It started with an obsession with weight control. Three years later, Mona Lisa Neuboeck has become not only an aficionado but an advocate of raw foodism.

“It’s not a diet but a holistic lifestyle,” she explains. By eating just raw food “you live just as nature designed you to.”

As a raw food vegan, Neuboeck does not eat any kind of meat or dairy, nor does she eat anything exposed to heat of over 180 degrees Fahrenheit. The philosophy is that anything cooked above this temperature loses their nutritional value, as it kills the natural enzymes of food.

While it’s hard to imagine life without fried chicken and pizza, Neuboeck says it’s a lot easier than you think. “Once you detoxify and get healthy by cleaning up your diet first, you will feel that burst of energy that comes naturally within you,” she shares.

Combining creativity and determination, Neuboeck has found a way to make raw veganism fun. She has even gone as far as making raw food pizza with sprouted-grain “dough”, sundried tomatoes, and cheese made from nuts. She has also made “spaghetti” zucchini, and a banana chocolate cream pie that has no milk, no butter, and no cream.

Her tip: don’t be too strict about it. “Five months of the year, I eat completely raw food; the rest of the year, I’ll have a little portion of my food cooked. My benchmark is that the main component of the food is raw,” confesses Neuboeck, who gives private classes on how to live the raw food lifestyle. “There are a lot of preparation techniques like soaking, dehydrating, marinating,” she explains. “But once you get the hang of it, it shouldn’t be too hard.” The only battle left would be resisting that tempting pack of chicharon!