Fundamental changes in life are usually not easy. Above all, one who wants to change his or her diet, must pay close attention to possible distractions and at the same time apply real discipline.
Even if the motivation is health-related, a new diet will be a stumbling block if we do not properly inform ourselves in advance. The same goes with the adjustment of the body to a raw food diet. We have done a lot of research for you and we have put together seven tips for a good start into a healthy diet with raw food.
1. Slow transition
In the beginning it is important to start the transition slowly. This is particularly important if you have not paid much attention to your diet so far - when eating low fiber foods, only very little or no fresh fruit and veggies, plenty of cooked food and wheat products, you should definitely give your body enough time to cope with a larger amount of raw food.
The reason behind the slow change is allow your gut to adjust. The body gets used to a rather sub-optimal diet and now has to adapt to changes within the digestive system. Fiber-rich, fresh food should therefore be slowly integrated and, above all, it should be chewed well. Take your time to eat and enjoy the food on your plate mindfully.
2. Don’t eat too much
At the beginning of a change in diet, it is common to feel the need to eat too much food. If you have to get used to the preparation of raw food as well as the appropriate amounts to satisfy your hunger, you might think that you may not eat enough and you may not feel full after your meals. However, you should avoid eating too much so that you don’t overexert your body and your digestion. Whenever you eat too much, your stomach simply does not have enough digestive juices and your digestive system is overburdened.
In addition, you should only eat when you are hungry. Often we eat out of boredom, just for fun, or due to social or emotional reasons. Here it is important to rely on one's own feeling and really only eat when the body demands it.
3. Don’t eat too little
Just as it is important not to overeat, it is crucial to nourish your body with enough food and, above all, provide it with all necessary nutrients. People who may initially lose a lot of weight when switching to raw food diet should pay attention and ensure they eat enough.
4. Eat your greens
One of the common mistakes made by raw foodists is not eating enough green leafy vegetables and wild herbs. Although fruits and vegetables are a good source of energy and vitamins, most of them today do not have enough vitamins and minerals due to intensive cultivation of the fields and poor soil quality.
Green leafy vegetables and wild herbs offer many essential minerals such as calcium, magnesium, iron, etc. Therefore, green veggies should play a major role in your raw food diet and should be part of your daily meals. Maybe you could replace your morning coffee with a green smoothie?
5. Watch out for the fatty foods
Nuts and seeds are wonderful with regards to nutrients and contain a lot of healthy minerals and trace elements. But the downside is that they contain high amounts of fat. Although the fat contained in the nuts is good for your body, you should not eat too much. The same applies to vegetable oils and avocados.
If you keep the nut consumption under control then everything is fine. By that we mean about a handful of nuts and seeds several times a week, not every day. Likewise, as a healthy raw foodist, you should use little to no oil and avoid eating avocados on a regular basis.
Also, be careful when eating raw cheesecake, raw desserts in general, and raw cheeses. They are usually packed with nuts, seeds or other fats. All these "gourmet treats" should be enjoyed as a special treat, as part of a healthy diet, and not on a daily basis.
In addition, many nuts, seeds and oils are not in raw food quality, although the packaging may show them as natural or untreated. Many nuts and seeds are dried at high temperatures, steamed or even roasted. However, our nuts and seeds from Lifefood are 100% raw, of the highest quality and therefore perfectly suitable for a raw food diet.
6. Be confident in your social environment and stay true to yourself
It is very likely that you will be looked at weirdly and you may be overwhelmed with questions about your new diet. This is normal, because the average person eats a rather suboptimal diet. So stay calm and explain why you have made changes to your diet and list the advantages to the other person asking. In addition, it is important that you do not necessarily try to convince others. The most important thing is to keep in mind is that you are doing it for YOU, YOUR health and YOUR well-being.
It might be somewhat more difficult to handle invitations from family and friends. Here, it is always important to stay relaxed and easy going. The best way is to look for the healthiest alternative on the spot - you will find almost always something you can eat. Even when dining in restaurants, you will find a raw salad on almost every menu or you simply ask the waiter or the chef for any recommendation.
7. Find your balance
Finally, it should be mentioned that you have to find your own balance with raw food. Only then the transition can lead to a permanent diet and provide you with more vitality overall. At the beginning, these so-called "gourmet recipes" are great to make the transition as easy as possible - then you should try to enjoy the amazing taste of raw food in its purest form!
And even if the transition does not work smoothly, you can always come back to a healthy, balanced and varied vegan diet. In this case, you could start the day with fresh fruit, then go over to raw vegetables and salads for lunch, eat high quality raw food snacks (Life Crackers, Lifebars, etc.) in between and end the day with steamed vegetables with or without rice, quinoa , potatoes or beans. This makes it easier to move to a full raw food diet, while at the same time doing something good for your body.
