Comments at work about my "snacks"

[russio]

Ok a little venting here! It seems inevitable when I am at work (which is like a cube city) if I want to eat raw food I inevitably have to put up with so many comments about my rabbit food, or some such nonsense all day long. I actually end up hiding stuff in my locker at my cube just so I don't have to hear them. It just amazes me when I eat whole natural food, everyone is so quick to make comments, but if John next to me is gorging on junk all day long...that is just normal as can be. Just let me eat my greens and carrots in peace!

On the positive side, I like being a positive influence for people who are interested in hearing about raw food. I love to preach about it...now I just wish I could follow my own sermons a little better!

...back to work

[Colorawdo girl]

Be at peace with yourself and what you eat and let those comments slide right off. Simply smiling works well when they say stuff.

I hear you though, sometimes we want to hide stuff just to avoid the explaining. We eat the highest quality foods there are, so we need not worry. In reality, they have the strange "food" not us.

Hold your head high, eat what you want, be an example in deed and if they ask for words about it then go for it. Peace ahhhhh.

Rawk on!!!

[kidkid]

I know how you feel. I've been teased quite a bit by my parents' friends since I got home. It's all good natured obviously, but it can get annoying when it's so constant.

My problem too is when people look at my food with disdain. I'm the kind of person who loves to cook for other people and I love to share my food. And now that i'm raw, it seems like no one wants to try a bite of my creation once they hear that it's vegan and unsweetened and uncooked, etc etc. There have been times when it makes me feel actually sad to be such a food outsider. And I don't like looking like a fanatic. But I'm not a fanatic, I'm just taking my health into my own hands and following my intuition and my common sense.

[Colorawdo girl]

kidkid and russio... we can all be so proud of ourselves we are willing to do that.... be our own health advocate.

One time a friend said something about did I bring my grilled butterflies. He was kidding. I laughed my head off as it was so funny.

I forgive and love them all because they know not what they do.

[Pistachios]

... When I am at work if I want to eat raw food I inevitably have to put up with so many comments about my rabbit food, or some such nonsense all day long ... It just amazes me when I eat whole natural food, everyone is so quick to make comments, but if John next to me is gorging on junk all day long...that is just normal as can be.

Maybe deep down they may a little jealous of you having the wisdom and discipline to modify your eating habits, while even if they wouldn't mind making a change, they may be concerned about being a 'little different' from the rest of the crowd.

[sprouts2go]

Only two people at work know I have gone Raw. They are a vegan and a vegetarian. The rest just think I am having salads for lunch. Works for me!!
I have not even told my extended family-I will probably just tell them I am eating only fruits and veggies. It works for me. Then again if I can lose weight before July 4th I might tell them some story.
Trying to explain raw gets way to complicated. If I say I eat uncooked unprocessed fruits veggies seeds and nuts. They say No meat? No milk? Then they assume you eat tofu and cooked veggies. It is just not worth the time at this point for me.

[betty boop]

Most people at my work just think I'm on a diet as I take in a container of fruit and veggies every day, they don't see my bottle of green smoothie as I've usually finished it before my lunch break.

[lavendarJ]

Ok a little venting here! It seems inevitable when I am at work (which is like a cube city) if I want to eat raw food I inevitably have to put up with so many comments about my rabbit food, or some such nonsense all day long. I actually end up hiding stuff in my locker at my cube just so I don't have to hear them. It just amazes me when I eat whole natural food, everyone is so quick to make comments, but if John next to me is gorging on junk all day long...that is just normal as can be. Just let me eat my greens and carrots in peace!

On the positive side, I like being a positive influence for people who are interested in hearing about raw food. I love to preach about it...now I just wish I could follow my own sermons a little better!

