Living on live foods in Ludlow Part 2

How I fared…

Although the course was only one week long, I noticed improvements almost immediately. I lost a few pounds, including some flesh off my intractable thighs. My skin tone improved. My teeth grew brighter, in spite of antibiotic staining. My big toe, sore since a violent stubbing one dark night in 2004, stopped hurting. My lower back pain vanished: just as well, as it had encouraged a stance that spawned enquiries about my putative child. The tension between my shoulder blades melted. I rarely felt hungry and when I did feel a pang or two it was not unpleasant. I slept better and woke up refreshed. My energy levels increased. My period pain faded to a mere stab and Aunt Irma arrived with the full moon. Also, because I had reduced my daily caffeine intake to one mug of tea before the course began, I suffered only mild detox headaches and occasional twinges of nausea, instead of the migraine hell to which I am prone.

I found the week both fascinating and challenging. I was blessed with wonderful compadres: Fran, Gill, Roland, Simonetta and Sonia. Individually and as a group we enjoyed a fantastic rapport, along with much kindness and support. One of our number – believe it or not – was a lovely Hopsack customer who has repaired to the wilds of West Cork! 🙂 Hi Gill!

Elaine herself is an extraordinary lady. Braving a time when women who worked at all were viewed askance, she pursued her radical dream of becoming a naturopath. She possessed great depth and breadth of knowledge and had much to teach us. She held riveting classes on principles and practical aspects of natural healing, such as working with our body clocks; the science of water;Â Bach flower remedies;Â Phytobiophysics;Â Emotional Freedom Techniques; setting our personal health agendas; managing detox symptoms; colon cleansing; the power of chlorophyll; wheatgrass implants; acid-alkaline balance; and much more. She also provided plenty of extra reading material, so we could pursue areas of interest in our own time.

My major challenges included the enemas (to which I had to call a halt for medical reasons) and … the food.

I have always been a foodie. Having grown up in a multicultural family and been exposed to different cuisines at a young age, I found the plainness of our diet hard going.

On day one, I valiantly helped myself to a huge portion of sunflower greens and buckwheat lettuce, topped with sunflower seed sauce. One of my partners in crime later admitted to feeling very sorry for me as I chomped my way through my meal, desperate not to give up but eating twice as slowly as everyone else. (At that point, a seven-day fast seemed appealing!) My mouth felt dry and my taste buds had died. I made it, but only just!

By the end of the week I was no closer to liking sunflower greens and pea shoots but I did enjoy buckwheat lettuce and some of the vegetable dishes Elaine prepared for us. As time passed the food became more flavoursome. I suspect our first day was pure Ann Wigmore but Elaine took pity on our palates and progressively added more zing: dulse lightly sprinkled with water morphed into a salty condiment and blended ripe tomatoes turned into a sweet pink dressing. We were also treated to the yummiest watermelon I have ever tasted and a soaked current sauce atop our quinoa that was tongue-twistingly good.

In my imagination, I began to combine flavours from different meals. I could see great potential taste-wise but found the basic green foods hard to love. My reaction to wheatgrass juice was notable. I loved the taste initially but while it was working its magic on my body it made me gag. Once the detox had passed, however, I started to like it again. Halfway through the week, I told Elaine that my body had developed an aversion to wheatgrass. She explained that my mind was rejecting it but my body was loving it, a theme I was to return to in reverse.

On our last night – once the course was over, naturally! – Roland, Simonetta and I went out to dinner at a Thai restaurant. We were careful to choose simple stir-fried vegetables with plain rice. Oh, how we enjoyed that meal! It was hard not to horse it down, though we tried to eat it slowly and savour every bite. Later, we went for a walk around Ludlow. We all agreed that we didn’t feel quite as well as we had done earlier in the day. Our pleasure centres and taste buds had basked in our luscious meal but our stomachs felt heavy. The next morning I woke up feeling dull and tired for the first time in seven days.

I often experience a mind-body split around food and this really brought it home to me. I am what raw food coach Karen Knowler calls a ‘sensual eater’. I struggle to find a balance between food I dislike that makes me feel great and food I adore that makes me feel bad. My challenge is to take what I learned at Elaine’s and apply it in a way that suits my body, mind and spirit.

A never-ending story…

I ate very well during my first week at home. Sceptical friends were shocked at how much better I looked. But slowly … slowly I slipped back into my old habits and have since lost the gains I made during that precious week. Looking back, my major error was not balancing my meals properly, which led to serious hunger pangs. It is important to get enough protein on a plant-based diet. Sprouted sunflower greens are a good source, as are sprouted nuts, seeds and beans and lightly cooked quinoa and millet. I did not pay enough attention to this balance, tripped over a cooked veggie burger, and that was it.

However, I feel Elaine gave us a structure to which I can return anytime – not necessarily as a 100% live food eater but as someone who incorporates a decent amount of living food into her diet, which is exactly what Elaine advocates for people starting out. I find it all too easy to beat myself up but I need to exercise self-love and patience and use the emotional and physical support systems she taught us.

Elaine’s programme is an excellent detox plan and a firm foundation from which to design a slow, steady transition to a top-notch lifestyle. I would unreservedly recommend her living foods course to anyone wanting to upgrade their health* (see Roland and Simonetta’s testimonial here!). I chose it because I knew Elaine’s reputation as a naturopath and I was not disappointed. It was amazing to experience the force of living foods … all the more so in the marvellous company of Sonia, Simonetta, Roland, Gill, Fran and Elaine. I am so glad I attended; I view the course as one of the most positive and beneficial weeks I have ever spent.

* N.B. It is important to consult with your doctor before making dietary changes, especially if you are unwell and/or on medication.

Website

For more information, please see Elaine’s website:Â www.livingfoods.co.uk. Once you apply for a course, Elaine will send you all the details you need.

Book

Elaine Bruce, Living Foods for Radiant Health: The Authentic Guide to Using Fresh and Raw Foods, London, 2003

How to get there

Getting to Ludlow is easy if you live in Dublin. Just hop on a boat to Holyhead. The Cardiff train will beam you straight to Ludlow. Elaine lives five minutes’ walk from the station. The B&Bs she recommends are on her road.

The weather…!

The weather is a speed-edited version of Irish weather. Four seasons in one hour and all that… A raincoat is a must!