Benefits of a healthy lifestyle

I would love to sit here and write: your face will clear up, your digestion will be superb and you will get over all your problems once you start.  However, I would not be realistic.
I suggested in my previous post baby steps because not everyone can jump cold turkey into a healthier lifestyle . Let's be real!!! After years of eating doughnuts, hot dogs, steaks, bread etc.... you are not gonna stop over night. You may succeed for a week or so but after that you will start dreaming about junk , literally dreaming about it LOL
When I cut down all junk from the house cold turkey, my son started taking money and buying school lunch without telling me .... Therefore, my husband and I took a step back and let him have junk "once in a while" until we faded it again and now there is no more "once in a while."
Let's get back to the topic ;)
Some people may start benefiting right away, for some it may take weeks, months or years... The key is to be patient which is super hard but I always choose a good quality of life. I know we have one life and we are gonna die anyway but why drag ourselves fatigued and depressed!!! Let's live this one life energetic and light !

Here are the benefits that I experienced and continue to do so :

1. Better digestion...I suffered from constipation ALL my life and I used to stay without a bowel movement for a week ( which is super unhealthy).  At the beginning of this, my digestion started to get better, then it plateaued then better again... I still have room for improvement. 
2. Clearing up of the skin: Again it is not clear all the way and I am not there yet and will NOT give up... at the beginning I broke out SO bad then better then on and off LOL Now I only get few pimples before my period. I also have to tell you that I don't exercise like I should and I don't sweat enough.... I read that our skin is our largest organ.
   "your skin is your body's largest and fastest-growing organ. Skin is your body's coat. It protects you. It helps you stay warm when it's cold, and cool when it's hot. Your skin keeps all your insides in, from your heart and lungs to your blood and muscles. And unless it's cut or damaged, it keeps stuff out, including germs and water. You also feel things through the nerves in your skin." http://www.aad.org/dermatology-a-to-z/for-kids/about-skin Therefore, exercising and sweating is essential so the skin gets rid of all the toxins in our body. I do exercise way more than before though ! I also use the sauna at least once a week ... I am working my way up and again I am all about taking baby steps until you reach your ultimate goal.
3. Less headaches:  I used to get migraine and sinus headaches if not everyday , every other day. It was horrible :( My migraines were so bad that I had to leave work and just go home and sleep. One time I was at the mall and I couldn't see anymore, the lights appeared to be so bright and I had blurred vision , it was so scary!  Since I started a healthier lifestyle , I stopped getting headaches and I don't take medicine. I used to take Tylenol and/or Advil every day ( I am not kidding) , now I don't and I feel way better.  Even if I get a headache now which is very rare, I drink lemon water and eat fresh peppermint or just put it in the water. I totally feel free that I don't have to take medication. 
4. No more heartburn... I used to get heart burns all the time especially if I ate something canned like canned tomatoes or tomato paste. I used to take tums, prevacid or zantac. Now I don't get heart burns at all because I am always eating fresh food.  My husband still does get heart burns because he does eat fast food during the day , he does not take medicine though. He takes baking soda in water which relieves the heartburn or indigestion in no time. 
5. Clearer mind. I think this is the most important one. A healthier and clean lifestyle makes you want to clean your whole life not just the food you eat and the products you put on your body. It forces you to love yourself. I think you also start seeing people for who they are and you are not blinded by fog. Like I mentioned before, I started praying and meditating more, reading inspirational books and quotes all the time. I am learning to slow down and enjoy my kids. This clean lifestyle made me see myself from outside like a third party.   I used to be in a rush all the time, now I prepare myself and force myself to slow down and enjoy the NOW. I am reading The Power of Now by E. Tolle.  For example, I am a clean freak ( just like my mother, she is way worse than me though )! So now if I leave the kids with my husband because I am going out with the girls, in my mind I prepare myself " don't freak out if the house is a mess, you went out and enjoyed the company of your friends and now a little clean up is not gonna hurt) The kids and hubby are helping way more. 
6. Develop love of other beings.... Like I said , I started this for my health and my kids' health and little by little I just started developing love for the animals...It is not like I hate animals but I didn't pay attention to them because I was selfish.  Now the kids don't kill the spiders or the ants in the home, they just take them outside to nature to be where they belong etc.... I did not watch the movies about how animals suffer actually how much human inflict pain on animals to use them for fur, leather , or food!! I don't have to... I know humans are selfish, evil and would do anything to satisfy their needs...

