Bad (bad) cravings

[timetochange]

Oh, I'm so excited to be starting raw. But everytime I try, I get hit with very (very) strong cravings for cooked food within the first day! For example, today I had my raw fruit breakfast. Within an hour, I couldn't stop thinking about bacon and eggs. Ridiculous. Then I felt slightly nauseous and I was convinced if I just had bacon and eggs I'd feel totally better. In fact, the thought of more fruit (or even veggies) to ward off the hunger made me feel yucky. How can I get past this?

[VeganVixen]

I know how you feel (not about the bacon or eggs, no offense but I hate breakfast food-yuck! ,but sometimes especially during detox ,veggies and fruit dont sound TOO attractive)

so I make myself miso soup or eat dried nori or dulse ;)

[misslinda]

Fristly, congrats on your willpower to stick with it and resolve the infamous cravaing attacks !!!!!

Have you considered doing a more grain and nut type of breakfast since you were use to doing eggs and bacon.

I know Alissa's has mock chicken fingers on her site!

[VeganVixen]

yes , I agree with M.L. , you might also try tempeh , its not RAW but it is LIVING (same with miso) , cut it into strips ,add seasoning or a raw bbq sauce ,then dehydrate :)

[sweetgoddess]

Oh, I experienced this for the last 3 days.....this is my second time going raw and it happened the first time also.
And when I am feeling that detox headache etc, my mind tells me if I just eat something cooked I will feel better instantly. But that is an illusion truly. I mean what is being detoxed out is what is lying just under the surface, ready to come out in colds, flus etc.
The first 3 days I found the hardest for cravings and mindchatter. You have to make it through this challenging time.

How I do this is reading about raw, gluing myself to this forum, eating all the raw food I want, drinking a ton of water, napping and renapping, writing in my journal, talking about what I am experiencing to my family and my raw buddy, visualizing the future, contemplating/meditating and also by trying to understand what detox is.

It is work for sure getting past the cravings and impulses. BUt it is so worth it. The other side is FABULOUS!

Keep talking to us, you CAN do this.

Warmly~

[VeganVixen]

Oh, I experienced this for the last 3 days.....this is my second time going raw and it happened the first time also.
And when I am feeling that detox headache etc, my mind tells me if I just eat something cooked I will feel better instantly. But that is an illusion truly. I mean what is being detoxed out is what is lying just under the surface, ready to come out in colds, flus etc.
The first 3 days I found the hardest for cravings and mindchatter. You have to make it through this challenging time.

How I do this is reading about raw, gluing myself to this forum, eating all the raw food I want, drinking a ton of water, napping and renapping, writing in my journal, talking about what I am experiencing to my family and my raw buddy, visualizing the future, contemplating/meditating and also by trying to understand what detox is.

It is work for sure getting past the cravings and impulses. BUt it is so worth it. The other side is FABULOUS!

Keep talking to us, you CAN do this.

Warmly~

Very well said , you ALWAYS say the right things Sweetgoddess :)

[Shona]

yes , I agree with M.L. , you might also try tempeh , its not RAW but it is LIVING (same with miso) , cut it into strips ,add seasoning or a raw bbq sauce ,then dehydrate :)

Is it safe to eat tempeh this way?

I have a tempeh cookbook that says if you aren't using the tempeh in a dish that is being cooked for a while, then you have to steam it for at least 20 minutes before eating it.

I've always assumed the steaming was done specifically to make the product digestable.

Shona :)

[Sweet lips]

I had to edit this - it is for Timeforachange - oops - Shona, there must be something special for you today - ;)

Oh do great minds think a like. Our minds are so strong and they resist change. Your heart may be there, but your mind has to catch up to it.
Change itself is hard - it is not that changing our eating patterns is hard for us. it's that change itself is hard. The mind itself resists change. It is much easier to stay in the realm of the known than to brave the risks involved with charting new waters.

We are creatures of habit. A wise man told me that anything you do for 30 days in a row becomes a habit and that habits once formed, are hard to break. This principal usually works against us, but we have the opportunity to use it for us if we so choose.

