Harder than I anticipated

[being]

Today was going to be my first all raw day...

Geez I thought it would be easier!

I feel like I did in the throes of bulimia - one last binge before I NEVER get to eat _________ again. :mad:

I went shopping today to load up on wonderful fresh produce and some raw nuts/seeds...

So what did I do? I stopped and bought enough sushi etc from my fav japanese food place to feed a small army, came home and gorged myself :(

I have this mental thing happening... the diet mentality ... and I catch my mind saying 'just pig out tomorrw you'll eat raw, this is your last chance' type of thing.

How do I change this? How do I do this?

Man, I can't even do 1 day? Did anybody else have a really REALLY difficult time getting started? Maybe I'm missing something?

I see so many of you thriving, and I feel like I can do this too. Yet .. sigh. I'm being WAY too hard on myself aren't I? :rolleyes:

Why are all the bananas in town green rocks today?!!?!

[Sharon in Colorado]

Sounds like the "last supper" syndrome, where no matter when you start, that last meal is going to be something that you feel like you are really going to miss, so you load up on it.

However, once you are raw, you really don't miss that stuff. It is easier once you are raw, than when you are planning on going raw. for whatever reason, it's more psychological than anything.

You will have cravings now and then, but it's more of a craving than missing out.

[Dimond]

Well first you need to stop looking at raw as a diet and look at it as a way of living that will have so many benefits, you'll wonder what took you so long.

Maybe come up with some alternative raw meals/snacks to take place of the SAD foods you crave. Having some prepared raw goodies on hand can be helpful. Often your local health store (like Whole Foods) carries them or you can get them on-line.

Many do have a hard time at first, so give yourself a break. I gradually became healthier, so raw was fairly easy once I decided to do it.

[being]

Soooooooo :confused: if I think of this as a better way of life, which I do, and I still choose cooked foods over the benefits of what I KNOW I can get from raw... what does this mean? I'm weak with (expletive) for willpower?? :( Sorry. I'm just really frustrated. I let myself down today, and I'm mad.

This is the trouble. I don't think this is just another diet. I hate diets. I used to read diet books for fun.. :eek: yeah, I know. :rolleyes: I haven't been on a 'diet' for 3 years. It was part of the whole eating disorder healing process. Just let myself eat, with no restrictions whatsoever.

And now I'm fighting that. Eating all raw is great, when I do it. But when I have a craving, I think, ok, I'll feel ______ after eating ______. I know this. I don't want this feeling.

Then this other part of my mind says WAIT!!! You are restricting! Don't restrict!

I guess I went from one extreme to the other :(

[Sharon in Colorado]

Just remember that this is part of changing your lifestyle to a better one. All the years of eating extreme, processed food is going to habitual to you, so now you just have to be patient and learn from your mistakes. This won't be the last 'pitfall'...there'll be others.

You just have to learn to pick yourself up again and continue. That is what it's all about.

[Raspberry4]

Being - can you take it a step at a time - like let's say you would normally eat 4 small meals a day - try 2 raw, 2 cooked (but put some raw into the cooked meal - like a nice salad). Also, do you have any uncook "raw" books that have pictures in them to make it eye appealing? That really helped me. Also, and I am only saying this based on experience with an eating disorder, are you an all or nothing person? I have a severe eating disorder, and I am also an all or nothing person. Take it from me - stop trashing yourself and praise yourself for even the smallest amount of raw food you ingest. If you are an all or nothing type person - you will have to work on that like I am - my diet is more raw than cooked and I am fine with that for now. I am not stressing about 100 percent at this time. It will come, or it won't, but no big deal - I am eating better than most people. Try the raw food desserts too - find simple things to make (like avocados and bananas in a blender with a little vanilla - yum! - it is like a pudding). Simple, fast, delicious. Good luck and please be gentler on yourself - you will do this one step at a time.

[luckitri]

I call myself raw - been only doing it a few weeks but I have fallen alot. It is really hard at first - I think the body is adapting and there are physical reasons that I don't know - but as you read on here you will find that alot of people tried for along time before they were able to go totally raw - I guess that is why they have the 30-day challenges! I think that in some ways it is easier for me because I am older and don't have that young appetite - I used to eat alot but now when I read what some people here eat in a day - it would take me all week to eat that!

[codajess]

I do the same thing. It's the Last Supper Syndrome, I think! I've screwed up twice since starting may (for days at a time,) and each time, i'd think "Tomorrow I'm restarting raw!" so I'd eat everything I was craving "because I'm never going to have it again."

I'm not sure, since you haven't been raw before, what to advise on that.
Maybe you just aren't ready? Maybe you have to suck it up and do it anyway? I have NO idea.

This most recent time, I couldn't stop eating cooked food! I told myself everyday for like 2 weeks in a row that "today's the last day!" Finally, I said forget it. I did a 3 day fast. For me, I can do all or nothing when it comes to food, so it wasn't too hard. I did the 3 day fast, then right back to raw. By that time, it was easy. Granted, I've only been raw again for 2 days since my last cooked-binge (after 3 days of fasting); but I feel fine with it. No cravings yet. We'll see.

Good luck!

[rawpriestess]

Trust me, I invented the "Last supper syndrome" actually I made up the name, and coined it here in an old thread,

but this is what I finally had to do for myself,

tell yourself, that you are going to eat raw today, only, and that tomorrow, you can eat anything you want, then tomorrow, tell yourself the same thing,

If you TRULY want the cooked food when tomorrow comes, then fine eat it, but remember, today you are raw,tomorrow is another day, and you can eat anything you want,

just eat for today, this hour, this minute, don't worry about tomorrow or the rest of your life.

if I had to think that I couldn't eat certain things ever again, I'd go mad---so just for today, and today only, eat raw.

[codajess]

Offtopic: I've used "last supper syndrome" before I ever came to this board.

[spicyfull]

Tomorrow is another day. Take it one day at a time........

[swingbolder]

A google search on "last supper" and "diet" will yield numerous references to the phenomenom.

To the OP: sometimes getting started is the hardest part. Once you go through one day raw the next one will become easier.

Also, maybe try journaling here on the site, that always helps me stay focused and motivated.