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mark4sen
12-25-2009, 07:22 AM
Hi everybody,

First of all I would like to say that I am relatively new to this particular lifestyle and I am very interested in the positive effects of the raw food diet on my sports performance. I have been a vegan for quite a while and I have tried to make the transition slowly to a raw food lifestyle after reading loads of texts on how to do it right. I came across some problems actually and this is my first attempt to gather some information from people who have real life experience with this kind of thing.

I started with making smoothies based on hempseed and apples in the morning as breakfast every day, and gradually adding more raw components to my meals every day. This to the point I ate 90% raw everyday and only cooked some potatoes in the evening for a week. I had a bad expierence at some point that I did not have enough energy to swim anymore. I would like to tell you I swim for an average of 4 kilometres a day and travel a lot with my bike also. After the week on the 90 percent raw I felt my muscles hurt a lot, and I felt like I was burning protein as a fuel. I was afraid I was losing muscle-mass and I started cooking food again, eating uncontrollable and feeling sick.

My questions are actually:

- How do you know if you are eating enough? I was having trouble with eating so much fruit to serve my need for carbohydrates. I ate a lot of dried dates en apricots also. But when I calculated the amount of calories I consumed I came out on 1400 kilocalories a day. I know it's about the amount of carbohydrates in grams, but it seemed very low for my standards.
- What kind of tips do you usually give for an rawfood athlete? What is a good source for advice on creating meal plans for endurance sportsmen?
- What was I probally doing wrong to end up on the cooked foods diet again?
- Can someone post an example meal plan for a competition swimmer? I do a lot of sprinting and previously did very well of pastas and rice as a source of complex carbohydrates.
- What is a good source of complex carbohydrates in a raw food diet?
- What can you recommend to read for me?

Thank in advance for helping me out!

freshlight
12-25-2009, 08:38 AM
double post

freshlight
12-25-2009, 08:38 AM
- What can you recommend to read for me?

Dr. N. Walker's books,

Storm Taliferos site:

thegardendiet.com

Tim VanOrden's site:

http://www.runningraw.com/

Enjoy the raw power, it does only work when you go 100% raw imo. Welcome to the RFT :)

Revvell
12-25-2009, 08:40 AM
The best people I can point to who train on a regular basis ~ Tim VanOrden and Storm Talifero. All are raw athletes; Tim being competitive. Oh! Freshlight and I were typing at the same time I see. :D

freshlight
12-25-2009, 08:57 AM
Oh! Freshlight and I were typing at the same time I see. :D

funny we got the same thoughts on that one :)

mizmoo
01-18-2010, 03:17 PM
I'm a long distance runner and mostly raw. I eat a fair amount of nuts, I can't train without bananas before and after (great for potassium). I add hemp seeds, flax seeds and dulse (a seaweed) to my post work out smoothies Sweet potato chips might help you (cut them fine and dehydrate them) for complex carbs and dark leafy green veg, can't get enough of that.

But i still don't think I have it exactly right and am not 100 percent raw.

My main problem is that living out of a sport bag means I don't always have access to blenders and kitchens to prepare stuff and eat it immediately.

If you have any tips it would be great to hear them!

irene45
01-18-2010, 08:06 PM
- How do you know if you are eating enough?

Failure to thrive generally indicates if you're not eating enough. Excessive fatigue, muscle weakness. Slow recovery, a general slowing down of processes.

- What kind of tips do you usually give for an rawfood athlete? What is a good source for advice on creating meal plans for endurance sportsmen?

It seems you have a good plan now, eating intuitively, following your individual needs.

- What was I probally doing wrong to end up on the cooked foods diet again?

Not eating enough carbs. Fruit is great but for the amount of carb-fueled exercise your doing, on top of having to run the usual bodily processes of digestion and healing, its just not enough. A sense of deprivation takes over and your brain sends a message to fill its stores, one way or another. This urge overrides any order or preoccupations you might have with food, to just eat and eat.

- Can someone post an example meal plan for a competition swimmer? I do a lot of sprinting and previously did very well of pastas and rice as a source of complex carbohydrates.
- What is a good source of complex carbohydrates in a raw food diet?

Since both those options are not fitting within a raw food regime, the best thing for you would be Maca powder. If you don't already consume it, it is a root similar looking to beetroot, that has been powdered. It is loaded with minerals, carbohydrates, proteins and phytochemicals. It has a normalizing effect on the body, especially the master glands which means energy expenditure would be balanced and recovery faster, due to enhanced hormone function. Since it's a powder it mixes well in plain water or in smoothies, and requires no preparation. You can just carry it around with you with a scooper to add pre and post workout, replenishing your muscles with minerals and carbs.

- What can you recommend to read for me?

http://www.raw-chocolate.net/superfoods.php?ancient-superfood=maca

Amy Bass
02-04-2010, 10:10 AM
Read Dr. Doug Graham's book
Nutrition and Athletic Performance (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1893831086?ie=UTF8&tag=myhealthgoal-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1893831086)
He goes into great detail about the ways a raw diet can enhance your performance in sports or other training exercises.

RawHealthyBeauty
02-04-2010, 11:33 AM
I've been reading alot about maca powder lately and came across this post.
I been thinking to get myself some.
First, I'm going to try it from someone I know that I bought a big batch for and see how it goes!
If I love it, then I might post about it at some point somewhere on here!! :D