This is going to be one of the biggest obstacles in my raw food diet. I haven't begun yet... I will in a couple of days.

Calories present a problem to me. What is the raw foodist's idea on them? Do they even matter if I eat when I'm hungry and then stop when I'm full? My fiance is slightly concerned about me trying this because I had an eating disorder previously, and still have a bit of the mentality. While I have absolutely NO motivation to do so, I am sure he thinks I am doing this to get an excuse to eat less or because I'm worried that I'm 'fat'. I discussed this with him but I want to sort of allay his fears, and truthfully I am wondering- are 1500 calories necessary if you are on a raw food diet?

Argh, I just lost a post to you, but I'll start over.

Best to just start adding simple raw foods to your diet. No one should be alarmed if you do that and there's no pedestal to fall off, nothing to fail at or beat yourself up about, you're just adding raw to your diet.

I don't think it should be like "going on a diet", because it's a very different mindset. One is regimented the other is natural.

And hey, you can add raw any day to your diet, even today.

You need to eat enough calories to meet your energy requirements, period. No more, no less.

Here is a simple rule of thumb for calorie requirements. For most people, take your weight and multiply by 10. For every hour of exercise like walking, add 300 calories. For every hour of exercise like running, add 600 calories. If you did anything other than stay in bed all day, add another 300 calories.

So for me today, I weigh 140 pounds, so 140 X 10 = 1400. Add 300 calories since I didn't stay in bed all day. 1700 calories should do it for me. On days where I do physical work all day, I might add another 300 calories.

This is how much food I needed when I first went raw. Nowadays, after being 100% for nearly 6 years, I need much less, say 75% of what I used to need. I attribute this to my engine being a bit cleaner than it was 6 years ago. Also, my body feels like it is super saturated with nutrients, and mostly nowadays I eat for fuel rather than nutrients (that is calories versus vitamins and minerals).

I also have struggled with an ED in the past. I find that raw foodism has really helped me develop a healthy relationship with food. Honestly, I was worried I was going to keep counting calories in ym head and not allow myself to eat enough, but once I was really ready to be healthy, this wasnt a probblem for me at all. I'm not sure how many calories I eat, but I eat fruit al day and huge salad with avocado for dinner. I actually put on a couple pounds going raw (all healthy weight, I was too skinny and boney before). It didnt bother me at all. Just eat a ton of fruit. I try to go by the guidline of eating enough fruit to keep myself hydrated. If I do that, I seem to get enough calories. I say just listen to your body. Also, dont think that each time you eat it should only be one piece of fruit, like an apple. This is how you eat fruit on a SAD diet. When you sit down to eat it should be a WHOLE melon to yourself, or 3 apple, or 3 bananas etc. I eat a very high volume of food. I notice that if I dont eat a large enough amount of food, I'm not really hungery, but I get in a bad mood. Thats a good indicator for me. Anywhoo, GOOD LUCK, its a great feeling to stop stressing and just enjoy eating!

hmm, this suggestion is ONLY if there is no disordered eating, which should be addressed seperately.

but my take is if one is comfortably eating less calories without a disorder/or punishment program in play, and without turning to calorie dense/fatty foods or cooked/packaged junk to make up for this, and are maintaining a stable weight (after clearing out most the of internal deposits) its certainly OK to do so. Many folks prefer to get higher concentrated nutrients - in the form of juices - and eat maybe only once a day.

one CAN manage their detox by eating larger meals and eating foods that take more energy to break down (this includes plants and nuts) ...which drain digestive energy..

This is the path many people follow, and it is ALSO very much OK. Very few people (including myself) are interested in eating only when they are truly hungry. And this way of eating should create a steady detox, with much freed up energy to focus on ones sense of BEING, which will perpetuate their process and create great JOY and in turn make their lifestyle NOT one big struggle.

part of this is excerpted from something I wrote on

[www.rawfoodfarm.com]

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short and sweet....and DEEP

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thanks everybody for your replies! when i say 'diet' i don't mean a structured food plan, just to indicate that what i eat consists of raw foods (sort of like you'd say "an anteater's diet is..." with no reference to weight loss, etc.) i'm not planning on dieting at all, calorie restricting, etc. i just want to eat when i'm hungry, stop when i'm full, and fuel my body with good things.

I have struggled with eating disorders as well, Eating raw has been a miracle for me in helping me to see food as nutrition and fuel first, and pleasure second rather than the other way around. I believe that going raw and developing your diet is really a personal journey of trial and error because we each have different challenges and preferences. For example, I find that when I eat 100% raw my appetite goes away and I struggle to eat even 1000 calories a day- not good for me! I supplement for now with some nonraw foods, but I have to be careful about the types I choose so that I can avoid problems (cravings and other issues). Over time I'll find a balance that works right for me. I say educate yourself about nutrition, and then pay attention to what works for you personally. Some of what works for many raw foodists will work for you, and some things they do will not.

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Eating raw is a challenge for me, but it's the healthiest lifestyle I know.
See you at Raw Odyssey!
[blog.rawodyssey.com]

skinnyhippie Wrote:
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i just want to eat when i'm hungry, stop when
> i'm full, and fuel my body with good things.

PERFECT!! you should have no problems
patty