The past week has been rather hectic and we have slid right back into some of the bad eating habits we had before starting the Forks Over Knives diet plan. We have had fast food twice, restaurant food three or four times and generally struggled to eat well. Not the kind of news I enjoy reporting on this blog, but I can't lie to you all, we are having a tough time being vegans.
All is not lost, of course, because we can just get right back on track at the next meal. One burger from McDonald's has not undone all the good we're doing by eating a plant-based diet. And most of the restaurant food we've eaten has come from restaurants that provide vegan menus. Like I said a couple of weeks ago, we are doing SO much better than we were two or three months ago, I refuse to be discouraged.
Yes, I am a little frustrated that we didn't stick with it, but I'm not ready to give up.
One thing I do that helps me see what I need to work on and where my weaknesses are, as well as what things I'm doing RIGHT, is keeping a food log. It's just a notebook where I list everything I eat, not calories or anything else, just a list of food. And I try to keep track of my emotions and physical symptoms, just to see how those factors are affected by diet.
I also make a quick note of any exercise I do. Because of ongoing back problems, I am starting over, doing a series of stretches every day to get me to the point of walking on a treadmill every day. I need a lot more exercise than I'm getting.
I believe a food log is a good idea for anyone, on a diet, needing to diet or whatever. We do not realize how much food we eat in a day, and some days, we've found that we didn't eat much at all! And surely not enough to get all the nutrients we need. Try it for a week, or even a couple days, write down absolutely everything you eat, then you'll see why it helps us so much.
Basically, with this lifestyle change, I have three goals: First, get healthy enough to be able to reduce the amount of medication I need; second, feel better, physically and emotionally; and third, lose weight. And that is in order of importance. I know I am healthier -- I just feel better for one thing, but I've also been tracking my blood sugar levels and they're significantly lower than they were six months ago.
I've lost over 20 pounds since starting FOK, but I've lost 32 pounds since when I was at my heaviest. That's great, but I do have a long ways to go to feel fit. I have promised myself a little treat (not food!) when I have lost 50 pounds, and I plan to keep those little treats going right until I reach my goal weight.
I will admit that some of my "slips" were more in the form of "little rewards" because I've been so good about watching my diet. Dumb! It's not a reward, it's allowing myself to veer off a path I have set for myself. And I will also admit that every time I've eaten fast food, I ended up with an upset stomach. It is so completely not worth it!
I have managed to resist one thing -- Pepsi. I love Pepsi. Nothing better on a hot day than an ice cold Pepsi. And I haven't had one since I started the FOK plan. It's been incredibly tough at times, because everyone in my family drinks Pepsi. I am drinking a lot of water and iced tea, but it ain't Pepsi. I'm hoping that if I ever do succumb to Pepsi's siren call, it will taste terrible to me. I'm afraid it won't though, so I'm doing my best to just stick to water.
On the positive side of the last week's insanity, we did find a couple new dishes we can make quite easily. We've started using a meat substitute from Yves Veggie Cuisine (available at Whole Foods). It looks and tastes like ground beef that has been browned. It's made of soy and a serving provides 10 grams of protein, which is very important.
Getting enough protein is essential and to eat vegan, one must keep track of their protein intake, even though it's quite simple to get protein from beans and other foods. This week, we used the Yves meatless ground product to make tacos. I could not tell the difference between these tacos and traditional hamburger tacos.
My two nieces were at our house when we cooked these and they both ate two tacos. A sure sign of approval! We also use the meat replacement in our pasta sauce. My husband said it was nice to eat something that was familiar, even though we've enjoyed the tofu dishes and other meatless dishes. We were meat eaters a long time, and we still enjoy at least pretending we're eating meat. That's probably silly, but, hey, it works!
The biggest lesson we've had from this lifestyle is not giving up. Some days I'd really like to just eat a freaking candy bar, and some fries, and a pepsi, then some pizza . . . . and on and on. But I know that what I really want, in the long run, is to reach my three goals: get off the meds, feel healthier, and lose weight.
