EATING WHEN I’M NOT REALLY HUNGRY (BUT ON A SCHEDULE)
The body is actually giving you a very clear message when it’s time for eating (real hunger), but we have grown accustomed to ignoring these signals. We got used to feeding in advance, on a schedule. We even named our meals: breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks in between.
Naming meals is never a good practice since this causes us to eat in advance, which is disrespectful to our body. It is good to know that real hunger is something that actually exist and that it is possible to again learn to recognize the true feeling of hunger (and separated it from emotional hunger).
In the beginning, I ate almost as soon as I woke up because I did that my whole life. But when I learned to respect my true hunger, I found out that I was very rarely hungry first thing in the morning. You’ll probably realize that you also don’t get hungry so early, but maybe only around ten, eleven, or even later. And this is perfectly normal!
2. OVEREATING
In the beginning, I fell under the influence of certain “gurus” that advocate a very high-calorie intake. I’ve eaten a lot more than my body really needed and it soon began to show on my body as a weight gain. Yes, it is possible to gain weight on a raw food diet.
The fact is that you have to eat enough calories (undereating is also a big mistake of many), but it is also very important not to eat too much.
If you eat more food than your body actually needs, you still have to process that food. The body uses nerve energy for digestion, which is only renewed during sleep. And since we are talking about excess calories (more than the body needs), this means that we are creating extra work for the body, which means more nerve energy is used that could otherwise be available for other processes, like healing.
The only way to replenish the nerve energy is by sleeping more. But if you will sleep more, you will have less awake time, so this is not a very logical thing to do.
In addition, the excess calories will show themselves as a weight gain, which is certainly not a thing that we want, right?
Mindful eating is also a very important aspect. Many times it happens that we have too much work to do, so we multitask. The easiest way is, of course, to combine eating with work which is something I have done quite often in the past. But this can prevent us to recognize satiety in time and quite often it happens that we don’t even realize when we actually finished our meal!
3. NOT ENOUGH VARIETY
This mistake was indeed one of the major ones my first year. I focused mainly on bananas, but they are not exactly my favorite fruit. I ate them every single day, prepare in a thousand and one ways. They are the cheapest source of energy (I had not mastered the basics of shopping yet) and the richest source of calories (I was under the impression that I need to eat at least 2500 calories, even though I didn’t need that much – see second paragraph). After half a year, I started to resent them and I was not very excited about my meals anymore. This was noticed by a friend, who didn’t understand why I still insist on this diet. When I finally started to have more variety, I really started to enjoy this lifestyle (very much).
Variety is very important not only because of the enjoyment, but also because of the nutrient content. Only with the introduction of various fruits you will meet the needs of all the nutrients.
There is an abundance of fruit in every season and each and every one is wonderful. Therefore, I kindly recommend to you: enjoy the diversity that this world offers you. Explore, learn about and try new fruits. And if you think it is financially impossible to enjoy the variety on this lifestyle, read an article about my top ten tips on how to show on the raw food diet. Raw food does not have to be more expensive than cooked food.
4. FOCUSING ONLY ON FOOD
Food is a very important factor in high health, but it is definitely not the only one.
In the beginning, I knew about other factors that are essential for good health, but nevertheless I convinced myself that changing my diet was enough. When I actually started to sleep enough, think positively, regularly move my body, be in the fresh air every day, and take time for myself, for relaxation and fun, more and more positive changes started to show on my health and well-being.
It is important to know that health is a combination of many factors and is far from being only diet.
That’s why you have to take time for yourself. Go to nature, enjoy the fresh air and warm sunshine. Find an activity in which you enjoy and take time for it. And certainly don’t limit yourself with sleep! Sleep as much as you need to (do not forget, the nerve energy is only renewed during sleep).
OTHER COMMON MISTAKES
You can not only learn from your own experience, but also from the experiences of others. The main mistakes that newbies usually make, are:
too much fat,
unripe fruit,
not enough fruit and too much vegetables,
not enough green leafy vegetables,
undereating,
not doing it 100%,
believing the hype of the “superfoods”,
too much emphasis on gourmet recipes and a lack of mono meals,
giving into social pressure.
Question for you: What is your opinion on these mistakes? Did you do any of them, or maybe you have one to add?
Let me know in the comments below. I love reading your thoughts.
As always, thank you so much for reading the article, for sharing it, and for commenting. You really make me smile and I am forever grateful that I can share my knowledge with you.
With love,
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