Three weeks 100% raw. Not going well..

[RawNorwegian]

Hi! I'm new to this raw food lifestyle, and I have some questions about it. I hope you guys can give me some answers.. :)

ok, here we go.. For about three weeks ago, I went from a "normal" diet of "normal" food to eating 100% raw foods the next day, and I have eaten raw food ever since.

But I just don't feel any different :( I'm still as fat as I was before I started, still have NO energy what so ever and still depressed inside.

So my questions are:

- Do one HAVE to go on a detox cure(?) when starting a raw food diet?
- Is it normal to not see or feel any changes at all after 3 weeks on a 100% raw food diet?

I just feel so lost and it feels so hopeless.. Hope someone out there can give me some advice, because I really need it.

What am I doing wrong? :(

Thank you for reading.

[Ilse W.]

What kind of foods are you eating?
Do you eat enough?
Do you get enough fats in your diet?
Do you exercise?
Don't be too hard on yourself. Don't weigh yourself too often. If you keep eating fresh fruits and vegetables, you will detox naturally and things will slowly get better.

[RawNorwegian]

Thank you so much for your fast reply! :)

Well, basically I'm experimenting with different raw foods still.. I think I eat enough yes. This is what I ate today:

Breakfast: Green smoothie with quinoa

Lunch: carrot/beet sallad

snack: chokolate milk (raw, made from scratch, I had to try it!)

Dinner: Nori rolls sushi with vegetables.

And I drink water with lemon in it..

I try to eat like this every day. I just don't get it.. Why does my body hate me!!

I try to exercise, but I have been lazy for a week, just gave up. But I'm on it tomorrow again.. I hate giving up and feeling like a loser with no dicipline.

I hope you're right and that it will get better, because I look and feel the same now as I did when I went to eat at my best friends house, Ronald mcDonald.

[Ilse W.]

DON"T GIVE UP!
It will get easier. I think what you need to do is start with the basics. Green smoothies are great. Salads with LOTS of different veggies and greens are really important. Fill up on those first. Initially, I would not try too many things like nori rolls and fancy drinks. Your body has gotten not so good food for a long time, and it will take a while to get rid of stored up toxins. Also, you live in Norway (I assume) and the days are only now getting appreciably longer. Get out in the sun as much as you can. I think the more green stuff you get, the better, and the quicker you will feel a difference. Remember that chlorophyll is to a plant what blood is to us. That's where all the sunlight is stored and where all the nutrients are.
I hope you get lots more advise. I'm certainly not an expert. I just KNOW that raw is fantastic for humans. Just keep going and don't give up!

[Silveretta]

Oh, I am sorry to hear that you are going through that...I feel like saying it's not fair!!!
I am 2 weeks raw and I ve lost around 5 kg (11 pounds)...
HOWEVER, I am not one of the people who can just "eat raw"- if I have avocados, oil and nuts I don't lose ANY weight- it's just how my body works.

I also want to lose weight (desprately), so I excersise, too.
Also, I take in around 900 cals a day (summer is SO near) ;)

Many will tell you that raw food is not a diet, but I understand you.

I don't have much experience, but since it must be a huge change, if I were you, I would maybe mono meal for a while- you body must be in a shock.
Also start measuring yourself, scales are not the best to show shifts in body mass.

GOOD LUCK!:D

[ShantiLove]

I agree with Emma, simplify.

Green smoothies with only leafy greens and fruits, then they work the best.
Salads, and lots of fruits. I have found that avocados makes me loss weight fast, but we are all different try what works best for you.
Make shure you get some goods fats everyday like grounded flaxseeds, chia seeds and hemp seeds. And probiotics.
Exercise is really important for the metabolism, so that is essencial. It dosent have to heavy exercise, a good long walk would do wonders too. You do have a lot of beautiful nature to enjoy on a walk in Norway ;)

You are not a looser and your body dont hate you. Be patient with yourself and your body. New habits takes time to incorporate. Be gentle with yourself and take the time it takes. All people reacts different to the raw diet, some losse weight fast other it takes a little longer but it will happend eventualy. There is no rules of how a body detox, it is different everytime, so be patient.

Maby you can get some help with detoxing by using spirulina ?. It is amaising in to many ways for me to mention them here but have a look online and read about it.

Nice to see a fellow scandinavian here on this board :D best of luck

[Zoocrew10]

I'm new to this too so keep this in mind, but I've been about 85 percent raw (give or take) for 5 weeks I think - I've lost count. I lost 10 lbs the first 3 weeks and have not budged since BUT my shape is changing. I am fitting into clothing I couldn't get even *up* 5 weeks ago - so something is happening. I have been walking 1-1 1/2 miles every day (rarely do I take a day off, but I have from time to time). That's my only exercise at the moment - well, if you count chasing 3 children under 5 and having 5 more older kids on top of that, lol. I'm rarely sedentary. If you can get yourself to do some walking, FORCE yourself to if you aren't feeling like it, you will notice a great improvement to your overall feelings. It's hard to get yourself into it, trust me, I know, but you will definitely feel a more positive outlook come over you the more regularly that you can get out and get your body moving. I wish you luck, it can be discouraging and frustrating, but keep at it!! You can do it!