Reaching my goals is going to be far more rewarding than any candy bar or pizza. Still, if I indulge, I'm not giving up. I'm committed to this lifestyle plan and, along with my husband, I'm sticking to it!
Thursday, July 26, 2012
Thursday, July 19, 2012
Vitamix Value
I'm not a cheapskate, really. I like expensive things, like really nice handbags, good shoes, a wonderful restaurant meal. All kinds of spendy things. But when it comes to my kitchen, I get all 1950's housewife-ish and start worrying about my "pin money". I've always bought those $10 mixers at Kmart, $30 blenders at Wally World, stuff like that. Even when I was a Pampered Chef representative, I bought only because I got a discount. Without the discount, I would have been buying their wonderful carrot peelers for $5.
Then, my dad bought a really nice Mixmaster at a garage sale and it was fabulous! I was so jealous! But the odds of me finding a nice Mixmaster at another garage sale were slim. That Christmas, my hubby bought me a brand new Mixmaster! Woot! Woot! It was worth every penny.
So when I started preparing for my new vegan lifestyle, I knew I needed a new blender (I used mine so little that I had given it away!). We wanted smoothies and we did have a nice smoothie machine. But it couldn't handle veggies and denser fruits. Not if you want a really smooth smoothie. My friend Chance, who has been my mentor in all this healthy living, told me his family had a Vitamix and loved it.
I checked it out on the Internet and nearly lost my mind. A Vitamix, brand new, is about $400. That's $400, yes. Wow. And that's just a basic version. There are more expensive versions.
My little 50s housewife thought "Oh, dear! this will eat up all the money I've been saving for a new pair of kitchen curtains!" And then some!
But my husband did some more research and he dug into it and, ultimately, he determined the Vitamix was the way to go. OKAY, WHAT IS GOING ON HERE? He really is a cheapskate so this amazed me. He then showed me all the positive reviews the machine got from users, showed me all the capabilities it had, assured me we could afford it, and before long, convinced me we indeed needed a Vitamix.
He found one on Vitamix's website, vitamix.com, that had been reconditioned and check this out -- it was RED! I love red! It cost about $350 but we were determined by then.
When the Vitamix arrived, we were like little kids getting a puppy on Christmas. We praised it's attractiveness, we pored over every detail, we took it for a little test run and then praised it for being so darn smart! One of the first things Chuck made was peanut butter. Just roasted unsalted peanuts, whirled around in the Vitamix then slathered on your toast! We keep it in a jar in our fridge and it is so good!
And of course we make smoothies. Fruit smoothies, fruit and veggie smoothies, green smoothies and even a chocolate smoothie. One night Chuck made orange sorbet and it rocked! In other words, the Vitamix has met every expectation we had and was totally worth the money. It also juices, shreds veggies, blends, does all sorts of handy things.
Please go to the website to check out all the facts and features, but they really are great. And we use it at least once a day, sometimes more. It comes with a great cookbook that you can find on ebay for a whole lotta money. The cookbook tells you how to make soups, sauces, juices, smoothies and many other healthful dishes.
The machine itself is amazing. It's really a simple machine, easy to use, not a bunch of crazy settings. It's easy to clean up, easy to use, just very useful. Of course, a Vitamix isn't just for vegans, it would be a huge asset in any kitchen.
Here's our favorite Vitamix smoothie recipe (pictured above):
Banana, Orange and Carrot Smoothie
1/2 banana, peeled
1 orange, peeled and halved
1 baby carrot
1/4 cup chopped celery
1/2 cup cranberry juice
1 cup ice cubes
Place all ingredients into the Vitamix container in the order listed and secure lid. Select Variable 1. Turn machine on and quickly increase speed to Variable 10, then to High. Blend for 1 minute or until desired consistency is reached.
See? Really simple! If you're trying this recipe in another blender, you need to chop up your fruit into smaller pieces. You might have to blend it longer, as well.
Then, my dad bought a really nice Mixmaster at a garage sale and it was fabulous! I was so jealous! But the odds of me finding a nice Mixmaster at another garage sale were slim. That Christmas, my hubby bought me a brand new Mixmaster! Woot! Woot! It was worth every penny.
