Introduction time!

Hi everyone, my name is Kristina and I'm a 25-year-old pesco-vegetarian.

I am interested in pursuing a raw food vegan diet, and have noticed some discrepancies in what the makeup of a raw diet should look like. I'm sure some of these answers are somewhere on this site, but here are my most pressing questions anyway.

1. What is the ideal fat content of a raw diet? For instance, many recipes on here require cups worth of nuts, while the 80/10/10 diet barely allows for half an avocado's worth of fat per day. Is there a happy medium?

2. What is the ideal fruit/veggie carbs vs. other carbs of a raw diet? Some raw food diets rely solely on fruits and vegetables for carbs (again, such as the 80/10/10), while others include sprouted grains such as quinoa, wheat berries, etc.

3. What is the deal with raw milk products such as raw goat's milk cheese? Does this count as a raw food? Also, are there raw soy milks, nut milks, rice milks, or hemp milks, or are they all cooked?

4. What is the typical way people go raw? I read that some people incorporate a raw food diet 1-2 days per week at first, and then gradually increase. Others go cold turkey and jump right in. What's the best way?

5. I have a Magic Bullet blender, which I'm sure will quickly bite the dust after making green banana smoothies every day. However, I also can't afford a $500 Vitamix blender. Is there a cheaper blender that will do for the beginnings of a raw diet?

6. Do raw foodists take vitamins and supplements as needed or is this not ok?

7. I began today, following mostly the 80/10/10 guidelines. My menu is/will be as follows (looks a little strange time-wise because I had the day off today):

Lunch: 2 bananas (10 oz.), 2 cups mixed greens, 1/2 cup frozen raspberries, 1 cup water in a smoothie

Snack: 15 oz. watermelon, 2 bananas (8 oz.)

Dinner: 3 cups mixed salad, 1 medium cucumber, 1 cup trimmed string beans, guacamole (1 avocado, 1/2 small white onion, 1/2 jalepeno pepper, juice from 1/2 lime, 1 clove garlic)

Dinner/after gym: 16 oz. strawberries

According to The Daily Plate (livestrong.com), this comes out to be roughly 1,100 calories, 77% carbs, 16% fat, and 7% protein. Is this ok? Not ok? Any suggestions? Is it balanced (for a raw food diet)?

8. Coffee detox. I drink a venti (3 shot) americano every morning. Today, I didn't as apparently coffee doesn't count as a raw food. However, I am in headache central right now. Any suggestions?

Maybe that's all I'll ask for now. Thanks in advance for your help! I'm excited to learn more.

Comments

  • pixxpixx Raw Master

    Most questions 1 through 6 are personal preference, therefor answers will differ from person to person. I'll pick out the few that can be answered without bias. The rest you will need to decide what works for YOU.

    "are there raw soy milks, nut milks, rice milks, or hemp milks, or are they all cooked?"

    You can make raw nut mylk at home (including hemp) but purchased ones (such as in aseptic packages) are cooked.

    "Is there a cheaper blender that will do for the beginnings of a raw diet?"

    Many folks use regular blenders. I am still using a $45 blender that I'd had a few years before going raw. I did purchase a $200 blender, only to find it didn't blend greens as well as the $45 one, so I returned it. (It did ice beautifully, but that's not what I need.)

    "I am in headache central right now. Any suggestions?"

    1) press through it. *or* [easier, but slower] 2) taper slowly.

    As for #7, were you satisfied ["full"]? Did you feel good? If so, I think your day seems just fine.

    [ie: if you were not satiated, eat more. If you had stomach discomfort, look into food combining.]

    Welcome, Kristina- and good luck wading through the discrepancies! This path is indeed full of them, but as I said-- decide what works best for YOU!! :~)

  • thanks for the suggestions!

  • pixxpixx Raw Master

    You are quite welcome, Kristina!

    :~)

  • superfood2superfood2 Raw Newbie

    Welcome!!! :) Good to have you hear. I agree with Pixx that it's based on individual preference, but surely a diet of many nuts and seeds and oils and other processed foods is not the healthiest in terms of nutrients that your body needs, and they further don't combine well with the sweet fruits you'll need for energy.

    1. What is the ideal fat content of a raw diet? For instance, many recipes on here require cups worth of nuts, while the 80/10/10 diet barely allows for half an avocado's worth of fat per day. Is there a happy medium?

    I THINK THERE MAY BE A HAPPY MEDIUM OF 10-20% CALORIES FROM FAT. DEPENDS ON WHAT YOU WANT AND HOW YOU FEEL.

    2. What is the ideal fruit/veggie carbs vs. other carbs of a raw diet? Some raw food diets rely solely on fruits and vegetables for carbs (again, such as the 80/10/10), while others include sprouted grains such as quinoa, wheat berries, etc.

    THE BEST CARBS, I THINK, ARE FROM FRUIT. FRESH, RIPE, WHOLE FRUIT. I DON'T THINK GRAINS ARE HEALTHY, BUT AGAIN, IT'S UP TO YOU. MOST GRAINS ARE ACID-FORMING AND CAUSE INFLAMMATION.

