Raw Food Forums

Hiya everyone, one-time lurker, now poster ;) here.

Ive been 100% raw for about 3 months now, thanks mainly to all of you guys that have kept me inspired, motivated and informed. I bow to you all in deep respect.

Anyway...
 just last week, i decided that eating just raw fruit and mono-meals sounded very fanatical and i bought a raw gormet food cookbook.

I bought a new food processor and chopped and grated and and dried and mixed and mashed and all that physical stuff to make dishes that were really good to look at.

Some looked almost like the cooked food equivalent (eg spag bol)...and they tasted great in my mouth, but you know what? I realise this may be against what a lot of you think....but i think raw gourmet, digestion-wise and health-giving-wise is just one step above eating cooked food. I suffered indigestion (a slighter version than I used to on cooked food).

Im sure that all that processing and drying oxidised and affected the natural nutrients and vitamins in the original state of the food, then when it is mixed in with many other different raw foods, all of different acidity/alkilinity levels....well it kinda negates all the benefits that I turned to raw food in the first place for.

 My digestion slowed down again, i didnt feel as energised as i did after eating 3 raw rockmelons or a kilo of raw apricots etc for my meals in the previous months. I felt sluggish and bloated. Not only that, instead of just chucking the pips, stones, skins of my meals in the hole i dug in the backyard (compost) to clean up, it actually took me an hour to clean up ( wash, dry and put away all the machinery and plates and cutlery).

 Isnt this just as much work as cooking my food? And almost as detrimental to the environment?


So I put this to you guys: Is raw gourmet worth it? Or is it just a little better than cooked food in the end anyway?

Thanks for reading, please be kind, this is my first post as im typically a shy, observer type ;)


PS Chermona, the pics of your foods was what started my raw gourmet experiment. They looked so goddam delish!!! What a supermum, i reckon! Im sure your family didnt suffer like i did, i really do think my digestive system may be weak or too sensitive. Please please please dont take this post in any personal way, ok?

PPS, Grant, if you read this, Horrie and I keep discussing your fat levels LOL! Maybe YOU should try lots n lots of gormet raw cakes?  I'll see at the GNW in a couple of years ;) not as a crewmember either!

Ok, back to my comfy lurking mode for a while, love youse all (said with Anthony Mundine's accent haha)

L.L.

Hiya LooneyLychee....ah man ya gotta just love that name hahhaaa.

I can't answer your question(s)...but no doubt someone will.

Just wanted ta say "hi".

John

Welcome LL. I love your name and have seen you hanging out! I"m so glad you have posted. In my opinion, yes. Gourmet raw is defnitely worth it.

I have been raw now for around a year and while I choose to eat a lot more simply these days, I would not still be raw if it were not for the gourmet stuff. I still enjoy it and make a lot of it now that I'm making more of an effort to rawbi-fy my children.... it does have a place I believe but as with nearly everything in life.... it's not for everyone!

Good for you finding your own way so quickly!

xoxoxox

Welcome Looney Lychee!

Eat what gives YOU joy, and makes YOU feel optimal.

We must each find our own path.

Other than than, Jen's sentiments are very close to my own.

miss g

Welcome, LL. 

Such wonderful discoveries you've made!

Yes, the gourmet is tempting isn't it? ;)  I also love Chermona's food photos.

Looking forward to hear more of your story.

Rosal

HI there Lurking LL!!

Good to have you on board.

Well, I have to agree with Jen and Miss G.  

Raw is definitely a personal journey.  

Gourment foods is there for people who can't imagine starting off with a mono diet.........and need that variety.  I know of people who used to cook up storms in their kitchen before raw, and when they started to incorporate more raw into their diet, they actually missed the preparation part of cooking food and still 'needed' to feel like they were 'cooking' and therefore the gourmet foods suited them to a T.

Just like the raw desserts, nuts, crackers, raw breads, they can be transitional foods for people coming from a SAD (standard American/Australian) diet to a raw lifestyle.  

