How to lose weight when appetite is huge & raw food so good?

[English Tracy]

I started so well being 100% raw from 1st Jan 06 and after 4 weeks had lost 14lbs. Then my dehydrator arrived and then I got into making Alissa's goodies - choc cake, banana cream pie, cannoli, etc - and so have piled the weight back on.

I'm so disappointed in myself. I feel great eating raw - much livelier and healthier but my problem is a huge appetite. I can eat vast quantities of food and not feel full and I don't know how to get over this 'block'.

There may be other threads on this, so please indicate them to me, but what should I be eating that will fill me up while not fattening me up? I've just discovered green smoothies - I had carrot juice, spinach and avocado this morning - which are quite substantial but I can't make them at work and salad never seems to fill me. I want to stay away from nuts and dried fruits for a while so PLEEEEZE can people give me some tried and tested ideas for filling foods? I have got Alissa's book.

I think I should also eat smaller meals every 3 hours as if i wait much longer than that, I get ravenous and eat everything that isn't nailed down!!!

All advice appreciated for nut free food ideas that will give me my shape back.

Thanks in advance.

Tracy

[Cinnamon]

I've really simplified my diet over the past 6 months or so and am eating a lot less fat, and this is my basic daily plan. Maybe there are some ideas that will help you too.

Citrus juice-orange and/or grapefruit (about 1 pint)

Green smoothie-about 1 quart and always different, today it was banana, orange, blueberries, spinach and mixed baby greens, dates, cinnamon, and water

Veggie juice-combo of carrot, cucumber, celery, kale, apple, ginger, lemon (this varies too)

Huge green salad for dinner-huge bowl of greens, veggies, a few nuts if I want or some avocado, orange and apple cider vinegar for dressing

Evening-maybe a raw dessert, banana vice cream, a fruit smoothie with carob like a dessert, or even veggie sticks and a nut pate

That is about it, it is a lot of food and really simple. My weight is very stable and I love the ease of eating this way. If you save the fancy recipes for just once in a while maybe that will help too.

[misslinda]

I started so well being 100% raw from 1st Jan 06 and after 4 weeks had lost 14lbs. Then my dehydrator arrived and then I got into making Alissa's goodies - choc cake, banana cream pie, cannoli, etc - and so have piled the weight back on.

I'm so disappointed in myself. I feel great eating raw - much livelier and healthier but my problem is a huge appetite. I can eat vast quantities of food and not feel full and I don't know how to get over this 'block'.

There may be other threads on this, so please indicate them to me, but what should I be eating that will fill me up while not fattening me up? I've just discovered green smoothies - I had carrot juice, spinach and avocado this morning - which are quite substantial but I can't make them at work and salad never seems to fill me. I want to stay away from nuts and dried fruits for a while so PLEEEEZE can people give me some tried and tested ideas for filling foods? I have got Alissa's book.

I think I should also eat smaller meals every 3 hours as if i wait much longer than that, I get ravenous and eat everything that isn't nailed down!!!

All advice appreciated for nut free food ideas that will give me my shape back.

Thanks in advance.

Tracy


Hey English Tracy,

I'm sorry about the weightgain! I'm sure in alot of those recipe called for alot of nuts so overall, were eating more nuts than you had the first time around?

Nontheless, are you drinking enough water--since your eating more dehydrated foods?

Let's work on what we can do to get you back towards the direction you want to be in.

How 'bout one of those portable mixers the handheld kind that comes with a container--I'll try to find a pic? You could tupperware the ingredients and blend if that''s an option you want to take for now.

Are your bm's consistent or do you feel stuffed?

[blesshisname]

I notice if I don't drink enough water, i don't have enough regular bm's. The more water I drink, the more I'm regulated. You might also want to follow food combining a little bit better, it could be indigestion that's clogging your system up.

[SparklePlenty]

EnglishTracy, I am finding that I can eat as much juicy fruit as I want, and as satisfies me, along with greens, usually in big salads. Keeping it simple might work well for you. Apples, oranges, grapefruits, pears, berries of all kinds, melons, grapes, bananas, pineapple, kiwis, mangos, etc etc etc. Just eat til you're full, and eat again when you're hungry.

For me right now, for weight loss, the dehydrator is going to have to wait. Same thing with the higher fat foods, like nuts and avocado. But they'll be there waiting for me when all the weight's off.

You will find the right combo for you, just keep at it!

[jaurequi]

English Tracy, just consume most of your calories from vegetables and fruit; these will fill you up. Then have fats to round out your meals for satiety and pleasure.
An example would be to snack on fruit or raw vegetables instead of crackers, nuts or cookies in between meals.
Consume large amounts of vegetables for your meals and add nuts to the mixture or a sauce or dressing containing just enough fat for your needs and to make it creamy.
If you want the gourmet meals, have them; but if you find they are contributing to unhappiness, then have them once a day or one day a week, or when you feel you really need something comforting instead of as a daily thing.

You're not alone in being capable of gaining weight on a raw diet. Even on a lowfat raw diet, you can gain weight. The truth is, if you exceed the number of calories you burn, you will gain. It's that simple. I can eat fat free raw all day and if I consume more than I burn, I will gain weight. It doesn't matter where it comes from; a calorie is a calorie. The issue is, what is your particular issue. Mine is fruit. I will eat it nonstop and gain weight if I don't balance it with vegetables and good fats. This is why most people have to eventually refine their diet to their particular body and needs. I don't have a problem with fats; if I did, I'd have to cut that down. As it is, I have to watch my carbohydrate intake because that's where I can overeat if not in balance.

