Raw

okay so I discovered the raw diet....I've been eating only raw fruits and vegetables since tuesday...

I know some of you would never even CONSIDER doing this...but from what I hear the benefits are unbelievable, and even after 4 days of eating raw I've had an incredible change in energy...a positive one at that

Tonight I had a salad with a little chicken and cheese (I know, not veg at all)...after I ate it I felt so full and disgusting...and I'm inspired to go back to raw...

has anyone here ever tried raw?

I haven't ... but some of these people have.

Yes I did raw vegan for awhile. I used thegardendiet Yes I felt great and energetic etc. however I dont know about long term health. I have done research and the longerst lived societies in the world arent evern vegetarians. Having said that;) when I was raw my skin looked smooth and clear and my wrinkles faded away. I also needed less sleep.

If you plan on doing it long term I would recomend finding an open minded Doctor who will help you moniter your b12, iron, protien, bone density etc.

I think doing 30 days raw (or less) is a wonderful alternative for people who want the benifits of fasting without the risks.

My brother has also done 100% raw and we both agree that it sucked haha other than the having tons of energy and feeling great thing lol. I just missed my cooked food too much.

Good luck and just stay in tune with your body and find a doc to moniter your nutrients.

Keep in touch

Oh another thing I found much easier to stick with was Dr. Youngs vegan eating plan. It is approx 80-90% raw alkilizing foods and 10-20% cooked   I did this for years and plan on doing it again. It is a nice transition to raw and/or long term plan.

If you want more info just click on my name and you can email or instant message me

Have a great weekend

hey, thanks a ton.

I'll take the short term thing into consideration ;)

have a great weekend

my fiance is starting a raw diet. mainly fruits and veg. very little grains and very little animal protein only cooked slightly. should be interesting. i would love to try it too but i need to get an okay from my doctor before i could. good luck. i would love to know how it works out!

I really prefer all vegetables raw.  Even potatoes.  The best raw veggies are the ones you rip out of the ground yourself, and eat them before they realize they are dying.

mmm the only cooked thing I need to eat is sweet potato...no butter, baked in the oven...hea-ven.

I bought a mango today for the first time! It's my new favorite fruit, besides pineapple of course :)

I'll keep you posted!

I haven't but I know of it. I can be good, there are actually a lot fo "raw ' recipes out ther,e but man yof them require a lot of soaking and blending and what not to make raw versions of various dishes.

If you google raw food diet, you will find a ton of information, but beware of the source, some of it is great, some of it is quackery.

i was considering doing this...tough considering 2 things...

1) i was raised a carnivore hahaha
2) i go out to eat a lot with my bf

the first thing is easy enough cause it's personal choice.
the second thing is kind of like...what do i order? garden salads right?

what if i get bored of them?

haha

i hear raw foodists get REALLY skinny...is that true?

I've heard that many people lose a LOT of weight because their bodies are getting rid of toxins and unwanted fat, but then your body regulates itself to your natural weight....hope this is true haha

There is a really great cookbook which not only has great recipes but also a lot of good information about raw diets (from the author who is not a doctor). It's called "RAW: The Uncook Book" by Juliano Brotman. I'm nowhere near a raw diet, but I do try to incorprorate as much raw food as I can and this book has helped me think outside the box of salads and plain veggies.

I'm also trying to go raw-er than I am eating now - but I absolutely cannot give up all carbohydrates, so I'm still cooking my brown rice. When I finish the things that have to be cooked (rice and pasta) I'll be eating raw except cheese and yogurt - and the occasional cooked meat, since I am not vegetarian and don't really want to get anemic. 

I'm so P.O.'d... I was telling my friend at lunch today that I'm trying to go raw, and she got so mad at me! She thinks that people can't possibly thrive on just fruits and vegetables. I was trying to convince her that of course we could, but then other friends joined in and ganged up on me!!! How can I stop the ignorance? I'm going insane!

I think people also lose a lot of weight and gain benefits due to just eating fewer calories and maximizing the nutrients in the calories they do eat, esp. when they come from non-processed sources.

Hey there, I've been doing a roughly 95% raw diet for the past 4 years, so I thought I'd punch in some of my observations.

As applies to eating at least 80% raw:

Weight loss:  If you're overweight, you will most likely lose weight.  Some people keep losing weight even to the point of skinniness, at which point people usually add more calories in the form of nuts, seeds, bananas, avocados, coconuts, etc. 

Everybody's different though.  When I first went raw, I dropped 15 pounds (to 125), but some of it was definitely muscle.  As a martial artist this wasn't exactly my favorite result!  But as time went on and I kept building my strength on raw foods, my weight stabilized at 130, which is where I feel my body "wants" to be.

kungfu17 is totally right though -- you tend to eat less simply because so much of appetite is based not on caloric amounts but on vitamin and mineral amounts.  Raw foods have so much going on in them that a lot of people end up feeling satisfied eating far less than they're used to.

magda1020 -- you absolutely don't have to give up "carbs" when you go raw.  Keep in mind that raw foodists eat lots of carbs in the form of fruit (especially bananas, for some people), and you can also include raw dehydrated things like breads and crackers.  I just had zucchini pancakes for breakfast.  :-D

bo_bo_bo -- sounds like you have some real jerks around you operating on a basis of not just ignorance but also fear.  I don't understand this, but it seems that people are very threatened by others around them changing their lifestyles in ways contrary to their own. 

You just have to be strong and do what you want in spite of them!  Your health is more important than their fear.

You have no obligation to argue with them -- arguing with the ignorant is like asking a blind man if he likes the color of your dress -- but if you need the support there are plenty of inspirational characters in the raw food world.  Look to raw vegan bodybuilders like Stephen Arlin and Kathy Feldman.  Look to mischievous blender-happy alchemists like David Wolfe.  And look to yourself, because that's where the real Truth will come from.

I love raw food and think that it is one of the best changes people could make to the their diet.  I understand that raw isn't for everyone and it must be hard to eat only raw for every meal ( i love warm foods) but I do think that its vital for health taht we include it on a daily basis!!  it has so many live enzymes that are vital for good health and more nutrients that cooked food!!  I bet there wouldnt' be a ntritionist that would stop you from going raw???

I am perhaps the most impatient  person in the world, I was reading about sprouting  rice to eat raw and there's no way I would be able to wait a week to eat it, much less still want to eat it by the time it was ready. I'm in Japan right now so pretty much I have to make anything I want to eat if I want to know what's in it (both because I can't read Japanese very well and many things lack ingredients), but when I go back to America I want to try the dehydrated breads.

Also,  I love a nice steaming bowl of pasta with melty cheese... which is most definately not raw by any stretch of the imagination :/

oh, i love sprouting...

i've never sprouted rice but i have sprouted beans, seeds and peas etc... and they taste soooo good!!

anyone else do this???

beans

and I tried radishes too.

I can't remember if they were good!

Sprouted broccoli is awesome.  Sometimes I'll sprout my own mung beans instead of buying them for way more from the store.  But I don't do it often because I forget to rinse them, and then I'm afraid to eat them.