Blanket statement "as long as it's raw"

[Sharon in Colorado]

Does anyone else take issue with this? When someone says "as long as it's raw" you can eat it, or "don't get fanatic"....seems to give anyone license to eat whatever they want. Why would some people think it's fanatic when others are trying to limit their nut intake, or even keep track of their caloric intake?

[Peter Parker]

agreed. No matter how raw something is if you eat more calories than you spend you will gain weight.

Ive read in several places that peoples intake of fat goes a lot higher when becoming raw dues to nuts and avocados and the likes....

Im trying to limit mine considerably. While I like this lifestyle its not the most tasteful. If Im going to lose 2 to 3 lbs a week, excuse me, but hell I can do that on any diet.

[angelandarose]

. While I like this lifestyle its not the most tasteful.


Wow, just the opposite is true for me. I have found this to be the MOST tasteful diet I've ever been on. I have found this to be the most freeing diet I've ever been on. I have lost 24lbs in 4months and have YET to start my excersise program. ;) Sure I have to tweak things(certian foods) but I have no way limited myself in anyway.


Love,
Angie

[Revvell]

Wow, just the opposite is true for me. I have found this to be the MOST tasteful diet I've ever been on. I have found this to be the most freeing diet I've ever been on.
Love,
Angie

I totally agree here. This lifestyle is soooo freeing yet, so many wish to complicate it by counting calories, carbs, proteins, etc. If they'd drop that mindset and let it all go, they could have such fun with their food! :D


Ive read in several places that peoples intake of fat goes a lot higher when becoming raw dues to nuts and avocados and the likes....

Higher than what? Were they checking their fat previously to coming here? Some maybe yet, what I've seen is, someone turns them on to fitday and they go ~ oh my! Look at all the fat I'm eating! Oh my! I NEED to cut out my fat! Oh my! I'll GET fat! Oh my! oh my!

Here's what I suggest ~ focus on enjoying your food. Drop all the worries and concerns. Make fruits, veggies the focus. Add seeds, nuts and avos as needed and wanted.

IF you'll read Alissa's book, she has worked with MANY folk who were overweight ~ by a LOT! She gave them waaaaay more than they could possibly eat ~ and still lost weight.

As I, and many others here have said, stop focusing on the weight. (Yeah, I know, I know, someone wants to bash me ~ ;)'s @ SL). One thing I've learned in this life ~ what one focuses on expands (no pun intended). Focus on health and that's what you'll get.

Injoy ~

Revvell

[Peter Parker]

IF you'll read Alissa's book, she has worked with MANY folk who were overweight ~ by a LOT! She gave them waaaaay more than they could possibly eat ~ and still lost weight.



I've read several books, while I havent read Alissa's lets face it. Its raw food. How many ways can it be taken? So many people become rich from making the simple into complex. Not saying she wrote her book to become rich but Im sure it hasnt hurt her bank account either.

Soaking and spouring is well useless to me. Im not going to soak something Im hungry for around 12 hours then sprout it for days. sorry. too easy to pop a can open make my whatever, in this case hummus, and move along.

meh. maybe Im just hungry and tired of juice. salads. and greens. :D but again, that could be the "dark side" of the force aka cooked foods calling me near but knowing Im going through detox this may be uhm natural?

so please dont take my rant serious.

[angelandarose]

Soaking and spouring is well useless to me. Im not going to soak something Im hungry for around 12 hours then sprout it for days. sorry. too easy to pop a can open make my whatever, in this case hummus, and move along...but again, that could be the "dark side" of the force aka cooked foods calling me near but knowing Im going through detox this may be uhm natural?


Soaking and sprouting is all about planning ahead. Planning ahead is good for any diet you are on. It helps keep cravings for SAD food at bay when you are well prepared on this journey.

Love,
Angie

[Peter Parker]

Wow, just the opposite is true for me. I have found this to be the MOST tasteful diet I've ever been on. I have found this to be the most freeing diet I've ever been on. I have lost 24lbs in 4months and have YET to start my excersise program. ;) Sure I have to tweak things(certian foods) but I have no way limited myself in anyway.


Love,
Angie



I want to lose more faster. not knocking your weight loss but I want to lose more quicker. and I love working out either labor wise with yard work or whatever to running on an exercise machine.

the diet may be freeing but to me it all tastes like dirt right now. I guess welcome to detox?

[angelandarose]

I want to lose more faster. not knocking your weight loss but I want to lose more quicker. and I love working out either labor wise with yard work or whatever to running on an exercise machine.

the diet may be freeing but to me it all tastes like dirt right now. I guess welcome to detox?


There are alot of people here who have lost a lot more weight in a shorter amount of time, it all depends on how much you have to loose to begin with. I don't mind working out either, I'm a body builder, but life has gotten busy for me and I've not had time to work out. I have several gardens to tend to and that has been my exercise for months now. ;)

Why does your diet taste like dirt? What are you eating. You will not last on this if you do not enjoy it. You will not last on this if you can't have fun with this.

Start looking into adding LOTS of variety to your diet. Play with your foods, find new foods to explore and taste. Make this fun and focus what you want to accomplish and it will happen before your very eyes!

Love,
Angie

[Jodi]

A slow weight loss is best. For several reasons. It's better on the body, and you're more likely to keep it off. I don't care what kind of diet you are following, there is not healthy way to lose weight fast. You did not gain it overnight, so you will not lose it overnight. Losing 1 to 2 pounds a week is best. Even just losing a half pound a week is good.

I have also found that in raw food you do need to plan ahead. And it's not as hard as it seems. I keep one day a week...usually Sunday for preparing the coming weeks food. I cut up tons of fruit, wash my veggies and even do some things with my dehydrator. Soaking almonds is not a big deal. Just put them in a bowl overnight...I soak enought to last me 4 or 5 days.

I am not 100% raw, but I have not found raw food to be boring. I guess it all depends how you approach it. In fact...I'm having fun trying new things. This weekend my new dish will be Alissa's Un-potato Salad! I'm also going to make another blueberry pie since blueberries are in season still!


Jodi

[Ireland]

Hey there Peter Parker. Buy sprouts. It's faster. I'm kinda like that too, when I want something, I want it yesterday.

However...(ain't there always a however?) Although I eat VERY little dehydrated food, I do try to plan ahead. As in, I make something BEFORE I think I want it so it'll be on hand when I do.

I find that I eat tons of fruit and when I'm lazy, I grab a Larabar or something - it's completely raw and very satisfying.

As for green stuff, have you tried green smoothies yet? I don't much care for salad, so it's an easy way to get greens in.

Asta la vista

[Sharon in Colorado]

Wasn't trying to start a heated debate. Just looking for some discernment.

How is a raw calorie different from a cooked calorie? That is what I'd like to know.

I think it's easier to overdo the fat as a raw foodist than a cooked foodist. Raw foodists (often in general) use fat to compensate as a filler. With cooked food, they overeat on grains so can avoid fat better. I know this from experience. A bagel can fill one up just as much as a cup of nuts, but the difference in fat intake is huge.

About fitday.com, I think it's a great tool. It can tell someone exactly what they've taken in. Many people have been able to fine-tune their diets through fit day. I can understand that people don't need to be a slave to their diets and flexibility is key, but there's also a point that completely wildcarding your raw diet isn't going to be healthy in the long run.

[rawmommy]

One of the things we have to keep in mind is that the fat you eat from raw living foods is not the same fat as in the SAD. I suggest Udo Erasmus' book Fats that Heal, Fats that Kill. Some unrefined, cold pressed fats will actually take off weight rather than put it on you. Our bodies need fat to survive. The whole Susan Powder "Fat makes you fat" fad is a crock and will destroy our bodies if we try to eliminate all forms of fat. We have to focus on getting rid of the SAD fats. In the raw diet it does that. So IMHO, I wouldn't worry about how much fat is in an avocado or an almond.

[Sharon in Colorado]

I agree with the statement 'some fat' which is necessary in the diet. What I'm talking about is overdoing it. 1 almond isn't the same as a cup a day.

[angelandarose]

Wasn't trying to start a heated debate. Just looking for some discernment.

How is a raw calorie different from a cooked calorie? That is what I'd like to know.

I see nothing heated here only intelligent discussion.

We can assimilate and use raw food easier and quicker than cooked food. Your body will treat and use an apple different than a candy bar. A calorie is not just a calorie. ;)

Love,
Angie

[angelandarose]

I agree with the statement 'some fat' which is necessary in the diet. What I'm talking about is overdoing it. 1 almond isn't the same as a cup a day.


BUT not everyone is the same, what one person can eat is not always what the next person can eat. An athlete can eat LOTS more food(fat) than a sedentary person. You have to judge and tweak your program per person. That is just common sense. ;)


Love,
Angie

[Peter Parker]

I want to be thin but healthy. I dont want to be a "chubby" raw foodist.

[jaurequi]

SharoninColorado, I agree that eating fat with abandon is not healthy on any diet. I started off keeping my fat at between 10-15 % because this seemed to be what is recommended by a variety of "experts" as healthy. consequently, my body seemed to come to this percentage on its own even when I stopped watching. I feel incredible this way -- balanced, healthy, alert, and energetic; light, but strong.

What I glean from -- at least from Alissa's recommendations -- is that, when you start out, eating larger amounts of fat it is a way to transition because the body is craving the foods you've stopped feeding it and fats will satisfy at this crucial starting point; not how you should eat everyday forever. It's suffering withdrawals, I guess is a good way to put it; the body will eventually get over it and regulate itself.
Also, I think some people can eat more fat than others and feel and/or look/seem fine. But I personally believe that an excess of fat is not good, no matter what kind of fat it is.
Not sure about others' motivations :)

Eating excessive amounts of fats will lead to imbalances, just like consuming too much of anything like protein on Atkins or processed/high-carbs on "fat-free" diets.

