I've been sticking to almost 100% raw (besides some steamed veggies and pureed veg. soups--but today as I was making toast for my SAD spouse, I almost broke down and ate some bread! Ahhhhhh......it feels like I will NEVER stop the cravings for carbs! What did (or do) you eat to satiate the desires for bread? To be clear, I've been eating only veggies (including avocados) for the past 3 weeks since fruits, nuts and grains give me terrible digestion issues.

Thanks for any help!

I eat raw hummus made with garbanzo beans, tahini (sesame seeds), sea salt, lemon juice, and paprika.

Not sure if that will give you digestive issues or not.

How about some guacamole made with the avocados? How about some carrot juice? Or some raw crackers made out of the carrot pulp, onion, and flax seeds? I've never made that but it sounds like it would work.

I also like Medjool dates but that is a fruit. Durian is also great but that, again, is a fruit.

It takes a while to go from the 'fast-burning' refined carb mode....to the 'slow-burning' fruit & vegetable sugar mode. That's all. Just time (and motivation! Ha! ha!) Exercise, and a wide-variety of fresh raw foods may help. Some folks will sprout wheat or other items and eat those.....and that may help. Some folks like mushrooms...and that may help.

-Switching from cooked carbs.....permanently....is the big half-way hurdle in any person whose goal is 100% raw. I plateaued....eating 2 all-raw meals a day....and a cooked carb dinner for about 6 months while transitioning. It's all good. Just give yourself a generous timetable.

-Just my experiences.

WWW.RawFoodFarm.com

David, what do you mean by a 'cooked carb' dinner? Veggies? Or pasta? Potatoes?


As for mushrooms, I have also found those to be a very helpful transition food. I put some miso on them, or some self made hummus or salsa... its just like bread. I haven't had any bread for years prior to going raw, so that was no problem. Although I remember the times well when I could not for the life of me imagine being without bread or pasta... Now its a breeze. I found that once I knew deep down inside I was done with eating it, it would be easy and it was. The time had to be right. Good luck!

All of the above. Usually baked beans and white rice was the order of the day....along with a soy burger or dog. It was great for helping me lose weight. Sometimes it was bean burritos.....or nuked sweet potato.

-David Z. Mason

WWW.RawFoodFarm.com

Ahh.
I know those cravings well.
Recently I made some dehydrated sprout crackers and they were a great substitute for bread.
Just ground up sprouted wheat berries in a food processor,form into crackers,then dehydrate.

Brian

for years after becoming raw

i still struggled with granola and bagel binges

they finally fizzled out after i started mono eating fruit meals

have you tried mono fruit meals?

esp melons are very easy digesting with the quickest transit time

Thank you everyone for your suggestions.
I ate one banana this morning (to experiment) and I am DYING in severe pain, cramps and bloating now. Fruit is like my worst enemy at the moment. It's really bad.
I was advised not to consume ANY grains due to these problems I am facing, but jumping from (slightly healthier) SAD to 100% veg. in 3 weeks has been very tough on me. I stare longingly at carb items in the grocery store and know that I can't have any. Just the smell of bread crumbs or toast is driving me nuts right now because I am withdrawing so badly from carbs. I wasn't eating white flours before I made the switch......but I still miss ANY Kind of bread or crackers. Today I made Kale chips with only salt and that helped but they were so paper thin, they just like, evaporated when I ate them! I have a dehydrator on order, so I guess I will try to make carrot chips. I'm eating so many carrots trying to reduce the carb cravings right now that my skin is going to turn orange (this has happened to me before!)
I really appreciate the help of this forum. Atleast I know that I'm not alone and almost everything I am going through is posted somewhere here.

i hope you will still try mono melon meals

melons have alot more water content than bananas

thus easier digesting

they have very high carb value

plus the satisfying carb crunch factor

esp watermelon

Yes,melons are tops for alot of things....
Balancing,alkalizing,satisfying cravings,etc...
Eat lots of them.
Your system will love it.

Brian

I almost always start my day with mono melon meals. I especially like watermelon on an empty stomach for a refreshing start to the new day.

I had the cravings for bread as well, I did try to replace it for a while but eventually realized it was the habit of eating the bread was what I had. I went off being raw and what did I eat? bread and lots of it and what did it do for me? I realized that was exactly what I shouldnt eat because it made my emotions really unstable, I was mean grouchy and other things from eating bread but I still craved it. So I realized I craved it because I was perhaps alergic to it. I believe the bread has many things in it that we are alergic to. Another alternative is to get some ezikial bread which is very good I hear because to fight a craving only makes it much harder to resist. I have found that I never craved meat and even sweets but the bread was by far the hardest to resist.

I used to eat the Ezekial bread, which I was very happy with before I was advised not to eat any grains. Although I do believe this is the right "way" to be eating (no grains) I am really struggling with it and my digestive system doesn't seem to agree with grains. I will give it a try but after the horrendously painful night I had last night---I might wait a few days before trying something different.