Some people will stay with the gourmet foods.  Some people take what they consider is the next best step and eliminate certain foods from their raw food lifestyle.....eg: nuts, dehydrated foods.....whatever.  It's what suits them at the time.

As for food combining, yes, I have to agree that when I eat a variety of raw food together.....nuts, veggies, fruits, grains.....my body tells me that that is not the best thing for it. I feel bloated and eerrrkkk!  BUT if I organised a raw dinner party, I wouldn't certainly just lump a box of fruit on the table for my guests.........I'm Italian, I CAN'T imagine not catering for 100 people when you only invite 10!!! rofl rofl  So raw gourmet certainly does have its place.  I still like it occasionally.

As time goes on, you will find your own individual path.  All raw foodies are not the same in their way of eating.  I'm sure you can see that just from the forum........

Rawies may all be different in their eating, but you will certainly find, as I have, that this forum is definitely here for you....

Congrats on finding what makes your body feel better, and more importantly, you listening to your body!  :laugh:

Luv

Rita :heart:

HI there LL, welcome to the forum! :yahh:

Hopefully we see more of you around the forum.

Regarding your question; yes it is a personal choice but my personal view (that's what you asked for right?) is that raw gourmet food is something for every now and then. I just made a raw pumpkin pie this afternoon and will definately have a piece tonight but prefer straight fruit and vege. It simply makes me feel better to eat simpler.

I think it is a process of constant adapting anyway, what works now might not work in 2 months. Keep listening to your body and make adjustments sometimes you make the wrong decisions but that's another lesson learned right?

Love ~eve~  :heart:

As another newbie, I certainly think raw gourmet is worth it.........but as special occasion meals, rather than everyday eating.

I find most raw gourmet meals taste beautiful but I have to eat them in very small doses, as they are just too concentrated, heavy and rich for me.

I have been to two raw gourmet presentations. The food looked and tasted fantastic but on both occasions I just found it too rich and it made me ill afterwards – stomach cramps, nausea & diarrhoea.

Certainly on the first occasion I crazily thought “oh this is raw, I can eat as much as I want” and I went a little bit over the top consuming wise. On the second occasion, remembering the first, I ate smaller amounts of the main dishes to make room for pudding but the pudding was my downfall and as a result, I still felt slightly nausea afterwards.

Like you, I thought (still think) that eating just raw fruit and mono-meals sounds very fanatical – although given my past experiences with raw gourmet, I am slowly coming around to the idea.

When eating cooked foods I tend to eat fairly healthy anyway (i.e.) baked organic chicken breast with a raw salad or steamed vegetables. I find it a struggle to eat concentrated, heavy and rich cooked foods, so I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised by my reaction to raw gourmet meals.

Another thing about the raw gourmet presentations is how long it took to prepare everything (hours and hours in the dehydrator) and being a very unorganised person at mealtimes, I wondered how I would cope. So when eating raw, I mainly find myself preparing meals that only take a few minutes – salads, fruit salad, nori rolls.

I am currently in a bit of a predicament. To remain 100% raw focused I must increase my range of foods and have more variety in my meals, as I have the same old stuff over and over again, which leads to “oh my god, I can’t face another bloody salad” and then I lose focus and go back to cooked.

So to increase the variety, I will need to buy a dehydrator and make more of an effort with meals, which will probably boarder on more “gourmet” style meals in the long run.

Good post because this is certainly something I have been struggling with too.

Hey welcome LL...

great to have you here....

ahh the raw gourmet...i think its great to try when transitioning....but not for me,im an 811rv gal...sounds like you would thrive well on it too,digestion and energy wise...and its so damn simple...its awesome!

hey if you're talking about Rawaussieathlete...he is such an 811rv guy...and thrives on it,i reackon-just quietly he might seize up if he ate lots and lots of rgourmet cakes.... :rolleyes:

if we need to 'gain' weight,it should be done through muscle gain,not fat....

