Alkaline Living Kitchen

Hello all, Channyn here and I am one of those 'weird' eaters! The ones where other people say well what do you eat? This is my story. 

When I was a kid, I never liked meat, chicken had those weird veins and grizzle, steak was chewy and those fatty spots always made me gag. I was the kid who cut it up into a million pieces and pushed it around my plate. When I was in 7th grade, a friend of mine came into the lunch room and the following conversation ensued...

Her: I'm a Vegetarian

Me: What's that?

Her: I don't eat meat

Me: You can do that?!

I went home from school and told my mom that I was a vegetarian, needless to say, she wasn't thrilled, but that started my journey as a 'weird' eater. As a teenager I never advertised my vegetarian status, most people forgot that I even was one. I ate side dishes and lived on cookies, not the healthiest but it worked for me. When I went off to college I started experimenting with food but I was still a sugar addict and overindulged in all those delicious dining hall goodies provided everyday. 

As an adult I continued in my vegetarian lifestyle, but as a single person cooking for myself was never a priority. I survived on pasta, eggs, and quesadillas. Then I got an h-pylori bacterial infection and it changed the way I ate for good. The doctor didn't know how I had gotten it or if the antibiotics would cure it so after taking 2 weeks of intense antibiotics that left me feeling like death I decided to change my diet and started researching alkaline eating. I had always had stomach problems as well as candida issues and this way of eating seemed like it would take care of it all. I went extreme - totally raw and fresh. Eating only vegetables, eliminating dairy, flour, and sugar and investing in a dehydrator. I loved it! I felt great, I looked great, my skin was glowing and my insides were feeling good but just like anything else there were some setbacks.

Setback 1: I was unintentionally losing a lot of weight, too much! so I increased my avocado and almond consumption and tried to eat more often. The greatest thing about an alkaline diet is that you can eat as much as you want because you are eating really healthy, nutrient dense foods. 

Setback 2: I started to lose my hair. This was scary, I was shedding uncontrollably. Now that might have been a deal breaker for some people but I loved the lifestyle and food so I did some research instead and found that due to the fact that I wasn't eating any dairy I was deficient in B12. I started taking a supplement and also began to eat a little cheese to compensate for the deficiency and all was good once again. 

Setback 3: WINTER! Yes that horrible time in the northeast when it is so cold that you don't ever want to leave your bed. Raw food is amazing but hot food is essential to surviving the intensely chilly weather that seems to stick around endlessly in this neck of the woods. So I started heating food again and although I still love raw I now do a mix of different cooking styles and have found a great balance. 

I love eating this way and wanted to share all of my delicious experiences with you, so this blog was born. Please feel free to contact me with any questions, suggestions, and recipes! Happy eating!

Channyn