People have gotten so caught up in the world of dieting that its becoming pretty messed up. Some of the diets are so extreme that its ridiculous and we hear all these new ways of losing weight and staying slim and yet often we ignore the most reliable source of information on what our bodies....the only experts on what works for us is ourselves.
We should not look at the certain way we eat as a diet, because then it becomes a negative fixation. Raw food isn't a diet, it is simply a way of eating and if you choose to see it as another one of hundreds of ways of eating the that is entirely up to you. And although I am telling you about raw food and that it is a very healthy, conscious and amazing way to live, the only one you should listen to is yourself.
Everyone is different, so no that miracle diet that works for everyone is lying. That is impossible we are all so different that no two bodies are the same. And starving yourself in an attempt to lose weight is even more ridiculous than some of those diets (though sadly a lot of diets involve that process). Whilst it may work in the short term, it is doing significant damage in the long run. It is such an unhealthy way to be and is so destructive on your organs. Not to mention it affects the appearance of your hair, skin, nails etc. If you are going to have something that is 'bad', enjoy it once and move on because omitting it back up because you did the wrong thing and bashing yourself up over it is much worse overall then whatever you might have had.
Have food that makes you happy and feel good. If you emotionally eat don't repetitively give yourself a hard time over it, work out what it is and why you are choosing food to deal with it. Everyone has different ways of dealing with things and for some people they do that through food. Raw food is not often dense and heavy and has high amounts of 'life' in it compared to heavily processed foods. In this way it can be healing for the body.
This is why at first it is good to keep it quite simple and easy. The body takes time to adjust and if you have spent a lot of your life eating a majority processed foods then it will take time and chances are you will get detox symptoms. Some people might prefer to go head first into the quite complex recipes and that's fine. But often we need time to adjust to a new lifestyle.
Whatever your choices may be in life don't bash yourself up over them and whilst outside opinions and information can help, rely only on yourself to know what is best for you.
Tuesday, 25 September 2012
Saturday, 9 June 2012
Don't Go Nuts
It's important to play around with recipes and get creative. There are some amazing dishes out there. But it is also important to be aware of the things you are eating. Going on a high raw diet is beneficial but there are things you have to watch out for.
Some of the more gourmet recipes can be quite heavy on the nuts. Whilst using almonds, cashews etc can allow you to do a lot of different things and create textures, it is important not to over do them. Nuts are a good source of protein however they also contain fat. The fat isn't bad in itself and we all need a little, but in high doses obviously it will have a negative impact. So don't go overboard with the recipes that contain nuts because they can also be hard on the digestive system. Nuts are a quite 'heavy' and dense food. It is OK to have some every now and then but again its all about balance.
You can still have meals without them that are filling. Play around until you find something that works for you. You can substitute nuts for seeds or even a vegetable sometimes that would work as a base in recipes. Even raw and soaked, too many nuts can work against you. The recipes heavy on the nuts almost need to be an occasional food and don't think that its the only way to do things. A salad dish does not have to be boring or unsatisfying.
Mix it up and experiment and don't be afraid of doing it a little differently.
Some of the more gourmet recipes can be quite heavy on the nuts. Whilst using almonds, cashews etc can allow you to do a lot of different things and create textures, it is important not to over do them. Nuts are a good source of protein however they also contain fat. The fat isn't bad in itself and we all need a little, but in high doses obviously it will have a negative impact. So don't go overboard with the recipes that contain nuts because they can also be hard on the digestive system. Nuts are a quite 'heavy' and dense food. It is OK to have some every now and then but again its all about balance.
You can still have meals without them that are filling. Play around until you find something that works for you. You can substitute nuts for seeds or even a vegetable sometimes that would work as a base in recipes. Even raw and soaked, too many nuts can work against you. The recipes heavy on the nuts almost need to be an occasional food and don't think that its the only way to do things. A salad dish does not have to be boring or unsatisfying.
Mix it up and experiment and don't be afraid of doing it a little differently.
