Transitioning back to a healthy, vegan diet

[jurence]

Hey all. So, Since december I've lost 70 pounds- i can't believe i've lot so much so quick; my life has flipped completely upside down for the better. When I hit 200 I plan on going back to eating cooked food, however I still want to be somewhat raw.

I plan on eating:
-0% "junk" food
-No bread (unless dehydrated)
-No soft drinks
-Nothing with high fructose corn syrup
-Very few canned things

Basically, I am thinking of staying with fruits and vegetables however being allowed to cook/steam them and allow myself more sauces and spices along the way. In this way I think i can still lose weight and be easier to eat out with and be around when eating due to the fact that my social life is REALLY being hurt because of my diet.

What does the board think?

[Amberly]

Whatever feels comfortable. For me a little cooked leads to a lot of cooked, and I enjoy the raw better when I am not eating cooked. Maybe periodic fasting will help clear out the cooked accumulations? Good luck with whatever you decide. :)

[ReneeH]

Ummmm.... Well, I'm pretty sure that Alissa would not recommend that. I say this in the most humble way possible: Isn't this a RAW FOOD SUPPORT SITE based on ALISSA'S BOOK? Why go backwards? :confused: That would seem to defeat the purpose of going RAW and losing 70 lbs... Eventually you may go back to more and more cooked food and, God forbid, gain your weight back. Why risk that?

Losing 70 lbs....that's such an accomplishment! And, I applaud your loss. But, remember HOW you lost your weight. Please don't plan to sabotoge your efforts...please reconsider adding cooked veggies and canned food...

I think your plan is good otherwise (except of course the canned foods). If your social life is being hindered, try having a RAW party and inviting your friends! I LOVE doing that!

[jurence]

By "very little" canned food I mean not unless I can help it. I don't do anything canned now! It would be i would say 90% fresh fruits/veggies that have been steamed/cooked alone with 10% other food. I am by no means sabotaging my diet- i am going to be transitioning into, in my opinion, the second healthiest diet known to man.

[notwell]

raw raw raw, is what i say. no need for cooked ever again. raw is not just to lose weight. its for health for the rest of your life. why wont people get that. the fun is in the raw i say.

0% "junk" food=RAW, the end.

[jurence]

O_O food nazis. Keep telling yourself that being raw is the only way to lead a healthy life- you are only fueling your downfall with such rigid thinking.

[notwell]

its not even close to being rigid. rigid would mean im forcing myself to do this rigid would mean not fun, following rules, and other boring things. raw is fun. raw is healthy. raw works. i have no need to look elsewhere or think about anything else. why bother. thing is once u do it long enough it becomes part of your life. i have no interest in the other stuff.

[RawHeaven]

O_O food nazis. Keep telling yourself that being raw is the only way to lead a healthy life- you are only fueling your downfall with such rigid thinking.


By "very little" canned food I mean not unless I can help it. I don't do anything canned now! It would be i would say 90% fresh fruits/veggies that have been steamed/cooked alone with 10% other food. I am by no means sabotaging my diet- i am going to be transitioning into, in my opinion, the second healthiest diet known to man.

Hi Jurence, I respect whatever you decide to do. But I'm just surprised and confused as your positive energy has always leaned towards eating raw food. And you've always had such great insight to share with us all on this board. I don't understand why you're setting your intentions on eating cooked food when you hit 200. Not to say that you cannot, but why intend it before you even get there? The 10% other food may trigger full blown cooked food bingeing. I just went through this cycle for the past 3 months. I said the same things to myself. Oh, I will eat 90% raw, whatever that is, and I can have cooked vegan. A veggie wrap here, a slice of veggie pizza with no cheese there. Before you know it I was eating 90% cooked vegan and not blending or juicing or even eating fresh whole foods anymore. To cap it all off my skin broke out from the confusion and I started buying candy bars. "Oh I can have a little chocolate" ~going into complete denial knowing what the ingredients are in these products. I shocked the heck out of my body and organs doing that. It impacted my sleep cycle, my mental clarity, my weight to a slight degree thank goodness and just my overall feeling of wellness. After two years of eating raw foods, my body really didn't know what to do. I feel sluggish and I'm still recuperating, even though I'm back to 100% raw. I'm juice fasting at the moment to give my body a time to rest, rejuvenate and forgive me. haha.

