hello everyone. I have been reading along before I joined and you all make it look so easy. I have been vegetarian since I was 4 when I found out the cows on our farm I would play with were the next nights meal. Then in my 20's (I am a personal trainer) I did figure competitons and beleived that I needed PROTEIN. So I ate lettuce and chicken 5 times a day and exercises 3 hrs. When I stopped when I hit my 30's I vowed to go vegan and have been happy here for 4 years. Now I have extra pounds from the fancy vegan food you can eat, and I want to go raw to lose some weight and help my allergies and PCOD. I have quit taking my allergie med's and quit the birth control pill because I can not believe taking this drug for 20 years can be good for you (but it did regulate my cycle and keep from getting cyts) So if any one has any info on this it would be great. So here I am trying to go raw but I can't seem to get through 2 days with out adding something non raw. I am hungry most of the time and and so confused about all the conflicting info, fat ok, fat to be keep to 10%, don't eat alot of fruit, eat 80% fruit, fruit effects your teeth,sprouts good, sprouts toxic AHHHHH. I know alot of you do 80/10/10 but some days it seems only fat helps me quit eating, if not That is when the non raw looks good to get that full feeling in my belly. Plus if I have to travel I swear my appitite grows to that of a horse. So today I start drug free and am going to go as raw as i can. Any info will be helpful.

Hi! It's a natural progression how you arrived at raw foods. Yes, there are a lot of conflicting things. Just start out doing what you can do...like eating mostly raw and one meal of steamed veggies and baked potato or whatever. Don't worry about anything at this point, do what feels manageable to you, increasing the raw foods...fruit you love, salads you love...along with some cooked food if that is what helps you now. As week after week goes by you will feel your own way...read read read...but, all the conflicting stuff--put on the shelf. It is out there, just note it, and as you continue on your journey you will choose certain things...and maybe they will change later! Keep open mind.

A lot of people have been doing this for some time, and the way they eat was a natural progression. Beginners can't expect their bodies to adapt suddenly to a diet that someone who has been raw for a few years is eating. They will tell you that. Everyone has a 'transition' period or two or three or four...even those who start out at 100% have transitions. They may, for ex, begin eating lots of dehydrated crackers and nuts and this and that, which slowly lessen and then may even phase out completely.

I'm newish (and this is a repeat performance) and I am aware of certain things that I will probably be tweaking, for improved diet, but I know that I am not THERE yet. When I am ready for another level, that's when it will happen.

sorry - long post. Just want to impress not to worry. Do best you can now, with relaxed and open mind. READ! Lots of good websites to read besides books.

Don't place "must do's" etc on yourself and don't compare yourself with others who have been raw for some time, and don't freak over things that don't make sense to you or confuse you. Just start out and make your own investigation. It IS a journey!

Best wishes!
Elakti

Hey there..welcome to the forum and congrats on your new raw journey!!! like elakti said don't stress over things.....just eating raw is an amazing thing...so no matter what you are doing great...fat is okay...you need the fat to help burn up the fat that you are trying to lose..but you might find you want less of it later on..fruits and veggies are your choice..what you feel good with....
i don't know about the transition stage...my story is a little unique because i went 100% and didn't have any transition...on day one i ate only veggies with some fruits..no fats nothing dehydrated or oils or anything...and have stuck with that...now this is sort of extreme..and i have had ED's that had to do a lot with it....so it is possible to just switch but not a good thing for your body...what elakti about everyone having a transition isn't neccesarily right...cuz some do lots of fat and dehydrated always and do very well on it..and some don't it is a personal decision and something you just have to feel out really..go with what your body tells you and what it wants....and make sure you are eating plenty of food..when going raw..the reason a lot of fats and dehydrated things are eaten is because you don't realize how little kcals you are getting and you get hungry....that is a big thing to do make sure you eat enough and keep full..always have snacks on hand as welL!!
keep up the good work and don't worry about it so much....you are on the right track keep it up!!!good luck...and congrats again!
love earthangel
xoxoxoxoxoxox