So when I started preparing for my new vegan lifestyle, I knew I needed a new blender (I used mine so little that I had given it away!). We wanted smoothies and we did have a nice smoothie machine. But it couldn't handle veggies and denser fruits. Not if you want a really smooth smoothie. My friend Chance, who has been my mentor in all this healthy living, told me his family had a Vitamix and loved it.
I checked it out on the Internet and nearly lost my mind. A Vitamix, brand new, is about $400. That's $400, yes. Wow. And that's just a basic version. There are more expensive versions.
My little 50s housewife thought "Oh, dear! this will eat up all the money I've been saving for a new pair of kitchen curtains!" And then some!
But my husband did some more research and he dug into it and, ultimately, he determined the Vitamix was the way to go. OKAY, WHAT IS GOING ON HERE? He really is a cheapskate so this amazed me. He then showed me all the positive reviews the machine got from users, showed me all the capabilities it had, assured me we could afford it, and before long, convinced me we indeed needed a Vitamix.
He found one on Vitamix's website, vitamix.com, that had been reconditioned and check this out -- it was RED! I love red! It cost about $350 but we were determined by then.
When the Vitamix arrived, we were like little kids getting a puppy on Christmas. We praised it's attractiveness, we pored over every detail, we took it for a little test run and then praised it for being so darn smart! One of the first things Chuck made was peanut butter. Just roasted unsalted peanuts, whirled around in the Vitamix then slathered on your toast! We keep it in a jar in our fridge and it is so good!
And of course we make smoothies. Fruit smoothies, fruit and veggie smoothies, green smoothies and even a chocolate smoothie. One night Chuck made orange sorbet and it rocked! In other words, the Vitamix has met every expectation we had and was totally worth the money. It also juices, shreds veggies, blends, does all sorts of handy things.
Please go to the website to check out all the facts and features, but they really are great. And we use it at least once a day, sometimes more. It comes with a great cookbook that you can find on ebay for a whole lotta money. The cookbook tells you how to make soups, sauces, juices, smoothies and many other healthful dishes.
The machine itself is amazing. It's really a simple machine, easy to use, not a bunch of crazy settings. It's easy to clean up, easy to use, just very useful. Of course, a Vitamix isn't just for vegans, it would be a huge asset in any kitchen.
Here's our favorite Vitamix smoothie recipe (pictured above):
Banana, Orange and Carrot Smoothie
1/2 banana, peeled
1 orange, peeled and halved
1 baby carrot
1/4 cup chopped celery
1/2 cup cranberry juice
1 cup ice cubes
Place all ingredients into the Vitamix container in the order listed and secure lid. Select Variable 1. Turn machine on and quickly increase speed to Variable 10, then to High. Blend for 1 minute or until desired consistency is reached.
See? Really simple! If you're trying this recipe in another blender, you need to chop up your fruit into smaller pieces. You might have to blend it longer, as well.
Thursday, July 12, 2012
Top 5 Discoveries
Big news for this week: I've lost five more pounds. Yay, me! And that makes a total of 15 pounds for me and nearly 30 for my hubby. And my blood sugar ratings have went way down. Amazingly so! As I have said before, it would be great to lose weight, but my main goal is to get off of some the medications I take -- for instance the medication which is intended to help prevent me from getting diabetes, Mitformin. I don't want to take it. I want to manage my food and exercise so that I don't need that pill every day. One step closer!
Okay, with the personal stuff out of the way, I want to talk about some of the products I've adopted in the past few weeks. In trying to adopt the Forks Over Knives way of eating, my husband and I have explored a lot of websites, a lot of recipes, a lot of nutrition labels. We still have so much to learn, but we have found some things that, even if we totally failed at going vegan, we would still use those items.