[angelandarose]

Thin will happen when you believe it can happen. You get what you believe so if you believe you will get thin eating this way you will. If you have fears and doubts that this won't work then it won't work.

Love,
Angie

[sweetgoddess]

This is from a post by Alissa regarding this:


See this is the problem. Of course you cant listen to your body because unless your starting with a clean slate your body doesn’t know exactly what it needs. How can it tell when its still getting cooked, (I don’t know if your 100% raw or not) or too much of the wrong foods and is off balance. This is why I tell people to go 100% raw, totally vegan raw. Raw raw raw, no exceptions for a month or two or more because only then, I believe is when you can really start to listen to your body for signals. But here is also the thing. Even then, how do you know those signals are coming from the emotional or physical? It takes time to really get this. Not days or weeks or even months for some people. This is why I say to people, ‘go raw, don’t worry about the amounts of things, let your body heal and cleanse and when its ready you will naturally start to crave what you need and what is right.’
Otherwise people after weeks, months, etc…start adjusting or listening to other people and saying, ok maybe that’s my problem, and start cutting back and cutting out and adding weird things and then saying, this doesn’t work and this and that is not doing it for me. Like I always say, don’t expect to be cooked for 30-40-50 years and then after a month to have it perfected with the raw diet. It takes time really it does.

you will always crave fat sources if your not eating enough of them. At first you will crave more on raw, avocados, nuts, etc.. because your body is adjusting to a new way of eating. Your body is using these fats much more efficiently and quickly then cooked fats so you need more at first since your body is not used to the clean fuel its getting. It will subside, but give it time. I can promise you this. If you do 10% fat you will be craving fat more often then not. Maybe not at first, maybe not in the middle, but at different times. Why not just eat raw and let your body adjust. You wont be eating tons of nuts and loads of fat for very long. You’ll get sick of it. Your body is craving it for a reason. Maybe it needs the good healthy fats and maybe you shouldn’t deny it that.
Also, I would eat more avocados and fatty fruits and vegetable instead of tons of nuts as you wont feel great after eating that many nuts. But again, you need to step back and let it take its course, I just feel an urgency to get it right. Raw food will never work if you need to be perfect with your diet. Its not set up that way. If you’re a calorie counter, fat watcher, carb and protein analyzer (not saying you are) then this isn’t the diet for you.

This diet is so beautiful and feeing. Let it be that. What’s the point if your going to do it the same way you did cooked?

[city]

Sharon, I'm also just transitioning into it. I also want to cut some weight - although I'm just 3 pounds above normal weight and I want to cut 15 pounds (still in my healthy weight range) to make running long races easier. I also find that there is just too much fat in my diet now. I have Alissa's book on the way but until then, I have BOUGHT (key word) some sprouted wild rice and chick peas from Quintessence. I'm going to make hummus and I eat the wild rice just plain. I have not read Carol Alt's book but I have read an article about it and they give some recipes for ceviche and sashimi. So, she's not vegan (I know that people on this board are). However, if you're concerned about that maybe this is a better alternative for you personally - at least to begin. Just throwing that out there.

[city]

Sorry, I left this out of my post....I think if you do this raw thing right you tend to eat SO MUCH fruit and veg - the lower carb, very high fiber type that you just literally don't have room for too much fat and you're eating really high volume for very few calories. For example, I ate at a raw food restaraunt yesterday at 12:30 pm and was barely hungry for dinner 7 hours later. So, I'm with you - I don't buy the "as long as it's raw" line either. It may work for a 300 pound person but not for someone who is much closer to normal weight. The food, though (nuts, avocadoes and such included) is RIDICULOUSLY nutritious. I ran this by a nutritionist I've worked with in the past. Veggies and fruit are MUCH more nutritious raw.

[Revvell]

I've read several books, while I havent read Alissa's lets face it. Its raw food. How many ways can it be taken?

I've probably got one of the biggest un-cook book libraries around here. The difference w/ Alissa's is ~ she gives facts, she gives experience, she's got over 500 pages of information ~ the recipes being the least of this book.



So many people become rich from making the simple into complex. Not saying she wrote her book to become rich but Im sure it hasnt hurt her bank account either.

And what you do to create income hasn't hurt you much either, I'm sure. Do you enjoy doing what you do as much as she does?




Soaking and spouring is well useless to me. Im not going to soak something Im hungry for around 12 hours then sprout it for days. sorry. too easy to pop a can open make my whatever, in this case hummus, and move along. While I agree with the soaking/sprouting for me, it's easier to just bite into something ~ saves time opening a can. In this case a sweet juicy plum.




meh. maybe Im just hungry and tired of juice. salads. and greens. :D Add some seeds, nuts and avos then. :)


but again, that could be the "dark side" of the force aka cooked foods calling me near but knowing Im going through detox this may be uhm natural?

Also can be an upper limits question.


so please dont take my rant serious.

Noooo, of course not. :rolleyes:

....and don't take anything I've said here seriously either ~ although I was VERY sincere.

[Revvell]

A bagel can fill one up just as much as a cup of nuts, but the difference in fat intake is huge.



Yeahhhh, I know LOTS of people who eat bagels dry. ;)

[misslinda]

I can understand the need to monitor and limit nuts and calories yet I can also embrace the idea of eat as long as it's raw. I think that somewhere in between, there is a balance that one's body will eventually not [feel] the need or desire to be thinking about it.

Myself, I still feel comfortable performing lengthy calculation in my head to make sure I am eating an amount that [I] will feel okay with. It definately is a step of improvement VS eating nonraw and doing these calculations. I am looking forward to allowing my body to make decision instead of my head---that is ready to run thru the list of what I can and can't have.

I suppose there is a underlying intuitive eating ability that I want to exercise. and graduate from :D

[sweetgoddess]

I think the point of "as long as its raw" is that when you first start adopting a raw diet, you are making a change which we humans sometimes have trouble with, your body is adjusting to cleaner, real fuel that it doesnt need to spend all this energy on recoding so it can route it, your body suddenly has energy freed up to heal, cleanse, release, you are getting used to a new perspective and a new way of preparing food, you have a lot of postulates , emotions, mental ties to food, not just your outlook on it but also societys---there is a lot to work through. As there is in any diet change, which is why many people fail at changing their diet long-term.

So, at the beginning of starting raw, if you allow yourself to think "i can eat anything I want as long as its raw", straight away you let go of the deprivation syndrome`for the most part. You give yourself abundance. If I started telling myself, I cant have nuts , I cant have this or that~watch what happens.
You also are giving yourself time to change your taste buds, your body time to clean out some old rubbish so it can THEN start signalling you what exactly it needs.

I believe this is the theory. To free your mind from thoughts of deprivation, will-power, measuring, obsessing, worrying,calculating etc-all the things that trip people up mentally in any change they make. And when your mind is free and your body shifts to a cleaner fuel -then you can hear it, be directed by it.

When we have weight to lose, we always want it now...as fast as possible and think we will do all these spectacular or spartan things to take care of it immediately. When does this work?
It isnt really about the body or the weight. The body is innocent-simply a vehicle, directed by the mind.

When we go into something with fear, we really limit it.

So personally, adopting the "as long as its raw" philosophy, for me, has helped me do more mental work, break more conditioning, let go of more fears and misconceptions than any other diet or nutritional change ever has.
And you know what? 6 months later I am here, a different person, loving it. No diet has ever got me past 2 or 3 weeks before.

This is different. Let it be. If you want! ;)

[sweetgoddess]

oh PS~ RawTruth and RawPriestess, I would reallllllly enjoy hearing your perspectives on this. :D

[Pailani]

<<to me it all tastes like dirt right now.>>

It can take some adjustment in your taste buds. If you're used to bread, cheese, meat, sweets, it's a major adjustment. But fruit and nuts can ease the transition, they're so good that even most people who don't eat raw like them.

I guess that's what the concept of "don't worry, it's raw, just eat it" is all about. In the beginning, you're going through detox, which can make you tired, cranky, maybe even not feel well. And you miss the old familiar foods. That's why it's so important in the beginning to just eat what you like, as long as it's raw. After you've gone through detox and after you've started to discover what you like and what agrees with your particular body, then you can refine. But it's too much on top of the initial adjustment from SAD to raw.

After awhile, raw foods do become more appealing. I enjoy my green smoothies and banana ice cream as much as I ever enjoyed other treats before I was raw. I even crave salads now. I used to avoid salads whenever I could.

[Pailani]

Yeahhhh, I know LOTS of people who eat bagels dry. ;)

I did. :) Low-fat carbs was my downfall, I loved plain bread.

[Dawn39]

agreed. No matter how raw something is if you eat more calories than you spend you will gain weight.


I agree

If Im going to lose 2 to 3 lbs a week, excuse me, but hell I can do that on any diet.


Peter how much do you have to lose, because honestly your right I can name countless "Diets" that people have testimonials for that you can lose tons of weight and GAIN tons of health issues. Take Atkin's (I apologize to the vegans) you can lose ton's of weight and for awhile have great blood work ; however, your body goes into ketosis. There are other "diets" that put people into renal failure. This is a lifestylefor health,the enviroment, animal rights, weight, or whatever drove you to find RAW FOOD in the first place.

