Ways I failed at going 100% Raw

January 24, 2003

I've had some requests to share in my failures on the raw

diet. I attempted to go 100% raw for extended periods of

time and failed at least 5 times.

The very first time I tried it I had only read two books on

a raw food diet. In fact, it was a mucousless diet that I

was doing, according to Arnold Ehret. I felt good but after

3 days, I realized that I was giving up way too much. Where

was the flavor? All I was basically eating where fruits and

some vegetables. I didn't know anything about recipes. I

don't even think I was eating much in the way of nuts, seeds

or avocados.

It was too big of a jump for me to make mentally at that

time. The tastes were bland to me and so I couldn't imagine

eating like this long term. This wasn't what I wanted for my

life so I stopped. The cost for super health SEEMED much too

high at the time.

The next time I tried it I had read more books. I read Fit

for Life and Fit for Life 2 and then I looked for something

in Natural Hygiene that emphasized going 100% raw. It seemed

to me that would be the best way to go. I got The Basic

Health Library of three big 8.5 x 11inch sized books put out

by T.C. Fry. So I learned all about Natural Hygiene and

fasting.

I went 100% raw in the wintertime. I felt many benefits.

Eventually I ran into some problems. First of all, I became

very thin. So this worried me. I didn't want to look that

thin. (Now what I think is normal weight has changed. I've

also learned to put on muscle so I don't look so thin.) Then

I was cold all the time. I was also hungry all the time.

Eventually I realized that I didn't have as much energy as I

used to have.

So I started eating dried fruit. Somehow this gave me a

little more energy. But I never had as much as in my cooked

food diet. Then I got the flu. I decided to heal it by

fasting. So I got really skinny. This flu just wouldn't go

away. It lasted for 6 weeks. So I got very skinny, but I

refused to eat cooked food as I equated it in my mind as

being poison. I started getting cramping in my feet.

Unfortunately had I known a few things I could have stopped

that flu. Part of it was elimination but the other part was

that my body became either too acidic or too alkaline.

Muscle cramping I found out later in the book Conscious

Eating, is a symptom of both of these conditions.

I probably was so acidic because I was detoxifying too

quickly. I really should have done more of a transition to

the raw diet. But I wanted the great results right away.

Also, had I known about the acid base balance issue I could

have made some adjustments. But if I was too acid then I

don't know what I could have done besides eat cooked food to

slow my elimination down, because the food I was eating was

mostly alkaline fruits and vegetables. I barely ate any fats

because I did not digest them well.

At that time I didn't know about soaking nuts and seeds to

make them more digestible. Also my body needed to be infused

with enzymes, vitamins and minerals from my poor eating

habits. Now I can handle fats much better.

I believe had I just eaten some cooked foods I could have

stopped that flu within the first week or two. That would

have been preferable to such a fast detox. I was sick for 6

weeks and it took me longer than that to get my strength

back. Eventually I got to the point where I was still

feeling hungry all the time and I didn't have enough energy

and so I figured the raw diet was quite good but that my

body could not handle it. I was 100% raw for about 3 months

and finally gave it up.

Eventually I learned about eating raw and soaked oat

groats. I blended them with bananas. I also added lots of

Spirulina. Sometimes I would blend sunflower seeds with

banana. So I tried again to go 100% raw. I did fine for

about 2.5 months. Then I had a vacation coming up. I knew I

wouldn't be able to handle travel and sticking 100% raw. The

reason for this was because I needed my blender for just

about every meal. This didn't seem practical that I should

need a blender for every meal.

So I eventually gave up again. Also blending oat groats

with bananas was always producing loose stools for me. I

eventually developed these red rashes on my face near my

nose. Somehow I believe I got those because of eating so

much Spirulina. I ate loads of spirulina for at least 2

years. It also produced in me orange hands as if I were

drinking a lot of carrot juice. This happened because of the

high levels of beta carotene in spirulina.

Those red spots are gone now. It took about a year of going

100% raw and no spirulina. I learned that spirulina wasn't

good because it had B12 analogues that could block the

absorption of real B12 in my body.

Eventually I attended some talks from Dr. Graham that

corrected all of my misinformation. Keep in mind that I had

attended lectures by most of the worlds top raw foodists

before this. They all came to NY City to lecture. But I

still couldn't figure out how to do it. I even attended

lectures a year before by Dr. Graham. I was open to new

ideas, I just wasn't able to put them into practice for the

long term.