Let me tell you about them:
Agave Nectar-- Agave nectar is a product of the same plant from which tequila is made. (Got your attention, didn't I?) The agave nectar has an appearance similar to honey, but it has a thinner consistency and a light taste. We use it a lot in smoothies and I even made a quick fruit salad and drizzled just a tad of agave nectar over it -- delicious! It contains some good minerals and vitamins and I found this explanation on a website: "The carbohydrate in agave nectar has a low glycemic index, which provides sweetness without the unpleasant "sugar rush" and unhealthful blood sugar spike caused by many other sugars. Agave nectar is a delicious natural sweetener that can be used moderately - by dieters, some diabetics, and health conscious cooks - to replace high-glycemic and refined sugars." http://www.allaboutagave.com/health-benefits-of-agave-nectar.php
Soy Milk -- To tell the truth I've been drinking soy milk for a few years, but my husband only came on board when we started the Forks Over Knives plan. We both think soy milk tastes better on cereal with a hint of sweet that keeps you from missing all that nasty processed sugar. We also use it in smoothies, recipes, anywhere we would have used cow's milk before. We like Silk brand soy milk. http://silksoymilk.com/
Vegetable Stock -- You know about chicken broth and beef broth. They're yummy. They have that wonderful meaty flavor. I was pretty dubious about what a vegetable stock would taste like. Never should have worried! It has a full, healthy flavor and works in soups and other dishes that need a little more juice. Best thing is it comes in resealable containers, unlike the old cans of chicken broth I used to buy. This is the link to the brand we buy: http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/products/178
Tamari -- Tamari is made from soy beans, as is soy sauce. However, Tamari has a lighter, less salty flavor. Right from the first taste, we both agreed it was much better than traditional soy sauce. It is used in recipes and as a condiment. We use Sang-J Organic Tamari, gluten free. Check out this website for a very complete explanation of Tamari: http://www.san-j.com/faq.asp
Earth Balance Spread -- This has been my very favorite "substitute" food yet. At first I was just doing without butter, because of the no-dairy restrictions of the Forks Over Knives plan. That got old fast! My husband found Earth Balance Spread at the store at about the same time as I was discovering it on the Internet. It comes in a tub like margarine, but the taste! It is very creamy, a tiny bit sweet, and completely NOT greasy. It is made from soy beans. We use it on toast and bread and just anywhere we would use butter. I have not baked with it or cooked extensively with it. I've seen recipes using Earth Balance, though. You really need to try this stuff. http://www.earthbalancenatural.com/
I hope our experiences help you out as you explore a whole food, plant-based diet. My advice, always, is that you research these suggested products on your own and not just take my word for it. I have researched them but, hey, we are all different, I don't know what your particular needs are. And I'm not a doctor or any kind of expert. I am simply sharing my journey, hoping to inspire and to encourage others to try a healthy diet.
Okay, with the personal stuff out of the way, I want to talk about some of the products I've adopted in the past few weeks. In trying to adopt the Forks Over Knives way of eating, my husband and I have explored a lot of websites, a lot of recipes, a lot of nutrition labels. We still have so much to learn, but we have found some things that, even if we totally failed at going vegan, we would still use those items.
Let me tell you about them:
Agave Nectar-- Agave nectar is a product of the same plant from which tequila is made. (Got your attention, didn't I?) The agave nectar has an appearance similar to honey, but it has a thinner consistency and a light taste. We use it a lot in smoothies and I even made a quick fruit salad and drizzled just a tad of agave nectar over it -- delicious! It contains some good minerals and vitamins and I found this explanation on a website: "The carbohydrate in agave nectar has a low glycemic index, which provides sweetness without the unpleasant "sugar rush" and unhealthful blood sugar spike caused by many other sugars. Agave nectar is a delicious natural sweetener that can be used moderately - by dieters, some diabetics, and health conscious cooks - to replace high-glycemic and refined sugars." http://www.allaboutagave.com/health-benefits-of-agave-nectar.php
Soy Milk -- To tell the truth I've been drinking soy milk for a few years, but my husband only came on board when we started the Forks Over Knives plan. We both think soy milk tastes better on cereal with a hint of sweet that keeps you from missing all that nasty processed sugar. We also use it in smoothies, recipes, anywhere we would have used cow's milk before. We like Silk brand soy milk. http://silksoymilk.com/