Much peace and love!!!
EarthAngel
Xoxo

It has really helped joining this site to motivate me. It was great to get the encouragement from you guys. Thanks for the good words. Well yesterday was an all raw day. I have been trying to get raw for a while and esp that last week but a had a wild craving for chinese and i gave in. Well my belly didn't like that one bit and I felt like a Macy's balloon all night. The good news is that even with that set back, I weighed in today and was down 2.3 pounds. So that was all I need to make a 7 day commitment to go raw. Your right earthangel, I need to make sure I eat enough so I do not want to nibble on the wall. So today I ate:
bowl of cantalope
shake with (spinich cuke, banana,OJ,frozen left over fruit)
small salad with raw homemade dressing
zuchinni, kale , with raw almond sauce
honeydew
avacado with tomato and sprouts(my fav, I hope I dont tire of this)
flax crakers
carrots
banana
not sure if will have anything else tonight, maybe some local strawberries.
I feel good today. I have been having a hard time getting out of bed in the morning even if I slept 9 hours. Today was actually a little better. Hope that continues. Looking forward to tomorrow.

Sounds GOOD!

Me too, almost everyday I moosh up avocado with chunks of tomato and a couple kalamata olives...eat with celery sticks or romaine leaves or chunks of bell peppper (red or yellow or orange).

I am also a big proponent of the importance of sleep...body does so much healing during sleep.

Have fun and bon appetit!
Elakti

Pooch: Sounds like you had a very successful, satisfying rawsome day! Good for you. I'm pretty new to this lifestyle and some days I have no problem eating 100% raw. Other days (like today) I can't get enough to satisfy me. Very frustrating. I'm babysitting for my 3 toddler grandbabies tonight so that should keep my mind off eating for awhile! LOL Keep up the good work.

Joan

hey there hun...well good for you making a commitment!! i am soo proud of ya!!! good luck..you can do this ...don't worry just keep lots of food on hand at the beginning for those cravings...and eat the raw food..you will get through it.it will take some will power and strength though i won't lie..it is hard at first..and downright outrageous haha...you will have cravings for things you might not of eaten in like over 15 years or so haha..
take care and good luck
love earthangel
xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

Much peace and love!!!
EarthAngel
Xoxo

I did very well yesterday,but it was my 12th day of working in 13 days and have had to put up with some real crap there, and i had a little fight with the hubby so I though I would have some wine. Well two glasses went down ok then I got a monster headache and upset stomach. Who knew something I used to enjoy would attack me like that. I was sick most of the night so I took an advil (I hated to do that, try to stay of all meds). That did help the headache and I got some sleep. Well you live and learn on this diet. I wonder if wine should not be part of the diet or it killed me because I am in the middle of this transition with some detox going on. Well back on track, I packed my food for the day, lots of fruit, salad and some raw marinara with zuch, avacado and some sprouted wheat crakers that are ready to come out of the dehydrator. And it is off to work AGAIN! Then I have the weekend off yeah. Hope to get some sun and exercise.(NO WINE)..

HI there..yeah the wine probably hit you so bad cuz you have been all raw then had something cooked..it is intense and gets ya..cuz your body gets rid of that barrier it has to protect it from cooked..so when you eat it it will get you like triple times what it would if you hadn't gone raw hah...
so stick with it and glad you are lving and learning
keep up the good work..have a great weekend
love earthangel
xoxoxoxooxxo

Much peace and love!!!
EarthAngel
Xoxo

All I can say about Saturday was, oh boy. Let's just say it started ok but ended with being at a mexican Resturant. I find that it is much easier to eat raw during the work week when I am structured with packing my food, but a day off and I am off the wagon. But maybe this was a good thing cause I was having bad headaches and skin problems which I think was detox. Now back to raw and feeling better. I think I will let myself the option that as long as I am raw duing the week I can give myself the chance to eat cooked one day on the weekend. I know that is not optimal, but it may help in the long run. And I keep thinking is if raw is so good for the body, why do such bad things happen when you go raw. Why is this detox so bad and some people on this web have been raw for months and still have bad detox. That is not encouraging to think that it takes that long to clean the system. Well, here is to a better week.

