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Two Sides of the Big Picture Making it Difficult
Started
by B. Sunshine
on February 1, 2011
My mind, and I am sure my body (once I am able to fully commit to changing my diet) tell me without a doubt, that eating vegan is the right choice. When I think too far ahead or of the big picture, I first see the benefits. I personally believe that eating animal products is just wrong. Furthermore, I am excited about the physical improvements. Especially the sense of peace and balance I have heard so much about! Then the other aspects of not knowing if I will have any options and not feeling sure I will be able to fulfill myself nutritionally creep in. I am not yet the best home cook and worry that I will do more harm than good. I revel in the idea of eating whole fruits, vegetable and grains, but defeat myself so often with anxieties of failure. I am open to any and all suggestions on how to keep my thinking straight, the best ways to start a vegan diet, how to maintain my protein intake and keep it going!
In all honesty, I find cooking vegan much easier (and safer!) than cooking non-vegan! You really can't mess up a vegetable, honestly. And when you cook with whole foods and no animal products, you don't run the risk of contamination, e.coli, salmonella, or undercooked animal flesh. You don't run the risk of antibiotics and dangerous added hormones in your meat and dairy, and like I said, you really can't cook a vegetable a "wrong" way. Make a large pot of whole grain that can last a few meals, add some sauteed or steamed veggies, throw in some beans or tofu, and whala! Easy, simple, nutritious and delicious!
My biggest advice is to meal plan. If you sit down and plan out what you are going to eat for a week at a time and pre-prepare as much of it as you can it makes the day to day stuff easier plus you can eyeball your meal plan and see if you're getting enough of a variety. Also, if you're worried about not getting enough of something or other, go to your local health store and find a good multivitamin.
Protein is easy too, you can add beans to anything, quinoa is a very yummy grain with lots of protein, nuts and nut butters are easy to sneak into your diet anywhere (as a snack, in stir-frys, as a dip, on toast, etc.), high protein meat substitute type things like tofu, tempeh, and seitan are pretty easy to toss into a stir fry and like Dani said, it's really hard to mess up veggies. Don't be afraid to experiement either. You can totally do it and this forum is always a fantastic place to turn to if you have any questions!
I think it can initially feel overwhelming if you get too far ahead of yourself. Plan a couple days at a time. You can be successful today, so do that. Then recommit again tomorrow to do the same. No one says you have to be perfect out of the gate. A big lifestyle shift takes a bit of trial and error, and that is ok. Just make one choice at a time. And if you are worried about missing some key nutrients, keep a food journal for a couple weeks, and have a nutritionist look it over.
Best of luck to you.
Kim.
I find it easier and more fun to cook vegan and vegetarian meals. Theres a wide varitey to chose from. The book the kind diet has tons of options and helpful tips to know whats healthy and what has good nutritional benefits.
Thank you so much for all your kind words! I will take your advice and not beat myself up with a trial and error approach. Nothing to it but to do it!
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