The stuff that Dr. Graham covered at these two lectures

corrected all of my false ideas about the raw diet. The key

thing I learned was that I wasn't eating enough fruit. That

is why I was weak. Yet I thought I was eating a lot of

fruit. But when I analyzed the calorie content in what I was

eating, I realized I wasn't eating enough.

Then I learned all about other Raw Food and Vegetarian

myths at the next lecture. I learned that bacteria produces

B12 so I didn't have to worry too much about that. And I

could supplement B12 if I ever did start showing

deficiencies. I learned that there are many more meat eaters

who suffer B12 deficiency than vegetarians. So eating meat

wasn't necessarily the answer.

A week after those lectures I went with my friend and 100%

raw foodist Joel Brody to Canada. The night before I had my

last Thai Food meal and I planned to at least go 100% raw

for two months and see how I could do it. Having him on the

trip was really helpful. He brought lots of the organic

fruit and vegetables. I imbibed how to do the diet in his

presence.

A great point he said was that if I was craving cooked food

I should just eat more raw food. That took care of the

cravings pretty well. I soon realized that at least 50% of

the entertainment value of my vacations, was going out to

all the restaurants. This was especially true as we were

taking a tour of downtown Toronto and going through

Chinatown. I was constantly thinking of all the restaurants

I'd like to be eating in. This really made my cravings go

up. In addition, I was constantly hungry.

Joel told me that in the first year of going raw he really

ate a lot. Now he eats much less and he gained back the

weight he lost so he doesn't look skinny. I had to eat a lot

of food since I was just starting to go 100% raw. Later in

the trip I learned to focus my mind on all the benefits of

the raw diet. I stopped myself from thinking about the fact

that I could never eat in a cooked food restaurant again.

(At least the cooked foods therein.) I also told myself that

I could eat cooked food again after two months, if I really

wanted to. This psychological trick allowed me to overcome

my initial cravings.

Not thinking about what I was missing, tremendously reduced

my cravings. Later I found out that most of the cravings

were exacerbated by my thinking and not any actual craving.

If you focus on the benefits of the raw diet the cravings

for cooked foods goes away.

Much later on, I learned to start preparing raw food dishes

that were so tasty that I didn't have cravings for cooked

food anymore. The reason being is I knew I could easily

satisfy my cravings through delicious raw foods. I would say

that if you can learn to prepare just three tasty raw food

dishes, your transition to eating 100% raw foods will be easy.

So I hope this was helpful to some of you. Going 100% raw

is easy if you know how to do it right. Most people I've

found had a hard time doing it without support. I had Joel

to watch over me and help me through the initial stages. He

told me the cold sores in my mouth were normal and that they

were detoxification. The first week I had these sores in my

mouth and I kept on biting myself. But they were gone in a

week. If Joel weren't there I might have stopped my

experiment right away because I was afraid that eating all

that fruit was the problem and not that it was a simple

detoxification.

I talk to Joel all the time. The more you hang around 100%

raw foodists the more it rubs off on you.

Keep in mind though that you have to be careful. Sometimes

you can be doing something wrong and it isn't always

detoxification.

To Your Radiant Health, Roger Haeske

Have you tried the Raw Diet many times but failed to stick

with it? Now you can learn the Motivational and Dietary

Secrets to success on a 100% Raw Food Diet. From Infinite

Potential and Raw Food Coach, Roger Haeske, the author of

Your Hidden Power - eClass, Infinite Tennis and

http://www.superbeing.com. Go to

http://www.superbeingdiet.com to learn how to go 100% RAW.

January 27, 2003

Generous posting, Roger,

Since I discovered the notion of going raw 18 months ago, I have been in

this forum and have not faltered. Think not that I am some kind of

strong willed person. Kicking nicotine was a long tale of failure until

the medic pointed the metaphorical gun at my head saying, " Stop smoking

or else! " .

It seems that on that call 99% of all smokers give up without any

further help, drugs, pads, willpower or failure.

Thus in that frame of mind I came to this forum but thinness, cold, lack

of knowledge, cramp, rapid detoxification, boredom with the diet,

vitamin deficiency fears, etc. have all been my way. Reading the

postings of others who know far more than I do is also encouragement.

As I see it, we are at the dawn of the new raw food understanding and

the road certainly gets easier and brighter.

I am sure that many more pointers to the way will pass through this

forum and look forward the Raw Food postings in my email each day.

