New to Raw. LOTS of questions! :)

[newby1313]

hi there!! completely new to this and am really hoping i could get some questions out of the way as i have
not been able to get them answered anywhere else.

first off, is that im 18(female) and i am going to be completely on my own with being raw at home. im the
only one at home now with my mom and im not thinking im going to get much support going 100% raw as i
have been accused of having an eating disorder not too long ago (even though i was never underweight or
anything like that...)

sooo some of my questions are the following:
1) i currently have a bmi of 21. i have ALWAYS had a bmi of about 18-19 since last year when i ballooned up. i really want to get back to where i was. how much weight should i expect to lose going all raw in the first couple weeks/month? 2-3lbs per week? less? more? (im planning on having SOME fats like avocado or almonds but not a lot.)
2) how do i stay strong when everyone else is not supportive? my mom is really the only one but she is a huge influence in my life and hate doing things to displease her. i feel like i NEED to go raw. i have an intense calling to it and have been researching it for quite some time now.

im intensely uncomfortable in my body currently and want to get back to my old self along with being HEALTHY! i feel like going raw will be giving my body vital nutrients and feeding myself only clean foods. i (and my mom) already eat a lot of fruits/veggies but i end up having other stuff like carbs/sweets that is making things extremely hard to lose weight.

anyways, sorry for the long rant but i would absolutely LOVE some feedback.

love to all!
namaste

[Mickey]

Unfortunately, I don't find that my family and friends offer much support either, and have received similar criticism surrounding Raw Foodism and eating disorders. Ironically, I actually began my Raw Foodism to help recover from bulimia, and I credit the Raw Foods diet to much of my success with that. Try to teach your mother about all the health benefits you will be getting from following this diet, and encourage her to do her own research. Most of my friends think my diet is unnecessarily extreme, and will make a lot of jokes. You just have to take it in stride, and know that what you're doing is right for you. Your weight loss is not going to be determined simply by following the Raw Foods diet. People do not always loose weight while eating Raw Foods. In fact, there are some people who gain weight on a Raw Foods diet. It is becoming more and more popular amongst athletes and bodybuilders because of the incredible amounts of energy they are getting from raw foods. Healthy weight loss is between 2-3lbs per week. If you are limiting your caloric intake to somewhere between 1,200-1,500 and adding exercise that should give you results, and will help you keep the weight off long term.

[k8sl8]

.... If you are limiting your caloric intake to somewhere between 1,200-1,500 and adding exercise that should give you results, and will help you keep the weight off long term.

you do NOT limit calorie intake on a raw diet and you really need to lose that mindset to be sucessful. A large breakfast smoothie is probably 500-600 calories EASY. Many of the entrees with nut based sauces are also "high" in calories. You'll find what works for you, but a more logical caloric count (if you have to!) is probably 2500-4000 a day. Don't let it spook you; if you're limiting calories all the time and hungry you will not make it.

If you haven't done your research - get one of Alissa's books and READ; it will all make sense to you.

The key to raw is to eat when you are hungry (real hunger, not boredom or thirst, etc...) and eat only raw food. Calories do not matter!

[newby1313]

Thanks so much for the feedback!

[PansyLo]

I'm just starting out too, on day 6. I want to lose a few pounds too, I'm not over weight but I gained a little recently and I'd just like to slim out a bit. I'm hoping to get to that happy weight as a side effect of eating raw food!

The key to raw is to eat when you are hungry (real hunger, not boredom or thirst, etc...) and eat only raw food. Calories do not matter!

This is what I'm doing at least until I've adjusted into the diet and figured out it's effects on me and my body. I'm eating an insane amount of veg. I'm eating huge plates of salad and way more often than I would have before starting this diet. If I'm hungry I'll just eat. I'm craving heavier food right now so I might even up my intake of nuts/seed/avocado.

With any luck the pounds I want to shift will naturally just come off with this diet and exercise. If they don't then I'll take a look at what I could change. Maybe less nuts/seeds fatty foods etc.

For now I'm concentrating on staying 100% raw, learning about it and how to make different things and introducing new foods carrying on with my exercise routine and keeping up my jogging and concentrating on majorly increasing the amount of water I drink.

I think it's just trial and error. Hopefully I'll settle to the happy weight I want naturally without having to adjust anything.

[Traceyraw]

Don't say the raw diet either people are weird about it. I just tell everybody I am trying to eat very healthy. You can have sweets. They are fruits if you eat a good fruit breakfast you shouldn't crave any sugar the rest of the day. You can nibble on some grapes if you do. Don't weigh yourself everyday. Make sure you drink lots of water and get some exercise too. You will do great.

[PansyLo]

^ Haha I try not to weigh myself too often. Weighing daily gives me horrible anxiety as my weight fluctuates constantly. Even weighing weekly isn't always a sign if I've lost or gained for me but at least it's better than daily.

I try not to take what the scales say too seriously. I try and judge by how I feel, but often I'll lose weight and not feel any different about how I look so it's also handy to know I'm progressing when I see it on the scales.

[RawFoodieCutie]

"...as i have been accused of having an eating disorder not too long ago (even though i was never underweight or anything like that...) "
just for the record, you can have an eating disorder and be underweight, at a healthy weight, or overweight-what matters is the behavior. not accusing you of being disordered, just pointing it out.

" 1) i currently have a bmi of 21. i have ALWAYS had a bmi of about 18-19 since last year when i ballooned up. i really want to get back to where i was. how much weight should i expect to lose going all raw in the first couple weeks/month? 2-3lbs per week? less? more? (im planning on havineg SOMEm faots like avowcado or almonds but not a lot.)"

From what I understand you can expect to grow until your 20s, so is it possible the weight you're gaining is in womanly curves? Just a thought. I was always underweight as a kid and when I hit puberty thought I ballooned up by gaining a good amount of weight when really I was just growing into a woman's body.
As far as weight loss, it really depends on you and your body. I gained weight the first few months and then lost as my body began to adjust. I think it's common to gain weight first-people often adjust from dense cooked foods by eating high calorie raw foods like nuts and seeds. As their bodies adjust to the lightness they begin to consume more greens and fruits.

"2) how do i stay strong when everyone else is not supportive? my mom is really the only one but she is a huge influence in my life and hate doing things to displease her. i feel like i NEED to go raw. i have an intense calling to it and have been researching it for quite some time now. "

I'm the black sheep of the family in more ways then just diet. Theyve always eaten the Standard American Diet...I went vegetarian when I was 12, vegan 13 and raw for the first time at 14. They don't agree with or understand why I do what I do, and I don't understand why they do what they do and nor do I try. What I do is best for ME and living my life to please others to me is rather pointless; You come into this world alone and go out of it alone, and spending the time in between living in a way that other people want that you don't isn't fair. Being young and going against societal norms isn't easy and you have to be prepared to deal with a lot of things other people dont just because you're doing things differently. You obviously have a strong sense of self knowing that this is best for you, and I have confidense you can do it.

"im intensely uncomfortable in my body currently and want to get back to my old self along with being HEALTHY! i feel like going raw will be giving my body vital nutrients and feeding myself only clean foods. i (and my mom) already eat a lot of fruits/veggies but i end up having other stuff like carbs/sweets that is making things extremely hard to lose weight."

If you get a sweets craving make raw desserts with a lot of fiber. I personally don't like syrups and such and prefer to use dates because they offer sweetness and fiber as my body has difficulty processing the direct sugar, but that's just me. If you excercise that helps as well. Personally I recomend if you're having something high sugar you work out after because then the sugars help give you energy for your excercise. You can have your (date) cake and lose weight too!

Hope I helped!