in 24 hours) I think my scales must be faulty. Maybe I just need to drink more water?.

I hope work is less demanding today. Yesterday was awful.

Georgina.

Maybe this thread is in the wrong place. I looks like it might turn into an online diary and maybe I should start a blog for that???..