Show me a diet that you can lose 100 #s and look like the people on this site?(click above Alissa's name to se before and afters)
There is one young lady RAWREFORM who has been to this site before that has lost a massive amount and she is incredible her skin is incredible. Honestly I am not trying to sell you anything, I do agree that I limit my amounts but I am not 100% RAW. I am getting close.But you can agree that the closer to raw we eat the better we feel. I get a feeling of frustration from some of your posts so I'm sending a hug!!!!!!!!! You will find what your seeking!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Best of luck ;)

[RawTruth]

Does anyone else take issue with this? When someone says "as long as it's raw" you can eat it, or "don't get fanatic"....seems to give anyone license to eat whatever they want. Why would some people think it's fanatic when others are trying to limit their nut intake, or even keep track of their caloric intake?Gosh and golly! Where did my Sharon go?

Hmmm ... well, no I don't have a problem with Alissa saying that someone going 100% raw can (and should) eat whatever they want and as much as they want. I rely on her experience of having coached hundreds of people -- some of whom were very overweight -- through months and, sometimes, years of being raw. If you haven't already done so, stop now and read Alissa's words that SweetGoddess inserted in Post #19, above. Now that you've read that, if you still are concerned ... read on:

Warning, here's some straight talking coming, so hold onto your hat (or your tempers), okay? Here goes -- Something I've noticed in my six months on this board, is that the people who are and have been 100% raw for a significant period of time do not have a problem with this issue. They have done it and have experienced their bodies and their appetites adapting and changing the longer they are raw. The only people I see discussing, ruminating over, arguing about, and disagreeing with this concept are those who have not gone or stayed 100% raw or those who are continuing to count calories, fats, carbs, etc. ... and, perhaps, those who have not read Alissa's book, the success stories, or her many, many posts here on this forum in which she reiterates the theory and challenges readers to "just do it."

My story:
Those of you who know me know that I've been 100% raw for 6 months now. The entire time, I've eaten what I wanted when I wanted in as large or small a quantity as I wanted without regard to calories or fats (except when I was fighting candida). If my stomach hurts with a particular food, I stop eating it and don't eat it again for a while till I feel like trying it again. If something doesn't appeal to me, I don't eat it. If my energy flags or I'm feeling kinda yuck, I look at what I've been eating or doing, and I make adjustments. I've learned, and continue to learn, what's right for me. For me -- I've gradually and naturally moved away from eating many nuts or nut-based foods. A few examples of this are: when at a raw food restaurant I'm much more apt to order a salad than a nutburger now; I rarely eat grawnola anymore though a few months ago I ate it every morning; I don't often stir nuts into my (almost nightly!) ice cream though I used to love to crunch my way through it not that long ago; and I lose interest in raw "baked" goods or a Larabar after a bite or two (I even found a half of one at the bottom of my purse the other day - I'd forgotten about it since it had felt "heavy" when I'd eaten the first half - this would never have happened before - in fact, I would eat two at times). Sometimes I'll finish a raw dessert because I've paid such a goshawful high price for it, but, sometimes I'll just throw it away because I know it'll sit heavy in my stomach.

I'm not saying Oh look at me -- I'm perfect. What I am saying is that I believe you need to give this way of eating a chance -- as in: actually do it. Do it for 4 months, 6 months, a year. Then, and only then, if you have not naturally adapted after your transitioning first months of staying 100% raw (crucial, crucial, crucial) AND you have not lost weight, you will have the actual experience to be able to say that it doesn't work to eat whatever you want "as long as it's raw".

As for you, Grumpy Detox Spiderman, I am ignoring your responses here like you suggested. :D

And I'm still searching for my smiling Au Lac partner Sharon.

[Peter Parker]

Peter how much do you have to lose, because honestly your right I can name countless "Diets" that people have testimonials for that you can lose tons of weight and GAIN tons of health issues. Take Atkin's (I apologize to the vegans) you can lose ton's of weight and for awhile have great blood work ; however, your body goes into ketosis. There are other "diets" that put people into renal failure. This is a lifestylefor health,the enviroment, animal rights, weight, or whatever drove you to find RAW FOOD in the first place.

Show me a diet that you can lose 100 #s and look like the people on this site?(click above Alissa's name to se before and afters)
There is one young lady RAWREFORM who has been to this site before that has lost a massive amount and she is incredible her skin is incredible. Honestly I am not trying to sell you anything, I do agree that I limit my amounts but I am not 100% RAW. I am getting close.But you can agree that the closer to raw we eat the better we feel. I get a feeling of frustration from some of your posts so I'm sending a hug!!!!!!!!! You will find what your seeking!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Best of luck ;)


Hugs! Thank you


Ok listen to this.

I went out in my "rage" and had a cup of spinach maria soup and a grilled cheese sandwich. Now Im sick as can be. :mad:

Cant win for losing, if it wasnt for bad luck I wouldnt have luck, poor pitiful me. I want rid of all that mindset and attitude.

Where is my mind? get up, get up, and go again!!!! We all hit bumps and I have hit mine. Thanks for the support. I feel like I want to spew for the soup and sandwhich. I guess I limited myself too much, that I failed. I was too "spartan"

Fall down 9 times get up 10. I dont give up.

[Peter Parker]

<<to me it all tastes like dirt right now.>>

It can take some adjustment in your taste buds. If you're used to bread, cheese, meat, sweets, it's a major adjustment. But fruit and nuts can ease the transition, they're so good that even most people who don't eat raw like them.

I guess that's what the concept of "don't worry, it's raw, just eat it" is all about. In the beginning, you're going through detox, which can make you tired, cranky, maybe even not feel well. And you miss the old familiar foods. That's why it's so important in the beginning to just eat what you like, as long as it's raw. After you've gone through detox and after you've started to discover what you like and what agrees with your particular body, then you can refine. But it's too much on top of the initial adjustment from SAD to raw.

After awhile, raw foods do become more appealing. I enjoy my green smoothies and banana ice cream as much as I ever enjoyed other treats before I was raw. I even crave salads now. I used to avoid salads whenever I could.


the funny thing is I dont eat any meat. ever. for 2+ years now. Rarely ate cheese, when I did it was rice cheese. I did enjoy bread every once in a while. Not a fan of sweets. This should be easier for me. Ive been strict vegetarian (vegan) for 2 + years.

[Peter Parker]

Gosh and golly! Where did my Sharon go?

Hmmm ... well, no I don't have a problem with Alissa saying that someone going 100% raw can (and should) eat whatever they want and as much as they want. I rely on her experience of having coached hundreds of people -- some of whom were very overweight -- through months and, sometimes, years of being raw. If you haven't already done so, stop now and read Alissa's words that SweetGoddess inserted in Post #19, above. Now that you've read that, if you still are concerned ... read on:

Warning, here's some straight talking coming, so hold onto your hat (or your tempers), okay? Here goes -- Something I've noticed in my six months on this board, is that the people who are and have been 100% raw for a significant period of time do not have a problem with this issue. They have done it and have experienced their bodies and their appetites adapting and changing the longer they are raw. The only people I see discussing, ruminating over, arguing about, and disagreeing with this concept are those who have not gone or stayed 100% raw or those who are continuing to count calories, fats, carbs, etc. ... and, perhaps, those who have not read Alissa's book, the success stories, or her many, many posts here on this forum in which she reiterates the theory and challenges readers to "just do it."

My story:
Those of you who know me know that I've been 100% raw for 6 months now. The entire time, I've eaten what I wanted when I wanted in as large or small a quantity as I wanted without regard to calories or fats (except when I was fighting candida). If my stomach hurts with a particular food, I stop eating it and don't eat it again for a while till I feel like trying it again. If something doesn't appeal to me, I don't eat it. If my energy flags or I'm feeling kinda yuck, I look at what I've been eating or doing, and I make adjustments. I've learned, and continue to learn, what's right for me. For me -- I've gradually and naturally moved away from eating many nuts or nut-based foods. A few examples of this are: when at a raw food restaurant I'm much more apt to order a salad than a nutburger now; I rarely eat grawnola anymore though a few months ago I ate it every morning; I don't often stir nuts into my (almost nightly!) ice cream though I used to love to crunch my way through it not that long ago; and I lose interest in raw "baked" goods or a Larabar after a bite or two (I even found a half of one at the bottom of my purse the other day - I'd forgotten about it since it had felt "heavy" when I'd eaten the first half - this would never have happened before - in fact, I would eat two at times). Sometimes I'll finish a raw dessert because I've paid such a goshawful high price for it, but, sometimes I'll just throw it away because I know it'll sit heavy in my stomach.

I'm not saying Oh look at me -- I'm perfect. What I am saying is that I believe you need to give this way of eating a chance -- as in: actually do it. Do it for 4 months, 6 months, a year. Then, and only then, if you have not naturally adapted after your transitioning first months of staying 100% raw (crucial, crucial, crucial) AND you have not lost weight, you will have the actual experience to be able to say that it doesn't work to eat whatever you want "as long as it's raw".

As for you, Grumpy Detox Spiderman, I am ignoring your responses here like you suggested. :D

And I'm still searching for my smiling Au Lac partner Sharon.


hehehe hugs. I like you

[rawpriestess]

I personally think you are talking about apples and oranges here.

1. you are talking about eating all you want on raw
2. you are talking about eating too much fats


1. I believe (notice I didn't say "KNOW and can prove without a shadow of a doubt") that when you FIRST START raw, that you may have a challenge incorporating more fruits and vegetables that are fresh and raw into your diet, from your cooked (and maybe meat eating) world. So, eating lots of fats in the form of avocadoes (ICK) and nuts is a wonderful thing, nuts can be used to make nut milks, nutmilk shakes, cheeses, gooey pizza stringy cheese, sauces, soup bases, all the wonderful super delicious things that we may miss from our "old cooked world"

So, I say, "eat all you want as long as it is raw."

Until that doesn't work for you anymore, then if you choose to, you can limit your choices. Although Alissa and Victoria Boutenko both suggest you DO NOT LIMIT your choices, as this can be the main reason people go off raw, and go back to cooked foods, as they are no longer satisfied on raw foods, because they aren't getting enough fats or variety.

