Has anyone here embraced a raw food diet?

afterglow

Hi all.

Have been doing a little research on the raw vegan diet recently, and it entrigues and interests me a lot.
I have had a few slip ups recently in terms of what I'm eating, so think that giving raw some thought is a worth while exercise.
I might as well be honest and admit that when I talk about slip ups, I mean the dreaded fish, yet again.
I have posted about this before so won't repeat that this is something I don't want to do etc.
Just wondering are any of you on this forum raw vegan and how did you make the transiton, explain to family and friends etc? What if any symtoms of detox did you experience when first going raw? how do you feel on a raw diet?
Thanks and any answers appreciated

Thom Merrilin

Firstly what are your motivations for this particular diet? Animal cruelty, health reasons, environmental? In general (and this applies for any diet change) I wouldn't worry about explaining to family and friends etc. Because regardless of who you talk to, unless they are following the exact same diet - chances are they will have some criticisms or comments on your diet. I've learned to generally just keep quiet about what I eat and drink! It's less frustrating in the long run

afterglow

Thom Merrilin wrote: »

Firstly what are your motivations for this particular diet? Animal cruelty, health reasons, environmental? In general (and this applies for any diet change) I wouldn't worry about explaining to family and friends etc. Because regardless of who you talk to, unless they are following the exact same diet - chances are they will have some criticisms or comments on your diet. I've learned to generally just keep quiet about what I eat and drink! It's less frustrating in the long run

Hi.
Apologies for only replying back to you now.
My motivation for this diet is ethical, animal cruelty.
Would be interested in hearing more about how you got started, and how do you cope when you go to family and friends houses, avoiding awkward questions etc.
I agree that for people that are not vegetarian or vegan it is very hard for them to understand how others eat and why they choose to do so

Thom Merrilin

afterglow wrote: »

Hi.
Apologies for only replying back to you now.
My motivation for this diet is ethical, animal cruelty.
Would be interested in hearing more about how you got started, and how do you cope when you go to family and friends houses, avoiding awkward questions etc.
I agree that for people that are not vegetarian or vegan it is very hard for them to understand how others eat and why they choose to do so

I'm not actually on a raw food diet, just vegetarian! If your motivation for the diet is ethical though, why raw food and not vegan? I'd say it's much easier going vegan than raw food..

I rarely eat at family and friends houses, and if visiting someone usually just have a big feed beforehand! Nowadays it's not as strange though being vegetarian/vegan/raw foodist/etc so most people don't really ask awkward questions.

You might find that some people get offended when you tell them your diet is because of ethical or animal cruelty reasons, as it implies that the people you're talking to (if they are meat-eaters) are supporting or somehow complicit in animal cruelty by virtue of their decision to eat meat. And the majority of people are very uncomfortable with the thought being part of that.

Anyway good luck with your new diet! Changes like this can really have a positive effect both mentally and physically.

lfqnic

Raw food vegan is a super-perfectionist diet. It can be a logistical nightmare - expensive and requires lots of planning to always have large quantities of ripe fruit. If you find planning ahead for meals difficult, or you don't find it easy to stick to a vegetarian diet, it would probably be a huge challenge. There is a weird psychological element too - if you're used to hot food and feeling full for a long time, it can be difficult to get used to eating a lot more and feeling a lot less full.
It has some incredible benefits, but it is not an easy diet to achieve. It is much more manageable to implement one or two raw meals into a day - fruit meals, basically - and then get your mineral needs with simple cooked foods, as close to natural form as possible.

Mentalmiss

I have been on a raw vegan diet for more than 8 years. It can be as easy or as hard as you want. When you start you tend to start "gourmet" but as it progresses and you simplify and mono meal a lot. When traveling I find it easier than when I was vegan of vege. In the old days when I got to a new town I would spend ages seeking out vege restaurants. Now all I need is a supermarket.

lolo62

I dabbled with raw diet a while ago and found it wasn't for me..i was way too spaced out and ungrounded

someone told me recently there is a raw counter in the epicurean food hall so if I was thinking of going raw right now that would definitely make the change more tempting..just so on days when I don't want to have to put lots of thought into my food, I can go pay someone to serve it to me!

Mentalmiss

I do not know what you mean by spaced out and ungrounded and as I said you can make it as simple as you want. I have just finished prepping a pizza for a party I am going to tonight but am happier with 3 mangoes or 4 persimmon.
I also think that in the long run some simple cooked can be better than complicated raw. A lot of gourmet raw (including my pizza) have too much fat and too much salt and maybe some steamed veg is better.
It is not for everyone and if you are healthy you do not need to go to that extreme but the more simple raw you eat the better you will be.
A good start would be that a person add a green smoothie to their existing diet and that will help a lot.

lolo62

Mentalmiss wrote: »

I do not know what you mean by spaced out and ungrounded and as I said you can make it as simple as you want. QUOTE]

i was replying to the OPs question about experience with the raw food diet