Binged....

[srsarri]

I did it again. I COMPLETELY binged on SAD food. I am posting this in hopes that I wont be too hard on myself after..

I began so good here is what I ate today before I binged:

Honeydew and Kiwi for breakfast

Peach for a snack

for lunch I had a spinach salad with tomatoes, carrots, avacado and mango..

and then at 3pm.. I dont know what happened, I ate 2 SAD banana muffins and a HUGE chunk of italian bread.

after I do so well, I feel like I am missing something, A certain taste, a certain feel. I wish I could find that 1 food that replaces that feeling that I get, the need for bread, pasta, etc. anyone have any ideas?

[Green_Woman]

Maybe you could start thinking as you're tempted to binge on SAD "I don't like the way this food makes me feel... I hate the guilt this food puts me through" and other affirmations of why it is you LOVE raw food and do NOT want to put SAD food in your body?

*hug and forehead kiss*


You'll be just fine... never count the steps back as "failures". The only true failure is when you give up - and you haven't given up. :)

[Vaclare79]

I did it again. I COMPLETELY binged on SAD food. I am posting this in hopes that I wont be too hard on myself after..

I began so good here is what I ate today before I binged:

Honeydew and Kiwi for breakfast

Peach for a snack

for lunch I had a spinach salad with tomatoes, carrots, avacado and mango..

and then at 3pm.. I dont know what happened, I ate 2 SAD banana muffins and a HUGE chunk of italian bread.

after I do so well, I feel like I am missing something, A certain taste, a certain feel. I wish I could find that 1 food that replaces that feeling that I get, the need for bread, pasta, etc. anyone have any ideas?

Girl, it's ok.. At least you did eat some of RAW today... Just keep going.

[srsarri]

I think that im thinking wayyyy to hard about this, and it makes me fall off the edge.

[commoncents]

I think that im thinking wayyyy to hard about this, and it makes me fall off the edge.


Yes, Srsarri, you are thinking about this too much. Have fun with it. So what, you had something that is not RAW. Just continue on to eat RAW, without guilt, if you do occasionally eat SAD. That is what I do and it has made this RAW journey so much more enjoyable!!!!!

Big Hugs. I've been there, but could not continue to beat myself up, so I just let it all go and decided to enjoy the journey even if that means an occasional vegan cooked dish.

[Lightspirited1]

I can understand. It's a journey for all of us. It doesn't happen overnight.

I've been doing raw off and on for many months now. I've done a 30 day stint before, then got sick and slowly went off of raw.

Now I'm back on (Day 22) and it's easier. Each time I do it, it becomes easier.

For example, my cravings are generally OFF THE CHART (like so many others too), and I craved Pizza yesterday soooo much! I kept saying to myself, "Okay...that's nice..." yet kept eating as much raw stuff as I wanted. Generally I'll gulp down a Green Smoothie during the worst craving episodes. It doesn't take away the craving for a certain type of food, yet the cravings do subside somewhat. It makes it THAT much easier to NOT grab the SAD food.

Hope that helps!

Do you have a dehydrator? There are MANY recipes that can be dehydrated and made into very good substitutes for SAD food.

Are you drinking enough water too? The lack of water intake will also increase my cravings.

Remember... in the beginning, it's okay to eat more than you generally would (esp. if it helps with cravings) AS LONG as you are staying ALL RAW.

[srsarri]

Good advice lightspirited...

funny that you brought up that I might have to eat a lot more to stay all raw in the beginning. I have been doing this, pretty much 80% for 5 or 6 months ... I usually end up binging because I say "If I keep eating so much fruit ill eat too many calories and blow my entire day" (I am not weight concious but I also dont want to overdue it), so I end up eating something SAD (because im thinking ill just eat 1 SAD thing, and I end up binging instead) which is entirely even worse... its a bad cycle.

[rawstrength]

You are not going to get fat eating too much fruit!!! Just love the raw stuff and don't think about the SAD stuff. Before you know it you will effortlessly be eating all raw. Also, in time you will need to eat less :) .

[lytlsprout]

With what you binged on it sounds like you're craving carbs. Sprout some grains or some buckwheat. Also I remind myself when I crave cooked that if nothing raw sounds good to me it's probably emotional and not really hunger.

[Lightspirited1]

It's not easy... and not fast... yet well worth it.

I agree with lytlsprout: it's sometimes emotional eating when we grab SAD foods. Not a 'true' hunger.

The effortless part does happen. I have many days of that now. Even when I was eating some SAD foods in the last several months, I ALWAYS had a Green Smoothie. EVERY day. I also still ate mostly raw. Probably around 80%. I would just give in at dinner and have some of my favorite SAD Thai soup, or a slice of pizza or something.

Also...and this was HUGE for me. (Also Green_Woman said this.) It's about how SAD makes you feel afterwards. For me, it wasn't so much the guilt - I've worked hard in my life NOT to have much of that - yet it was how I felt physically afterwards. I would feel soooo tired, and little aches would come back. I'd feel bloated and emotional and simply not well.

PLUS, the SAD food began to not satisfy me the way it did before, and began to even taste bad to me. Never thought I'd say that, but it did. It was actually good for me to have a bite here and there of SAD because it showed me it sounded much better in my head than in actuality.

Enjoy the ride...and be good to yourself!

[gritsnla]

I love this forum. I'm having a hard time myself and everyone has such encouraging words.

Thank you!

[luna99]

is this your first time trying to go 100% raw from a normal "sad" diet? if so, it is extremely hard to do. I know a lot of people claim to have done it but I believe even Alissa says it took her a while to get around to 100%.