2. oils,

Now this is a good topic. Cooked oils are entirely different than raw oils.

Cooked oils are krinkled in their molecular composition, as the heat totally destroys them (as all things), and because of this they get clogged up in our arteries, and they can't move along, they also can't be digested and just sit there in our fat. Because our fat cells hold onto our toxins, until they can be safely released.

Raw oils are squiggly and flowing and move through our bodies easily and can be assimilated easily.

So, if you eat raw oils, they are assimiliated and any excess will just pass away as any excess foods will, and if you eat cooked fats you will have them stuck in your fat cells.

The other thing not addressed here is the addictive nature of cooked foods.

If you eat cooked foods, many of them will cause us to want more and more and never feel full. Again, Victoria Boutenko talks about this in her books, where she would (when she was cooked) eat this big meal, be stuffed, start to get up from the table, and then sit back down again to eat more, because she was hungry, although she was so full of food she physically couldnt' eat any more.

Now, with raw this just doesn't happen, (or not as much)

I am one of those people who has tried many many diets, pretty much any diet out there, I've tried, or some thing like it.

I have stayed on diets, and deprived myself, and binged my entire life.

My mom first put me on a diet at the age of 4. Although if you look at my photos, I looked like a healthy kid.

By the time I was 11, I weight 130 pounds, by the time I was in High School, I weighed 180 pounds, all this from diets.

Now, when I started raw foods, I lost 30 pounds in 34 days, and 40 pounds in 2 months, but I tossed out my scale, so have no idea how much I've lost, but I'd say it's a bunch.

So, IF eating what I'm eating now stops working for me, I may choose to change how I am eating, but until them, I'm eating raw foods.

I KNOW eating any other way doesn't work for me. I am not good at counting calories or carbs, I'm not good at portion control, I'm not good at eating little packages of freeze dried "what-is-this" I'm not ever going to eat meat again, so that is out. and I KNOW myself well enough to KNOW that raw food is the ONLY food that is right for me.

But if eating a certain raw food, or anything isn't right for you, then don't eat it.

I think the reason that raw food teachers tell us to eat as much as we want as long as it is raw, is because so many people come to raw after they have been dieting for years, and they are frustrated, and have spent tons of money, and feel cheated by the diet gurus.

Like I said in my book, raw food isn't a new fad diet that the Hollywood elite are doing, it is a way of life for anyone who chooses to be healthy.

And YOU are the only one who can say what is the very best food for you.

I wanted to be perfect, and to know all the right and wrong of eating raw food, it kept me from eating raw food for 4 years, because I had to find out all the information, and read all the books, and buy all the equipment, and dehydrator, and champion juicer, all this while I was "reading" and thinking about doing raw, while I was eating cooked, and what was I eating. Boca burgers, and french fried potatoes, milk shakes, and onion rings, ranch dressing, and coca cola, and veggie lasagna, so was I worried about eating healthy vegetarian food. NO WAY.

But before I went raw, I wanted to make sure I was getting enough nutrients, who was I kidding?

Just do it, it is that simple and that easy, you will know what your body needs, because it will tell you.

If you are having challenges losing weight, then just keep eating raw, if you are having issues, just keep eating raw, if you aren't where you want to be, just keep eating raw. Everything will fall into place, you will detox, and you will feel better, and you will lose weight.

But, just keep eating raw, and I don't mean 50% raw, or 80% raw, I mean just try it, go 100% FOR 30 DAYS, then tell me it isn't working, I double dog dare you.

I was stuck for a couple of months, and I started feeling deprived because I wasn't eating my favorite cooked foods, but I was eating raw, and I wasn't losing any more weight. so I started to eat a little cooked food here and there, I figured after all, I've lost 40 pounds, I haven't lost anything in a few weeks, what is it gonna hurt?

ME, that's what, I started eating cooked, and haven't been able to stop, it was a slooooowowwwwwww process, took me 3 full months to get back to eating something cooked every day, and I'm still way more raw than I was when I started eating raw, but I was eating something cooked everyday.

So, I can say, that I feel like crap, I look like crap, I sleep like crap and why? Because I am eating some crap every day.

You would think that because I am eating much healthier than I was, that I would feel better, and I do, than I did when I was eating all cooked, but this part raw, part cooked, part raw part cooked thing doesn't work for me.

I'm glad it can work for others, but I know myself.

So, if cuttin out nuts and seeds, and oils works for you, then fine, if not, then eat them

Remember, our bodies need oils in their natural state, not out of a jar, or bottle.

We need it for our hair to be shiny, our skin to be smooth, our joints to move, our bodies to feel warm and our tummies to feel satiated.

Disclaimer: this is only my opinion, I may be wrong.

[Peter Parker]

:mad: p.s. Alissa's book "Living on Live Food" is not at barnes and noble, books a million, or borders book stores in any of the stores in the city Im in or in their "systems" so it can be ordered... population of the city Im in is 500k or so. Can only get it from the site?!
I would prefer to go buy it now than wait. bah.

edited: not at the local food co-op or natures pantry.

[city]

Peter, I could only find it on this site. I live in NYC - population 8,000,000. I'd order it from here.

[Sharon in Colorado]

Yeahhhh, I know LOTS of people who eat bagels dry. ;)

LOL - I knew that would be coming as I wrote it. I've eaten them dry, or with less than a tbs. of something spread on it, which still wouldn't equate to the fat in a cup of nuts.

My personal dilemna, is that I've done the wildcard raw thing ("as long as it's raw") for the first month or so hoping to balance out later on. For me, personally it doesn't get much easier. I tend to think it's because I started out with unlimited amounts of fat or spices. It could be partly due to living with a cooked family, I don't know. I think support is a #1 priority. My family *does* support me, but I still have to prepare meals for them. It could be different if the whole family was eating the same, as opposed to just emotionally supporting the one raw person.

Now I'm not trying to dissuade any of you guys, just trying to figure out a better way. Maybe for some people they need to eat better from the beginning while others can transition, I don't know. :confused:

[sweetgoddess]

Ah RawTruth, so wonderfully explained.
You have been doing 100 % raw, well, 100 percently ( i made up a word!) for half a year now, and show here the exact natural transition Alissa explains over and over.

Thank you so much!

Namaste~

[Alissa]

Well, my friends, I wrote a response to this hours ago and then got busy so I left it to post later but I see that many of you have already taken the words right out of my mouth so thank you for that. Here is what I wrote earlier so if it sounds redundant to what some of you said it probably is:

Well, you know im jumping in on this one if only because of that statement about ‘writing the book hasn’t hurt my bank account’. Yeah, your right, it hasn’t. But you wouldn’t have this free board to write on if I didn’t write the book ;) so its benefited you also even though you never bought my book but are here writing and giving and sharing advise and learning for free.
Ok back on topic
First, I never say that you can eat whatever you want as long as its raw, forever! I say in the book that the first month or two eat whatever you want. I wont go into all of why here as its in my book but basically so your body can get used to this radically (for most people) different diet, so you can learn how to make things and how easy it is and so when you start to eat simply you can walk into the kitchen after a couple of weeks of eating only fruits and veggies and say ‘hey im starving but I know how to whip up a date nut tort within 5 minutes” instead of saying, jeez this diet is boring and there is nothing to make so im headed out for pizza because I never taught myself how to do it.
It’s so funny to me that people think they can go on this diet and never take the time to teach themselves how to do it. Even on the atkins or mcdougle plan you have to read the book and learn how to do it!
But people give raw a week while eating fruits and veggies and then say, ‘oh this is boring, this doesn’t taste good, this is too hard’. Not to pick on you peter, but this is why I wrote the book and why my book is different. It teaches you how to do it. At least get my DVD. I made that specifically for people like you! It shows you how to do this easily and quickly.

Second, let me fill you in something. I never never never sit around waiting for my sprouts to sprout or my nuts to germinate. Again, in my book most of the dishes do not have soaked nuts and many of the dishes do not even use nuts.

Third, if you’re eating like you’re eating your going to get board and go off this diet.
“meh. maybe Im just hungry and tired of juice. salads. and greens” YA!??? So there ya go? So why are you just eating that? That’s not what this diet is about. If your only looking for weight loss and that’s ALL, your right, you can do that eating anything. Eat donuts three times a day and nothing else and im sure you’ll lose weight. Look at that sub guy… I forget what company that is, jarod is his name I think. He lost weight eating subs everyday. He looks pale as a ghost, very unhealthy, but hey, he’s thin. So you may drop dead from eating Twinkies 3 times a day and nothing else but at least you’ll be skinny.

How can raw food taste like dirt, I don’t get it. To me cooked food taste like cardboard and the only thing that taste real is raw. What are you eating that taste like dirt?

Back to Sharon’s comments. In my book I say how at first to eat anything and get used to this way of eating. Most people will find that even when doing that they will lose weight but you may have to adjust that as you go along especially if you don’t have much to lose. You can still eat the desserts, meals and snacks but obviously eating almond with your morning smoothie, nuts in a big raw meal at lunch, nuts again for a snack, a salad with a nut base dressing and a dessert at night is too much. But people go to the extreme and cut out all nuts. There is a balance and everyone is different. And there is a huge difference between cooked fats and raw fats, tons of information out there on that, too much to go into here but let me know if you cant find it and ill come up with it. Actually if any of you haven’t read the China Study you need to get it. Especially if your asking these questions about the difference between fats.
Peter, I would say your not eating enough to lose weight and if your not 100% raw then all this is a mute point anyway. Now please don’t scream at me about not being ok with 80 percent raw, if your doing it and feel great then all the more power to you. But if you’re needing to cut fats to a minimum and watch every morsel of food but are still eating cooked food then that is why. When your not 100% raw and still eating tons of nuts and fats and think your going to lose weight. That’s why in my book it says that if you are 100% raw you can eat what you want AT FIRST.

