hello everyone, this is my first post here and I truely want to go 100% raw, but
I have been having a bit of a problem. It is in regards to energy...

I am able to live off of fruits and veggies no problem for about 2 weeks, then come week 3 I get low energy, and intense cravings for bread. I believe my body is craving complex carbohydrates, or is not getting enough energy. I think it could be a bit of both.

So my question is, how can I boost my complex carbs and also boost energy? I would love to be able to get up around 3000 carbs a day on a raw diet without eating a huge amount of food.

I hear you. Of course you do. You don't expect to change (in my own case) 30 years of poor eating habits in 2 weeks. Give yourself of more generous time frame of at least 6-12 months to reach YOUR lifetime goals. Then live that way for at least 6-12 months....and THEN see if you need to adjust or simplify....or try additional 'refinements' like mono-eating, fasting, colonics, etc.

-So many people want to have some empirical....ONE way discipline that they can engage in to find health. I feel (my opinion) that they very much need to consciously CHOOSE what THEY have researched to be the healthiest foods....while eschewing what THEY have determined to be the most unhealthy foods/practices.

-On the practical side Context: Set smaller goals...start from an eating habit that you are 100% comfortable with. Then set the small changes (with timetables) that you are prepared and motivated to do. If you are in it for the long-haul...and your training regimen is sound...you accept days when you may be 'run down' or have 'low energy' due to the deep healing that is going on. ACCEPT this and be ready to relax! LOL.

-What do you think?

-David Z. Mason

WWW.RawFoodFarm.com

Eating enough fruit will give you the energy, keep the fat low as not to interfere with the fruit digestion. Most people when starting out, generally don't eat enough fruit, you can refine the diet when you adapt to it later. What is enough?? Calorie count in, eventually it will come naturally. Factor in detox and simply adjusting to the diet - This takes time, some longer than other, practice patience also.

yeah I hear what you guys are saying... I have been trying to go entirely raw for the last year now. But I find myself cheating every now and again, mostly carbohydrates. As for food, I know that the best foods are those that are raw... alkaline... high in brix... whole... natural... non-animal... and properly combined.

The reason I know this is because I have this strange health problem, where my ears leak what I believe is lymph fluid, because for what ever reason my lymph system doesnt drain correctly. But when I eat like this, the fluid doesnt come out of my ears. I dont know anyone else having this problem, but I am positive it came about from using anti-biotics around 4 years ago. Although I am way better than I used to be.

I feel great when I mono-diet, but again its the timing thing two weeks and I crave bread. I am not even hungry... just craving bread. Its brutal, and I think its because my body is craving something.

Could I get the carbs by eating sprouted grains or rice... as I transition to mono-fruitarian...or is it to hard to digest? I have sprouted wheat grains before and it doesnt feel like a natural food. Its to hard to eat... but I have smelled sprouted buckwheat before, and it smelled like fresh bread. Never ate it before though because of what I read about it... has some sort of enhibbitor. I also dont really care much for veggies, but love fruit. I mean I will eat the occasional carrot or broccoli... but still dont really like veggies. They are bitter to me, and I try to trust the body when it speaks. I like peas in the pod though, and sweet veggies.

So confusing...

I think you are going too fast, thinking too far ahead and mono-dieting takes experience to do well in general for most people. Look at doing this down the road. Just try to get the basics first by progressing to eating all raw. Don't over think it at this point. Learn to eat the food, then you can pick it apart. The carbs no matter how you look at it come from your fruits as the best source. If rice helps you along the way, so be it. Keep it simple.

btw I dont trust foods that are to hard to digest because they make the body produce acid.

thankyou all...

Context,

How much sweet fruit are you eating in a day? Be specific about the amounts, as they are important. For myself, when I was craving cooked starches when I first went all raw, eating more sweet fruit made that feeling go away.

Its worthwhile to use a nutritional calculator like fitday, nutritiondata, nutridiary, or Cron-o-Meter to see what your your energy intake is.

Also, if you are getting enough calories, and you hit a spell of low energy, it may be your body going through a detoxification to heal and cleanse itself.

Context: It doesn't HAVE to be confusing.

-Most people set a 'perforated' platform at the start. They don't set LIFETIME goals. They don't / can't set an 'iron' platform. What I mean is (my opinion): if you start from a place where you are 100% comfortable...and NEVER deviate...then you are in a good place to stretch. Setting the platform too high...makes the air too rare...and one 'falls' off the wagon. If you are 'cheating' on YOUR OWN goals...no one can help you! Ha! ha! So: it's not about the goal. It's not the GOAL that makes the success...it's the goal-setting PROCESS and SKILL that makes the success. That way, you'll be successful no matter what the outcome....because your PROCESS is infinitely sustainable. Do you follow?

-Rethink it. Find a level to start where there is no 'cheating'. Try eating 2/3 raw all day...and then a cooked dinner....until you no longer need the cooked dinner. This is what I did for about 6 months before going all raw. Don't try go all-raw...and then 'cheat' by forcing down high-carb.....lower quality foods.

