Is it possible to eat raw for years and be severely overweight?

[Shan]

I know that people don't lose weight at the same speed. I know everyone's metabolism is different. But is there anyone here who has been eating raw for three or more years and is still significantly (like say 50 lbs or more) overweight?

[ljannise]

Shan, you're not gonna starve

[karenisraw]

Shan,

I have only been raw for 4 1/2 months. I seem to lose weight more slowly than most people on raw. My doctor said that it may be becase of toxins in the body. If you have too many toxins in your system, apparently, your body does not lose more weight because your system can get too toxic. I notice that when I lose weight, I feel a little sick and nauseas immediately after a poind even. I only lose maybe a oind or half poind at a time.


k

[tglasco4]

Sounds like Master Cleanse time.

[Ariella]

i had been high raw for 6 years. initially i lost the 25 pounds and got down to where i wanted to be, in the first 9 months. but then i got pregnant with first baby about 2 months later.... well so i gained with him, got down to 5 pounds above prepregnancy weight. stopped nursing him and gained 20 pounds in a month! ack! then i had another pregnancy and miscarriage. then got pregnant again with baby 2. after her i was at when i got pregnant with her but STILL 30 pounds overweight :( so that was 3 years of high raw and being 30 pounds overweight....

i have been 100% raw now for 46 days and i have been finding out interesting things about myself. i have lost 15 pounds now, (it would have been 20 if i had stayed away from nuts and gourmet raw :( ) so that is it, if i eat any gourmet raw meals or nuts or deserts i gain back weight. my body just does not seem to be able to digest these items or fat. i do really well with low fat raw and no nuts or gourmet. the exception would be almond mylk, i can have this in small amounts and not gain. if you are having difficulty maybe you need to look at what you are eating or the amount of fat you are eating and modify that? i am so happy i figured out that my body just does not digest these foods. despite that fact i am feeling full and satisfied and enjoying all of my foods ;) . raw can still be good even without the gourmet and nuts. if you try doing this and need a heavier food to have a full feeling in your stomach try bananas that had definitely helped me through rough moments.

I hope that helps you.....

Ariella

my blog: [url]www.ethicalcentral.com/main

[veganman]

Ariella -

what are you eating if you aren't eating nuts? Just fruits and veggies?

[karenisraw]

Shan,

I too have problems losing weight. I posted above about the toxins in your system. I do an infrared sauna which not only is GREAT for detoxification but it burns quite a bit of fat. I found some portable infrared saunas for about $400.00. I would recommend this for you. If could be that you are having problems ridding of toxins. When I excercise, I do detoxify but the infrared does it much better. When I go to the infrared sauna, I notice I lose about 1/2 a pound. Here is a link or just google "portable infrared saunas".

http://www.hepalta.com/infraredsaunas/index.html


k

[rawpriestess]

When your body isn't losing weight on raw, and you still have weight to lose, it is because your body is using all of it's healing powers to correct something else in your body.

[Helen Of Tennessee]

Hi Shan,

Could you share what you eat on a typical day? Or even a few days?

If it's been 3 years of no changes, you may just have to make a few adjustments in what you are eating. It could be just the combination of foods, it could be the food group, or it could be the quantity. Also are you exercising? Getting sun? Pure water? Plenty of sleep/rest? These also play a big role. Also like Todd suggested, you might want to do a short juice fast and see if there is a change. Mabe your body just needs a little rest from working so hard in digesting your food, espeically if you are a grazer and eating all the time. It could be just stop eating earlier in the evening to give your body time to rest and work on your metablism. There are just so many things that could be causing your weight to be stuck. You'll just have to try different things to see if you can start to see improvements in any symptoms you have, like weight, or other health things (are you tired? brain fog? etc.).

When my weight gets stuck, which is most times, I find if I eat just 3 meals, not starting before 11:00 am, of just all whole fruits and one salad, my weight falls right off. But usually I'm a grazer and I maintain my weight. I'll occasionally do a week of just 3 meals of fruits and salad, lose 5-10 pounds and that weight will stay off even after I go back to grazing all day. I know if I would just do the 3 meals for a month, I will be down to my ideal weight, plus probably have my thyroid meds cut back again! Wouldn't that be nice. (ummmm - maybe I should seriously consider the 30-day challenge again).

[misslinda]

I've never been severely overweight but taking the to heart the notion that fats do slow down cleansing and healing, has been ture for me. I pretty much had cut out nuts,grains and oils so my body could concentrate on cleansing and not working so hard on breakingdown.

Personally, I really have found profound /accelerated results and have slowly added fats back in and then back off when I know I am detoxing even greater and deeper.

Ultimately, it's a matter of observing yourself for a good duration for consistency. If you stay severly overweight, then something needs to be altered in the food combo or selections.

"Somethin just ain't right" :D

[Ariella]

veganman

i eat a lot of fruits and veggies. occasionally some nut mylks, but not much. i feel good doing that and am dropping weight! it is when i eat the gourmet stuff i dont lose and gain :( if i hadn't eaten any gourmet over the last 47 days i would be down 20 pounds instead of 15 (as i gained 5 pounds eating gourmet and had to relose that!)

Ariella

my journal: www.ethicalcentral.com/main

[RedFizz]

I am new to raw. What do you all mean when you refer to raw "gourmet"?

[shakti17]

Yes Shan, I definately think it is possible to be raw for years and still overweight. I know Karen Knowler, who runs The Fresh Network in UK, was a bit overweight for years, but then she slimmed down.

I would judge by how you feel and your intuition, not a mirror or a scale.

