A lot of my clients aren’t clear about how much raw food is ideal when they start working with me. They feel that if they aren’t 100% raw or aren’t eating a very high raw food diet that they aren’t ‘doing enough’. If you find yourself being preoccupied with whether you’re eating enough raw food you may well find yourself ricocheting between no raw food and loads of raw food and then back again. The secret to eating the ideal amount of raw food is to educate yourself, relax and enjoy the journey of discovery that your raw food journey is taking you on.
So, you ask, how much raw is the right amount of raw then? I am pleased to tell you, because I take an holistic (body, mind, spirit) approach to the raw food journey, there is no black and white answer to this question. There are, however, clear guidelines as well as discoveries to be made through your own exploration of your body and its responses to what you feed it.
Guidelines on How Much Raw is the Right Amount of Raw
1) Eating a meal with more than 51% raw food will dramatically ease the digestive load on your system, freeing up energy from the digestive process so that it can be channelled into healing and regenerating your cells.
2) What you DON’T eat on a regular basis is as much part of the benefits of the raw diet as how much raw you’re eating. Cutting out regular intake of caffeine, sugar, alcohol, dairy products, meat, fried foods, take-aways and wheat will dramatically improve your health. Combine this with the above and you are well on the way to living a longer life full of vitality and great health.
3) The kind of raw food you choose to eat is as important as choosing to eat raw food at all. A diet heavy in nuts and raw treats and lacking in greens will lead you to ill health, much in the same way as a diet of pizza and burgers will lead you to ill health. We need a balanced spectrum of foods to give us all the nutrients that our bodies need to thrive. Almost all of these nutrients can be found on a 100% raw food diet but, as Gabriel Cousens says, ‘all diets are deficient’. It’s just that the raw food diet is much less deficient than most others.
3) Choosing to eat 70% – 100% raw food on a regular basis will allow you to experience health like you’ve probably never known it before. And when I say health I’m talking about an energetic body full of vitality, a happy mind and a soaring spirit. The more raw food you eat the more vibrant and alive you’ll feel. But, remember, that it has to be the right kind of raw food and that a 100% raw food diet requires supplementation for ultimate health.
When you begin to think about eating more raw food, whether you’re aware of it or not, you are saying ‘yes, I am ready to start listening to my body’s inner wisdom’. You are saying that you’re ready to start learning the language of your body. And your body will tell you where you need to be going physically, emotionally and spiritually in your life. We are so cut off from this inner body wisdom that most of us are unable to see our way to ‘how much raw is the right amount’ but, if you learn to listen, your body will tell you. You’ll feel that amazing vitality, positivity and deep sense of connection that comes from ‘getting raw right’. And remember to enjoy your journey of discovery!
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