I have been a bit quiet recently. But just on the blogging and newsletter front. You see there are huge, huge changes going on in my life right now, so there have been other priorities in my head. I would really like to share these exciting experiences just because I am learning so so much from them and my developments are just a living proof that with the right knowledge and support we can emerge from something potentially crushing simply shining, empowered and hugely excited about life.

Before I start, I would like give myself a little high-five for being so publicly open about my personal life in this post. A few years ago, I was too shy to even register on a forum let alone leave a comment, or write a blog post or anything like that. I’ve not always been this brave, but boy, is life fun when you start pushing yourself outside of your comfort zone!

Basically my whole life has gone upside down, inside out, side-step, tango, waltz, fox-trot and jitterbug.

Since April I have done the following:

- amicably ended a very lovely 8.5 year relationship

- changed my ‘day job’ (I quit an unfulfilling job in finance and now work part-time in Business Development for an inspiring company that works with personal development and leadership training and I will soon go on to facilitate workshops and coach individuals)

- finished renovating my house in order to put it on the market

- thought long, long, long and hard about where I want to live in this world (I’ll keep you posted on my decision!)

- re-homed my beautiful dog (heart-break city!) as I wont be able to give her the attention and time she needs to thrive after my house is sold

- started doing fun but brave things such as Dj:ing

- expanded my social life in Sweden and UK by about a million % (which takes quite a bit of coordinating actually!)

And at the same time making exciting progress with my company:

- qualified as a Vegetarian and Vegan Nutrition Consultant

- launched my coaching services and seen some amazing results with a fabulous client!

- joined up with 2 lovely girls to plan a fab High Energy workshop in London in November 2011 (read all about it here)

When writing this it just feels like a list of things, but it when you are actually in it and living it, it really is incredibly intense and challenging. And I am sure that if you have ever done any of these things you will appreciate just how much they can impact your life…let alone when all happening at the same time in the space of a few months!

The most amazing thing I have experienced is that by applying all the things I learned over the years, I have not only managed to survive this incredibly turbulent time, but I feel that I am leaping from it full of love and life and zest for new exciting things.

Here is what has been the key to keeping me sane, happy and healthy:

1. Raw Food
I have been really motivated to keep as high-raw as possible simply because I immediately notice the positive effects. Cooked food does not give me the clear mind and the super high energy that I have needed for this period. Having a clear mind means that I am able to analyse my feelings much better and make sensible decisions. It has also prevented me from comfort eating and numbing any pain with things like refined sugar or heavy comfort food like toast! Working through these feelings is far more progressive and healing I find!

2. Avoiding stimulants
Staying clear of coffee, refined sugar and alcohol has also reduced the risk of feeling any extra anxiety and keeps my blood sugar stable. If I feel I need pepping up then I will either go for a run, or have a little nibble on some raw chocolate instead, which does not shock my body like coffee does. If I need the relaxing effects that alcohol can give, I do some yoga or exercise and make sure I take a few deep deep breaths. I have also been very kind to myself and when I do really feel I need time out, I will take it. Sometimes that means saying no to some people and commitments, but in the long run this ’selfish act’ is a great investment and actually makes me a nicer person to be around!

3. Exercise
This has really been a saviour. Exercise relieves stress tremendously and there is nothing like a good work out to release mood-elevating endorphins. I am also finding it really fun to set myself physical goals and challenges which offers a great respite from the emotional ones I have been experiencing!

I have also found that I have stayed away from comfort eating rubbish food or binging on booze (like I have done in previous years when facing a challenging time) because moderate exercise makes me feel a lot better. And since I know how good working-out makes me feel, it means that I don’t want to feel hungover or sluggish from comfort eating and therefore refrain from eating and drinking naughtiness.

4. Positive supportive and inspiring people
I am so in love with the people that I have in my life these days! I find I tend to stay away from people who deal with their unhappiness by trying to bring others down with negative remarks and energy. At a time when you need to be really brave, you need people who support you. Even if you don’t personally know people like this, reading inspiring books and blogs, or connecting with others on the internet or by attending inspiring events is a true gift!

5. Coaching
I draw on the wisdom I get from my coach and from my own knowledge of coaching. This is such a powerful tool for personal growth and bursting through challenging times. Becoming aware of why we think and act in certain ways is hugely empowering, and mastering the skills of breaking things down into small achievable steps is so useful . Oh, I could go on and on about this, but I wont. But it really has made the difference between crumbling into a heap of despair and rising out the ashes like a glorious, sassy phoenix!

So, dear friend, that is what my life has been the past few months. There are lots of exciting and challenging times ahead, but I am learning so much and am actually feeling pretty bloomin’ spectacular.

I really hope this post inspires you to see any challenging period you experience as an opportunity to grow and do brave things. It really is quite amazing!

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Feel free to share this article with others. Please just remember to include the following credit: © 2011 Johanna Best www.miss-best.com

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For those of you who haven’t yet had the pleasure of experiencing the benefits of eating a high raw diet (gah, I dislike that word ‘diet’ – it has too many restrictive connotations. Let’s call it a high-raw life instead) it may be hard to accept the claims that eating mainly or only raw food gives you more energy and a new zest for life, makes you feel ‘lighter’, rids you of aches, pains and illness and helps you loose weight.

Any skepticism is completely understandable. After all, we are bombarded every day with pills, potions and diets (those boring restrictive ones) that promise you this and that, all for the ’special price’ of a month’s salary, or make you count calories, overdose on protein, guzzle expensive and unnatural drinks, or stop eating fruit.

