Please Help, my husband want to become a raw foodest, but thinks he's going to starve

[Melindaxl]

What do I do? He's a diabetic and I showed him the Simply Raw video, which brough tears to his eyes and he decided to wanted to change.
The problem is how do I feed a man thats like 6 feet and 3 inches and his weight is around 250lbs. I say he's around 40% fat.
Anyway he has to have alot of calories because of how big he is and for his job. He's a house keeper at a hospital and is on his feet all night and he works in a very big hospital and walks from one side of the hospital to the other side maybe 10 time or more every night! It just take alot of food to feed him! It's not easy either. I'm trying to come up with what I can make him so he will enjoy the food and get enough in him!
It's not easy because he does love meat and starch. That's the thing he thinks of when he gets off work because of how hungry he is! I have been making raw treats, but what could I make him for meals to fill him up! He don't care for Bananas which I think makes it harder because that's a fruit with more calories then most of the other fruits. He's not ready for just any greens, he will eat romaine though. He likes to feel up on protein.
He thinks he 's going to starve on this diet! I keep trying to tell him it's because you have to eat alot more when you eat raw foods.
Anyway does anyone have any ideas, I have alot of recipe books, it's just that I can't just get anything those recipes call for because I live in Missouri, in a small town and we can't get much, but the basics here. We are lucky though that in the city my husband works in has a Organic Store where he can pick food up for us when we need it! Plus I do have Alissa's raw recipe book.
Well sorry, so long! I just wanted to explain everything! Thanks have a fruitful day!
Melindaxl

[Revvell]

Alissa's book tells you everything you need to feed anyone more than they can handle.

Chili, lasagna, all the recipes are there. The chili will feed about 10 people; lasagna will too. I don't make a lot of the entrees but you should! Reread her book; if you've got her dvd's watch them again.

Make sure he's got stuff to eat before he gets off work. Green smoothies (smoozies) are good to have throughout the day.

... well, actually, eating cooked food he's starving. The difference is, eating raw foods he'll be getting nutrients. The way he's eating now, he's not. He actually is starving ~ which is way different from being hungry.

Look through your books, make BIG amounts.. so YOU don't have to be constantly in the kitchen.

When you say " He likes to feel up on protein", what does that mean? I'm assuming he likes to fill up on the carcasses of dead animals. Is that it? With many recipes he wont know the difference. Does he like portabello mushrooms? How about a sandwich with them as the "bread"?

Look through your recipes, find 3 recipes which make a LOT of food and make those twice a week. (different ones each time). Then, every day, make sides such as salads (find dressings he likes. Dressing MAKE the salad), sushi, whatever you find in the books. Oh! Remember desserts too!

Ease, not dis-ease,

Revvell

[Dimond]

Consuming more liquid type meals such as soups, smoothies, and pudding is a way to fill up easily and is something portable he can bring to work. To make them more dense you can add avocados, nuts, seeds, oils, etc. Maybe you can sneak the bananas into his smoothie with other fruit. ;) Possibly try heavier raw treats such as a large food bar.

Usually the longer you're raw, the less food you need. May only work if you're 100% though.

[Eva]

Melinda, That is GREAT news!!! I have been thinking of getting the DVD, but I'm probably going to wait until I'm back in the US. I just got some tears in my eyes just thinking about how this could save his life! What a lucky man to have you around!

Have you tried the calzone recipe in Alissa's book?? That is THE recipe for me when I am super active, and the ingredients are all easy enough to come by. This particular recipe has been great inspiration for some recipes of my own as well.

The bad news is that it's a little tricky the first time or few you make it -- but even if it isn't as "pretty", it should come out tasting good. And it is VERY filling even though it is not filled with nuts and is VERY much like a starchy filling food but without the bloat!

I'm in the process of putting together a ton of free information for exactly this type of situation. Feel free to send me a PM if you want me to give you the site name. [I don't want to post it publicly until it's a little more attractive, though!] :)

[rawstrength]

Maybe you could make your husband a big bag of trailmix (dried fruits, nuts, seeds, maybe even cacao nibs if you can get them) to take with him to work that he can munch on during the day as he his hungry. Then he won't be so feeling so famished when he gets home.

[Melindaxl]

Thanks everyone for you help! I'll try everyones ideas! Thanks again for talking your time to answer my question and help me out! Have a smoothie day!