[Shan]

Oh dear I should have clarified that I"m only on day 4 of eating raw. I was only curious to see if it's possible to be overweight when you're eating raw for a long period of time. Thanks for all the information though. If I high a weight loss plateau I'll know what to do! You guys rock :)

[karenisraw]

I just purchased a portable infrared sauna for detox and weight loss for $285.00 on ebay. You apparently burn 600 calories per 30 minute session. I believe it becase I always lose a pound or so the next day after the session.

k
:)

[ChaiLife]

Karenisraw, PLEASE report back how you liked the sauna. I have been looking at them online too. Man, 600 calories per 30 minutes?? I wonder if I can sleep in the thing!!! :o

[Ginger]

OMGosh I would love to get a sauna like that!!

I gave up raw after a 6 month stretch because I was only gaining & was overweight to begin with. I got really frustrated! I have come to the conclusion that I would rather feel good but be fat on raw than eat cooked & feel like crap.. LOL

[Helen Of Tennessee]

Hi Shan,

So good to hear that you haven't been stuck for 3 years :D

But I did want to share Nora's testimony with you. She ate 100% raw for 5 months before she lost her 1st pound, then it started melting off. So don't get discouraged if you don't lose right away.

http://www.rawschool.com/

[Sooboopa]

Hi

I tend to lose weight easily on raw...even when I'm eating some cooked.

I find that I feel optimal with fruit in the mornings, any fruit, vegetables, greens in the afternoon and whatever I want in the evenings, as long as it is acceptably raw. If I was to eat whatever I wanted all day (raw of course), I wouldn't feel the same clarity. If a good portion of my day consists of just fruit, vegetables and greens (I include sprouts in this...as long as they're fully sprouted)...nothing frozen or dehydrated, no nuts, no soaked grains...I can carry that good feeling on into the evening if I was to drink almond milk or eat a raw recipe or whatever.

Maybe something like this will help you to lose weight more easily... You never know...

[greeninlosangeles]

Gourmet meals are complicated meals like raw pies, bread loaves - very often dehydrated and made with very concentrated stuff like nuts, seeds, dried fruits and vegies.
As for me -I lost 30 pounds on 100 percent raw(okey, had 2 or 3 times a little cooked, but just in small amounts), and for me it is easy to loose. But I do not have time to make raw gourmet - except flax crakers. I eat gourmet maybe once a week or less in raw cafe. And I am not fan of nuts or seeds too much. Raw nuts are too expensive, and i am already bored with sunflower seeds.

[Svadhyaya]

RawVeganMom - you are such a wonderful cook - your food photos in your journal look so amazing that I know if I made all that goodness I'd gain a ton of weight, too, cause I couldn't stop munching.

You are beautiful, by the way.....not even close to fat......

I'm losing weight very slowly, but probably only because I love nuts, love to eat a whole bunch, and sometimes cheat.

[LovingLife]

I was going to tell you that when I first went raw, I didn't lose much the first week, but the second week the weight came off really fast. But after reading about Nora taking 4 months before she lost anything, my experience sounds like nothing! :rolleyes:

[Lady Green Jeans]

Shan,

Your question really got me thinking. Thank you. I only did four months raw, so maybe not the best authority to answer you. I quit smoking over 14 years ago. When I did, I rewarded myself every Sat. night with an awsome hot fudge sundae. Twenty-some pounds later, I purchased and followed the Richard Simmons Deal A Meal. Took awhile, but lost the added weight and never went back to smoking.

I find myself craving foods and at times--sadly--weakening to the cooked food cravings. I am just a couple days back to 100% raw and already feel such a differnce. I know I can hide a lot of emotions into eating. Not to an extreme sense, but it is there. So, I can question myself as to why I want something. It is no one elses issue, just mine. I can face these things and go forward. I guess it's living in your own skin and liking it. Hope you find the way you need.

[Rawmommie]

I've been raw for over a year and a half and I'm overweight. I lost initially (about 10 pounds, I weigh 195) and then it crept back on. I know WHY though, so it's my choice to lose or not. I just plain eat too much. I can put down lots of avocado's and I normally avoid nuts b/c I will eat them until I'm sick. If I watch those things and my quantities, I will lose.

[rawfigure]

I actually lost 3 pds the first few weeks Raw and hit my almost ideal weight of 126, then I started to slowly GAIN since going Raw 9 months ago. I was at my ideal weight, now I am 5 pds over. The other day when I weighed in I was shocked & I am quite baffled by this as I do not eat alot, about same as before I went Raw, and I run work out daily. For my fat sources I eat mostly Almonds and Pumpkin, rarely any other high fat foods and almost NO gourmet recipes or deserts and little dehydrated foods, none now. I was having either nuts or pumpkin seeds daily.


I went from eating no fruit, sweet veggies like carrots, in my diet to 2-3 piece whole fruit now and a few carrots. I eat tons of veggies ! I refuse to believe it can be fruit or the added carrots (as I have been told will make me gain all that sweetness added to my diet) so I suspect, like Miss Linda says, need to drop the nuts and seeds so I can heal more. Maybe not digesting the fats well.

So yes I think you can miss eat on Raw too.

OH amazingly enough I weight trained for 18 years eating cooked high protein. SInce going raw I reduced my weights and started running more and WALA ! I gained more muscle in my Quads 9 months Raw faster than all the years doing weights. And my upper body muscle maintained w/ VERY MINIMAL training. Bonus to Raw. If you train you should add some Muscle which weighs more.

[yeahbethany]

I would venture to say that yes, it is possible. Despite what many people say, I am coming to realize that raw is not raw is not raw. There are ways to eat that are better than others (even on raw!).

Ditto what Helen of Tenessee says.... =)

-Bethany =)