Raw food check in ! It's been a while!

[catherinethegreat]

Hi gang!

it's been a long time and I wanted to saw a hello to you all. Jerry and I went to Spain for 2 weeks and it was glorious.

Now I'm back and getting into the swing of things and under a doctor's care for the ailments I've talked about here....

The main reason for this post is because I'm now doing 50% raw and will be slowly transitioning back into more and more raw.

My history raw is all or nothing. I'm either 100% or WAY WAY WAY off into junk food fast food land. SO trying to be in the middle is a strange place for me to be but an important one that I am doing at this time.

My quesitons is for anyone out there who isn't 100% but close to it.

What are the foods you eat that aren't 100% raw?
I struggle with how to maintain this without going WAY WAY WAY over into junk food land.

any thoughts or suggestions are greatly appreciated. Although i must prefice this by saying that I won't go 100% right now so although I know that some might want to write me and suggest that as a solution-it isn't what I will do right now.

Thanks and hope you are all doing great!!!

love
Catherine
:D

[Texicalian]

Hi Catherine - you don't know me, but it's great to see you back! Your's was one of the first journals I read and I very much enjoyed it. I'm high raw; although I guess my nonraw things are mostly tea and supplements. I've had plain organic yogurt, dolmas, pretzels at the parents, olives - and if I ever visit Texas again, I may have to go for some TexMex! What kind of foods are you looking for? Sweet? Crunchy?

-Lori

[Migrou]

Hi Catherine!

I too struggle to be 100% raw. Right now with a new job and not much time to shop for fresh produce I find it even harder. So currently I try to eat healthy and eat as much raw as possible. I find I do well with the 6 weeks plan from Joel Furhman. He suggest eating as much raw as possible and some steamed veggies and beans. That is what I do at the moment and it works for me. I'd say right now I am at 50% raw some days 75% and others 100%. It gives me balance, keeps me away from fast food and I am losing weight.

Good Luck to you, I hope you find the right balance for your self!

Michelle

[catherinethegreat]

Hi you two - thanks for the info.

I was given pretty stict instructions from my doctor ( who happens to be 90-95% raw and has been for the past 20 years)
so a lot of my raw options are out right now - so I struggle with what to do when I just want to snack.
I keep doing something like a kale salad for lunch which is 100% raw and then adding a fast food run!

I like the idea of the beans and steamed veggies.

I've been doing miso soup too.

but I think because in Spain it was near to impossible to maintain anything the doctor ordered I am having a tough time getting back to any simple plan for myself so I am swinging from one end of the spectrum to the other.

I see him Friday so I will of course ask his suggestions too.

I think I need more snacky food ideas

I am suppose to stay away from
oranges
sweet fruits
dried fruits
highly acid foods

there are other instructions but this is the raw food I need to stay away from and taking away the highly acid foods narrows it down quit a bit.

Maybe I need to write up a weekly meal plan with ideas since it's a bit more tricky then just opening a raw food book and picking anything out of it.

*c

[Texicalian]

I'm a veteran of a Yes food list and an No food list! My former chiropractor in Austin is a medical intuitive so we would check my system every time I was in there. Usually, never changed all that much. What fruits can you have? Can you have the ingredients to make halvah? I keep that in the fridge at all times; don't necessary eat it every day, but knowing it's there helps.

[sweetgoddess]

yeah Catherine, I have missed you tons during all our gallavanting. Glad to see your name back on here. I am no help for your question, but hey, welcome back my friend!

Hugs~

[rawpriestess]

Dear Catherine,

So, very good to see you back.

I am not an expert, however you may find Gabriel Cousin's book Rainbow Green Live Food Cuisine to be of some help, it shows you which recipes are low, medium and high glycemic so you can gage what you getting.

This might be a way for you to easily find good recipes for yourself.

Also, when I eat non-raw items, I usually eat canned olives, pepperccinies, pickles (not my own) bottle salald dressing, and sometimes sour cream.

Basically, this is what I can find when at friends house for dinner that sneeks it's way into my salalds.

