One week fully raw and excellent weight loss

[English Tracy]

Hello everyone,

I've been 100% raw for a week today. I weighed myself this morning and have lost 6lbs so I'm really pleased. I suppose some of that could be water rather than fat but it's a good start. I haven't felt hungry at all and haven't had any side effects apart from one headache early last week.

I need to lose a minimum of 50lbs and I'm hoping it will come off fairly quickly. Judging by the stories of the people in Alissa's book (befores and afters), I could be there by the end of March if I'm lucky. So, only 44lbs to go!!

I have been eating quite a lot of nuts and one avocado a day (plus other stuff) so I think I'll reduce the nuts a bit from now on as I don't want to overload my system with fat. I've made the 'cream cheese' with macadamias which is great. Will use it with the raw ravioli. There's so much choice in Alissa's book and that will make this way of eating a pleasure instead of a chore, like most diets are.

Can anyone else who was previously overweight tell me how they got on when they went raw? I'd love to hear other people's success stories and how much weight they loss and in what amount of time as they will keep me motivated. If you can post before and after photos, that would be great. (I have yet to work out how to do that as I'm a bit of a PC dunce.)


Thanks.

Tracy

[Nini]

Tracy ~ Woot! Woot!!

Your success is motivating!

[faith4u]

Congratulations! :o

Keep up the good work!!

Tracy

[DrPr]

Hi, Tracy

This is the end of my first week raw as well. I lost 16 lbs, but like you, a lot of that is water. I have about 200 lbs to lose (often, the more weight you have to lose, the more weight you lose that first week).

So far things are going all right for me. I wasn't so sure at the beginning, but I feel more comfortable now and can see that this is doable.

Good luck to you!

[lavendarJ]

Just wanted to say go team go :) your posts are so inspiring... this experience is beautiful

[Guydiane]

Hi Tracy

I to have just finished my first week raw I lost 13 pounds but I went to a raw health instute. I plan this for life. I need to lose 100 pounds. Good luck to you.

Diane

[choleblack]

WOW way to go tracey.

I to have just finished my first week. Some stumbling blocks but always moving forward. I've only lost 2 lbs but considering my hypothyroidism was making me gain 3lbs a week even while eating very low calorie vegan I'm happy with any loss.

Can't wait to see how all of us "newbies" are doing next week :)

Chole

[newyearspromise]

Hey! Congrats!!

I was really frustrated this week because I thought I hadn't lost anything. I am not weighing myself for at least a month (I don't want to be addicted to the scale because weight is not the only reason I am doing this--health is more important, and I don't want to lose focus), but when I woke up this morning I LOOKED DIFFERENT.

AMAZING!! :D

I can't wait until the 1st of Feb to weigh myself. Also, my husband is gone until the 3rd, so it will be a nice surprise for him. I am not telling him how much I lose. Additionally, my parents are coming to visit us in mid-Feb. I might have most of the weight lost by then, based on how long it seems to have taken others to lose. I am basically going to lose until I naturally taper off with the weight loss. I believe I am eating enough calories, so whatever weight I land at would be my ideal weight...

Yea!!!!! We are doing it!!!!! :D :D

[English Tracy]

Hi all,

I'm so glad I'm not alone with this - I'm amazed at some of the larger weight losses DrPr well done!! I suppose we really should give regular updates so that we can keep each other motivated.

I understand the point made that you can become a slave to the weighing scales but I don't think checking weekly is a problem. It's if you have to go on the scales every day that it might be a bit depressing, especially if you happen to go up a lb or so on occasion.

I want to get to 150lbs definitely and if I can get a bit lower than that to 145lbs, all the better.

I've seen a recipe in Alissa's book - I think it is banana cream pie possibly - that requires coconut oil. Well, I managed to find it at a West Indian food shop but the thought crossed my mind that it must be awfully fatty. I know Alissa has written that uncooked fats don't have the same effect on your body as cooked fats, so is it reasonable to eat things which contain coconut oil when you are trying to lose weight? The recipe looks wonderful and I really want to try it.

Hang in there everyone - just think how we will look in a couple of months.

Tracy

[jesdenm]

I haven't thought twice about what I put into my body, as long as it's raw. I have lost six pounds. I was even told that my butt looks smaller, and I myself can see it in my cheeks (very prominent cheekbones :) ).

If you want to make and eat the recipe, go for it - it is not bad for you. Enjoy it. I made a cheesecake and almost ate the whole thing, still lost weight.

Oh, I'm on day nine today ;)

[English Tracy]

It wasn't the banana cream pie but something else that had coconut oil I think. Will definitely try some of Alissa's cakes though with or without the coconut oil. That'll keep me busy at the weekend.

Tracy

[DrPr]

Congratulations to all of you! Tracy, I found that the fat content in my raw food diet last week was close to 50%!! The fat came mostly from avocados, so I'm cutting down to eating one avocado every other day. But I also got fat from hummus, a bit of olive oil in my taboule, the ounce of raw cheese I've eaten daily, and from nuts and seeds (flax seed crackers, sesame tahini, raw trail mix). I've read, as you have, that the kinds of fats we eat don't have the same effect as fat from the normal SAD (standard American Diet), but I've also heard of raw foodists gaining weight from too much of a good thing! So I'm gonna keep an eye on coconuts, nuts and avocados for sure.