    3. What is the deal with raw milk products such as raw goat's milk cheese? Does this count as a raw food? Also, are there raw soy milks, nut milks, rice milks, or hemp milks, or are they all cooked?

    I DON'T KNOW ABOUT ANIMAL PRODUCTS BEING RAW AS I'VE NEVER LOOKED IT UP; I HAVE NO INTEREST IN TAKING A GOAT'S MILK.

    YOU CAN'T DO RAW SOY MILK BUT YOU CAN MAKE RAW NUT AND SEED MILKS. I DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU'D COMBINE THIS WITH OR HOW YOU WOULD USE IT. I FIND MOST PEOPLE USE IT FOR DESSERTS OR CEREALS, FOODS THAT I FIND SUB-OPTIMAL, LARGELY FATTY AND TOO HIGH-PROTEIN, AND IMBALANCED FOR OUR BODIES. DESSERTS OR MILKS HERE AND THERE AREN'T TOO BAD, BUT I WOULDN'T MAKE THEM PART OF YOUR DAILY DIET. THINK - IF YOU NEED A BLENDER FOR IT, DO YOU REALLY WANT IT? WOULDN'T YOU RATHER BITE INTO A PEACH?

    4. What is the typical way people go raw? I read that some people incorporate a raw food diet 1-2 days per week at first, and then gradually increase. Others go cold turkey and jump right in. What's the best way?

    I WAS ABOUT 50% (WITHOUT THINKING ABOUT IT SPECIFICALLY IN TERMS OF RAW; I JUST LOVED SALADS AND FRUIT) FOR A YEAR, AND THEN I BEGAN THINKING ABOUT GOING RAW AND DID 80% FOR 2-3 MONTHS AND THEN UP TO 95-100%. IT WAS EASY AND WHAT I WANTED AT THE TIME. YOUR EXPERIENCE MAY BE DIFFERENT.

    5. I have a Magic Bullet blender, which I'm sure will quickly bite the dust after making green banana smoothies every day. However, I also can't afford a $500 Vitamix blender. Is there a cheaper blender that will do for the beginnings of a raw diet?

    THE MAGIC BULLET IS OKAY FOR GREENS, IF YOU STICK TO SPINACH, IT WILL BE BETTER, AND YOU CAN BLEND THE GREENS WITH WATER FIRST AND THEN ADD YOUR FRUIT.

    6. Do raw foodists take vitamins and supplements as needed or is this not ok?

    EVERY RAW FOODIST IS DIFFERENT. I TAKE B-12, AS I THINK EVERYONE SHOULD (EVEN OMNI). OTHER ITEMS I GET FROM FRUIT AND GREENS.

    7. I began today, following mostly the 80/10/10 guidelines. My menu is/will be as follows (looks a little strange time-wise because I had the day off today):

    Lunch: 2 bananas (10 oz.), 2 cups mixed greens, 1/2 cup frozen raspberries, 1 cup water in a smoothie

    Snack: 15 oz. watermelon, 2 bananas (8 oz.)

    Dinner: 3 cups mixed salad, 1 medium cucumber, 1 cup trimmed string beans, guacamole (1 avocado, 1/2 small white onion, 1/2 jalepeno pepper, juice from 1/2 lime, 1 clove garlic)

    Dinner/after gym: 16 oz. strawberries

    According to The Daily Plate (livestrong.com), this comes out to be roughly 1,100 calories, 77% carbs, 16% fat, and 7% protein. Is this ok? Not ok? Any suggestions? Is it balanced (for a raw food diet)?

    I THINK THE BALANCE IS GOOD, BUT IT'S NOT ENOUGH CALORIES. YOU NEED MORE FRUIT. WAY BEFORE THE FAT/AVOCADO TO LET IT DIGEST FIRST. I'D GET 2,000-3,500 A DAY AND GET SOME EXERCISE AND SUNLIGHT. (YES, i'M FEMALE TOO)

    8. Coffee detox. I drink a venti (3 shot) americano every morning. Today, I didn't as apparently coffee doesn't count as a raw food. However, I am in headache central right now. Any suggestions?

    OTHERS HAVE DONE IT AND WE FEEL FOR YOU, HONEY. OH, MAN, MINE WAS THREE DAYS TO A WEEK OF THOSE HEADACHES AND FUZZY FEELING. PERSEVERE AND IT WILL PAY OFF TO HAVE ENERGY AND FEEL AWAKE WITHOUT STIMULANTS. DO NOT SWITCH TO CHOCOLATE. IF YOU HAVE RAW CHOCOLATE, THIS SHOULD NOT BE DAILY. I MADE THIS MISTAKE AND HAD TO DETOX FROM RAW CHOCOLATE. AHH1!!!!! IT WAS VERY HARD.

  • pixxpixx Raw Master

    A word on calories:

    How many calories a person needs truly depends on their size and their energy expenditure. (I myself do quite fine on the calories you mentioned, Kristina.)

    Here is a site that will calculate how many calories you will need daily to do nothing but stay in bed all day. Add more calories based on your energy needs (calories burned), & weight loss/gain goals.

    http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/

Sign In or Register to comment.