I would like your thoughts and opinions please

[SheLovesToEat]

Hi i am new here and i have some questions about a raw diet.

i have tried this way of eating before...i bought the things i needed to be sucessful like a dehydrator and a blender and food processor which all came in really handy for making the diet work well. i even bought a champion juicer so i could make that great soft serve 'ice cream'

when i was doing it i was 100% raw from the start because back in the late 70s i had tried it for a week and was very impressed with how i felt...which is why i decided to give it a shot again.

this time i lasted 3 weeks. the reason i had to stop was i just wasnt getting enough protein.... and i felt terrible. maybe it was because i wasnt eating enough nuts or whatever i could get protein from but...all i know is that when i added some animal protein i felt alot better.
i was very disappointed becuse i loved the diet and over all i felt so clean inside from all the fruit and veg and also being able to eat all i wanted was great. i love to eat all the time.

i guess what i would like to know is...have any of you had this same problem?
i want to get back on a raw diet but i dont think i can be 100% and still feel good.
if someone has some answers to this..... i would very much like to hear them becuse i do really miss the food and i love the recipies in alissa's cook book so much.
i just hate to get started again and then find i cant keep going becuse of the protein problem.
how do you get your protein?
any answers you have for me would be most appreciated. i just want to make this work the best way i can.

thanks.
ann

[shashibala]

It is very rare to actually be protein deficient unless you are living on just cooked grains, and not much of those. A raw diet is very cleansing and many of us crave the heavy, grounded feeling that we get after eating cooked food.
I would suggest that you add hemp seeds and chia seeds to your diet. These will add a denser for of protein that might give you the satisfied feeling you are craving. The hemp seeds have very healthy balance of essential fatty acids that will add to that good feeling. You can sprinkle them on salads, blend some in with smoothies, add them to cracker or crust recipes, etc. You could also choose to use a raw protein powder if you'd rather. Alissa's Store (over on the left side of the page) sells a great raw hemp protein. I've also heard good things about a product called Sun Warrior Raw Protein Powder. I have not used it myself. I prefer whole foods.
Are you eating some nuts and seeds? I lived on sunflower seed dips when I started raw. Very easy and heavy enough to help transition away from cooked foods. Sometimes what we think is a need for protein is a desire for fats. Make sure you eat enough healthy fats. (avocados, nuts, olive oil....)
Best wishes on your journey!:)

[EZ rider]

Alissa has made information about the protein issue available. Here is a link to her post: http://www.rawfoodtalk.com/showthread.php?t=3296

[saxmaam]

Why not try raw plus so many ounces of good-quality cooked protein as a starting point?

After some time passes, and if this works out, you could experiment with less cooked.

I know ... Alissa's way is 100% raw and it's a point of faith that raw food provides enough. But everybody's different. One person may not be able to stand gluten and another may not digest vegetable proteins well.

[domestic goddess]

I am wondering if you *thought* you needed protien because you fel bad but were actually just detoxing! It is possible, that you were craving protien foods because that was what your body was detoxing at the time. As the OP's have said, protien deficiency is most likely not the problem. I know when I started and I cut out coffee I felt horrid. Had a cup of coffee and felt instantly better. Doesn't mean my body needed coffee...I was detoxing from the caffiene/chemicals.

I would give it another shot. This time ride it out and see. Most poeple who start this diet go through a period of time where they feel like sh*t, but it DOES pass. Good luck! :D

[steveoregon]

I methodically went from 70% to 100% raw over four months. That wasn't easy. Withdrawing from bread alone knocked me on my butt with fatigue for about three days - each of the two times I eliminated half the bread in diet.

Going from 90% to 100% raw was much easier, but there was about a month I just felt like I was on antidepressants - didn't seem to care about anything and wanted to sleep on my couch several times a day.

After that first months of 100% raw passed, I felt more "normal" - at least like I felt before going raw. Health improvements have started coming gradually since then.

Some people do OK switching to 100% overnight. I don't have nearly the warrior personality for that. I could never have succeeded if I hadn't done it gradually (100% raw since May 1st).

[Aleesha Sattva]

i think you were detoxing and you only 'thought' you needed more protein. greens have lots of protein in them. do you drink green smoothies? those are a staple of most rawbies daily diets.

pick up a copy of victoria boutenko's book 'green for life'. (http://www.timelessspirit.com/MAY08/review1.shtml)

of course chia (http://www.rawveganbooks.com/product_info.php?ref=199&products_id=1001333&affiliate_banner_id=1) seeds are essential as well IMO

[SheLovesToEat]

i just had a chance to read all your suggestions. thanks so much for responding to my post. i really want to make this work again.

when i was on this diet before.... i was eating ALOT i was drinking green shakes and eating lots of food....AND losing alot of weight! hunger was not a problem but i am not sure i was eating much in the way of nuts...and i wasnt using hemp seeds.
i know that rejutive foods makes a hemp seed butter but i wasnt using that at the time i was on my raw diet. now that i think of it that was silly...i should have had it.
i never have tried chai seeds either so thats something to keep in mind.

i have a defective heart valve and it started to act up 3 weeks into the diet.
for some reason...it seems the only time it does act up is when i dont get enough protein. the minute i start taking animal protein again it calms down.
i know its weird ...but thats what seems to happen. i have been thru it before when i gave up eating meat for a year. so as a result of adding protein from eggs and having it stop being irregular ...i was thinking that maybe the protein was the key. maybe i just need to get better quality protein to see if i can overcome it. thats what was making me feel bad.

i will check out the protein powder and what alissa says about protein.
the last time i tried this diet was 2005.... so it seems that alot has changed here since i did it....there are alot more things around to buy online etc.
i live in the las vegas area and there is a cafe here that makes the raw granola i use to buy when i lived in the pacific northwest.

i will consider all your suggestions as i am sure that maybe not getting enough nuts and seeds could have been the problem....and the protein powder i am sure would probably help too.

thanks again for helping me out with this....i really want the diet to work out.