[MoniDew]

I've also heard of raw foodists gaining weight from too much of a good thing!

I can testify. I am 20lbs HEAVIER from raw this year over last year. I was BONE-RAIL thin the first 2 years raw. (boy would I LOVE to have that back now!!) And now, I'm down-right rolly-polly!! We're talkin' Pilsbury Doughboy!!

Even though I'm still raw, and eating basically the same as I have for the past couple of years, I really need to lose weight!

I am also going to reduce the nuts and salads (for the dressing, in my case a ton of olive oil, sesame seeds, etc.) switching to green smoothies instead, and try to eat more fruit, which has no fat.

Wish me luck!

[sigtau66]

5 lbs for me this past week on a 98% raw diet.

[choleblack]

I suppose we really should give regular updates so that we can keep each other motivated.

I was thinking this too since I know there are a bunch of us that started on Jan 1. It is nice to know a bunch of people at the same point, maybe hitting the same troubles or maybe already past the ones we're running into.

now about coconut oil. I read someplace about the type of fat in coconut oil (mono) actually pushing out the bad fats in our system. So there are good fats out there, it's just a matter of finding them and not living off of them exclusively. Or maybe I'm just justifying my addiction to avocados & cashews currently :)

Here's to week 2!

Chole

[Tamarind the Girl]

I'm 10 days raw and have lost exactly 10 pounds! I have quite a bit more to lose, though. But... I am inspired by all of your success. Though happy with the weight loss, any of you feeling emotional? I know I am! I know SAD doesn't work, so it's not an option. I just hope it gets easier.

Feeling VERY fragile...
Tamarind the Girl

[karenisraw]

I just started raw almost 3 weeks ago and lost 8 lbs so far.

I take 1-2 tablespoons per day of coconut oil and I have still lost weight. Coconut oil converts imediately into energy instead of being stored in your body. I have had so much more energy since taking coconut oil that I try not to eat it late in the day so I can sleep.

I believe if you google coconut oil and research it, the testimonials and research will say that coconut oil will help you lose weight. My doctor, a raw vegan recommends it and sells it in his restaraunt.

[Mary Poppins]

I am on day 8 and have lost 8 lbs. I am so thankful for this board and for all of you wonderful people on it!!! I get so happy each morning knowing that I get to check in with all of you and see where this beautiful journey will take us all. :D

[fwebes]

I am so jealous of those of you who have lost weight. I'm 7 days raw and have gained a few pounds. So for those of you who are losing weight can you post a typical raw day for you? Maybe I'm eating too much. Although, I've checked with fitday.com, and most days I'm under 1700 calories. I do some exercise too soI'm not undrstanding why the weight gain. Of course, it could be too many raw nuts and raisins.

Thanks

[yumyum]

I want to loose weight and get healthy too. My experience so far, is that I loose weight when I start off the morning with the juice of 2-3 freshsqueezed oranges, and later 2-3 apples. I am not so hungry in the morning, so this works well for me and gets the weightloss going somehow.

I also try not to eat snacks all the time. Instead of snacking when I'm not hungry, I wait until I feel a real "I need to eat REAL SOON" kind of hunger, and then I have a meal. And I try to avoid oils, coconut milk, banana butter, and go easy on the nuts, dates and bananas. I have gone from 169 pounds on january 2nd to 165 pounds on january 11th.

(Edited to make it shorter.)

[luinla]

Hey y'all,

I started eating raw on Jan 9th, so I'm definitely a newbie. I lost 6 lbs right away and then stalled. But I think my body is detoxing quite a bit this week. I've scheduled a colonic for tomorrow so hopefully that will help.

I started raw because I got bronchitis for the 8th time in 2 years and docs only wanted to prescribe allergy shots and antibiotics for the 8th time. No way!

Here's what I'm hoping to cure with RAW:
Hypoglycemia
Chronic Bronchitis
Asthma
Allergies
Insomnia
Hypothyroid, Depressed Adrenals, and supposed PCOS.
IBS and Chronic constipation
Thin weak Hair and nails
Lose 20-25 lbs of puffiness

So, thanks for sharing your motivating stories. It helps keep me on track.

Many thanks,
Lu

[English Tracy]

Hello everyone,

We've certainly started something here!! I agree that even raw fooders can overdo certain things in their diet and put on weight. Probably due to too many calories rather than too much fat, unless you overdo the avocadoes and nuts.

Although going raw will help me to lose my excess weight, it should ultimately help me to keep it off. Like most people, once I've lost weight in the past I've gone back to the bad habits (butter, cakes, chocolate, potato chips) and put it back on again. I don't think I'll do it this time as I've found a way of eating that doesn't deprive me of food - sadly I have an enormous appetite!!

I must admit, until I found this website and bought Alissa's book, I didn't realise there was so much variety in a raw diet and I have been very pleasantly surprised.

My weight loss update on Sunday 29th January 2006 will represent 4 weeks raw. I didn't lose anything last week so hope to make up for it this week.

Best wishes to all of you, especally those like me who are conquering the fat demons!!

Tracy