Raw Food and Weight Loss
You might want to sit down, I am going on a rant.
I have noticed lately that there are a lot of websites popping up promising weight loss with the “new raw food diet.” Honestly, this saddens me. Raw food for me is not just about weight loss, it is about health gain. It is about learning how to make better choices about the food we eat. It is about how our choices nourish our bodies. If we make good choices, we can have better health, bad choices can lead us to chronic disease, low energy, weight gain and poor health.
I abhor the word diet. The minute you say, “I need to lose weight”, you diminish yourself. You say, I am not what I should be. Personally, I do not have a skinny person’s genetics. But I am healthy. I exercise daily. Whether it be a 5 mile walk, or a power yoga vinyasa. But do I look like Kate Moss? No.
Now here is where it gets interesting. I was having breakfast with a new friend last week. Someone who knew about my raw food business before they met me. When we met, I am guessing that I did not fit her “image” of what a raw food person should look like. Halfway through our meal, she looked at me and said, “If you are into raw food, why aren’t you skinny?”
Honestly, I didn’t quite know what to say. I am not skinny. Nor am I obese. I would describe myself as curvy and athletic. Skinny? No.
Unfortunately, this brought up a ton of issues for me. I have had times in my life when I gained weight. And truthfully, I have lost weight by eating raw. I still fluctuate. Even though this friend told me that I had a “beautiful face and great skin”, I drove home fighting all of the past insecurities that I have had for years, feeling like I must look awful.
If you are a woman, you know what I am talking about. Society tells us that we are supposed to look like the fashion models on the cover of magazines. It’s interesting that those models don’t look like their pictures in real life. I have watched people starve themselves to fit a certain type. Is that healthy? No. You are still robbing your body of the essential nutrients it needs to be healthy. And if weight is your only concern, you are not going to be making good choices for your body.
At this meeting it was also suggested that I do a weight loss series on my blog. Take pictures of myself, post them and then show people how you can get skinny on raw food. Because, believe me, you can get skinny on raw food. Eat fruit, veggies and nothing else. You will get skinny. I actually considered it. For about 5 seconds.
Then the light turned on. I don’t believe in diets. I don’t believe in statements like, “oh, you cheated”, or “you can’t eat that”, or “is that on your diet?” I don’t believe in the negativity this creates around our bodies and what we eat. I think it sets you up for failure and self-loathing.
I believe in replacing the unhealthy food you are eating with healthy food. As you eat healthier, you will get healthier. If your body needs to, you will lose weight. Even with raw, it is not the wise choice to sustain yourself with raw Strawberry Cream Pie, raw cookies and raw ice cream. You still need to make balanced choices.
What happens if instead of saying, “I need to lose weight”, you replaced those words with, “I am making healthier choices about the food I eat.” One is negative and condemning, one is empowering. I am all about empowerment. It is a part of the whole process of being a healthy person. Healthy mind, healthy body, healthy attitude. Wanna join me in my “anti-diet revolt” and join my “choose health” movement instead?
Cyndi wrote on October 6, 2009
I’m a first time visitor (referred by @elissastein). What a great post! I do not eat all raw food (although I’m slowly headed in that direction) and applaud you for being so healthy. I have to say it seems incredibly rude to ask you why you aren’t skinny, or maybe that’s just my own unhealthy perfect body ideal perception (the opposite of skinny must be fat). I’m loving your blog – the tomato basil soup is calling my name! 🙂
Lori- pure2raw wrote on October 6, 2009
Fantastic post! I totally agree with you. I am going to talk about this tonight on my blog! I agree with you in why you went raw those are the same reasons why my sister and I did too. Though, we do have the “slim” looking genetics (we are not bone thin though) but our skin is not pretty – we struggle with acne and depression. And we hate telling people that we eat raw foods and than they look at us and are like “what- you eat raw and have skin that like?” It hurts us, though we know one day we will have gorgeous skin! And raw foods will lead us there! I chose health as well!
Susan wrote on October 7, 2009
Just want to thank all of you for the wonderful comments. When I need to be inspired, I will read all of your words!
Susan
Michelle wrote on October 6, 2009
Susan – you tell it like it is! Hats off to you for sharing your soul and insecurities in this blog post.
It is about being healthy – not about being skinny. Skinny does NOT represent health (at least not that I’ve been made aware of!)
I’m with you…on your “chose health” movement!
Kathryn Brandt wrote on October 6, 2009
Right on sister! I think we should all start “reverse marketing” – any product that shows a face cream being modeled by a twelve year old, or a weight loss devise or program featuring body builders, things like that, should be shunned. If we stop falling for the crap that Wall Street and Hollywood keeps heaping into our heads, they would stop the message. The only thing that they understand is money, we stop buying their harmful messages, they will stop sending the message. Marketing has gotten harmful, consumers have to fight back!
Mary Turtle wrote on October 6, 2009
Viva la healthy choices! I am a type 2 diabetic so trying to make healthy food choices is a way of life for me. I’m not skinny either – never have been – never will be. Hope to be more healthy in the future though.
Eco Mama wrote on October 6, 2009
Best post ever. Your blog is perfect just the way it is, I love that it’s NOT about weight loss but good, yummy, healthy raw food. There’s enough about weight loss out there–a glut. And frankly, it’s completely boring. I’m totally over it. Women in this country are brainwashed and what we need is more positive input just like yours. I’m right there with you! You Rule!! And–Love the squash blossoms.
xoxo
Eco Mama
Janice wrote on October 6, 2009
Oh my, I hear ya’. I have been raw for less than 2 mos but deal with this mentality already. First I should say that I don’t mind the word ‘diet’ — a ‘diet’ is what we eat, what we consume – we ALL have “A” diet. The problem is the word has been so utterly hi-jacked in our society. So people keep asking me how my diet is going or if I’m still on that diet….
I keep trying to explain that it is a lifestyle or health choice – NOT a diet. They always seem a little pu-off by it….they say ‘ohh, well, okay’ is this lilting sing-song voice, as if I’m not being totally upfront with them.
Do I need to lose weight? Yes. Is that what this is about? No. Will it be a nice byproduct of choosing to eat right for myself? Yes. And I’m happy for that. But this isn’t temporary.
And I LOVE your choice of words – “Raw food for me is not just about weight loss, it is about health gain.” Not about loss, its about gain. I am ‘stealing’ that phrase!!!!! And I am going to cling to it for dear life and repeat it joyfully and often!
Thank you! And yes, I’m joining your ‘choose health’ movement – I will blog about it later today or tonight.
Janice