You may have super willlpower and know exactly what you're doing. Again I'm not judging you as I believe we're here to do what is best for ourselves. But I caution you to just think about why you are suddenly moving in this direction. In my case, it was the addiction surfacing. And a way to cope with stress - going back to the emotional, comfort cooked foods. I'm hardly a raw food nazi, I don't think anyway. :) Whatever you want to eat, go for it. I'm just sharing my story just in case because I care.

Best wishes.

[RawHeaven]

its not even close to being rigid. rigid would mean im forcing myself to do this rigid would mean not fun, following rules, and other boring things. raw is fun. raw is healthy. raw works. i have no need to look elsewhere or think about anything else. why bother. thing is once u do it long enough it becomes part of your life. i have no interest in the other stuff.

I like this. alot. raw is fun and equates to FREEDOM to me. freedom from worrying about food at all. you just enjoy, eat and savor the bliss. you can then focus on so many other things in life. for awhile there i forgot this. and now i'm remembering once again as i'm back on the raw train. choo choo.

[jurence]

Thanks rawheaven that helped a lot. My biggest issue really has come to the social aspect of it all. I can't eat ANYWHERE with my friends. I pack things when I can, but I am out of the house a lot. I think you all are right and I should not stop prematurely. I definitely ate a whole bowl of steamed veggies, and i don't feel guilty about it- it was delicious (there is no way i would ever eat broccoli raw) but I think i need to reserve that for when i get down to 160.

[EZ rider]

O_O food nazis.
What is a food nazis ?

[ReneeH]

I hate to repeat myself.....BUT.....


I say this in the most humble way possible: Isn't this a RAW FOOD SUPPORT SITE based on ALISSA'S BOOK? :confused:

Aren't we all coming here for SUPPORT in eating the RAW Food Lifestyle? I think you're wanting someone to tell you that it's o.k. for you to eat anything other than RAW, and I don't think that's what this site is for. Why anyone would "PLAN" to transition back to dead food is beyond me...and then, come to a "RAW BOARD" and want support for that....I don't know.... I'm sorry, but I just don't understand that. :rolleyes:

Also, have you tried Broccolini Salad? It's really good and tastes great UNCOOKED. Here's what you could do: chop Broccoli (even the stem--I put it in FP), put in bowl with small amt of shredded carrots, sliced mushrooms. Then add EVOO and Sea Salt. YUMMMMY!!! SO GOOD!!! Try it!!!

Alissa discusses in her book what to eat when you're out on the town. There ARE things you can do and still socialize. Have you read that section in her book?

[rawbabymama]

O_O food nazis. Keep telling yourself that being raw is the only way to lead a healthy life- you are only fueling your downfall with such rigid thinking.

When I was "rigid", I was healthy. When I stuck by my guns of eating 100% raw foods, my son and I did not get sick, we were strong and healthy. The less rigid about diet I became, the more "cool" and laid back I allowed myself to be - in order to keep the peace - the worse our health became (mine declined faster than my son's, because he started out raw, breastfed for 3.5 years and never had any medications, etc). The foods which hurt our health were organic, whole, cooked vegan foods. Now my son, thanks to my decreased rigidity, has progressed to eating fast food with his grandmother and junk food at school parties.

If by "rigid" you mean adamant about staying 100% raw and it being the best diet for animals like ourselves, then "rigidity" did not lead to my downfall; the systematic reduction of "rigidity" to conform to the teachings of conventional dietetics/nutrition, reduce arguments between myself and family members who insisted on feeding my son cooked/unhealthy foods, etc was the true culprit. I should have stuck by my guns.


I don't know you, but I do know we should be safe from being called food nazis for promoting/believing in a 100% raw diet on a raw food board.

I think whatever works for you is the best diet for you, but I come here for an environment in which it is agreed that all raw is best.