Now some of you I know are not 100% raw and ok with that percentage of wherever your at. I have no problem with that at all but when you try to take something someone says (namely me) and put that into a context of a different diet (80 percent raw as opposed to 100% raw) and then say it doesn’t work, it doesn’t make sense. These so called ‘rules’ that I have stated in my book about eating whatever and however much you want when you first go raw apply to 100% raw. Ive had numerous arguments about this point and people don’t seem to understand. It’s like taking something from the medical model and trying to form it to fit this diet. You can’t take ‘rules’ and ideas from different diets and different systems and think they will necessarily work with raw. It would be like taking what you like from macrobiotic, Ayervedic , etc. and fitting them together to make a new system. The reason they work is not necessarily because of each part but because when formed together they make a whole and interact and work a certain way within that system. So thinking your doing a lot of raw, some cooked food and then being able to eat all the fat you want wont work. On the other hand eating all raw and not worrying about the fats works because of varies reasons such as your body being allowed to detox and cleanse because there is no hydrogenated fat clogging up your system, there is no dead carcass clogging your bowels for 100 hours before it can even be digested and there is no cooked caned food fermenting and awaiting assimilation.. So if you feel fine doing 80 percent raw that’s wonderful. But it’s just hard to believe that raw plant fats are the problem. Maybe it’s the 20 percent cooked that’s not allowing the plant fats to digest properly?

[Alissa]

oh for gods sake, you are all too quick! i just posted only to see that raw truth and RP and all of you in-between have written since! Now I have to go and re read all of this! :o

[RawTruth]

:mad: p.s. Alissa's book "Living on Live Food" is not at barnes and noble, books a million, or borders book stores in any of the stores in the city Im in or in their "systems" so it can be ordered... population of the city Im in is 500k or so. Can only get it from the site?!
I would prefer to go buy it now than wait. bah.

edited: not at the local food co-op or natures pantry.I definitely can understand your impatience, P2. I, too, didn't want to wait to order it (even though Alissa is only 1/2 hr. away from me, it would still take too loooooong! A bit anxious I was, no?). So, I called my local raw food staples/bookstore/organic clothing store and they had it. Also, several of the local raw restaurants have it sporadically. They buy a number of them from her and turn around and sell them. So, I bought the book and DVD that very day. Do you have any raw food or non-traditional stores you can phone?

If that doesn't work out, how 'bout this -- if you order it this very minute (!!), and somehow flag your order with your Spidey name, then follow up with an email to Alissa, I betcha she'll expedite it right out to you. So, that means you might have it early next week!


Ah RawTruth, so wonderfully explained.
You have been doing 100 % raw, well, 100 percently ( i made up a word!) for half a year now, and show here the exact natural transition Alissa explains over and over.

Thank you so much!

Namaste~Raw = Transformation = Peace.

Mucho hugs to sweet Carmel.

:p

[sweetgoddess]

RP~ lol at your "ick"

You raised a crucial point when you talked about the difference between cooked and raw, natural fat, and again also when you talked about the challenge of starting raw and incorporating all the fruits and vegetables into our diets, when a lot of us are used to food with a completely different taste, texture and makeup, heck, and purpose!

Nuts and fats really do make some raw dishes that help us feel comforted, as suggested by your yummy list of nutbased dishes...mmm...and since we have been eating for comfort most of our lves-how that makes sense to me. Comfort food WITH life and nutrition to get us through the process of changing from the inside out, the mental, emotional and physical changes.

Personally, I hold it in absolute faith that eating anything I want right now as long as it is raw, ( heck I have eaten date nut torte daily as well as other high fat foods in the same days and lost 8 pounds in a week) , will get my body to the state it can talk to me-and will get my mind to the state where it can HEAR my body.

For 3 months I ate whatever I wanted as long as it was raw and the results were life-changing. And I will keep doing so free of counting, deprivation and fear until, as RawPriestess said, " that doesn't work for you anymore"


Thanks rp and everyone for such wonderful insights.
Many Blessings~

[Sharon in Colorado]

RT thanks for your response. I'm still here, still the same ol Sharon, just dealing with the same issues for the past several years on and off raw. It could possibly be that because I haven't gone past 4 months, I haven't had much of a chance to transition to a superior raw diet. I'm not much of a nut-recipe eater either, although I do love avocado. As for your observation I think you are right on.


Because our fat cells hold onto our toxins, until they can be safely released.



What you wrote here RP is what I've known as well. Also for folks who have certain health issues, too much fat (any type of fat) is not always so great in the diet. I'm not referring to 0% fat, just too much. Heart patients are often advised to keep their fat intake to 10% or below.

Several years ago, when I went raw for the first time, I attended a Victoria Boutenko lecture. I was ultra concerned about my cholesterol, because I was eating many olives and avocadoes. One of the people at that lecture told me just to eat what my body tells me to eat. When I had my cholesterol checked, it was 230, and I attribute it to eating way more fat than I should have.

So while I agree that some people can do quite well doing a wildcard raw diet in the beginning, it may not be the best for others. Not everyone who comes to a raw diet is a meat-based SAD eater, and maybe for the SAD eaters, it's better to eat whatever they want as long as it's raw.

Janie's story: http://www.ringlet.org/about/index.php

[sweetgoddess]

ahhhhh and theres Alissa. So wellspoken.

Woooooooooweeeeeeeeee!
This thread has pumped me enough to get through another 3 months!

Merci! Merci! :p

[livenraw]

For two years, I ate at 75% fat and STILL dropped over 60 lbs. Proof to me that the RIGHT KIND of fats don't make one fat.

[RawTruth]

RT thanks for your response. I'm still here, still the same ol Sharon, just dealing with the same issues for the past several years on and off raw. It could possibly be that because I haven't gone past 4 months, I haven't had much of a chance to transition to a superior raw diet. I'm not much of a nut-recipe eater either, although I do love avocado. As for your observation I think you are right on. Okey dokey pokey.


When I had my cholesterol checked, it was 230, and I attribute it to eating way more fat than I should have. Maybe, for you, it'll take longer -- like at or after a year -- for the cholesterol to come down?


Not everyone who comes to a raw diet is a meat-based SAD eater, and maybe for the SAD eaters, it's better to eat whatever they want as long as it's raw.Hmmm ... interesting. I wasn't a SAD eater either (well, unless you consider those Ben & Jerry and Pepperidge Farm cookie "binges"!!! Hee hee.) But, seriously, I'm thinking that it will just take a longer haul for you, Sharon. I'm in this category, too, by the way. Because I have 6 months under my belt doesn't mean that I've seen all the changes I'd hoped for. But, if there's anything I've learned, it's patience and faith. So, I'm in for the long haul ... and trusting that complete healing and rejuvenation will take place.

I wish the same for you.

[Sharon in Colorado]

Thanks Alissa for responding to my concerns. I hope you didn't think my OP was all about you!! It was re a generalized statement, and somehow it turned into a discussion about your book. But I am really glad you jumped in and added to the discussion.

Anyway, I am at the point where I'm kinda tired of the heavier and dehydrated recipes, but not always in the mood for fruit. Maybe I have to go past a certain point when my body won't be wanting fat as much.

It's like, if I have to look at one more nut pate.... :cool:

[Sharon in Colorado]

But, seriously, I'm thinking that it will just take a longer haul for you, Sharon. I'm in this category, too, by the way. Because I have 6 months under my belt doesn't mean that I've seen all the changes I'd hoped for. But, if there's anything I've learned, it's patience and faith. So, I'm in for the long haul ... and trusting that complete healing and rejuvenation will take place.

I wish the same for you.

Oh - you are so sweet, thank you for your support! It's only a shame that we didn't meet years ago when I was still living in Long Beach!

[RawTruth]

For two years, I ate at 75% fat and STILL dropped over 60 lbs. Proof to me that the RIGHT KIND of fats don't make one fat.I'm confused. Are you saying that you ate 100% raw food for two years, 75% of which was fats? If so, was it all nuts?



Anyway, I am at the point where I'm kinda tired of the heavier and dehydrated recipes, but not always in the mood for fruit. Maybe I have to go past a certain point when my body won't be wanting fat as much.

It's like, if I have to look at one more nut pate.... I hear ya. Lately I've been on a salad binge, but they're different salads than before. I'm not putting as wide a variety of things in it. Just 3 or 4 counting the lettuce. So, I have a bunch of lettuce - always a baby lettuce mix so there's lots of flavor, maybe tomatoes, cucumbers, sprouts, and avocado. Or maybe lettuce, jicama, beets, and corn (always avo). Or marinated mushroom and avocado. Then I blend or whip up a dressing and really toss the salad with the dressing so it's completely coated. That's the difference for me -- it's the veggies being thoroughly mixed in the dressing. I've just been craving that. A raw friend and I had a discussion about whether it's the dressing we crave or the veggies. But, I say -- who cares. All of it is raw and I'm getting my greens. So, I've been averaging two of these a day and they're huge. I may toss in a few nuts, but usually not. I haven't even made a nut pate or nut burgers in literally months. So, I'm right there with ya.

By the way, I've said this before, but still -- can't even imagine how challenging it must be staying raw while cooking for or just being around your family eating cooked food. My hats off to you.