I myself was just like you.. trying to go 100% then slipping and eating cooked food and then feeling guilty over it... why do that to yourself? even 50% raw food is better than the way you were eating before... and trust me.. eventually you will get to the point where it is easy to eat raw foods and you may even start to *gasp* :eek: not want sad food anymore after a while...

it's a journey ... and just like anything else in life.. you will succeed if you just keep trying and moving back to your goals.

you are doing wonderful! keep it up! :D

btw, I'm still not 100%... but I just try to incorporate as much raw into my day as I can.

[parsnip]

I strayed from raw this weekend and ate fast food and a lot of other junky things. I'd been craving a lot of things and was kind of frustrated with slow weight loss and just a general feeling of not making enough progress (I've lost 40 pounds in five months, which is definately progress, it's just that sometimes it doesn't seem like enough). And I just thought, hey, what would happen if I ate the way I used to? So I did. And it was interesting, because everything tasted kind of flat. Not bad, but not that good. And it didn't even really satisfy the cravings.... I ate until I was stuffed, but still wanted more, and it reminded me that when I feel like that, no amount of food is going to cure the cravings, especially not junk food. Raw food doesn't get rid of the cravings either, but it works better than anything else.

So, what would happen if I went back to eating the way I used to? I'd gain back all the weight I've lost, my ankles would be swollen most of the time, I'd feel bloated and sluggish, my skin would go back to looking bad, and most importantly, I'd stop making progress towards being healthy about food.

When I feel like I'm missing a certain taste or texture, I'm learning to just go drink a green smoothie or have something else raw, and then do something that isn't food-related, and eventually I forget about it.

[Lightspirited1]

parsnip:

I think 40 lbs in 5 months is actually quite good! So many people lose a lot slower because of toxins, etc.

And, you're right! Sometimes, you have to stay focused on what RAW does for you and how SAD adds weight, makes you feel awful, etc.

SAD food does begin to taste less and less good... that's a good thing because it's soooo addictive!

I love RAW because of who I am on RAW. It lifts my spirit and makes me want to be better and better. I LOVE grocery shopping now - something I loathed before. Now I am soooo dang proud of what I have in the cart! It's silly, yes, but there are so many good things about RAW. Makes ya just want to shout it out sometimes.:eek:

[Pitaya]

first of all thanks for posting this and big hugs to you ((((((srsarri)))))))))))

i am experiencing exact same thing and REALLY needed to hear all of this today.

let's hang in there.

i used to always say to people it makes life harder not doing it 100% (this is my experience, others are able to do it) - partially because all or nothing but also because of the atmosphere in our bodies we are trying to create. adding one little thing can screw it all up and send us into bingeing on SAD again.

speaking of which, i feel SAD after my binge, *sigh* but am trying to keep my head up. the words here help

[srsarri]

Pitaya,

I am an all or nothing kind of girl too. If I want to go raw I need to go 100% I have been messing around with this for a while now and every time I allow a little cooked I BINGE and I cannot stop myself. I just read your post about french fries. That happened to me today with SAD muffins, I ate more then I ever would have when I wasnt raw.

Ick.

HANG IN THERE!!!!!!!! message me anytime you want!

((((((((((((((HUGS)))))))))))))))))))))))))))

[Lightspirited1]

I love that there's so much support here too.

The thing is about going RAW... we're all still learning and sometimes it's a BIG learning curve.

Plus, what we're losing sight of when 'we' are hard on ourselves for eating something other than RAW is that we're doing something that isn't easy. Going RAW isn't something that is socially common, nor is it something that you can do easily around family, friends, co-workers, etc. easily. Especially at first. Yes, there are folks that have absolutely no problem doing it. Period. That is the minority of people. Soooo PLEASE ... give yourself a very big hug (or pat on the back) and know that this choice you are making isn't the most convenient ... or the easiest... it IS the best thing you'll do for your health and well-being. It's also incredibly good for our environment, etc. WOW! Isn't it great that you are choosing this?!!!:D

Just know you're not alone, and you will make mistakes. The important part is to not make a big deal out of the slip-ups. And (if you can) get over the slip-up quickly and eat raw again. Don't wait for the next day...week...month...next challenge, etc. Do it RIGHT now...

Take it a meal (or snack) at a time, and (as you are doing) seek support as much as you can.

[Lightspirited1]

Pitaya,

I am an all or nothing kind of girl too. If I want to go raw I need to go 100% I have been messing around with this for a while now and every time I allow a little cooked I BINGE and I cannot stop myself. I just read your post about french fries. That happened to me today with SAD muffins, I ate more then I ever would have when I wasnt raw.

Ick.

HANG IN THERE!!!!!!!! message me anytime you want!

((((((((((((((HUGS)))))))))))))))))))))))))))

I agree!!! Some of us do MUCH better on 100%. Myself included. Let's hear it for "all-or-nothings"... LOL

[srsarri]

WOOHOOO "ALL OR NOTHINGS" .... I really don't know if I should be excited about that quality.... LOL. It seems to make my life harder at times!

[Lightspirited1]

WOOHOOO "ALL OR NOTHINGS" .... I really don't know if I should be excited about that quality.... LOL. It seems to make my life harder at times!

I think we should celebrate HOWEVER we are! This is what makes us unique, great, amazing and absolutely perfect the way we are!

I've met so many people that say the same thing... that they had to go "all-or-nothing" to stick to RAW. Perhaps it's simply the way it is, and our perception of that quality that is a bit skewed?

Have a wonderful day!!