Whats wrong with me!!!!

[Aleesha Sattva]

i haven't read the other responses.

this is what i do when i fast. i don't allow myself even a smidge of a smidge of anything. not a lick of my fingers, nothing. that really assists me to keep on track and not end up ending my fast when i didn't really want to.

how about trying that with raw (if it's 100% raw you are aiming for). don't allow that first smidge to enter your lips...

[Arky]

Someone, PLEASE!!!! I just don't understand!!!! I have the will power of a bull, I'm stubborn and disciplined and hard working. Whatever I put my mind to and focus on, I tend to achieve!!

EXCEPT THIS!! I have gone raw and fallen off gone raw and fallen off gone raw and fallen off literally for YEARS!!! I cannot seem to commit 100% for even a week!!! Ive done gourmet raw, raw detox, high carb low fat raw, all banana raw and the result is ALWAYS the same!!! The first frigin day Ill decide "rice isn't that bad" so I have a TINY little concession made.... and before you know it, 6 days later, I have an entire CHEAT DAY..... feel like hell, and START AGAIN.

its driving me crazy! How do some people just decide and DO it? Just go for it! Is it food addiction holding me back? Not enough calories? lack of perseverence, lack of support?!?!

Square peg
Round Hole

You are trying to force your body to conform to a philosophical IDEA that "100% Raw is best"

...but how do you know that that philosophical idea is accurate for your body?

Perhaps your body is trying to tell you something and you're refusing to listen..?

Some people do really well on 100% raw, but not everyone on the planet.

I'm not passing judgment either way - I'm simply saying perhaps it might be worth listening to your body rather than demanding it listens to you?

Remember, good health is not just about diet - it's also about the thoughts one habitually holds in their mind. If one is attempting to attain health by forcibly exerting some sort of 'control' over dietary patterns then I would question the wisdom of that, at least from a psychological health point of view, and possibly also from a physical health point of view, if it becomes clear that one's body (or mind) is not entirely comfortable on a 100% raw diet.

I don't know you personally, but if you happen to know, in yourself, that you may have psychological/emotional 'control issues', then please understand that attempting to control things external to your mind (such as your specific food intake), in order to attain a sense of control over unwanted thoughts or emotions, is a futile approach, doomed to failure. What is required, in order to deal with unwanted thoughts and emotions, is an increase in cognitive awareness so as to be able to witness how one constructs thoughts, beliefs, assumptions, conclusions etc. on a mostly subconscious level, the results of which are conscious thoughts and feelings, some of which may be unpleasant. If you'd like to know more about this, contact me privately and I'll gladly point you in the direction of some helpful resources.


Psychological issues aside, I'd simply suggest one just embrace raw as a health-supportive component of your diet, to whatever degree one comfortably can without psychological discomfort, because as soon as the level of one's inclusion of raw foods in daily life tips over into psychological resistance/obsession/control issues, then it becomes potentially counterproductive for overall health, wholistically-speaking.

50% or 66% or 75% raw with peace of mind and no control issues might be a more logical and wholistic approach, if one clearly struggles with 100% raw. You could try incrementally increasing the percentage of raw in your diet until you reach the edge of your comfort zone, then back off a little.

I did 100% raw for several months before easing back and becoming comfortable with a less strict approach. I still fully appreciate the many benefits of raw foods, on a daily basis.


Each to their own.

I wish you good health, either way.

[namllets]

To Arky....don't beat yourself up over it. I would be kind and gentle, soft and allowing. Focus on adding foods in rather than avoiding certain foods. Make sure you value yourself and where you're headed each time you put something in your mouth. Do it with intention, with meaning. Ask yourself, is the food doing something TO me or something FOR me?

If you go into it with that mindset, you can do nothing but succeed.

[Arky]

To Arky....don't beat yourself up over it. I would be kind and gentle, soft and allowing. Focus on adding foods in rather than avoiding certain foods. Make sure you value yourself and where you're headed each time you put something in your mouth. Do it with intention, with meaning. Ask yourself, is the food doing something TO me or something FOR me?