[RawTruth]

It's only a shame that we didn't meet years ago when I was still living in Long Beach!Oh no. We'd have been getting in so much trouble together. Two too tall ladies on the loose?!?! :D

[Alissa]

Wow, what a great thread. No Sharon I didn’t think that at all and this turned into a great discussion.
RT so well said! I love how you explained it.
PP – I know its annoying you cant find it. Let me know and I will express it for you but I know some of the raw places in NY have them. Let me know if you cant find it.
Best,
Alissa

[Peter Parker]

good to see you on here, I appreciate your comments. Glad to see that this isn't a "headless" site, one that was set up to discuss raw fodos and sell your products but no input from you.

Didnt mean to get anyone excited. :( I was stating how I feel. If something tastes like dirt to me. well so be it. :p


I wanted to read what I could of it this weekend but will wait until Monday and order it, thank you!

[Rawmommie]

I see both sides on this one.

Sharon, I agree with you and think that for some people, as long as it's raw can equal too much. For me, personally, it can. There have been days I have used that saying to eat 6+ avacado's! I've gained weight after eating so much fat and have stopped eating nuts altogether b/c I don't feel good when I eat them and have no control with things like raw cashew butter. (I can eat a whole jar in a day)

BUT, I do feel freer than I ever have. I have lost weight eating huge salads and not counting calories. I think being raw has allowed me many freedoms with my eating and helped me with a lot of my compulsiveness, but I still have to watch myself. I think it's going to differ with every person.

[Alissa]

nope not a headless site!

Its ok, you can get us excited. we're a pretty excitable bunch :D

Ok, but if you call around you may be able to get it did you try high vibe?
Sorry, i don’t know exactly were you are....

Sure its ok if you think things taste like dirt, its just that there is so many amazing taste with raw food id love for you to experience it!

Best,
Alissa

[Peter Parker]

Well, you know im jumping in on this one if only because of that statement about ‘writing the book hasn’t hurt my bank account’. Yeah, your right, it hasn’t. But you wouldn’t have this free board to write on if I didn’t write the book ;) so its benefited you also even though you never bought my book but are here writing and giving and sharing advise and learning for free.


didnt know you read the forums. Impressed.





First, I never say that you can eat whatever you want as long as its raw, forever! I say in the book that the first month or two eat whatever you want. I wont go into all of why here as its in my book but basically so your body can get used to this radically (for most people) different diet, so you can learn how to make things and how easy it is and so when you start to eat simply you can walk into the kitchen after a couple of weeks of eating only fruits and veggies and say ‘hey im starving but I know how to whip up a date nut tort within 5 minutes” instead of saying, jeez this diet is boring and there is nothing to make so im headed out for pizza because I never taught myself how to do it.


I want to be 100% raw and be full of ENERGY and be able to think constantly. Instead of being mentally slowed down, like past attempts at raw/living foods.



It’s so funny to me that people think they can go on this diet and never take the time to teach themselves how to do it. Even on the atkins or mcdougle plan you have to read the book and learn how to do it!


Happy to see you mention McDougall. Was on it for some time. My wife lost 75+ lbs on it. she still follows it.



But people give raw a week while eating fruits and veggies and then say, ‘oh this is boring, this doesn’t taste good, this is too hard’. Not to pick on you peter, but this is why I wrote the book and why my book is different. It teaches you how to do it. At least get my DVD. I made that specifically for people like you! It shows you how to do this easily and quickly.



Your not picking on me. I come here to learn and share my struggles. I appreciate your comments :)




Second, let me fill you in something. I never never never sit around waiting for my sprouts to sprout or my nuts to germinate. Again, in my book most of the dishes do not have soaked nuts and many of the dishes do not even use nuts.


I do not like soaking anything at this point. It makes me hungry and I want to eat the paint off the fridge Im so hungry. LOL




Third, if you’re eating like you’re eating your going to get board and go off this diet.
“meh. maybe Im just hungry and tired of juice. salads. and greens” YA!??? So there ya go? So why are you just eating that? That’s not what this diet is about. If your only looking for weight loss and that’s ALL, your right, you can do that eating anything. Eat donuts three times a day and nothing else and im sure you’ll lose weight. Look at that sub guy… I forget what company that is, jarod is his name I think. He lost weight eating subs everyday. He looks pale as a ghost, very unhealthy, but hey, he’s thin. So you may drop dead from eating Twinkies 3 times a day and nothing else but at least you’ll be skinny.


I am here for 1. my health. 2. my family. 3. animals. I want to be healthy. I want to glow :( :( :(



How can raw food taste like dirt, I don’t get it. To me cooked food taste like cardboard and the only thing that taste real is raw. What are you eating that taste like dirt?


Salads. Kale. Spinach. taste like dirt. even after being washed well. Maybe Im being picky. From people here at the raw food get togethers I remember them telling me to eat dark leafy greens and lots of them. When you think you've had enough of them eat more! Is this wrong?




Peter, I would say your not eating enough to lose weight and if your not 100% raw then all this is a mute point anyway. Now please don’t scream at me about not being ok with 80 percent raw, if your doing it and feel great then all the more power to you. But if you’re needing to cut fats to a minimum and watch every morsel of food but are still eating cooked food then that is why. When your not 100% raw and still eating tons of nuts and fats and think your going to lose weight. That’s why in my book it says that if you are 100% raw you can eat what you want AT FIRST.


I really want to be 100%. I know what you may be thinking "SO DO IT!" My reply is Im trying :)

Yesterday I had mashed potatoes and today I had spinach maria soup with a grilled (rice) cheese sandwhich. After both I felt very sick to my stomach and heavy. Today is day 4 at working on being 100% raw. I want it. bad.





dead carcass clogging your bowels for 100 hours before it can even be digested and there is no cooked caned food fermenting and awaiting assimilation.


Sexy. Makes me want to get a colonic and puke at the same time to get whatever out of my system. Whats your point of view on colonics?

Thanks for your time!

[Sweet lips]

Here is another Tall lady talking - interesting stuff. Last evening my hubby ( oh the hunk - I am regressing) and I were invited to attend a lecture "Bless it and eat it - the myth behind that statement". We were invited by a friend because she had invited the young man to speak at her church at the suggestion of one of her members. She invited us because she said if something wasn't right in the lecture, we could provide assistance. He did well discussing the dangers of salt, and white sugar, and he suggested everyone start immediatley on a 75% raw diet, and his lecture ended without the how. So, for me, of all the books I have, and boy do I have them - got a new one today byJalissa Letendre, Alissa's book provides the how and that is essential to any program. Sometimes we have so much information that we are unteachable, and need to step back to be taught.

When I read Sharon's Post - I too missed the Sharon that I knew, and sensed that some other stuff was going on - and then when I saw the cholesterol issue, I can understand where you may be coming from, as I wanted this to cure my diabetes right away and pronto. I have only been raw 100% only part of the time, highly stressed and non exercised, and thus my results, while good have not been great and now my plan is to be totally 100% raw. I find nothing wrong with the statements nor does it affect me in the negative - I march to a real different drummer, and know that the responsibility lies within me to make the change.

I do believe given that as long as it is raw in the beginning is a good thing for a person who has tried everything -( I am tall, and very large boned - I have an eight inch wrist and happy large feet, AND on top of that, I need to lose weight although I have heard, you are really not that big - bull hockey sticks , I weight enough to be a line backer or a tackle and I am not a man!) and rather that repeat all that has been written, I think that one really has to slow down enough to listen to their body talk back to them as to what to do, how to do it.

I don't think nuts and avocado's or plant fats are the culprit that they are made out to be - everything works together for the good or for the bad. There are other factors in that - Being raw and being stressed will cause your body to hold on to that which it has yielded during the stress; and I know there are some stressed out peoples that are 100% raw because they are far from pleasant :confused: . It may take time for things to change especially if the gene that is responsible for that has been switched on, it has to be reminded and taught how to turn off.

Mr. Peter, okay so, food is tasting like dirt - I can understand- it has been suggested to you in other forums to visit some recipe sites, although you may not have the desire for long food prep, you can find some quickees from places like here :) and also from www.sadtoraw.com. I am really not your expert on quick foods as I can spend hours on end in the kitchen creating, but these may help. Now, since you brought this up, and only because your brought it up - I make this comment, how quickly did it take you to accumulate your weight? Give yourself some time fellow, love yourself up just as you are right now, and your body will respond in affection. 10 pounds lost is 10 pounds lost, as is 42 pounds, please don't discount the weight loss how small it may seem to you - it makes a difference to your knees, your feet, your heart, your liver, each pound does do that. Now, what exactly are you looking for in ways of support - and I and I know others will work on seeing that you get it - where do you live (just your city and state :o )

This thread as S.G. makes it worth being raw just to see it to the end!

[Alissa]

LOL! Well, first thanks for not getting pissed as i felt like what i wrote was a bit intense but its just that im so passionate about this.


Salads. Kale. Spinach. taste like dirt. even after being washed well. Maybe Im being picky. From people here at the raw food get togethers I remember them telling me to eat dark leafy greens and lots of them. When you think you've had enough of them eat more! Is this wrong?

Yes its wrong. Eat what you like for now. Your not going to get deficient within a few months form not stuffing enormous amounts of greens down your throat. That’s so funny to me, look how many meat eaters and SAD eaters never have any greens hardly ever in years! But no one is worried about them becoming deficient, yet when we go raw and are eating big salads and fruits, etc.. People get worried we are not getting enough greens! Once your raw for a while your taste buds will change, really they will. I promise. I never liked greens when i was eating crappy vegetarian food either, it takes time.


I do not like soaking anything at this point. It makes me hungry and I want to eat the paint off the fridge Im so hungry. LOL

Me too! This is why i say, forget all the rules and just make sure it’s raw at first. After a while you can adjust and change your diet and streamline it and it will be easy to do and not be something that’s forced like RT said.
just eat what you want and don’t soak and sprout. just make sure its raw and have fun with it. Id go nuts if i had to sprout all the time (used to think that was fun when i first did this, now its not so appealing!)


