eating as much as you want and still losing weight?

[theresaann]

I was wondering how many people new to raw actually are doing this, or did this in the beginning, really eating whatever you want as long as it's raw vegan, and as much as you want, and still losing weight. I stuggling with old ideas about deprivation being necessary to lose weight. Any comments?

[dhammala]

I am doing the 30 day challenge. Today is day 17. I have been pigging out, mostly on raw desserts! When I last weighed myself (on day 14) I had lost 8lbs.

[twinee1]

I am dealing with this same issue anne. I also am of that old school of thought. I have been eating what I feel like and keeping it all raw. and only a few slips in 2 months, nothing major...and alas I have not lost an Oz. I was going to step on the scales today (been a week) but I fear they will say I gained..(the scales tend to control my mood if I do not like what they say...scale addict in the past..) so for now i am staying off. I am close to my ideal weight already so it makes it harder to lose, but again most lose 3 pds the first week on raw. Not me. But then again maybe the 5 years of competition diets messed me up.

Hopefully someone will have insight into this cuz I find it hard to beleive you can eat what you want and lose as it has never worked for me. I have the MET of a snail. I had one of the MET test you breath into a machine and it calculates your basal metabolism...mine was in the 800 range (and I am 5'6" ). not surprised at all.

[Sharon in Colorado]

Most people who have a lot of weight to lose find it easier to do. I don't have anything but some stomach to lose and I haven't lost anything really.

Everyone is different. I think in the beginning it is easier to stay on the diet if you are eating whatever raw you want, then working on it later on when you are more in control.

And I think eating whatever you want isn't always the smartest thing to do. If that means you will eat a jar of almond butter and 5 avocadoes a day, you are probably not going to lose much.

[LNdolls]

Well, I ate like a horse for 30 days and still lost six pounds. The amounts that always would put tons of pounds on - when raw - I LOST weight.
And the bonus surprise for me was the forty year obsession with sweets was gone... I don't even want any desserts.. And in the past week I have noticed less desire to eat larger quantities.. I am noticing how little I enjoy being full and over full. And I feel so much better - I know the weight will go, I am going to keep doing this and watch myself melt.
I do have old diet mentality thoughts - I should cut down on the fats, I should have smaller meals, I should, I should, I should.. but in this short a period of time I am choosing a whole new way to eat.. I want to see where it leads. Cause I do not just want to lose weight - I want freedom from ever having to lose weight again.
Six pounds lost while eating anything and everything I wanted as long as it was raw - totally delicious way to do it.
Best,
LN

[NoGMO!]

yes! it's true. I eat what ever and how ever much I want (I am not inclined to overeat though) and have no trouble with my weight. I don't lose any weight though - my weight is very stable. Have been raw-vegan almost 5 yrs-

[jax]

I basically graze all day long and I continually lose. I have 1 or 2 smoothies a day and sometimes veg. juice and the rest of the day I graze on nuts, seeds, dried fruit and sometimes raw dessert if I'm craving sweets. I don't even think about how much I eat or don't eat as long as I'm raw. If I'm hungry I eat. Sometimes I'm starving and I eat a huge salad (made in a serving bowl) of mixed greens and lots of veggies and an avocado. Other times I just want a banana or avocado or such by itself. Many years ago I went on a juice fast strictly to lose weight and boy did I! I went from about 135 to 105 in about 6 weeks. I felt fantastic!! I stayed mostly raw for about 4 months although I knew nothing about it at the time and went back to a sad diet eventually. Since that time (11 yrs. ago) I have gone back to juicing and a high raw diet any time I wanted to lose weight. It wasn't until the end of last year that I decided to try 100% raw foods for health instead of weight. The Fibro. I have lived with for about 2 decades was at the worst its ever been and I was desperate. Medical intervention wasn't helping and I was beginning to feel hopeless and saw a future of endless medication and pain if I didn't help myself. Out of all the web info. I have found on raw food living, Alissa's info and the support on this site have been the best. The weight will come off, from all the posts I've read it's been a unique experience for each person. Best Wishes!

Jax :)

[theresaann]

it's encouraging to read all your posts! Thank you. I have decided I am NOT going to be a slave to the scale, pants size or any other measurement of how I'm doing. I'm going to let myself eat whenever and whatever as long as it's raw and it makes me feel great, and that's the only "scale" I'm going to measure myself by. My weight will do what it does, and that's that. Plus I AM committed to exercising almost everyday, so that will help my body detox.

Overall, I would LOVE to lose 30 pounds and 3 pants sizes, but I"m shifting my focus to be about my health from now on! It'll come off when it comes off. I FEEL fantastic and that's what matters the most.

