Fallen off the Raw Wagon

[avanderland]

I know not to beat myself up. I don't really feel guilty at all. I feel like I needed to do things how I did them---trying 100% raw for a week and then falling miserably off.

Why? Well, I saw that I really did start to feel good on raw!!! I really did see the weight loss everyone said there'd be.

Now, I am ready again. Well, I have decided that transitioning will be a bit better for me. Even when I went vegan, I was vegetarian for a month and a half before going cold turkey. I know some people have gone cold turkey, but I think that is not the path for me..

Anyways, that was not the point of this post... The point was a couple of things:

1) If I am not a big fan of green vegetables and have a history of being anemic, should I take a supplement? Does the green powder have iron in it? Any fruit that might help? (Besides eating citrus with greens, cuz I'm not a greens person!) I can tell when I'm not getting enough, I start to feel really run down. And I just read the post below about chlorophyll helping iron levels---is that something that green powder would do, since I'm not a big veggie fan?

2) I plugged in what I was eating for a few days and I really actually was NOT eating enough protein. I know that you don't need meat to get protein, I'm vegan! But, I was only getting like 20g a day, if that! The dietitian (who is vegan and alternative-lifestyle friendly) told me that I should be getting around 40g as my minimum. Can it really be healthy to get only 20g a day? I tried upping nuts but then my fat would go sky-high too, which seemed unsafe to continue on a regular path. Does any one have any recommendations?

EDIT: In response to question 2, I read the post below by RawTruth (I think) that helped with some of my concerns about protein. I did NOT know that even the meat-subsidized USDA says that 6.5% is enough, I've always heard much higher percentages. I can easily get 6-7%, so I feel a lot more relieved about that.

3) Raw gourmet has NOT been my friend. I have tried a bunch of recipes but none have really been that tasty to me. Even the famous flax crackers were blagh. My blender does not fully homogenize, can that make a difference? Any tips for an awful un-cook? I have Alissa's book, perhaps there are 1 or 2 recipes that even your cooked friends just adore that I couldn't mess up? I was going to try eating kind of mono since raw gourmet wasn't happening, but that really intensified my cravings for absurd things like chocolate cake after a day or two.



Um, I think that's it for now! I just also want to say that everyone here has been so super helpful and nice, in response to my past few posts and in response to other posts. It really helps a newbie out!

[misslinda]

Hello there avanderland!

Here is a link that may help resolve some of the protein concern

http://www.rawfoodtalk.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=19

Wish you all the best! :)

[avanderland]

Hello there avanderland!

Here is a link that may help resolve some of the protein concern

http://www.rawfoodtalk.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=19

Yeah, I know that we don't need animal protein to get protein; I have never ever had a problem getting "enough" protein while vegan. I also know that the average American eats way way more protein than they need.

However, I'm not even reaching 10% of my calories some days... Because I'm much more of a fruit person than a greens person, I get maybe 5% of my calories from protein. When this is added on top of the fact that I barely get enough calories for my body to run, I'm getting extremely low low amounts. I'm not sure if it is safe or not. I know that everyone on raw says that you don't need to track these things, but on the days where by some miracle I was able to get 10%-15% of my calories from protein or eat more calories overall, I definitely felt INFINITELY better. I am looking into adding hemp protein powder to my smoothies, which I think would help... I'm not sure if the green powder would help with that or not, though... I don't want to buy something that won't even be the solution for my problems, you know?

Anyways, thanks for the link. I will have to re-read some sections of Living on Live Food to get re-motivated and FAQ are always a great place to start.

[tames]

Hmmm... I am only 2 weeks raw, but would your problems be more related to detox than to a lack of some nutrient? I am not sure how much detox a vegan would experience. At this point for me, I am more tired and have not experienced the "buzz" that Alissa refers to. That does not mean that I will not experience it at some point. I have read lots of other material besides Alissa's and they all state that the detox process is different for everyone.

I understand your concern, and am certainly not an expert, but for me if I was putting extra pressure/worry upon myself about getting the right ratios and all that during this detox period, it would drive me crazy. Right now my goal is getting through the 30 days to see how I feel. I know that my detox will last longer than that, but I am hoping the worst of it will be gone.

--Tim

[avanderland]

Hmmm... I am only 2 weeks raw, but would your problems be more related to detox than to a lack of some nutrient? I am not sure how much detox a vegan would experience. At this point for me, I am more tired and have not experienced the "buzz" that Alissa refers to. That does not mean that I will not experience it at some point. I have read lots of other material besides Alissa's and they all state that the detox process is different for everyone. ...

--Tim

Perhaps... I am not sure... Many people I spoke with about various fasts and cleanses told me that as vegans they actually did not experience that much detox, though I have not heard from anyone who tried raw as their "cleanse."

I think it just seemed too much of a coincidence that it was often on the days with the least calories and such that I felt the crummiest. I track my food whenever starting a new program, it's like a thing of mine. I know it is not NECESSARY on raw, but it is just something that I like to do. That is how I discovered that pattern.

I spoke to some people on a vegan board who said that they had heard that raw can sometimes be easier, without these troubling thoughts, when transititoned into. I also read part of THE RAW FOOD DETOX DIET and it really hit me. Maybe not everyone can go 100% right off the bat! Even though I don't crave that much junk regularly (except the occasional donut!) I found myself craving crazy things that I hadn't wanted in years or months.