...back to work

I can definitely relate..that's the way it is with certain relatives of mine who think I'm going to "mess your stomach up" because of eating fruits and vegetables...never once heard this in my pizza, chips, candy, and processed junk food eating days but now you expect me to rationalize that live foods will somehow mess my stomach up when the MSG and other additive-rich crap kept me bloated, constipated, sluggish, etc. etc...PLEASE... A mind is a terrible thing to waste

We are blessed for being in the know cause knowledge is power and it's definitely a good thing - being aware of what is best for our bodies optimal performance in digestion and all other functioning

[russio]

Nice to hear I am alone...lol. I think Pistachio is right, there is probably a bit of jealousy there. For years I have felt bad after I eat food, just mentally and then later physically. I know a lot of people at work are at that point. I love the fact that I can eat now and not have that cloud over me. I wish I could eat like the rest of them, at least some of the time. I love cheese and meat, etc. However, I have come to the conclusion at this point in my life, if I want to really thrive, that is not an option. So I am learning to enjoy this lifestyle. It's not always what I want, but it is something I have to do.

Anyway, thanks everyone

Russ

[rkk]

If you "love cheese and meat", you might want to read more about it... regarding the chemicals, antibiotics, mucus and other health effects on the body, as well as the animal torture and killings etc. That love will fall away pretty fast. I grew up being addicted to cheese and meat as well... but the more I found out about it, the more turned off I became. The more you learn about these things, the more you might realize just how good a raw vegan lifestyle is. It is not easy to give up the things we have conditioned ourselves to. That's why I find that it takes a mental shift, by seeing raw food as not 'giving things up' but rather opening the door to an abundant lifestyle of good health and ethical environmentally-friendly living.

[russio]

If you "love cheese and meat", you might want to read more about it... regarding the chemicals, antibiotics, mucus and other health effects on the body, as well as the animal torture and killings etc. That love will fall away pretty fast. I grew up being addicted to cheese and meat as well... but the more I found out about it, the more turned off I became. The more you learn about these things, the more you might realize just how good a raw vegan lifestyle is. It is not easy to give up the things we have conditioned ourselves to. That's why I find that it takes a mental shift, by seeing raw food as not 'giving things up' but rather opening the door to an abundant lifestyle of good health and ethical environmentally-friendly living.

Thats why I have been raw and on this board for 4 years. For some of us, many of us, sometimes it's just easier said than done however. It is a challenge, but we know the benefits, and that is why we are all here...to lend support and gain inspiration with this challenge. ;)

[Ilse W.]

I love to preach about it...

Maybe that's the problem. Some people don't like to be preached to and will make fun of the "preacher" and his "sermon". :)

[Mikey_H]

Hey there,
I just signed up and haven't posted in the introduction thread yet, but this post caught my eye...

I've heard it all, just like most people here probably have. Like it's been said before, just keep on movin' forward.
If they don't understand it's their loss, or they're just insecure with their own "energy" intake and food cravings.

I felt like a side-show at times around big groups of family because my diet had been changing so much over several months. By the time I got myself to noticing raw foods in particular, I had already started to experience those "miracles" they talk about - more confidence, never really hungry or really "FULL full", better skin tone, sunburns completely gone, seemingly endless energy, the list goes on and on.

Wanna know the funny thing, now? I almost never get a smirky comment from a single soul, and I know it's because people can actually SEE a major difference.
And hey, it feels good. And people start to follow, it's inevitable! :D

[spicyfull]

Most people at my work just think I'm on a diet as I take in a container of fruit and veggies every day, they don't see my bottle of green smoothie as I've usually finished it before my lunch break.

A Very Good way of doing it. No one is the wiser and you don't have to go through the unwanted Crap. When you open the Flood Gates by announcing "I'm RAW", everyone waiting to throw stones at you. That's the work place.......

[Gaius]

I literally keep my diet a complete secret from my coworkers, which is easy because we get fresh fruit everyday at work.

