How to Gain Weight on Raw Foods/ Stop Losing Weight

This page will summarise my findings from the 100-day raw food challenge. It will also summarise opinions of different authors on this topic. I will test the recommendations that work best on myself and report the findings. My build is such that it is easy for me to lose weight and if I do purposefully gain some it goes to all the wrong places... my face and belly, generally.

There are raw foodists and dietary authorities who claim that raw fat goes to all the right places whereas cooked fat is not recognised by the body and thus collects in an unnatural way, looks bad and becomes hazardous to one's health. I will expand on this topic at a later date.

Maca powder (a superfood), celery and dark leafy greens have been mentioned among foods, which 'bulk you up' by other means than direct fat consumption.

Everyone by now knows that cooked carbohydrates make you put on weight. I wonder if raw, healthy carbs (namely, from fruit) would make you put on weight in a healthy and beautiful way? Again, more on this after my 100-day raw food challenge.

Dr. Douglas Graham maintains that to stop losing too much weight one needs to eat mostly fruit and to count calories, to make sure one gets enough.

Victoria Boutenko swears by green smoothies as a way to stop unwanted weight loss as a raw foodist.

For men, this topic is easy: Exercise and build muscle. Men can healthily have close to 0% body fat and - provided they are moderately and naturally athletic - they can still look good.
For women, however, this is another story completely as too low body fat can be dangerous and cause hormonal imbalances...

David Wolfe recommends starting with 1/3 protein, 1/3 fat and 1/3 of carbohydrates as a raw foodist (three alternative energy sources) and working towards a suitable individual balance from there.

Apparently an allergy to wheat and dairy products can cause one to be underweight. I am planning to see a nutritionist after perhaps the first week on raw to determine any allergies, possible nutritional deficiencies and to have a live blood analysis done.

Also, a thyroid issue can cause weight loss. This can be checked with a standard blood test by a doctor.

Nutritional imbalances can cause excessive weight loss and it is said that once on a well-balanced raw food diet some people actually put on weight naturally, as long as they keep eating enough and ensuring enough calories. Initial weight loss can be linked to the body's detoxification of toxins stored in the fat-reserves.

If one's digestive juices are not strong enough it can cause a lack of absorption of nutrients. A gradual increase of fibrous foods, especially green smoothies and vitamin C (e.g. lemon juice with water) in a daily diet should be able to correct this and enable proper absorption of nutrients. You will know when your digestive juices are back to normal when after eating beetroot your urine does NOT go red anymore! Apparently.
I know I am not there yet, however.

Personally, I am fascinated by these different accounts. I have understood through reading books and personal accounts on the internet that this topic is one of the biggest challenges raw foodists face and, in fact, one of the main reasons many return back to a lifestyle of cooked food. I am thus determined to find an answer to this topic that works for me personally, in a practical everyday way.

I have not found it yet.

But I will report back with more experience...

Best Raw Food Diet Books

View on Amazon

View on Amazon

View on Amazon

More raw food diet books, including summaries of the content, here.

Jump to top of page