Not seeing results and getting discouraged...

[mdm4888]

Hi everyone. I am 14 weeks raw and I haven't had ANY weight loss, my energy is the same, and I am still sluggish. I was anorexix for seven years and gained 60 pounds with a horrible medication they put me on about three years ago. I immediately went off, of course! But never went down to "my" normal size. I am not asking to be 87 pounds again, just not 145 like I am now. I am active physically, and eat a low fat raw diet. I don't know who to listen to, what to read, and what to believe. I feel like this is yet another attempt of mine ( I have tried MILLIONS of things) that is going to fail. I really want my health back and have spent a lot of money and efforts with this diet. There are not many resources in Miami, so I am pretty limited with advice. I see all these stories of change, and I am trying my best to patiently wait... but is this really going to help? Is this truly a universal diet? Why haven't I lost weight? Or felt those spurts of energy? PS I drink wine... wondering if that is a factor. Any help would REALLY be appreciated. Thank you, I am getting desperate and need support! Michelle from Miami

[Veganforlife]

mdm4888 - welcome!
Have you noticed any detoxing signs yet? I'm wondering if your body is getting ready to detox. I'm sure you have a lot of "gunk" in there that needs cleaning out.
Also - don't set yourself up for failure. Please don't think this "will fail again". Be positive. 14 weeks isn't that terribly long to not notice any sudden changes, comparing it to how long you were on medication, being anorexic, etc. Your body has been through a lot and it may take you longer to start noticing anything.
I feel for you. I hope you start seeing results soon.
There are a lot of great folks here who I know will give you some good advice.
Hang in there.
You've come to the right place and you've started on the right journey!

[wildfae]

You're probably already aware of this, but when you have had a serious eating disorder, it really messes with your metabolism.... that's what happened to me. Years of anorexia and uppers made it almost impossible for me to lose weight, or for that matter to even maintain without gaining.

Are you doing green smoothies? An abundance of minerals seems to help my body adjust and let go of the weight. I havn't had great success with plain old low fat... I really started losing weight when I ADDED coconut and avocado but cut out dates.... not that that's what you should do, as everyone's body is so different. Just try to listen to what your body is saying it needs.

[greeninloanageles1]

I don't know if you eat a lot of dried stuff - sundried stuff is usually not raw(sun is heating up the food to cooking point).
You could try pure raw diet - just raw fruits and vegetables, no oils, salt, condiments or dehydrated stuff. If you can - I tried and felt good, but never lasted this way too long.
It is still a puzzle for me, why some people gain fast and some people loose fast. I am more in the middle, so I don't complain. I did loose a lot of weight on raw and quite quickly.

[rawpriestess]

Hi,

YOU ARE IN THE PERFECT PLACE IN YOUR LIFE, RIGHT NOW.

Please do not be discouraged, your body is healing you, the most important thing to heal, and although you may not know what it is, if the weight isn't falling off, then the weight is NOT the most imortant thing to heal right now.

I've been doing the raw thing for a while now, and I've lost alot of weight, but there have been months that I was completely 100% raw and didn't lose a pound, I did feel a little discouraged, but I kept on eating raw, because I wasn't eating raw to lose weight, I was eating raw to gain health, and I knew that was what was happening,

So, if you aren't losing weight, get excited, I mean really get excited, jump up and down, be bliss filled, because this means that your body is healing something that you can't see right now, and that something may be cancer, or a disease or illness that you may not even know you had, or it could be just making sure that you have all the right nutrients in all the cells, so you can heal/lose weight even faster later.

So, keep eating raw, keep posting, keep us posted, let us know what is going on, and rest loads of rest, you have the rest of your life to do whatever you want, but during a detox, even if there are no symptoms, rest is good.

very good.

YOU are doing soooooo well.

[spicyfull]

I wish you JOY..........

[AvoMama]

Raw Priestess said most of what I was going to say!

Miami is awesome for raw foods... there are area potlucks, a raw restaurant and glasser farms for those occasional raw freats that are too time consuming to make on your own. The local whole foods in the area all have tons of raw specialty stuff. There's also local mangos, oranges, young cocos, avos... omg im making myself hungry! I knwo cuz my mom has a place down there and I visit her ;)

Make sure you're getting enough calories. I wasn't and it made a huge difference. I use nutridiary.com. It's a free site that tracks your daily intake. You can also enter your typical meals so you dont have to enter every ingredient every time, just add the meal (ie: i usually have a smoothie for breakfast. instead of adding each ingredient one at a time, i just click "smoothie").

