Simple steps to upping your raw intake

As a follower of the raw food diet (with the odd bump here and there), I support it entirely. All but the name.

The name Raw Food Diet, for me, is misleading and intimidating to people. Naturally, we don't have to put a name to what we all do, and thus, I don't need to say I am a raw foodist, but it is useful, of course, to be able to indicate to people, within a few words, one of part of how you live your life.

The reason I find it misleading is because, within the technical boundaries of the term, "Raw Food Diet"

, we can find as much variation as one can in, for example, a S.A.D. (Standard American Diet), if not more. We have vegans, vegetarians, and meat eaters. We have fruitarians, sproutarians, breatharians. We have people that eat 75% raw food all the way up to the people who even carry around their raw oils to restaurants, and won't drink tea because it is heated.

I find it an intimidating name because most people, upon first contact with the Raw Food Diet find the idea of eating only raw food (and this is what the name insinuates, that it is a 100% raw diet) completely impossible and alien.

But it need not be that way.

And even if you manage to increase your raw intake to 50%, although you will not fit into the technical definition of a raw foodist (you must eat at least 75% raw, strictly speaking), you will still being doing great, and from there, increasing to 75% will be a mere skip and a hop.

And so, to help you get to that 50%, here are a few very simple ideas.

Take and use one a week or all at once, just take baby steps every day, and you will get there. And in fact, the slower that you go, so long as you are not in a very ill body right now, will benefit you by not shocking your body with a quick change.

1. Start drinking lemon water.

In the morning, juice one or two lemons and add to a liter of water. If you need to add a sweetener, do but try agave syrup instead of sugar.   (Note:  Agave syrup comes from a cactus and is diabetic friendly!  . It's not ideal to add a sweetner, but baby steps, remember.

Drinking lemons is very alkalizing, and the little yellow fruits are also absolutely packed with antioxidants and vitamins.

Furthermore, after a glass of lemon water, you feel fresh and will have less desires to reach for a coffee or sugar filled chocolate.

2. Don't limit your foods, strive to intake more!

If you have a lunch at a restaurant planned with your friends, and before you go, you tell yourself, "Ok, I can't eat dairy, must avoid meat and will only eat salad", well, what you tell yourself will be the very last thing you do.

Instead of trying to give up something, just incorporate more raw foods.

Before the lunch, have a large glass of freshly squeezed orange juice and afterwards, maybe a small avocado salad.

You may still eat the 'badness' at the restaurant, but you will eat less as you are less hungry, your body is feeling fresh and you no longer desire the foods which you are not allowed  eat, they lose their charm.

3. Design your own cereal.

Some raw things are SO delicious, you would almost feel guilty eating them, but you need not!

Buy a normal muesli/granola, or whatever cereal you like, and to it add fresh dates, unroasted almonds, banana, sun dried desiccated coconut and sultanas. Take it one step further by adding a handful of sprouted wheat. Sprouted wheat is very sweet and satisfying. Over time you can edge out all but a handful of the normal muesli/granola.

Instead of soy milk or cows milk, add almond milk, which is just almonds blended with water, with a dash of raw honey.

Open your mind and try it.

4. Find a smoothie combination you like.

Truly, if someone slaps down a frothy smoothie in front of you, you think, "Oooh!", right?

They're gorgeous, fresh, easy and cheap to prepare, so make them a part of your daily routine.

Here's a tip, chop up a banana or two and put in the freezer for 30 minutes or more. Blend it up with whatever other fruit you like and you will have yourself and incredibly delicious and frothy, and healthy, smoothie.