A mother-of-eight dubbed ‘supermodel mum’ thanks to her enviable physique has revealed the diet secret that saved her from slimming pill addiction.
When homemaker, Jocelyn Morris, 40, gave birth to her first child, Justice, now 20, she weighed 75kg and after being overweight for most of her life she was desperate to lose weight and started to take diet pills.
Instantly Jocelyn was hooked on the quick results as she soon got down to 52kg in a matter of months.
However, taking the tablets left Jocelyn with constant headaches and feeling jittery.
It wasn’t until she saw her doctor in 2006, that Jocelyn, from Utah, USA, decided to ditch the pills as her periods had stopped and the doctor told her that her blood work indicated that her body was starving.
Wanting a big family, Jocelyn started to following a more balanced diet, but it wasn’t until she embarked on a raw vegan diet two and a half years ago that she transformed her life.
Jocelyn gave birth to her eighth child just three-weeks ago and is already feeling more energised, happier and healthier than after her previous pregnancies thanks to her diet – with mums at preschool calling her ‘supermodel mum’ because of how quickly she bounces back post-pregnancy.
‘Before adopting raw vegan, I was trying standard vegan for about a year. I lost weight on it but felt dead. I didn’t feel energetic and vibrant. I was tired all the time. I had tried the raw vegan diet three other times in the past but never stayed with it for very long,’ Jocelyn says.
‘So, I decided to try it again, but did more research and tried to balance my macros differently so I could feel more balanced and energetic.
‘I have way more energy on a raw food diet. The children love when mum does her raw food because they know I’m happier and have more energy when I do. Plus, they love to eat my goodies, they know I won’t be in pain and I will be happy because for some reason it just makes me happy.
‘I would be very depressed, I felt very ugly and almost hopeless for getting my body back before. I feel more at peace now. Eating a raw vegan diet really improves your mood.
‘So, I feel at peace, energised, and just happy. I know my body will bounce back because I’m nourishing it the best I can. I’m not eating processed junk food, I’m eating whole plant food. My body bounces back much faster now even though I’m on my eighth child.’
Raw veganism is a diet that combines the concepts of veganism and raw foodism, it includes whole, ripe, raw fruits and vegetables with a moderate amount of raw seeds and nuts. Its benefits include; increased energy, improved digestion, sleep and mood, clearer skin, reduced body aches and pain and weight loss.
Jocelyn follows a high raw vegan diet which isn’t one-hundred per cent raw as she enjoys the occasional portion of peanut butter and incorporates vegan protein powder into her meals, which aren’t classified as raw.
She enjoys a breakfast and lunch of a smoothie with coconut water or almond milk, with some form of plant fat from chia, hemp or flax seeds, vegan protein powder and various fruits and greens, if she doesn’t fancy that she’ll have a bowl of soaked seeds topped with berries or cacao nibs and nuts.
For a snack she munches on raw vegetables, fruit or nuts and for dinner she enjoys raw vegetables in a salad, wrap, raw soup or as veggie noodles with avocado, tahini, or nuts. From time to time, Jocelyn enjoys a dessert of raw brownies or banana ‘nice cream’.
Finally, she spoke about the problems she faced following her seventh pregnancy adjusting her raw vegan diet and discussed the reactions she receives from people when she is out and about.
‘After my seventh baby I did have problems with my skin and hair. I made some adjustments to my macros and since then I have had zero problems,’ she said.
‘I actually find this way of eating very easy, even in social gatherings because how easy is it to just eat raw food. Sometimes dinner is a struggle when you smell cooked food, but I always have delicious homemade raw wraps, crackers and goodies made so I can easily make something satisfying and then it’s not a problem.
‘Ditching the processed foods is a great place to start, eating whole food, raw or not, will get you on the right track. Start moving, daily body movement is critical.’
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