Eating 'raw cuisine', my lap-band and, oh dear, no weight loss

[TheProfessor 378]

I had WLS in December, 2014 - 4 months ago. My pre-surgical starting weight was 259 lbs. This excess weight came from eating too much (volume), rather than the wrong foods or junk foods. I'm not vegetarian however I have always incorporated a lot of raw food habits into my diet.

To those who are not familiar with "eating raw" - I'm not talking about crudités or peeling a banana and eating it. I'm taking about "raw" lifestyle foods like breads, crackers, wraps and veggie burgers that have been created using nuts, seeds, flax, hemp and vegetables, often in a dehydrator.

Before my surgery, I incorporated a lot of raw cuisine into my diet and used my dehydrator constantly to make delicious foods like raw falafel, flax crackers, pureed veggie wraps, kale chips, mushroom burger patties, etc.

Since my December surgery, I have stayed away from raw and been stringent about adhering to a low carb, high Protein diet. (Yes, this included meats). Lots of salads, raw fruits and veggies, but no "raw cuisine" per se. In the 4 months since my surgery I have dropped 45 pounds and feel terrific. Or I should say, I HAD dropped 45 pounds, until 2 weeks ago when I started eating raw cuisine again.

These past 2 weeks eating mostly raw, I am sad to say that I gained almost ten pounds back. Ah, the irony. Eat well! Gain weight!

I had missed my beloved VitaMix and my Excalibur dehydrator terribly, having not used them since two weeks prior to my WLS. I decided a couple of weeks ago to get back to incorporating delicious raw cuisine back into my diet. Foods I created over the past two weeks from my old favourites included nut cheeses (cashew...mmmm mmmmm!), walnut-spinach pesto, nut burgers, raw "onion rings", sesame seed/hemp seed dressings and more.

As I was blending, spreading and dehydrating, I became worried about the sheer amount of fat, calories and carbs that made up the ingredients going into these dishes. Those nuts, seeds and avocados really pack a punch. The ingredients in my raw food dishes were wholesome and nutritionally dense, BUT they contained a ton of unwanted complex carbs and sugars (Mejool dates, for example).

So I feasted (in small amounts as only my lap-band allows) on raw falafel, vegan hummus with garlic aioli with marinated vegetables in a flax/carrot wrap, marinated portabello mushroom caps stuffed with cashew/garlic nut cheese and walnut-spinach pesto, raw zucchini Pasta with sweet marinara sauce... it was a great 2 weeks.

Unfortunately it also triggered some pretty major weight gain.

What I've learned: Even with smaller lap-band sized portions, and although most raw food dishes are densely nutritious, they pack a significant caloric punch - too much so to be aligned with my weight loss goals.

So I am back to salads and lean meats and steamed veggies, no wheat, no white, no sugar. And, unfortunately, no raw cuisine. (Or at least very, very little).

Has anyone out there managed a raw food diet (60% +) and managed to keep the surgical weight off? Would love to hear from you!

Edited April 29, 2015 by TheProfessor

[newlifejen 32]

This was exactly me too! I had done more of the "vegan" than the strictly "raw foods" but the minute I started incorporating more "juices and things made with "nuts, seeds, flax, hemp and vegetables" I stopped loosing, stayed the same and then started gaining. I was eating super "clean" and "healthy" and i gained weight?!? I don't understand it, but it's just what my body does.

I am back to eating Protein and salad or one vegetable on the side. It's sad because I crave all the "raw," "clean" food, but it doesn't work with me to lose weight. So glad I'm not the only one that had this. No one was believing me and even I had trouble at first too!

Thanks for the post!

jen

[Bandista 7,466]

While I'm not a raw foods gal I totally identify with being overweight from extremely healthy foods. That was me. I was a vegetarian for 17 years. One of the things I miss is those volume salads. We still eat a lot of nuts, etc., but I try to have four almonds and chew them into pulp then go back for more if needed. No more nut burgers or burgers of any kind, really, though I did make some fantastic fish cakes the other day. Glad you're doing so well. I have watched you because we have such similar stats in addition to other characteristics. You're doing beautifully! Oh, I should add that I continue to be surprised by what can be a slider for me. Yogurt I chunk up with a few walnuts, chia and gluten-free Cereal, for example, so there's plenty of chewing. That seems to be the thing for me, the chewing activates the full signal. My beautiful fish cakes? Kind of a slider for me.....