Now, when I'm going on a big cooked food binge, I eat flour tortilla shells, and the inards are all raw, so that is my big binge food.

[Doe]

Hi Catherine and Carmel, welcome back. Both of you have definitely been missed.

Catherine, my favorite snack at the moment is cucumber spears. Not quite what you was asking about but doesn't seem to be one of your no no foods. Can't help with "healthy" cooked. I never crave cooked green beans, carrots, or any other veggie. The raw versions are so much better. It's the junk that calls out through cooked cravings. Making a list of what you can have and trying to add something more to the list everyday might help. At least you'll be focusing on positive thoughts.

[Revvell]

*waves to Catherine* Hiya and welcome back!

Well, the last cooked thing I let go of was broccoli and garlic that they made at Whole Foods ~ the hot section.

Revvell

[catherinethegreat]

so great to see everyone again. And I appreciate you meeting me where I am at right now - and not judging me for it.

I had a huge awakening during the 100% raw process....

I realized that part of my toxicity - is the competitive
side of me that wants to be ( thinks I am ) better then everyone. So
being 100% raw vegan really was bringing that toxin up
for me as well. I was high and mighty about a percentage!
Every time some one slipped I would look down on them
and think I was better then them. It was very subtle - but it was there.
Taking myself off the forum was a good thing for me to
do because I had lost sight of the reason I went raw
in the first place - which was to feel better and
heal. It wasn't to compare myself to others - use it
against others - or to use it as false pride. Good
lesson to learn though I must say!

And I am still uncovering how this toxicity comes up in all areas of my life.

I see it in others on the forum- and in my life - people who judge - or make assumptions - and it has an energy to it that reminds me that I too have that in me. It is humbling to see it in myself - and difficult to change I've noticed.

anyhow

I appreciate all the help here today!

I do have Gabriel Cousens book - and I never looked at it deep enough to realize I had what I needed right in front of me!

How great!

Thank you Raw Priestess for pointing it out.

I must report that I'm feeling MUCH better these days - physically - just working on adjusting my diet - and that alone can be exhausting sometimes.

I notice when I feel anxious or confused - I jump to food. If no healthy choices exist....I'm in trouble!

Good thing I bought some watermelon.

I'm still figuring out what I can / cannot eat right now - and I'm sure it will become more clear with a visit to the doc on Friday.

Hey Sweetgoddess....feels like old times eh? Glad you are making your dreams come true in Montana!

love and more love
Catherine

[VeganVixen]

hey Cat!





sounds like berries would be good for you , they are typically lower in sugar -as well as melons. you know the rest of my advice(what I pmd)!

[Sharon in Colorado]

Hey Catherine, welcome back girl!

I am so similar to you. It's all or nothing. And when it's nothing, it is so, so hard to get back on track. I've tried 'high' raw, meaning allowing some steamed veggies, etc. but I think it opens that seal that lets the floodgates in. I've read so many times how similar it is to any addiction. Can an alcoholic just have a glass of wine a day, or can a drug addict have one (drug of choice) a day...usually not. I just think cooked food tends to have that effect on me personally.

That probably didn't help much, except for letting you know you're not the only one!

[RawTruth]

It's so great that you're taking care of yourself, Catherine -- in all ways. I know how challenging it is to avoid certain foods; I had to eliminate high glycemic foods myself for quite a while.

I hope you've been busy with lots of jobs (if that's what you want) -- it's definitely wedding season, isn't it?

Your smiling face is always nice to see.

[Rawkinlocs]

Catherine,

Just wanted to say "hey" and glad to see you are doing and feeling well/better! Don't have any suggestions - when I eat cooked food, it's usually junk - sadly to say.

[solarliving]

Hi Catherine,

I have only been eating about 80-85% raw for a few weeks. These are a few things I have eaten:

Tortilla soup with avocados and a salad
Vegetable soup with a salad
Falafel
Steamed veggies
Some chicken
Veggie wrap
pancakes (Felt horrible after)
And of course coffee-AArgh!

