New and confused

[zipper_sit]

Hi I am 28 and I have a 5 year old son. I am going through a divorce and my son and I are currently living with my parents, who are BIG meat eaters.
I know that I will not be able to change their diet but I would love to do this for my son and I. He has skin problems and I know that changing his diet would do him wonders.
How do I just jump in and start this? I don't want to do any detoxing as my son is only 5. We already drink a smoothie every morning, he loves that. I have a Vita-mix and love it. I just want to make sure that I do this right, my parents are concerned that he will not get enough vitamins and protien to grow. I told them, " Really... not enough vitamins from vegetables, really."
My mom and dad think this is the dumbest thing I have ever wanted to do so they are not being very helpful in that aspect. However my son and I have been eating vegetarian for about 2 months now and my parents have trie the dishes a couple of times. Really though I don't care what they like, this is what I am doing with my son. I just have to figure out where to start.

[michigan roman]

- for males zinc is important . and raw pumpkin seeds are both high in protein and zinc

- dark greens such as spinach / kale / dandlion / etc are what all raw food authorities push

- sun flower seeds are high in vitamin e

- flax seeds for omegas

- walnuts put weight / muscle on me

- almond milk made in your vitamix with sweet fruits added for milk shake type drink

- ive seen some raw experts pushing hemp seeds alot but expensive

- though many rawfoodist say you dont need as much protein as is said i disagree in the case of males ands why im pushing all the seeds for your son , theyre healthy raw foods with strength building protein

- as far as ive read as a 16 year vegan / 6 year rawfoodist its ecspecially important in vegan kids , plus adults , to suppliment B12

- vitamin c for citrus

- B vitamins ide look at in detail if you to make sure sons diet is supplying

- bananas a cheap staple

[michigan roman]

forgot to add sesame seeds as good calcium source

and also that i grind all seeds in blender then sprinkle on foods like salads or use in fruit smoothies

[Revvell]

My husband has had a skin condition since he was little. Coconut water cleared it up. Don't know if this will work for your son, yet, it's a healthy way to go.

[spicyfull]

I wish you everything you need to Stay RAW...........Welcome to MY World.

[zipper_sit]

Thanks everyone.

How do I get started? I am a plan my meals kinda girl and I am kinda nervous about diving into this.

[AllergyGirl]

You can still plan them if you'd like. When I first started, my days were like this:

Breakfast - green smoothie
Snack - veggie sticks with spinach dip
Lunch - large salad, either a green salad or the kale and avocado salad
Snack - fresh fruit or veggies
Dinner - large salad, if I had green salad for lunch, I'd have the kale/avocado for dinner, and vice versa

I also drank a lot of water throughout the day, and never stopped myself from having another snack if I was still hungry, because going raw isn't about limiting yourself. My days did very from the above of course, but that's the basic plan that I stuck to for the first week or so until I was comfortable enough with it to start experimenting with new things, and changing things up as I felt like it. Now I don't eat that many snacks unless I feel like I need them, and I just eat when I'm hungry and stop when I'm full, but at first I needed that structure too.

[revdrcyn]

Hi there! I think the best way to get started is to purchase Alissa's book -- LIVING ON LIVE FOOD -- and follow her 30-day plan

It is so easy - she even includes a shopping list. Here's a link:

http://www.alissacohen.com/store/alissas-books-and-dvds/


Wishing you all the best!

[DawnD]

Hi Zipper. I am a plan the meals kind of girl too. I am feeding a husband and he seems to need more that a salad for a meal so I tend to prep more gourmet for dinner and keep it simple during the day. I have an inkling that after one year raw we may be heading toward a simpler menu. My day is...

Fruit
More fruit
Green smoothie
Superfood shake
Dinner such as not tuna, corn salad or walnut meat, onion bread and veges tossed with dressing.

This is a great way of living and I encourage you to forge ahead for as long as it takes you to find your way. See what others have done and formulate your plan. One thing that Alissa says is that you have to have food around you. Be prepared with something in the fridge for fruit on the counter.

I have Alissa's book and also Jennifer Cornbleet's book "Raw Food Made Easy for 1 or 2 People".