Yesterday I had mashed potatoes and today I had spinach maria soup with a grilled (rice) cheese sandwhich. After both I felt very sick to my stomach and heavy. Today is day 4 at working on being 100% raw. I want it. bad.

your doing great. This is a good thing. Look how it made you realize that you don’t feel good when you eat cooked food. It’s a learning process and your learning a lot just from what you’re going through on your own with it. That’s great!


Sexy. Makes me want to get a colonic and puke at the same time to get whatever out of my system. Whats your point of view on colonics?

LOL! Yeah, i know sorry, trying to be dramatic....
I think colonics are good. I know people who get too many or who do a lot of them but eat lousy and i don’t think that’s good. I think if you do raw and start to cleanse and then go for a series of them that can be really helpful. I think periodically they are very good and if you have an illness i think it is a very important step.

Best,
Alissa

[Texicalian]

I agree with what Angie and Revvell said way back at the beginning of the post this is the most wonderfully taste-full eating lifestyle I've ever experienced. Pear compote (with fresh ginger) and nectarine-lime parfaits are awesome - the latter especially in this summer heat! [nothing at all like dirt!]You see, nuts/fats aren't my problem. My love of fruits is. This week I noticed my gums were hurting - bad, so I did the banana search and found out why and ways I could help them. (I came to raw with a highly acidic system anyway, so that probably enters into it.) So, I understand Sharon's frustration with the "eat all you want, as long as it's raw". Could a caveat be added: remember when you eat fruit to swish water or aloe vera juice in your mouth right after eating or floss when you eat nuts so that the alkalinity of your mouth is restored? (This may only matter to acidic people like me.) I understand that when you first start raw you need the freedom to eat whatever you want, but when that particular phrase is posted, it might be beneficial to have a few other pointers to go along with it. I know Alissa's book, as well as Cousen's, Mars, etc. go into more detail - I'm just talking about posts on the board. BTW, I have been incorporating more greens over the last few weeks, and plan to do more so now!

[tvillemom]

I know I'm new here, but I do know one thing....YOU HAVE TO PLAN. Maybe, Peter Parker, you should take some time to plan say, 3 days of menus. Don't wait until your hungry to go looking for some food. If your food is all planned out and ready...whether it's a sprout, nuts, salad, or whatever, You will have already prepared ahead. Maybe this will keep you from becoming bored with just salads, and you can take some time to add variety to your daily diet.....this is by no means to come down on you, just hoping to give a suggestion that may keep you "on the wagon".....I'm also preaching to myself.

[Peter Parker]

I know I'm new here, but I do know one thing....YOU HAVE TO PLAN. Maybe, Peter Parker, you should take some time to plan say, 3 days of menus. Don't wait until your hungry to go looking for some food. If your food is all planned out and ready...whether it's a sprout, nuts, salad, or whatever, You will have already prepared ahead. Maybe this will keep you from becoming bored with just salads, and you can take some time to add variety to your daily diet.....this is by no means to come down on you, just hoping to give a suggestion that may keep you "on the wagon".....I'm also preaching to myself.


hehe :D your not coming down on me at all. I appreciate the advice and time you take :)

what do you have planned out for tomorrow, food wise?

[Alissa]

Bumping up. Please read my post in here for those of you who have a fear of eating 'whatever you want' and other peoples post as this may help some of you.

[aimpear]

I think eating anything raw is allowed and will still maintain your weight or even help you lose weight but if you are eating 6 cups of almonds or cashews, or whatever nuts of your choice, you may want to look at why you are eating such a large quantity ? is it because of emotional eating, stress. etc.?

I have been eating nuts all day and just a handful satisfies me and i feel full

[Queen2]

Hi - Peter, sometimes salads don't sit well with me, either; human beings are primates: Frugivores. Fruit is the best choice for me and is, strangely enough, filling. I eat fruit for breakfast and often have it for dinner as well. I find it is easy to digest and makes me feel fabulous. Fruit just works for me. I don't get as tired of it, either.

I also find that I am too obsessive to try to transition quickly. I need to keep my OCD in chekc and allow myself to make mistakes and if I don't eat 100% raw every day, oh well, I'll do better at some point. I think of it like, before I totally 100% quit smoking, I cut way down and sometimes only had two cigs a day. Eventually, I was ready to quit.

I think that the process needs to be approached with compassion toward yourself and others. I am not doing 100% raw right now but I'm praying my way to it. Ya know? What I am really working on is loving myself and living in the moment. IMHO, the guilt trips and the policing we subject ourselves to are as bad as or WORSE than cooked food. I could probably do raw food 100% if I really disciplined the crap out of myself but I'm not in the mood to be hard-nosed about it. This isn't boot camp, at least not in my neck of the woods. Give your self some credit for what you are trying to accomplish here. It's not easy to do.

Q...

[mommamia]

Thanks for bumping the thread!

This approach (as long as it's raw....) is working for me right now. I eat what I feel like....but I have been getting worried...this affirms that at some point my body will start talking to me and I'll hear it.

[girl007]

Okay- there is a lot being said here!

I wonder what "too many" is? How many nuts are too many?

All I know is this is my third (1-week 90% raw)week raw and I feel FABULOUS and look damn good too. :) My skin was looking bad post holiday season and it is all cleared up and hubby says you are GLOWING!! Pretty good for just 2 weeks totally raw. The best thing for me is that I know what I'm putting in my body is good for me! I don't feel guilt and I'm not obsessed with food- especially SAD food. In the past I would have to battle this craving thing when cutting back. I have none of that. I guess once you see the nutrional aspect of it and embrace it then you don't really want to hurt your body with junk. I'm really happy and free. I don't fee limited by this plan at all.

I hope I don't eat too much "fat" but then again I don't know what too much is.... well I'm on the path and I'm sure I will find my way!

xoxo :)

[Crystal Rose]

I haven't been posting as much lately, but had to jump in on this one -- just a short one tho...

Just wanted to share briefly my experience.

My experience is quite similar to that of RawTruth's. Here it goes:

I've been 100% raw for almost 10 mos. I eat anything I want whenever I want (while "listening to my body" -- gauging from day to day what my body wants). I indulge in the raw desserts a lot, but I also eat a lot of greens and take wheat grass 1 to 3 times a week. I've had a few instances where I've over-eaten, and then backed off for a few days afterward. But for the first time in my life, I feel "free from the bondage of food" (to use Alissa's quote).

AND, here's my stats:

I started at 137 or more pounds; I now weight 113.
25 pounds lost in 9 1/2 mos. without focusing on the weight-loss aspect (FOR THE FIRST TIME IN MY LIFE!). I've NEVER had long-term success with ANY "diet" (raw is a lifestyle), and I've been struggling with my weight since age 15. [I'm a figure skater, so I was always very sensitive about my weight -- being told by the Ice Capades 3 times my skating was good enough to be in the chorus line but I wasn't 105, so forget it). When I saw the number 113 on the scale the other day, I wanted to cry with joy, because at age 49 I've been bouncing between 125 and 150 since age 15, and I finally weigh what I feel my body is supposed to. :) :D

Just wanted to share my experience (for whatever it's worth) and thanks for letting me share.

And thank you EVERYONE for your input!!!
Sincerely,
Ms. Vicki
Certified Living on Live Food Teacher
P.S. I LOVE this Board. Thank you, everyone, for your constant support and information.
P.P.S. Guess this wasn't so short after all. (lol)

[Lauradee]

thanks for the bump

this way of eating has helped me like not other

no more counting every calorie,measuring, calculation, buying

expensive "diet" sad food and trying to stay heatlhy on that

plus expect the body to loose weight ! :eek:

I am feeing better then i ever have before in my life

and my body is changing

loosing fat where i have never thought possible

and being able to run again

is like having an entirely new life

i don't count calories

i don't limit my fats but eat them freely as my body craves them

these are mainly nuts and seeds, avacodos, olive oil...

did i forget someting?

[faith4u]

I have can understand what you are saying. I have easily kept my weight down while eating low fat cooked vegan diet for 9 years. Now on a raw food diet I cannot get my weight down to what is normal for me. (I had a baby 6 weeks ago)

I cannot eat the amount of fat that I feel I need right now to satisfy me. I am about ready to give up because it is getting to be very frustrating.

I love the way I feel but hate the way I look.

I wish I could eat anything as long as it is raw but it doesn't work for me.

[RawFoodieMom]

Alissa, thanks so much for bumping up this thread. I really needed to read this today! This has really helped me a lot. :)

[RawTruth]

I have can understand what you are saying. I have easily kept my weight down while eating low fat cooked vegan diet for 9 years. Now on a raw food diet I cannot get my weight down to what is normal for me. (I had a baby 6 weeks ago)

I cannot eat the amount of fat that I feel I need right now to satisfy me. I am about ready to give up because it is getting to be very frustrating.

I love the way I feel but hate the way I look.

I wish I could eat anything as long as it is raw but it doesn't work for me.You have missed the point of Alissa bumping this thread (from July 2005) up again. She (and we) are saying that -- if you are eating 100% raw -- you can eat all you want of raw food for the first month or so, including fats. What you've written here seems familiar. Without searching for it, I seem to recall you (or someone in your situation) posting about how they'd just had a baby and they couldn't lose the weight. Lots of people replied with great advice, the most important of which was - be patient! I'm very sorry to hear that you hate the way you look. Everyone should be happy with who they are and how they look. I have to ask you the most basic questions: are you following Alissa's plan from her book? Have you been completely and totally raw for the last 6 weeks? And ... most importantly, why would you think that you're going to lose X number of pounds in just 6 weeks?