[T-Bird]

I'm about to my 4th month - on May 11th.

I still haven't got the "good stuff" yet.....sometimes I feel pretty hopeless about it. There have been a few improvement, and I hang on to those and wait for the "mother load" to come into things.

I try to hang on to the faith.

I truly believe that my body is working on things I can't see. This eating has got to be more healthful than the previous, so I try to get through.

I do believe that depressive feelings are part of the detox. Some on here talk about the emotional detox as well as the physical.

As with the physical, the emotional can also "get worse before getting better". I am definitely on the 2 steps up, 3 steps down, 1 step up routine. It's hard to see any improvement because of the changes, but I think every so often, there is a new step up to new territory, followed of course by 3 steps down, but then maybe 2-3 weeks of up down, side to side, again a new step up.

So look on the discouragement and depression as being possible detox in itself. Monitor these feelings to see if sometimes they are better than others, and see if you can look through the haze to find out the overall trend - kind of like the stock market! Sure it's down now - but if you invest - someday it'll reach a new high.

Invest in raw today - and keep investing till you see the dividends!

I know I am going to! I will not be deterred. It is presents under the christmas tree that I am waiting to unopen......I don't know when christmas will hit, but I know everyday is a step closer.....

[Colorawdo girl]

It is working. Trust . Enjoy it. Love every moment of raw living food. Do not look for outcome. See right now. Rest will show up. All good. Blessings.

[Raw Angel Mom]

Hang in there, it takes 30-60 days to heal the cook food addiction. This is our mind that makes us ill not the body, for it seeks to keep us alive and healthy as much as it cans. I am sure that your body is very grateful that you are making room for the good stuff.

Don't give up, you will find the perfect raw food that works for you.

As for having the impression of not loosing weight, well i bet that your pans are looser then three weeks ago. Our body will try to repair the priority first, also we do lose weight but because it is building new organs etc... inside or retaining water, we will have the illusion that we didn't loose weight.

I would recommend to you that you get the book "Simply raw detox". You can get that on amazon. It is a well made book to help you to detox in a safe way with raw food. You can try that after 60 days or 30 days if thing doesn't get better.

Your diet seem to be fine and continue to add green smoothie. Only do greens and fruits, don't add anything else for now. Wait one hour before eating anything else.

Take your time to chew. It will help you to digest better.

Since you went cold turkey, those intense detox symptoms are so normal but it will get better. Just go one moment at the time

[EZ rider]

So my questions are:

- Do one HAVE to go on a detox cure(?) when starting a raw food diet?
- Is it normal to not see or feel any changes at all after 3 weeks on a 100% raw food diet?
I think the best results are achieved when a person settles down and stops looking for a quick fix and just stays the course living the raw food lifestyle one day at a time.

[Humanist]

You are not eating enough because you are trying to do two things at once:
1- eat raw
2- lose weight

Forget number two. Just do number one. Stop counting calories; that is not necessary on raw food. Weight loss will come, but it will be slow and gradual.

[qfmother]

When I have felt discouraged or felt that I wasn't seeing results, I remember what I know, and I remember that I basically have two choices. I KNOW that eating raw foods is a much healthier way to eat than McDonald's or any other form of the SAD. I come to this forum almost every day to be reminded of that, it is so helpful for me to come here and not feel alone. Also, my two choices are to continue what I'm doing and trust that I will see the results if I press on, or give up and go back to my previous diet/lifestyle and I know exactly what will happen if I do that. I'll go right back to being the yo-yo dieter that I have been my entire adult life.

[michigan roman]

- i felt lame for months because its a giant adjustment . i woulda quit hundreds of times but just kept focused on how weak and fat the standard way of eating is making modern people and knew i didnt want that , so i didnt have no other choice but to keep pushing

- and the nori and carrot/beet things your eating , dude that aint food :D
you need some good old bananas / pineapple / walnuts hearty type things .
then youll have the energy to cross country ski rather then being a couch potato ;)

[cara4art]

You're doing GREAT with your food - congratulations on taking this amazing step! Three weeks is nothing! As others say here, do NOT worry about weight loss right now - just focus on creating new healthy eating habits, and be assured that your body IS doing some house-cleaning, which it will do periodically, depending on how old you are and how long you were eating an omnivorous diet and just how junky that was. If one is older, it can take a much longer time for the good stuff to show up too. Last year, it was fully 3 months before I lost any weight, and before I had a detox-type of illness too. Then a few pounds came off just like that. This was with working out too, which exercise on regular basis will be helpful to you in so many ways. What counts is something you can stick with that challenges you.
I'd say stay with the green smoothies and get in greens at your other meals too, as well as smaller amounts of healthy fats - you need these. Keep your meals simple for the sake of your digestion, and once or twice a week or so enjoy a raw treat like raw ice-cream or other simple raw dessert. Use your dehydrator foods(if you eat them at all now)as adjuncts to the much larger proportion of fruits and veggies. Those are the kingpins!
People often say, and I have to believe this, that raw works from the inside out - a lot of the work in the beginning is going on behind the scenes, and eventually becomes visible on the surface. In the meantime, keep on rawking!

