Low-Fat Diet and Weight Loss
After years of struggling with weight issues, researching and trying out different eating plans and weight management methods, I have come to the conclusion that a low-fat raw vegan diet is the ultimate tool for weight loss. From my experience, a low-fat diet combined with regular, vigorous exercise delivers incredible results in terms of body fat loss. If you give this approach a go you’ll find it out for yourself and see those nasty fat rolls melting away and cellulite disappearing in a matter of months…
Several notable experiences are quite common when people start eating raw foods, especially when they switch to a diet that is exclusively raw from one that was primarily cooked. The first big change that people frequently notice is a rapid and dramatic loss of weight. This doesn’t always happen, but it happens more often than not. More often than not, people perceive this as a good thing, because they have excess weight to lose. After they lose the initial water weight in the first few weeks on the raw diet, many people find that they continue to lose weight, though much more slowly. It is likely that this subsequent weight loss represents a loss of fat.
Most people, however, after a few weeks or months of low-fat raw eating become convinced that their diet is causing them to lose muscle. Some individuals have never seen themselves so thin. But what actually happens during weight loss is that we lose much of the padding (fat) around our muscles and also the fat marbled within our muscles. In addition, on a low-fat salt-free raw diet, we begin to lose the water that we once retained to dilute toxins. This water also added to the appearance of inflated muscles. Many people mistake this excess fat and water as part of their muscle.
One pint of water weights one pound, so weight loss can be dramatic when we are losing water as a result of reducing the body’s toxic load by switching to an all-raw high carbohydrate diet. As a rule, rapid weight changes always represent water weight losses or gains. Under no circumstances can anybody lose a pound of fat per day, on any diet. Programs that promise you’ll “lose up to 10 pounds in the first 48 hours” are deceptive. It is possible to lose ten pounds of water in just a few hours, but only an extremely active person could realistically lose much more than a pound of fat per week.
Once again, it is absolutely physiologically impossible to lose muscle on a raw diet. In spite of what we have all heard, no diet of any kind results in (any detectible) muscle loss — or muscle gain, for that matter. We lose or gain muscle due to variations in our physical fitness programs, not through dietary shifts. Moreover, consuming protein (or any other nutrient) will not assist in the muscle building process either.
To sum things up:
What really happens when people begin eating healthfully (e.g. low-fat raw vegan) is that the fat starts falling off and they think they are losing muscle, because they never realized how little muscle they actually carry. People in this situation need to gain muscle while continuing to lose fat. This requires exercise.
Other Benefits
There are other quite a few benefits I have experienced after switching to low-fat raw. Some were pretty noticeable, the other ones were subtle and not as dramatic. I feel that they all worth mentioning though so you’ll know what to expect if you decide to adopt the same diet/lifestyle I follow. Of course, your experience might be different from mine, and this is totally permissible.
Here is the list of top ten benefits I have experienced.
- Increased energy level. This is a big one, and pretty much every raw vegan I know will attest to that. When your fat consumption decreases, your energy level increases (pun intended), because your body won’t be using its precious energy trying to digest and assimilate fatty foods.
- Improved digestion. Another great benefit a lot of people experience. Yours truly is not an exception either. It’s hard to believe now that all the digestive issues I had been having for years were almost gone within a couple of months eating low-fat raw vegan.
- Improved quality of sleep. Once again, I believe it has a lot to do with digestive process which means your body doesn’t have to work hard digesting heavy rich foods day and night. I personally never have a problem falling asleep, and I sleep like a baby too!
- No PMS. I used to suffer from PMS in the form of mood swings, irritability, water retention, swelling, etc. But not anymore! Since I switched to a low-fat raw vegan diet I forgot about it for good.
- More controlled libido. I can assume this one can get a little controversial. As far as me concerned, a more manageable and stable libido is a plus. By the way, Michael Arnstein, a famous raw vegan athlete (www.thefruitarian.com) created a video on this subject and posted it on his website. You can check it our here.
- Considerably reduced body odor or no body odor at all. Once again, from what I’ve learned, a lot of low-fat raw vegans experienced the same thing. I personally have no need for deodorant, and I think it’s great!
- No more oily skin and hair. For years I had been having problems with my skin and hair being too oily. I had been eating a good amount of oil, and never made a connection between my fat consumption and oily sheen on my face. I truly feel blessed by discovering this dietary approach and being able to implement it into my life successfully. My skin is not oily anymore. On the other hand, it isn’t dry either. It’s well-hydrated and healthy looking, thanks to my high fruit intake.
- Effortless loss of excess fat and water weight. I have covered this one already in the beginning of this article.
- No more depression or depressive thoughts. Despite of my generally positive outlook on life, I used to get depressed from time to time. I tried to “cure” my depression with different things, however, only raw vegan diet brought me sustained results.
- Improved feeling of overall well-being. You just feel happy and euphoric for no reason. This diet and lifestyle in general definitely gives you a healthy natural high.
And finally, the bonus benefit which is a practical one — no more oily, greasy and sticky dishes to clean. Eating this way, you only have to rinse your plates and utensils with warm water and you are all set!
Taken from: http://www.divineonraw.com/the-benefits-of-a-low-fat-raw-vegan-diet.html
