Hi there
Im 28 from South Africa and i have decided to go raw. I tried it last year and managed for 11 days and feel prey to the allures of the dark side.

The dark side for me is food. I LOVE it. I cant get enough, the more i eat the more i want. I am not obese or anything but i could lose a few kgs but my problem is the yo-yo back and forth between being overweight and slim. I really hate the gym and i cant think of any sport id like to play. So...i bing and eat myself to about 15kgs overweight, feel terrible, hit bottom and that drives me to the gym where i do well for a couple months, slim down and feel good. At which point the emotions of feeling crap about myself are no longer there to drive me to gym and i start eating again and stop gym ect..

I have no explanation as to why i go back to eating, i tell myself i dont want to go back, i remember how i felt, as im eating i say to mayself put this stuff down, i dont know.. its like something takes over my willpower. Anyways, so that is why i tried the raw diet the first time. I stoped because my dad came to live with me and i started cooking for him and im not someone who enjoys speding my day in the kitchen, i wasnt about to make 2 meals. Of course this is all an excuse because my dad really loved the stuff i was making for myself, it was my willpower that broke down now that it had this excuse to cling to.

Anywho.. so im back on raw, 9 days now and so far so good. The most difficult part for me is not eating food that is hot. Everything is cold. I woke up to no electricity this morning so i took my stuff to work to make b/fast smoothie!

A warning, i read some of the other post and i honestly dont know how some of those people survive on so little food. expect my food list to feed a small country.

bfast:
smoothie of mango,grapes,handful of soaked cashews,green apple,juice of half a lemon

lunch:
large plate of salad: grated carrots,cucumber,tomatoes, onions,an avo,rehydrated sun dried tomatoes and a sprinkling of mixed nuts. Half a lemon for dressing with some salt

supper:
im planning to make a gazpatcho.. if electricity is back mind you so that'l have
tomatoes,cucumber,red peppers,avo,wostershire sauce,lots of garlic,big bunch of basil and baby spinach,salt,pepper.

Im supposed to go to start gym today but i dont know.. there is a real debate going on in my noggin. jury is still deliberating on it..

Any encouragement and advice once in a while would be greatly appreciated because i really want to stick it out this time

hi again
Well yesterday went pretty well, i even managed gym, although it was dismal and vowed never to go again i really despise it, i dont know what to do.. anyways, stuck to the menu except that i stayed up very late so i got hungry arround 1 in the morning so i had about 250 grams of lichis, a date and a handful of nuts bah at least its raw and not too fatty, true there is alot of sugar in the fruit but there you have it..

Todays plan..

bfast:
Handful of soaked nuts, and apple anda grapefruit

lunch:
veg juice consisting of Carrots,cabbage,cucumber,celery and rhubarb
(ive never eaten rhubarb before..lets hope it doesnt make this drink gross!)

snack:
a banana,grapes and a few soaked nuts

supper:
assorted raw veg with avocado mayo(pine nuts,avocado,lemon juice,salt,dates,garlic)

Have you tried to find a form of exercise that you enjoy? How about swimming?
The only way to really stick to an exercise plan is to figure out a way to enjoy it.

Good luck on your journey, sounds like you are doing great so far!

Hi Optimist
Yes i have looked for something but i come up empty. I am a bonefied couch potato im afraid.. I like horse riding and hiking, neither of which are really viable at the moment.

Didnt have breakfast today.
Lunch: bunch of grapes,2 bananas,nuts and apple
snack: a paw paw
supper: i dont know what to have Maybe i can try my hand at making a living burger although i dont have a dehydrator so its going to be a soggy one.. hmmm

well supper ended up being a salad of carrots,cabbage, baby spinach and my own version of guacamole(1 avo,1 tomato, small piece of red onion,lemon juice,fresh coriander,cashew butter,paprika,salt&pepper) ..late night snack was a nectarine,big bunch of grapes and a date.

today's menu is very up in the air again. i have to be careful. I'm starting to be lazy and not preparing my lunch the night before..this leads to bad things happening..like me falling face first into the nearest dessert anyways...today i brought some carrots, a paw paw, 2 nectarines, a mango, an apple and some nuts.

I guess i'll have some of it for lunch and the rest as snaks..

had an apple as breakfast and im thinking of making a beetroot,cucumber and carrot juice for supper, probably with snacks of nuts and fruit after..

as i said, very disorganised, i must try to do better tomorrow..

once again supper ended up nothing like the plan but it was ok. I sliced 2 tomatoes, lay them on a plate and put salt pepper and basil leaves on it. Added some shredded baby spinach, lemon juice and a sprinkling of sesame seeds and pine nuts. WIth that i had 4 brown mushroom caps smeared with sun-dried tomato pesto. all in all it was pretty good. Of course i had snacks later, not too healthy ones at that. I made a sweet with half a cup of desicated coconut, raw honey and cinamon. also had a carob chunk and a paw paw..