KK have you thought about getting a doug Graham food prep book,or a David Klein food prep book...neither are 'raw gourmet'yet loads of variety to see you through the boredom....

i never envisioned i would be completely happy and satisfied eating mono fruit meals,yet here i am,and totally loving it!
when i started with raw vegan 4 years ago,i would make salads from alissa cohens books,with 25 ingredients,i kid you not...but it was fun....not now though,id be ill and sluggish erk!

Hi RGG – are there any particular titles that you would suggest?

As I am getting dazed and confused with the amount of raw books around - it is almost overwhelming.

Many thanks

KK

hee hee dazed and confused- too funny KK...i think you're amazing and doing so well *hugs*

start off with-

The High Energy Diet
RECIPE GUIDE
Dr Douglas Graham..

you can buy it here on rp..right Jennie?

Many thanks for the book title; I will try to order it now.

Thank you for your kind words and encouragement but sadly I am not doing so well at the moment. I made a terrible, terrible mistake and boy am I paying the price now.

I haven’t eaten dairy since the end of August. Today it was cold and raining and we decided to have a home-made chicken burger for lunch. I have previously had a couple of burgers made with seeded wholemeal rolls, chicken breast, lettuce, tomato, onion, mushroom and avocado and it has been fine everytime. We are eating mainly raw but having the occasional cooked meal, especially when it is cold and wet.

Today we made the mistake of buying some cheese for the burger. I had some at lunchtime. It was literally a slither, about the same size as my little finger. I really thought such a small amount would be ok. I now have terrible burning sensation in my gut/bowels. It is really painful and I am also passing blood and mucus.

I can't believe that something so small is causing so many problems.

well thats what cheese is..pus and mucus..plus some hormone..check out www.notmilk.com for the details..

rawbi-fy..im gonna use that word!

'the only things we truly know are those which we personally experience...the rest is programming.'

mostly i like to learn from other peoples mistakes..so that means i dont have to experience pain myself..

its great to be able to enjoy some raw gourmet love creations as we gradually transition over to a diet of fruits and tender shoots....its the recipie all the long time raw vegans follow...simple, fun and sustainable.

raw vegan pizza parties and choco mint brazil euphoria bliss shakes eventually became mono meal fests in fruit orchards world wide..with wild greens as the garnish..

raw gourmet is like trainer wheels on the bike..eventually at the persons speed, they fall off..

enjoy the journey.

um...yer...so just like at work...Ive managed to once again muck up my password/email! The tech-support guys at work pretty much hate seeing my number pop up on their phones!!

So, til I get my personality transplant and become LooneyLychee again, this is me... :mellow:

Anyhooo....


WOW!!! Imagine going up to a stranger in the groceries section, tapping them on the shoulder and asking them a question like...."excuse me, what do you think about digestion?  Do you have any probs with mixing lots of foods together?"  BET ya he/she looks at you like you're a total weirdo and slowly backs away from you, to safety.
 
NOT HERE! WOW! I say it again, thanks for pretty much making me feel like part of the family, woohoo! I'll be the painful little rascal sister that stirs the pot just cos things seem to be going too swimmingly ;) I know there are some others that have the same "wascally wabbit" personality in this family as well! LOL, just jokes, all is said in a fun-hearted jolly way, I promise!
 
Anyway, with regards to all your replies, thanks very very much, I don't feel so incompetent now...I just thought that since cooking has never been my forte (I've been known to burn chocolate in the microwave on more than a few occasions), that maybe I stuffed up and made the raw-gourmet ...."raw-crap-ay"!
 
 Good to know it's just a matter of personal differences and body constitutions and lifestyles (i only have to prepare for one ....and a couple of four-leggeds, so no one will complain if i dont prepare up a storm for dinner).
 
 
RGG, yeah, i meant RAA. My boss at work keeps me updated on Grant's running adventures, as they run together. Boss thinks (typically like a SAD dude) that if Grant had a wee bit more fat on him, he'd run rings around everyone else. I kinda agree with you, nothing like raw low-fat quickly metablised energy to push the body further, but he's my boss, im not really going to start a food/exercise/lifestyle debate with him at his desk....so, I nod and say "hmmmm, maybe".... haha
 
 All you guys'  (and i use "guys"meaning both genders, btw)  "hi " right back to you!