I am so grateful for this board! GOD bless us, every one.....:)

[rawpriestess]

I eat tons of food and still lose weight, but I do have alot to lose.

[druid]

not to burst any bubbles.

I dont think a diet exists that you cant lose 10 lbs in a month. Atkins diet meets that.

the point of my post is dont focus on weight loss as much as health.

[IamLoved]

Hi

I too have decided that I don't want this to be about weight. When I first decided to go all raw it was because everyone (it seems) is getting cancer and I didn't want to get it too. I wanted to be healthy. Lately though I have had an unhealthy obsession with the scale and it has become self destructive. So to stop this I weighed myself 2 days ago and then told my wonderful marvelous husband to hide the scale and not take it out until Christmas morning. Now I don't have to be a slave to the scale and I can focus on getting healthy and not on getting skinny. Really thats more important anyway.

[RawTruth]

I was wondering how many people new to raw actually are doing this, or did this in the beginning, really eating whatever you want as long as it's raw vegan, and as much as you want, and still losing weight. . . . Any comments?I absolutely did this in the beginning -- and still do it a year later. Even though I didn't have weight to lose, I lost almost 30 pounds. From being on this forum for almost that whole time and now knowing many, many people living the living foods lifestyle, I can tell you that, at the beginning for sure, what Alissa says is true. There may be some naysayers that pop up to debate this, but something I've also observed is that most of those have not themselves been totally raw ... and so, they're often speaking from opinion (and sometimes that cooked food-metabolism-counting calories-weighing paradigm) rather than from their own experience in being and staying totally raw.

I am so glad to read that you've decided to just continue going for it. My unsolicited advice is to discard any scales you may have around the house. Go by how you feel, how you look, and how your clothes fit. IF you're exercising, getting fresh air and sunshine, and meditating/praying/getting in touch with your spirit -- you will thrive and be in total amazement at how your life will change!

Best to you as you continue on this journey!

[theresaann]

thanks for posting, raw truth. I hear your grounded experience in there. I am most definitely continuing, no matter what!!!! I am detoxing asthma inhalers at the moment, am retracing asthma and can feel the medicine coming out of me, i know that's what it is cause it feels the same way it felt when it went in-that speedy, nauseas feeling. wow. this really works, and I HAVE been eating whatever I want raw. It's working. I'm amazed and inspired.

[RawTruth]

That is so great, theresaann. How amazing that you can identify what it is you're detoxing. You definitely know your body! My son is still on inhalers and has been for many years; I can only hope that, when he goes raw eventually, he will stick through this period of the body getting rid of these stored up toxins like you have been doing.

I hope you're proud of yourself. I am of you, and I don't even know you!!! :D

[meganthevegan]

I agree with Rawtruth. I eat whatever I want, raw. At first I ate like a horse but over time I find myself eating less and less. I have lost 12 lbs and though I wanted to lose weight, people tell me I don't need to.

[SamL]

When I first started raw, I indulged every fantasy (raw) I was so excited about eating as many desserts / recipes as I wanted and being healthy.

For personal reasons (pcos, hormone imbalance, candida) I didn't lose weight, I actually gained a little because of these problems.

When I healed my problems, I find I'm eating anything I want and not gaining weight. I do exercise regularly and do the occasional fast, which I feel shrinks my stomach and I'm satisfied with less. I eat small meals often, I don't count how many meals, or balance calories / fats.. Just ENJOY!!!

I learned through fasting, sometimes hunger isn't hunger it's thirst.

[rawpriestess]

Everything is a transition to something else.

When I first went raw, I was a vegetarian, eating wheat and dairy, and feeling terrible.

I was thrilled that eating raw, truly helped me get off of wheat and dairy, in addition, I was no longer controled by the food, I was in control.

It was easy to eat less, because I wanted less, because I was actually assimilating the nutrients from the food I was eating.

Until you have eaten this way for a few months, I don't think anyone can really understand what it does for you.

Some people, (LIKE ME) have real challenges with food, and others, can just eat whatever they wish, meat, eggs, veggies, cooked, SAD, raw, and it's easy for them (THIS IS MY HUBBY)

Each person is different, so I think everyone should do what works for them, but to FIND OUT WHAT WORKS FOR YOU, you MUST try this for the 30 days, before really making any kind of decision on what will or will not work for you.

When I eat dairy, I can NOT eat any kind of citrus fruits, it closes up my throat, after one day of no dairy, I felt immediately cured of all my allergies.

Maybe I will detox this later, but I only had one day of allergy medication, and then no more after I started raw.

So, it is miraculous, since I had been taking this over the counter stuff for over 33 years.