Good Luck!

Beth

ETA: Skin Brushing! I cannot recommend this enough. Dry brushing daily after waking or before a shower takes two minutes and really gets the lymph system working to help detox.

[Nenyath]

Hi Michelle!

Now I was going to qoute RP for something she said a while back on how she felt when not loosing weight on all raw and realising it was healing but she has said it all herself :p I can only agree with her! I've got a little question though, are you eating low fat because it feels right for you or because you have that little voice in the back of your mind telling you not to eat all that fat? There's a huge difference as the last causes stress and that usually prevents weightloss and such. I have not had an eating disorder but I have been overweight and very weight concious. When I started raw I made a deal with myself, this is about my health, not my weight, any weightloss is a side effect (even though it is a mighty nice one) and I can eat what I want as long as it is raw. I really do hope you see some results soon though as encouragement!

Fly forever free!

[jaurequi]

I agree with Wildfae's assesment that it could be your past which is slowing your progress.
Are you not feeling at all different? Nothing? That is surprising to me; at least there should be some good things happening, even if small. Could it be you are looking for the bigger changes while not noticing the little changes? These little things build upon eachother and contribute to and/or precede the bigger.

I also agree with going with green smoothies in larger amounts for now. They are "pre-digested" by way of their blending and this will be much easier on your digestive system and allow you to absorb the nutrition your body needs for healing.

Don't go too low on fats, just make sure they are in whole-food form (nuts and seeds) and not oils, which have nothing nutritionally to contribute to your health. Start with one ounce per day of nuts/seeds (or half an avocado) plus 1 TB ground flax seeds; that would be my suggestion for fat amount to lose weight and still be healthy.(It's actually Dr. Fuhrman's recommendation :))

You may want to give up some of the worst of the non-raw foods you may be consuming; not sure if you are, you didn't mention.

Don't give up. You are doing fabulous, by the way: Fourteen weeks is incredible.

Best,

[Nix]

I suggest that you acquaint yourself heartily with sea veggies, most especially dulse and kelp. These will help your thyroid which is probably exhausted from your past days. :)
I also suggest that you use healthy fats such as nuts, advocados and include baby coconuts in your diet a couple of times a week. Coconuts, in their oils, have medium fatty acid chains which boost metabolism of fat and aid in weightloss, according to a number of sources.
Fat does not necessarily make you fat. Bad digestion, poor thyroid function (even within the medically "normal" range) and starving your body of calories will add to weight gain when you have weight to lose.
I have battled the bulge over the years and while I have never been anorexic I can say that food has been a problem for me. I hope you find your way to meet your goals. Remember, this is about health, not about weightloss alone.
Best wishes!
Nix

[mdm4888]

Wow, I can't thank everyone here enough for responses... finally I get a response from someone! I have been eating avocados, nuts, dehydrated, but cut back in the second month. I find that if I eat a lot of food made from fats, I feel tired. I really want to be healthy, and try to listen to my healthy thoughts, and not the negative eating disorder thoughts driving me to quit and go back to starving. But honestly, that doesn't work anymore either. I am trying to accept my body and heal myself from the inside, but I just don't feel comfortable AT ALL at this weight. I really appreaciate the advice, support, and concern. Thank you all so much.

[mdm4888]

Thanks so much. What is skin brushing?? Yes, Glaser farms is great, but the only raw foods place... and we do have the avos and mangos here too!! Thanks for helping me think about the positive!

[mdm4888]

Thanks for your response. To be honest, I told myself that I was going to eat whatever raw food I wanted (except deserty stuff... too scary right now). But then I read all of these different things about high fat raw is bad, low fat is better, high fat works better... and it makes me skeptical, and constantly trying to change something. I feel like I am not doing the right diet, but then there is another raw diet that is the "right" way. And to be even more honest, from so many years of starving my body and ignoring my natural cues, I really don't know how to listen to my body. I am really trying but it is really hard to untrain yourself, especially when I am getting my master's in an accelerated program and working.

[Sharon in Colorado]

I can tell you that right now, SOMETHING is happening, even if you can't feel it or see it. There's no way that eating all raw and no cooked will not cause changes in your body to be happening. They may be so small and gradual that you don't notice anything. Please stick it out and get ready to really see and feel some changes.

I also think you should stop the wine, but that is up to you.

