But where do u get your protein?!
Me with my melon baby
Wow! The hot weather has settled in nicely! It was over 30deg cel today, loving it. Did 39kms on the bike today + a 5km run. Munched on lots of watermelon, oranges & the nicest ‘Apollo’ tomatoes..mmmm check em out below…
Ok So down to business 
….
I’m sure a lot of you rawfoodies out there have been asked this one before!
Where do you get your protein from??
I’ve been asked so many times that I find it quite amusing but also very sad because it’s evidence of how misled we have been by the greedy Corporations (especially the meat & dairy industry)… Anyway I have some creative answers to get your interrogator thinking…
Q. So where do u get your protein from?
Ahh lovely red toms!
1) I get my protein from fresh fruits & greens, did you know that there isn’t even a medical term for protein deficiency?
2) Well I know i’m getting under the World Health Organization’s (WHO) recommendation of 10% of my calories from protein, how about you?
3) I actually make sure I don’t get TOO much protein, why? Because too much protein in our bodies, especially from animal sources results in an overacidic environment forcing the body to leach calcium from the bones & teeth to ‘buffer’ the acidity. The resulting conditions are arthritis,osteoporosis, tooth-decay & cancer to name a few.
My friends teeth from too much meat protein
4) The more protein you have in your diet, the more acidic your blood will be and the more calcium that will be leached from your bones & teeth. Animal proteins (meats) are the number 1 culprit of this cycle
5) Fruits & Greens contain the ideal amount of protein in the form of easily assimilable amino acids
6) Plants are the only foods eaten by elephants, horses, and hippos & do you see them having a problem growing all the muscle, bone, and tissue they need?
You could actually answer the protein question with a question….
Q. Why do you think we need lots of protein?
Typical Response- Umm well that’s what the nutritionist’s say & i want to build muscle, you can’t build muscle on a vegan diet, you need meat!
Your Answer – Actually the biggest factor in building muscle is appropriate resistance training & getting sufficient nutritious calories to support muscle growth. Meat does not build muscle, go to www.veganbodybuilding.com
White Mulberries
A word on Ketosis….
If we don’t take in enough carbs and at the same time eat too much protein, the body will go into a state of Ketosis. What is ketosis? It’s when there is an accumulation of ketones in the blood which are byproducts of fat oxidation. Ketones are toxic (poisonous), acidic chemicals such as acetone,acetoacetate, and beta-hydroxybutyrate.
Ketosis is a dangerous state to be in as it increases insulin resistance and glucose intolerance, not to mention you feel crap!! Insulin resistance is a major risk factor for the development of heart disease.
Glucose intolerance has been connected to hypertension and dyslipidemia. I have been in a state of Ketosis myself – My acne increased, I was constantly lethargic, my breath stank, & I was having suicidal tendencies….
When our bodies are in a state of ketosis dehydration will result, due to the kidneys being overtaxed by having to rid the body of excess nitrogen. This can cause dizziness, headaches, confusion, nausea, fatigue, sleep problems, and worsening of kidney problems.
Here’s some interesting info on low carb,high protein diets here, its really worth a read!
Lastly, just to put some sugar on top…
Its not a coincidence that we have ‘sweet-tooths’, we are designed by nature to crave carbs or in others words- to crave sweet foods. We have sweet-tasting taste buds that are located on the tip of our tongues . Lucky us we get to eat all the dessert we want & its in line with nature’s design!! Carbs, contain a unique combination of sweet-flavor, energy, & nutrition…they regulate our hunger. Its a fact that unless you eat enough carbohydrate foods, you will continue to remain hungry and search for food. So eat up your fruit & don’t worry about not getting enough protein!! Worry about getting too much! As u can it can be life-threatening.
Lovefreelee X
Mmmm white berries!
Hi,
I just wanted to take the time and tell you how much I love your blog. It’s really helpful & motivating – especially for people like me that are new to this!
So keep up the great work!
Love,
Kathin
p.s. the mulberries in the picture really look like worms – quite shocking at first
thankyou I really appreciate you poppin in
) ahaha do they look like worms?? I hadn’t noticed 
Trust me they taste like sweet candy!
