Tonya Zavasta from Beautiful on Raw

Interviews Katya

 What brought you to this lifestyle?  How long have you been on it?

In the introduction to my book ‘Rawjuvenate with Katya’ Authentic Vibrance & Beauty from the Inside Out, I write about my journey into the raw food lifestyle.
It seemed to be my destiny. As a young girl, from around 5 years of age, I was attracted to plants and flowers and would spend hours studying them.  In my early teenage years, puberty heralded its approach with a fanfare of pimples and I began to gravitate towards the few health food stores of the time, where I read all I could on nature cure: books by Paul Bragg, Bernard Jensen, Paavo Airola, Viktoras Kulvinskas and Arnold Ehret.

I applied the knowledge I learnt from these mentors about how to have clear, radiant skin. All of these early pioneers of the raw food movement purported the one truth, “that true health and beauty on the outside come from health and beauty on the inside”.  I was determined to experience this truth for myself.  I made changes to what I ate and drank, mainly adopting a cooked vegetarian, then vegan diet. I  abandoned white flour, sugar and other processed foods  and continued to experiment for many more years, searching for a way of eating that delivered what it claimed. During these years I occasionally fasted and underwent cleanses, that gave me glimpses of the profound sense of wellbeing and rejuvenation that came from eating living foods. 

I also studied Natural Therapies, including Classical Homeopathy, which expanded my understanding of the whole person, the integrated physical, mental, emotional and spiritual aspects of ourselves. It wasn’t until my early forties as a cooked vegan, that I began to suffer with some problems my meat - eating friends were having.
Arthritic fingers, hormonal upheavals, creeping weight gain, creaking knees, persistent rashes and allergic responses were becoming my daily companions.

I moved to the tropics and went almost raw and lo and behold, the arthritis improved along with the rashes and some allergies.  I spent time at a raw food institute, went 100% raw, studied colonic irrigation and then was asked to administer colonics and give lectures there.  It has been 4 ½ years since I went 100% raw.  What a journey it has been!

What changes in appearance have you noticed since going
on the raw food diet?  Please, the more details the better. 
Include before and after pictures if possible

There have been many changes.  Firstly, my eyesight improved, especially at night.  As I became older, I had noticed my eyes, becoming ‘narrower’ and deep – set, probably from habitual squinting to relieve eye -strain. After several months on 100% raw foods, my eyes opened, became clearer and less irritated. My skin became softer, all over.  My face changed shape, becoming more defined.  My neck and chin firmed.  Skin that was beginning to sag around my cheeks and mouth, smoothed out and lifted!  My gums tightened around my teeth.  I had receding gums, with occasional bleeding when I was younger, now they looked pinker and healthier.

Stubborn rashes on my body and patches of vitiligo disappeared and my skin tone became more even. My joints regained flexibility, and a longstanding neck pain and stiffness disappeared, as did arthritis and allergies to cut grass and pollen.
This mostly took place over 12 -18 months of eating all raw foods.  Of course, many internal changes also took place, including better digestion and elimination.

How do you feel about your appearance? Were you considered beautiful when you were growing up?

I feel that my appearance is changing in subtle ways, since embracing a raw foods lifestyle and I do feel I have slowed the aging process.  Certainly, my cooked food peers, who were considered good looking when they were younger, now look older than they are.  Some have even had “minor cosmetic enhancements”.

When I was a teenager and in my early twenties, I was told I was very attractive, as I had inherited a ‘photogenic bone structure with high cheekbones’, long legs and a slim build.  I worked in both the fashion and beauty industry and bought a beauty business in a major city when I was 23. I successfully used my own freshly made herbal skin preparations on my clients, including many T.V. personalities.    

However, even though my skin was becoming clearer, through dietary changes, periodic skin break-outs, certainly undermined my self- confidence.   Since changing to all raw, my skin has improved dramatically.  I had large open pores, some broken capillaries and small marks from acne scarring.  Now my pores are much smaller, the visible capillaries have vanished and most of the scarring has healed.

Do you feel that you look your very best?  If yes, how does it affect your
self-esteem and confidence?  If not, what do you think is preventing you from being the Most Beautiful You?