If you go into it with that mindset, you can do nothing but succeed.

Who, me?

No, I have no problems whatsoever in eating a mixture of cooked and raw foods. In contrast to many in the raw foods community, I don't view raw foods as a magic bullet or as a life philosophy; it's just one component of many that I can incorporate into my life to support my health. Nothing more, nothing less.

Different people are drawn to raw foods for different reasons. Some are drawn to it purely out of an interest in eating a natural wholefoods diet (me), but others are drawn to it for other reasons, such as seeking a socially-acceptable framework within which to mask an eating disorder, or seeking a belief system in which they can feel a greater sense of security (you can't have failed to notice that some treat raw-foodism like a religion, clinging to their beliefs in the supposed 'outright superiority' of raw foods, and to their beliefs in so-called raw-food 'gurus', and defending them as if their very lives depended upon it), or because they genuinely believe it will magically improve any health issue that ails them, or for any of a whole variety of other, disparate, reasons.


Humanbeings are a curiously complex bunch :-)


As I said - each to their own...


All the best

.

[Dimond]

If someone is struggling to be 100% raw for only a few days, it has nothing to do with forcing themselves to do something that isn't for them. You need to give it months or really years before you can determine that and it's more about what they choose to do, than what their body wants.

[MysticTree]

A lot depends on motivation too. Are you trying to do this out of love for yourself or because you loathe yourself? Do you consider raw a gift or a punishment?

[The Sproutarian (Mr Raw)]

Someone, PLEASE!!!! I just don't understand!!!! I have the will power of a bull, I'm stubborn and disciplined and hard working. Whatever I put my mind to and focus on, I tend to achieve!!

EXCEPT THIS!! I have gone raw and fallen off gone raw and fallen off gone raw and fallen off literally for YEARS!!! I cannot seem to commit 100% for even a week!!! Ive done gourmet raw, raw detox, high carb low fat raw, all banana raw and the result is ALWAYS the same!!! The first frigin day Ill decide "rice isn't that bad" so I have a TINY little concession made.... and before you know it, 6 days later, I have an entire CHEAT DAY..... feel like hell, and START AGAIN.

its driving me crazy! How do some people just decide and DO it? Just go for it! Is it food addiction holding me back? Not enough calories? lack of perseverence, lack of support?!?!

Can anyone please please please share their tips for getting on and STAYING ON???? Do you pray first thing in the morning? A mantra? Tell yourself why you're doing this? journal? connect with bloggers daily? any tips....... ill take em.

Does anyone want a raw buddy? Anyone wanna start with me tomorrow? AGAIN

love

e

There are many things you can do, and if you really want to do this there is good information covered in my previous posts. Hint = high amino acid foods. When you stabilize your blood sugar levels you will be free because you won't need to eat the bad foods anymore, even hunger is easy to control. lt's 8pm here and all l have had is green sprout juice and some oranges, no hunger or desire for bad foods....just cruising along, that's how it should be. Personally l believe that one should focus heavily on green sprouts, juices, nuts and sprouted seeds along with chlorella, EFA blue-green algae, kelp and dulse as their main foods. Fenugreek sprouts and chlorella is awesome for stabilizing blood sugar and getting the diet in control. l've said it, now it's up to you.

And yes, powerful mantras does help one stay on much healthier foods, but the mantras MUST have the blessings and magic cast from the higher powers to be effective. lf the cord has been disconnected (l believe in most cases it is) then the mantras will likely not work or be ineffective at best.

l personally think you should avoid the packaged food and fruit until you get the diet under control, but if you don't just make sure you go heavy on the green juices and chlorella.

