Help me understand

[iaborn42]

I am just getting into a more healthy lifestyle. Not that I haven't tried before I just always seem to revert back to old ways.

Help me understand the concept of raw food vrs. whole foods and can the two healthy ways be combined.

I can't afford to go out and buy the book mentioned on here. I am going to my library today to see what I can find. Help me to understand all this.

Thanks

[shakti17]

whole foods are great...eating foods in their natural whole state - such as whole grains (nothing refined), veggies fruits, etc (even meat and dairy...eck;) )
so you d be eating nothing from boxes cans etc -- huge improvement over SAD (standard american diet)

then to take it one step further, going organic is great (good for you, good for the earth!)

raw foods takes everything to a whole new level - as many on this board would agree it is the natural way for us to eat. when you cook a food, you change its molecular structure, and it becomes a toxin. also heat destroys enzymes in the food - so then we use our own precious (and limited) enzymes to digest, accelerating aging.

also cooking gets the water out of food, also making us dehydrated!

i m sure other folks can add a lot to this...

for me the best thing about raw is the spiritual angle -- feeling good and in the flow of life and close to nature.

peace

[rawstrength]

You don't need to worry about raw food versus whole food.

Raw food is whole food. A whole raw apple is delicious and really really good for you :) just as an example.

[ShelShel]

Raw foods are all fruits, veggies, nuts and seeds that are not cooked above 112 degrees (I think) and the nuts and seeds need to be soaked to get their enzymes to activate.

So, many of us use a dehydrator like others use a stove. It cooks at just under that temp, and leaves the enzymes intact.

Think of berries and nuts for breakfast. A huge salad with all the veggie toppings under the sun and a fruit salad on the side for lunch. A dehydrated mexican meal with real corn chips and fresh salsa. Finished with a raw ice cream and brownies for dinner.

These are just some of the options that you can eat when you are eating raw. It's not that grains, meat, and dairy are evil...we just chose living enzyme choices over them. So...I might have broccoli for my calcium instead of a glass of milk.

Why? For starters...I used to be a size 18. After years of battling my weight, I lost it in 8 months and am now wearing a 3-5. After battling acne like a teenager at the age of 35...my skin is clear.
After drinking 36 ounces of coffee every morning just to struggle and make it through the day...I have tons of energy with no caffeine needed! :)

Raw makes me feel better...makes me handle stress better and allows me to just live. I never think of what I'm going to wear and how it's going to fit. If I'm going to feel tired tomorrow or if I will need to wear make-up to cover something. I just live...thriving...and glowing.

That's the difference! For me anyways. :)

[iaborn42]

Wow, I love hearing about this. I am going to have to learn so much. My biggest problem is going to be what my diseased bladder is going to be able to handle.

I can't do any tomato product hardley at all. If I do have a little salsa, it has to be a real small amount and only every now and then.

I can't do any citrus fruits, nothing acid. It feels like knives cutting inside my bladder and causes me to go to the bathroom every 5-10 minutes. My bladder capacity is 50-100 cc awake and then I have to go. This is a non curable disease that I have to manage and my diet is a big part of that.

I can't do any caffinated products, which is good. I can only tolerate peppermint tea that is made just from the peppermint leaves, no tea products at all in it. I think it is the acid that is in the tea.

I like nuts, so any directions on how to find what I need would be great. I will also try to learn about growing sprouts. I live in a small town in IA with only one grocery store. So I will have to depend on the Farmers Market in the summer and see if there is somewhere online to order some other things from.

Any guidance here folks would help me a lot. PM me if you don't feel comfortable posting. Even with my diet limitations if I can't go totally raw, I feel if I can cut back to a healthier way of eating, every little bit will help. I would love to lose some weight.

Keep posting everyone, I love learning. I have a dehydrator, a decent blender, a good food processor, a good stand mixer and I have a juicer, cheaper one for now on the way that I should have for early next week.

I will do the best I can with this. I have already today made a couple of smoothies for snacks rather than something unhealthy!

[rawstrength]

I have already today made a couple of smoothies for snacks rather than something unhealthy!


Hurray for you! You are doing great! Just keep making a few little changes at a time, and before you know it, you'll be 100% raw. Don't worry about not being able to tomatoes and citrus fruits. There are hundreds of kinds of fruits and vegetables, so if you can't tolerate a few, there are still lots of other options. That's going to be the basis of your diet from now on, fruits and veggies :) .

As for ordering raw nuts online, I've heard that www.rawfromthefarm.com is great for that. I've never bought raw nuts online because I buy all of my nuts at whole foods and at costco. I mainly use flax and sunflower seeds instead of nuts, for health, cost and taste reasons.

I buy my raw chocolate powder from www.luckyvitamin.com . That's right, you can even eat raw chocolate! It's soooo much more delicious than cooked chocolate. You can get some local raw honey from your farmer's market, mix it with the raw chocolate powder, and enjoy a scrumptious chocolate sauce over a sliced banana. Just browse through these forums and you will find a ton of over simple, healthy and raw recipes.

As you begin raw, you may find that you are incredibly hungry at first. Most people go through this phase; it's perfectly normal. You can eat all you want and still be healthy and at a healthy weight. Gradually you will need less food as you go on with raw.

Good luck with your raw journey!

[iaborn42]

I do have a Sam's for sure and maybe a Costco about 45 minutes from me. In those places what are the seeds or nuts to look for? I do like sunflower seeds, have never had flax and right now budget is going to be a big factor for me.

I like oatmeal, what are the best options for that? I know it is a healthy grain for you. I have at times mixed it straight out of the container(not cooked) with fruit, nuts and a little milk.

I also do have fresh honey from one of our local bee keepers in my cupboard right now.

Also what are good choices for a morning breakfast cereal if I want a bowl of cereal?

This is going to be a little tough because I have a guy who is not going to eat like this and I will be preparing meals 2 different ways. I don't care but it will be more time consuming.

Thanks for all your help everyone.:)