My Vegan Journey: January Update

I have a love hate relationship with food in most circumstances. I love a good cheese, some french bread, and wine just like the next person, but my hips and tummy probably would disagree most times. I want to get through my day knowing that I ate the best that I could, nourished my body with the fuel that it needs (which probably shouldn't include drinking quite as much coffee. Maybe green tea!), and being nice to my self and the misconceptions I may have about my body and health. 

It's a constant journey. I cannot eat like an angel for a few days and then completely sabotage myself on the weekend just because I kept it up for a few days. I think I make it far more difficult than it needs to be at times. 

January was a good month. I ate mostly vegan. I would be lying to you if I said I didn't allow myself a cheat day every once in a while, but I can say that I only consumed meat maybe 3 or so times. That in itself is a triumph. Whenever I could eat vegan I would. When we would go out or I wanted to have a nice date with my man, sometimes that's harder to do. Those times would be when I would eat vegetarian at least. 

Don't get me wrong, eating vegan is wonderful. I feel better. My stomach loves me so much more. I enjoy planning meals and actually cooking something. But, a girl has to have some cheese every once in a while. Let's not get all crazy. 

My journey for February......

I plan on still eating as close to vegan as possible but I will allow some dairy every once in a while. I miss my greek yogurt and the occasional veggie pizza. But, meat? I don't really desire it as much as I used to. I'm alright with that. 

I like the challenge. It's good for me to plan my meals out before hand. I enjoy cooking and baking with a vegan bent in mind. I plan on continuing on this journey for the months to come. One thing I would like to add to this journey is more exercise. Sitting at a desk all day isn't helping anyone. I also would like to embrace using my juicer more often. 

Hello, February. 

Daily Vegan: My New Journey

One of my goals this month is to eat vegan.  I've never been much of a meat kind of girl, but giving up yogurt and cheese definitely is proving to be somewhat difficult. Overall though, I'm shocked by how much better I feel, how much higher my energy levels are, and how much more I look forward to having just a simple meal prepared by my own hands. I like the prospect of having to plan out my meals for the week and enjoy the hunt for sustainable items that are actually good for me. I am a lover of lists and in that I am a lover of creating meal plans and the leftovers that come with it. 

This is a new journey for me. I have only started to research how to go about actually eating vegan and the benefits that come with it. I don't plan on getting on my soapbox to preach the reasons why I am doing this and I'm sure people have their opinions, their likes and dislikes. Others look at me like I'm crazy. But, truthfully, I'm just doing this for me. For my health. For the pure reason of knowing I'm taking little baby steps towards taking better are of myself. It feels great. At this season in my life, it feels right. 

I wanted to give just a peek into what I ate today. I have really focused on making my own meals a lot more in the past few days as well because eating out without consuming animal products is something that will be difficult but I will have overcome it at some point in this journey. 

But, simply for today......

Breakfast has always been my favorite meal. Having breakfast for dinner growing up was one of my favorite evening treats. I have recently discovered Ezekiel bread, almond butter, and a sliced banana to be a wonderful way to start my day. Pair that with a nice cup of french-pressed coffee and I'm ready to conquer anything life in a cubicle throws my way. 

Last night I made this for dinner as well. I cooked some corn and black beans, added some spice and seasoning to the combination and added that to a whole wheat tortilla, an avocado, some spinach, and some mango salsa. Perfection. 

Dinner consisted of pasta, Boca Meatless Crumbles (which turned out to taste much better than expected), a ton of broccoli, some sun dried tomatoes, and loads of garlic. 

I am amazed at how filling this day has been. Snacks have consisted of some Cuties and an apple when hunger was starting to strike. No cheating, no need to even cheat. That was a nice change of pace. All of the leftover Christmas candy and the scones that someone dropped off at our office today didn't even make me flinch. 

I'm excited for the days to come, for the recipes I will discover, and for the Vegan Monkey Bread I will try to make tomorrow. 

This is a nice new journey I've found myself on and I'm finding how much I can actually enjoy the food I eat. It's a nice change. Not one of torturing myself through some crazy diet but just taking my time, savoring my food, and preparing it while knowing I am taking better care of my body. 

Until tomorrow. 

#12: Read a book every month

As a part of my 25 things before 25, I vowed to read a new book every month. I have gone above and beyond that lately, consuming a lot of books, which I am fully alright with. 

Some of the titles as of late....

Juliet, Naked

This book was a very quick, but enjoyable read. I consumed it in about two days, when I need to be doing a lot of other things, but this book was my aid to my procrastination. 

One Day

This book takes place in the lives of two people, one day every year for a number of years. It is all about the ups and downs of their relationship and how their lives intertwine with one another. I believe they are also making a movie out of it. 

The Opposite of Love

Some of my girlfriends and I decided to start a book club, nerdy and awesome, I know. This was our first pick. We randomly chose this one late one night at the bookstore and the choice deemed itself wonderful. A story of love, loss, and love found again. It was a total chick book, but in the best way possible. 

Eating Animals

Open at your own risk, for you will never eat the same again. I've been greatly researching the foods I eat and the condition in which our food industry is in. I'm slowly but surely making the change of taking meat out of my diet, for personal and health reasons, but also due to the condition that we find our food industry really in. This book is packed with tons of research, facts, humor, and is a perfect tool for those that want more knowledge about what really eat. 

We are what we eat. 

Omnivore's Dilemma

This is my current read, much like the book mentioned above. I think it is good to know what it is we are actually eating. The necessity of our food has changed greatly over the years and the chicken we even eat today doesn't hardly even resemble to one our grandparents consumed when they were kids. 

I like books like this that challenge me. 

I am sure there will be many more titles to come, but these are the few I have devoured. Now that I have been out of college for a few years, it's refreshing to be able to read whatever I want. 

On a much cooler note, I have a feeling that I will be getting one of these for Christmas. 

Beyond excited.