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Login Here Signup Here Signup using FacebookI am curious. I have heard people (i.e. Gabriel Cousens, members of this site, raw foodies I’ve met, etc.)say that you don’t need to eat as much on raw, because raw foods are so much more nutrient-dense. I have now twice this year counted my calories out of pure curiosity, and I find that I eat 3,500 or more per day with no vigorous exercise, and I’m not much over my ideal weight. I am slowly but steadily losing the extra weight I put on after being sick & malnourished a few months ago (my body gained extra weight as I caught up on nutrients). Anyhow, I have wondered more than once if I really need that many calories, or if my body deals with extra calories in order to just get the right nutrients? I decided to experiment & see what will happen. Today I drank 3 quarts of veggie juice (kale, broccoli leaves, grape leaves, carrots with their tops (thanks, TheRawDance!), cucumbers, & even the stems of 2 heads of cauliflower. I am wondering – if I focus on more nutrient dense stuff, will my caloric needs go down? This is sort of an experiment, and a place to ask if anyone knows more about this. I am not planning to restrict my calories at all; just to try to get lots of nutrient dense foods/juices in me & see if I’m still hungry for more calories. Anyone have any knowledge/experience with this, or have ideas of really nutrient-dense foods? I thought of spirulina, in addition to the cacao, maca & greens I already use. I’m planning to juice on a more regular basis & will keep you all informed if there’s anything significant that changes. Maybe I just need to eat a lot.
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I am reading The Raw life by paul nisson. He and another author I read (Natalia Rose – the raw food detox diet) think that once you are “clean” you require less to eat and both suggest no food in the AM, then fruit then a “well combined meal” before dark then fast and reapeat. They think you waste energy digesting when your body could be using the energy to heal.
I’d say, eat as much as you need to eat to keep from looking like a stick-figure like Gabriel Cousens.
Check out this video where he answers a question about anorexia, and notice how scrawny his arms are: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W5MeJ0yUjrk
I think the interviewer might have been trying to drop him a hint.
Kevlar – stick figure, huh? :) My arms ARE really thin – but I can’t do 600 push-ups like Gabriel Cousens says he can do. :)
sid23 – That’s interesting. I can’t imagine only fruit & one other meal. Interesting, though. I think Ann Wigmore ate very little calories & just focused on super nutrient dense stuff a couple of times a day.
Does anyone have personal experience with this? Still maintaining a healthy weight? And what kind of stuff do you eat, if so?
Okay, so I have been drinking green juice this week & making sure I get tons of vitamins & minerals, and something has happened. I have figured something out! I usually get cravings for whatever food(s) my body needs nutrients from, so I’m used to that. This afternoon, though, I was just HUNGRY! I craved high calorie food, and it didn’t matter if it was avocado, or mangos, or pine nuts, etc. – I just needed to eat! So I guess I’ve realized that I need vitamins, minerals, etc. AND I still need to eat a lot of calories. I’m good with that. :)
I think the biggest thing is listening to your body on what it needs. If you are eating mostly green smoothies and suddenly really crave higher fat foods, or a specific food then go for it – your body likely is missing something and wants you to eat it. If you are eating on the higher calorie end but maintaining a healthy weight, then your body must be OK with it.
Personally I slowly was switching over last year to eating more naturally, and over the summer was about 70%raw. School starting(I’m a teacher) threw me off, but getting back on track now and finding the same as this summer…that when I am eating higher quality raw foods I do need less of it and am filled for much longer than before.
blueyz – Thanks! Yes, I guess my body is fine with how much I’m eating. And I never tracked calories before eating raw, (other than a few years ago when I had and underactive thyroid & was reducing calories trying to lose weight), but growing up I always ate a lot and stayed thin. So, for all I know, I MAY be eating less calories now than I was before.
matt monarch talks about eating less being the ultimate goal—BUT over time. so by the time you are like 60 you should be eating very small meals. if you reduce your calories too much while you are young, then it will be too extreme for you to keep up long term. i have also heard this in “mainstream” nutrition, that for each decade we live we need to eat 10% less.