And I know that is DEFINITELY a symptom of detox as well, BUT *excuses, excuses* cravings like those were driving me CRAZY while trying to actually get things done. I couldn't concentrate on the task at hand. SO that is why I think transitioning is better for me...

Ha, anyways, that's not even what you asked, but what I was trying to point out is that since I'm going to transition now, detox sshould slow down so I am hoping to avoid any symptoms that I had before, at least as intensely. So if you are right, which is a good possibility, hopefully it won't be so bad this time! :)

[sweetgoddess]

Hello avanderland. This is my secnod time being raw and I can tell you one thing I noticed about my experience. In the first couple of weeks, or more, it is imperative to eat a lot of food and to drink an absolute ton of water, again for me. This made a world of difference in how I felt, how harsh detox was etc.

You stated " often on the days with the least calories and such that I felt the crummiest." I am no expert on anything, but to me that made me wonder how much you eat. Perhaps your just not eating enough food, period.

What I noticed with myself is that my body was not used to such pure food and trying to give it a few fruits and a big salad only in a day to begin with, made me feel awful. Adding more food, nuts, oils, seeds, dates, honey, coconut, etc usually in recipe form helped my body ease through the initial change of fuel and made me feel WAY better.

Then after a few weeks, I felt great eating simpler.
Just a thought~

Blessings!

[avanderland]

You stated " often on the days with the least calories and such that I felt the crummiest." I am no expert on anything, but to me that made me wonder how much you eat. Perhaps your just not eating enough food, period.

What I noticed with myself is that my body was not used to such pure food and trying to give it a few fruits and a big salad only in a day to begin with, made me feel awful. Adding more food, nuts, oils, seeds, dates, honey, coconut, etc usually in recipe form helped my body ease through the initial change of fuel and made me feel WAY better.

Then after a few weeks, I felt great eating simpler.
Just a thought~

Blessings!

Yeah, I agree, I'm pretty sure that I wasn't eating enough food, I think I tried eating too simple too fast, like you mention...

But the problem was that I don't know how to eat more food! I was munching all the time but still only getting 800-900 calories a day (perhaps because I'm a fruit person more than a greens, nuts or seeds person), which I know from experience is NOT enough for me right now, especially wehn "detoxing," even if it somehow may be enough later...

I was hoping that trying recipes would help me increase my calorie intake, but as I said---I really suck at making the recipes I think. So, any suggestions on either improving my uncook skills OR other non-recipe ways to up my caloric intake are GREATLY welcome... I think that if I could do that, it would make things infinitely easier.

So, do you have any PARTICULAR recipes with those hearty ingredients you mention that I should definitely try? Any tips on making those recipes? I have Living on Live Food, so I have that recipe section but the things I pick out that sound yummy either I don't make right or they aren't really my taste I guess! And there are SOOOOO many recipes to search through the boards here, that it is hard to know what to try. I am a poor college student so I cannot afford to keep making recipes that are blah to me, thus why any helpful hints or suggestions are VERY welcome.

[sweetgoddess]

Ok, well one tip to start with, and I am sorry I forget who's tip it is, is to half or quarter all the recipes at first while you figure out what you like and dont.
The recipes are all up to individual tastes and experimenting is the best way to find out what you like.

I love Alissa's date/nut torte, her blueberry pie with or without the crust, fudge balls, the coconut caramel cookies in the recipe forum, Alissa's Almost Tuna, Alissa's marinara and noodles, wraps made with collard leaves or lettuce leaves, marinated portebellos, portebello sandwiches, grawnola and almond milk, Halvah, bananas spread with almond butter, Alissa's banana flax cracker recipe which I eat with either almond butter and honey or almond butter and crushed strawberries, I love smoothies and smoothies frozen in popsicle molds,-oh and you have to try the banana ice cream recipe.....everyone loves that and its quick, easy and YUM>

this is from melissa's post

Butter pecan ice cream...A couple of frozen bananas, a generous dollop of raw honey, vanilla extract, a big pinch of salt. Toss it all in the food processor and process until smooth (add a tiny bit of warm water to help blend if needed.) Then add the pecans and pulse chop them, not finely ground if you like chunks in your ice cream like I do. That's it. It's divine.

For more variations on ice cream , read this thread
http://www.rawfoodtalk.com/forum/sho...t=banana+cream
Theres just so much!

If you half or quarter recipes while you figure out what is to your taste, it wont cost near as much. Dont be afraid. It wont take long and you will have a nice variety of things you love and can make easily and from memory.
Good luck and many blessings~

[avanderland]

sweetgoddess:


Thank you very much! Very helpful. There are just so many recipes to choose from, sometimes I felt like I was playing pin the tail on the donkey, trying to find the best ones for transition.

Those all sound great & I will bookmark them in my book for my grocery trip this weekend... Especially the desserts. That is one section I hadn't tried yet and now I am getting the feeling that I definitely need to dip into it more heartily!!!

[sweetgoddess]

You are very welcome. For me, since I have a sweet tooth, the desserts make all the difference.

Here are a couple of helpful threads to read. This one is called "Whats your Favorite Recipe?"
http://www.rawfoodtalk.com/forum/sho...ghlight=simple

And this thread is called "Simple Stuff"
http://www.rawfoodtalk.com/forum/sho...ghlight=simple

Bon Appetit!