As for my story, it's as boring as, you've all heard/read it before a gazillion times over, in one form or another, so i'll just leave it as this :  born to eccentric parents, brought up to explore and question and be unconventional if it means being true to myself, not so healthy diet=not the best health.....got sick of it (again and again and again) tried one more "fad" called "raw vegänism".....and the rest is history!
 
My "specialty" knowledge-wise is conventional nutrition and organic farming (we, my parents at their home/ farm and myself in my little townhouse) grow most of our own fruit and veg, even made-up varieties that we've just grafted or mixed in together to see what would result).
 
 So, if anyone has questions about any of those two topics, i may be able to help and will definitely try, otherwise, you are pretty much MY teachers re: rawbie-ism and I thank you immensely for helping me learn more everyday.
 
Thanks for reading, you can now awaken and open your eyes again! Plus, the snoring was getting to be intolerable!! hehe

Oh and just reading the word "PUS" makes me want to gag...ughhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
 

 :yahh: thanks for sharing, Share-mona!! :ohyeah:

Yip, she DOES rock, everyone....

xx

Raw 'n' Delish is another recipe book filled with fresh and fruity recipes. It has no pictures but there is some delicious nutritious meals in there. I got it here in the RP shop.  

tell him to have a close look at any world class distance runner.they are all as lean as grant. most are leaner. none are plumper..i put money on that..

gabrisalese, tergat, de castella, lewis, jones, zatopek, clarke, prefontaine, bannister....all the male running greats..all low single digits body fat..ive read most of their biographies..most had family concerned of their 'leaness'...

only way grant would run better with more fat would be if the race involved no eating and having to run accross australia..then visible body fat would aid as fuel..

but grant only does runs under 24 hours..so it helps to be as lean as a fasting breatharian and not carry any excess...

i do know for fact that if grant got more sleep and speedwork he will go faster..

HAHA...only just met you looneylychee and already you crack me up...LOL

gonna have some fun together I think...you sound naughty...I love naughtyness!

nice meeting you

Share-mona
XOXOX

    Actually, Harley, i think you'll find Grant has run OVER 100km a few times....and just over a month ago, he ran with my boss in a 100 MILE (ie 175km) race....

Lucky for you, Harley, i dont like taking money from those that hitch their "swags" up in front of buildings....:)

XX

100km is still way under24 hours...its around 7000 calories.. maybe more..thats around a kg of fat..but grant eats during his races and starts them with full glycogen tanks..so he is only chipping in to max 500g of body fat..maybe even that..

basic math helps us prove wrong societies body image perceptions on athletic performance..

increased body fat comes with increased weight..and in a high impact sport like running..its the lightest guys and gals that perform the longest with the least injuries..

this is prob getting off topic, Harley, but...

It was a 36 hour race.

I can see the SAD people's point of view as well, as after 36 hours of running, your glycogen has long gone and the body is trying to run on fat and protein.....

um....I havent actually SEEN Grant in person, just a few photos from here and another website and if he were to rely on that last bit of fat to finish a 36hr race....i dunno.

Anyway, i know what you are saying, im just saying it's not ALWAYS black and white.

Peace out.

x

Hey LL, and welcome. Quick comment about raw gourmet.

For some it's about ideology, for some it's about making raw easier, and for some it's just fun. Regardless, there's raw gourmet and there's raw gourmet.

A coconut cream pie, with a cashew and almond crust, and a 7 fruit filling is "raw gourmet", but so is minced over ripe tomatoes with basil and garlic (as a soup).. or a radish wrapped in it's still attached leaves, stuffed inside a tomato. Not all raw gourmet is poorly combined or high in fat, salt and protein.. it can be healthy too. But it is definitely possible to have an unhealthy raw meal.