[solarliving]

Hey,

I checked out your website. I just wanted to say, those are beautiful pictures! You are very talented. Truly gifted.

[catherinethegreat]

hi solarliving - thanks for the list of what other food you eat. Soup is on my list too.
I see the doc today so I'm sure this thread was unnecessary - but it's stilll nice to hear what people eat when they aren't at 100%.

And THANK YOU for the feedback on my photography. It's always nice to hear positive feedback about my work!! I really apprecaite you taking the time to check it out and let me know what you think.

Rawkinlocs
RawTruth
Sharon in Colorado
VeganVixen
Revvell
Doe
rawpriestess
sweetgoddess
Texicalian
Migrou

It's nice to hear from you all and read your point of view.
Special thanks to those who PM'd me for taking the time to open up more to me then what is possible to share on this forum - very helpful!

The plan with the doc is to detox my body more slowly because going 100% from 100% SAD was WAY too harsh for my system and I was detoxing too much too fast. This way I'll be transitioning to about 90%-95% raw starting at around 50% and moving it slowly. It's good to be informed that not everyone has the same system and not everyone can do the exact same changes with diet. I have learned so much from this process!
Raw is definately my food of choice for the live enzymes as I know it is helping me heal and the more alcaline my body becomes the less of a chance any disease has to survive...so I'm at war and I have a feeling a year from now I will be in a much healthier place without a trace of disease, if I stick with it and love myself and stop choosing to harm myself with food that actually works against me. Luckily I don't have much issue with that - but it is still out there looming over me like an old addiction and old friend.

I've loved meeting so many of you here! It's nice to see that you are still here making the changes you want to make for yourself!!!YAY for YOU!!!

Sincerely,

Catherine

[Pailani]

Catherine, it's great to see you here again, I've missed you. I don't really have any suggestions about foods for transitioning. I read about people using baked potatoes and corn chips, or steamed veggies. I'd think that you want to stay away from foods that typically give people problems -- wheat, eggs, high glycemic stachy foods. Maybe that leaves potato chips for a snack food? :p

[catherinethegreat]

very funny!

I went to the doctor Friday and it all becasme very clear. Thanks again for the suggestions.

Basically we are moving slowly through a detox phase and then to more and more raw.

so lots of green veggie juice
barley greens

lightly steamed veggies especially asparagus, string beans, broccoli, cali, brussel sprouts.

smoothies with green powder

yes to raw chocolate! YEA

no dates, raisins , any dried fruits or sweet fruits
yes to berries
no flour

etc
etc
etc

there is more but I feel a lot more clear about the plan.....

vagueness drives me mad!

hope you are all happy and healthy.

xo
*c

[pfc]

Hi Catherine!
So glad your back and still on your path to health!
I was wondering if you've ever read The Mucusless Diet Healing System by Arnold Ahret?
It has some ideas for transitional/lower raw. Ultimately it recommends 100%, but perhaps some of his recommendations would work for you. I read it a while back (my first into to the raw lifestyle - never even knew it existed prior), so I don't remember all the details except that he believed in a transition period.
Take care and I look forward to reading more about your journey!
Best of Health!

[Cinnamon]

It is so nice to see you back Catherine! It sounds like you are on a great path leading you to the foods that will be best for you to heal!

As I am high raw (and 100% on some days!) these are the other foods I include in my diet. Now this is what works for me and keeps me away from "bad" foods or I should say worse foods that lead me to binge eating. Having these foods in my diet (for now, where I am in this journey) really keeps me on track!

I have probably read every book on raw foods (and might have most of them too!) and so I added the foods suggested by the various authors as "transition" foods. The best of the worst cooked foods I guess!

These include: steamed veggies, popcorn, Manna bread and Ezekiel bread, oats (don't always make my own raw ones), herbal teas and the occasional brown rice if I am eating out. I want to emphasize these are a very very small part of my diet, but they are my comfort foods to help keep me away from other less healthy choices!