They look like grubs! Freshly picked from the rich soil. yum!
Im raw vegan over 3 years now and its the simplest diet ever! Traditionally we lose a lot of fat and puffiness on this diet and look super skinny initially, but I have found I can build muscle and most importantly strength and endurance. When I ate the body building diet of 6-8 meals a day and lots of meat, I was big and could train hard for an hour at the gym but lethargic outside of that. Now can deadlift 162.5kg, run all day and cycle yoga whatever and recover well.
I actually had someone ask me the protein question yesterday but is super rare as you cant argue with results.
Awesome testimonial Brock, You have inspired me to start a page dedicated to Peeps succeeding on LFRV can i add u?…..I remember the puffy meat look too & the added lethargy, pimples & general lack of vitality….no thanks i only eat the most nutritious food on the planet now – fruits & greens!
Lovely to see u X
you are a cool chick and you look very good!
I love your article, thanks for getting it out there
is that Rich teeth??? hehehee I recognize them, what great guy to volunteer
PHilippines is oof the hoooooooook with many varieties….price was one ausie dollar for 2 kilos of the best quality ever!! (October prices)…
davao city next year we must all come back together after thailand
aww big D!! How u doing? Its great to *see* u X
Oh yeh that’s Rich’s teeth, he is a great guy
Wow Phillipines sounds great….Im in for next year for sure, keep spreading the vegan/No smoking please message my friend & see u in Dec
Lovefree
Sorry, The link was on my name. A little confusing, please look at this;
http://www.westonaprice.org/traditional_diets/ancient_dietary_wisdom.html
Hey shulamis, here is a great link regarding the truth about Westion A Price …
From the Author….
Regrettably, those currently running the Weston A. Price Foundation seem to be oblivious to the spirit of compassion which motivated the work of the man under whose name they act….
http://www.earthsave.org—westonpricereflections.htm
Love this blog!
I am a newbie here.
I have been raw for only 6 months and love it. Even going only 70% raw some days I have lost a much needed 43 lbs! A word about protein, as I am asked that all the time and I do ask the person a question right back. That question is “So how much protein does one need?” And they always say they do not really know. Then I give them the real answer which is that the amount of protein that one needs is already detrmined by mother nature! The newborn baby is fed breast milk during the most formative and critical growth time of their lives. And how much protein is in breat milk? 6 percent. So you see nature tells us what we need. And as it has been said so well on this blog you can get 6% protein by eating fruit and veggies!
Awesome to hear Rich, thanks for popping in!
Great stuff. sweetjuicyfreelee.dom is my favorite site.
http://busboyswater.blogspot.com/
Hi! I’m new to raw food, and excited about it. However, you said that there is no medical term for protein deficiency. There is, it’s “Kwashiorkor.” It occurs primarily in children from developing counries that are having to subsist off of aid rations of grain and little else. Protein deficiency is real and devastating in some places. To clarify, it’s not going to happen on a raw vegan diet as variety-filled as we have available.
Thanks!
Hi there Trish, welcome
No actually “Kwashiorkor” is not the medical term for protein deficiency nor is it a protein deficiency. Its a CALORIC deficiency. Same with Marasmus. In other words, you’d have to starve yourself to not get enough protein. Does that make sense?
My friend also wrote a great article I recommend you check out
http://www.raw-food-health.net/VegetableProtein.html
Thanks for popping in !
This is really brilliant. I really wish I found this sooner. You’ve got some really fantastic responses to this question. And you’ve got such a great energy – confident, honest, succinct, but not at all aggressive or offensive.
Thanks so much for sharing!
Great blog! Changed my life, you should right a book! I’d definitely by it
Hi there,
I’ve heard a lot about this diet lately because I know a few vegans on it. I am vegan myself, but not raw. I am also a nutritionist…
As a vegan, I already know that I don’t need meat to get protein and I know I can get it from 100% vegetable sources. However, as a (non-raw) vegan, I always combine beans and grains to get a ‘complete’ protein. All vegetables, grains, legumes etc. have a different cocktail of amino acids which are the building blocks of protein. In one day, we need to have all of these amino acids to form a complete protein.
