Last week I saw a documentary called Eating that blew me away. In a nutshell, this award winning documentary is filled with interviews from esteemed medical professionals that debunk the myth that meat and dairy products are good for you, your bones, your stamina or your longevity. They show how eating meat of any kind and dairy products dramatically increases the risk of heart disease, cancer and diabetes.
They also show that it is never too late to quit eating meat and that by going onto a Vegan (or strict vegetarian) diet that people were able to correct serious health issues without surgery or chemo treatment. In short, going Vegan will not only increase your quality and quantity of life, it can reduce your food bill as well.
If America gets behind this movement not only could we cut our nations health costs and improve our productivity, but think of the larger implications. 80% of the grain we go in the US goes to feed cattle. Our world’s 1.8 billion belching cattle are responsible for 18% of greenhouse gas emissions. If we cut back on cattle production we could reduce global warming and have more food available to feed the world’s poor.
A bit about me. I live in metro Denver, Colorado and am married with a daughter that is a Senior in high school. I am a self employed professional, 47 years old and 5′ 10″ tall and 241.8 lbs, as of this morning. I have high cholesterol and like most people my age, my energy level isn’t what it once was. While I am clearly overweight, I do work out 4-5 times a week for 45 minutes or more with weight training, nordic tracking, walking and bike riding.
I have typical American eating patterns and eat fast food for lunch 3-4 times a week. I generally eat a good breakfast, a pretty unhealthy lunch, a good dinner and then snack while watching TV. I was born in the dairyland of Wisconsin, lived in the Black Angus country of Washington State and went to high school and college in the ranching land of Montana.
I have always loved good quality beef and hamburgers in particular. Over the last few years I cut back my red meat and pork intake significantly, increasing the amount of chicken and fish in my diet. That change had little apparent positive effect on my blood work or weight which has slowly but steadily climbed. I used to drink 3 diet cokes a day, but that stops today as well. While I am not becoming a Vegan to lose weight, I do expect that will be a byproduct of the change in diet.
One of the other big triggers for my change in diet is a pleasant memory. A few years ago, my wife and I and another couple went on this crazy cabbage soup diet for a week. The diet was nearly vegetarian (except for one day with a portion of tuna) and it was so restrictive I would never want to do it again. However, about 5 days into the diet I went for a mountain bike ride with my friend who was also on the diet. That day we enjoyed one of the best rides of our lives. My energy level on the ride was amazing. I literally felt like I was 17 again. I rode twice as far as I normally would and was hardly tired at the end of that epic ride. Normally, I would be quite exhausted after riding just half that distance. After the diet was over and I went back to a normal diet my bike rides went back to normal; harder work and less fun.
After seeing that move Eating and then thinking back about how I felt on that bike ride after my one vegetarian experience, it dawned on me. Why wouldn’t I want to feel like that all the time? Not only would I be healthier, my energy level would be such that I would be enjoying life more vividly. That would help me not just with leisure activities but also with relationships and with my work life.
So, while I may seem like an unlikely person to become a vegetarian I thought that may make my experiences worth sharing in this blog. I will keep a food diary and also share thoughts about how I am feeling physically, mentally and spiritually.
I’ve not yet bought the Rave Diet book mentioned in the movie Eating, but I plan too. In the interim we’ll wing it to the best of our ability.
This morning I enjoyed a large bowl of oatmeal (no milk) with a healthy portion of chopped nuts and fruit. For lunch I had a peanut butter sandwich and a banana as a snack. I had a Low Sodium V8 to drink. Mentally, I am feeling a bit slow but I think that has to do more with massive sleep deprivation from a 3 day trip to Las Vegas than the food.
For dinner my lovely wife surprised me with some remarkably tasty Boca-burgers and potatoes sautéed in extra virgin olive oil. It was extremely good and I wish we had discovered these years ago! Tonight after dinner I snacked on some homemade popcorn that I cooked over medium heat in a small amount of olive oil. A pretty good first day I think.
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