Today's menu:
Well i had great plans for today but of course i had no electricity so once again its a little bag of tricks..

bfast:
apple

snack:
nectarine

lunch:
salad of cabbage,carrots, tomatoes,cucumber and some seeds

snack:
soaked nuts (cashew,hazelnut,sunflower seeds)
carrots

supper:
veg juice

let see if i can stick to it today..not very exiting menu but i HAVE too

Hi Sage

Thanks for popping in to say hello. Thought I'd return the favor. (;

Looks like you are going well. I have found that some of my favorite meals are the ones that just "happen" - without all the planning. But it does help if I do something early in the day which I can look forward to in the evening...like freezing my strawberries yesterday and having a sorbet-like dessert to look forward to last night.

My husband has been to South Africa and LOVED it! Maybe I'll go back with him one day. (;

Thanks again for popping in to my thread and please come back any time. (:

Have a great weekend,
Peggy

well im really proud of myself! I was envited to a braii(barbeque) today and despite the delicious smell of all that wonderful meat cooking i managed to stay raw. Before i left i packed myself my own 'burgers' made of mushroom caps instead of bread, guacamole tomatoe slices and baby spinach. I also took some soaked nuts, bananas and grapes and presto!

anyways, so thats what i had for lunch.
supper consisted of 4 carrots, a handful of olives, and a sweet of desicated coconut,honey and a banana.

snack: grapes

bfast: 2 apples
lunch: 4 mushroom caps with pickled fish and a small salad of 1/2 avo and 1 tomato
snack: smoothie of frozen berries,soaked cashews,juice of 1 grapefruit,1 apple,3 dates and some honey
supper: salad of grated carrots,cabbage,cauliflower,radish,pickled fish

Hi Sage

Looks like you are going strong! Well done!!! (:

Cheers,
Peggy in the Raw

Hi Peggy
Thank you Been thinking alot about a nice burger today..not of the raw persuation either

bfast: smoothie with frozen berries,a banana,an apple, half a grapefruit
snack:half a cup of soaked pumkin seeds
lunch: gazpatcho
snack: 2 carrots and an apple
supper: raw seed burger pattie and some assorted veggies

Hi Sage

So...you got your burger in the end...and of the raw persuasion!!! YAY!!!

I'm on Day 8. What about you? You losing any weight still?

I am still on my goal to keep losing until I get to Australia in a few weeks.

5 pounds in 7 days. Not as good as I had hoped but it's OK.

Today I am focusing on having only fruit for the first part of the day.

Tonight I'm going to try my first soup - avocado/lime. And I'm going to try Alissa Cohen's enchiladas.

We'll see how we go.

Do you have a dehydrator? I got a 9-tray imported from the U.S. and I LOVE it. It was a great investment. I also want to get a Vitamix blender but that will have to wait until I can save up a bit. (;

Are you doing measurements? I'm not. I wonder if it will help keep me motivated...? I just had two days of no change on the scale so was really happy that there was 1 more pound gone this morning.

Enjoy your day of good health,
Peggy

P.S. Still 100% (:

Im not losing any weight at the moment but im ok with that because, for one, im eating alot and not gaining , and also i was expecting a slump in weight loss arround about now. hopefully it will start up again in a few days..

I dont have a dehydrator, i used my oven. I set it to 70C, left the oven door half open and dried out the burgers overnight. Seems to have worked ok but im not too mad about the whole thing. takes too long and it feels like its defeating the purpose of going raw a little.

It seems like you are doing really well on your journey, keep up the brilliant work!

Take care

well today so far has been good, although i have been very hungry for some reason. So far i've been able to curtail myself, lets hope i make it the rest if the day.

bfast: apple and 2 carrots
snack:banana
lunch:gazpatcho and half a raw burger pattie
snack:handful of soaked almonds and some honey
supper:left over gazpatcho & burger pattie
snack:fruit

bfast: 3 carrots, fruit smoothie(mango,apple,nectarine,banana,pear)
lunch:raw green soup - spinach,3 zucchinis,fresh coriander,half avo,half cucumber
snack:nectarine,half avo
supper:soaked nuts,salad of mushrooms,tomato,onions,sundried tomatoes,sesame seeds,avo
snack: fruit

bfast: fruit smoothie(mango,pear,banana,orange)
snack: handful of soaked nuts
lunch: salad of tomatoes,spinach,zucchini,carrots,1/2 avo and radish with lemon juice/coriander dressing and soaked pine nuts
snack:nectarine
supper:assorted veggies with dip

great idea to write down what you are having - to keep you focussed. You look like you're going really well!