-You know me: I slowly transitioned away from the starches...(in my mind) the more clean-burning fuels in fruit. This was not an easy break. I had to slowly wean off carbs...until I was only eating them at dinner. And then start by eating an all raw dinner once a week....then twice....then 3 times....etc. Only YOU can do that legwork...and find meals that are satisfying to you.

-And the sprouting idea sounds fine....if it is helpful to you. These are just my opinions.

-David Z. Mason

WWW.RawFoodFarm.com

For the bread cravings,maybe try a sprouted variety.
Food For Life makes one.
I am a breadaholic myself,but this bread....one,and maybe two pieces, is enough to satisfy that craving.
Maybe this would be useful during the transition to totally raw?
Brian

detox is what I was thinking Bryan... but I also find my body getting really dry (like no oils) and kinda achy... especially the lips and nose. (perhaps eating a day of only avocados or bananas would be a solution) I also get really cold hands and feet, which I attribute to low carbs, not to mention I lose weight like crazy!

As for the amount of fruit... probably like 10 grapefruit, a pineapple, a lemon, and some veggies. I would think its enough fruit, but yeah I bet going to fit-day should help me to figure out what I need to eat. But I also dont plan on forcing myself to eat a truck load of food to get to 3000 calories. It doesnt sound to healthy.

Do you have any ideas on how to modify the diet to make it easier to transition? BTW I also live in canada, which is a totally un-natural climate for people.

Good Idea! If I eat brown rice in the evening to help the transition, this could be all I need for carbs. Because I feel this is my only problem in the raw food diet. Thanks David!

I can do everything raw... it is just the energy thing. Perhaps after the 30 years of eating SAD my body had to adapt to this lifestyle, and that it will take some time for the body to return back to raw foods.

I view the "transition" to raw in a different way then a lot of people and I will post my opinion about it and then you can decide whats right for you. I think trying to eat your way to raw by eating cooked food (or not raw food) is just procrastinating making the changes that are necessary. Its like a alcoholic trying to quit drinking by having a few more sips of booze. IMO the best way is to go cold turkey and stop eating all non-raw foods and drinks. There is a certain amount of self discipline required to do this as the cravings for cooked food can be quite strong. The first week or so of all raw is the hardest and then after a month or so it gets a lot easier, at least it did for me. During the first month try to help your body out by getting some extra rest and flushing toxins out by drinking plenty of clean water. I realize that everyone is different and what works for me may not be right for you but I just wanted to put my two cents in about "transitioning".

EZrider... I understand your point, and completely agree with you. Mostly because I know the body can go without food for 30 days as long as it is getting water. However am concerned about the weightloss, cold hands and feet, constant bread craving, and dry skin. Is this normal? is this part of the transition and body detox.

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Posted by: Context (IP Logged)
Date: April 16, 2008 08:44AM

However am concerned about the weight loss, cold hands and feet, constant bread craving, and dry skin. Is this normal? is this part of the transition and body detox.

I have to admit that I didn't experience some of the things you mention. For example I went all raw - all at once in the summertime and I was more hot then cold due to the ambient temperature. Also when I went all fresh raw I had "love handles" and flab that I was glad to see go. I did experience the food cravings for cooked food but I think that just goes with the territory (changes). I have also experienced 3 detoxes so far and I think most everyone can expect some detox to occur. IMO the effort it takes to accomplish all raw is well worth it.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/16/2008 04:10PM by EZ rider.

I think I might have an answer to my question that just came from doing some searching. It is sun gazing.

[www.solarhealing.com]

In the bottom paragraph it talks about people who only used the energy of the sun to live on, and making sure we walk in barefeet on the soil for 45 minutes a day. Makes sense to me... I mean plants do it. And I know that the body does not make one single cell from the food we eat, nor do plants take any nutrition from the soil. Perhaps this is the missing ingredient in everyones health and happyness these days.

We are recharged with energy pretty much only when we sleep. We need food to replace old tissues and etc. and I don't belive in calorie theory, it doesn't make any sense from my own experience.

What makes sense is that we eat mostly for psychological reasons and because we are afraid that we may get too weak. And to slow down the detox. Food takes a lot of energy to digest but while it is being digested we are stimulated from that energy. The least amount of food you need to sustain your natural weight is the best because your body doesn't have to constantly get rid of surplus.

The problem is that you are going to start detoxing a lot and would feel weak and probably go back to overeatig to slow down the detox assuming that you need some complex carbs. While you most likely don't.

Just an opinion.

Here is a book about this topic

Quote

A small book that contains great wisdom. A main point is that sleep, deep, restful sleep, is what recharges the vital force, and that this force is what runs the body and energizes it . . . no the food. How to manage the mind so as to create health. We eat too much, far beyond what the body needs for nutrition

[www.soilandhealth.org]

lots of interesting info

[www.soilandhealth.org]

Also you may look at "Cornaro, L. (1566). Discourses on the Sober Life "

I personally have too much energy and I eat only once in roughly about 24 hours these days. I gain muscle weight and feel great but I surely do not meet any official calorie standarts. However I don't sugges you to switch to such diet overnight. I'm just speaking from my own experience



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/16/2008 07:27PM by Walkern.

