This is a post I have been meaning to write since the New Year, but, in typical fashion, I have procrastinated.
One year and 16 days I have been vegan, and I am
never looking back. Being vegan seemed like one of those things that was always such a tall hurdle that I could never quite reach. I told myself for years I would be vegan and just kept putting it by the wayside because of "how hard" it would be.
Truth is:
being vegan is easy! Sure, you have to change your grocery list and can't find everything you want at
Walmart, but with natural food stores at every corner here in Florida, I can bike to get the ingredients I need for dinner and get a work out in the process! If your town isn't as blessed with vegan fare as mine, there are large chains like Whole Foods that carry most everything you possible want and then some. Even regular chain grocery stores carry most of the vegan staples - tofu, rice, grains, beans, veggies. Giant Eagle (a grocery store chain I used to frequent in Ohio) even carried
Tofutti!
And, as most assume, eating at
certain restaurants can require a little legwork, but with the variety out there of great locally owned and operated dinners and cafes - why make more work when you can support local business?
Things I have noticed since becoming vegan:
One thing being vegan has helped me do is to venture away from the larger corporations and turn towards the community. I do less of my shopping at large chains, and more at farmers markets or local grocers. When friends are in town and we go out for dinner, I take them to the local places that have treated me well and care for their customers as if they were there own family.
Since becoming vegan, I have been trying to cook with more whole foods and less processed meals. I keep my cupboards stocked with brown rice, couscous, black beans, kidney beans and chickpeas; and my fridge with fresh fruits, veggies, and leafy greens. Whole foods provide more nutrients and less chemicals (especially if you buy organic!).
I have always been fairly skinny - at my highest weight I was 114lbs. But there was one thing that always bothered me about my body: a ring of fat around my lower abdomen that no matter what I ate or how much I worked out, would NOT go away. Since I switched to a vegan diet - almost entirely gone! I am convinced that with a little more exercise and a little less soda in my life (my hardest New Years Resolution yet!), I will have the flat stomach I've always wanted just in time for beach season.
A doctor did some blood work on me recently and told me that I had the lowest cholesterol he had ever seen from someone that was not on medication.
No clogged arteries here! Now, there is such thing as too little of the "good" cholesterol - so make sure to eat up on nuts and avocados to keep yourself in balance!
There are many convincing arguments on why one should try a vegan diet:
- lower cholesterol
- reduced risk of heart disease
- reduced risk of stroke
- Vegans have lower rates of obesity, coronary heart disease, high blood pressure, large bowel disorders, cancers and gallstones.
- helping the planet
- saving animals!
...and many more I cannot name. But don't take my word for it - read up on it and try it for yourself! Report back with any questions, concerns, or recipes you want to make vegan. I'll be glad to help!
With lots of vegan love,
Brit (& her newly vegan hubby, Eric!)