Peter

Roger Haeske [roger]

24 January 2003 18:56

rawfood ; rawfoodnj

[Raw Food] Ways I failed at going 100% Raw

Ways I failed at going 100% Raw

I've had some requests to share in my failures on the raw

diet. I attempted to go 100% raw for extended periods of

time and failed at least 5 times.

The very first time I tried it I had only read two books on

a raw food diet. In fact, it was a mucousless diet that I

was doing, according to Arnold Ehret. I felt good but after

3 days, I realized that I was giving up way too much. Where

was the flavor? All I was basically eating where fruits and

some vegetables. I didn't know anything about recipes. I

don't even think I was eating much in the way of nuts, seeds

or avocados.

It was too big of a jump for me to make mentally at that

time. The tastes were bland to me and so I couldn't imagine

eating like this long term. This wasn't what I wanted for my

life so I stopped. The cost for super health SEEMED much too

high at the time.

The next time I tried it I had read more books. I read Fit

for Life and Fit for Life 2 and then I looked for something

in Natural Hygiene that emphasized going 100% raw. It seemed

to me that would be the best way to go. I got The Basic

Health Library of three big 8.5 x 11inch sized books put out

by T.C. Fry. So I learned all about Natural Hygiene and

fasting.

I went 100% raw in the wintertime. I felt many benefits.

Eventually I ran into some problems. First of all, I became

very thin. So this worried me. I didn't want to look that

thin. (Now what I think is normal weight has changed. I've

also learned to put on muscle so I don't look so thin.) Then

I was cold all the time. I was also hungry all the time.

Eventually I realized that I didn't have as much energy as I

used to have.

So I started eating dried fruit. Somehow this gave me a

little more energy. But I never had as much as in my cooked

food diet. Then I got the flu. I decided to heal it by

fasting. So I got really skinny. This flu just wouldn't go

away. It lasted for 6 weeks. So I got very skinny, but I

refused to eat cooked food as I equated it in my mind as

being poison. I started getting cramping in my feet.

Unfortunately had I known a few things I could have stopped

that flu. Part of it was elimination but the other part was

that my body became either too acidic or too alkaline.

Muscle cramping I found out later in the book Conscious

Eating, is a symptom of both of these conditions.

I probably was so acidic because I was detoxifying too

quickly. I really should have done more of a transition to

the raw diet. But I wanted the great results right away.

Also, had I known about the acid base balance issue I could

have made some adjustments. But if I was too acid then I

don't know what I could have done besides eat cooked food to

slow my elimination down, because the food I was eating was

mostly alkaline fruits and vegetables. I barely ate any fats

because I did not digest them well.

At that time I didn't know about soaking nuts and seeds to

make them more digestible. Also my body needed to be infused

with enzymes, vitamins and minerals from my poor eating

habits. Now I can handle fats much better.

I believe had I just eaten some cooked foods I could have

stopped that flu within the first week or two. That would

have been preferable to such a fast detox. I was sick for 6

weeks and it took me longer than that to get my strength

back. Eventually I got to the point where I was still

feeling hungry all the time and I didn't have enough energy

and so I figured the raw diet was quite good but that my

body could not handle it. I was 100% raw for about 3 months

and finally gave it up.

Eventually I learned about eating raw and soaked oat

groats. I blended them with bananas. I also added lots of

Spirulina. Sometimes I would blend sunflower seeds with

banana. So I tried again to go 100% raw. I did fine for

about 2.5 months. Then I had a vacation coming up. I knew I

wouldn't be able to handle travel and sticking 100% raw. The

reason for this was because I needed my blender for just

about every meal. This didn't seem practical that I should

need a blender for every meal.

So I eventually gave up again. Also blending oat groats

with bananas was always producing loose stools for me. I

eventually developed these red rashes on my face near my

nose. Somehow I believe I got those because of eating so

much Spirulina. I ate loads of spirulina for at least 2

years. It also produced in me orange hands as if I were

drinking a lot of carrot juice. This happened because of the

high levels of beta carotene in spirulina.

Those red spots are gone now. It took about a year of going

100% raw and no spirulina. I learned that spirulina wasn't

good because it had B12 analogues that could block the

absorption of real B12 in my body.

Eventually I attended some talks from Dr. Graham that

corrected all of my misinformation. Keep in mind that I had

attended lectures by most of the worlds top raw foodists

before this. They all came to NY City to lecture. But I

still couldn't figure out how to do it. I even attended

lectures a year before by Dr. Graham. I was open to new

ideas, I just wasn't able to put them into practice for the

long term.

