Going (almost) Vegan

On January 12th 2017, my husband and I decided to make a big change. We decided to become plant based eaters. This was not a New Years resolution nor something we had ever even thought about doing. In fact, we LOVED meat. We ate meat or animal based products for almost every meal. So what in the world could convince us to make such as drastic hippie like decision?

FORKS OVER KNIVES.

A friend at our church told us he and his wife had decided to go Vegan for the year to improve their health. Our friend had recently overcome a fight with cancer and was looking for any way to avoid going through major health issues again. He told us he had recently seen a documentary on Netflix discussing all the health benefits of going Vegan. We listened and nodded with skepticism, but asked for the name of the documentary anyway.

That night we came home and found the documentary on Netflix. Within about thirty minutes we were convinced. From there, we watched Food Inc. and Fed Up.

We just kept looking at each other with looks of "what the heck?!" and "how can this be possible?!"

We Googled and did some more research and found a TON of scientific evidence that showed cutting out meat and animal based products such as milk, eggs, and cheese could eliminate a whole slew of health problems. Health problems such as cancer, heart disease, liver problems, diabetes, high blood pressure, etc. Some tests even showed diseases such as cancer and heart disease to REVERSE when people changed to a plant-based diet. People also lost a great amount of weight and their digestive systems regulated in ways that made them feel better.

Diabetes, Cancer, and a number of other illnesses run in our family. I personally live with Anxiety and Endometriosis. Within two years of marriage, my husband and I had both put on twenty to thirty pounds (in my defense, I also had a baby during that time). Needless to say, we were open to anything that would help us lose weight and make us HEALTHY. We realized it would be a big change and probably not easy. But we decided it was worth a shot.

We are now in the middle of our second month living primarily Vegan and we LOVE it. We occasionally eat goat cheese with our salads or eggs in breakfast sandwiches when Vegan options are not available. But for the most part, we live and eat without meat or any animal bi-products and it has been way easier than we ever imagined. We rarely crave meat and enjoy the creativity of finding new plant based menus.

Here is one of our favorites! Buffalo cauliflower tacos with purple cabbage and cilantro avocado cream sauce. DELISH.

We've even saved money! Since we are not spending the majority of our grocery money on meat, we are able to purchase all organic food and STILL SPEND LESS money than we were previously. I do grocery shop more often (once a week) since the majority of our food is fresh, but that has been a small sacrifice to make. Typically, we've been spending $75 a week on groceries compared to $180 every two weeks.

Now for the really exciting part. We have lost weight and are living much healthier lives! My husband started at 228 pounds. He is now consistently 212 pounds (and he still drinks beer!). I started at 136 pounds (4 months post pregnancy) and am now consistently 122 pounds. Friends. THIS IS LESS THAN MY WEDDING WEIGHT. Not only have we lost weight, but we feel better. We are less tired (which says a lot as new parents), more regular, and don't crave sweets or sugar nearly as much. Not to mention, my self confidence is at a healthy level. As a first time mom, learning to love your new scar-filled, few extra pounds body can be difficult. But with this eating style and working out several times a week, I am seeing a change that makes me happier and prouder of my body than I was even before I was pregnant.

Below is my initial appearance at 136 pounds (post pregnancy) and my results 74 days later. The pictures speak for themselves. (p.s. I will NOT apologize for my scars and extra skin around my belly. In fact, I am thankful for it every day. It means I was blessed enough to carry a child)

Going Vegetarian or Vegan is a big jump and can be really intimidating. Where do you start? What do you eat? I've created a board on my Pinterest titled "Forks Over Knives" and have saved a good amount of vegan recipes. You can find my saved recipes by clicking the link above. We have tried almost all of these and have enjoyed all but one (the Indian lentil curry). It has been a fun adventure cooking so many different things together and getting our creative foodie juices flowing. I also develop a weekly meal plan each Sunday so we are prepared for the week ahead. With both of us working full-time, having a meal plan takes away the question of "what are we eating tonight?" and then just going for a bowl of cereal or take-out.

Each week I will share my meal plans on the blog. Every meal is flexible and can include meat if you prefer. I like to make enough each night to make leftovers for lunch the following day. Friday's are our freebie days where we eat out, but I will include plans and ideas for how you can eat out and stay true to your dietary commitments, even on the weekends.

Eating right, clean, and vegan does not have to be intimidating or expensive. In fact, it can be fun and pretty cost effective, even when you're pinching pennies. For us, it has been completely worth it and we are enjoying the (almost) Vegan journey.

#vegan #veganeating #forksoverknives #weightloss #livingwell #mealplans