LR7: Silly Carnivores

I have to remark on some things I find odd about the whole vegan thing. The first is how few people actually know what is included in a vegan diet. Everyone, without exclusion, attempts to define it by what a vegan “can’t” eat. As they begin to ask questions like, “so no fish either,” I try to simplify it for them. It is a plant based diet. I only eat things that come from plants. Inevitably, every adult asks, “what about alcohol”? It’s funny, they seem to think they could be a vegan, but cutting out alcohol would be a deal breaker. When I tell them that alcohol is from plants, they relax a bit.

One question I am asked repeatedly is, “how long are you going to do this vegan thing?” I used to answer with, “who knows”, but then I really thought it through. I became a vegan because it’s a healthier choice, not unlike quitting smoking. So in reality, their question is not dissimilar to asking a former smoker how long he plans on staying away from cigarettes.

“Do you take any supplements?” This is one of the funniest questions of all. The implication is that my diet must be deficient in supplying me with some essential vitamins, minerals or, most likely, protein. Here’s why the question is so funny to me. Almost every single supplement in the world is derived from plants.

“Cherry Garcia” for Vegans

Think about this. Only 2% of the American public is vegan and 5% is vegetarian. That means 93% are not. It’s hard for me to believe that the supplement and pharmaceutical businesses have grown so large, by supplying all the vegans that are nutritionally deficient.

Finally, I am often asked if I am a “strict” vegan and someone recently remarked that their daughter is “not as strict as I am.” I must admit, this word “strict” totally confuses me. A vegan only ingests things derived from plants. If you eat chicken, fish, or anything else from an animal, then you are simply someone who eats more vegetables than most or someone who eats meat only occasionally. Oh, and it doesn’t matter if the meat is organic. That has absolutely nothing to do with defining your diet as vegan. So either you are a vegan, or you’re not. There is no more granularity in the definition than that.

Halfway There

I’m at the halfway point in my quest to learn 12 new things and do 12 charitable things this year.

Unicycling, slack lining, jumping stilts, yarn bombing, and drumming have now been checked off, with ballroom dancing and eating right being works in progress on the learning side. That leaves 5 more to be accomplished. (Paragliding has been tentatively scheduled to begin at the end of July.)

On the giving side, I’ve built homes, fostered a puppy, volunteered to donate bone marrow, did graphic design work for a mitzvah and next Sunday will donate 400 square feet of knitting to Warm Up America, while having my blood, sperm and hair rejected. That leaves 7 more to be accomplished. (I become eligible again to donate blood on December 25th so that will likely be GR12.)

This is where you come in. I need suggestions for the remaining 12. Is there something you have been wanting to learn, but aren’t ready to take the leap? Is there something you would like to try, but worried it will be too difficult or time consuming? Use me as your guinea pig. Let me pave the way. Is there something you’ve learned that you think others should try too? Is there a charity you know of that could use a hand? Tell me how I can help.

Send me your suggestions. Share your thoughts.

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LR7: 3 Vegan Weeks & Not Really Counting

Recall I decided to become a vegan not because I want to live forever, but because I want to enjoy every minute that I am here. To do that requires as much energy as I can muster. Therefore, what I was hoping to gain from becoming a vegan was more energy. It’s inevitable, whenever I say that to someone who knows me, they always ask incredulously, “YOU need more energy?” Yes, I need and want more energy. I want to learn, try, discover and fail at many more things in my life. I want to hike further and faster, read more books, launch more charities and generally be a more interesting person. To do that, I need more energy for many years to come.

After 3 weeks of following a vegan diet, I can emphatically pronounce I have substantially more energy now than when I started. I haven’t suffered from a single headache and I get a better nights rest as well.

If you are contemplating improving your life by becoming a vegan listen to just one piece of advice. Do not try to replicate your current diet. Don’t buy soy meatballs, veggie burgers, or fake cheese. Make a clean break from your old habits regarding flavors and textures. The longer you do this, the less likely you will experience cravings or resort back to old habits if they are close at hand while vegan options are not. Think of it like this. If you didn’t have any food immediately accessible to you right now would you substitute dirt or a light bulb for your usual burger? No, you would simply wait until you had access to actual food.

This means you must be all-in in order for you to succeed. (I underlined succeed because if you can become a true vegan you will have succeeded at freeing yourself from weight problems, so many health issues and given yourself the gift of energy.) Try every vegetable put in front of you, even the ones you “know” you hate. Go to a restaurant and say, “I noticed you don’t have any vegan options on the menu. Could you have your chef make me a plate of vegetables, quinoa, grains and whatever else he sees fit to include, prepared however he/she likes so long as it doesn’t have any meat or dairy in it?” A good chef is an artist and will love the challenge to create something on the fly. You win by having a great new experience.

Try doing the same for yourself. Here’s a lunch I threw together at home. It’s simply peas, corn, garbanzo beans and grape tomatos. I’m not sure how many calories it has or how much protein, but to be honest I’ll bet it’s far better for me than the Stouffer’s French Bread Pizza I would normally have resorted to in the past, and it tasted far better too.

Finally, I need to share two great sources of information and inspiration that I have discovered so far on my journey. I’m thankful that people who know so much are so willing to share with the those of us who don’t.

Vegan Sparkles – I love this blog for the density of information Rebecca delivers in a witty, fun way. Her blog’s title intrigued me and the content didn’t disappoint. It’s also chock full of great links that have been extremely helpful as well.

My Plant Based Family – Holly’s recipes and guidance for a vegan newbie is incredibly valuable and her enthusiasm is infectious. Her blog is incredibly organized, solving one of my pet peeves about blogs in general and making her wealth of knowledge readily available.