The stuff that Dr. Graham covered at these two lectures

corrected all of my false ideas about the raw diet. The key

thing I learned was that I wasn't eating enough fruit. That

is why I was weak. Yet I thought I was eating a lot of

fruit. But when I analyzed the calorie content in what I was

eating, I realized I wasn't eating enough.

Then I learned all about other Raw Food and Vegetarian

myths at the next lecture. I learned that bacteria produces

B12 so I didn't have to worry too much about that. And I

could supplement B12 if I ever did start showing

deficiencies. I learned that there are many more meat eaters

who suffer B12 deficiency than vegetarians. So eating meat

wasn't necessarily the answer.

A week after those lectures I went with my friend and 100%

raw foodist Joel Brody to Canada. The night before I had my

last Thai Food meal and I planned to at least go 100% raw

for two months and see how I could do it. Having him on the

trip was really helpful. He brought lots of the organic

fruit and vegetables. I imbibed how to do the diet in his

presence.

A great point he said was that if I was craving cooked food

I should just eat more raw food. That took care of the

cravings pretty well. I soon realized that at least 50% of

the entertainment value of my vacations, was going out to

all the restaurants. This was especially true as we were

taking a tour of downtown Toronto and going through

Chinatown. I was constantly thinking of all the restaurants

I'd like to be eating in. This really made my cravings go

up. In addition, I was constantly hungry.

Joel told me that in the first year of going raw he really

ate a lot. Now he eats much less and he gained back the

weight he lost so he doesn't look skinny. I had to eat a lot

of food since I was just starting to go 100% raw. Later in

the trip I learned to focus my mind on all the benefits of

the raw diet. I stopped myself from thinking about the fact

that I could never eat in a cooked food restaurant again.

(At least the cooked foods therein.) I also told myself that

I could eat cooked food again after two months, if I really

wanted to. This psychological trick allowed me to overcome

my initial cravings.

Not thinking about what I was missing, tremendously reduced

my cravings. Later I found out that most of the cravings

were exacerbated by my thinking and not any actual craving.

If you focus on the benefits of the raw diet the cravings

for cooked foods goes away.

Much later on, I learned to start preparing raw food dishes

that were so tasty that I didn't have cravings for cooked

food anymore. The reason being is I knew I could easily

satisfy my cravings through delicious raw foods. I would say

that if you can learn to prepare just three tasty raw food

dishes, your transition to eating 100% raw foods will be easy.

So I hope this was helpful to some of you. Going 100% raw

is easy if you know how to do it right. Most people I've

found had a hard time doing it without support. I had Joel

to watch over me and help me through the initial stages. He

told me the cold sores in my mouth were normal and that they

were detoxification. The first week I had these sores in my

mouth and I kept on biting myself. But they were gone in a

week. If Joel weren't there I might have stopped my

experiment right away because I was afraid that eating all

that fruit was the problem and not that it was a simple

detoxification.

I talk to Joel all the time. The more you hang around 100%

raw foodists the more it rubs off on you.

Keep in mind though that you have to be careful. Sometimes

you can be doing something wrong and it isn't always

detoxification.

To Your Radiant Health, Roger Haeske

Have you tried the Raw Diet many times but failed to stick

with it? Now you can learn the Motivational and Dietary

Secrets to success on a 100% Raw Food Diet. From Infinite

Potential and Raw Food Coach, Roger Haeske, the author of

Your Hidden Power - eClass, Infinite Tennis and

http://www.superbeing.com. Go to

http://www.superbeingdiet.com to learn how to go 100% RAW.

January 27, 2003

I, too have been struggling with raw foods. I find it boring and I

was always hungry. I know that I should eat this way, but it is very

hard to eat anyother way. I love food and I am a very good " cook " .

But I have not so far found any recipes that I have liked in this raw

food gender. I started with Ann Wigmore books, but I have aboout 8-

10 books on the subject now. I really need to find something that

will motivate me once and for all. I have health problems and lots

of allergies that I would like to improve. HELP!!!! Right now I

have sore and a rash in my mouth from eating crackers and cheese. It

happened last night when I ate granola and yogurt. So I am giving

them up for now. Please share with me anything that will help me to

stick to this way of life. Thank you in advance.

Veronica---

January 28, 2003

Have you tried Rhio's recipe book, " Hooked on Raw " ? I think it's wonderful.Romina

" ronis19462000 <bigsaver2 " <bigsaver2 wrote:I, too have been

struggling with raw foods. I find it boring and I