Vegetable Stock -- You know about chicken broth and beef broth. They're yummy. They have that wonderful meaty flavor. I was pretty dubious about what a vegetable stock would taste like. Never should have worried! It has a full, healthy flavor and works in soups and other dishes that need a little more juice. Best thing is it comes in resealable containers, unlike the old cans of chicken broth I used to buy. This is the link to the brand we buy: http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/products/178
Tamari -- Tamari is made from soy beans, as is soy sauce. However, Tamari has a lighter, less salty flavor. Right from the first taste, we both agreed it was much better than traditional soy sauce. It is used in recipes and as a condiment. We use Sang-J Organic Tamari, gluten free. Check out this website for a very complete explanation of Tamari: http://www.san-j.com/faq.asp
Earth Balance Spread -- This has been my very favorite "substitute" food yet. At first I was just doing without butter, because of the no-dairy restrictions of the Forks Over Knives plan. That got old fast! My husband found Earth Balance Spread at the store at about the same time as I was discovering it on the Internet. It comes in a tub like margarine, but the taste! It is very creamy, a tiny bit sweet, and completely NOT greasy. It is made from soy beans. We use it on toast and bread and just anywhere we would use butter. I have not baked with it or cooked extensively with it. I've seen recipes using Earth Balance, though. You really need to try this stuff. http://www.earthbalancenatural.com/
I hope our experiences help you out as you explore a whole food, plant-based diet. My advice, always, is that you research these suggested products on your own and not just take my word for it. I have researched them but, hey, we are all different, I don't know what your particular needs are. And I'm not a doctor or any kind of expert. I am simply sharing my journey, hoping to inspire and to encourage others to try a healthy diet.
Thursday, July 5, 2012
True Confessions
Most people I know would tell you that I'm a pretty honest person. Sometimes, too honest. I tell the good and the bad, even if it makes me seem a little crazy. I was going to just skim over this past week and tell you all about the yummy meals we made and my first ever shopping trip to Whole Foods and then you would say "My goodness, that girl has her stuff together. She is really grooving on this vegan stuff." And that would make me happy because, for one thing I freaking love it when people say "grooving".
However, that little angel on my shoulder clobbered me upside my head and said "Tell the whole story, girlie, or I'll smack you again." One tough angel.
So here's the truth. I ate meat this week. More than once. And french fries. Twice. And I felt guilty about it. And slightly nauseated. It wasn't as good as I thought it would be. But damn, I wanted that greasy, salty food soooo badly!
Okay, now you know the horrible truth: I'm not perfect. Surprised? Yeah, me neither. It's just frustrating when I find myself wanting to veer off of my vegan path. I have so far to go to get healthy! And these stumbles aren't making the journey any shorter. Since I've always been rather pessimistic, a stumble can become a huge step backwards in my head. And I start thinking about giving up on the changes I've started making.
It's only been a month or so that we've been trying to adopt a vegan diet. We've had our ups and downs. We don't understand all the ins and outs of what we're "supposed" to eat or even how to cook it. We're still learning a lot.
My husband has lost nearly 30 pounds. I've only lost 10 and, yes, I know men tend to lose weight faster. But it's another little chink in my armor. So I think "Why am I doing this? I am not losing weight, I keep craving junk food, and I can't keep my pantry stocked because I don't always know what to buy! I'll just quit, just go back to eating whatever sounds good at the moment."
Luckily, my husband is an optimist and when we eat meat or french fries, he just sees it as "we ate meat" or "we ate fries". It is not a catastrophe. He does not fall into a dark, deep funk. He just goes right back to eating the "good" stuff at the very next meal. Without any freaking out. When I told him I was considering just giving up, he was puzzled. "Why? We're doing great!" Um, are you eating the same food I am? Yes, he is. But he sees us eating healthy about 75 percent of the time. That's not "screwing up 25 percent of the time", like it appears in my mind. He is excited because we have went from eating healthy zero percent of the time to eating healthy 75 percent of the time.