[theresaann]

hey, thanks Rawtruth. I am proud of myself, I think for having the courage to listen to my higher self telling me to go raw, and making the committment 100%. I am still getting asthma, but I can tell it's a "detoxing" effect, rather than actual asthma. I'm hanging in there. Hey, it took me almost 41 years to get toxic to the point of having chronic asthma, I'll be patient for however long my body needs to heal itself-that's it-it's a done deal! Thanks for your encouragement.

Oh, and one more thing! There IS a difference between 99% raw and 100%. There is so much POWER in being 100% raw. That's all I can describe it like. My awareness is opening up, not only physically, but also spiritually. It's such a gift. Thanks to all of you for this board!!!!

[pink]

I agree with not seeing this as a way to lose weight but a way of feeding your body if you lose weight its a bonus but if you dont just know you are gaining health.
I am on day 8 and am eating as much as i want and still losing weight.
Your body will find its natrual weight and i understand being a slave to the scales. i weigh everymorning before i do anything. bad i know but i will remove the batteries on the scales soon.
your worth is not measured on the scales but whats in your heart. good intentions and a good heart make you what you are not a number on the dial. mabey we can give up the scales together?. take care and keep eating raw. thinking of you. xxxx

[JMD]

Hi,

I agree with all aspects of this post. I actually ate all raw and gained 5 lbs. Some of it was due to me eating less in the summer and being more active since I do not work :). I think if a person is eating salty foods, meats and dairy etc and then go all raw the weight will come off easier. I am coming from a high raw diet and only let go of steamed veggies, but added in dehydrated flax crackers and more seeds and gained weight.

So I guess I am torn. For me I can NOT eat all I want b/c that causes me to focus more on food and my taste buds and less on my health and being of service to others. However, I wish I could!! :(

I do agree that after time our body will guide us to what we really need if we take the time to listen. I am hoping my body will let go of these 5 lbs. which I find so tough to lose now. I am grateful that is all I need to be at my goal weight since I have weighed over 60lbs more than this 10 yrs ago...

Blessings to all,
JMD

[Allison]

Hi, everyone! I haven't posted in a while, as we have been busy getting ready to adopt five children from Africa, but I do come and read the board every once in a while.

I wanted to post a little something on this thread as it seems to come up on occasion. I lost a hundred pounds on a raw food diet, so I know a little something about losing weight on raw, at least in how it worked for me. At the beginning, I was very overweight and could eat more and still lose, but as time went on, and I lost weight, I had to be more careful if I wanted to continue losing weight. Plus I exercise a lot, and that makes a difference, too.

When people who are not extremely overweight and do not have food issues say that you can eat as much as you want, you don't realize what you are saying to someone who has food addictions.

I did not lose my weight eating as much as I wanted. After I lost all of my weight, I started listening to all of those comments about being able to eat as much as you want, so I started eating more...snacking on nuts, eating raw treats, etc. It wasn't long before I noticed my weight creeping back up, even though I was all raw. So I had to go back to what I was doing before...watching the amount of food I was eating and the choices I was making...to lose those pounds. We need to be sensible. Can I eat as many nuts as I would like to? Absolutely not. But I can snack on celery, romaine, and red bell peppers, my favorites, as often as I like.

My personal conclusion is that if you are heavier, then you can eat more and still lose. But if you are smaller, but still want to lose a few pounds, you will have to be more careful. And exercise makes a big difference, too.

So, hope I haven't stepped on any toes. And of course, everyone has their own opinion, this one's just mine. If you're unsure, you can always try eating whatever you want and see if you are happy with the results.

[Sharon in Colorado]

There is some common sense here that I see. If you look at Timmy C's journal, he's not eating all kinds of nuts, avocadoes and dehydrated foods and the guy is shrinking by the day.

Like Allison said, eat all you want of RAW foods, FRESH foods. Nuts and dehydrated foods aren't truly raw or fresh as much as they are transitional foods. And dehydrated foods are really almost like eating cooked foods, they mimic cooked foods because all the water is totally gone. I've been overdoing some of these transitional foods as of late and can tell the diff, as I don't feel as much energy as when I'm eating fresh as the base.

I think it would be very difficult to lose a great deal of weight if you were constantly eating and over-eating the dehydrated foods and complex recipes. But I could see using those foods once in a while, and keeping the majority of the diet fresh.

Of course that is my opinion and may not reflect everyone's experience. But it seems very logical and common sense, because after all, this whole message board is based on the idea of a raw/live diet and not a dehydrated diet.