Having experienced the gifts that ‘beauty’ brings as a teenager and young woman, I have learnt that beauty will not make you entirely happy.  It certainly helps, but a cheerful disposition, gratitude and positive uplifting thoughts, produce a serenity from within, that appears as a softness and gentleness of features on the outside.
Being born with a beautiful face, yet struggling to think beautiful thoughts, will in time harden and drag the face downwards. 

I had experimented with my diet for many years before going raw and have always had an acute awareness of any subtle body or mind fluctuations.  Since being raw and travelling through menopause simultaneously, I have made many adjustments to my diet to accommodate the changes that are occurring, and this will continue.
The hormonal changes have impacted on my emotional wellbeing and even though a raw food diet generally fuels positive emotions, feelings of overwhelm can occur if I don’t take enough time for myself.  I see this as Nature’s way of directing a women’s nurturing essence towards her own needs once her children have grown into adults.      

I find that I am eating less, (more juices), yet my weight remains constant.  My level of activity has decreased, from spending much time writing, on a computer and I now have to put time aside each day for a little yoga and walking.  I feel that I still could make further adjustments to “meet the most beautiful me”.   I do know that when I fast for 3-5 days, my skin has   a radiance and clarity for several weeks.
At the moment I don’t fast as regularly as I would like, however I sense my diet will change further on my raw journey and fasting will become an integrated part of that change.

Do you have any special beauty secrets you would like to share?

Throughout my life, I have applied regular fresh black mud or herbal face masks. 
This is one of my favourites.

It consists of 20 ml of fresh wheatgrass juice blended with a teaspoon of fresh aloe pulp.  I sometimes sleep with this on. It is extremely nourishing, tightening and lifting to the skin.

What is your attitude towards cosmetics?  If you wear make-up,
what are your favourite brands?

I think light eye make up and a lip colour are wonderful for highlighting these features.   Makeup that is thickly applied, (I am referring particularly to pancake or foundation) in an attempt to camouflage dull, crepey, or blotchy skin can be unattractive and sometimes scary! 

I live in a tropical climate, which helps keep the skin moist. I do not wear foundation as I feel my skin looks fabulous with just a light covering of organic coconut oil.
In fact one of the first things women and men often say to me is, “what beautiful skin you have”. I like to use certified organic lipsticks.  The only other makeup I use is a natural mascara.

How would you describe your style?  Has your choice of make-up, clothes, hairstyle changed because of the raw food lifestyle and the
changes it brought about in your appearance?

Mmmn.   Dressy jeans and feminine tops, mainly.
But I do have some beautiful skirts and low neckline tops that I wear frequently and accessorise with lots of different necklaces. The raw food lifestyle has given me back my waistline.  I began to gain weight around my middle in my forties and started to wear loose tops and elasticised sports pants to compensate.  Now, I like wearing figure - hugging clothes to accentuate my shape instead of hiding it. 

I have always had long hair.  Many women wear their hair short once they approach their fifties.  Their faces have lost the contours of youth and long hair no longer flatters them.  The raw food lifestyle has enabled me to look good with my hair loose or swept up.  My hair shed continuously for over a year when I first changed to raw foods.  The natural curl has returned and the texture has improved.

What is your attitude towards aging?  Do you feel that the raw food lifestyle has made you look younger than you are?
How do you respond to looking younger?

Ageing is a natural, unavoidable progression through life. Yet through living a raw food lifestyle, I know that as I age, I can accomplish my dreams, pursue my passions, without the fear of sickness or looking and feeling older than I am.  The raw food lifestyle has allowed me to retain a youthful countenance eg: flexibility, and posture.I feel I radiate a ‘youthful, light energy’ that is a direct result of eating light, energetic, living foods.

Patricia Bragg never tells her age, calling herself “ageless.”  What is your attitude towards revealing your age?  Do you tell it freely or do you share the opinion that “Women and music should never be dated? 
If you tell, how do others react?

I love telling my age.  When I look around me and see women half my age, looking tired, old and overweight from poor lifestyle choices, I know that revealing my age gives them not only visual proof, but a sense of hope that authentic health and beauty is also available to them, when they follow the Laws of Nature. 
When people guess my age to be anywhere between 10-15 years younger than I am, I feel delighted and they look surprised!
But more importantly, as a role model for others to aspire to, I feel an integrity and confidence, when proclaiming the transformational abilities of a raw food lifestyle.

Please share your favourite raw food recipe, the one you consider your trademark and always make for special occasions.

recipes