Monday, 4 June 2012
Make it your choice
Don't be too hard on yourself!
Your diet shouldn't be something that is difficult or hard to fit around your lifestyle. Eating raw should not be a challenge. If you don't want to or can't be 100% raw then don't. There is so much hype/stress around what we eat when there isn't a need to be. As weird as it sounds people need to have a healthy relationship with their bodies and what they eat. Food is energy, in the literal sense and in the more hippy/out there sense. Everything carries a vibration and how we feel about the food we are eating as an impact on how our bodies will digest it. So if you are viewing your food with hate that is what you will be eating.....hate. Even just changing your thinking about food can have positive effects.
You don't have to be a hardcore raw foodist to enjoy the benefits and it is certainly not about putting yourself on a pedestal above others because you eat a raw diet. Everybody has a choice and we need to learn to respect people's choices even when they differ, and sometimes dramatically so, from our own. Label shouldn't matter.
A lot of the foods that we eat today are quite acidic. Everything that has been change and processed from its original state becomes acidic. This includes foods like sugar, cereals, meat, dairy etc. This is why it is important to eat a lot of raw foods. Fresh foods are alkaline, the more alkaline our bodies are the less stress there is on our system. Even foods that are sour and acidic like citrus fruits actually end up alkalising when they are digested. Having a high raw diet can help with some age-related diseases because of its alkaline nature. Whereas acidic foods can speed up the effect of ageing because of the stress it puts on the kidneys and other organs.Raw works well because it is more natural and sits better in the sense that we are living beings and so obviously a diet how in living foods is going to be beneficial. That's how I see it (Though just to be clear when I talk about raw food I'm not talking raw meat or eggs etc!)
As a personal challenge I went 100% raw for three months. It was great however going 100% raw wasn't necessarily what was right for me. I still eat about 90% raw most of the time and I have found that the 90/10% balance works for me and that's OK. What ever you choose has to be right for you. You have to be comfortable with you choice. Don't try and fit your lifestyle or around your diet., fit your diet around what works for you. Judge on what foods are right for you by how they make you feel when you eat them. When I eat dairy products I often feel sick and my body doesn't handle it well and so I avoid having it because that's what is right for me. Regardless of whether people tell me I need to eat it for calcium or as a source of protein I still don't. It isn't right for me and that's how we should go about how diets, by finding what fits. While I think raw food is a great way to eat I try not to shove the idea in other peoples faces because it isn't my right to tell people what they should eat. The only person you need to think and worry about is yourself.
Your diet shouldn't be something that is difficult or hard to fit around your lifestyle. Eating raw should not be a challenge. If you don't want to or can't be 100% raw then don't. There is so much hype/stress around what we eat when there isn't a need to be. As weird as it sounds people need to have a healthy relationship with their bodies and what they eat. Food is energy, in the literal sense and in the more hippy/out there sense. Everything carries a vibration and how we feel about the food we are eating as an impact on how our bodies will digest it. So if you are viewing your food with hate that is what you will be eating.....hate. Even just changing your thinking about food can have positive effects.
You don't have to be a hardcore raw foodist to enjoy the benefits and it is certainly not about putting yourself on a pedestal above others because you eat a raw diet. Everybody has a choice and we need to learn to respect people's choices even when they differ, and sometimes dramatically so, from our own. Label shouldn't matter.
A lot of the foods that we eat today are quite acidic. Everything that has been change and processed from its original state becomes acidic. This includes foods like sugar, cereals, meat, dairy etc. This is why it is important to eat a lot of raw foods. Fresh foods are alkaline, the more alkaline our bodies are the less stress there is on our system. Even foods that are sour and acidic like citrus fruits actually end up alkalising when they are digested. Having a high raw diet can help with some age-related diseases because of its alkaline nature. Whereas acidic foods can speed up the effect of ageing because of the stress it puts on the kidneys and other organs.Raw works well because it is more natural and sits better in the sense that we are living beings and so obviously a diet how in living foods is going to be beneficial. That's how I see it (Though just to be clear when I talk about raw food I'm not talking raw meat or eggs etc!)
