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Good grief! I am on the right path, right?
Started
by Jen C
on December 31, 2009
I am in day 5 of being vegan and I realize the miracles dont happen overnight...but I just got on the scale for the first time in A LONG TIME and I am the heaviest I have ever been. I have to keep trudging - I have to stay on the vegan road of happy destiny.
Any motivating stories anyone can share?
HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL!
I would check what you are eating. Perhaps that extra weight was just some hoiliday feasting. Or maybe it's close to your time of the month and it's a little extra water weight. Or maybe you are relying on processed vegan foods to much. It is very possible to easily eat vegan "junk" food. Try to eat as close to superhero as you can for a few days..lots of rice, beans, veggies. Try making big pots of soup..no-chicken or vegetable broth with lots of grains, veggies, and beans. Your body will respond when things become a routine and more relaxed. Mine did. This time of year is stressful. Hang in there.
Oh and I wasnt inferring that veganism was adding to my weight gain. It has, after all, only been 5 days. I know that letting myself indulge way too much over the holidays is the culprit to my excess weight! I am going to try and eat as 'clean' as possible...
I am on day 12 and haven't lost any weight but I think it is going to take time for my body to heal. I have done a number on it and so I am being patient and hopeful that it will start shedding the toxins eventually. The thing that matters is that I am eating healthy and am starting to feel better.
I wish I had an answer, but all I can offer is encouragement. I am in the same boat you are. I am on day 3! Good luck! :)
I am on day 32ish... and I haven't lost, nor gained any weight... However, I have only been flirting with veganism. I do not eat meat/fish, minimal dairy... My new year's resolution is to go full fledged vegan, maybe by my birthday (in may) I can become a superhero! However, I did want to share a story with you. My best friend has borrowed my kind diet book, and she decided to start with no meat. After much discussions in the past, and a little reading from this book recently, she decided that is what she felt she should do. So, three months have passed and she has lost 20lbs! She still has dairy and told me during Thanksgiving she had one slice of turkey... However, she is striving forward. Yesterday, we went shopping for new year's outfits, and she was so excited that things fit. She even made the comment that usually clothes shopping excursions end with her in tears... She was soooo excited and said she was even more motivated to exercise more often and continue moving forward in her kind diet lifestyle! So, although I haven't changed in weight, I feel healthier and more confident that after shedding off dairy completely from my diet (pesky, pesky cheese!) that I will feel even better!
My reason for not dropping the first week was I was a no - carb person for years!And so I went a little crazy the first few days because I was soooo excited I could eat pasta, bread, and rice again. But after that first week of livin it up, I added much more fresh veggies and salads. Brown rice and whole wheat pasta is still in the mix A LOT dont get me wrong...but I just make sure its with lots of veggies and great flavors!
i "graduated" to the Kind Diet after i read, Eat to Live, by Dr. Joel Fuhrman. i started the concept he writes about, which is a vegan diet, no processed food, clean food. i lost 8 pounds in 3 weeks and i am, or i thought, a healthy person, i run every day and lift weights, so losing weight was not a goal of mine. however according to dr. Fuhrman you will reach your natural weight on the "plan". i made most of the recipes in his book and now i am using the Kind Diet which expands on the eating onto living. I never set out to become a vegan, but i am now. and happy and healthier than ever. good luck and i feel this is the right path.
Jen,
I'm on day 16 and I've never felt better. I've lost 7 pounds, which is totally awesome, but weight loss is not the main reason for my decision to cut out all things animal from my diet.
I have struggled with a multitude of food allergies, hay fever, asthma, eczema and a very weak immune system my whole life. I'm sick of it! (literally!) I cannot believe that out of all the doctors, allergists, herbalists + acupuncturists I've seen over the last few decades, not one person suggested an overhaul on my diet. Not even one! I've applied and ingested more steroids, allergy pills, "supplements" and homeopathic remedies than I care to admit. Enough!
I'm the only one who really knows my body. Forget everybody else. I am the boss of me! Check out the book Skinny Bitch by Rory Freedman and Kim Barnouin. This is the book that got me started. It's fabulous. I came across The Kind Life last week and am just eating it up (haha). What Alicia writes about listening to your body - it's so true. I love it.
Take it day by day. It's a good thing. I sleep more soundly now, spring out of bed in the morning, glimmers of a new glow are emerging through my skin, and weird as it may sound, my guts feel cleaner. I can't believe I'm saying this, but my cravings for cheese are gone. Whaaaat?!
The social implications are admittedly the most challenging aspect to this new way of living. Next step is to meet other folks who share these philosophies I've newly adopted.
What a great way to end this year and start a new year (and decade!)! Be encouraged, Jen, and know that there's no way you won't feel better, even if it takes time. I wish you a happy and healthy new year and decade!
Best, Jennifer
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