I LOVE watermelon and will eventually try that again. Too bad the season is ending soon

MY*ID,

You seem to have a sensitivity to carbohydrates. This may indicate a candida problem. Everyone who has advised you to try more watery, less starchy, fruits, is very wise. These ferment in the gut less easily than starchy fruits[banana, for example] and are easier to digest therefore. Be sure to eat lots of lettuces and mixed sprouts--they will provide you with water and alkalyzing minerals that should help your gastric juices adjust to the correct level of acidity. Stay strong and good luck.

Ezekial bread has been mentioned.
I find that bread satisfies my cravings for breads,and I dont want to wolf down several more pieces after having my veggie sandwiches.
Just about any other bread , I would want more.

Quote

Posted by: MY*ID , Date: September 08, 2008


Ahhhhhh......it feels like I will NEVER stop the cravings for carbs!

I have found that the cravings subside both in intensity and frequency as they are "starved out".
Start a 30 day raw challenge for yourself and by the time you complete it the cravings will be starved out (they were for me).
When I say "starved out" I am NOT referring to withholding food (fasting) but i mean not feeding the cravings.
The 30 day challenge effectively breaks the habit cycle.

MY*ID,

Your reaction to the banana sound like there was still stuff in your digestive system that interacted with the banana. When one eats fats as the main source of calories, they can take 24 hours or more to get out of the digestive system, and this can affect your digestion when you eat a sweet fruit.

The steamed veggies you're eating, does that include starchy vegetables: potatoes, yams, sweet potatoes, winter squash, etc? Perhaps this can be a source of energy for you, as you cut back on fats.

Eating a high fat diet is already affecting your current digestion. It is not normal to not be able to tolerate any form of carbohydrate, as every cell in our bodies is run off of sugar. You body's current preference for fat is driving your body to become more diabetic over time.

The next time you try to eat fruit, do this the day before. First, don't eat more than a half avocado that day, and eat it earlier so you'll have plenty of time to digest it (I am assuming no other fats). Then, at the end of the day, eat 2 pounds of lettuce, preferably plain, certainly with no fats, so that you digestive system will be swept out.

The next day, then try eating some fruit again. Make sure it is ripe. For example a ripe banana has freckles on it, and does not have a pure yellow skin. Also, the skin of the ripe banana is soft rather than rigid.

It may be that your body still needs some healing before you can eat fruit. In the mean time, get more of your calories from steamed veggies, including starchy ones, and see about cutting back on the fat - under 30% of your caloric intake, preferably under 20% if you can manage it. Also, if the Ezekiel bread or the manna bread is working for you, then eat it now as you move your diet away from fats and more to healthy raw foods.

Also remember that that take the small steps that David Mason always advises. Slow and steady is what is going to win this race.

Thank you all for your help and input. I do not eat a lot of fat at all. Never more than 1/2 avocado a day and that is pretty much the ONLY fat that I eat. I do not eat nuts or oils at this time as I was trying to really clean out my system and heal whatever is going wrong.
I have not had any kind of bread for atleast a month now and yes, I think the cravings are subsiding. I really was trying not to give in to them and I'm sure part of the draw is emotional cravings.
I am terrified to try eating fruit again after the horrible pains I have been experiencing. But I do have a small, ripe watermelon sitting here waiting for me and I hope to try it this coming week.

Thank you all again for your advice and suggestions. It's very helpful to know others have experienced similar problems.

Boy, MY*ID, I just read this whole thread. I really hope you're doing well. How are things going for you? Everyone's rooting for you. Hope you have some fans really close by too.



This way is not compatible with Zen practice. This way IS Zen practice. - Dr. Doug Graham

Nothing whatsoever should be attached to. - Buddha

These cravings are signs.

One or more of the following is probably happening:

1) You do not eat enough calories total in your day.
2) You eat too much fat (above 10 percent of calories from fat).
3) You're not eating enough fruit- the simple sugars in fruit send a signal to your brain that satisfies your hunger.
4) You haven't severed your emotional ties to cooked food.

To figure out which of these fits you, and to learn how to overcome the problems, read this: [www.raw-food-health.net]

TroySantos---Thank you so much for the kind words. I am hanging in there but have resorted to much of my day being filled with hot pureed steamed cauliflower "soups" and steamed summer squash since it seems to be easiest on my digestive system. I still eat raw veggies before every meal. I have still not have carbs and have not tried fruit again since my last post about that experience.

RusticBohemian-
Thank you for the info.
I am definitely eating enough calories. I am Female, 27, 5'5" and 125 pounds. I eat between 1200-1800 calories per day and eat very little fat (never more than 1/2 an avocado per day--no nuts, no seeds, no grains, little or no fruit)
I am not eating fruit due to serious digestive troubles.
And #4---No, I have definitely not severed emotional ties to cooked food.

I'm still trying to get through this though and not give in to grains and bread products until I can heal my system.