But one thing to bear in mind is that most people don’t promote raw food as a way to cash in and so are coming from a genuine place. Of course there are people that make their living from it, but this is often due to the fact that they have revolutionized their lives by eating that way, and want to share it with others. Yes, they charge money for their books and courses but there is also a lot of free information out there that you can get by on. Besides, if people hadn’t written books on raw food, and if I hadn’t gladly paid a relatively small investment to buy them then I wouldn’t have discovered the benefits of eating and living this way. After all, if you go to the doctor with an illness or fatigue, very few of them are even going to ask what you eat, let alone recommend eating natural and uncooked food!

So while reading about so many people waxing lyrical about raw food may sound intriguing and fill you with new hope to live a life you deserve, rather than one of lethargy and pain, it is almost hard to imagine just how good you can feel from something as seemingly simple as not cooking the life out of your food, and by cutting out certain things from your life.

A friend of mine, for example, used to be able to get away with filling his tummy with fries or potato wedges and veggie burgers at night without complaining about it the next morning. I on the other hand, would have some potatoes with my evening raw meal and wake up feeling far less energetic than I usually do. Does that then mean that I am ultra sensitive and a naturally tired person, or does that mean that I actually know what it feels like not to feel tired and weighed down by such food? I believe it is the latter, though I do also acknowledge that it seems that the cleaner food you put in your body the less crap food and drink you are able to tolerate without feeling rubbish.

This friend of mine has been eating more and more raw food throughout the past few years, and now starts the day with a fantastic green smoothie and eats a large salad with his cooked veggie food. But recently those plates of potatoes and stodge have not been letting themselves be forgotten the morning after. Now my friend is waking up with the potato hangover that I get. And despite me telling him how great it feels to eat mostly, or only, raw foods, it is only when he experiences it that he understands what I mean.

I know that the times when I have slipped back to eating say 50% raw, with the dreaded bread making an appearance several times a week, I am aware that I would feel better getting back up to high raw again. I have felt how it feels before, but it is only when I am there and high raw again that I can remember just how darn good it is and that it is certainly worth the effort of curbing cravings for cooked or stodgy food.

So I can wholeheartedly recommend you trying it. Even small steps by introducing more and more raw food in to your life may help you feel better. To help you, I am writing two recipe books full of delicious and life-giving recipes. The first book is bursting full of amazing high-raw desserts that will make you look at those cooked desserts full of flour, cholesterol, refined sugar and unhealthy fats with new eyes. And an added bonus is that I have been making these yummylicious desserts and eating them every day for several months now and have maintained my weight and well being! I know that wouldn’t have happened if I had been feasting on the cooked versions daily for so long! Life is really sweet when you try new things!

Keep an eye out for news of my first book launch, or mail me if you would like me to notify you when it is ready: hello(at)miss-best.com

In the meantime here is a recipe for a lovely raw soup. I find that I feel so great in the mornings if I eat a larger meal at lunch and then have something like a raw soup and fruit for my evening meal. Raw soup is simple and quick to make and has not a single potato in sight!

Raw spinach and avocado soup
Serves 1 hungry bunny
(double, triple etc the quantities if you have other hungry bunnies to feed)

Large handful spinach (preferably organic)
1 avocado
a small piece of leek (about 4 or 5 cm in length)
1 carrot, scrubbed or peeled and chopped into pieces
1 small apple, core removed
1 stick celery, chopped to blender friendly pieces
1 chunk of cucumber
Salt and pepper and spices to taste: pinch of turmeric, ½ teaspoon curry powder, a little chilli, and – if you fancy – a pinch of kelp
A splash of fresh lemon juice
Warm water (just finger warm – you don’t want it too hot or you’ll ruin those happy helpful enzymes) – just enough H2O to help the blender do it’s thing!

Instructions:
Cut the avocado in half, remove the stone and scoop out the flesh. Put this and everything else in a blender and whizz them, baby! Enjoy xx

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Today I took a beautiful and inspiring walk in the sunshine. We have only lived on this wonderful peninsula for a few weeks, and so haven’t walked my usual route very many times, so today when I walked it going in the opposite direction I found myself a little unsure of which way to walk. There was no real danger of getting horribly lost, but the path isn’t always clear and I could have found myself in someone’s garden. It’s no big deal but it did inspire some thoughts.

I speak Swedish about 50% of the time, and so usually think in English, but on this occasion the Swedish expression “Jag känner inte igen mig” popped into my head. This literally means “I don’t recognise myself” but really means ”I don’t know where I am”.

It seemed such an apt thing to think about on that walk. The thought that when we change direction – even for a short while – we gain a new perspective on life and on ourselves. Like when we go on holiday and one can view ourselves from outside of the usual auto-pilot routine. Suddenly we can see with different eyes and think “Woah- what am I doing? This isn’t me” or “Wow, look at what I am doing, my life is better than I thought. I am impressed that I live a life that differs positively from my past!”.

Changing the direction of my path that day meant that the ups became downs and the down became ups. New beauty spots where found, and the walk became more challenging and interesting. And I fell in love again with my surroundings.

My life has changed pretty radically in the past few weeks – going from living in a cramped rental apartment with an annoying and fussy landlord and thin walls, all nestled under a flight path, to a large house with a garden and just the woodpeckers to break the silence. Also going from the Swedish winter to the spring means that I can shed a layer of clothes, feel the sun on my face, and work in our new garden. Suddenly I feel that I don’t recognise myself or know where I am. But it’s new and exciting and the path I have been longing for. Even though it can feel like a new pair of shoes that need to be worn in and made to feel like me.

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