Had a blast today on Newd Radio, and looking forward to the debut of Healthy Living in a Toxic World next week, January 25th, Wednesday at 5pm EST. Hope you all will tune in to www.newdradio.com and listen!
One question asked on air this morning that I didn’t get a chance to answer was: What should one do if interested in trying the vegan lifestyle but currently is a meat-eater?
Ok so, your a meat-eater and your tired, literally all the time, and your also tired of running to fabulous non-meaters who glow, have crazy energy, and attribute all of this to their grass eating tendencies. You think you may want to go vegan, or vegetarian at the very least but it feels so far way. Don’t panic. There are two options, just like when quitting an addiction or making any sort of lifestyle change you can go cold turkey or gradually. I think what option you take really depends on your personality, but I am a big fan of gradual change. By taking your time to ease into it and eliminating certain foods step by step you are more likely to stick with it long-term and not go on eating binges because you feel deprived.
If I was a meat-eater looking to go veg, I would start by eliminating red meats like beef and chicken and perhaps continue eating fish and more vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds, grains. If you are the type who eats meat everyday, (that is really a lot for your body to handle by the way), then I would go for cutting down meat intake to only twice a week and then maybe once a week or once every two weeks, and so on. I am not a huge fan of meat substitutes but they can be a great way to transition and if prepared well, you’ll be amazed and may not miss your meat at all. If you want long-lasting health, vibrance, energy, and to live a disease-free life, you have to get out of the general “dieting” or quick-fix mode that is pushed on us daily through advertising and meal plans etc.
Commitment is key, and any positive change is going to have to become an engrained habit. You know yourself best. Some people have to go all the way or else they won’t do it all. Don’t feel rushed, take your time, and allow yourself some room to mess up. I think it took me about four months to wean myself off of bread! Crazy to think about it because now I don’t eat bread at all and if I did I would feel weighed down and generally horrible. But when I was going through the process of eliminating it, sometimes I messed up, gave in and had some, but then physically I would feel horrible. Through this process you retrain your body, and after abstaining and then having negative reactions to things you once ate, you will lose the desire to eat them again. Despite what they say, you can teach an old dog new tricks; you can cultivate your inner vegan, as long as you committed to going the distance. Here’s to going VEG! -XoXo Raw Girl