Any Vegans, Vegetarians, or Raw Dieters Here?

[sweetpeakaris]

Hi All,

For the last 2+yrs I've followed the Atkins Diet and had great success losing 80lbs the first year, but I found it very hard to stick to the following year so I was on and off it for the second year to current. While I did love the Atkins diet and was very happy about the weight loss, I really never liked how it made me feel. I experienced Heart Palpitations, major Fatigue, Constipation, Brain Fog, and Bad Breath. Now that I am only 30lbs from my goal weight, I'm looking for a New Lifestyle Change. I've always been interested in becoming a Vegan and partial Raw Dieter, I've never really been a big meat & dairy eater and perfer to live without it. I have done a little research on the Vegan and Raw Dieters Lifestyle, plan to attend a Raw Class in Sept., but I need a lot more info before I start. I'm looking for some great books/websites/Forums. I would love to find a book with some great Vegan or Vegetarian Recipes and information. Can anyone here make any recommendations? Thanks in Advance.

 

[VSL]

What a coincidence!!

I've been spending the last few weeks really getting into raw foodism, and am thinking of starting a journal here (my *third* attempt if I do...) from September 1st as I'm planning on going 100% raw for 30 days.

The books/resources I have/had are:
- Living on Live Food (book + DVD) by Alissa Cohen (highly recommend these)
- The Raw Food Detox Diet by Natalia Rose (this book is OK)
- Raw Food/Real World by Matthew Kenney and Sarma Melngailis (gorgeous book, very gourmet, but I can't see myself making any of the recipes in it for the forseeable future)
- 11 eBook package from www.thegardendiet.com
- Detox Your World by Shazzie (I sent this back... I wasn't impressed)
- The Sunfood Diet Success System by David Wolfe (sent this back too - thoroughly disappointed, especially as it's considered THE 'bible' of raw foodism)
- The Raw Energy Bible by Leslie Kenton (I like this book)
- Slim 4 Life by Jason Vale (the guy annoys me but I agree with a lot of what he has to say)
- The Powerhouse Diet by Leslie Kenton (my first raw book)
- The Live Food Factor by Susan Schenck (on order... I haven't received it yet)

I've spent the last few weeks (since I've received Alissa's book and DVD) eating 70% raw (on and off), and when I do it I feel so much lighter.

Don't think I'll ever be totally vegan or vegetarian (I'll probably use raw honey), or even 100% raw *all* the time - I want to be 100% raw on an everyday/day-to-day basis, but will be fine with eating cooked food on special occasions (Christmas, on vacation, etc.).

My favourite raw food forum is www.rawfoodtalk.com - it's quite active and pretty friendly.

 

[sweetpeakaris]

VSL- Thanks so much for all the info and Book Reviews!! Can you tell me what your typical daily menu is like? I've heard great things about Alissa Cohen's Book, does it include recipes? Have you tried or use any of her supplements, like the Enzymes and Protein things? Thanks again for your Help

 

[VSL]

No, no supplements here.

Alissa's book has 290 recipes - you can have a sneak preview on her website (in the store section) - some of them are on her website. Also, I don't have a dehydrator (only a food processor), and you can make plenty of the recipes without one. When I bought the book, I had no intention of using the recipe section as I thought it would be full of ingredients and equipment that I didn't have access to yet, but so far I've made (and like)
- Banana Papaya Pudding
- Date Nut Torte
- Blueberry Pie
- Mint Thumbprint Delights

What I've been doing on my 70%+ days is eating every 3hrs (this isn't necessary, but I have issues with food so it helps me take my mind off it), and eating just fruit/veg for the first three meals of the day and then something cooked for my last meal. It's looked something like this:
Meal 1 Half a watermelon, cut up
Meal 2 5 bananas
Meal 3 Big bowl of strawberries
Meal 4 Whatever I want (including junk like McDonald's... )

I seem to do better (and feel better) when I keep it simple like that, but it's not necessary to eat so mono - especially in the beginning. I just find it easier for me (and a lot cheaper - I could eat 4 raw meals a day for less than £4/$6.50 per day if I eat like this... which is important when you're just out of Uni!). Many people prefer to eat more of the recipes and stuff, as that is what works for them.

Her book is by far my favourite and I can't recommend it highly enough for someone interested in going raw (even if not 100% raw as she advocates).
She does advocate going 100% raw cold-turkey rather than transitioning - she says to treat cooked food like an 'addiction' of sorts (she compares it to just having one cookie and then putting the rest away - lots of people with food issues can't do that so it's easier to just have none at all), while many other authors tell you to transition more gradually (Natalia Rose suggests this).

The reason that many authors advocate a more gentle transition is to avoid rapid detox. Alissa Cohen's response is, 'lets' get it over with!' and that some people get scared this way and never get 100%.

In fact, I forgot to mention in my first post, www.rawfoodtalk.com is actually her (Alissa's) forum.

