Craving for complex starchy carbs (ie: oatmeal, potatoe)

[ray34iyf]

Hey guys,

I've been doing well on this diet but have had a few annoyances so to speak. The past few days I've had to eat a few servings of oatmeal/potato etc.. or I feel terrible. For example last night. I got up in the middle of the night and felt lightheaded, sickly, weak. I was craving something like oatmeal to make it go away. I had a bowl of raw oatmeal with some cinnamon and felt great afterwords. Is this just part of my body acclimating? Is it ok to have moderate amounts of these starchy carbs so I don't feel bad?

Any advice?

Thanks.

[nadien alexandra]

I am not so sure.

it could be that you are lacking something in your diet, and your personal history of such lack/craving has satisfied it with starchy carbs Like Oatmeal and Potatoes.

Maybe if you look into what this lack is, you can fulfill it with better choices.

also, I've found that a great sub. for Oatmeal is flax meal (with a bit of water or even better with chai tea) with some hemp hearts in it, and a few other seeds. I also add the cinnamon and some honey and raisins.

[walnutty]

Are you eating enough? :confused:

[ray34iyf]

as far as what I've been eating in the few weeks I've been eating this way:

2-3 green smoothies:
one consists of a few handfuls of spinach, handful of kale or romaine.. and sometimes celery or cucumbers with 2 bananas, frozen blackberries, and an apple.

.5-1 cup sunflower seeds

raw natural honey

a handful of almonds

.5-1 cup raw/soaked quinoa


I'm also in withdrawal from 20mg of Celexa that I was on for a few years, so that fluctuating levels of serotonin could be causing inconsistency.

[ray34iyf]

Also, I should say that I downloaded a Crono-meter and have a tough time getting enough calcium and get virtually no vitamin B-12. Everything else is fine.

[snoops]

I would say you are not getting enough calories based on that list.

[passionpulp]

Seems like you're eating a lot of fat. A half a cup of sunflower+a handful of almonds might be too much. A good amount is 2-4 tablespoons of sunflower seeds, or about ten almonds. But other than that, you're pretty goo. If you have a craving for something starchy. Have a banana. If you're not okay with having grains so much, that's a good alternative.

[ray34iyf]

Cool. thanks for the answers guys. I have counted calories for the past few weeks and I'm eating roughly 2200 kcalories per day. I'm a smaller dude 5'9'' 150lbs... and eating this much has pretty much maintained my weight.

I thought that I might be eating too much fat. I'll cut back on that and see what happens.

[snoops]

I would say you are not getting enough calories based on that list.

Opps - I read only one green smoothie. 2200 cals seems enough:)

[Stina]

Unlike a lot of other raw foodists, I'm pro grain. I went a long time not eating them, experimented with them again and feel better with them, but everyone is different. I've seen some raw foodists target and heal specific health problems with careful use of grains.

[walnutty]

Unlike a lot of other raw foodists, I'm pro grain. I went a long time not eating them, experimented with them again and feel better with them, but everyone is different. I've seen some raw foodists target and heal specific health problems with careful use of grains.

Stina,

I am interested in how you are pro grain.

What do you use? How do you use it in recipes?...etc.

Thank you!

[modernmonkey]

From what I understand and have experienced, fruit can satiate ALL cravings of any kind (though you must have your daily quota of protein and greens regardless). Whenever I have a craving I eat fruit until it goes away, as much fruit as it takes. This is why I am on a predominantly fruit diet. And even though I eat as much fruit as I need to prevent hunger/cravings I easily do not exceed my daily calorie allowance. I believe something that appears to be 'a craving' is simply the body asking for nutrition and fruit can provide the majority of nutrients. I am taking vit D and b12 supplements until I am more experienced in finding enough the natural way.

[nadien alexandra]

modernmonkey.

If you have eliminated, as you say, all of your cravings with fruit, and other things like greens and supplements, this means you are giving your body the proper nutrition and are not deficient.
I am wondering, what B12 supplement you are taking to not be deficient in B12, as I am reading a lot lately that most B12 supplements are not the kind that the body can absorb.

[modernmonkey]

Hi there. I have been recording my foods using fitday.com. Before supplements I was consistently scoring very low on my Vitamin D, Iron, Calcium and B12 RDA. Having a good read around I was starting to learn that these deficiencies are common in raw food diets.

VITAMIN D- from what I understand exposure to the sun is the only other way. Until the Spring I suppose I need a supplement.

IRON- I should be able to get my iron RDA but I am struggling with my greens and trying to find ways to up them that I can manage. Until then I am taking a supplement.

CALCIUM- I am not supplementing this although I am falling short daily. Again I hope to up my greens to solve this one.

B12- B12 is the only concern I have over a raw food diet. I have yet to find the excuse for endorsing a raw food diet when B12 seems impossible to include.

I am just taking a supermarket bought Multi-vitamins with Iron. It has the RDA for most nutrients including B12. What do you think of that promise? Is it reliable? Keen to hear your opinions being new to this.

[walnutty]

I take this raw, organic product to make sure I get enough B vitamins:

http://www.rawguru.com/store/raw-food/living-vitamin-b-nano-plex-2-oz.html