Sorry if my reply seems abrupt or short-tempered. I'm just having a hard time with this great, complete thread being bumped up only to have members not read the entire thing so as to understand what the focus is ... and what Alissa's (and our) carefully-worded posts were all about.

[sweetgoddess]

Great post Alissa, and Diana. Sometimes we humans need to be reminded to stop picking it apart with our minds and emotions-----and just do it!!

[RawFoodieMom]

I have can understand what you are saying. I have easily kept my weight down while eating low fat cooked vegan diet for 9 years. Now on a raw food diet I cannot get my weight down to what is normal for me. (I had a baby 6 weeks ago)

I cannot eat the amount of fat that I feel I need right now to satisfy me. I am about ready to give up because it is getting to be very frustrating.

faith4u, why is it that you say you can't eat the fat you feel you need right now? Is it because you think you will gain weight? Fat in a raw food diet is NOT the same as fat in a cooked vegan diet. Your body NEEDS the fat in raw foods because it is good fat, and when it's raw your body can assimilate it and use it for good. You might even find if you give your body what it's craving, and the good fats to feel satisfied, that you WILL lose weight! I totally agree with what Alissa is saying. Have you even tried it for a month, the way Alissa explains it, 100% raw, eating what you want when you want it?

Debra

[Elizabeth]

So, at the beginning of starting raw, if you allow yourself to think "i can eat anything I want as long as its raw", straight away you let go of the deprivation syndrome`for the most part. You give yourself abundance. If I started telling myself, I cant have nuts , I cant have this or that~watch what happens.
You also are giving yourself time to change your taste buds, your body time to clean out some old rubbish so it can THEN start signalling you what exactly it needs.



I totally agree sweetgoddess..... Knowing that one can eat anything out of the huge abundance of Raw vegan foods is very freeing..and I believe that if I pay attention to how I feel and adjust accordingly within that context..the nuts etc. issues will be taken care of... But to focus on calories seem ridiculous...when the "science" of calories and their relevance to weight loss etc. was created using a cooked food model. Cooked food and raw food are not handled in the same way by the body.... and the "calorie system" of prescribing and tracking food does nothing to take that into account...

Blessings....

[beelzebubble]

A bagel can fill one up just as much as a cup of nuts, but the difference in fat intake is huge.

ahhh. but you'll feel full longer from the nuts, and they have vitamins, minerals, fiber, and protein. heh, just playing devil's advocate.

[ljannise]

ahhh. but you'll feel full longer from the nuts, and they have vitamins, minerals, fiber, and protein. heh, just playing devil's advocate.

bagels never filled me up. I've always had a sensetivity to flour. It would be like a small balloon inside my belly. I'd take the nuts anyday.

[vickiesltw]

I find that I eat tons of fruit and when I'm lazy, I grab a Larabar or something - it's completely raw and very satisfying.


What is a Larabar?????

Lil' Brat

[fiddler]

What is a Larabar?????

Lil' Brat
www.larabar.com (http://www.larabar.com)

[Alissa]

bump.............

[juliebove]

Everyone is different. I see a lot of people who say they eat a lot of fruit. That would just never work for me. I don't like fruit much for starters and some of it seems to upset my stomach. I could eat endless amounts of celery. I like it and it doesn't cause me problems. Carrots are another matter. I like those but I know that eating endless amounts of them could turn me orange. This happened to me when I was a baby. And I've read cases of people consuming large amounts of carrot juice (for various reasons) and turning orange. I used to work with a woman who had some kind of blood disorder (can't remember the name) that caused iron to build up in her body. She'd have to go in every once and a while and have her blood filtered. She had to be careful not to eat too many iron rich foods. She could eat a little bit of spinach every now and then, but could not go hog wild on it.

As for nuts, I know I can't eat them with wild abandon. I consider a serving to be a handful. If I eat much more than that, I don't feel well. Others might be able to eat more than that. I also have to be careful with radishes. They give me nightmares. Yeah, I'm weird. The ones I grow don't seem to have this affect. But the ones at the grocery store often do. I can eat one. But if I eat two or three, no matter the time of day, I'll have nightmares.

I think it's best if we can get to know our own bodies and know what is right to do for us. But what works for me might not work for you.

[Revvell]

Without reading all the posts here, one thing I will state is: How your body reacts and responds on a prevalently cooked and even partially cooked food program is wayyyyyy different than it will on 100% raw. At first, yes, you most likely will have to avoid foods that are problematic. After awhile I would suggest slowly introducing foods that were, at one time (may still be yet, wont know unless ya test, right?) challenging. I know this from my own experience of being sensitive to certain foods including oranges, grapefuit, tomatoes and almonds. Now I drink oj at least once ~ and sometimes 3 times a day. Almonds, when soaked, have a different effect than almonds unsoaked.

I go along with the "as long as it's raw" statement. Just add a dash of common sense.

Revvell

[bowie]

bump......

[Sharon in Colorado]

It is so weird that I started this thread years ago! I hardly remember it but the discussion certainly is interesting. I love that Alissa has participated in the thread. It would be so cool if she could chime in a few times a day on these kinds of discussions, after all it is her board.

I went on a stint, keeping the fat low as a priority, and sometimes that meant eating steamed veggies or rice or something instead of large amounts of raw fats for cravings and my cholesterol did show improvement. Please know that I'm not advocating anyone eat cooked but this worked for my genetic cholesterol.

Another thing is that I tend to desire eating more fruit the more active I've been. So if I do nothing but home schooling and getting online, then I really don't crave fruit as much. And I will feel more draggy. When I rebound and/or have a really good, exhausting taekwondo class, I could eat fruit with wild abondon.

This has just been my own experience. I've been on and off raw over 6 years now, so I'm waaay past the transitional phase. The burgers and breads and pates no longer call to me like they used to. It can be more of a challenge going raw "again" because I believe most people who've been doing it this long on and off like myself are also probably tired of the transitional foods.

[sungoddess]

"Eat anything as long as it is raw" has not worked for me. i tried it for a long time and I am now the heaviest I have been in 2 years. I look really bad, and it means I have to limit my food intake and bump up my exercise... but I am dissapointed that my weight loss hasn't been the same as others. It just means that everyone is different, but it would have been so freeing if "anything that is raw" helped me lose weight too.

My biggest problem in gaining weight, is the feeling that I DO have to limit intake- it makes me crazy and eat MORE. If that feeling had ben taken away by noticing that I was NOT gaining weight, I probably would have healed from it. Now I am just back where I started :(

[bowie]

Are you 100% raw sungoddess?

[Rawmommie]

This thread makes me miss all the members I started out with when I first went raw...where hae you all gone??!!! pout.

I have learned many things in the last 2 1/2 years about eating raw and I think this thread is full of great info!

IN THE BEGINNING I think it is important to eat all you want as long as it's raw. Try it for a month or two with no restrictions. There are many people who can eat whatever they choose as long as it's raw. Be it hereditary or the portion size or whatever other factor, some people will reap the benefits right away. EVERYONE will feel the positive effects of raw, even if they don't lose weight.

Then, there are people like me who have to cut down on nuts or portions, but this isn't something you do like a checkoff list overnight. It's a journey and we EACH HAVE A DIFFERENT RAW PATH.

So, if you have eaten 100% raw for a month or SIX with no restrictions except it should be raw and you find you aren't feeling right when eating too many nuts or aren't losing weight, then by all means, tweak away! If you are new though, you need to atart off by getting a solid foundation in being a raw foodist and eating with no limitations at first is very important!

:)

[Ariannah]

I've never lasted long on the "eat anything as long as it's raw" ideal, even when transitioning from cooked. It's always led me back to cooked. I've had to cut out condiments completely and just keep it simple. I keep my fruits high, fats low, and I feel more energetic.

I've always felt good on whole foods in as natural a state as I can get them. I need foods which taste good on their own without "doing things" to them. Since fruit is one of the main foods that for me, tastes luscious and decadent as is (pineapple, peaches, pears, oranges, blueberries, strawberries, grapes, watermelons.... my mouth is watering already!) then by default that is what I turn to the most.

This is not to say I rule out fancy recipes completely, but I am very careful to make it very seldom.

This is just what works for me.

[sungoddess]

I have been 100% raw for more than 7 months...

[veganman]

I personally eat a lot of dried fruit, nuts, seeds as well as fresh fruit and vegetables. I have less body fat than before going raw and more muscle (I do lift weights). I have been 100% raw for about a year now and wouldn't change a thing!

[Sharon in Colorado]

Many times the body will confuse the mind because although you know what makes you feel better you still crave the other. As one expert says, it is direction, not speed. So sometimes you can't be overly strict, but it's just as important to understand what it is that may not be beneficial to you.

It is like that old saying about the person who falls down the hole unknowingly. It's been posted here before. Goes something like this:

1) Don't know how I got here, but when I climb out with great difficulty, I realize I fell into a hole.

2) See the hole but still fell in, and it's a little easier to climb out this time.

3) See the hole, try to avoid it, but fall in anyway. Practically juumped out of the hole this time.

4) See the hole and walk around it this time.

5) Take another road.

I think this can be related to knowing that eating certain things are not beneficial.

It could be like stage 3 in the hole scenario.

You still eat whatever you want as long as it's raw but you understand that it may not be the best thing to put into your body. You do it anyway, but know that one day you won't need it.

You can use this scenario for a number of things, including something you still might be hanging on to that's cooked like coffee, chocolate, tea, alcohol, tobacco, drugs, etc. You KNOW it's not healthy, but still you do it. Soon you'll be able to stop it entirely, or take another route as in the hole scenario. That is the important part.