[Inca_faerie]

You could try getting a hemp protien powder (most of them are raw) or taking an amino acid supplement. I too feel better when I add in a bit more protien so I use hemp protien powder or a vegan protien. Just do whatever feels right for YOU as it's not the same for everyone. Some people need more of this and less of that and the other way around.

Hope you feel GREAT soon!!:)

[Vaclare79]

i have a defective heart valve and it started to act up 3 weeks into the diet.
for some reason...it seems the only time it does act up is when i dont get enough protein. the minute i start taking animal protein again it calms down.
i know its weird ...but thats what seems to happen. i have been thru it before when i gave up eating meat for a year. so as a result of adding protein from eggs and having it stop being irregular ...i was thinking that maybe the protein was the key. maybe i just need to get better quality protein to see if i can overcome it. thats what was making me feel bad.

i will check out the protein powder and what alissa says about protein.
the last time i tried this diet was 2005.... so it seems that alot has changed here since i did it....there are alot more things around to buy online etc.
i live in the las vegas area and there is a cafe here that makes the raw granola i use to buy when i lived in the pacific northwest.

i will consider all your suggestions as i am sure that maybe not getting enough nuts and seeds could have been the problem....and the protein powder i am sure would probably help too.

thanks again for helping me out with this....i really want the diet to work out.

I read that sea salt helps irregular heartbeat.. I don't remember why or how but it is necessary too..

[raweater]

Try eating a lot of raw nuts. Since I'm very active I eat about 4000 calories a day, about 3000 of those are nuts, and I have put on 20 lbs of muscle this way so I'm getting more than enough protein.

[RawSinger]

In Alissa's book, she talks about the protein issue. She says that when people say they're craving protein, it's really that they're craving fat. Of course protein is extremely important but it's not the B all end all. Fat is what makes you feel full. Make sure you're getting enough of that. There are many excellent sources of fat (not just nuts): olive oil (for salads), coconut oil, avocados, seeds (hemp seeds are a complete protein, so you're kind of killing two birds with one stone there), etc.

Like others have said, it's very hard to become protein deficient. You never hear of people who are. The standard American gets more protein then he/she needs. We've been brainwashed to believe that we need a ton of protein everyday and that the more protein you eat, the stronger you are. Too much protein is not good for you. Neither is too much of anything, really.

Good luck with raw!!

[SheLovesToEat]

Let me say that i LOOOVE FAT! i love the fat from fish and from avacados and nuts and all that good stuff. maybe i was not getting enough of that the last time i tried the raw diet.

its going to be hard to give up fatty salmon because King salmon has always been one of my favorites. but i can get the same fattiness from avacados.....which i havent been eating much of.
but.... i am determined to go back to a raw diet.

thanks for all the suggestions on everything.

[Anastazia]

I bet you'll love the avacado chocolate pudding!
I have a recipe for it on my blg (way back) but it's pretty basic, & pretty easy to make up as you go along, by taste...

~Avacadoes
~raw agave nectar
~cacoa or cocao or carob
~bit of vanilla or raw vanilla beans ground up
~Sometimes I sprinkle raw coconut flakes on top after it's made...

Blend, with a little water, ( I use my hand-held blender for this) & refridgerate before eating (if you can wait that long!)

YUM! & a very satisfying way to get avacados in (you don't even taste 'em! Especially if it's really cold!) WAY better than any cooked pudding!

"All we are saying (sing it with me now, everyone!) is give raw a chance!"

~Anastazia~

[SheLovesToEat]

Anastazia ! your pudding sounds wonderful! i will check it out.
i love that kind of thing. thanks for telling me about it

[Pilgrim]

Sesame seeds have a lot of protein in them. You could add some of them to your diet, too. Good luck!

[Ms_Catherine]

My first thought was a possible magnesium deficiency. Bananas, seeds and nuts, beet greens, all high in magnesium. Best of luck!

[SheLovesToEat]

Try eating a lot of raw nuts. Since I'm very active I eat about 4000 calories a day, about 3000 of those are nuts, and I have put on 20 lbs of muscle this way so I'm getting more than enough protein.

raweater ....I find it interesting that you have gained weight using nuts. WOW 4000 calories a day !
how do you eat your calories then? do you prepare the nuts in a loaf or some kind off dish? or do you just eat them as is? and which nuts do you prefer?
I would like to add more nuts but i certainly dont want to gain any weight.

adding them in quanity to a raw diet seems like it might help solve my problem though.