I just recently upped my raw percentage, which means no more oats…which is basically what has been helping me get most of my calories. That and the fact that I have no money, means I can not buy a ton of fruit to get most of my calories from, and instead can only buy so much. So, I’ve turned to nuts and seeds…fairly cheap in bulk at my coop and high in calories. I’ll have several tablespoons of nut butter with breakfast (with apples and bananas), nuts as a snack, a green smoothie with tons of seeds, some more nuts as a snack, and dinner will be like a nut cheese with a nut bread and salad with a nut dressing and chopped seeds!! Man, that’s a lot of nuts and seeds. The thing is, I have several concerns:
1) Is eating this much fat, even raw fat healthy?
2) Isn’t it easy to gain weight? It’s so easy to overconsume, since nuts are so small yet so high in calories…how do you know how much to toss into your plate? Or because it’s raw and has enzymes, will you still keep the weight off?
3) I am kind of getting sick of eating so much fat. I just want to eat a regular salad with apple slices, but it just won’t keep me full. How can some raw foodists survive on a salad as a meal? Does your stomach shrink or something?
4) No matter how many nuts I add to my meal, I’m still crazily hungry a few hours later (even though I think I get enough calories).
That’s my problem. I notice we all eat tons of fat…or a lot of us. So, what does everyone think?
Comments
Rawsiki, one option is Chia seeds. Low in fat, high in protein and lots of bang for your buck financially. Flax seeds are also good, though chia is definitely more filling. Everybody’s different, so I would never tell you how much fat you should have. Listen to your body…also I believe Alissa Cohen’s site may have raw oats if you want to keep that in your diet.
Rawsiki- How much money do you spend a week? Including superfoods, pre packaged raw foods, supplements, anything! Also, where do you live? What climate are you in?
I do have chia seeds, but I don’t know if they’re raw or not. And I don’t know how to listen to my body! That’s the problem! I’m sort of recovering from a malnourished diet, and I can’t tell when I’m full. I saw the raw oats, but it’s so expensive!
TreeOfLife-I spend like $56 a week, which is all my money, and all the money my mom gives me, and it sucks. I don’t buy superfoods, supplements, or pre packaged raw foods. Well, I bought cacao nibs and raw bread last week, but that wiped me out. I live in Indiana, it’s warm, but cold right now…why?
Rawsiki- Do you spend your entire $56 on your food or on other things also?? Strange, I live in Arizona and my weekly produce costs about $40-$50, depending on how much I get, but with that I can buy pounds of assortments of fruits and lots of greens and veggies. About how much does fruit cost in Indiana??
eloisa—WOW! $40-50 gets me produce for a few DAYS. geez.
i’m not for eating so much fat. i mean, if you came from a diet of cheeseburgers and french fries, then you’d probably be getting a similar amount of fat, but raw. so i understand that logic. BUT, if you are coming from a low fat diet, then eating a bunch of raw fat just doesn’t feel good.
i’d sooner eat steamed veggies and seasonal squashes and quinoa (for dinner that is) than eat that much fat. my personal conviction is that this journey takes us to a lower, higher quality calorie intake.
to answer 3)—> the more i eat the way i just outlines the fewer calories i need. it’s kind of amazing. i NEVER thought i’d survive on a green smoothie at noon and some soup and salad for dinner… but i do. and i feel better the less i eat.
ALSO, drink water!
there’s so much info to share about this… but if you can’t eat fruit then that is my suggestion.
p.s. have you tried buckwheat groats? i use them to make porridge, sweet and savory. click on my profile to see an “oatmeal” recipe.
Try growing your own food. And if that isn’t possible because of climate, then try sprouts. You can by them in bulk (by personal favorite is mung bean sprouts). You just soak them in water for 8 hours and then rinse and drain. Let them sit in a bowl that is lightly covered until the sprout tail is a long as you desire. I usually let them sit for a couple days. Put these on salads, toss with low fat dressings or sauces, or just eat plain. This really fills you up, it makes me more satified in my experience
Rawsiki-Hello my dear!
First of all, I wanna find out how to do that RAWSAGNA on your profile pic :-D 2nd of all, I have noticed a similar thing about the raw lifestyle (or my raw lifestyle). When I get crazy w/the fats, I switch gears FAST. I will eat nothing but lite, vitamin rich-living foods (LIVING)! So up the intake of juiced fruits/veggies, salads, sprouts, etc. Third, there is nothing wrong with the fats in moderation. I used to be addicted to (Raw Chef) Rawsheed’s desserts. They are mostly nuts and nut creams. I gained so much weight when I first ate raw cuz I love the fatty nuts. But also I felt bloated and/or heavy. Just pull back a bit. Peace! (Oh and I really do want that recipe)
Hey MellieVeggie! Haha, you know that rawsagna picture is not truly raw. When I first went “raw”, I just threw together a bunch of ingredients and I don’t really remember what I did. Well, if you’d like to use the semi-raw recipe and maybe spice it up or turn it all raw…I think it’s something like:
Brown rice and water -pureed for the pasta (maybe you could use nuts)
Tomatoes, garlic, carrots -for the sauce
Peas and other veggies -slapped in between pasta
Then nuts, nutritional yeast and onions- for the cheese layer
Good luck!
