no fruit in evening? before sleeping?

About consuming fruits; fresh, dried or juiced.
Post Reply
jmbattle
Posts: 101
https://cutt.ly/meble-kuchenne-wroclaw
Joined: Thu 29 Dec 2005 01:01
Location: Tokyo, Japan

no fruit in evening? before sleeping?

Post by jmbattle »

Hello folks,

May I ask, would the Wai diet recommend against eating fruit in the evening? I say this, because I often enjoy munching on an apple in the evening whilst watching a film or checking email etc.

For example, earlier on - at around 7:00pm - I ate a salad consisting of tomato, cucumber, apple, a little carrot and of course olive oil (there was also some chopped pineapple in there, but I probably should not have added that - sorry!). I ate slowly, using chopsticks - it was delicious; leaving me satisfied yet not 'over full'.

Just a moment ago, 9:00pm or so, I was feeling a little peckish, raided my fridge and consumed a persimmon with two small oranges (Japanese mikan, i.e. tangerine).

Given that I shall shortly make a cup of peppermint tea and probably sit down with a film for an hour or two, and will not sleep for a little while yet, was I wrong to consume the fruit so 'late' (relatively speaking) in the evening? I have always been a firm believer in the notion that an individual's motabolism is more efficient during the day and slows down as the evening progresses.

Furthermore is it therefore wrong to eat fruit before sleeping? Again, as something of an 'apple addict', I often fall asleep listening to the radio, munching on an apple in bed before drifting off.

My second question is related to Wai's suggestion of eating raisins with a little butter before sleeping, which I understand helps to regulate blood-sugar levels; aiding an uninterrupted night's rest. Raisins are obviously a rich, concentrated source of sugar, whilst the butter is obviously required to carry the fats.

However, why suggest butter and not a healthier option such as olive oil? Indeed, may I return to my initial query - thus bringing this topic full circle - and instead suggest eating apple with a little olive oil before sleeping? Would this be as effective as Wai's raisin & butter recommendation?

My apologise for the lengthy post.
Thanks,
James
CurlyGirl
Moderator
Posts: 341
Joined: Thu 29 Dec 2005 01:01
Location: South Africa (soon to be USA)
Contact:

Post by CurlyGirl »

Hi James,

no, I certainly don't think the Wai diet discourages eating fruit in the evening. It is, as far as I know, heartily encouraged, so long as your body has obviously signalled to you that it needs some sugars and fats! So, you are absolutely right to munch on an apple (with olive oil!) before bed. My favourite bedtime snack is a few dates with olive oil - yummy, like eating toffee!

You said you probably shouldn't have added the pineapple to your salad - why not? To me, your combinations sound fine!

I also used to think that we should all be eating the bulk of our calories during the day, and then very little as night falls, but I am beginning to realise that that is not always the case. As you progress with this diet, your body becomes gradually so much cleaner that its signals are stronger than they ever were before - and sometimes, those signals might tell you to eat a lot of fruit at night, while during the day you might sometimes not be all that hungry, and might prefer just to take a few sips of some OJ with olive oil every hour or so. Sometimes, that happens to me. While at other times, I am ravenous during the day and eat any fruit I can get my hands on! It all depends on your particular energy needs for that day.

LOL, being an 'apple addict' will certainly help make this diet easier for you, James! :D

[By the way, butter does not contain the addictive dairy proteins that milk contains, since it is mostly fat - Wai says that butter will help your bowels move and therefore help prevent constipation, which must absolutely be avoided if we want to have clear skin and maintain our ideal weight! But I think she says elsewhere that it is still to be considered a munchfood. I personally don't use butter all that much because it reminds me of foods that I used to be addicted to, like toast with butter and scrambled eggs! Avoiding it seems to help me stick to the diet, for psychological reasons!]
jmbattle
Posts: 101
Joined: Thu 29 Dec 2005 01:01
Location: Tokyo, Japan

Post by jmbattle »

Great, thanks for your reassuring response CurlyGirl!

As for the pineapple, I recall reading that the strong acid in pineapple mean it is generally), but again, it was not a considerable amount. ;)

Well, once again after eating dinner I feel satisfied without the typical bloatedness. I chopped up cucumber, tomato, pineapple, apple and drizzled over plenty of olive oil. Eating slowly with chopsticks really does help the digestion also, as does sitting down, talking leisurely with friends whilst eating. For desert I ate a small grapefruit and a couple of ripe persimmons that I purchased this afternoon at a very reasonable price.

Yummy!

James
x
CurlyGirl
Moderator
Posts: 341
Joined: Thu 29 Dec 2005 01:01
Location: South Africa (soon to be USA)
Contact:

Post by CurlyGirl »

Hi again James,

Your 'ritual' of eating slowly with chopsticks and in the company of friends is a wise one - I always feel more satisfied when I take my time over a meal and have some good conversation too. However, I can't take my time over EVERY meal in the Wai diet, because I have to eat something like 8 times a day (small meals) to keep enough sugars in my blood so my body doesn't think it's starving - so if I spent a leisurely half-hour for every one of those eight meals, I'd spend 4 hours every day just EATING!! lol :lol:

How are you doing otherwise, on this diet? Are you on it for acne, or weight loss/gain? Could you tell us about your general progress? I'm sure I am not just speaking on my own behalf - we are all interested in how everyone's doing.
jmbattle
Posts: 101
Joined: Thu 29 Dec 2005 01:01
Location: Tokyo, Japan

Post by jmbattle »

Well, my skin is reasonably good (touch wood), and I am fortunate in that I have never suffered acne. I would say the primary motivation for pursuing a raw food diet - and might I stress that I am by no means following Wai's diet terribly strictly - is simply to improve my general health and well-being.

Whilst I have been a vegetarian since my mid teens; relying predominantly on fresh (raw) fruit and vegetables, certain practices recommended by Wai have up until now eluded me. I have cut-out all canned food, soy (once a strong advocate of tofu), and am particularly interested in the olive oil consumption to regulate sugar uptake.

Given that I am not following the diet as strictly as one ought to, I am satisfied that my health has improved in the last week or so - my skin and eyes in particular are clearer; my overall well-being also is more positive.

As a side note however, and one thing I am a little concerned about, is the possibility that I may have become something of a 'fruit addict'; as silly as this might sound, I often find myself overeating on fruit almost uncontrollably. Of course, there are far worse substances to be addicted to other than fruit, yet an addiction of any kind is inevitably destructive, in my opinion...especially living in costly Japan; any suggestions for another country with an inexpensive source of fresh fruit?!

Anyway enough of that... take care everyone - all the best for 2006!
James
x
Post Reply