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High Energy Diet

July 30th, 2010

There are a lot of people out there who could greatly benefit from a change in their diet to a plan that would give them a lot more energy and some great health benefits. If you are an athlete, for example, a high energy raw diet might be just the thing you are looking for to give you an added edge in your sport of choice. And while you might be thinking that this sort of dramatic change to one’s lifestyle would only be for those elite athletes who earn their living in their sports, think again. Every person who is active can benefit from eating for energy. It does not matter if you are a weekend warrior, a part-time participant, a rec league roller or someone who simply goes out to have some fun and stay active. It does not matter if you run, jump, stretch, hit, shoot or catch. If you are active, there are ways to change your diet – some of them more involved, and some with more obvious results – that will improve your performance. It’s all about the raw power.

A high energy raw food diet can provide you with new sources of energy and personal power that you might be able to find in other, more expensive and more artificially produced foods, but the power of the rawness in this eating plan will give you more of the good stuff, without all the by-products.

For one thing, eating a raw high energy diet will likely include a lot of nuts and seeds. In traditional diets, these are food items that many people deprive themselves of, due to their high fat content. But the natural fats found in many nuts and seeds are incredibly beneficial to your body, and the calories they provide are important for those who lead an active lifestyle. Their naturally high fiber also helps to regulate your body’s digestion, meaning less energy is wasted in the processing and elimination of foods, leaving more power for your next athletic endeavor.

Another important aspect of eating a high energy diet is the hydration factor. Normal diets will tell you to drink plenty of fluids, but for someone who is about to lose a lot of water weight in sweat, the normal amounts will not suffice. And rather than subjecting yourself to another high sugar sports drink, why not take advantage of an option you can make yourself, using only raw ingredients, that will help to push you , provide you with energy, keep you well hydrated and cost just pennies a glass?

Tribes in Mexico have been consuming iskiate, also known as chia fresca, for a very long time, and it has helped to power then through runs that can last all day long, over very difficult terrain. This drink is simple to make – simply combine two teaspoons of chia seeds, the juice of one half of a fresh lime, and a half teaspoon of honey in a glass of cool water. Stir and enjoy – it’s as simple as that. It might not be in the recipe book for any diet you have ever tried before, but there are a lot of things about a raw high energy diet that are likely to be completely new for you.

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Energy Diet Secrets

July 29th, 2010

So you’ve been on an energy-boosting diet as of late, and people are beginning to notice. They can see that you’re losing weight, but gaining strength and endurance. You’re no longer the mopey, quiet and tired person you were just a few scant weeks ago. Today, you’re full of pep and vigor, and of course, the people around you want to know how you did it. What is your secret?

Now, your energy diet is no big secret – it is all about selecting the right foods to give your body the energy that it needs to thrive all day long. But people aren’t going to believe you when you tell them that. Just eating the right foods? That’s boring, and anyone could do it. But you are the only one who seems to have mastered it – so clearly, you know something they don’t know. You hold the secret to eating for energy, and they want to know what it is. So, what can you tell people who want to know your energy diet secrets, but won’t be satisfied with the truth?

What you give them is the truth with a heaping helping of fancy and sexy. No lies – just overblown statements about your amazing diet plan.

For instance, telling people that you are cutting back on processed sugars is not going to wow them. Sure, we all know that those glucose/fructose enriched foods are bad for us, but people want to hear your fancy answer for what you could possibly replace the sweets with (and no, going without something sweet is simply not an option – it’s practically cheating).

What you can tell them is that the world of fruit has some amazing sweets waiting for them, but a proper energy diet won’t simply ask you to down bowl after bowl of boring mixed fruits. No, you can tell them about the exciting variety of smoothies available for people who eat for energy; you can share your recipes for all-raw, one-ingredient frozen banana ice cream; and you can wow them with information about how strawberries are calorie negative, meaning they actually use up more calories to consume, digest and pass than they provide as fuel, and how this helps your body to learn to burn it’s own fuel reserves – your fat.

Another important area for eating for energy is hydration, but no one wants to hear about how you should be drinking so many glasses of water every day. Instead, you can tell them about your super-hydrating watermelon smoothies; impress them with your abstinence from the diuretic effects of caffeine; and tell them how you can jazz up a glass of water with citrus, without adding a lot of empty calories.

And when your friends want to hear about where you’re getting all of your new, raw energy from, they don’t want to hear about how simple it is to tailor the energy diet plan to their own likes and dislikes; they want to be told that what you are doing takes effort and intellect, but with a little coaching, they too could be on the path to eating healthier, and gaining more energy.

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5 Ways to Boost Your Energy

June 21st, 2010

Energy is a precious thing, something to conserve, save, and try not to waste; we are forever searching for new ways to boost our ever-dwindling supplies. But I’m not talking about turning off the lights when you leave a room, or switching to solar power. I am talking about your own personal energy, something much harder to boost and even harder to conserve. Here are five ways that you can boost your energy reserves, while staying within the boundaries of a healthy lifestyle.

The first thing you can do to boost your energy is to start eating more raw foods. Of course, a raw food diet will help with more than just energy, but it is certainly an important reason to switch from a cooked and processed foods way of eating.

Many foods lose vital minerals during the cooking process – minerals that can help to give you the energy you need during the day. Raw foods also contain living enzymes that allow your body to work cleaner and easier, conserving the energy in your food for the work you choose to do, rather than the digestive work you need to simply keep going.

Another way to gain more personal energy is to plan to get more sleep. We all know that a good night’s sleep should be around eight hours, but few of us actually manage to get that much rest. Continued lack of sleep can result in a buildup of “sleep debt”, which can increasingly effect your concentration and ability to perform at your peak. A well rested body is an energized and recharged body, able to use the energy in your raw food diet more efficiently and effectively.