I second Tiny1, try mung bean sprouts and see if it works for you. If you don’t like to eat them plain you can add some vegetables/fruits, dressing, oil, salt etc.
I definitely think sprouts will help – high protein, lower fat, but very filling! My absolute favorite sprouts are lentil sprouts (although I must admit I haven’t sprouted gobs)! They make great dips, great on salads, in wraps, as a salad instead of lettuce… you could probably even make crackers out of them! They are VERY cheap, too. Good luck!
You can order really raw whole oats from www.sunorganic.com and sprout them. Just order the oats for sprouting; even “raw” oats groats are not really raw. Sprouting & growing my own food saves me a lot of money. :)
i spend about $50 a week on food and i’m eating like 80% fruit, 15% greens/veggies, and like 5% nuts. i don’t buy any superfoods, supplements, or pre-packaged raw food. i just keep it simple. i’m eating about 2,500 calories due to a lot of excercise. keep in mind i don’t buy any organic food…this would make my grocery bill go up atleast $20 a week which i can’t afford.
Here’s a source for raw rolled oats that’s nearly half the price. They have lots of other great stuff, I get my Dr. Cow’s cheese here too. http://www.rawvegansource.com
Have you tried sprouting quinoa, its a great to add to salads for an easy calorie and protein boost—super cheap too.
I get really raw oats from Gold Mine Natural Foods. They also have “rolled” oats. They’re not steamed so they’re really just squished a little but they are nice and soft after being mashed. Here’s the rolled ones: http://www.goldminenaturalfoods.com/detail.aspx… and whole ones: http://www.goldminenaturalfoods.com/detail.aspx… Yummy, filling winter food!
ok so I too have had this battle with dollars versus calories etc on a raw diet. Its hard core hey! I spend about $100 in australia on organic fruit and vegetables really. WHen I have superfoods which I do every day just about- it gets more expensive. So I have a savings account for superfoods which I add to every week I guess like a kitty works for odds and bobs around the house if you share a living space with people.
My first thought is I understand that you do not know how to listen to your body and when you are full. I too continually struggle with this. I am a big believer in regular meals so that you do not get hungry at the end of the day and want to binge on things. Keep yourself topped up. Its distressing emotionally and balance wise to overeat if you are sensitive and attuned to your own subtle vibrations from my own experience.
I personally do loads of juices and smoothies and coconut water in the mornings and have little nibbles on things til dinner which I have a big salad. I find if I do not have this with avodado and a yummy dressing then ‘emotionally’ I am not satisfied. I guess you have to look at the reasons you eat raw. For me it is purely because I get sick if I have cooked food and quite sad and depressed. I like the lighter feel of food in my tummy when eating raw. I like to be full, but lightly full. Can you relate? Even ‘raw nutbutter fullness’ in the tummy is better than a heavy, wide vibrating ‘cooked food full’.
i find if there is no nuts in my meal or avocado I often feel as if I haven’t eaten at all. I am still trying to find the answer for what is right for me , but I was just going to jump on line now and say ‘tired of eating too much fat…any ideas?’ and I found you had started one for me. I guess its not just about feeling full for me. Its about feeling GROUNDED after a meal. Do you do yoga? The more I do yoga and come into contact with my bodies intricacies and notice the subtle feelings…the less hungry I become. Yoga can really ground you too if you choose seated poses. Even just as simple as sitting on the ground in your bedroom can sometimes do it. Write to me if you want me to help you with stuff hon. I can only help you from my own experience and works well for me and may not for you, but on the other hand…it may bring into the light of day your own untalked about observations and relating to others is key to being successful on the raw path I feel. Its a good thing to stay connected. I guess that is what I have found from joining this community in particular. I find and continually find that its a fine balance between emotional and physical hunger….they are things to look at also.
I personally feel that we probably do not have to eat at all, but it takes a great deal of time to work this one out. In the mean time..working out a balance is paramount to personal happiness no?
I have just started sprouting too and it feels good in my tummy to have these…I feel satiated when I eat these also. Keep on keeping on love. And so will I. Kristen Suzanne website was helpful in keeping me on track with raw too. She talks alot about organisation and stuff like that. Check her blogspot.com site out. I felt GREAT after reading some of her struggles with a positive spin put on everything. GOOD LUCK BELLA!!