The cravings will come unless something is put there to change it - on the website: www.fromsadtoraw.com, under the breakfast recipes, "not bacon" made out of eggplant is wonderful. The umshe(?) plum vinegar and I add a little liquid smoke ( I am not a purist), and dehydrate - ummm good. I look for replacements that help me a long until I reach there of a simple raw fruit and veggie, seed and nut diet - I ain't there yet, and don't know if I will ever stop making the "gourmet" type.

Alissa is so right about the infamous fudge ball, I ate those things every day for about a month until I could eat them no more, but it helped abate my cravings for so many different foods. Although vegetarian, I liked fried stuff -I tell people all the time, there is no shame in my game - I just tell it, because I like salt and crunch, so I have recipes for onion rings, fries, and the like that satisfy that craving - remember it was crunch and salt, and a little dab does it for me. when it is cheese, I got a recipe for that, and that was the smoothness and salt - do you catch my line of thinking - I liked salt, and once I could isolate what I am missing, I can work from there.

I am proud of you, that although you had the craving, you acknowledged it, but it appears you did not give into it and that is progress. Congratulate yourself for that. I hope you have a great day.

[Shona]

Just so there is no confusion, I am pretty sure Sweet Lips' last post was for Time To Change and not me. LOL

Shona :)

[tames]

Stick with it timetochange! Tomorrow I am 2 weeks raw. It is amazing how much we are addicted to cooked food not to mention the pressures from society. Are you having withdrawal from anything else along with cooked food? What I mean is coffee or soda pop. I was addicted to diet soda (with caffeine). This made the transition even more difficult - much more so than meat.

Your craving for breakfast may be a "salt" crave. Bacon is very salty. Do you have a juicer? (Mine just broke !sob!). One of the Twelve Steps to going raw that Victoria Boutenko describes is that you must obtain the necessary skills and equipment to do this (Step 3). Do you have a food processor?, dehydrator (still waiting for mine to be delivered)? I found that I really liked a carrot juice in the morning. It gave me a boost, and just tasted good. It is not too sweet like a bannana. After a half hour or so I would eat some fruit. You may want to try a tomato/carrot juice (kind of like a V8) with some salt in it to see if that helps.

Last night I just had to have something salty. So I made Alissa's Stuffed Portabella Mushrooms. I intentionally made it salty since that is what my body wanted. I had just finished some aerobic exercise and was sweating alot. Listen to your body and try to get to the root of why you have a certain craving. Bacon - could be salt. Sweet - could be calcium (it has a sweet flavor).

I have also had a strong onion crave lately, so I put a lot of onion in the guacamole. Not sure what that one means :)

One extra note: If I am not mistaken, much of the processed, prepackaged food contains a lot of sodium. I think our body has become accustomed to that. Remember to use celctic sea salt.

--Tim

[skeenan37]

Tames: I am reading Alissa's book right now in preparation to go raw. My biggest fear: GIVING UP COFFEE!!! I down the stuff! I have severe withdrawls even when I try to lighten up on it a bit. Headaches, sick to my stomach, very lethargic.

About the cravings....it seems to me (keep in mind this is coming from someone who has not started the diet yet ) that there is enough raw food recipies in Alissa's book that would replace some of the foods I may crave. Is this so????? (Please say yes)

sk

[sweetgoddess]

skeenan~

A BIG GIANT YES!! ;)
Truly, her book is big and bursting, you'll love it.

I wanted to let you know, that for days I woke up groggy, grouchy, headachy, mucousy, and had to make my husbands coffee and smell it drifting through the air, oh so tauntingly.
I guzzled water instead, the minute my eyes opened. It was tempting!

Today though, I am very excited, because I woke up and was wide awake and feel so great. I made it past the caffeine withdrawal and it feels GOOD. You can do it also.

Yes you can! Dont fear it, it feels so darned good without it!
Bless your path ahead :)

[Jackie1995]

I had read somewhere that until your body gets rid of all the stuff its digesting, you'll feel "hunger". That's why some folks start raw with a cleanse of some sort, usually involving lemon.

That was the case with me. My first step was a cleanse, then a day's fast, then juicing to get myself comfortable. So far, so good: no hunger (I eat when I want to), no cravings (that's GOTTA be pure luck!) and I feel really fabulous.

Just a thought, Timetochange, and I hope everything goes great for you.

Remember: have fun!

Jackie

[VeganVixen]

I dehydrate my tempeh and have NEVER felt bad ,but I dont eat it alot .....