[mstrish]

I have a roomate that always comments on what I'm eating....not in a negative way but curious about what I'm eating. He also asks me input on his meat choices and I just smile but inside I am saying I'm a raw vegan and I told you this several times. It does bother me but I think it is a growing opportunity for me to toatally become what is my destiny for health and wellness. Hope this helps.

[janetc]

I literally keep my diet a complete secret from my coworkers, which is easy because we get fresh fruit everyday at work.

That would be so heavenly to have a workplace like that! I envy you!

[Gaius]

That would be so heavenly to have a workplace like that! I envy you!
Yeah it's great because it's what I eat the most anyway, so I basically have a free lunch everyday at work while my firm just thinks its a snack for me.

[SweetTangerine]

Most people where I work are either curious or indifferent. I do get some strange looks over the green smoothies though. That is when if I haven't taken a sip, I offer them a little bit. Most of the time they are reluctant, in which case I say "don't knock it till you try it." If they do drink it, they are surprised and want more :)

[T-Bird]

I'm surprised at all the secrecy here!

No need to become an unwilling lecture circuit on the topic.

Just say

"it's the raw food revolution, baby! I feel fantastic since I started. Google it up!"

Done deal - 5 seconds - the onus on them to research if they want.....


You never know when you might plant a seed in someone's mind that may sprout years down the road.


Plant those seeds peeps! Plant those seeds!

[adiebabe]

Yup....it's the same all over. People can be weird :( Then again, I also have to bite my tongue (hard!!!) when I see some of my really obese co-workers shoving vending machine chips and pop into their faces on their break...blech!

At least where I work, most people are willing to try stuff, if I offer it. I've also been there for ten years, so many of them have seen the changes I've gone through and have commented on my weight loss and healthy skin.

My boyfriend gets the same grief from his co-workers now that he's gone vegetarian and is adding more vegan and raw as well...*sigh* Their loss if they don't try it :D

[EZ rider]

I used to be very out front about eating healthy but I got push back that taught me its better not to carry a sign and megaphone. Now i subscribe to the idea that I walk my path and let others walk theirs.

[gabriele]

Isn't it such a shame that people want to attack us for eating raw? Why is this? Why are we on the defensive and "hiding" while others are killing their food and adding preservatives, chemicals, antibiotics to their food? And "we" are under attack? Doesn't seem right....

My problem at work is that i haven't done this long enough to lose weight and i really need to lose weight, so i have Zero credibility. They see me drinking green smoothies and looking like a big blob. I don't "look" like i am healthy yet. So i can't say anything, really. The other day someone made a quiche with you know, all the forbidden ingredients i won't mention, and when i declined to eat it, she said "Why? this is real food" and i'm thinking, it's not really REAL food at all!!! So i will just keep quiet until this lifestyle produces some noticeable changes.

[tammay]

It is ironic, isn't it, that "normal" food these days is considered everything that logically and rightly our bodies reject - fatty meats, dairy, processed food, junk foods. Yet, when we try to eat what our bodies were made for (fresh fruits and vegetables, plant foods) we are considered "abnormal" or on a "fad" diet.

It's the big corporation and marketing gurus at work...

Tam

[Pistachios]

Most folks at work know I eat "strange stuff", but when I don't have my bottle with my smoothie they actually ask why am I not drinking my "vampire blood drink" (referring to smoothies with berries) or similar quip. If I don't feel like hearing comments I simply wrap the bottle with foil so they won't see the contents even though they have an idea what it is. That one little step is enough to virtually keep questions and comments at bay.

[Jazmyn]

It's funny, I've been raw for a year,but no one at school notices! They know I'm vegan, but I haven't told them that it goes farther than that! If people ask, I'll tell them, but no one at school asks. I did get a comment once when I was drinking a smoothie that had cacao powder and nuts in it! The girl who asked if I was drinking paint!:eek: I burst out laughing, and told her that it was a chocolate shake, which it is, loosely termed.;) I used to be home-schooled, and all of my close friends are outside of school, and they know I'm raw.