A Renewed Quest for Personal Energy

I am always tired, and it's not fun. My lethargy has caused me to reject social invitations, ignore important obligations, and curse my alarm clock daily with more vigor than would be accepted in polite company. I long ago realized that much of this extreme sleepiness is connected to some health problems. At this point in my life, I've learned to ignore the people who call me lazy and accept the fact that as long as I am on certain medications, I will sometimes have the initiative of a baby sloth no matter what I do. The good news is that I have been feeling better lately, and I'm learning to control and compensate for my need for sleep.

One of the best ways I've found to feel more energetic is to control my diet. Garbage in, garbage out doesn't just apply to computers, folks! For no clearly defined reason, I got in in my head to embrace the Raw Food Diet two years ago. I was feeling especially sluggish and looking for new ways to dominate my natural inclination to hibernate. I can't say I was up at dawn whistling with the birds, but I did notice a marked increase in energy after a few weeks with pretty easy dietary changes on my part. That said, I already eat a pretty healthy diet, so making the switch wasn't as big of a stretch for me as it might be for some people.

I'm not interested in that lifestyle for weight-loss reasons, and I won't speak to that issue at all. But for the four months that I stuck to it pretty closely, I felt much better than I have in years. No preservatives, no trans fat, very little meat (okay, sometimes I cheated. I love bacon.) = a healthier, happier me. My hair was shinier, my skin was clear, and my napping habits decreased by half.

I'm sure I'll write more about this topic in the future, but I'm mentioning it now because my local Farmer's Market just opened and I'm going to make an effort to return to vegetarianism in the hope of regaining some of that all-natural energy boost. For now, I don't think I'll go all-out raw again, but I may transition into that some time in the future. The main reason that I'm not going straight back into raw is because I find it difficult to live with an avowed meat-eater and restrict myself so much. I can certainly resist a burger or a piece of chicken, but when I am doing so it is harder to deny myself feta in my salad or a homemade veggie omelet. Like I said, I'm not doing this diet for ethical or weight loss reasons, and I believe that everyone should feel free to set their own boundaries instead of having to stick to a strictly imposed outside rules. So if I do get a hankering for bacon...well, I'm not going to beat myself up over it!

So, I am going to start adding some simple and healthy recipes to this site. I don't know if anyone would be interested and I'm certainly not a master chef, but I think everyone looks forward to trying something new in the summer when they see the fruits and veggies piling up in their gardens or local stores. I know a lot of EASY recipes that are very tasty and I'll be posting them here intermittently for your gustatory pleasure!