As a personal challenge I went 100% raw for three months. It was great however going 100% raw wasn't necessarily what was right for me. I still eat about 90% raw most of the time and I have found that the 90/10% balance works for me and that's OK. What ever you choose has to be right for you. You have to be comfortable with you choice. Don't try and fit your lifestyle or around your diet., fit your diet around what works for you. Judge on what foods are right for you by how they make you feel when you eat them. When I eat dairy products I often feel sick and my body doesn't handle it well and so I avoid having it because that's what is right for me. Regardless of whether people tell me I need to eat it for calcium or as a source of protein I still don't. It isn't right for me and that's how we should go about how diets, by finding what fits. While I think raw food is a great way to eat I try not to shove the idea in other peoples faces because it isn't my right to tell people what they should eat. The only person you need to think and worry about is yourself.
Monday, 30 April 2012
Diets, raw food and loving yourself
There are a lot of diets out there. I mean any food you can imagine and they probably have a diet around it! There are low carbs/high protein, diets and then diets that cut out almost everything and have you living on one or two things. Some work, some don't.
Cutting out key nutrients and barely eating anything may help you lose weight quickly however it is not healthy in the long run. You start wasting away and you can do a lot of damage to your body and internal organs. If you are losing weight it should take time (which means you are going about it in a healthy way) and you have to have patience.
It is all about balance. Exercising, eating well and perhaps most importantly loving yourself. You aren't going to get anywhere if you can't accept who you are. Also sitting there eating something unhealthy and complaining that you can't lose weight wont do anything. Honour yourself enough to get up and look after your body. Quit bashing it and start loving it.
Diets that deprive you body of something it needs will not work in the long run and it is abusing your body. Which we should all be thankful for. We are incredible beings that are capable of incredible things, that we are able to do because of our physical bodies.
Happiness shouldn't be related to how much you weigh because otherwise, when will you be happy? When you get to your goal will your life drastically improve? Will it actually be enough or are you eventually going to be unsatisfied with how much you weigh and try and lose more again? And if you are doing it for your partner because they think you'll look better or say they will love you more then no offence but they probably didn't love you that much in the first place. Especially if a condition of them loving you is how much you weigh or how skinny you are. Partners should be the ones that love and support you, not matter how you look or what your goal is. Besides often the ones we try to impress by looking a certain way are the ones that will most likely end up being the ones that see us at our 'worst'. (Which isn't really our worst just us not trying to be 'something' for someone or society)
Raw food is a great way to look after our physical bodies (or maybe I'm just biased!). Even if we are not 100% raw there are a lot of benefits to eating a lot of fresh foods. The nutrients are still there and often it is a lot easier for our bodies to digest. Though there are a few exceptions, foods that may benefit from a little cooking. Also for some people raw food can be hard on their digestive system if its not up to strength. So it is all about finding something that works for you. Don't follow a diet, foods that make you feel good and that you know your body can handle. There is no point going on a diet with a food that you don't like or makes you feel slightly sick. And of course everything needs to be in balance.
Try to make a habit of when you are eating to really concentrate on the food, be aware of what you are eating and to be positive about the food as well. As crazy as that may sound).
We are unique for a reason, don't waste time trying to be like someone else. Find you and celebrate what makes you different.
Cutting out key nutrients and barely eating anything may help you lose weight quickly however it is not healthy in the long run. You start wasting away and you can do a lot of damage to your body and internal organs. If you are losing weight it should take time (which means you are going about it in a healthy way) and you have to have patience.
It is all about balance. Exercising, eating well and perhaps most importantly loving yourself. You aren't going to get anywhere if you can't accept who you are. Also sitting there eating something unhealthy and complaining that you can't lose weight wont do anything. Honour yourself enough to get up and look after your body. Quit bashing it and start loving it.
