The KInd Life Community Forum

Congrats!!! I am a new vegan also. Still learning and making mistakes...def the flirt stage, lol!! I am not in Alabama but just wanted to say congrats!!'

Hi, Amy. :)

I am not in Alabama, but am in the south - NC to be exact. Eating vegan in this part of the world is a little challenging, huh? It is sometimes a challenge to find foods not wrapped in bacon and deep fried, much less with NO animal products. It has been very rewarding so far, though.

Hope you are still doing well with your transition! Kudos.

Hello Amy, I am from New Orleans. I am still learning as well. I have been a vegetarian for over a year. In the first 6 months, I was an Lacto-Ovo vegetarian. In just the last six months did I become vegan. It was really. I could not go vegan at the beginning of my beautiful journey I am on now. When I was Lacto-Ovo vegetarian, I ate too much ice cream. Before becoming Vegetarian, I had not had Ice cream in years. In 6 months I gained 17 lbs. eating all the vegetarian fatty products, like the fatty burgers, etc. and lots of Ice cream. I had to do a lot of reading an researching to get me on the right tract. It is possible to get fat and be a vegetarian, I am living proof. I have read a lot of books and did some reading online to educate my self to start the right path. I love what John Mcdougall says. He really makes sense to me. 6 months I became vegan and I have lost 21 lbs. eating more food than I have ever eaten in my life. I am now aware that it is not necessary to cook or bake with oil. Please do not get me wrong, I still eat a low fat vegan diet. However, my stinking thinking in the past, I thought I could eat the good oils to cook just about everything. Now I know I do not have to saute' everything before making beans, stir fry etc. I am learning to saute' with water or veg. stock and lose any flavor. I am learning how to really season food. There are so many Vegan cook books that the reciepes have too much fat. (Not the Kind Life of course.) I still go out to eat. I do not just limit myself to Vegetarian Restaurants. I always let the waitress know that I am Vegan and what that actually means. If there is nothing Vegetarian on the menu I ask the waitress to talk to the Chef and I have not been disappointed yet. I love the way I feel. I do not have any local friends that are vegetarian. I am very passionate about being a Vegan. I want to be successful on how to speak to friends and family and believe me it has not been easy. I am an animal advocate today and have to inform people what they are doing to their health and most of all, those darling animals. I need to find better books on how to advocate for the animals without getting emotional. I want to become so knowledgeable that the right answers just roll of my tongue. That is a work in progress for me. I have always had high blood pressure since I was 20. It runs in my family. These days my blood pressure is starting to stabilize. I am not completely off all my medicine but there is a great improvement. I used to think that I had to have 8 hours of sleep, but now I only have 5, 6, or 7 and I am more energized than ever. I have always been altheletic and love to practice yoga, whether in a class or at home. When I first became vegetarian and I was eating milk and egg products, I became to stiff to practice yoga. I did not put together that the lactose and egg products had anything to do with my body. After becoming vegan, I can practice yoga again and I am so much better and limber. I wish I had to come to my senses when I was a lot younger, but better late that never. If you are ever in New Orleans please let me know and we can hook up. I am grateful that I have chosen this path for my life.
Namaste, Cecily in New Orleans

Hey everyone, thanks for the support! It is difficult to be vegan in the south but I am learning. Cecily, I really want to learn to saute veggies in water. Veg stock is a great idea too and I have never heard of it before. A book I just finished is Neal Barnard's "Breaking the Food Seduction." He has a lot of great vegan recipes in it that I cannot wait to try, and they are lower in fat and sugar than all the 'flirty' foods I love. I have been losing about a pound a week but it is easy to overdo it on peanut butter, vegan chocolate and soy ice cream. I am really trying to explore with more veggies and I am looking forward to checking out our local farmer's market in the spring!

Again, thanks for all the lovely comments. It is nice to know that I am not alone in the south :) I hope you all have a wonderful kind weekend! Best, Amy

Ugh, are we gonna have to get a 'report spam' button? :(