New rawfoodie is overeating dates and nuts...

[sosiesmom]

I have not started Alissa's "30 days" yet but am transitioning myself slowly to 100% raw, eating simple foods and not yet cooking any raw meals (I've just ordered my cooking tools and dehydrator). Anyway, I've had 3 raw days so far but am overeating dates and nuts. This makes me crave cooked food. What is going on?!? Has this happened to anyone else? I know David Wolfe says if you crave dates, eat prunes, but I still end up eating the dates. Could this be just a part of the transition? What do I do? :rolleyes:

[Mothergoose]

I am experiencing this myself.....I want to replace the heavier foods with nuts and dried fruits. ;) Drinking water helps, but I am still attemping 100 percent raw.

[Jordann]

:o I wish I could offer some constructive and useful anecdotes here, but alas, I too have the same difficulty. Eating dates and nuts, or raisins or other dried fruits, I end up craving more or craving cooked or just craving!

Maybe others will have some ideas here. I'm new to raw as well, transitioning slowly for an extended period of time :rolleyes: So I don't have much to offer except I know exactly what you mean!

[rawpriestess]

My cravings stopped when I went 100% raw, without any non-raw items, like canned olives or bottled salad dressing, if I have even a tiny bit of bottled or canned or cooked anything, I have cravings for days.

so this might be it.

[Lisa42]

I have not started Alissa's "30 days" yet but am transitioning myself slowly to 100% raw, eating simple foods and not yet cooking any raw meals (I've just ordered my cooking tools and dehydrator). Anyway, I've had 3 raw days so far but am overeating dates and nuts. This makes me crave cooked food. What is going on?!? Has this happened to anyone else? I know David Wolfe says if you crave dates, eat prunes, but I still end up eating the dates. Could this be just a part of the transition? What do I do? :rolleyes:

What do you call overeating? Are you eating when you are truly hungry and stopping when you are satisfied, not stuffed? If that's the case, just keep eating the dates and nuts, they are good for you. You'll want other things as time goes on - try to keep other healthy foods on hand and you'lll start choosing something other than the dates and nuts. I love dates and nuts, I eat them all the time. Do you have a juicer? Green juice (romaine is good) would be a good choice too.

[enlightenedgold]

Hi! My advice would be to eat whatever it takes to stay raw. I got nervous when I first started because of the same overeating dried fruits and nuts issue, then I decided to get all strict and put myself on a regime, and guess what, I got totally hungry and fell off the wagon. Then I did this about 4 more times and finally got it through my head to just do what ever it takes to stay raw. I found that this strategy really worked and I have been doing really well for the past 3 mos. and have found that I now have basically given up the dates and only eat about a handful or two of nuts a day now. I have a serious history of overeating/food addictions so I'm pretty sure that if I can do it anyone can. Bless!

[cornvalley]

There is a natural desire for high calorie concentrated food items. Can't change that, kinda built in to the scheme of things. But understanding that, one can substitute more filling items of less caloric density and still satisfy the appetite. Apples, pears on the crunchy side (bosc particularly), jicama with romaine lettuce (includes lots of crunchy ribs) and celery has always served me well in this respect. Also arrange it all on a big plate and make it look festive. You have to find foods of this kind to help you not overeat on the concentrated varieties. Start out with this kind of meal and then have a small handful of the concentrated nuts and sweet fruits as desert later. Good luck.

[sunshine star]

Hey Guys!
I'm on my third week at 100% raw - and was nervous in the beginning about over eating--it felt like i was eating huge amounts of food - especially nuts, raisins & dates. But I stuck to it and trusted what Alissa says in her book - keep yourself 100% raw while you transition and gradually your body will adjust and eventually you will lean more towards a simpler menu. But don't rush into it (I was a year raw and transitioned too fast to simplier foods and fell off the wagon). I also think a key to helping with the cravings is being 100% (at least for me). Good luck on your raw journey!!

[Nenyath]

Another good thing to replace dried fruit and nuts with are avocados, they really do the trick for these days. They feel much more filling than fruit and more like ones ordinary heavy cooked fruit.. Keep it up! It is a rawsome journey!

Fly forever free,
Nenyath

[rawfigure]

This is very normal in the beginning. I overate nuts and seeds in the beginning. Now I find I am just as happy with an grap it fruit or veggie !

When I was in that mode I started buying a few servings of nuts only, no bulk bags to keep in the house, and froze my dried fruit so it was not in my grab it and eat it range.