Another important factor in preserving your personal energy levels is the amount of water that you drink. You may think you are properly hydrating yourself, but if your liquids come flavored or altered, you may not be getting enough pure water. Hydration is key to staying in the zone – if your body becomes dehydrated, you run the risk of wearing yourself out prematurely. Make sure to drink a few glasses of water every day, and try to never wait until you are thirsty to have a drink. Thirst is your body’s way of telling you that you are already low in liquids.

Another way to get more energy is to quit the coffee. If you are a caffeine user, the idea of having less to get more energy might sound wrong, but many studies have shown that long-term caffeine users actually gain no energy or alertness from their morning coffee; they are simply fighting the effects of overnight withdrawal symptoms. Go cold turkey, and soon enough, you won’t need the coffee anymore.

Last but not least, get your daily required amounts of vitamins to maintain and gain energy throughout the day. With a properly calibrated raw food diet, you should not have to resort to pills and capsules to supplement your food; everything you need for great energy can be found within a raw food eating plan.

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Eating for Beauty

June 20th, 2010

When it comes to looking great – at any age – it isn’t about the makeup that you use, the color you put into your hair, or the clothes that you wear. Simply put, if you consume bad choices in food, your skin and your body will show it, and no matter what else you do, your looks will suffer for it.

Processed sugars, abundant salts and unnatural chemicals can do damage to your skin and your hair, and leave you looking worse for wear. But if you take the time to do a little research, you will find that there are plenty of foods out there that can actually help with your daily beauty regimen.

Two of the most important parts of your food that will affect how you look are the fats and the water content of your meals. While we have a tendency to consider fats to be a bad thing when it comes to healthy foods, there are indeed good and bad types of fat that you can eat.

Want an example of consumable fat that will wear on your looks?

Try modern dairy products. These overly processed fats are treated to remove many of the helpful bacteria that originally were present and can be helpful to digestion, and all you are left with is a high fat liquid that might help with your calcium daily requirements, but sure won’t help you to look good.

So, how about an example of a good type of fat for your looks? What if I told you that there was a fruit that you have probably only ever eaten as a mushy, overly spiced paste; one that can be sliced over salad, blended into smoothies, and used dozens of other ways; one whose buttery texture and rich, delicious taste is due to an abundance of wonderful natural and raw fats; and one that can help your skin to glow and your hair to shine?

You might think that was too much to ask of any fruit, but avocados can do all of this, and more. The natural raw fats contained in avocados help to feed your skin and make it glow, and provide your body with a natural source of vitamin E and antioxidants.

But fat is only a part of the story. In order for your skin to really look its best, you need to make sure that you are properly hydrated. Skin that is starved for moisture not only looks bad, but is bad for your body. The skin acts as a natural sponge for water, holding it in reserve for other parts of the body. When hydration levels drop, the water is drawn inwards to those vital organs, leaving your skin parched. Thirsty skin will look dry, flushed and droopy, accentuating any existing wrinkles and age spots.

Other than a big glass of water, you can rehydrate your skin and rejuvenate your appearance with any number of water-dense fruits, such as grapefruit or watermelon. A single serving of grapefruit is over 90% water, which can easily be absorbed by the body and used to refill the sponge that is your skin, leaving it looking plump and full, smoothing out any wrinkles and giving you a healthy, even glow.

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Summer Raw Food Detox Diet

June 6th, 2010

Summer time, and the living is easy, right? Beautiful weather, long weekends, good friends and great food. But there are plenty of anxieties that come with the summer months, too. Hot weather means bathing suit season has once again returned to scare you away from the sweets, and the warm weather means you would love to have the energy to get outdoors and get some fresh air and exercise.

To that end, a great way to begin your summer is with a raw food detox diet. Now, many people will see the words “detox” and “diet” and think oh great, there goes any fun I was planning on having this summer. But with a proper raw food detox diet, you will not have to suffer through terrible foods just to give your body a healthy flush. The key to a good detox diet is not to deprive and starve, but to nourish and replenish.

One of the best things to do with any detox system is to increase the amount of water that you are drinking. On hot sunny days, that can be very easy to accomplish. But if you get bored of drinking simple and flavorless water, there are things you can do to keep it raw, make it delicious and avoid additional sugars. For a great morning drink, a simple wedge of lime or lemon in your glass can help to make your water more interesting. During the afternoon, a slice of cucumber in your water glass can add variety and taste. And in the early evenings, you can relax on the back porch with a glass of mint-infused water or a sun-brewed iced green tea.

Another great way to increase your hydration levels is to indulge in fruits that have high water content. A slice of watermelon can curb your hunger and keep you refreshed. Other options can include plump summer strawberries, cantaloupe and other melons.

When it comes to meal times, the summer heat can help to keep you within the confines of your raw food detox diet. For many people, a good dose of hot weather is effective in curbing the appetite. Get out in the warm weather as much as you can, and you may find that you are less hungry when meal time rolls around.

But that doesn’t mean you should limit yourself to eating less if you are hungry. There are plenty of great, filling options for summer meals that fit within the definition of a summer detox raw food diet. From healthy and wonderfully green salads to cool and refreshing cold raw soups, eating a raw food diet will definitely help to keep you healthy all summer long. The best salad for this sort of diet would have a big leafy green like kale for fibre, a minimal amount of salad dressing, and a handful of blueberries for their antioxidant properties. For raw summer soups, try a cold watermelon soup for the added hydration and light weight.

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