Getting Enough Calories

[solongng00dnite]

Hellllo,

I started eating raw 2 weeks ago and after one week I dropped 10 pounds. Now I do exercise a lot but when tracking what I eat I am not getting that many calories. It varies from 300-900 depending if I have nuts or seeds or use oil on my salad.

I have fruit for breakfast (kiwi, pineapple, raspberries)
Banana for mid morning snack
Salad for lunch
Apple or orange for afternoon snack
Salad for dinner

Sometimes at night I am a little hungry but it's not generally enough to make me eat anything. I feel like this is a pretty low calorie intake but if I'm not hungry I am not going to eat.

Did this or does this happen to anyone else?

[PomegranatePip]

If I ate what you ate, I would be shaky and starving all the time! No wonder you lost weight! That definitely doesn't seem like enough calories.

Yesterday, I didn't eat often enough in the morning. Then I was hungry. By the evening, I wasn't hungry, but my body was still in "feed-me-NOW" mode, in that I was craving foods horribly. I ended up eating cooked food just to shut that voice up, and then I paid for it with exhaustion and pain.

You may not actually feel hungry, but if you're not getting enough calories, your body will let you know!

[mrpickles]

I'm also having a hard time getting enough calories... im 6'3" 205 and pretty lean and my maintenance is around 3500 calories a day to just keep my weight up... I really don't want to eat all that sweet fruit as I am sure all that sugar is not good for my system... what can I eat besides just a ton of nuts to get my calories up for cheap??? Obviously there is all the grains but really can't eat those raw... and want to avoid gluten.

[SmilingRawDancer]

For those of us who need lower caloric intake, what does your salad consist of?

[monkapotapus]

I think you should just listen to your body - I've been 100% raw for 38 days now & that's what I've been trying to do.

Some days I don't eat very much at all - other days I eat a lot. I was on a pineapple kick for about 1 1/2 weeks - bought 8 of them & that's what I ate for supper a couple nights.

I have days where I barely eat greens & others where I don't eat much fruit, same with nuts - it goes in spurts.

Your body will lose your "false weight" - ie. the toxins in your system - if after all of that's gone - you may even gain a couple healthy pounds.

This last week I'm craving avocados (healthy fats) & eating them & still losing weight - however - mine has been at a slower pace.

Summary - eat when your hungry - don't when your not - if you're satisfied with what you're eating - keep with it!

Good luck!

Mr. pickles - Flax crackers are cheap to make if you have a dehydrator & seem to keep weight steady. Also, avocados are pretty cheap - add calories & healthy fats - not to mention filling!

[justinesmith]

If you are looking for straight up calories I would go for avocados, coconut meat, buckwheat sprouts, nuts (obviously) and most raw deserts. I'm living on onion bread, eggless eggsalad and refried beans right now and it is delicious ~ NOT low cal tho. Storm (from www.gardendiet.com) talks about weight gain for men as well, you might want to check it out. My dh is in the same position as you.... 6'3" and 175 lbs. The last thing he wants is to lose more weight and he felt that Storms info really helped him out. Good luck!

[solongng00dnite]

For those of us who need lower caloric intake, what does your salad consist of?

A variety of lettuce
cucumbers
alfalfa sprouts
celery
tomato
mushrooms
onions
radish
sometimes carrots or peppers

It varies between these usually, whatever I have in the fridge I just cut a piece off, dice it up, toss it in.

I add up my calories with a online counter (http://www.myfitnesspal.com/food/calorie-chart-nutrition-facts) and a salad like this is usually only around 40-60 calories.

[SmilingRawDancer]

I guess I'll be doing that then :) I'll be veggie shopping tomorrow.

[trinity082482]

I couldn't eat 300-900 cals each day I would cry lol. I love food. :D

[lore-ah]

I couldn't eat 300-900 cals each day I would cry lol. I love food. :D

I'd be too passed out to cry, honestly

[raw_danceruk]

I am pretty much the same, I eat when I am hungry, stop well before being "full" and if not hungry dont eat. This means some days eating 300 somedays eating 600.. whatever I want. I dont limit myself.

Fresh living foods...go with the flow.. :cool:

[Anastasia Alston]

If you're not hungry & you still have the energy you need to get everything done & to spare, then no problem! One of the beauties of raw is not having to count calories. If you need more your body will let you know; if you need less, again your body will tell you! :)

If you're really keen to have more calories, then try adding in a smoothie (green ones are especially good) with nuts/nut butter, avocado or coconut, make thicker flax crackers if you have a dehydrator or buy them at the hfs (Whole Foods has a raw section) & break them up like croutons & put some on your salad. Again if you have a dehydrator, you can make burgers & breads for sandwiches or break up the burgers & add them to salads; make heavier dressings using avocados & nut butters. Have a snack of fruit & nut butter on a flax cracker. Like someone else has already said, eat some of the yummy raw desserts frequently.

Unless you have a real problem w/any & all sugars at this point in your journey, then the sugars from fruits shouldn't be a problem, especially if your body is asking for them. Try eating a little more than you usually do & see how it affects you & increase slowly from there until you eoither hit a point where you feel not-so-good or you figure it's pointless because you're eating a lot of fruit & nothing is bothering you - OR - go all out & eat a lot more sweet fruits then do a body check: if you feel fine, no biggie, the fruits aren't a problem for you; if you feel not-so-fine, back off a little at a time & see where you do feel fine then go from there. Over time you can increase your fruit intake again if you like.

HTH,
Stasi :D

[solongng00dnite]

thanks for all the advice

[Adagio Breezes]

I couldn't read this and not respond. I REALLY think you need to try to eat more, espeicially nuts, seeds and oils. I can see that you're not getting enough protein, along with other nutrients. If you're eating 900 calories a day (which seems to be your maximum), it is impossible to get all the vitamins, minerals and other nutrients your body needs, even if you're eating the healthiest food on Earth.

I don't want to sound preachy, but you could have deficiencies and not show any symptoms, at least not until they get severe. Also, if you do start noticing something odd (your hair starts falling out, you feel tired more than usual, anything), please don't just assume you're detoxing. It could genuinely be a deficiency.

[lore-ah]

300-900 calories a day is not good. I know it's not a popular sentiment to calorie count around here, but that's just not healthy. If you do that for too long, you're losing lean muscle mass and your body starts robbing other sources for energy, like your organs. Sorry if that's a bad post, I just worry!

[solongng00dnite]

Thanks for everyones concern. Now in my 3rd week of raw I have gotten Alissa's book, a dehydrator and a food processor so I am making more of the recipes which is definitely allowing me to get more calories. But I still am going to keep an eye on it.