So stick with it. It will pass.

[IamLoved]

Hi

As everyone else has stated this is very normal in the beginning. When I first went raw I would eat a bowl of nuts almost every single night. As time went on I found that I could not eat them anymore, even though I really "wanted" to have them. I just couldn't handle that much nuts anymore. At times I would forget and make up a big bowl of spiced nuts only to not even be able to finish half of them. Your body will adapt. When you stop eating cooked foods your body is still longing for foods that are bulkier and will really fill you up, which is why nuts are so good to eat.
As RP said if you are not 100% raw that will cause cravings. If I have a little bit of bottled dressing the cravings start up immediately. For me it has to be all raw or I really struggle.
Good luck!

[misslinda]

curious, are you soaking your nuts and dried fruit?

[codajess]

I wondered about that. I see suggestions to soak dried fruit before eating it, but do you eat it while it's all soggy and mushy from being rehydrated?

[juliebove]

I don't really crave dried fruits but perhaps this is because I don't care for them very much. I can maybe manage one date, but I won't go out of my way for it.

I don't really crave nuts either. Not often anyway. But it is easy to overeat them, especially if you have them in front of you while you are watching TV or something. One thing that helps me when I find I am eating too much is portioning them out in serving sized portions. When that is gone, that is it! If I still feel the need to eat somthing, I'll have some celery. I love celery!

Another thing you might do is mix your dried fruit with the nuts. Again, keep the mix in serving sized portions.

[Sharon in Colorado]

You might feel you need them for the first week or so just to replace the heavy feeling. But the others are right, sometimes a lot of that stuff tends to kick up cravings for cooked food. Once you are raw it is easier to get it out but if you overdo it at first don't beat yourself up.

[Ariella]

if you are looking for an alternative, something that helped me stay 100% raw my first couple of weeks was bananas. they still provide that full feeling and they are low fat. it is only if you are worried about it though.

Hang in there! it gets easier!

Ariella

JUICE PLUS+
www.juiceplus.com/+dj73561

my journal: www.ethicalcentral.com/main

[rawpriestess]

since you aren't eating all raw, this is why you are craving cooked, if you go 100% raw, your cravings will stop after a few days.


and Alissa says you can eat all you want as long as it is raw, in the beginning.

So, I don't think it's the dates and nuts that are causing you to want to eat cooked food.

[rawfigure]

since you aren't eating all raw, this is why you are craving cooked, if you go 100% raw, your cravings will stop after a few days.


and Alissa says you can eat all you want as long as it is raw, in the beginning.

So, I don't think it's the dates and nuts that are causing you to want to eat cooked food.

This is the Key, go all Raw ! You will find you want more fruit veggies, less nuts dates if you go ALL RAW. It may not happen overnight but it will !!!!!!!

[banana shake]

This is the exact thread I needed today! Thanks!

[goodbeets]

I have been high to all raw for nearly 4 weeks now. I could tell you all of the amazing changes I have had since that first day but it would take at least an entire day!! I, too munched on tons of avacados, nuts, banans and dried fruit, one day I ate 5 avacados, do not worry. As long as you can stay near to or at total raw...pig out!!! Because after a few days to a week your body will begin to clear and you will want different things. In a little over 3 weeks my mind has changed the desire for food from how will it taste to how will I feel. It has made ALLLLLLLLLL the difference!!! For me it's been 30+ years of food issues put to rest. I now eat nori wraps w/ greens and avacados, green smoothies and zucchini pastas, etc. Who knows what it will be in 6 months. Go for it!

[Brianna]

When I started on raw, I was eating dried fruit and nuts and nut butters and avocados like they were going out of style. I'd eat a pound of nuts at once, 5 avocados in one sitting, 2 pounds of dried fruit at a time, and 8 oz. of nut butter at once and I actually made myself sick from eating so much. I think it's natural to do it in the start because it gives you the heavy feeling of eating cooked food, but you should learn to like the light, raw food feeling. I would be careful about too much nuts and dried fruit though because it made me really sick and I never had any energy. Nuts are very difficult to digest, especially if you don't soak them. Maybe my digestion is sluggish, but I still can't handle more than a small amount of nuts and I don't do well with most recipes because they are so nut heavy. Everyone is different though and ultimately you have to find what works for you. I do recommend making sure you get enough greens and fresh sprouts. These really help with food cravings. Green juice is also very powerful.