I may not have touched all the benefits....and again I am not a professional. I am a regular person who is talking about her journey and experiences. I hope you are enjoying them...
We need food and water to survive but we need a clear mind and love of self to survive peacefully....  I am discovering myself and my strength while I am on this journey. Some days are harder than others and  I do get upset and frustrated (sometimes too much) but I am learning and accepting.

I wrote this post on 05/26/2014. Now it is 08/11/2015 and my skin is clear !! I don't have acne HOORAY
I keep improving and I developed a love for cooking...If I can do it, ANYONE can I promise

Easy Steps to transition to a healthier lifesyle

In the summer of 2011 I started transitioning to a healthier lifestyle and here are some steps that helped me. Give them a try, you have nothing to lose but a lot to gain.

Step 1: Educate yourself, you spouse and your kids. 

Before I jumped into anything, I started researching, reading books, watching YouTube videos, and following people on Instagram and Facebook. I shared everything I learned with my husband, kids and immediate family. 

Step 2: Remove and Replace:

Then I started removing processed foods, canned foods, foods high in sugar from the home and replacing with fresh fruits, vegetables and grains.  I replaced table salt and cane sugar with sea salt, Himalayan salt and real non gmo sugar. I added spices like oregano, ginger, cumin, etc... to my spices cabinets.  I started reading the labels if I couldn't read the ingredients I didn't buy it. We started buying food with less ingredients such as the bread and pasta. I added organic coconut oil, unfiltered olive oil and grape seed oil and took away the canola oil.  We added more raw food and decreased our cooked foods.  I started with breakfast then added lunch. At this moment, I am raw till 4...where I would eat raw breakfast and lunch and high carb cooked vegan food for dinner.  I decreased animal products and little by little took it away completely. The kids and my husband do eat organic antibiotics free chicken and ground beef. They rarely eat sea food. However, due to me being vegan and cooking at night, most of their dinners is vegan.
I replaced processed ham and turkey with nitrate free and organic ham and turkey for the kids and husband.  I only buy non gmo cheese and we have our own chickens now so the kids and husband eat our fresh eggs. 
The rule of the things we buy : can't read the ingredients, we don't buy. We also buy as much organic as we can.  I think about 90% we buy organic and non gmo project verified i.e., chips, popcorn, snacks for the kids, dried fruits, pasta, bread, chocolate, tea, candy, etc....
I also replaced all shampoos, body wash, deodorant, lip balms, toothpaste with all naturally handmade, fair trade, cruelty free, non gmo bath products. 
I removed our Teflon pots and pans and replaced with cast iron pots and pans.
We didn't eat out as much or we made to go to a place with more organic and vegan selections.
We started supporting small businesses on Etsy and farmers markets. 

Step 3: Lead by example and don't give up.

After few weeks of this, I started feeling way better and then I plateaued.  My face broke out more, I got irritated more and then I realized I wasn't eating enough calories.  My face and digestion are slowly healing. I stopped putting expectations when I am gonna feel like the other raw vegan people out there. I haven't given up and I continued educating my kids and leading by example. When they see me drink a smoothie or eat a salad they want one too.  My little 2 year old daughter way less than my 8 year old son.
I abused my body for years over 25 years, It is not going to heal in 2 days or 2 months, or 2 years .... it is gonna heal whenever it is going to heal but I will not give up.

Step 4: CLEAN

I started cleaning up my life...people who don't belong in my life had to go! Those were the people who are negative, envious and jealous.  I started cleaning out my soul , reading more inspirational quotes, praying, going to church more, praying with the kids etc....


I can write and talk forever.... I also started exercising more and going to the gym more.
Leading a healthy lifestyle is not just eating right, it is thinking right, letting go of the past, staying positive and accepting yourself for who you are.  We can't change others but if we change ourselves, others will follow.