hey there..haha funny you should mention this..we were just discussing how people don't understand that RAW foods ISN"T what is making you feel so horrible..it is all the yucky stuff like fried foods,greasy,cheese,meats,processed stuff..it is all in your body and your cells and systems have been living on it and building your working body from it...and so when you start eating raw healthy foods..your body starts replacing that and cleaning house..that bad detox you have is your body getting rid of all that crap (literally) in your body.....so the symptoms of detox is that bag of chips or french fries, or cake moving out of your body...and that is one of the reasons you will crave certian foods.(some vegetarians who haven't eaten meat in years will crave them as well) it is just your body getting rid of and releasing everything.....so some people who have eaten poorly their whole lives with detox really badly...and others won't get it as bad cuz they have eaten healthier...but all raw foodies get the intense cleaning period when after eating raw for quite a few months you will get intense detox for a few days...because your system is cleansing and ridding itself of something potent...same with after about a year you will usually get another one...and after about 7 years...your body will have replaced everything and restructured a new healthy raw body..from head to toe..every little cell and organ is clean and raw so you just have to give it time..and eat the right things...and remember it is not the raw that is making you sick it is all that junk you have eaten before....and even though the one day cooked of whatever you want seems not so harmless...it isn't always....
your system is clean and healthy after about 2 months raw....and gets healthier and healthier as time goes on...you have to stop and think..you have been eating cooked junk your WHOLE life..and not just a few weeks..so why should you expect your body to cleanse itself from all those years of cooked and medications in a few weeks....it is like people who gain 20 pounds over a year and expect to lose it over a week or two you know...you are doing great...you just got to stick with it and you will be fine....the more you give in to cooked though the harder to get back on track and stick with it....
keep it up and keep the faith you will be fine
love earthangel
xoxoxoo

Much peace and love!!!
EarthAngel
Xoxo

Thanks earthangel for all your encouragment. I felt like I was losing all motivation these past days. I don't know why, but I felt like this is hard, and is it worth it, and I might never eat sunday pancakes again. But funny thing is I came home tonight and made a raw dinner after eating raw all day. And I was satisfied. I thought for sure I would get home and make pasta. Maybe I am having all these problems because I am going off BC pills after 20 years and my hormones are everywhere. So I think I will not pressure my self and see what happens. I have another headache but in a new place, the back of my head. I just feel a little burned out with work and stuff so we are doing some camping next weekend and that may recharge me. Here is hoping.

Hey there hun...well no problem..i know what it is like to be down and feel like giving up and the thoughts that creep into your head about being raw..i have been there and still have them sometimes...it is all part of the detox though...you have this intense emotions that you aren't covering with food anymore..you are having to deal with thoughts and feelings and it is hard..even if you never thought you were emotional eater you know?? it is just food is used for celebrations and parties and get togethers and stuff you knwo?? and now it is focusing on YOU...but hang in there..you can do it..it just takes time i know!! good for you for going of the bc pills..that is awesome!!
and i knwo it is hard struggling with pcos...i have it as well..and i do have a lot of cysts on my ovaries and the weight part and the hair and dark areas in my underarms,inner thighs, neck and knees and elbows....i don't know if you have these as well but it is tough and on top of the pcos i have type 1 diabetes.anemia..cushings...and kidney damage..so soemtimes i am like i have been dealt so much that i just want to live happily and not worry about what i can and cna't put in my body for once..(it has been a life long struggle since age 2)
but i am here for ya!!!
keep up the good work..congrats on your raw dinner
lots of love
earthangel
xoxoxoxxo

Much peace and love!!!
EarthAngel
Xoxo

Ihad a great weekend camping. The stress relief I needed. But had too many things I should not have. I have to say that I am noticing things that I had read but thought were just crazy. For example, alot of cooked foods do not taste good anymore. I had some vegan Ice Cream and a soy hamburger with all the fixings(I know but I was hungry and my husband is an ice cream addict) and It tasted terrible. Some other foods are the same. Also my face stared looking reddish which had went away with the high raw diet. Also I am as white as a sheet yet I am in the sun everyday yet I dont get burned. not only that but I dont get a tan either. Like no sun damage. I used to burn to a crisp after 20 min. So maybe there is something to this raw food. I am starting back to the gym daily, which I have been putting off and am having way to many back pains because of slacking off. I actually looked forward to starting raw again. My question is why many days into raw food and things get so hard yet when you eat the things you crave your bady hates it. Why cant my body be happy with raw and not make things so hard to stick with. I wonder if this ever goes away. well back at it again.

Fat, salt, and sugar makes food taste good. Our taste buds become accustomed to those over exaggerated tastes and until our taste buds adjust there will be cravings. I think this is one reason people new to raw foods like to eat more of the heavy type raw foods, avocados, nuts and seeds, nut butters, dates, stuff that mimics what we are used to.

You'll get there, just keep going and it will improve.