The answer to the question is YES, you will eat very minimally IF you consume HIGH Nutrient Dense foods. I am blessed to run the Kitchens at the Ann Wigmore Institute in Puerto Rico, and we have the best quality, nutrient dense, organic foods everyday. I can go for days just eating our Energy Soup. As a matter of fact, I find I need the Sun more than I need the food!! I think what Raw foodist need to start to consider is my food supply safe? how I am going to be Self Sufficient with my food supply? How do I stop paying high prices and order foods from half-way around the world?
I read somewhere that if you don’t get enough calories in a day, (which i struggle to do) it can effect your protein intake. I’ll try to find that tomorrow to post on here.
I am very interested in this topic and have heard differing opinions.
ecvraw – I would love the answers to some of those questions! Mostly the high prices & not ordering from halfway around the world, yet getting high quality raw foods.
bitt – That’s interesting! I have heard Gabriel Cousens say we need to eat only half as much food because it has twice the nutrition when raw – something like that.
I find it interesting that I need less raw food, calorically, to feel full and function well. To non-raw people, though, my intake appears to be high. I can eat a few apples in a sitting, whereas they might only take one. I have eaten a small-ish seedless watermelon on my own in one go, or eaten 8-10 ounces of baby spinach in a giant bowl. When I make zucchini pasta, I might eat two good sized zucchinis, which makes a large bowlful. The sauce might consist of a whole avocado, a couple of cloves of garlic, a small bunch of basil, the pulp and juice of a ruby red grapefruit and a bit of sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Occasionally, I’ll sprinkle on a few cashews that have been put through my coffee grinder with a bit of nutritional yeast. It’s awesome, by the way! It looks like a mountain in my bowl, but really, how calorically dense is it? If the rest of my day consists of a bowl of spinach with a light dressing, plus a few pieces of fruit, am I not eating much less than the average SAD eater? It just looks like a lot more, because the foods I choose to eat have such high water contents. I know I’m eating less, but for the first time in my life, I’m not hungry all the time (and for all the wrong reasons!) and craving trigger foods (I’m a recovering bulimic). Everyone is different. Some people need tons of fuel while others do not. Some people go through hungrier times and then less hungry times. Listen to your body! Feed it only what it needs to function optimally – no more and no less.
sweetpea – your description of food makes me hungry!!
good point about how it looks like a mountain of zucchini in a bowl, but fairly low in calories. and i totally agree with this . Everyone is different. Some people need tons of fuel while others do not. Some people go through hungrier times and then less hungry times. Listen to your body! Feed it only what it needs to function optimally – no more and no less.
1sweetpea & winona – Thank you! That’s the intention with which I started this journey – to feed my body exactly and only what it needs. I guess I get distracted from that any time I compare myself to other people – duh! :P Thanks for reminding me. :)
angie writes ecvraw – I would love the answers to some of those questions! Mostly the high prices & not ordering from halfway around the world, yet getting high quality raw foods.
Well to limit high prices, learning to grow your own food and using local, when in season is top priority. Growing your own sprouts is a great way to supply yourself with nourishing greens. Going to local farmers markets and purchasing fruits and veggies in season is another cost effective way of saving money. Planting your own garden and getting back to being self sufficient, especially in these times of genetically altered and nutrientless factory grown food,is fantistic way to gather your own nutrient dense food and very therapeutic at the same time.
Most of these Marketeers want you to buy foods grown in exotic places and half way around the world, the same goes for your local supermarket buying selling produce from countries that ship unripe fruits and veggies that have to be gassed or preserved in some way. I am advocating using local foods, grow your own and be self sufficient. I know that in the long run you will save money, and the longer you are living a Raw Vegan Living Foods lifestyle, you will start to eat less!! Of course eating less and still feeling RAWSOME will definitly mean your food bills will go down, plus the self satisfaction of harvesting your OWN FOOD.
Gabriel Cousins looks great, very vibrant! Many 40 year olds don’t look as good as that 60 some year old man.
Kevlar—do women think Gabriel Cousins is attractive is what you are wondering. I’d say yes. But you cannot tell from that video whether he has a small, medium or large frame. A tall woman, albeit it raw and thin, probably isn’t going to go for someone that is near the same height or weight. When you mentioned that he was anorexic, I thought I might see a person like the other raw guru person who likes to do a yoga pose with his hands behind his back. Gabriel Cousins appears to not be like that. He has it going on.