[AvaFern 3,516]

This was an interesting post to read! I am not a raw food person although all of the foods you listed are foods I enjoy having. One thing you mentioned- zucchini with marinara is something I eat all the time. I use a vegetti to turn a small zucchini into Pasta then I brown ground turkey, strain off all the fat, and toss in a jar of marinara. I keep the marinara/ turkey sauce in the fridge and I just reheat a half cup or so everyday when I turn another zucchini into veggie Pasta on the stove. It's a fast lunch, it has a lot of Protein in it, and I don't notice a gain at all from eating it. Maybe something you can try if you start to miss your veggies a lot!

[KateP 359]

Yup! Nuts - oh so healthy! But oh so fattening!!!!

[TheProfessor 378]

Well its great to see I'm not "off my nutter" here. Seems you all have had similar experiences with vegetarian or grain/nut-based foods.

Everything in moderation, right? I've probably eaten the equivalent of 1-2 pounds of nuts these past 2 weeks, between the almonds, macadamia, walnuts and pine nuts I've consumed in all of my dishes. Tragic! Delicious AND so much fat...!

I went for a band adjustment today, and a little 2cc fill has made a HUGE difference. Normally I don't feel the difference until about 10 days later, but this one has delivered a noticeable and profound change in sensation. Eating a salad (raw, but no nut dressings!) tonight I could barely make it through 20 bites. (Chew, chew, chew...) @@Bandista I am so very much like you - require that 'chew factor' in order to get the brain signalling that satiety. I experienced my first "soft stop" tonight during dinner - sighing and pushing my plate away.

Nice to have noticed that soft stop, that is a great signal that I definitely want to continue to notice and honour. STOP EATING.

So today is a pivotal day for me. Another band fill that has, dare I say it, brought me into the green zone (!finally?!) and an end to my experiment with re-introducing (yummy) raw cuisine.

A small haiku to the end of my raw food dalliances:

Raw cuisine (delish)

I will miss you, my old friend

Weight must be lost now.

[B-52 7,113]

I invested in a good Vita-Mix, can't live without....everyday since surgery over 4 years ago...

I start with a scoop of whey for 35gm of Protein, then add whatever my tastes are that day...

Straight Raw veggies like carrots, celery, etc, etc, does not go well with my band no matter how well I chew, it is still too rough.....need to cook and soften them....also no skins on fruit.< /p>

[swimbikerun 1,039]

It is the grains and the like that get you. Straight veggies not so much. The grains and nuts do have a lot of calories. If you go to clean eating with out the carbs, what about seeing if that works? You can always do non meat types of Proteins.< /p>

[HappyVegan 15]

Hi Im sooo happy found this topic!!

I got my surgery 1 month ago, and after been vegetarian for most of my life, wanted to do the leap of faith and compassion and been a vegan... So since my surgery i have only had a vegan diet.... fruits, veggies and grains, legumes etc.. for the first 2 weeks i dropped 15 pounds, then i stall for 10 days and i noticed it was because i introduce more nuts and grains and avocado So for the last 5 days i been eating only vegetables, legumes ( chickpeas, green peas, black Beans etc) and fruits and i started loosing again yay!! 3 pounds less!!!

And it makes sense to me now!! im doing a big effort to dropped the fat i have inside so i can not put extra fat in!! Soo only legumes, fruits and veggies has done the trick for me!!

I also recommend listening to dr. Garth Davis interviews, or fb, he has been one of my inspirations, because he is a surgeon specialist in bariatric and he recommend a vegan diet from the beginning to his patients and he has tons of great testimonies and when he speaks about it is so informative and facts oriented.

For the most part being a vegan in this new stage of my life has been wonderful, no nausea, no reflux or digestion problems AT ALL. everything goes down easily and i can get to enjoy fruits, veggies and legumes . Im learning while i go... but so far so good!!

I want to know if there is someone else wanted to share their food blog and progress with me? i log using cronometer cuz allow me to see the nutrients in my food. It will be interesting see what works for other vegan so we can have a little comparison.

hugs and lots of good vibes!!

Edited May 23, 2015 by Decolonial