Diets that deprive you body of something it needs will not work in the long run and it is abusing your body. Which we should all be thankful for. We are incredible beings that are capable of incredible things, that we are able to do because of our physical bodies.
Happiness shouldn't be related to how much you weigh because otherwise, when will you be happy? When you get to your goal will your life drastically improve? Will it actually be enough or are you eventually going to be unsatisfied with how much you weigh and try and lose more again? And if you are doing it for your partner because they think you'll look better or say they will love you more then no offence but they probably didn't love you that much in the first place. Especially if a condition of them loving you is how much you weigh or how skinny you are. Partners should be the ones that love and support you, not matter how you look or what your goal is. Besides often the ones we try to impress by looking a certain way are the ones that will most likely end up being the ones that see us at our 'worst'. (Which isn't really our worst just us not trying to be 'something' for someone or society)
Raw food is a great way to look after our physical bodies (or maybe I'm just biased!). Even if we are not 100% raw there are a lot of benefits to eating a lot of fresh foods. The nutrients are still there and often it is a lot easier for our bodies to digest. Though there are a few exceptions, foods that may benefit from a little cooking. Also for some people raw food can be hard on their digestive system if its not up to strength. So it is all about finding something that works for you. Don't follow a diet, foods that make you feel good and that you know your body can handle. There is no point going on a diet with a food that you don't like or makes you feel slightly sick. And of course everything needs to be in balance.
Try to make a habit of when you are eating to really concentrate on the food, be aware of what you are eating and to be positive about the food as well. As crazy as that may sound).
We are unique for a reason, don't waste time trying to be like someone else. Find you and celebrate what makes you different.
Wednesday, 21 March 2012
As I mentioned in a previous blog raw food doesn't have to be carrot and celery sticks. The same creativity you use decorating a cake you use to make a raw dish. Its about letting go of limitations and just learning to combine the ingredients in another way.
As ridiculous as it sounds you just have not not be afraid of trying new things. Some people when it comes to cooking are afraid of trying new things.Making raw food is just about learn new skills and sometimes you do make mistakes (trust me I know!). Most people are brought up where most meals are cooked and so its about moving away from that.
To me making mistakes is one of the best parts of preparing food, there is something rather fun about standing there in the kitchen surrounded by cocoa because you forgot to put the lid on the blender.
It takes time sometimes to move away from standard recipes and learn how to do raw food. I like starting by trying to reinvent classic recipes like; spaghetti and cake cake and ones that we grew up with because its fantastic when they work out!
And as long as you balance your diet you still get all the nutrition you need (regardless of what people say!) Often the things we cook are not that beneficial for us any way (like meat!)
The thing I aim for most when making recipes is not to make it boring, even when its something simple like a salad try not to make it all green, throw some colour in there!
As ridiculous as it sounds you just have not not be afraid of trying new things. Some people when it comes to cooking are afraid of trying new things.Making raw food is just about learn new skills and sometimes you do make mistakes (trust me I know!). Most people are brought up where most meals are cooked and so its about moving away from that.
To me making mistakes is one of the best parts of preparing food, there is something rather fun about standing there in the kitchen surrounded by cocoa because you forgot to put the lid on the blender.
And as long as you balance your diet you still get all the nutrition you need (regardless of what people say!) Often the things we cook are not that beneficial for us any way (like meat!)
The thing I aim for most when making recipes is not to make it boring, even when its something simple like a salad try not to make it all green, throw some colour in there!
Monday, 12 March 2012
Why Raw?
When I tell people about raw food I get a lot of blank looks or the 'is she crazy?' face. Even though the concept is quite simple...you don't cook the food!.....it challenges people's perceptions and ideas about the food we eat.
A question I often get asked is "Well what do you eat?"
Well there are a lot of things I can eat. Raw food isn't boring or just about eating carrot sticks for days on end (unless you really like carrots!) You just need to be creative, just liking people learn to cook, its as simple as learning to make stuff just without the oven.