Melindaxl

[Moretta]

Just wanted to wish you good luck on your husband's rawness journey. Sounds like alot of fun doesn't it? I'm sure you will do just fine with it. Trial and error.

[kaybee]

sorry if this is a little off topic, but eva--ive always wondered how the heck the ingredients in that calzone make it through like 20 hrs in the dehydrator with warm air blowing over them--especially the avocado and stuff (i think theres avo in it right?) without spoiling???? ive never tried it and only heard from one person who did and said it was awful...but its your fav....so do the wet ingredients really make it through all that dehydrating time without going bad?

thanks
kaybee

[jacsam]

Get Alissa's DVD and watch it with him.....I bet he would enjoy it and help the two of you with ideas. I think you'll find as he transitions that he'll like bananas and a variety of green. Try green drinks....froozen banana, vanilla, water, cashews, spinach. This one really doesn't tast like spinach or bananas, it's just like a vanilla shake.

[Eva]

sorry if this is a little off topic, but eva--ive always wondered how the heck the ingredients in that calzone make it through like 20 hrs in the dehydrator with warm air blowing over them--especially the avocado and stuff (i think theres avo in it right?) without spoiling???? ive never tried it and only heard from one person who did and said it was awful...but its your fav....so do the wet ingredients really make it through all that dehydrating time without going bad?

thanks
kaybee

I NEVER start the dehydrator off at 105 like many recipes suggest. I start it between 115-135 for the first hour or two (there's all sorts of info out there suggesting that there is NO way for the ingredients to get above 115 because it takes some time for the heat to pick up and get the stuff), then turn the temp down after that. The avocado isn't in there from the beginning, and there is lemon juice in that part of the recipe, which does help to preserve the freshness.

I made my version of these for a potluck once, and a few people came up just to tell me how good it was. I had to spend (literally) like 20-30 minutes going through all of the steps and ingredients by memory to type it up in Hungarian for the people there. The hostess actually pulled me aside to make sure I shared the recipe. I was so proud. LOL. It's the small things, right?

This was the inspiration for a recipe of mine that's actually quite different but folds together similarly. Mine only takes about 5-8 hours total. I need to make it again soon so I can actually make note of all the ingredients. I actually got some of them at the store today...

(Melinda, sorry for the deep swerve off topic here, but I hope this is useful information for you!)

[Blazin'Jane]

I am no where your huxband's size, but I live in fear of not getting enough to eat. Being raw hs really helped that issue, but in the beginning, I emember being very hungry for the first week or so. I stayed raw and recall eating all day long. I took lots of extra fruit to work, made lots of green smoothies, filled in with raw nuts, trailmix, etc., and included flax seed meal and coconut oil in my smoothies. I also ate lots of avocados---I recall that Alissa says that in the beginning, if you think you're missing meat, it may well be the fat. So I ate fat. After a week or so, my system had adjusted somewhat and it's all good from ther.
Moral--if he's hungry, tell him to eat eat eat, just keep it raw. He won't need nearly the amount before to long, as his system figh=ures out that he's actually absorbing more nutrients.

[goobygirl]

Honestly it's the thought that he needs a lot of calories to work that got me the most. I was thinking about the people who live in countries where there isn't a lot food and they still manage to walk miles just to get some water. It really is a psychological thing, once we have so much abundance, to think we have to have more.

I agree with the other posters, once the body starts being able to absorb nutrients, he won't feel hungry. I was always hungry when eating more cooked than raw.

[Eva]

I blogged about this a couple months ago: http://readysethealthy.blogspot.com/2008/09/spending-less-money-now-on-raw.html

It does take some time, but our bodies have the ability to become ridiculously efficient. Most personal trainers will tell you that the more often you exercise, the harder you will eventually need to push yourself to burn the EXACT same calories.

Sort of like, when a person starts running regularly, at first they huff and puff and are exhausted more easily. As time goes on, a 45-minute or even 1-hr brisk run can be a piece of (raw) pie. This is because of the body's efficiency.

Raw food helps all of the body's systems to become more efficient. Why? The arteries are not so clogged. The blood flows freely. The colon is not holding anything up. The kidneys and adrenals don't have to work overtime to pump out the toxins and clean up. ETC. It takes time though, because at the initial stages of the switch, the body is working to clean itself up.

All good stuff. People who walk those distances to get the water -- their bodies are efficient too. They don't stuff their faces with food their body doesn't really need, so their bodies can survive on less.