Wednesday, September 05, 2007

Transitioning to All Raw

Boy, was I sick today! I couldn't even make it through a whole day at the office. I'm hoping the problem is just the added fiber in my diet; I started adding fiber over the past few days. I was not well yesterday either, but today I had stabbing cramps in my side, which felt so much like my ovarian cyst attack from a couple of years ago that I was worried. If fiber is the problem, I will feel better soon enough. Adding fiber to my diet is part of my transition to an all-raw life as I look at all the areas in which my diet is lacking and take care of those before going all-raw.

I've been looking at the McDougall Plan to see how I can use that in my transition. I like much of what is listed on his food list, except the pasta. Now, I know that raw foodists and vegetarians don't worry about a lack of protein, but my nutritional history has made me very leery of assuming that simply eating raw will provide me with ample protein. I did a little comparison of dairy products with foods on the McDougall list to see how much of those foods I'd have to eat to get the same amount of protein I get from whey, Egg Beaters, nonfat yogurt and cottage cheese. So far, it looks like I'd have to eat a whole lot more carbs and fat to get the same protein. Seeds would be lower carb/higher fat choices, and beans would be higher carb/lower fat choices. For one cup of nonfat Greek yogurt(100 cal, no fat, 5 carbs, no fiber, 3 sugar, 20 protein) I could substitute:

  • 1 cup sunflower seeds: 262 cal, 23 gm fat, 9 carbs, 10 protein
  • ½ c walnuts, black: 381 cal, 37 gm fat, 6 carbs, 15 protein
  • 1 cup fava beans: 110.0 cal, .9 gm fat, 22.2 carbs, 10 protein
I have more homework to do, of course, but I can see why one meal at the local raw cafe fills me up all day- all the seeds and nuts they use are so filling (as well as very nutritious).

WEIGHT/HEALTH UPDATE
I have now lost 23.5 lbs since June 10th. My BP remains around 120/80.

FOOD UPDATE
I have cut fish out as a regular part of my diet (no more weekly sushi- just occasionally) and have added more nuts and seeds. I doubt I will buy any more tofu. The next move in my transition to all-raw will likely be to remove yogurt and cottage cheese, but hang on to the Egg Beaters and whey for a little while. At that point I may move to the McDougall plan. I noticed he suggests an egg substitute on his list- that means I can hang on to the Egg Beaters a bit longer.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Are you getting any support or reading any helpful books to make this easier on yourself?

Check out my blog and let me know if you need more help.

Anonymous said...

HI!

Looks like things are going well for you! Just wanted to let you know about the egg beaters -- they are actually eggs, and if I remember right, McDougall promots a vegan diet... but I may have missed soemthing! Let me know what you find out! :)

RVM

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