I wish you the best & I hope you succeed in your endeavors.

[JennaBoBenna]

I think raw is best. That's what this site is about! If this were a vegan site, we'd be applauding you up and down. But, cooked discussion in a raw and living food discussion board is a little topsy turvy.
Eat what you want, is what I say, anyhow. I eat WHATEVER I WANT. I WANT to eat raw food. If you truly want to eat cooked, do it. See how it feels.

I used to think this way, that after I lost all of my weight I would return to the cooked foods I loved so much...

But guess what food got me to GAIN the weight I LOST on raw? THE COOKED FOOD! I think about that sometimes and I don't want to eat those foods anymore. So, that's another option, change how you think about these foods.

[JennaBoBenna]

O_O food nazis. Keep telling yourself that being raw is the only way to lead a healthy life- you are only fueling your downfall with such rigid thinking.

This isn't a very fair statement for a board like this. Of course we advocate 100% raw, this is A RAW FOOD BOARD! We aren't nazis...what a horrible thing to equate us to!!

[rawbabymama]

This isn't a very fair statement for a board like this. Of course we advocate 100% raw, this is A RAW FOOD BOARD! We aren't nazis...what a horrible thing to equate us to!!

Word!

:cool:

[T-Bird]

Social stuff is hard.

I'm not as close with my coworkers as I was when we used to treat ourselves out to a nice lunch away from the office every now and again.

Holiday dinners with the family are more difficult/awkward.

Family dinners with the kids don't happen as much.......These are teenage kids and they're pulling away alot anyway - so this is icing on the cake for that whole deal.

It's hard - no 2 ways about it.

And nobody I know has any interest in going down this rabbit hole with me either!!!

Yep - tough.

[*RayRay*]

O_O food nazis. Keep telling yourself that being raw is the only way to lead a healthy life- you are only fueling your downfall with such rigid thinking.

Is this really how you feel? You knew when you asked the question that this was a board of raw vegans.....

however, I encourage you to read books by natalia rose and check out her website.....she has a great community area, and her diet is a little less what you would call "rigid" ...... but yes, raw foods are the ideal foods for humans, and don't forget what caused you to lose all the weight in the first place!

[kaybee]

jurence--

I understand and can relate to your problems with the social aspects....for me, being vegan in a meat-based culture where I live is already out of the norm, raw is just off the charts, never heard of here. and even when i was back in the states, i found it challenging and frustrating socially. maybe you could allow yourself exceptions when you go out with your friends, but dont actually intend to CHANGE your diet back to cooked vegan. again, you may be riding a slippery slope, as i find that when i allow just about any cooked or junk back in, i end up in a vicious cycle becasue then i start craving whatever it is to an absurd extent. However, our health is a holistic thing, and honestly, for some of us, I think its more holisitically healthy to go out and eat out with our friends, even if that means "slipping up" once in a while, than to sit at home by ourselves or to be out but be miserable just in order to eat only raw. I can also relate to the fact that sometimes consuming cooked seems unavoidable...there is limited variety and limited availability of many of the raw foods that I am used to , where I am living now, and sometimes I feel like my body just needs something else because i cant get whatever is raw that I would normally feed it. so sometimes i do lightly steamed veggies if necessary. However, I suspect that youre going to find your body protesting about "adding back in" any regular amount of cooked food. you can do it, and your body may "handle" it, but it very well may not be happy about it. even things like brown rice now that i used to be ok with before raw, now make me feel not optimal. and i found that even when i added back in a significant amoutn of cooked for about a 7 week period,(out of necessity, as i was hiking through mountain villages and fresh, quality raw stuff just was not always available, especially in the caloric densities i needed), the food often made me feel ill, even if it was just cooked lentils or brown rice or veggie soup or whatever. and even eating that way for 6 weeks didnt "acclimate" my body back to accepting cooked. So i guess what im saying is i dont advise intending to return to including cooked on a regular basis. but if what you need to do to stay happy and holistically healthy is to make some exceptions on occasion when you are out with friends, go for it. just know that your body may or may not handle it well, and once a body is acclimated to raw, it seems to resist attempts to return to its previous cooked diet, at least in my experience. oh, the CRAVINGS for the previous cooked will certainly be there, but the food likely wont make your body feel good. there may be certain things that you can "get away with" or "fall back on" that dont cause you problems (i sometimes use steamed red cabbage and potatoes, and cooked amaranth when its a necessity, as these things seem to work ok for me), but i wouldnt necessarily intend upon making them a regular staple of your diet.

