Raw Thoughts on Yoga, Food & Healing: A New Direction I Wish to Take
You may ask, why am I doing this all of a sudden?
Before, I honestly just wanted to
have my own pastry shop. HAHA. Looking back, well, not that much “back” cause
it was just almost a year ago, I SERIOUSLY wanted to have one. I SWEAR. And
given that I don’t have any formal culinary background( oh well, except for my
Home Economics Classes back in highschool and baking bonding sessions with my
mom over cookies ), I honestly even came
to the point of going through all home based bakeries in LA and asking if they
would allow me to volunteer my time in the kitchen cause I really want to learn
the craft of creating something so intricate, so beautiful literally from scratch.
HAHA. Can’t help but smile while reminiscing such experiences and even though
that the sales people would always say no, I’d always always make it to a point
that I got to meet the owner/ Chef and have my pinky fingers crossed that
they’d say YES.
I had always been fascinated by how Pastry
Chefs would make towering cakes and even those bite size patisseries with all
kinds of berries that we fortunately got to try in Europe.(Thanks to the
opportunity that the Consular and Diplomatic Affairs community has brought upon
us through the numerous International Model United Nations that immensely immensely
widened our perspective about the world-& food & culture & most
importantly people as well.) I even remember during my last few months in the
States last year, I stumbled upon Chef Alex Trouan’s L’Artisan Macarons and
even asked if it’s possible to have an apprenticeship with him in the Bay area.
Oh the crazy things I do for all things sweet! And if I were to tell you
everything in here, it’s going to take FOREVER. Believe me guys so I better get
closer to the point.
And when I say closer to the point, I
meant fast forwarding the events when I decided to go back to the
Philippines and start from here. Baking from scratch, getting online and orders
from family friends, attending a few weekend baking classes and juggling a former job at the Embassy(oh yes, I’ve
just recently resigned :D ) – that’s basically how my life was for a couple of
months – until I came to that point wherein I realize that( & maybe you’ll
tell me that it’s too early to say cause I’m still twenteen and all that ), you’d want to wake up in the morning and
LIVE for something that’s greater than yourself…something that’s going to bring
meaning… a purpose perhaps.
A PURPOSE INDEED.
There were days wherein I’d just wake up for
the sake of doing it – and just because I have to wake up and I’ve got myself
accustomed to a certain “routine”. Thanks to Bikram Yoga for helping
me keep calm and most importantly sane(HAHA) during those days.
And now that I’ve mentioned yoga, I
guess we’re getting really closer to the point this time. :D I’ve done it
before with my girl friends last year in an attempt to distract myself from the
past and I can say that it’s been really an amazing experience. Though we only
did it for a week during that time, we’ve seen results not only physically and
maybe that’s why I kind of resorted to it while I was recently working, cause I
knew that it won’t necessarily give me what I want, it will give me what I
NEED(just as how my favorite Yoga teacher would say it every single time in
class when we’d ALMOST GIVE UP on postures. HAHA)
In short, Yoga had been(& it is
still) my refuge(both physically and spiritually). It has helped me become more
aware of things that I overlooked before. It helped me tap into this inner self
that longs deep to find her purpose..and to fulfill it every single day of her
life…Okay, I know it may sound so cheesy that
way, but I swear, the thoughts that you have before and even after the practice
– they’re beyond what you can imagine guys. I started to question everything –
and in terms of health(especially during the first few weeks) I had been immensely
aware of what I put in my body. Though I’m far away from being consistent with
eating healthy all the time, it has helped me to realize how the food that we
eat could actually make a big difference not only on the physical but also to
the smallest of details such as our thoughts, how we deal with other people and
most importantly, it shows how we deal with ourselves. I’m not there yet but
with doing the practice, I’ve been gradually and continuously learning on how
to treat my body right especially that ever since I was a kid, I’ve been constantly
experiencing problems with my digestive system. I must admit I’m a strong
emotional/stress eater as well and it had greatly greatly affects the
quality of food that I’m taking as well. Talk about crappy, processed and
immensely unhealthy food. And with Yoga, I guess I couldn’t stress this enough, I
wanted to be better, but it’s not more about losing the weight(though still
it’s included in my goals), now it’s more about inner healing and strength. And
I noticed that the more I eat healthy, real food, especially the one that comes
directly from nature itself, the more I feel good and energized. I started
juicing(which I thought at first was completely strange cause you can just eat
your vegetables right?) and felt so light and alert and more focused. Of course
I have those slip up moments too!