Thanks for all the input!

Yep! My conclusion is this:

Raw Vegan food, like anything, can be made unhealthy when it's unbalanced.

 I imagine if you ate 100 raw dates followed by half a watermelon, you probably won't be feeling so flash in the following hours. However, have a quarter of the watermelon and perhaps an hour later, have 10 or so dates and you're grrrrrrrreat! :ohyeah:

Next lesson that has been reinforced is:
Listen to your body. If the food agrees or disagrees with you, your body will tell you, regardless of what some books may say. People are individuals with an infinite variety of body chemistries (is that grammatically correct, even?), personal preferences, environmental factors, etc. So what's right for person A, aint necessarily going to make person B jump for joy.

For moi, it's back to mono meals til I get sick of them. Im a lazybum, dont like cooking, cleaning or fussing about in the kitchen at all. Im also totally in lust with Summer fruit and dont even mind having to wee every half an hour, if it means i get to devour a juicy, ripe, lip-lickingly luscious honeydew melon!mmmm mmmm!

Thanks for replying, it helped get my brain around a few things. Which brings me to my next point....(what a NOT-so-smooth segway, lol)....I REALLY appreciate your answers, but cos I dont believe in the karma system, Im giving you "vibrational karma" points instead...where I just send them thru the air-waves, straight to you. Hope they get there, as my sense of direction is, um, kinda like my cooking skills, LOL!

xx Have a beeeewdddiful Sunday!
LL

Thanks but I already know what cheese is and what it is made from.........I just try not to think about it!

I have visited that notmilk website and read Fit for Life a number of times over the years and both turned me off dairy, although not enough for me to completely cut it from my diet for too long.

I once gave up dairy for two years but got back into it because I loved the taste in sandwichs.

I have been mainly avoiding bread since the end of August, only had four wholemeal rolls in that time - given that I use to eat bread at least twice a day, I think I have managed quite well.

Bread seems to be the trigger for cheese. Everytime I eat bread I also want cheese. The last three times I have managed to resist the temptation of cheese but yesterday I didn’t / couldn’t / wouldn’t.

Anyway I know all about triggers. I gave up drinking coffee seven years ago, as it was my trigger for cigarettes. Have not had a cigarette for seven years and only had two coffees, both of which triggered an urge for a cigarette.

I bet most people with "normal" health don't pass blood and mucus after eating cheese, so it obviously affected me so badly because of my Ulcerative Colitis.

Anyway after the pain last night, I think I have learnt my lesson.

oh God KK,dairy and UC,you must like torturing yourself,lol....gawd gal...

Hee hee Grant will be perplexed when he reads this whole section of discussing him and his running,yup he would do better with more sleep...hes a notorious non sleeper....

off and away to enjoy the day

I know, I know. I always think "this time it will be different", and it never is. After the pain of last night, I may have finally got the message.

The NEW high Energy Diet RECIPE GUIDE by Dr Douglas Graham. will be back in stock Mon or Tues. Great book!

Sounds like you are getting heaps of help and support KK. I know what you mean about the cheese. I have had a really hard time letting it go... and I know that stuff to. *shudder*

xoxoxo

KK have you got David Kleins book
self healing colitis and crohns?

a must read for everyone,esp anyone suffering uc

Hee hee...took me a while, but I finally read all this discussion about my running.
I have improved my sleep and every week my average per day is over 8 hrs! Could do with more though :-)
See how I go in the 100km race through the Blue Mountains on 17th May (The North Face 100)!
I certainly haven't got more fat than I used to after my 29 day water-only fast. I'm now a lean 63.8kg! (back up from 54kg at the end of my fast)

good to hear,good luck with the run k? :yahh:

Oh! welcome back dear RGG sooo good to note your post hope all is well in your world.... :yahh:

Thanks! Heart warming to hear from you. Glad to read you're back in health, never to revisit the worst of the symptoms you've left behind.

thanks Grant..well worth the hard yards......almost fully healed again....yayy perfection!!