[ShelShel]

Hummmm, this is deep, for me anyways. I have been at this for 6 years. Two of which I was 100% raw and the rest back forth, up down. My original slide into SAD again began with my husbands job slowing down and me going back to work part time. (47 hours a week) Still not sure how that was part time when I am full time at 40 now, but I digress. LOL Anyway, the stress just got to me. I slid little at a time until I wasn't raw at all. Then the roller coaster started again. Do I not have the willpower? I still go days at a time eating high raw if not 100% raw and then complete days SAD. But I don't feel exactly the way you do. This is my take on it:

I'm learning. I'm learning the skills to handle stress without my crutch....food. I don't drink to excess, haven't ever had a drug in my life (except for prescribed by doctor) I'm aware that food is a joy to me. Seriously. It makes me happy to make a meal that everyone loves to sit around the table and just talk. Coffee to perk me up from lack of sleep because it has been thrown off every now and again by life circumstances. BUT I'm learning.

As a kid did you just ride your bike for the first time? or did you have training wheels? Did you have encouragement that helped?

I find it interesting that we allow ourselves the learning curve as children and just assume that as adults...I'll make the decision and it will just happen.

It isn't enough to know what to do, it is applied knowledge during different circumstances that works. Over time. As learned.

I feel like, I'm learning. I will get back there. Because unlike others who wonder if raw is right for them, I know it is. Those two years raw...my acne cleared (I'm way too old to have this but do), I slept through the night, I lost 63 pounds (when nothing out there helped me do that my entire life) and I was comfortable in my skin. It just worked for me.

Now I'm simply trying to find the way to incorporate it into a life that is not designed for it. So, I make allowances knowing it won't always be this way. It is a season. Not my favorite, but I'm learning and applying knowledge that will get me there. If I Don't Give Up....

How about you? Where are you these days? Hope you are well and still trying. If feels great when you achieve it. Live it. Thrive on Raw!

[Ucat]

If you eat enough, you won't get cravings. Cravings that are difficult to beat are your body telling you that it needs something.

You may also have a mineral deficiency (in fact most people do) and this will cause you to crave certain things. You could do a hair mineral analysis to determine this. But also, drinking large green juices 1-2 times a day will greatly help you to top up your minerals and should help with any cravings as well.

I don't think 100% raw is a good idea in most cases because
1) it is extremely detoxifying, so you will get detox symptoms
2) it is difficult to get enough healthy calories with it
3) it is hard to make such a huge change at once and enjoy what you're doing

Start raw again, but prepare cupboards full of tasty raw treats before you start.... dehydrated kale crisps, water kefir lemonade, frozen chocolate cakes, sprouted millet and quinoa to add to your smoothies for protein, salad dressings, raw pizza ingredients, probiotic nut cheeses, and of course plenty of greens for the green juices!

If it is rice that you mostly crave for, include some cooked quinoa in your diet. And make a raw dressing for it. You can marinate mushrooms and onions to make nice, cooked-like sauce with olive oil etc.

Also, always have fruit juice handy, even if it is pasteurized (just make sure that it is real juice, with no added sugar or chemicals), so that you can drink it when you get hungry. Especially pineapple juice has plenty of good kinds of calories, which will help you beat cravings.

Make sure you enjoy the foods you eat. Make sure you eat enough - on a raw food diet it is important to eat MUCH MORE than on a normal diet because the foods generally are less calorie-dense.

You can get much more results much more quickly by transitioning slowly, than trying to be 100% straight away.

Hope this helps!

Ucat

PS. Food intolerances can also cause cravings - Dr. Coca's Pulse Test allows you to check for food allergies by measuring your pulse at home. Google it, his (short) book is available to download for free.
_____________________________________________

High raw or 100% raw: http://www.cheap-health-revolution.com/100-raw.html
How to succeed on a raw food diet: http://www.cheap-health-revolution.c...food-diet.html
Food intolerance test: http://www.cheap-health-revolution.c...tolerance.html

[damaru]

I believe in you. I personally think essential advice here is, as soon as you start beating yourself up....STOP!!!!