[RawHeaven]

You're amazing, 3 weeks is a great start and you're not doing anything wrong. If you find yourself hungry during the day, eat more food. Put the bath scale in the closet and keep coming here for support as you experience various changes. :) It takes time to heal.

Cleansing
Healing
Rebuilding

and the cycle continues.

[LuvMyTwins]

I've found that being raw AND seeing results takes a lot of time. If you have some issues within your body (some we don't even know about) you first need to heal. Then, all will be as it should.

So, give yourself time. It took a few months for me to feel an effects due to raw. It's a journey and we need to learn to become aware of our body and listen to what it is telling us.---LMT

[RawNorwegian]

Thanks for the great advice guys! And the postive energy and support! I am gonna work on changing my view, I just feel so stuck and lost at the moment! I don't feel any changes at all, and that is not very motivating. But yes, I will let the body take it's time to heal from my previous lifestyle, and see if my body gradually adjusts to this raw lifestyle, and also reward me with some of the benefits from eating raw. :)

I mean, this raw has to be better than normal food right? So what have I got to lose..

[sprouts2go]

Some changes are hard to see unless you look harder. One of the first things I noticed was I walked faster and with more ease. Joints seemed happier. Then my face started changing. My double chin is almost gone!!
I too am waiting for more weight loss but my body is changing shape daily. Wonder were the weight goes to hide while my body changes and the scale sits still :rolleyes:

[kaybee]

sprouts2go--if you are gaining muscle, you will change shape but not lose weight--because muscle is heavier than fat. thats why using the scale isnt always a good idea, because people think "oh no i havent lost weight!!"...no, you havent lost "weight" but you HAVE lost fat and gained muscle!

[mstrish]

I think your doing a wonderful job so far. From my experience if I eat alot of nuts I get backed up so I prefer alot of veggies and fruits....I eat salad most days and some days twice. I drink alot of water because in the begining the body is flushing out toxins. I am healing IBD so I don't feel good all the time but I can see changes in my health. IBD leads to cancer and is usually terminal but I know I can change my outcome with my diet. Don't focus on weight it will happen naturally. Create some positive affirmations for yourself and say them constantly on a daily basis. Remember to care for yourself and when caring for yourself tend to your emotional, spirital, and physical parts of your body and soul. We heal in all these aspects when raw and sometimes it's very intense...I can speak about emotional detox being difficult because I have been here for a few weeks and some days are better then others but I know it will pass. Hang in there and remember your reasons for your lifestyle choice. Your worth the results you will get!!!;)

[RawNorwegian]

Wow guys, thank you for replying so much!! I recognize myself in many things you say, and I hope that my body will transform eventually as you guys say. I guess I just was so super exited and full of hope reading one success-story after another.. I just assumed that I would experience at least some of the good stuff, and I get so down when I don't.

But I have to have patience and see like you guys say, and think more positive I guess.

[Humanist]

It is not the quantity of food that makes people fat, it is the quality. The reverse also is true.

[Sygma]

Stay focused on how you FEEL, not how much you weigh or how you look. Focus on your health and stop the battle between you and your body. Love your body and yourself. Respect your body and treat it kindly.

Also, I would suggest yoga and positive affirmations (they really helped me and I truly believe they are part of the raw foodist "lifestyle"). Look up: You Can Heal Your Life by Louise Hay.

KEEP GOING! :)

[Cerellia]

Hi,

I think positive thoughts and feelings are at leat as important for the success of this life style, as raw food and exercises. Obviously you can't enforce them but there are things you can do:
Always look at the beautiful things in life, enjoy the sun, the wind, or whatever nature brings, give every person you walk by a smile, some will give it back :)
chose a sport you enjoy (don't tell me there is none, there is allways something ;) ) and exercise for several hours daily, exercising releses joy hormones.
Get a positive attitude towads food: Don't look at it as "the thing which makes us fat", but as something deliciouse and essential. Fruits are wonderful, so are vegetables and salads, enjoy them and take your time, eating them.
Try to accept your own body, try to love it. You might not have the perfect weight, yet, but that does not mean, you are ugly! The weight loss will come when your body is ready for it, don't push it.

I whish you a wonderful day, Cerellia

Ps.: The weather is not at its best here, but I can hear the birds sing, which is making me happy. I hope you will also learn to enjoy the small things in life.

[EZ rider]

Getting to 100% without eating anything but fresh raw foods and keeping the fat low with the fats coming from avocado, young coconut, and a few seeds has worked well for me.