I Went on a Raw Food Diet and This is What Happened...

​I'm not one for fad diets, but I'm totally in favour of the raw food movement simply because I look at it as more of a lifestyle than means to get in shape for my best friend's wedding. So, let me explain to you what the diet entails, and, no, it does not require you to snack on celery and cucumber all day! The idea is to eat food in its most natural state so as to optimise on the nutrients. Raw foodists believe that cooking food at high temperatures kills the enzymes. As a result, the body has to produce certain enzymes to be able to digest the food. While salad, smoothies and juices are a given, cooked vegetables are allowed as long as they are prepared at 48 degrees or below.

So, how did I do this? I signed up for Antidote's 7-day plan, which involves a set of four cold pressed juices for the first four days; three juices and almond milk on the fourth. So, a typical day would look like: 8 am: juice. 10 am: juice. 12 pm: lunch. 4pm: juice. 6pm: juice. 8pm: juice. On the last three days, the first juice was substituted with an oh-so-delish glass of almond milk, which I topped with chia, flax and cinnamon. So, yes, nuts and seeds are both allowed and encouraged. So, I tried that to them to my meals whenever I could. Since grains are a no-no, I'd usually stick to a salad or veggies roasted in olive oil. Quinoa, in its sprouted form, is acceptable. So adding that to my salads made my meals a lot more filling.

Surprisingly, I wasn't as hungry as you'd expect somebody on a raw food to be. Here's the things...as Indian, we've grown up to believe that without rice and roti a meal is incomplete. But you'd be surprised as to how, full I felt after a bowlful of veggies, and yet, somehow, very light. And energetic! It's a chain reaction, really. Once you give your body something good, it won't accept something that isn't. Were there any challenges? Hell, yes! I craved chocolate a lot, and finally gave in. But no more than two squares of dark! I also craved hummus a lot. But, hey, that's just me! Sometimes, if I was up longer than usual, I would pretty hungry after dinner, in which case I'd resort to soy milk. And, if I was going out, I'd allow myself a glass of wine or two!