I may even lose some followers for it, but that’s life.
I don’t really talk much about my veganism on here because I
feel like writing about it is offensive to some people. Which is stupid. I
really don’t think what I choose to eat or not eat, wear or not wear should
offend people. If it does, well then maybe you might want to evaluate why this
bothers you.
When I first transitioned to a plant-based diet 18 months
ago I did because that was what my body told me it wanted. After 7 months of
somewhat steady weight loss, on an omnivore diet, withouy really noticeable changes in my energy
levels, sleep patterns, recovery time, I turned to mindful eating to track how
my body reacted to the foods I was eating. Long story short- what I found out
was that plant-based was what worked for me. I thrive on a vegan diet. I have energy
ALL THE TIME. Even if I can only get in 5 hours of sleep (or even 3 hours after
a long night of drinking) I still wake up energized and ready to dominate life.
I sleep like a log, once my eyes are closed I am out cold. It’s awesome. And
when I exercise (or decide to run 27 additional miles over the 5 days after my
half marathon) I don’t need much recovery time before I can do it again.
Plant-based works really well for me so it was a super easy, seamless transition.
But after a few months of loving how I felt as a vegan I
kind of wanted to know why. I read books, I watched documentaries, I followed
online videos all about it and learned of the science behind why plant-based is
such a great way to live. In the process of trying to educate myself to the
workings of a plant-based diet I also learned about the tragedy which is our
animal farming/raising/slaughtering for foods. And it breaks my heart.
Yes, I am now one of those people. Feel free to roll your eyes at me ;)
To me, I think being compassionate to all living creatures
is a good thing, one that should not garner shame. However, I have encountered so
many people that not only think I am strange (and wrong) because of my beliefs
but the vehemently think there is nothing wrong with how animals raised for
food (or fur) are treated. Maybe you don’t either. I know I am definitely in
the minority when it comes to my beliefs in regards to animals for food and
clothing and I get why. It’s not how we were raised. We don’t really know a lot
about all the bad things that happen before/during slaughter. When we are shown
videos or read articles most people shrug it off like “oh, there are those
crazy PETA people again” maybe not really thinking about the legitimacy of
their message and how it affects you.
No, I am not saying you should all become vegans (but that
would make me very happy) but I would like it if we all learned a little bit
more about the food we eat; where it comes from, how it’s treated, how it
affects our bodies by eating it, and what are the benefits, or even repercussions,
by doing so. I try to continually educate myself about food and am learning new things all the time. I am no expert but I certainly feel that we learn so little about nutrition and the importance of our food
choices throughout life and I think a lot of the issues we have could be
prevented with just a little education.
There is so much bad stuff going on in animal farms but
today I will just share with you one thing. One of my least favorite images,
although thinking on this I see so many images of the horrific torture and
suffering animals endure at our hands flash through my mind, of one of the most ridiculous and tragic
parts of the farming industry- chick culling. In the egg industry, male chicks
serve no purpose (as they do not lay eggs) and so almost all are slaughtered
after they hatch- by method of grinding, gassing, breaking the neck or
electrocution. Sick, isn’t it.
Yeah, I said you might hate me after this. But sadly this is
just the tip of the iceberg. The little tiny baby chick tip of the iceberg.
No matter what choices we make, whether it is vegan, ominvore, straight up carnivore, I just think we should know what's going on in our world and just try to make the best, and most educated, decisions we can. I think that's really the best we can do.
"I hold that the more helpless a creature, the more
entitled it is to protection by man from the cruelty of man" ~Gandhi
I love the fact that you have such strong beliefs and I wish more people felt as strongly about things like this. You know that I eat meat and we kind of talked about how I feel conflicted about where my food comes from. I'm so thankful that you shared so much info with me when we were talking on the way home from Color Me Rad. I hope that you continue to share everything you've learned both with me and with everyone that reads your blog. Don't worry about what other people think or if they stop reading. You know that you're doing the right thing for you (and for that poor baby chicken!). I hope we can talk more about this soon. =)
ReplyDeleteThanks Jodi! That really means alot to me. I know I have said this to you before but the main reason why I do talk so much about my lifestyle now (off the blog) is because I know that a few years ago I really didn't know any of this. I just like talking to people about it because I think it helps them (and myself) learn more about ourselves and our choices and I think that is a good thing.
DeleteI absolutely loved this post! While I'm not completely vegan, I have cut out a lot of things due to reading and educating myself. It sucks that that way of thinking is in the minority and people who chose not to eat meat have to constantly defend themselves.
ReplyDeleteOh and the baby chicks....that totally gets me too. :(
Brooke- I think that is awesome that you have changed how you eat. Not because of the changes themself but because you are learning and changing because of it. I think if we have the knowledge about how our choices impact our lives, the lives of others, and the world we live in than we have no other choice than to change. It's what makes us humans. :)
DeleteLove your post. I think it's time we turned the tables and ask people to justify why they believe it's ok to inflict unnecessary suffering on animals instead of defending the fact that we don't. I think the reason people are so quick to bully those who choose compassion is because they know they don't really have a good answer to that question. It's time we at least posed it to them so they have the opportunity to question their behaviour. Good work.
ReplyDeleteI am sure most of the people who have made me feel the need to justify my choices do so as a reaction to how their lifestlye makes them feel. I don't judge those who eat meat. My husband, both my parents, most of my extended family, and almost all of my friends do. I just want to us all (myself included) to be a little more informed about where our food comes from (and I do the same with what I eat) and start from there. Maybe you might decided buying eggs at the farmers market is a better option than the grocery store. Maybe you'll keep an eye out for non-GMO products. Maybe you'll switch from milk to homemade almond milk. Who knows. But each little change helps us as individuals and the world we live in. Isn't that really what matters?
DeleteHence the name, I don't hate you for this post ;) I think you nailed it in your 4th and 5th sentence. If we're not bothered by what we eat or don't eat, why are you? The lack of education people have about the things they consume is incredible. I had a professor with a Ph.D. in Anthropology who was highly educated, gracious and humble, has published books and knows more about the Middle East than some people who were born there and she still said to me, "I just don't understand how you get your protein." As the great rap artists say, "Haters gonna hate." I think it's good you wrote this post because even if people don't like it they've now learned a little bit more about you and it's nice to see things other than SBR sometimes ;)
ReplyDeleteI think most people who don't have a background in nutrition (medical doctors included) or don't research it on their own are quick to wonder about the protein thing. Definitely the most frequent question I get asked. And when I tell people that every non-processed, whole food has protein in it - they are floored. Yeah. It's funny.
DeleteI agreee though, maybe people will hate what I write, maybe they may not read again, but at least they learned about chick culling. So, at least there's that :)
Why would anyone hate you? You've educated yourself, and you're making conscious decisions about your life. You're not demanding that we all become vegans. You just want us to know what we're eating, and why we eat what we eat. Nothing to hate about that!
ReplyDeleteThe more I read, the more I know about the US industrial food system, the more scared I am. My grandparents' generation didn't have the health or obesity issues that people today have. They grew their own food, or bought it locally. They didn't eat processed food, or food that is essentially chemicals.
This semester, I included a unit on Food in my Comp class. I showed Food, Inc, and assigned work by Michael Pollan and others. Many students, who live on fast food and crap, chose to ignore what I showed them. Others decided to make some changes. Small changes, but changes nonetheless. And they want to learn more. That's all I could ask for.
I'm not sure what my point is. :)
I think I just want to make educated choices about what I put in my body, and, more importantly, what my kids put in their bodies.