come the first of the year i want to go totally raw I am turning 50 and i have been 75% vegetairian but that is not enough for me I need my life back. Any suggestions on where to start? I thought i would have a smothie and barley grass for breakfast and go from there. I will quit drinking coffee that will be a biggy for me. If any one can steer me in the right direction i would like that. I just finish the book God's Way to Ultimate Health

Yes: Analyze the general level and type of raw foods that you are comfortable with NOW. Be VERY HONEST about that. That is YOUR starting point on the path. Don't let some guru or your own brain tell you otherwise.

-Make a list of the raw foods that you LOVE....and another list of what YOU think are your worst habits. Set VERY SMALL goals...with timetables....to incorporate more of the former...while eschewing the latter. A good goal to start with....is developing the habit of an all fruit/fruit juice breakfast every day. Very cleansing and relatively gentle on healthy systems. Just a tip or two.

Oh: Bring a snack bag to work....and everywhere you go. NEVER go hungry....and eat much more often....just keep it healthy - you know? Power to you.

-David Z. Mason

WWW.RawFoodFarm.com

wow thank you David. i am one who loves all fruits and veggies. I also love food in general. Do you think that all i have to eat is fruits and vegtables and my body will be happy?

I can share MY experience Tam:

-I used to be 5' 8" & 210 lbs. I LOVED to eat...and WANTED to eat a lot. But I couldn't control my weight. I gradually shifted to a vegetarian diet....then Vegan...after researching that fruits & vegetables packed tremendous nutrition into a low-calorie, nutrient-dense, high-water, high-fiber package. The complex sugars in fruits/veggies I knew would help control my blood sugar and high blood pressure. So I began a systematic analysis...and switched out calorie-dense foods (meat, dairy, refined carbs) for healthier alternatives. During transition, I snacked on hot-air popcorn.....and tons of oatmeal! Ha! ha! I brought HUGE bags of fruits & veggies to work...and snacked all day. I lost about 1 lb a week for 60 weeks straight! LOL. So the whole thing worked out well for me.

I've eaten nothing but fresh fruits and vegetables for many, many years now.....probably 8 years. The last 2 or 3...I've just eaten fruit. I'm the healthiest and happiest I've ever been. I think if you set YOUR goals and keep them....you'll do fine.

-Opinion: I think the most enlightened types are the ones who can be the most OK....with doing the smallest things. The most energy is always released from the smallest particles.

-What do you think?

-David Z. Mason

WWW.RawFoodFarm.com

You might pick up a few raw food books at your local library and start reading those, and there are lots of articles here on this site too, start at the home page.

There are tons of raw websites but this is my fav. one, but the others are so very useful and each their own flavor and info on becoming raw. Just do a search on the browser for raw foods.

I'm reading David Wolfe's book The Sunfood Diet Success System and it's terrific. You should eat sweet fruits, balanced later in day with green leafy veggies, and with that some fatty fruits, like avocados, coconuts, etc. Keeping nuts, nut butters, seeds as back up or if needed to keep from eating cooked foods, nut butter with celery is very good.

Welcome, and cheers to your new year of 2008 and becoming raw!

Love,
Prism

THANKS SO MUCH. MY HUSBAND THINKS HE WILL MISS COOKED FOODS IN THE WINTER MONTHS BUT I AM GOING TO GIVE IT A GO. I JUST NEED TO FIND RESORSES AND FIGURE OUT WHICH IS THE BEST FRUIT TO EAT AND THE BEST VEGGIES. I NEED TO UNDERSTAND WHAT IS CONSIDERED RAW AND WHAT IS NOT. I DO LOVE POPCORN AND SHUSHI THIS WILL BE HARDER. I DO LIKE THE THOUGHT OF BEING THIN AGAIN AND DOING THE THINGS I USE TO BE ABLE TO DO.

i AM ON THE PHONE WITH jOHN AND HE JUST DOESN/T UNDERSTAND HOW A PERSON CAN SURVIVE ON JUST FRUIT AND VEGTABLES. WHERE DO THEY GET THIER PROTEIN.

Hi Tamjojoadar,

Many Leafy Greens (romaine is particularly high), Avocados, nuts & seeds (hemp is high), seaweeds (hijiki, arame, sea palm, wakame, dulse, kelp), Blue Green Algae such as spirulina/chlorella, goji berries, cacao, legumes and lots more raw foods are good sources of protein.

Nataraj

Hi Tamjojoadar,

In my opinion, plant-based sources of protien are far superior to animal protiens. I just finished reading "The China Study" such an amazing book with so much great information about diet and health. I wish i could carry around extra copies of this book to give to people who can't understand where raw vegans would get their protien. This book clearly outlines how even moderate amounts of animal protien can cause serious health problems. "The China Study" doesn't address raw foodism specifically, but does advocate for a whole foods, plant based diet and should answer your husbands questions about protien....it may even inspire him!

Good luck with your journey.

Greg

thanks Greg John loves to read I will have him check out The China Study.

I think also that the book I just got done reading, The Sunfood Diet Success System by David Wolfe is excellent. I don't care for graphs, and he has his triangle system, but you get past that and then all the good practical advice is forthcoming and excellent.

Love,
Prism

Just keep most of your food prep as simple as peeling an orange, cutting a slice of watermelon or getting a bowl of frozen berries and you'll do great. A lot of the raw food recipes in raw un-cookbooks are complicated and are something that people don't make everyday, but you don't realize that fact until you have been doing the diet for awhile because raw food recipes are what sell raw food books, so the recipes get promoted as representaional of the raw food diet. You are going to want to eat small meals all day long rather than 3 big meals, so you can see why it's great to keep it simple.

While you're transitioning, you might want to eat something that's cooked but still rather healthy like brown rice, beans or cooked vegetables.