 

[NeverlandClub23]

I've gone back and forth on becoming a vegetarian for 4-5 years now. I finally started with giving up beef a couple of weeks ago. Here's a good website to get some info:

Vegetarian Basics 101
http://www.vegparadise.com/basics.html

 

[QT Pooh]

Hi, I have just recently started this due to some problems with my digestive tract. I used to eat everything and exercise a lot. My weight was slowly creeping up even with all the exercise (I'm almost 40) and I just didn't feel good all the time. I decided to change my eating and try to eat only all-natural foods - lots of fruits and vegetables, grains, soy milk, seafood and poultry. I cut sugar and dairy almost completely out of my diet and also try not to eat any enriched flour. I feel a lot better and I've lost 7 1/2 lbs. in 4 weeks without exercising half as much as I used to. I am not hungry because I eat several more times a day than I used to and a lot of it has tons of fiber so it's filling. I don't really have much to lose so I'm doing this more as a health benefit than a weight loss program. This seems to be working well for me.

 

[SetzKitten]

I try to do 3 days vegetarian, 3 days vegan and 1 day raw every week. On my raw day I usually eat raw peanuts and sunflower seeds, salad and raw vegetables, raw corn salad (my favorite side dish) and a frozen orange/strawberry drink, plus fruit. I really want to increase the number of raw days I do, but I haven't been very motivated. I've done a vegetarian diet for about 25 years so it's second nature to me. Vegan is medium difficult for me because I love fresh bread.

VSL, thanks for the info. I'm going to check out some of those books.

 

[VSL]

Vegan is medium difficult for me because I love fresh bread.

VSL, thanks for the info. I'm going to check out some of those books.

No problem!

But, I have to ask - what, in bread, is non-vegan? I always thought of bread as a vegan food so I'm curious now!

 

[SetzKitten]

But, I have to ask - what, in bread, is non-vegan? I always thought of bread as a vegan food so I'm curious now!

I make my own bread and rolls and they have butter, buttermilk and sometimes an egg in it. I would love to buy bakery bread but it has either high fructose corn syrup or partially-hydrogenated vegetable oil in it. I never eat food with those ingredients. If you have a great vegan bread recipe, I would love if you would share it.

 

[sweetpeakaris]

To those that are doing Raw--- Is is really neccesary to buy organic fruits and veggies? I love the idea of organically grown, but I'm worried that I may not be able to fit the extra cost into my grocery budget. I shop mainly at Sam's Club(warehouse) I like the idea of buying in bulk, they rarely sell organic in bulk. For Organic I would have to go to a nearby healthy market and their prices are kinda high. Thanks!

 

[Tarabra]

Has anyone ever heard of the Hallelujah Diet? I received info on this a few years back and it was all very fascinating. It seems to make a lot of sense, although I personally would never be able to do it. Shortly after looking into this diet, I started the South Beach Diet, which follows a lot of the same principles, ie. not eating processed foods, etc. The only difference is no meat. I get very shaky and lightheaded and CRANKY if I don't eat properly. I do eat lots of salads and fruits and vegetables, but more power to you if you can go completely raw or vegan. I just thought I'd pass this site along.

http://www.hacres.com/home/home.asp

 

[ForTheLoveofDisney]

I realize that this is an old post. I'm just curious (if anyone still comes over this way) how everyone on this thread is doing with their diet changes. I myself am planning a complete diet change so I was doing some searches on the realisticness (don't know if this is even a word? ) of eating vegan/raw in WDW and I stumbled across this thread.

Has anyone ever heard of the Hallelujah Diet? I received info on this a few years back and it was all very fascinating. It seems to make a lot of sense, although I personally would never be able to do it. Shortly after looking into this diet, I started the South Beach Diet, which follows a lot of the same principles, ie. not eating processed foods, etc. The only difference is no meat. I get very shaky and lightheaded and CRANKY if I don't eat properly. I do eat lots of salads and fruits and vegetables, but more power to you if you can go completely raw or vegan. I just thought I'd pass this site along.

http://www.hacres.com/home/home.asp

Tarabra, I have heard of the Hallelujah Diet. As a matter of fact, DH and I went to Rev. George Malkmus 3 hour seminar yesterday. While I do not agree 100% with Rev. Malkmus' religious teachings, I do believe he is spot on with the diet and nutrition! As DH said, "It's pretty hard to argue with a 73 year old man who has the energy of a 23 year old man and the body and muscles to boot!" Obviously he is doing something right and I felt that the information that he presented as far as food and exercise were just what we needed to hear. I look forward to undertaking this new way of living and eating.

 

[Judy from Boise]

Having seen many head to head comparisons, and spoken with people who have sold both, I think Aim International products are of much higher quality than HA.
http://myaimstore.com/atpconnection

http://atpconnection.com

 

[s&k'smom]

I have become about 90% vegan though I may have some cheese pizza during TOM! I have never felt better. I occasionally miss meat but to be honest it was'nt that difficult to give up. There are some great websites like www.vegweb.com. Some of them are sponsored by PETA but I go to them for the recipes. A lot of everyday items in the grocery store are vegan. I do go the "healthy" stores for certain things and they do tend to be a tad more expensive but I tell yeah I feel wonderful!