Well, damn. That's pretty good thinking there, husband. So I am going to go right back to eating veggies and fruit and healthy proteins and healthy carbs, etcetera. I'm not going to beat myself up over eating ONE cheeseburger. After all, I used to eat two or three cheeseburgers every week. Wow! I am doing so much better! I had vegan soup for lunch today, full of great vegetables and legumes. For dinner, I made a tofu and veggie stir fry served over brown rice.
Good for me! And for my hubby. We want to be healthy and have a long, happy life together. So we will do it. It just takes time and dedication and a lot of research. We're working on it!
Oh, and my first trip to Whole Foods was amazing, but overwhelming. That is one huge store! So many options, so many choices. Lots of good healthy food, but I realized I still need to do some research -- I wanted to buy some protein powder, to add to smoothies. So I envisioned these jars of protein powder, maybe the size of a jar of instant tea? Um, no. All we found were these BUCKETS of protein powder, like I've seen in health food stores at the mall and figured only bodybuilders eat. I need to do a little more reading about protein, as you can see.
And today I discovered the Whole Foods website, which contains a ton of recipes. Check them out if you're looking for healthy recipes. Here's the address: http://wholefoodsmarket.com/recipes/
However, that little angel on my shoulder clobbered me upside my head and said "Tell the whole story, girlie, or I'll smack you again." One tough angel.
So here's the truth. I ate meat this week. More than once. And french fries. Twice. And I felt guilty about it. And slightly nauseated. It wasn't as good as I thought it would be. But damn, I wanted that greasy, salty food soooo badly!
Okay, now you know the horrible truth: I'm not perfect. Surprised? Yeah, me neither. It's just frustrating when I find myself wanting to veer off of my vegan path. I have so far to go to get healthy! And these stumbles aren't making the journey any shorter. Since I've always been rather pessimistic, a stumble can become a huge step backwards in my head. And I start thinking about giving up on the changes I've started making.
It's only been a month or so that we've been trying to adopt a vegan diet. We've had our ups and downs. We don't understand all the ins and outs of what we're "supposed" to eat or even how to cook it. We're still learning a lot.
My husband has lost nearly 30 pounds. I've only lost 10 and, yes, I know men tend to lose weight faster. But it's another little chink in my armor. So I think "Why am I doing this? I am not losing weight, I keep craving junk food, and I can't keep my pantry stocked because I don't always know what to buy! I'll just quit, just go back to eating whatever sounds good at the moment."
Luckily, my husband is an optimist and when we eat meat or french fries, he just sees it as "we ate meat" or "we ate fries". It is not a catastrophe. He does not fall into a dark, deep funk. He just goes right back to eating the "good" stuff at the very next meal. Without any freaking out. When I told him I was considering just giving up, he was puzzled. "Why? We're doing great!" Um, are you eating the same food I am? Yes, he is. But he sees us eating healthy about 75 percent of the time. That's not "screwing up 25 percent of the time", like it appears in my mind. He is excited because we have went from eating healthy zero percent of the time to eating healthy 75 percent of the time.
Well, damn. That's pretty good thinking there, husband. So I am going to go right back to eating veggies and fruit and healthy proteins and healthy carbs, etcetera. I'm not going to beat myself up over eating ONE cheeseburger. After all, I used to eat two or three cheeseburgers every week. Wow! I am doing so much better! I had vegan soup for lunch today, full of great vegetables and legumes. For dinner, I made a tofu and veggie stir fry served over brown rice.
Good for me! And for my hubby. We want to be healthy and have a long, happy life together. So we will do it. It just takes time and dedication and a lot of research. We're working on it!
Oh, and my first trip to Whole Foods was amazing, but overwhelming. That is one huge store! So many options, so many choices. Lots of good healthy food, but I realized I still need to do some research -- I wanted to buy some protein powder, to add to smoothies. So I envisioned these jars of protein powder, maybe the size of a jar of instant tea? Um, no. All we found were these BUCKETS of protein powder, like I've seen in health food stores at the mall and figured only bodybuilders eat. I need to do a little more reading about protein, as you can see.
And today I discovered the Whole Foods website, which contains a ton of recipes. Check them out if you're looking for healthy recipes. Here's the address: http://wholefoodsmarket.com/recipes/
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