[mdm4888]

I have seen some results. I have had a couple of bursts of energy, my skin is a little bit clearer, and I notice my body is way less tolerant of alcohol... thats got to mean something!!!! I will try to the green smoothies, thanks. Am eating 100% raw as well. I was noticing some changes, and then things seemed to be getting worse. My bowels have slowed extremely, my body is really sluggish, and I am gaining weight too. Oh yeah I am also doing colonics ( 5 sessions). I exercise 3 times a week as well (which is a lot less than I used to... didn't lose weight doing that either by the way... even with a really restricted diet) I am a perfect example of how brilliant the body is... it is like it's scared of what I am going to do next so it holds onto everything... ahhh!!!!

[Bethanie]

:) I right there with you, it seems that my body is fighting overtime against me.
No matter what type of exercise i do my body is like a rubber band, for a few days i seem to get a little tighter and then it snaps back and balloons out where it was.
Sometimes i want to feel like i'm fighting a losing battle but i won't because i know i will win in the end if i keep fighting, eating right and exercising. I may not see the benefits right now but i'll continue to watch and wait and i think it is worth it because i remember what i use to look and be like.
I like the NEW ME! :D :D
Bethanie

[mdm4888]

Bethanie, thanks for sharing your struggles with me... I feel like I am the ONLY one who is having these problems. It is great to stay positive, I am really trying as well. My goal is to give raw one year and if by then nothing happens, then.......
Stay strong and keep me posted on your journey.

[Guppy]

Michelle,
I know a private raw chef in the Miami area. He prepares a week's worth of raw foods in his clients' homes. I've had his food before and it's yummy. (His parents are my next-door-neighbors here in NY, so he feeds me when he is here visiting them).

If that is something that interests you, email me at emilyandmeny@aol.com.

Regards,
emily

[Bethanie]

:p I'm serious when i say this, take off all your clothes and stand in front of the mirror, if i can do you so can you. Now, turn around slowly looking at you shoulders, arms, hips, thighs, buttocks every part of you, you will see small changes and remember steps lead to great leaps.
I've had to learn to love my body as it is, i have clothes that are too small for me, some of them i will pack up because i have hope that i will fit them soon but many of them i will give away. I'm learning to love myself today, my body for how it looks now and you know it's working.
Keep hope alive and keep happy thoughts.
Bethanie

[freetarian]

I think its better to be overwheight right now in your life...dont get me wrong, but if youve been anorexic then its better to be overwheight than underwheight... also losing weight is hard work for the body, and it might need the extra weight right now and not spend too much energy on losing weight...I mean you weigh 145 pounds now? That doesnt sound so bad to me...seems rather normal even.

:rolleyes:

[aussiebeachgirl]

I think one thing to consider is why you went raw. Was it only to lose weight, or was it to give your body the best chance it can get at healing itself from the inside out? If it was the latter, try to forget about the weight.
I get a strong feeling that you're scared of a lot of things... I know for a fact that fat is one of the body's best insulations against fear. I've been through some horrorific things in my life and since I've started to deal with them, and started to feel the fear that's inside me, my weight's gone up and up. But I'm not worried. How can I worry? I can never ever hope to understand something as complex and intricate as my body with something as puny and insignificant as my intellect.
So one day I'd like to be thinner... Size is not actually something that the body considers. LIVING in optiumum health is the only thing the body knows how to do, and it will do it to the best it can, every single day. So trust in the body that is you. It will never ever let you down. And let it heal what and as it needs to - things will shift when they've resolved enough.
ABG

[Nenyath]

May I ask you how tall you are? 145 really doesn't sound all that bad, I'm about 170 and rather proud of it! (I'm 5.58 tall) You have to love yourself, be positive about your body. I know from myself that when you are distressed, you hold on to the weight.. I'm really glad though that you've decided to give raw a year and I really believe you will have seen RESULTS by that time!

Love and Laughter, always!

[mdm4888]

Wow aussiebeachgirl, thank you so much for the feedback. I love that, trust in the body that is you... that is great. It is so true. I did truly do this for health, of course I would I strongly feel that my weight is an affect of my health. But you are right. I need to just trust my body. I am just confused with how to help the process... seems like there are too many opinions on this topic!

Thank you all for the kind and helpful words, you have no idea how grateful I am.

[aussiebeachgirl]

I'm glad it helped - facts stated simply often do :) I have no doubts that Raw is one of the best things anyone can do for their body so just keep up the great work you're already doing!
ABG