The Accidental Almost Vegan

I was a vegetarian many, many years ago, for about 4 years ago. I lived off mayonnaise, cheese, starchy carbs and mass quantities of sugar, and gained 50 pounds. But no meat passed through my lips! And I felt just awful, as any reasonable person would imagine from that list of "quality food."

I've mentioned recently that I've been making changes in my diet by eliminating dairy, corn and red meat per a Health Kinesiologynutrition workup. I've known there was more to do in terms of following the workup, but I needed to take baby-steps and go slowly. But I've been in a holding pattern for a few months now, not really doing all that I could do. I knew things had to change and took another look at my instruction sheet the other night.

I am supposed to have animal protein (poultry, fish or eggs only) for only 4 meals a week. In a week with 21 meals, that means that 17 of my meals needed to be vegetarian. Not a big deal, I thought - I've done the vegetarian stuff before. So I started planning out things I would eat, but realized that before, in my previous life as a vegetarian, my meals revolved around things that were dairy. Once you take dairy out of the equation, things change immensely.

That's when I realized that without dairy, and without meat, I was essentially becoming an "almost vegan." Hmmm.  If someone told me a few months ago that they wanted me to become a vegan, I would've told them they were crazy - never gonna happen. But somehow, it has sneaked up on me. For two days now, I have had nothing but vegan meals. Healthy, vegan meals that I've actually enjoyed.

Interesting how a label (or directive) can change how we feel about something. If you just happen to eat no animal products for 2 days out of choice, it's an easy decision. If somebody told me I had to go vegan for 2 days, it brings up all kinds of feelings (like panic or dread), even if it's the same exact thing that was already being done.

I'm still easing into this, and since I'll be traveling a lot during May, I doubt that I will be sticking to only 4 meat meals a week. I think the no-dairy or red meat part of my plan will be hard enough on the road. :) It'll be an interesting process to see how to adapt my lifestyle and eating plans to balance out convenience and self-care.

Comments

[Valerie Lawrence]

It'll be interesting to see how you feel, too, during your traveling. I'll be really curious to learn what you discover, both as you incorporate this into your regular life and as you travel!

[Sue Mariconda]

Thanks for stopping by, Val! I'm looking at it all as one big science experiment, with me as the subject. :) My trip next week is to Health Kinesiology class where I know the restaurants available and can almost plan my meals ahead of time and don't anticipate a problem. The trip to see family a few weeks later will be the real challenge - between family dynamics, learned behavior/habits, no structure, and the "need" for NYC pastrami, pizza, etc. I'll have my work cut out for me!

[elaine]

In certain parts of the country (i,e., Central Oregon), it *is* hard to remain vegan. I had to make several concessions last summer during my vacation there. I never ate meat, but once I had grilled cheese and once I had a pasta dish with cheese. If you do *mostly vegan* you are not only aiding your own health, but also truly doing a lot for the environment and animals. :)