July Challenge!

This month was originally going to be titled "Retry July" and I would attempt to complete the challenges I have failed up to this point. I scheduled that for this month for two reasons.

1. Pride - I want to pass every challenge, they are all passable, anything can be done.
2. I had nothing else to fill this month.

However, I will not be retrying all my previous failed challenges. Why?

1. The purpose of these challenges are to have new experiences, growing as a person, or to learn something new about a subject, myself or life.
2. I'd much rather challenge myself in a new way, and learn something/experience life.

A few weeks before July I was presented with a challenge that I could not resist. The challenger and his family would be doing this challenge anyway, but I jumped at the chance to join them in this experiment. What's even more exciting is they have even agreed to Co-Blog their experiences on Living Challenged!

The idea to do this challenge, and one of the co-bloggers came from my friend Mark. You may know him from such endeavors as the writer of The Archifilter, the composer of great Ukelele tracks, (such as the wonderful song adapted from an LC original, The Weapon, but more than likely you just know him from this. He and his family will be participating in this challenge and sharing thoughts, ideas and research.

So at this point you are dying to know the challenge.

This month's challenge is:

Don't eat things your body fights to digest, Don't eat things your body processes like poisons:

• Grains - wheat, corn, oatmeal, bread, granola, pasta, etc., as well as rice and white potatoes.
• "Vegetable" Oils - Canola, Safflower, Soy, Corn, etc.
• Legumes - Beans, Peanuts, Lentils.
• Sweeteners - Sugar, High Fructose Corn Syrup, Aspartame, Splenda, Stevia, etc.

Eat these until you feel full (not until you explode):

• Lean proteins (ideally) grass fed meat, free range fowl and wild caught fish (4-8 oz per meal)
• Seasonal vegetables and some fruits on occasion
• Healthy fats such as nuts, seeds, avocado, olive oil, and coconut oil
• Full fat dairy - in moderation, fermented is best, raw if possible.

Wait, you mean this isn't good for me?!

You might be thinking, "oh so you are going on a low-carb diet for a month,  what a great challenge (eye roll)" -  It's not a diet. And it won't be easy, you pecksniffian, you.  Whether you would find that easy or difficult, petty or fun, the idea is to learn about the types of foods our bodies are meant to eat, how we react when we give our bodies the proper foods they were made for, energy/fuel. 

We will cover why we are doing this, the science behind what different foods do to your body, and how a single bachelor working in the city and a family of four deal with an alternative eating style in Los Angeles in 2011. So put down your lonely pie and pick up a cucumber, its time to eat the way we were intended! Or will we fall to the pressures of our peers, advertisers, ready-made meals, fast food or the convenience of High Fructose Corn Syrup, Breads, and the like. 

As always, if you want to live challenged, I recommend playing along. If you have any questions, the comment box is open.