How to Build Muscle on a Raw Food Diet, Lose Weight and Gain More Energy!

Want to lose weight, feel better, be happier, more energetic, healthier and radiant? Who wouldn’t, right? Most of us probably have some weight to lose, and wouldn’t mind improving our health either. And doing so may not be as complicated as you think. Believe it or not, it is all attainable on a raw food diet, and there are honestly thousands of people who will back me up on that. The raw food diet changes lives, and seeing as its popularity has absolutely exploded over the last few years, that’s really a lot of lives changed! Feeling skeptical? Do a YouTube search for “Raw Food Testimonials” and see for yourself!

But what is a raw food diet? This is a diet where 75% or more of your calories come from uncooked plant foods like fruits, berries, vegetables, nuts and seeds and so on. It has been found that, in general, not cooking these foods helps them retain their nutrient profile better, making them a lot healthier for you. This affects not just their enzyme content (most of these foods lose all their highly beneficial enzymes when cooked) but also their vitamins, minerals, anti-oxidants, phyto-chemicals and other nutrients that your body need to function optimally.

And what can you expect when switching to a raw food diet? Lots of things, and all of them good! Due to social and habitual reasons, switching to a raw food diet may not be easy, but here are just some of the many benefits you can expect, as reported by raw food eaters:

• Easy weight loss. Because most of the foods you will be consuming on a raw food diet have a very low energy density (this is particularly true when talking about vegetables), you will probably find that weight loss on a raw food diet can be easier than ever, because of the simple fact that you can eat until you’re full and still not take in enough calories to maintain a high bodyweight. In addition, by not cooking these foods you avoid altering their glycemic index, so that your blood sugar control improves. Even people who’ve unsuccesfully tried all kinds of different diets have found that weight loss was easier than ever when they switched to a diet consisting mainly of raw fruits and vegetables. Fast and sustained weight loss isn’t just a possibility on a raw food diet – it’s a probability. Try it and see for yourself!

• More energy. Feeling weak and tired all the time? You’re not alone. A large part of our population feel that their energy levels just don’t measure up. You can expect big changes when switching to a properly planned raw food diet, though: raw foodists sometimes claim their new diet has given them too much energy – something that is really best seen as a bit of a luxury problem!

• Improved immunity. Raw foodists usually find that they don’t catch colds or other illnesses as frequently as they used to, and they usually also report experiencing a huge improvement in general health because of eating this way.

• Enhanced athletic performance. This comes as a surprise to many, but the fact is that a well planned raw food diet can lead to significant improvements in performance. Even with the relatively low protein intake you can expect from eating mostly plants all day, you can actually build muscle on a raw food diet - some raw food converts find it easier to build muscle than ever before when eating this way.

• Better mood. There are those that claim that raw food cured their depression, and then there are the rest of us who may not have been suffering from a clinical condition but just plain feel happier when we eat this way. No doubt about it, raw food can improve moods.

These are just some of the many benefits you can expect to experience when “going raw.” If this way of eating is new to you, you really do owe it to yourself to give it a try. You may never want to switch back to a diet full of cooked foods ever again!