LR7: Popular Misconceptions about Veganism

Fiction: Vegans are so limited in what they can eat.

Fact: Truth is, most people have very limited diets with very little variety. It’s not until you cut out the staples of your diet that you open yourself up to the thousands of far more interesting flavors and textures offered in vegetables, fruits, grains, legumes and nuts, that you’ve yet to experience. As they say, “necessity is the mother of all invention.” Well, you need to eat and if you remove  the fatty and processed staples of your current diet, you will be forced to find alternatives or you will die. You will be forced to be creative and discover meals that are far healthier for you. There are thousands of them to choose from.

Fiction: You can’t get the protein your body needs without eating meat.

Fact: Vegetables, beans, grains, nuts, and seeds can easily supply your body with the amino acids (that’s what your body really needs, not protein) it requires. It’s much harder to get them from sugars, fats and alcohol. I’d be much more concerned about meat eaters getting enough of the essential vitamins and minerals their bodies need than a vegan getting enough protein.

Fiction: My kids would never eat if I only made vegan dishes.

Fact: This has to be the worst cop out a parent could use. There are a lot of things your kids would never do if you didn’t step in as their responsible parent and make sure they did. It’s your job as a parent to help your kids grow into happy, healthy adults. How many adults struggle with weight and health issues because their parents didn’t instill healthy eating habits in them when they were children. Just because they don’t like bland, poorly cooked broccoli thrown on the plate alongside a hamburger and creamy mashed potatoes, doesn’t mean there doesn’t exist a well prepared vegetable option your kids would like. It’s your job to find just a few of the thousands that exist.

LR7: My 1st Week as a Vegan

Becoming a vegan is not unlike joining a cult, or at least it evokes a very similar reaction from the people around you.

Fellow vegans welcome you, but it’s not a simple, “good for you”, it’s more about indoctrinating you and lecturing you on things that go way being simply switching to a plant-based diet. It brings diatribes about “cleansing” and “detox”. They seem to feel the need to bestow all of their wisdom and hokey science upon you and most will attempt to sell you on the benefits of higher energy levels.

Meat-eaters, or shall we say, the majority of people in this world, seem to be repulsed by the thought of living solely on plants. “You can’t even eat eggs?” They want to impart their wisdom, which by the way is almost exclusively based on the question, “where will you get your protein?” They all seem to have the same advice too. “Make sure you eat lots of beans and nuts.” They all attempt to sell you on the “fact” that all the vegans they know are always sick and are the unhealthiest people they know.

I have not joined a cult. I believe the prevalence of huge waistlines, double chins, cancers, heart problems, high cholesterol levels and diabetes among Americans is evidence enough that our eating habits need improvement. It’s amazing to me how many people select the high octane fuels for their cars, yet shovel low octane fuel into themselves, and even worse, their kids. When I eat a thick, juicy steak, it’s good, but the sluggish, bloated feeling that lingers long after is not good. It’s a fact, red meat does more harm than good. The same goes for refined foods and dairy products. And that is the essence of my argument for becoming a vegan. The cost / benefit analysis when it comes to food is simply nonexistent for most of us, yet there is no more important issue for our health.

Why did we switch from a healthy diet to such obviously poor eating habits? The answer is convenience. Question you have to answer is, “Is my health and the health of my family worth taking a little more time for food gathering and preparation?”

As for cravings, I haven’t experienced any yet. In fact, I am repulsed by the idea of meat and even for things that come in a box. I don’t eat much tofu because I’m not trying to replicate the texture of meat. I am reveling in the incredible flavors and textures I had been missing out on all my life. I’m not looking to convert anyone, but I hope I can inspire you to think about your choices.

Finally, I don’t anticipate posting recipes and nutritional advice in my blog, but I am thankful for those who do. Fruits and vegetables come in an extraordinary number of varieties and it can be overwhelming to a newbie. If you have any great blogs, websites or books you can recommend to those of us trying navigate these unchartered waters, please do share them here.

LR7: Learn How to Eat Right

It is so unlike me to jump on a bandwagon and I have avoided going down this path until now, solely on that basis. However, it’s also unlike me to do things that are counterintuitive and it has just dawned on me that by continuing to maintain the diet I’ve been following my entire life, my actions are in direct opposition to what I know intuitively to be right. If it took a documentary to give me the swift kick in the ass I needed to see what should have been obvious to me for a very long time, well so be it. In this case, that documentary is “Forks Over Knives” and it’s the trigger for choosing “Learn How to Eat Right” as LR7.

Since birth I have been an unabashed junk food junkie. I lived Morgan Spurlock’s “Super Size Me” for decades. When we moved out to Santa Barbara that changed a lot, but mostly because there aren’t many fast food chains here. Anyway, I don’t want to be one of those long winded bloggers so I’ll keep this simple. My goal is to convert to a plant based diet, otherwise known as a vegan, but here is the trick. LR7 will only be deemed a success if I figure out how to do it sustainably. By that I mean it won’t require willpower to adhere to it. If I have to fight cravings, if it is a hassle, or unsatisfying, I will have failed.

Now you know my goal, please help by sharing tasty, simple recipes, ideas, and thoughts.

LR 7: Eat Right (Vegan) Posts

• My 1st Week as a Vegan
• Popular Misconceptions About Veganism
• 3 Vegan Weeks and Not Really Counting
• Barbara, Patron Saint of Veganism
• Convenience Drives Consumption
• Barefoot Hiking
• Silly Carnivores
• Mindful Endurance