Hope this helps :)

Best,

[English Tracy]

Thanks everyone. Looks like it is the right decision to stay away from the dehydrator for a while. I'll keep going with the green smoothies, fruit, veg and salads and try to get the cravings out of my system.

BM's generally fine on raw. I probably don't drink enough water so I must try and get into a good habit there.

As for the nuts and avocadoes, I'll keep nuts to an absolute minimum and have an avo with a daily salad or in a smoothie. I'll need some fat and at least that's the good kind.

Tracy

[DrPr]

Since starting raw, losing weight has been pretty simple and usually quite steady for me, thank goodness. I tend to stay away from sweets and snack foods that mimic SAD snacks because I don't want to tempt myself with old addictions, but yesterday I had a great raw carob pie that was a real treat. It didn't cause any cravings for chocolate or sweets, though. Yaay! Raw foods don't seem to elicit cravings in me, for some reason (except raw cheddar cheese- I had to quit that stuff).

(Oops- I need to update my signature! I'm down to 309 lbs since my last official weigh-in. But I snuck a peek this morning and it said 304!!)

[karenisraw]

I eat a raw cracker with coconut oil on it for breakfast and I am not hungry all day untill about 4 or 5 p.m.

k
:)

[juliebove]

Perhaps it all depends on what kinds of foods you like. When I see dessert recipes like that, they don't sound appealing at all to me. I am also not much of a fruit lover, although I do like grapefruit and strawberries if they are sweet. Sometimes I like apples and pears. And I like Wolfberries (goji). Most of the other fruits I could do without. I do love my veggies though and that's mainly what I eat.

I also love nuts and don't usually overeat on them, but if I find that I am doing this, I portion them out. I will put out one portion for the day and once I've eaten those I don't go back for more. I find that food sitting out in the open tends to get eaten. If it's behind cupboard doors, it's much more likely to stay there.

I also find flax crackers to be very filling. I bought some that are really flavorless, but at least they're not bad tasting. For my smaller meals, I start them with about a 2" piece of that and it helps to fill me up. I guess I'm lucky that I don't usually have much of an appetite though. I don't like to eat a lot at one time.

[kitchenfairy]

The truth is, if you exceed the number of calories you burn, you will gain. It's that simple. I can eat fat free raw all day and if I consume more than I burn, I will gain weight. It doesn't matter where it comes from; a calorie is a calorie. The issue is, what is your particular issue

juarequi: Thank You for writing this. So simple yet so true.

Congrats to Dr Pr for the weightloss. You are inspiring.

[theresaann]

I keep remembering Nora Lenz's story on this subject (rawschool.com). She says how at 44 the first 5-6 months on raw she didn't "lose an ounce" of weight and was disappointed, but stuck with raw anyway. She had been eating everything and anything she wanted as long as it was raw. She says she was eating tons of nuts and dried fruits "all day long" to stave off cooked food cravings. THen she had a healing crisis (big detox) for a week or so, and after that the weight started coming off pretty fast.

My feeling about this is that the body has to detox to a certain point before it will start shedding fat, especially the liver. I noticed that after doing a series of 100% raw in the last 2 years, now when I do it I lose weight faster-probably because I did do some detox those times.

[English Tracy]

DrPr - you are doing amazingly well!! I'll have to look at your journal to see what you are eating. I could live with weightloss like that - you've lost 35lbs plus in less than 2 months - brilliant!!

I'm fired up and remotivated for tomorrow (Monday) - just have to finish the last of yet another chocolate cake (i.e. raw carob cake). LOL :D

Tracy

[rawfigure]

Adding additional exercise, walks at the least, will allow you to eat and create abit more of a calorie deficiet. So many times we think of weight loss in the terms of calorie restriction. When trying to lose weight the first step I take is to keep cals te same add cardio at a higher level, then if I am not losing then I start the calorie restrictions.

[Webby]

EnglishTracy, I want to thank you for starting this thread...you articulated my thoughts just perfectly.

I was afraid of over eating for this very reason, as when I first became a vegetarian, I over indulged with pasta dishes and gained weight. I had to tailor my meals to work around it.

I wondered if indulging my sweet-tooth would lead to weight gain, now I know it can.

[PATH301]

I agree with rawfigure,
what type of excercise or you doing? what do you like to do? you have to combine the proper raw eating with the excercise in order lose the weight and feel great, like you used to :)

[English Tracy]

Sadly, I'm an office worker who is usually too stressed and tired to crawl to the gym after work. I know it's not a real excuse but I'm not one of these 'gym bunnies in a leotard' type of person. I'd probably cause an eclipse if I started jiggling around :D

I have increased my walking and that's really all I can manage at the moment.

I've started today really motivated again and found that eating every 2 1/2 to 3 hours really helped today and kept my appetite under control.

Tracy

[greeninlosangeles]

Truly to say, I am very surprised about weight gain on raw! I binge often(did not get to that problem yet, I will later, once I feel strong in raw food path), but I still lost 20 pounds in three months 100 percent raw(now I am 120, 5'6 on my scale in the morning, but 5-6 pounds more with clothes on other scales). If I binge, I just don't loose more, but I never gain... I do not use that much dehydrated stuff though - just crakers and sometimes lara bars. So maybe that's why.
The other possibility is that some of the foods you think are raw, are not - raisins, nuts, nut butters. Even irradiated fruits and vegetables, which look raw, but enzymes are dead. The only way to be sure - to raise your own or buy organic.