Part two of the Eat. Move, Love series is about getting
educated about food without falling for the hype.
As you know, I am a vegan.
People ask me if I chose to be a vegan in order to lose
weight. The answer to that- yes and no. I decided to follow a plant based diet
after months of food journaling (all while I was losing weight ‘normally’, mind
you) showed me that this would be a good switch for my body. I thought it would
probably be a temporary thing…more like an experiment. But I listened to my
body, found what worked for me, and haven’t looked back.
But just because I opt to follow a plant based diet doesn’t automatically
mean I am healthy. I could live off of pancakes and French fries and still be
eating a plant-based diet but I would be far from healthy. Vegan doesn’t
necessarily equate to healthy. Although it can.
Really, any diet can be healthy. I am not saying how I eat
is the way to go.
On the contrary, as much as I love being a vegan and have
learned so much since I made the change, rarely will I force my opinion onto
others. At least not unless I am asked first.
You see I think there are many ways to eat that support
healthy living. My way (when I follow a whole foods, plant-based diet- not an
all cupcake all the time diet) is just one of them. What works best for you,
your physical and mental wellbeing, well that is for you to determine.
But if you want my advice I would say start big. Pick a few
broad food rules that you can live by and start from there. Make it easy on
yourself to form healthy and sustainable habits. Don’t deprive yourself. Your
body needs food to live. And even more so, good food to thrive.
So maybe start there…
Eat real food. You can’t go wrong with this one. Try to
incorporate more whole foods and pair back the processed stuff. Eat some fruit,
some veggies, some nuts and seeds. Eat things that give your body the micro (vitamins,
minerals, amino acids) and macro nutrients (fat, protein, carbs – yes you need
all three) it needs to survive.
There are so many food fads and trends out there (some would
even categorize veganism as one) and I feel that some days it’s all a bit much.
But what are these fads doing for your body? Can you sustain that lifestyle? Would
you even want to?
I am not saying that all food trends are bad and that you
should stay away from them. What I would like to say is this- do some research,
talk to a doctor or, even better, an RD or a nutritionist, see what information
you can find about food and determine what your body needs. If you choose to
cut out certain micros or macros what will your body be missing out on? Will
you need to take supplements? Etc….
I am so lucky that this rarely happens to me but the big
question most vegans are posed with is ‘where do you get your protein?’ or the usually
overly critical statement of ‘you aren’t eating enough protein’. Don’t worry- I
am good on protein intake. I’ve got that covered. BUT here is something my
nutritionist taught me about a few years ago. I needed to watch my fat intake.
Not because it was too high but because it was too low. It is easy for someone
following a whole foods plant-based diet to not get enough fat – there is not
much, if any, fat in plants. But my body needs fat in order to absorb the
fat-soluble vitamins like vitamin A, D, E and K. A low fat intake could lead to
vitamin deficiency. These vitamins help to regulate blood pressure, heart rate
and the nervous system as well as a whole bunch of vital bodily functions. So,
lesson learned. I needed to eat more fats!
And that really is the point of all this. Don’t take
anything at face value. Do some research. Educate yourself. Find what works
best for your body but also be ok with tweaking and changing as needed. I eat more
avocado now. Flax seeds (and oil) and nuts are my friends. I track my macros
because I want to make sure the diet I am choosing for my body is giving it
what it needs. Am I perfect about this? No. Am I aware and educated about this?
I certainly try to be.
Love and hugs,
Dacia
xoxoxoxox
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