Should I jump right in by eating nothing but raw foods, or ease into it? What are the best foods to eat as a beginner to this lifestyle?

Hi, Ebony16!

The majority of people seem to get into the raw food lifestyle gradually by just adding more and more raw foods to their diet. As they do that, raw foods just naturally replace cooked foods. Many say it helped them have success and stick with it. Maybe some people only want to be 50% raw or get to 75% raw and feel happy with that. Any increase in raw is an improvement, right?

Never one to follow the crowd, I jumped in all the way right from the start. I loved seeing/feeling/experiencing so many changes so quickly by being almost 100% raw right away. Rather than restrictive, I found it liberating to not worry about what or how much I ate as long as it was raw. I ate lots of fruit and lots of salad, but I did go easy on the nuts and seeds. I was almost 100% raw for a year and now feel comfortable with around 90% raw.

Whichever way you choose, best wishes!!!!


My favorite raw vegan

I am finding juicing and making smoothies very helpful in getting started. I am new to this raw food diet and its helping me maintain. I been eating lots of salads too. Also I looked up a few recipes like some soups and entrees and did a few already. It may be a good idea to buy a recipe book, although online you can get recipes for free. Ive already tried sprouting some seeds and was successful too. So if you are interested in sprouts try a few and it will give you an idea the type of work involved.

Oh, while we're talking smoothies, at first I didn't know about green smoothies. They sound weird, but they're GREAT. You just have to not think about the color at first. (Eventually it starts to look pretty!) Like Punkrotten says, you can look up recipes, but usually it's fruit, juice and leafy greens. Surprisingly, you don't taste the lettuce because the fruit taste overpowers it. It's an easy way to get extra greens in a tasty way.


My favorite raw vegan

Like today I used kale, celery, wheatgrass, and then added an apple, little handful of grapes and strawberries. Added about 1 tablespoon of flax oil, about a cup of water and blended the whole thing. Tomorrow I will try different stuff and see what I like best.

I started juicing last year for health reasons and within 3 months could see a huge difference. Then I slipped back into eating mostly cooked foods again. And got sick again. Recently I decided that I had to start juicing again to regain good health and energy. I went to a Raw Food Seminar with Tanya Zavasta about 3 weeks ago. She served green pudding made in a Vita Mix with Collard Greens and Mango. It was absolutely delicious. I bought books there and a book on Green Smoothies. Then I got a Vita Mix and a Dehydrator.

She said it is best to ease yourself into changing to a Raw Foodist. I am mostly Raw now, about 75% and aiming to get that to at least 90%.

Wishing you the best.
Karola

I am contemplating the raw eating lifestyle and I think I would enjoy it very much. My concern is how to get enough of the right amounts of protein and not too many carbs all at once. I am type 2 diabetic and I am not on any meds, just diet...however i have been having some trouble with sugar lately and I have a long time left on this planet...i want health and vitality for the rest of my days. I am so tired of having to watch every carb i put in my mouth. I know that fruits and veggies are the most nutritious foods we have, but a lot of them are high in sugars. Any thoughts on how to make this way of eating work for a diabetic?

Look up Raw for Thirty... it's a video series about the program Dr. Gabriel Cousins has for getting diabetics healthy with raw food.

There is lots that can and will work for you! But, you SHOULD start out carefully, with some sort of medical supervision.

Live Well, Laugh Often, Love Much
We are all in this together!
Namasté

I am also a type 2 diabetic I saw the video Raw for thirty and started adding salads with lots of greens and avocados. I am leery about adding any fruits due to the sugar content and so far I have not started doing any smoothies or juicing. I am just eating two huge salads a day to start. I have tried to find recipes that are easy because I am the only one in my family eating this way and if I get overwhelmed I won't continue. How do you find someone that is willing to help? My doctor is so anti health food it isn't funny. We have a shortage of doctors so I am still looking for another one. I am on a restricted budget so paying out for a naturopath (sp?) isn't in the budget yet.
Also I have a question regarding allergies, how do you know if it is a detox reaction or an allergy flaring up? I have had a lot of food sensitivies to wheat and dairy etc and some nuts so I am being very cautious with the nuts.

I welcome any help and encouragement. Thanks to all.

Many people gradually add more and more raw food into their diet, but I jumped right in. I don't have health insurance and my liver was swollen, I had heart palpitations a lot and edema as well as fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue. I was sick and tired all of the time. I started out with 3 days of pear juice followed by 3 days of another juice. I was very very sick for a couple weeks as my body detoxed. Foods that I have had reactions to I have cut out and am adding in a new food every three days. I go back again later and try the foods to see if I get the same reaction. I keep track of symptoms and whatnot in a journal that I write in regularly. That way I know if I get the same reactions again that it could be an allergy. It took me over a month before I starated feeling really good. I had a lot of detoxing going on though and I am not sorry that I did things the way I did. You have a choice. You can detox quickly and feel ill at first but feel better sooner OR you can detox slowly but take longer to feel better. The choice is up to you. You have the freedom to make choices for your body and life. Isn't that exciting?!

Upbeatbirdie

My mom has breast cancer and had been trying to go the natural way, so we bought the 10 day program family pack (can bring 1 friend of family member with you) for Brenda Cobbs Living Foods Institute, in Georgia.
Her tumor was getting too bad so we decided to go through with Chemo.
So now we have this package that we won't need, but need to sell to help pay for our hospital bills.
You would have until August of 2012 to use it.



Insert description from Brenda's webpage-
"Lily Course 5 Days 1100.00 + 500.00 for a friend.
This course includes Hands-On Recipe Preparation and Daily Classes on the topics of Emotional Healing, Herbs, Essential Oils, Superfoods, Hydration, Positive Mental Thinking, Stress Management, DNA Reprogramming, Cleansing and Detoxification. Also included are Organic Meals, Colon Cleansing Supplies, Training Manual, “Living Foods Lifestyle®” Book, & course completion certificate.


The therapies also included in the Lily Course are: 1 Colonic, 1 Footbath, 1 Metatron Mat, 5 Chi, 5 Medlight, 5 Rebounder, 30 Minute Phone Consultation with Brenda Cobb."
Brenda added 3 free therapies added on top of everything.