[Ariannah]

I do agree with Sharon, here. I am making sure to drink lots of green smoothie and eat fresh fruits, and limit the dehydrated and/or fancy dishes. The transitional foods are fine, but foods with higher water content are ideal. I just ate a few of my crackers that I made. The kids get the rest for lunch :) Had to break in my new dehydrator ;)

But seriously, I eat all the fruit and smoothies I want and I'm satisfied, and the weight comes off, and I'm well-nourished to boot.

[livenraw]

For over a year, I struggled with my last 7 lbs - until I went raw. And then without even trying, I lost 12 lbs in a month's time just from eating raw. And I went on to lose 5 more lbs after that and then the weight loss stopped (which is okay since I'm at a healthy weight for my height) But I also didn't do any of the dehydrated foods that were nut-heavy nor did I do a lot of nuts, either. (went a week or two without them and found I didn't even miss them!) I just did the basic - fruit and veggies and sometimes some nuts. I usually had one avocado during the day, too. But even with myself, since I am at a healthy weight now, know that I have to be careful of what raw food choices I make, because too much of the calorie-dense foods will pack on the pounds if I'm not careful (and as I have discovered - and this is with me being at 100% raw)

On the other hand, I have a friend who is losing weight right now (she has about 80 lbs to lose) and lost 4 lbs the first week she decided to finally get serious and get her weight under control. Well, when I talked to her last week, she told me, 'I knew I wasn't doing everything I could be doing to get this under control, so I went raw because I knew that would really help and the weight will just melt off.' And that week she did that, she dropped 5 1/2 lbs...so I think it does depend on how much you weigh and how much you have to lose for there to be truth in that 'eat whatever you want and lose' theory.

They tell you the same thing with low carb, and then in the end, you find out that calories really do matter.

[twinee1]

But if you are smaller, but still want to lose a few pounds, you will have to be more careful. And exercise makes a big difference, too.

So, hope I haven't stepped on any toes. And of course, everyone has their own opinion, this one's just mine. If you're unsure, you can always try eating whatever you want and see if you are happy with the results.

I am glad you stopped by and posted in this thread...
Wow you are adopting 5 children ..Congrats. My hat is off to you !!

On the above comment I think you nailed it. I tried eating what ever I want and I gain not lose. I am a smaller person who is usually with in a few pds of my ideal weight. This year I have struggled more with staying close to my ideal weight...(age ? pre meno ? who knows !) and I would like to lose a measly 3-4 pds but unless I restrict I go the opposite way.

For those who can eat as much as you want and lose....ggrrrrrrrr....I am with you Allison.

[karotw]

Thank you, thank you, thank you. . .This thread has been extremely helpful. I would like to believe that I can "eat as much as I want" and still lose weight. . . But, of course, being a food addict, I can put most people to shame with the vast amounts of food I can put into my body if I want to. . . so, that being said. . .I really get it from all the posts here. The fresh fruits and veggies and be pretty liberal. . .the nuts, seeds, oils, I should be aware of. . .and bottom line is, that as I become more and more aware of my body, it will tell me what it needs. . .

Sometimes I need to be hit over the head with something to really get it. . .then I need to do that again about 3 weeks later. . .Hopefully being raw will help with some of that, too!

Allison - it's so good to see you here again! Wow, adding 5 more children to your family. You are amazing! Bless you :)

: )

Karen

[Lauraw]

I started with a 19-day Master Cleanse, during which I lost 10 lbs (I began with about 30-35 lbs to lose).

Then I went raw. After one week, my weight was exactly the same, which to me meant I was losing, because I'd started on a completely empty intestinal tract. The second week, I ate more food than I can remember eating in a long time, including many nut-based dishes. I still lost another pound. Amazing to me.

Then I hit a plateau. I gained/lost the same two pounds over and over. This was for a total of about six weeks. Then I got a detox "cold" and found myself expelling more nasal mucus than ever in my life. My weight started dropping again. Now, it's plateaued again.

These days, I feel best eating fruit or green smoothies until noon. Then I eat whatever raw stuff I want during the rest of the day, but only if I'm truly hungry. I aim to stop eating by 8pm at the latest, so that I sleep well. This feels good to me.

I am a recovering food addict and was bulimic for four years in college, so I know that too much "restriction" sends me to the looney farm. I don't count calories or measure portions, but I do check in about whether I'm truly hungry or whether I'm eating for emotional reasons.

I wish the pounds were melting faster, but I'm happy that things are progressing in the right direction. I'm happy I'm no longer obssessed about whether I "can have" something to eat. Mostly, I FEEL better, and I'm eager to keep going and discover what my "natural" weight really is.

Thanks for this thread...it's great to read everyone's responses.