brunch: fruit smoothie - 1 mango,1 apple,1 orange,1 banana, 1/2 cup of bran
snack:grapes
late lunch: assorted veggies with left over dip
snack:nuts and a nectarine
supper: baby spinach,pickled fish and half a can of beans(my first cooked food)
snack:dates

bfast: fruit smoothie(mango,orange,melon)
lunch:salad of cauliflower,carrot,zucchini,rest of pickled fish
snack:soaked nuts,grapes
supper:salad of tomato,onion,avo,zucchini,sundried tomotoes,4 mushroom caps
snack:sundried fruit,lichis

yesterday's menu:
bfast: fruit smoothie
lunch:raw veg soup(tomato,cucumber,avo,coriander,red pepper)
supper: veggie pasta with raw mushroom alfredo
snack:3 dates and rest of the box of lichis

bfast:fruit smoothie
lunch:leftover veggie pasta with alfredo sauce
supper:mushroom caps with avo and tomato

im a bit worried about the amount of avoes and nuts im eating. especially avocados. I cant help it, they make dips,salads and soups so delicious. without it i have to basically down my food

agh i am really craving cooked food. I had a cup of coffee for the first time since i started, hoping something warm would help..it did the complete opposite..What i wouldn't do for a nice baked potato with butter...mmmm

yesterday's menu:
did a bad thing.. had nuts and 2 bananas with 2 tablespoons of honey after supper last night.

bfast: fruit smoothie(apple,banana,pear,mango,orange)
lunch:raw veg soup
snack:soaked pecans and sunflower seeds
snack:banana, desicated coconut with honey - naughty naughty i know
supper:red cabbage leaves with mushroom sauce, 4 mushroom caps with some sundried tomatoes and mushroom sauce
snack:nuts and honey ish this is getting bad

today's menu:
bfast: fruit smoothie(apple,banana,pear,mango,orange)
snack:banana,cup of soaked sunflower seeds
lunch:raw veg soup
snack:peach
supper:dont know yet..will update tomorrow

soooo disaster struck last night. THere is falling off the wagon and then there is jumping off head first and being trampled by the wheels of 10 other wagons.. thats me, smeared on the wheels of the last wagon

ok here is my list of shame:
2 large muffins
cup of baby cereal
5 eggs scrabled with mushrooms

this morning i fell awful and nauseous. my word what the hell happened, i just went crazy..i wish i could take it back

todays menu:
bfast:apple,pear,banana,plum
lunch:veg juice(carrot,cucumber,beetroot)
snack:green smoothie
supper:more green smoothie and another veg juice..try to flush out that crap i ate grrrrrrrrr *kicking myself in the butt, hard*

ok instead of supper i had planned i had sushi, 3 bananas,a peach and a bunch of grapes.

well..i think that i hit rock bottom yesterday and i doubt i will be making this trip ever again.

I had a chicken burger for lunch,popcorn during a movie,grilled fish with 4 slices of brusheta and a tomato and rocket salad for supper. THats bad enough because it was cooked but THEN...im so ashamed...i had 3 tinkies(sponge cake fingers with icing inside) and a whole box of cookies and a half a litter of milk.

The next day I had a severely runny tummy the whole day and felt like i was dying. i stayed in bed and nursed a frightening headache trying to sip water as best i could because i wanted to throw up half the time. it was awful. I ate and avo and some grapes and that was it.

I know what i had was bad but i cant believe how violently my body reacted to it after eating so well for a month. What i had yesteray was the norm for me before i started on raw and nothing happened to me.

today's menu:

bfast: fruit smoothie(2 plums,a peach,mango,banana,small apple)
lunch:green smoothie(baby spinach,zucchini,celery tops,cucumber,avo,lemon)
supper:veg drink(cucumber,carrot,beetroot)

I hope you're feeling better...and please don't beat yourself up. Transitioning to raw - to whatever degree - is a process and you have to proceed at whatever level/speed that is comfortable for YOU. Don't worry too much about the amount of fat that you are eating either - it helps you to handle things especially in the beginning (I know, trust me!) - and when your body needs to adjust in any way it will let you know loud and clear!

Expect to have cravings. You just have to face the fact that they'll be raring their ugly heads for a while...what's been helping me through my spots is eating as much raw as I need to - including avocados and nuts, but everything else also (more fruit, veggies,etc)...

Do the best you can and be gentle with yourself!