What Do I Eat?

The most violent weapon on earth is the table fork…-Mohandas Gandhi
 

(Vegan travel packing)

 

(shopping w/a non-vegan (right side) is not so bad hehe)

 







As a renovated VEGAN-EATER I eat more than I have ever eaten before.  It is easy to be VEGAN and eat a well-balanced diet without having to count calories and check the fat grams and carbs in all the foods you eat everyday. Eating VEGAN just naturally makes me more conscious as to what I put in my mouth and call food.  It takes a minute to adjust to looking through the asiles at the supermarket and picking out differnt things to eat-when you are used to picking up the same type groceries.  Cooking is always fun for me now because I always want to try something new, so take me grocery shopping with you!

I EAT TO LIVE NOT LIVE TO EAT!

I EAT FRUIT, VEGETABLES, BEANS, LEGUMES, WHOLE GRAIN, NUTS, SEEDS, SOME MEAT SUBS, HEALTHY FATS, AND OF COURSE SNACKS.

If it does not come in under any of those first eight headings I do not eat it.  Eating this way makes my body feel great.  Its whole foods, NO real fat, NO cholesterol, and NO real saturated fat either.  Yes I get fats in my diet because they are important but I get healthy fats like raw cashews and flaxseed oil..and I know what you are thinking, “don’t nuts make you fat”.  Ummmm well sure they do if you consume a whole bag of them roasted and salted and oiled up like they are a bag of Lays potato chips.  I promise no vegetarian or vegan has ever gained weight from eating a handful of nuts a day.  

Leafy green vegetables are the best to eat; they have the highest amount of nutrients and if I need to cook them I sauté them lightly instead of boiling them in water or broth.  Fruit I love to juice but I also eat it raw.  Beans and legumes, OMG I do everything with these…I make hummus, soups, different cold salads, blend them with some milk and seasonings for alfredo and cheese sauces, oh the list can go on.   Wheat (whole grain) is very important to get in a plant-based diet and I eat wheat bread sometimes or wheat protein or bulgar for example,  but try to stay away from eating too much bread and pasta although you need it.  I spoke above about nuts and seeds already which are a great source of good fats and Omega3.  Meat substitutes are mostly processed so I watch my intake on them but they help with the transition when you just want the meaty chewy feel in your food.  I mean compared to a pound of ground meat (turkey or beef), some ground TVP has about 85% less fat in it anyway.  With meat substitutes I make spaghetti, burgers, pizza, fajitas, meat loafs, roasts, sloppy joes…you name it.  Healthy fats I get from flaxseed oil or nuts and seeds for example.  Fats are needed for our bodies but keep it healthy.  No vegan or vegetarian has ever gotten fat eating a hand full of raw nuts a day either, :-).   I like snacks too I must admit, I try to snack on raw things though like date bars (sounds gross but brands Pure and Raw Revolution are great), fruit, etc…but I love black bean corn chips, or brown rice chips, and my fav is air popped POPCORN with a little sea salt and melted vegan earth balance butter spread….whoop whoop!

I GET MY PROTEIN IN THE MORNING.

(morning protein shake jar)

Now there are PLENTY of ways vegans/vegetarians get protein without eating meat that comes with high cholesterol and saturated fat but there is nothing like a morning protein shake for  me.  Because of my WLS surgery (see the section "Who Is That VVV?") I have to have more protein then most anyway, and  I have tried many different VEGAN protein powders (trust there is a ton out there).  I enjoy throwing in some fruit, cinnamon, veggies even, oats, flax or chia seeds and start my day right.  Also, I drink out of a HUGE mason jar and its practically full.  I must watch the fruit intake because you do not want to consume 600 calories (which is easy to consume in a shake) all at one time. I try to drink this as often as possible in the mornings.

I DRINK 3-4 LITERS OF WATER A DAY.

Water, Water, Water, I cannot say it enough!  Water gets your metabolism running because anything you swallow or even put in your mouth – your body has to put in work to recognize what it is and process it the way it needs to be processed.  And yes even if you just have something in your mouth and do not swallow it, your saliva is step one in breaking foods down to be entered into your body.  Drinking 8 glasses of water a day is only efficient if you weigh 125lbs and equals out to only 64 ounces a day which is not even 2 liters and only a fraction of a gallon of water.  You could be eating great but not drinking enough water which will not help your cells breath and process all that great food to be rinsed through your body and pooped out.  Drinking water alone also helps you lose weight!  Drink a large glass of water right before every meal and I promise you will want to eat less.  Also make sure you spread out your water throughout the day and not drink it all at one time.

EVERY MORNING I DRINK A CUP OF WARM WATER WITH LEMON.

This routine is the start of my day.  It is not safe or healthy for your body to be walking around for a while before you can actually sit down and feed it breakfast.  Warm lemon water takes much of no effort to make to get that metabolism running.  Lemon water flushes toxins out of the body, freshens your breath, promotes healing if needed, energizes you, aids in weight loss, clears your skin, gives you some energy, and of course boots your immune system.

I DO NOT GO OVER 3-4 HOURS WITHOUT EATING.

See our bodies are machines and react based on how you feed and take care of it.  When you do not change the oil in your car it begins burning out other parts of the car to survive or at least temporarily survive until you get that oil change.  Just like your body, if you do not feed it regularly it will assume you are starving it, and to survive, your cells go into combat overtime mode and start pulling energy from different places in your body making you feel yucky, irritable and get stomach pains.  The worst part about this is that once you finally eat (even if it is a bag of raw spinach) it will most likely be stored in your body as fat and it will sit there and not go in to be used for energy right away (its saving this food because your body is still in starvation mode).  So eat eat eat all day please and thank you!

I DO RANDOM JUICE FASTS.

(celery, cucumber, collards, pears, apples)

Juicing is one of my FAVORITE things in the world to do.   There are not many other things that excite me this much, I MEAN REALLY. It is my reflection time and my body usually tells me when it is ready to detox.  I can be silent and spiritually communicate with The Creator and my ancestors.  The way I feel after, during and before (because I am so excited to start juicing) a juice cleanse is unexplainable.  Juicing is a great way to get tons of nutrients all at one time and is the best way to detox your system, whether you are a VEGAN or not, without doing too much shocking of your system as well.  I attempt 4 five-seven day juice fasts a year but when I am on a roll I can probably do them almost every month or so.  I know people that juice once a week on hump day (Wednesday) too; it’s a great way to recharge your body after a crazy binge eating vacation or even in the middle of the holidays full of parties, eating, and apple pies :-).  See more information about juicing in here at the bottom of the page.

YES, I TAKE VITAMINS.

Since my surgery I was actually already required to take a prescribed multi-vitamin but since I am now VEGAN I have found other supplements that are fully packed with all the nutrtients and minerals that I need.  There are only certain ones you can overdose on (which is unlikely), so the more the merrier…but I would recommend checking with your doctor first and getting yearly blood drawn just to be safe.  Check out VEGAN 101 for more information on vitamins for vegans/vegetarians.

I LIKE TO MOVE MY BODY.

Moving your body is not something I eat but I it is surely directly related to it.  I love to dance, ride my bike, shower dance, swim, kitchen dance, do yoga, oh and party dance.  Moving your body every day is essential and I do not mean you have to go to the gym and put in 2 hour work-outs every day but find something you can participate in regularly. When you eat healthy on top of moving your body, it will make a huge difference.  See you on the dance floor-every second counts as movement!

One Day At A Time...