As a raw foodist, I was wondering, how do you get ‘complete’ protein (meaning all of the amino acids). Do you eat sprouts? As far as I know, just eating greens and fruits is not enough to give you ALL the amino acids. I could be wrong though… Please enlighten me, because I may consider going raw in the future
Thanks,
Shyra
Hi Shyra,
I’m a nutrition research scientist, and have been a raw-vegan for some time now (11 years). I just wanted to correct you on one thing. Combining protein is a discredited concern for vegetarians and vegans. You can simply google “protein combining myth” and get results. Our body finds, creates and puts together and amino acids we may not be making (kind of like putting together a puzzle on it’s own). I hope that helps!
Nahla
You are an idiot.
As a dentist and a bodybuilder your bullshit correlating meat protein intake and oral health is just bad.
Please stop writing.
lol ‘Professor X’ sounds like some sort of pornstar, maybe you should stick to your day job better still do some research so you don’t sound like such an uneducated twat.
I tried this diet and I ended up with deficiencies in the following areas: protein, B vitamins, essential fats and oils – this in spite of strenuous efforts to get the best foods. I had to give it away. Ditto for various friends of mine. Usual symptom – illness, loss of energy, depression.
Have a look at the human digestive tract. It is designed for a mixed diet.
A lot of people claiming to be on a raw food vegan diet actually cheat a lot when no-one is looking, Because you have to.
Well I know you aren’t telling the truth because there isn’t a test for EFA’s. Self-diagnosis is very subjective. The truth is you don’t know what your EFA levels were right?
A deficiency in protein?? lol please tell me what the medical term is for ‘protein deficiency’…you can’t because there isn’t one. Marasmus and kwashiorkor are due to a calorie deficit not protein deficiency. B vitamins? 99% of people who suffer from Vit B deficiency are meat-eaters, go figure. Please do some research. You were undereating on fruit.
Yes have a look at the human digestive tract, it is perfectly set up for a frugivorous diet.
So you were also cheating!! This is classic. You weren’t even doing a LFRV lifestyle, come on stop wasting my time thanks.
Hi, would you care to give us the name’s of the tests you took to know those results?
As a nutrition research scientist, I have also worked in the medical field and come from a family of doctors and I can tell you this:
-No medical record has ever recorded an amino acid deficiency in humans (this means no human in recorded medical history has gotten protein deficiency as a result of a vegan diet).
-There is no test for EFA’s.
- I am quite skeptical of your lacking B-vitamins, as the vegan diet (fruits, vegetables, nuts, legumes, grains, etc.) is very high in B-vitamins.
- Oil? Really? There is no requirement that we must intake oil to be healthy.
Great website – my only “concern” is that it looks like your friend has never brushed or flossed
his/her teeth? Is that the case?
Thank You so much.I’ve had persons trying to let me know I can make myself ill from not getting enough protein from the raw food vegan lifestyle.This really helps a lot since I’m new to this.Thank you
Hello Freelee,thanks to you and Durian I have started on your diet,stopped eating all kinds of meat and dairy.I’m feeling fine and my performance in the gym(amateur bodybuilding)is even better!I feel stronger than ever and more energetic than ever.Love you both ,you are an incredibly beautiful woman and person and you are inspiring people to become happy.Keep it up!(Five weeks on a high carb, low fat,raw fruit vegan diet and loving it!)
So great to hear thank you very much! Keep on track by making sure you eat enough fruit/carb calories and keep the fat intake low x
Please explain how the body can repair muscles and tissues without proteins.
Also, please explain how you can get and store the fat soluable vitamins without eating fat.
Please be aware that making your body scavenge other, less needed tissues for aminoacids to repair the most vitals organs is not a long term sustainable solution. (“recycling”)
If I’m wrong, I’d be happy to learn.
Who said ‘without protein’? There is more than sufficient protein in fruits and greens without going anywhere near other food sources.
Take a look at the biggest animals on the planet – no animal products in their diet.