People also don't realise that yes you can get decents amounts of protein and iron and amino acids etc. They just happen to not come from an animal. Eating raw food, if you balance your diets, can actually make it easier for you to get these things. This is because cooking denatures proteins, essentially making them useless. It also greatly decreases the amount of nurtrients and enzymes in foods. This happens because when you cook the food the proteins and nutrients lose their structure and their structure is one of the main reasons our body is able to utilize them. Just like if our bones didn't have structure then we would have a hard time of trying....well basically anything....we wouldn't be able to function properly just like the proteins and enzymes when cooked. So the saying that you can only get enough protein from meat is quite silly in my opinion, as cooking destroys a lot of the protein in meat and you can get it else where.
Like I said before raw food does not have to be boring, you just need to get creative. There are recipies for tacos, pizzas, cakes, ice-cream etc and even really nice non-boring salads! So no I don't only eat carrot and celery sticks!
A question I often get asked is "Well what do you eat?"
Well there are a lot of things I can eat. Raw food isn't boring or just about eating carrot sticks for days on end (unless you really like carrots!) You just need to be creative, just liking people learn to cook, its as simple as learning to make stuff just without the oven.
People also don't realise that yes you can get decents amounts of protein and iron and amino acids etc. They just happen to not come from an animal. Eating raw food, if you balance your diets, can actually make it easier for you to get these things. This is because cooking denatures proteins, essentially making them useless. It also greatly decreases the amount of nurtrients and enzymes in foods. This happens because when you cook the food the proteins and nutrients lose their structure and their structure is one of the main reasons our body is able to utilize them. Just like if our bones didn't have structure then we would have a hard time of trying....well basically anything....we wouldn't be able to function properly just like the proteins and enzymes when cooked. So the saying that you can only get enough protein from meat is quite silly in my opinion, as cooking destroys a lot of the protein in meat and you can get it else where.
Like I said before raw food does not have to be boring, you just need to get creative. There are recipies for tacos, pizzas, cakes, ice-cream etc and even really nice non-boring salads! So no I don't only eat carrot and celery sticks!
Sunday, 11 March 2012
Concious Eating
How many people these days actually take time out to enjoy the food they are eating? There aren't a whole lot of people that are actually concious of the food they are eating. When we are in a rush we throw things together and eat it.
How can we have a good relationship with our bodies when we don't take the time to aknowledge what we are putting in it.
When we aren't conscious what we are doing in terms of food, it also effects what we buy when we go to supermarkets. There is so much packaged foods that actually have little resemblance to anything actually good for us. It is sad because parents then pass taht habit on to their children and we then have another generation of people who aren' making conscious decisions.
We need to be able to make the choice of what we eat ours not putting ours lives, essentially, into the hands of corporations that only care about make money by selling us food that damages our heath.
Raw food is amazing because it is as nature intended it to be, ready for us to eat and has no added flavours or colours, it just is. Yet advertisments all around us are telling us we need their food because it is good for us and it has so much less fat than this other brand etc etc. The food has been altered so much that it has little resemblance to the ingredients in it. Surely if the food was actually good for us it would be present in nature.
How can we have a good relationship with our bodies when we don't take the time to aknowledge what we are putting in it.
When we aren't conscious what we are doing in terms of food, it also effects what we buy when we go to supermarkets. There is so much packaged foods that actually have little resemblance to anything actually good for us. It is sad because parents then pass taht habit on to their children and we then have another generation of people who aren' making conscious decisions.
We need to be able to make the choice of what we eat ours not putting ours lives, essentially, into the hands of corporations that only care about make money by selling us food that damages our heath.
Raw food is amazing because it is as nature intended it to be, ready for us to eat and has no added flavours or colours, it just is. Yet advertisments all around us are telling us we need their food because it is good for us and it has so much less fat than this other brand etc etc. The food has been altered so much that it has little resemblance to the ingredients in it. Surely if the food was actually good for us it would be present in nature.
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