what a downer :( i need advice~

[prettyenough]

so ive been trying to stick with raw the past 2 weeks since i found this site and have researched as much as possible on my time. i can spend $100 a week at the store for food for myself, my bf, and my son, which will soon to be also my stepdaughter once she comes to live with us during her school year. the first week i shopped and got all kinds of fruits and veggies and ate smoothies, salad, and pate. but i didnt have enough SAD food for everyone else. the 2nd week i got less produce and more SAD but then didnt have enough raw for myself so i ended up eating SAD food. this week i got more raw than SAD again and it seems like in order to afford it, SOMEONE has to suffer. i duno what to do :( and its a bummer. i was raw for an entire week and a half and i felt AMAZING..i mean it. all of a sudden i have headaches every day and just as over weight as ever. i dont have a dehydrator but ive got a food processor. i dont know what to do. any advice ladies and gents? im really open minded. thanks for reading :)

[coco]

you know, every positive thing you do for yourself has a tremendous impact. so every healthy choice you make is a positive thing. if you can focus on all the things that you ARE doing instead of the things that you aren't it may help to create a healthy and happy mindset about the benefits you're getting and that's a plus. health is about so much more than diet and a good frame of mind feeds the soul.

how about eating as much raw as you can afford to and making the healthiest cooked food choices for the rest of your family? if you are sharing one cooked meal daily with them and it's a healthy choice it's still good for you and it's also a chance to have family time together. you can make that meal even more positive by using the sit down time to connect with the people you love.

as you go along see where you might be able to increase the raw in your diet while sticking to a managable budget. perhaps a community garden, maybe buying things in case lots that you can split with a friend or neighbour, how about talking to a produce manager or someone at a farmer's market about buying older produce that is still good but needs to be consumed right away so may be lower in price. take a look at sprouting and growing baby greens at home, that is very cost efficient if you can spare only a bit of space and time for rinsing twice daily. how about making a percentage of the cooked meals raw like veggie sticks or salad or fruit or juice or smoothies. you can increase your families raw without them even noticing that way.

good luck to you. remember that life is a journey, not a destination and you are walking a healthy path right now that will only lead you to greater health as time goes on.

[Vaclare79]

I agree Coco.. The raw foods seem to rub off on people when they like the meals you make :)

[Care4raw]

Hang in there.Transition is a process. Including just 'how ' to afford it, do it, will power, etc..

Did you try banana threads for finding some great threads with tips to help you find less expensive raw food sources for the family?Its a common topic. Some raw moms have had some awesome meal plans they have listed, Cheap.Theres a thread I saw ages ago with one mom's fridge stacked with ready made meals she coordinated for the week, full of tips that one. Wish i knew where and how to find it. Maybe someone here?

Eventually as you feel better and get more into raw eating you may be surprised the lengths you will go to to pick up cheap produce..end of day deals at Farmers markets, joining Food Coops, etc .

Good luck , its awesome you did to see the changes you mentioned. Great motivation.

[juliebove]

I get a box of organic produce from my health food store each week. It costs me about $30 and it is the basis for most of our meals. Now granted, there is no WAY I could get everything I need for $100 a week. Food is expensive here.

This is supplemented by a case of sliced apples and a case of individual packets of baby carrots from Costco. I also get a 6 pack of bell peppers or a bag of baby bell peppers most trips. That covers my produce most weeks. Daughter will take apples and carrots in her lunch and husband will also snack on them. I generally don't buy other things unless I plan on making a specific recipe and I don't have what I need in the box, or something just catches my eye as appealing.

I have a small garden. This year I am growing tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers and herbs. I have grown other things other years. We had a very cold start of the summer so I got everything in late.

I usually buy nuts from my health food store. I could get them at Costco but I worry about cross contamination with theirs and I am allergic to almonds.

Some of what I buy for husband and daughter comes from Costco. Yes, I have to buy in bulk. And yes it means less variety for them. But it's one way to save money.

Food is going up in price a lot! Beans and rice used to be a cheap meal to fix. Beans are still pretty cheap, but not the rice. What you need to do is look for whatever is cheap in your area and serve that at least once a week in some form or another.

[Raw Yogini]

I know this isn't an immediate fix but can you plant some fruit trees and a garden? The fruit trees take a couple of years but then you'll have SO much that you'll be able to eat/make recipes and dehydrate for future use. It's kind of more long term planning.

As far as right now, I agree w/ the above posts. Most of my kids' snacks are raw now so I'm not buying fruit/veggie snacks PLUS other stuff. Right now I can usually find grapes for like $1-$1.50 per pound and when I do I stock up and we eat grapes a lot. I get "red banded" bananas at half the price b/c they're going brown. Whatever doesn't get eaten in a day or two gets cut up and frozen for future frozen desserts. Grapes can be frozen, too. My kids love them frozen so if you find them really cheap, buy a bunch and freeze what you don't eat soon.

I use pre-frozen fruit for my smoothies b/c it's cheaper than buying them fresh. I also buy them in the bulk bags to save some cash.

I struggle w/ this as well. Know you're not alone. Best wishes!!!

[queenfluff]

There are lots of great raw things you can make that will taste even better than the SAD versions that your family wil eat with you. Do it that way and you kill two diets with one stone so of speak and you can all enjoy!

Do you have Alissa's Book? If not, search the recipe threads on here. You don't have a dehydrator so true you can not make breads and chips and such but there are lots of dips, smoothies, and desserts that you can make with just a food processor or blender that I am sure your family with eat up.

Try to pick out the healthiest SAD food you can find. Even if it is stuff like healthy baked chips to so with a Raw dip. I find that I digested cooked stuff better if I eat it with something raw. Like make a raw zucchini hummus and serve with baked pita chips or pita bread. That way you get some raw in (the zucchini hummus is so good your family won't miss the cooked stuff)

I will crossreference another site (I have seen a few Alissa inspired recipes on there): www.goneraw.com

If you don't have Alissa book yet, you can also go to that site for tons of free recipes! All kinds of things to make on there!

[Lindazkewl]

If you have any farmers markets anywhere nearby, they often have great prices on organic produce. You can search online for farmers markets in your area. Take care :)

[Thick]

Have you tried second harvest? A lot of grocery stores, including health food stores donate stuff to them and they distribute it -- they don't want to throw it away.

http://www.vafoodbanks.org/about_virginia_foodbank_federation.htm

[petaltothemetal]

Here's an approach I'm trying to use myself:

What does your family like that you don't CRAVE that is also cheap? In mine, that's noodles, rice and potatoes. So I can make a great sauce, marinated veggie mix, salad or whatever to go with those starchy things and not blow my budget. I'm sorry, steak's just not in the budget because a. it's expensive and b. if I smell it, I'll eat it! But I don't mind bringing home an inexpensive 2 lb bag of frozen whiting fish and I still have chickens for eggs on my farm. So they're getting traditional starch and protein. Tell them very sweetly that you're buying the groceries and you're cooking so everyone will get healthier!

[sarahtolson]

I know how expensive it can be!! I also am raw with the rest of my family (husband and 2 kiddos) not raw. But I found that just by not buying meat for me, cut my food bill down. I also don't buy processed junk for them to eat. They snack on carrots, apples, or whatever fruit is on sale at the time. I don't buy juice or Almond Milk anymore so that helps. If my kiddos want either one, we make it. My kiddos love Sun Tea with Raw honey, and that is cheap to make. For dinner, they get half a plate of raw stuff (veggies and dip... a big salad), and then whatever else I make for them (grilled chicken.. turkey burgers..) It is as raw as I can get them! :) You will figure it out.