[boocake]

i too have felt the social pressures and awkward instances that have come about during my raw journey, and ultimately that has caused me to 'slip up' on occasion (specifically around the holidays).

if you have made the decision to pursue a vegan lifestyle, cooked or raw, you are surely entitled to it, however i believe that your post is putting an expectation on this board to agree/support you in eating cooked, and that can put people in a defensive and unfair position.

as much as i, (and i'm sure your raw food friends) would like to support you unconditionally, cooked foods are not something that i feel comfortable endorsing. i wish you the best on your journey ahead, and remind you that your results with raw were amazing, and something to be very proud of.

[RawKnitster]

Been there, done that. Too many times. It doesn't work for me. One bite of cooked and my bond with raw foods is broken. It leads to more and more cooked food, then junk food. The longer it continues the more apathetic I feel about my health and my weight. And the pounds pack on.

One bite of cooked food and the food imprint I have carried all my life comes back with a vengenance.

Your younger, and hopefully more disiplined than I am. I had to learn the hard way, over and over again. Perhaps you can make it work your way. Whatever you choose, I hope it works for you.

[Veronica01]

I so agree it's way easier and i feel better doing 100%. I always eat alone or at raw foodpotlucks or bring my own food to family dinners, oh well. :)

On the weekend some friends went to the movies and i had some of the yucky popcorn to see if it would still taste good. I felt SO sick after it, huge headache and stomach upset I definitely learned my lesson. Even after 6 weeks raw it can kick your butt. I never ever feel sick or have headaches eating raw, but that butter was naaaaasty. I'm so glad to have raw in my life and raw friends. :)

[EZ rider]

I read a thread like this one where someone has opened the door to raw and got a glimpse of whats possible and then starts making plans on how to get back to eating compromised foods and I can hardly believe anyone would want to do that. All I can say is "why eat lifeless food and have to live with compromised health & wellness ? I don't get it".

[Colorawdo girl]

What do you want for your life?

One cooked food puffs me up like a balloon. For me, NOTHING(COOKED)TASTES AS GOOD AS THIN FEELS!!!

We are all free to choose. Freedom on raw or slavery on cooked. You choose!!!

Honor your process. Many have this downturn and act on it or not. Get on the roller coaster or toss away the ticket. Best to you.

Oh the social aspect...there is a lot of things one might do to be "social" (smoke, drink, swear) its called peer pressure if we let it be in the way with our friends. Standing powerfully for me and who I am and what I want for my life, social is not a problem.

[klomasius]

Jurence,

I understand where you are coming from.

If you can maintain a high raw, small amount of cooked then that is a happy compromise, even though it's not what this board endorses.

I guess what many are trying to say is that they've been there, done that, and a little simply increases to a lot and they are back to where they started (many with the weight back on and nothing to show for their raw stint).

Over the years I've seen people come and go from this board, and many come back after a while and document what eating a little cooked led to and what they are now doing (getting back to 100%). the story repeats over and over with different people, and with some, the story repeats over and over again till they reach a happy medium (for many this is 100%).

I'm one of those who can eat a little cooked and be happy with that, I do long stints of 100% raw (actually, not stints, this is the way I live), allow myself one day of cooked then back to raw and this seems to work for me. But cooked is an addiction for many, and this method would spell disaster for them.

Find what YOU are comfortable with, both health wise and socially, but make sure you are HONEST with yourself. Don't tell yourself that the way you are eating is fine when other indicators (like weight and general wellbeing) are telling you otherwise. You owe it to yourself to be the happiest and healthiest you can be and there's always a fine line between both in a non raw world.

Take care!