A Raw Truth About Eating, Energy And Aging Well
Eating close to nature is often framed as a sacrifice. In this excerpt, marathon runner and Los Angeles-based author Axay Shah flips that idea on its head, focusing not on what he gave up, but what he gained. Sixteen years into a raw, plant-based lifestyle, he reflects on energy, healing, and aging with intention. An excerpt from his new work, ‘If It’s Not Made By Mother Nature, It’s Not Going On My Plate.’
When I made the decision to eat only what Mother Nature created raw, plant-based, whole foods, I wasn’t thinking about what I was giving up. I was thinking about what I might gain.
Sixteen years later, I can tell you exactly what that looks like.
Energy like you’ve never felt
Within the first week, you notice it. That afternoon crash that used to hit around 3 pm? Gone. The brain fog that made 4 pm meetings feel like swimming through molasses? Cleared.
Your body stops spending energy fighting inflammation and starts using that energy for what it was meant to do: living.
At 66 years old, I have more physical energy than I did at 40. I’m not exaggerating. I’m training for my eighth marathon. I wake up without an alarm. I work a full day in home improvement sales, come home, spend time in my recording studio, check on my beehives, and still have energy to train. I’m not tired. I’m not dragging. I’m alive.
This isn’t exceptional. This is what your body does when you stop poisoning it and start nourishing it.
The energy compounds. It’s not a spike followed by a crash. It’s steady, reliable, and real. And it changes everything about your work performance, your relationships, your capacity to show up for the people you love.
Healing that feels like coming home
Then comes the deeper transformation. The healing.
Your body is miraculous. When you stop introducing slow poisons into your system, it starts repairing itself. Inflammation quiets down. Your skin clears. Your digestion works the way it’s supposed to. You look in the mirror and see a healthier version of yourself.
But it’s more than what you see. It’s what you feel.
The joint pain that made stairs difficult eases. The digestive discomfort that was just “normal” disappears. The brain fog that made you think you were losing your mind clears.
I have 21 years of medical documentation showing this transformation. Blood work that improved. Reports that shifted from concerning to optimal. A body that heals faster, handles stress better, and recovers from physical exertion in half the time.
This is your birthright. This is what health actually feels like.
Longevity with dignity, power, and freedom
But here’s what matters most, what most health conversations miss.
It’s not just about living longer. It’s about how you live those extra years.
At 66, I have energy, strength, and clarity. But more than that, I have freedom. I have privacy in my aging. I have confidence that I’m not going to become a burden. I have the power to pursue my dreams not someday when I retire, but now.
This is health span, not just lifespan. The difference is everything.
When you trust nature with what you eat, three times a day, year after year, you’re building a future where you can work and create without pain limiting you. You can play with grandchildren without worrying about your knees giving out. You can travel, pursue hobbies, and stay independent. You don’t have to spend your 70s managing chronic disease. You don’t have to surrender your dignity to aging.
You get to choose how you age. You get to stay strong, clear-minded, and vibrant.
Most importantly, you get to stay yourself. Not a version of yourself diminished by disease or limited by the side effects of treating disease. You get to be fully present in your own life.
The real promise
This isn’t a diet. It’s not a trend. It’s not something you do for 30 days and then quit.
This is a philosophy: ‘If it’s not made by Mother Nature, it’s not going on my plate.’
When you live by this principle, three times a day, year after year, something shifts. Your body remembers what it’s supposed to feel like. Your mind clears. Your spirit lifts. You become the healthiest, most vibrant version of yourself.
And you stay that way.
The energy compounds. The healing deepens. The longevity becomes inevitable not as years on a calendar, but as years of quality, dignity, power, and freedom.
This is what happens when you trust nature completely.
This is what’s possible.