HAHA! But now, I can say that I would really want to explore more of this other
world of food too – HONEST TO GOODNESS RAW FOOD. And you might be wondering,
what actually inspired me to really be serious about this (though I’m not going
cold turkey cause I know it won’t be able to sustain it in the long run if I do
so), it was actually a series of events and exposures to Raw Vegan Food
especially when I was in DC last year and fortunately was able to attend the DC
VegFest but it was only recently when I’ve tasted this SUPER DELICIOUS AND
UNBELIEVABLY VEGAN TORTILLA WRAP that made me realize how VEGAN/RAW FOOD could
taste SOOOO GOOOOOOOD( In fact, it’s even better than Taco Bell’s I swear guys
you have to try it for yourself!)!!!!
THE INSPIRATORY (Inspirational Story) BEHIND - THE FLAX TORTILLA WRAP
So I was talking about this Flax
Tortilla Wrap that literally blew my mind away just recently - clearly
reminiscing my first bite! It opened my mind to
A WHOLE LOT of possibilities with FOOD( cause as much as I love eating,
I don’t want to accumulate unhealthy fats and what not) – on how I can actually
use it as a tool to feel good and at the same time, to nourish my body as well.
J A part of me longs to actually learn
the art of Raw Food Making especially Raw Desserts cause the only raw food that
I actually know how to prepare right now are green smoothies & juices, a
few Energy bars made from nuts and Salad. HAHA. Oh yes please make salad count
as well guys. Pretty Please. :D
Though to be honest, there’s a part
of me that says, Could you really give up those super yummy burgers, fries, steak with
garlic rice..just thinking of it..HAHA. That’s why I completely
surrender to the fact that I have to do it slowly and focus on eating healthy
at first. I know I still have a long way to go(SHOUTOUT
TO ALL VEGETARIANS & VEGANS OUT THERE WHO ACTUALLY MADE IT!!!), but I think
it’s really worth the try. Besides, they say that great things take time right?
:D
Aside from testing and tweaking out
recipes that I can find in books and in the net, it would extremely be beneficial
as well if I could get a Raw Food Certification from the experts in the field.
I honestly think that would be RAWSOOOME!!!
Which actually brings us to the
GOALS OF THIS PROJECT
· Slowly incorporate raw and
healthy(mostly Vegan) food in my diet
· Share recipes and even experiences in
Vegetarian/Vegan restaurants
· Share fitness tips and new workouts
that I try every now and then
· Raise enough money to get a formal
education in Raw Food Preparation in Bali, Indonesia
You may ask
me, how could I possibly do that? J
To be
honest, right now. I seriously have no concrete plan to actually RAISE THE
MONEY(for now). But one thing I know now is that first, I want to instill the discipline
in myself and share the journey with you guys. :D Ofcourse, I know this isn’t
an overnight thing and I’m still looking forward to having cream cheese and
strawberry jelly on my bagel...and there are just some things that I honestly
can’t give up as of the moment. HAHAHA.
Oh and let me clear that I’m in no
way telling people to GO RAW 100% cause I myself can’t as of the moment. Maybe just doing a little more by
adding healthier and nature – friendly food into your diet would be a great
start. :D
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HEAL FROM WITHIN
PROJECT
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As I would like to share my Journey
towards Inner Wellness & Peace through Eating Healthy, One Plate at a Time.
Not only that, I would also be sharing bits and pieces from Bikram Yoga
as well so as to encourage you to try the practice and see the benefits for
yourself. You may not necessarily agree with me on this but I encourage you
try. ;) I will be posting the tips that Chef Boris gave me when I asked him
tips on slowly transitioning to a Vegan Diet.
And you may
ask yourself, “Why should I even try it?” J
Plain and
Simple. You reap the wonderful benefits of eating &
living healthy through incorporating raw foods into your diet. And
that’s something that could actually make a huge difference in many aspects of
your life. I mean, I’m far from perfect with this guys but I would like you to
be part of this journey as well. J
These are the RAW FOOD CERTIFICATE
PROGRAMS that I’m looking forward to hopefully join into and you might also be
interested in joining as well! :D
· b. alive Retreat in Bali – Jan. 20-27
· June 21 – Raw Food Certification in Ubud, Bali
They’re
quite expensiiiiiive though..still, it’s all about the journey much more than
the destination right? J
As one man said, “There’s just so
many possibilities in life as the stars in the sky.”, and when I reminisce
having my first bite of that unbelievably Vegan Flax Tortilla, I told
myself,
WHY NOT? ;)
Lots of
rawsome love & feels,
Pastry Princess :)
Pastry Princess :)
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