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Posted by: Walkern (IP Logged)
Date: April 16, 2008 12:17PM

I eat only once in roughly about 24 hours

About how much do you eat at a meal and what type of food do you eat at that meal ?

During my first month of raw, NOTHING tasted better than a (sprouted, but cooked) Ezekiel's tortilla slathered in raw hummus/baba ganoush and filled with fresh lettuce, cucumbers, tomato, red pepper, and sprouts. YUM! I do the same thing with giant lettuce leaves now.

Ezekiel's really helped me transition... especially when I was trying to quit the grilled pitas and my roommate and his friends ate them constantly. I could totally deal with myself if that was the only cooked food I was eating. It didn't give me any negative reactions, although I did tend to crave them and eat a bit more at my meals.

So, if you're 90% raw, eating only sprouted bread with no preservatives, definitely give it a shot. Once your body has caught up to that incredible change in lifestyle, you will undoubtedly know when you are ready to move forward from there. =)

thankyou so much... this page looks awesome! all the real medical information

I am definitly going to read this.


BTW I have heard of people who eat only one meal a day, and eat only in the evening as you do. But I had not had actually met anyone who does. I hope to one day attain what you have achieved. I hear life is glorious when you achieve one meal a day. All your senses are heightened, you need almost no sleep, and your nothing but happy. Oh... and you never come close to being sick... not even a runny nose in the wind.

I think there's some strange terminology in this thread that makes things hard to understand. The word "carbs" is thrown around a lot. I get a lot of unrefined carbohydrates from fruits and vegetables; I have a ton of energy.

If anything, carbohydrates from unsprouted grains will probably slow you down.

[utopiankitchen.wordpress.com]

thanks for the support everyone

lol... its strange how I have been programmed to believe certain concepts... I gotta trust my feelings and instincts more


The only thing I truly know is that I was given life... and that this body tells me things on how to survive here. I wonder what I tell the body?


When I was little I remember the taste of eggs made me want to throw up. They were all rubbery and the taste made my gag reflex start up. But as I grew older they kept on getting put on my plate, and eventually I aquired a taste for them. Probably around age 12. Funny... I wonder how many things as a baby I did not like yet had forced on me till I aquired a taste for it. I heard that the only reason a baby throws up is because the food it gets makes its stomach upset because it is food that it is not supposed to eat.

Quote

About how much do you eat at a meal and what type of food do you eat at that meal ?

Different mono meals of fruits or vegetables and sometimes juice, as much as I want, from 1 to 2 kg depending on water content I suppose. I eat until I get satisfaction.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/17/2008 03:50AM by Walkern.

davidzanemason Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> If you are 'cheating'
> on YOUR OWN goals...no one can help you! Ha! ha!
> So: it's not about the goal. It's not the GOAL
> that makes the success...it's the goal-setting
> PROCESS and SKILL that makes the success. That
> way, you'll be successful no matter what the
> outcome....because your PROCESS is infinitely
> sustainable. Do you follow?

David, after you've been hammering this point home for months on end and i've read your descriptions of this process time and time again, i finally got the AHA moment! thanks to what you've said, and some things i've read/heard F1 say recently about internal consistency. I get it now!

We do psychological/energetic damage to ourselves when we SAY we are going to do one thing and we do another. So if we SAY we are going to eat 100% raw for example and we are achieving only 90%-95%, our inner voice becomes untrustworthy. by following your process of setting TOTALLY ACHIEVABLE goals and stretching from there, our internal word to ourselves becomes trustworthy. i can see how if that were to happen time and time again, how powerful that would make you. You'd have your subconscious mind onboard with you! Your goal setting would be ironclad.

I've been thinking all along that the best way for me was to shoot for 100% so that I could maintain 95+%. but i'm starting to see that this maybe isnt the best way to go about it. I want my goals to be credible to the only person who can put them into action -- ME.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/17/2008 08:17AM by maui_butterfly.

Exactly Maui. You are so wise. I'm sure you've read (or will read) The Four Agreements by Ruiz.....where internal consistency (what he calls being true to your word) is so important. I'm so grateful/proud of you and your great insight....and support here on the board. In my own experience, it took me a long time to realize that unless I was doing very small goals....that I was PREPARED and MOTIVATED to do on a daily basis....my 'internal platform' was full of holes.....and my flow was impeded. I realized it was about my GOAL-SETTING. You know?

-David Z. Mason

WWW.RawFoodFarm.com

I had problems going all raw at first, then i heard that it was good to eat alot of fruit all day long and lots of greens for supper... So i started that like 3 or 4 weeks ago. I eat only fruits and srprouts in the day, and then i eat vegetables and all the rest for supper!!

I'm not as hungry as i used to be, my energy levels are good too! Fruits during the day is, i believe, such a good way to go!

Walkern Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> About how much do you eat at a meal and what type
> of food do you eat at that meal ?
>
> Different mono meals of fruits or vegetables and
> sometimes juice, as much as I want, from 1 to 2 kg
> depending on water content I suppose. I eat until
> I get satisfaction.

When do you eat, morning or noon?

Walkern,
When do you eat, morning or noon?

I eat in the evening



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/18/2008 12:26PM by Walkern.