Yam Internet: A Guide to the Best of the Digital World

Seven months ago, I resolved to lose weight and become a healthier person. Fast forward to this month and I have gradually lost more than 10 pounds but have a ways to go. My goal is to lose at least 50 more pounds. I dare not say what I weigh - just know that it is too much! In my pursuit for better eating habits, I stumbled upon a dietary revolution that is exploding online with an entire subculture of raw food vegans.

What exactly is a vegan, much less a raw food vegan? It is someone who not only does not eat meat (i.e. no fish, chicken, beef, lamb, pork, etc.) but also does not eat any meat by-products (such as milk or milk products like cheese, sour cream, yogurt, etc.). Most vegans don’t even eat honey (which is manufactured by bees through a regurgitation process) but some raw food vegans do. Raw food vegans do not cook their fruits, sprouts, vegetables (green leafy ones and root ones), seeds, and nuts either (only some dehydration is done at times) whereas vegans will cook their food. That’s a brief explanation in a nutshell.

The little bit of weight I have loss is due to incorporating more raw veganism into my daily lifestyle. The elimination of dairy was easiest as I am already lactose intollerant and had already abandoned most dairy products anyway. Baked breads and pasta was a little more difficult but I was never much of a bread eater in my life anyway. However, I ate pasta ritually, teetering between baked macaroni and cheese (an African American favorite) and Italian fares such as baked ziti, spaghetti with red sauce and linguini with clam sauce. Yum! Stuffing (instead of potatos) was also ingrained into my brain (Damn! Stove Top Stuffing!!). Ugh!! Just writing about this stuff is killing me as I just started Stanley Burrough’s Master Cleanse (Also known as the Lemonade Diet) and so for the next 8 days I will only drink herbal teas, a maple syrup and cayenne pepper lemonade and water!! I picked the wrong time to start this thread but hopefully it will encourage me to continue with my weight-loss goals. In any case, the reviews and news below is a little bit about the raw food vegan revolution!!

Guide for ratings:
7 : Excellent
6 : Very Good
5 : Good
4 : Average
3 : Fair/Needs Improvement
2 : Pretty Bad
1 : Horrible

AF: Appearance & Functionality
U: Usefulness of Content

Fruitarian Fitness
Fruits Only!! Raw Veganist: Richard Blackman website
URL: http://www.fruitarianfitness.com
AF:
U:

Okay, I am African American. Therefore, I am already predicting the feedback from my own community (i.e. “Raw food vegans!! That’s white people’s stuff!!). So, I’m starting with one of the more extreme raw vegans online. Richard Blackman is, well, a black man who only eats raw, whole fruits (no water, no vegetables and no nuts!!! No less!!). He is a personal trainer out of Dallas, Texas and runs his “Shud Up N Train” Bootcamp. This site has clear language that explains Richard’s lifestyle and how he believes such a diet (and an exercise program) could help anywone. It also has pictures showing his physique. He has a blog that features articles by other raw foodists and a myspace page that includes Big Daddy Kane’s “Raw” as his theme music. His site has no “bells or whistles” but it is clear cut and informational.

Raw Vegan Radio
Podcaster Steve Prussak
URL: http://www.rawveganradio.com
AF:
U:

What it lacks in design flare it more than makes up for in content. Raw Vegan Radio was the first website/podcast that I stumbled upon after a Google search for “Vegan recipes no dairy” introduced me to the raw foodist world. The host, Steve Prussak, is soft-spoken and non-preachy. He re-introduced me to familiar people through one-on-one interviews with Jay Kordich (episode 33) of “The Juiceman Juicer” fame and John Robbins (episode 23) of the Baskin-Robbins ice cream fame. Both men speak about how raw food diets saved their health. However, even better are the unkowns to the mainstream diet world such as the likes of Angela Stokes, who lost more than 100 pounds after becoming a raw veganist; Sergei Boutenko, part of a famous raw food family whose mom, Victoria, recently published a popular book called “Green for Life” (and yes, I did purchase, read it and love it!), Dr. Hal Huggins, a dentist whose interview will scare the heebee geebees out of you; and Ani Phyo (yes, Asians are raw foodists too), a raw foodist gourmet chef and entrepreneur. The drawback to the website is that it is often difficult to find the “link to listen” due to the homemade design of the site. Helpful Hint: Click the graphic with the microphone that says “To listen to this show now, click here.” Overall, I’d have to say thanks to Raw Vegan Radio for interesting and diverse interviews with various raw foodists.

Natural Paradigms
Raw Food Network
URL: http://www.naturalparadigms.com/
AF:
U:

After watching a YouTube video featuring Storm (posted by wife JinJee) Talifero (another raw food family who featured their lives in a DVD documentary called Breakthrough), I became aware of Natural Paradigms. This site is a nice mix of people from various ethnic backgrounds showcasing documentaries, reality shows, and recipe clips and the raw food lifestyle. One famous raw foodist is the dancer/actor Ben Vereen. After visiting this site, I purchased the Taliferos’ “Breakthrough” DVD and found it to be very informative. You can join this network online for a fee to see entire episodes of shows such as the reality show of “Raw Vegans on A Boat.” This site has lots of compelling digital video information on the raw vegan lifestyle; promotionals of which can be found on Youtube.

BONUS – Unreviewed News:

Youtube Video Leslie Bega:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V-OHIuaf0cA
The Latina actress from HBO’s “The Sopranos” fame is also a raw veganist gourmet chef.The gLiving network, which empasses raw food chefs as well as green living programming, features Leslie Bega as one of its gourmet chefs. You can find her on the gliving site or on Youtube. (And, yes… Latinos are raw vegans too).

Youtube video: Clip from “Breakthrough DVD”
Comparison of nutrients from raw foods compared to cooked counterpart

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WbSB9rGp3HU

After this clip, I no longer complain when my son only wants to eat fruit!! It is Storm Talifero who is doing the talking.

Youtube Video: Advice on Transitioning to a Raw Food Diet
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zkGxESvTBMs

Preview of Next Blog Entry: Music:

How a Caribbean music form is using the web to promote its music worldwide. What is this music? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=20a76cVXZxU

Popularity: 39% [?]

This entry was posted on Monday, August 20th, 2007 at 3:43 pm and is filed under Health & Fitness. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.