What really happened when I switched from 1300kcal to 3000kcal a day

I think my food journey is a rather long and unsteadily one. I have been through phases, experiments, and diets.  But then again who hasn’t. You read something, you see progress pictures and then you want to change something and try.

Sometimes it turns out well and sometimes not.

Well, let’s talk a little bit about that „well“. When you change your eating behavior, when do you feel like you have successfully changed something?

Is it when the scale says minus 5 pounds? Is it when your skin starts to glow from good food?

Is it when you have significantly more energy during the day?

Is it when you achieve to eat less during the day than normally?

Is it when you can enjoy food and don’t feel guilty afterward?

Is it when the food you eat doesn’t make you sick?

Everyone has other goals when it comes to food and body self-love.

I think for me the most important point was less focusing on how much I eat but more on what it is.

First thing I did was  stocking up my kitchen with real good healthy food I actually liked. I learned new ways to eat things I have never eaten before! I never liked bananas because of their consistency, but once I tried Banana Icecream with frozen bananas, I learned that I actually really enjoy the flavor. It sounds weird but hey if it’s working 🙂

Second thing I learned is that I had to seriously increase my calorie intake. I mean from 1300kcal to 3000kcal was quite a big thing for me. After slowly implementing this change and feeling all the benefits it gave me I did not care about weight loss one single day! There were things happening with my body which were so much more important to me than a number on a scale. I ask you here to take a moment and think how a drop in some pound would make you as a human being a happier you?

Can you imagine how good it feels to just get in the right stuff (and yeah I mean a lot of the right stuff!) without thinking about restricting and going to bed „hangry“. I can remember days where I would just eat a small (30gr) portion of processed sugared chocolate coated muesli for dinner, feeling good that I could force myself to „just“ have this muesli. What I did not know was, that I did not do my body a favor.

Today I can have a huge dinner without bad feelings. You can have a huge bowl of veggies, salad, dressing, fruits, rice, potatoes that will fill completely and is actually still very good for you.

Plant- based foods are packed with fiber, vitamins, antioxidants and healthy carbs that fuel your body and are naturally low in calories. It is even totally ok to have a dessert after that. Don’t be scared of calories or „bigger“ meals than you might used to eat.

„Eat when you’re hungry, stop when you’re full“ – should be your new motto!

For me, this transition was not easy all the time and I do not always stick to the perfect healthy meal. I try as often as possible but I still get all these amazing effects with no eating a 100% clean. No worries. So I could post a „progress“ picture with me 2 years ago or a shameless bad quality, non-edited bathroom selfie like the one below which says absolutely nothing about my well-being. I mean, how could that help you?

I don’t look significantly different than some years ago. Certainly, I lost some pounds but that was nothing compared to the feeling and well-being I experienced after increasing my calorie intake. Further, pictures are so easy to fake or to be misunderstood as the angle can be so smartly chosen that people would think I am anorectic. On the other hand, I could easily post an unflattering picture, where I would look flabby and bloated. There would be no TRUTH in these pictures and I don’t want to mislead anyone. (this is a whole different topic that I will write about in a next blog post). That’s why I chose to show a picture where I was happy. A happy Lara Picture.

So,  I can only recommend trying it on your own! Get into the positive spiral of eating enough, exercising and simply being in balance with your body, mind and spirit.

And of course, you don’t have to be a vegan in order to „eat“ good. I post a lot of desserts and somehow it happened that they are all vegan. It actually never came to my mind that people would automatically associate this with me being a vegan. Let me tell you this.

I DON’T LIKE LABELS!

But to still say something about it. I do follow a totally plant based diet and I love to experiment with plant-based foods. Creating recipes from clean ingredients is a great and creative challenge that fascinated me a long time ago and still does. I would clearly point out that I am not “vegan” in terms of other aspects such as clothing or other aspects. I don’t wear fur and I don’t even know how many  „leather“ things I own. I treat everyone the same way and I usually never ask people at first meetings if they are vegan or not. What I really like is to discuss and listen to all different concepts. Listening to other opinions helps me grow and develop. I don’t know whether I will always be „fully“ vegan or Rawtill4 or whatever.

Find your way! I wish you a happy Sunday and thanks a lot for reading this 🙂