Fruitarians in Mexico
The quality, availability, and price of fruit here is a definite step up from Austin, TX. But it's nowhere near what we would like and ultimately need to thrive. We are finding the same issue here, the fruit looks good but is not sweet. We are able to get decent papayas, mangos, and bananas fairly consistently along with pretty sweet citrus. This is what a day might look like:
11 am: we split a pitcher of fresh-squeezed citrus juice (orange, mandarins, grapefruit)
2pm: naner smoothie w/papaya or mango
6pm: more citrus juice followed by a large salad w/homemade citrus tahini dressing
Jack makes the mercado rounds nearly everyday and digs for the best he can find. We have learned that most of the fruit is brought in from other parts of Mexico and the local, rich fertile soil is used to grow coffee. Some bananas are grown here. Our goal is to raise awareness of the importance of locally grown food (especially fruit) and begin a permaculture. Jack has a green thumb, lots of experience, and looks forward to growing our own food. I have already picked out the seeds we're going to get.
We are definitely unique in our raw, fruitarian diet. Everyone eats a cooked food diet, and they don't know any different. It's wonderful how accepting the people are as they don't seem to find it a bit strange that we exist on a diet of primarily fruit. Not once since we entered Mexico have we heard the dreaded question "Where do you get your protein?" NICE!!
Physical Fitness Routine
I am sooo loving my stationary recumbent bike. It is kickin & workin my booty! The first time, all I could crank out was a 10 min ride. Within a week, I had worked my way up to a 40 min trek which left my lower gluts sore the next day:) I have since settled into a routine of 20 or 30 min rides per day using the various workout programs. All this to phat electronic house beats! Feels exhilarating!!
I continue to bounce on my trusty rebounder for 15-20 min at a time. Keeps the lymph system pumping and works the knots out of my back. I can do the whole session on my own now. Jack used to have to come and bounce me. Now, if my legs get tired, I do other movements like marching before resuming a steady bounce again.
At times, I follow the bike ride with upper body weight work. Bicep curls, triceps, shoulder presses, etc. I started with 2 lbs the first week, and am now up to 3 lbs. Building muscle and strength is empowering. BFBM! Burn Fat, Build Muscle!
One of the last things my physical therapist, Paul, mentioned as a key to getting fit is stretching. I have been incorporating yoga whenever I can in both seated & floor postures. We will soon begin looking for a local yoga instructor to give me private lessons en mi casa. I have been fortunate to find an excellent massage therapist, Andre, who came over to give me a therapeutic massage with lots of stretching. It was awesome, and I truly felt like walking when he was done.
Social Life
In many regards, we are still pretty isolated. Patience, we know that it takes time to meet people and create friendships. Our sweetest interactions have been with the ones we've hired to help us. There's Hector, the handyman, who worked with Jack to transform our house into a home. He's macho, funny, sensitive, and sweet- great fun to have around! Then, there's Olga who works at Posada San Jeronimo (our home in Coatepec for the first two weeks) and moonlights here in the afternoons 3x a week. She helped us with our move in and has been a delightful presence leaving our fruit cut and home sparkly clean.
Hector introduced us to his 26 yr old daughter, Miriam, who needed some healing energy for a persistent sore throat. She hung out with us for a day eating fruit and salad, treating with ozone, and enjoying my music. We had a good time, and I was able to practice my Spanish quite a bit.
Acquisition of Stuff
We brought everything we could in a van load. I knew the difficulty of getting specific goods before coming here, but it's still been a challenge. Gone are the days of needing an item, ordering from Amazon, and having it delivered within days. Jack has made a few trips to Xalapa to get us some necessities, but the prices are high with limited selection. We American consumers have been spoiled. There may be a trip back to the States soon to get stuff ;)
Considering we have been in Coatepec for 40 days now, we are doing remarkably well. We secured a nice house, sufficiently furnished it, hooked into good produce sources, and found reliable help. Time in grade is what we need in this town to begin progress. I can't forget that underneath it all is the REAL reason we came here: To set up a space where I can strengthen my body and HEAL. I know I have a greater purpose to serve, and I want to recover and get on with it.