Love,
Prism

hey there hun...good for you realizing the benefits you are having froma raw diet..sometimes that is something everyone needs to go through you know?? that is a great learning experience...remember how it tasted next time you may be hungry or want it...that is what i would do i am sure it is helpful.....i use a picture each time i get into a big situation and think about how i am sure it would make me feel from others experience and tell myself no...and it works....keep up the great work..you are doing fantastic keep it up....
glad you had fun on the camping trip
love earthangel
xxoxoxoxox

Much peace and love!!!
EarthAngel
Xoxo

It has been a while since my last post. I have been noticing some strange stuff. I have been so emotional about animals lately. I can barely drive my car since I am afraid of running something over. the chipmunks and baby birds seem to be darting everywhere. Plus on my way home from work at 9:00pm after a rain, there had to be hundreds of toads on the road. EVERYWHERE. I tried like crazy to miss them, but I dont know. I live in a rural area where there are still small dairy farms. About now is when then take the calves away from the moms. Female calves are seperated and you dont want to know where the males go. But the moms and the calf moan and cry for days. It breaks your heart to here it. I was almost in tears and I sneak out to the calves and give them cut up mellons and greens because they dont even have grass to eat in thier little pen. Oh the humanity. I can't even go to the grocery store with out getting nauseated by the body part department(meat section). The death and suffering is everywhere.
And to top it all off, I have the itchest rash on my elbows and the inside of my legs. It is not poisen Ivy, I think it is an allergic reaction to everything! I went off my allergy meds now I am being attacked by the environment. I have had the rash for over a week now, and hate to go to the doctor because he will say go back on the meds. AHHHH. I would love to fast but I am a big sissy and get hungry the minute I think about not eating. I would love to know what the offending thing is that is giving me this miserable rash. I would say I am around 75% raw, some steamed veg in there, but tring to eat no grains or potato (not easy some sneak in my mouth) . I hope to clean up the diet and hopefully get rid of this rash. Today starts another week. Hope to have motovation to keep increasing raw.

Oh, I know how you feel. I can't even watch those animal shows like the animal cops. I love emergency vet though. And I love The Dog Whisperer and It's Me or The Dog.

I'm sorry you have an itchy rash, try soaking in a tub of water with apple cider vinegar, the healthy kind of vinegar you get that has 'the mother' in it.

You can also drink it with juice or water. I find it very cleansing among other things it does for me.

I bath as usualy using my hand-made soap then I soak in a rinse bath of water and 1-2 C of braggs apple cider vinegar and when I'm thru I don't rinse off.

Love,
Prism

hey there....aww wow i bet it was hard to swerve and miss all those toads...you are doing such wonderful things for your body and yourself..don't worry about the stress of driving...things will happen for a reason and you are doing great!! take care of yourself and think positive!!!
love earthangel
xoxoxoxoo

Much peace and love!!!
EarthAngel
Xoxo

There was a Bon Jovi song "In and out of Love" (i think) well that is how I feel In and out of raw. But I have a new goal. I am telling myself that I will be raw for 6 days a week and have one day that if I have a cooked meal it is ok. Now I am doing this because the mind is a strange thing. If I know I can have cooked I will not want it. If I say 100% raw, I start seeing cooked dance in my head. Sometimes we are our own worst enemies. But I can tell you that when I eat cooked I can't wait to return to raw. that alone is quite a feat. So today is the first day of the month and what a better time to get back on the horse. The best thing is to be more accountable to myself so I will try to post more often.
Today I had
cantalope
kale,mushroom, pepper mixed with raw hummus
salad with homemade dressing (taste like blue cheese but all raw & vegan)
banana,peach,cherries, watermelon
corn on the cob put in hot water just to warm - I ate 3 ears and it was heaven
zuc with raw marinara sauce and walnuts tonight for dinner
and a few veg for snack later.
I sat in the sun with my sun-worshiping dog. A good first day back.

Pooch,

I know what you mean about being confused - some say eat fat, others say eat mostly fruit. There seems to be a lot of conflict in the raw food arena, just like with any other topic I suppose.

I bought the 80/10/10 Diet book and was planning on trying that approach, even though I had doubts about it because of my Type 1 Diabetes. Then I listened to and read interviews by Matt Monarch and also went to hear him talk locally and bought his book, Raw Spirit, and have decided to try his low fruit, higher fat content approach. Matt works with Dr. Fred Bisci who has been raw for 40 years, so that's a good track record.