Some yogis somehow think they are better than other people when they put their feet behind their heads or posture themselves in some other unnatural positions. No, please don’t do those things unless you are in a yoga class with people who want to see you do that.
Angie, perhaps you have a very high metabolism. I’d imagine that most people eating over 3,000 calories a day raw or not would become obese. And if a body was able to process all those calories, I think you’d definitely be putting unwanted wear and tear on your vehicle.
This has just been my experience, but I think it is really really really important to eat enough. I was eating a 100% raw diet, and I focused on the most nutrient dense foods I could find. And I became so malnourished that my heart started to slow down, and other bodily functions ceased to continue. The idea that you can live on less calories if you are getting nutrients, I believe, is a myth. Your body will still go into starvation mode if you do not take in enough food. Just think of it this way, on a SAD diet, you are getting all the cals you need, nut few nutrients, but on a raw diet you get all the nutrients you need, PLUS all the energy (cals). Please please please do not starve yourself. It will seem like you are getting healthier at the beginning, but trust me, it does not stay that way! Just because you but high quality gas in your car, wouldn’t make the car need less fuel. Better nutrition does not mean you need less energy to keep your body going. If you want vibrant health you need the best of both worlds! Energy and nutrients cannot be substituted for one another, they are separate things, both havening the same importance. O.k, I just get scared when people think its healthy to eat to little, because of what happened to me.
ecvraw – Thanks! I agree about the garden on all levels! Soooo nourishing: physically, mentally, spiritually, emotionally. This is my third year growing a garden, and it’s the best one yet! Next year may hopefully be even better… I just started sprouting a lot of stuff to save money, too. Today, I am making sprouted grain bread, and I have sprouted buckwheat dehydrating (for salad crunchies or cereal), garden tomatoes drying for winter use, and alfalfa seeds sprouting as a cheap way to get green stuff. I may start growing my own wheatgrass soon, as well – I finally found one window in the house that might get enough sunlight through it to grow something. Yay! Even if I don’t eat less, I will be more able to afford what I do eat.
Dancin Durian – Thank you for your response & sharing your experience! I think you are right.
And itourist, too. Yes, I must just have a high metabolism.
Just because other people eat less than I do and are healthy, doesn’t mean I can or should eat any way except the way that works for me – it’s good to be reminded of that. I am also grateful for all the options I have for sprouting & gardening, to make things less expensive. :) I expect to be saving quite a bit after figuring out (and starting to do) all the things I can do/eat/make in order to save money. Yay, happy food!
I have a hard time understanding the “eating less calories thing…” Just because I like to feel a sense of freedom with raw and not worry about how much I am eating as I like to eat. Although I like to eat, I am a bit triggery with ED’s due to body image stuff and know if I start trying to “eat less…” it will just get less and less and less…which is what has happened to me in the past.
So I aim for at LEAST 1600 – 2000 calories a day – mostly on fruit. I’m not sure if that’s too little or not – I’m paying attention to how I feel and if I feel tired, I just eat more fruit.
I appreciate Dancin Durian’s testimony.
I wouldn’t recommend cutting down you’re intake just because you’re a raw foodist willy nilly. Eat when you’re hungry and until you’re satisfied. Attempting to decrease you’re food and water intake is a serious practice that requires lots of mental clarity and focus, using techniques developed in the East thousands of years ago. I especially wouldn’t recommend practicing “Breatharianism”, which Matt Monarch advocates. Several people have died trying this because they tried it without any previous experience.
The best resource I can give you on this subject is this website: http://www.solarhealing.com/ . Still, please be careful when trying anything like this.
I wouldn’t recommend cutting down you’re intake just because you’re a raw foodist willy nilly. Eat when you’re hungry and until you’re satisfied. Attempting to decrease you’re food and water intake is a serious practice that requires lots of mental clarity and focus, using techniques developed in the East thousands of years ago. I especially wouldn’t recommend practicing “Breatharianism”, which Matt Monarch advocates. Several people have died trying this because they tried it without any previous experience.
The best resource I can give you on this subject is this website: http://www.solarhealing.com/ . Still, please be careful when trying anything like this.