Of course, when we say fruit - we always think of the sweet fruits. But let's not forget the less sweet fruits like tomotoes and cucumbers. We think of them as veggies but they are really fruits. I think eating a lot of the less sweet fruits would satisfy both diets... Just a thought. I am going to try eating more of them and see how I feel.

Good luck and good health!

hey there...keep your head up..you are doing good..keep up the good work and don't feel discouraged...this is a journey and there are many paths you will take...but most will be dead ends and you will find you are lead back to the main path of raw...so don't stress just be you and do what you can!!
take care
love earthangel
xoxoxoxo

Much peace and love!!!
EarthAngel
Xoxo

Earthangel you should write a book with all your encouraging quotes. They are quite stunning
karennd, Please let me know how this lower fruit/higher fat approach works. I find that I really don't like alot of sweet fruit. 1-2 pieces for me is fine and I find myself eating more unripe fruit because i like it that way. For example a peach must be hard and a banana should have no brown spots. I really don't crave it that much and I would find it impossible to do 80-10-10 because i can only eat so much fruit.

Hi, Pooch,

I am following Matt Monarch's approach in his Raw Spirit book. Half of the book is an interview with Dr. Fred Bisci (a 40 year raw foodist) so it is really good. They believe that eating too much fruit (which Dr. Bisci tried to do at first and has seen patients and acquaitances that tried it) causes Hyperinsulin and the ratio of sugar to minerals causes problems. He said these people have a high level of irritability, some have to exercise 3 or 4 times a day to stabilize their blood sugars, some have excess gas, and some experience teeth falling out and osteoporosis. It could be because our sweet fruit is mostly hybrid fruit that has been bred for sweetness. It could also be because our intestines are damaged thereby causing the gas.

If you want to check out my journal you can see what I am eating on this diet. I am probably still eating a little too much fruit, but I am trying to eat more of the nonsweet fruits like cucumbers and tomatoes also. Matt and Bisci believe in lots of green veggie juice also and they think it is very helpful on a raw vegan diet. I am trying to drink more of those also. Matt's usual daily diet (from a talk I went to) is 8 to 12 ounces of green veggie juice twice a day (mid morning and afternoon), fruit and seeds at lunch and a salad with avocado(s) and/or nuts at supper.

The main thing though, is listen to your body. I agree with you that if you don't like the sweet fruit, that means your body doesn't want it.

Good luck and we can do this!!

Hi Pooch,

Thanks for posting your journey, it is so encouraging to hear others experiences.

One thing I've learned is to listen to intuition. If you find your body sending you signals, even if it's contrary to someone else's story or something you read in a book, trust your body.

It sounds to me like you may want to try a slower transition, rather than an all or nothing approach. Allow yourself time and space to experiment and learn what works for you now. A great book to help explain transtion is "The Raw Food Detox Diet" by Natalia Rose. She gives good tips for transitioning that will carry you into the optimum way of eating for you and your body, as well as your mind and spirit.

Thanks again for sharing and good luck!

Chrissy

Hi.

Maybe you will find some help or inspiration reading my posts (especially the thread I started at Raw Diary - Your Personal Experience section.
I just started to describe the way I started raw - and the + effects and I will continue as soon will be possible with common sense ideas which are guiding me into a healthier lifestyle. The Internet is loaded with info, but u have to decide 4 yourself what is good for u and try. U have 2 understand what r u doing and why - this way u will believe in what u wanna do and u will have more motivation and power to avoid the unhealthy bad habits once u understand and listen to the signals from your body (the ones coming AFTER your system is detoxified, not so much the ones started from an body with weakened immunity). Let your intelligence rule and kick the habit.

Good luck.

Pls. excuse my English - foreigner.

=============================================================
Medicine, Food Industry and Commerce are businesses.
Is their goal to make/keep me healthy or to make more profit?
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hey there love...well sorry i have gone MIA for a while ..but i am back and ready to take on these diaries again hehe...i have stayed true to my raw lifestyle while away from my dear friends here and journal haha.....i hope all is well in your area of the world!!! keep on trucking that is always the best way...there are no failures in life.....it is all trial and error and live and learn you know??? well hun i hope things are going really well for you...but you know i am here for you if you need someone!! let me know what is happening in your life!!
lots of love
earthangel
xoxoxoxo

Much peace and love!!!
EarthAngel
Xoxo