If You Can't Support Me... Let Me Show You The Door

I will admit, I was very hesitant to share my diet change with anyone.  I have two close vegan friends who knew I was making the switch, but it has been hard for me to share with anyone else.  My son has been incredibly supportive, even wanting to be vegetarian himself, and my husband has come around since I started.  At first, I think he was worried that somehow I would never eat out again or would force things on him, but now he's seen that that isn't the case so he's more supportive about it.  That seems to be where the support ends.

Over the past few weeks, I've encountered people in my life who are less than supportive.  I'm surrounded by comments about what I "can" or "can't" eat, what my food looks like or lacks, or making jokes about veganism in general.

Firstly, it's not that I "can't" eat something - it's that I choose to not eat it.  I don't want to put the flesh of an animal, killed in an inhumane way and only for our gain, into my body.  I don't want to consume the milk meant for a newly born calf who was ripped from its mother so the farmer could produce more milk. I fully believe that the animals used to produce our meat and dairy products are abused and tortured.  And, I fully believe that in eating these products you are consuming the emotions of these poor animals, and that the hormones associated with those emotions affect our bodies.

Secondly, I really don't understand why people are so against others being vegan.  It has nothing to do with them, and it's the most compassionate way to live... for animals and our planet.  It literally affects no one and no thing. And how is it any different than someone saying they can't eat beans and corn because their stomach doesn't agree with them.  I don't eat meat and dairy because my stomach (and sensibilities) doesn't agree with them.

Here's the thing... this is a forever thing for me.  I didn't enter this lightly.  I've been feeling unwell for quite a long time, and had a potential cancer scare in early 2018.  I've been desperate to feel better, and to do anything I can to prevent myself from getting cancer, diabetes, or any other debilitating illness.  I've spent a lot of time researching different ways of eating in order to make myself feel better.  I had been vegan before, but didn't enjoy it, so I ignored the research.  That's when I found Keto last spring.  I tried it for a bit - didn't feel better (in fact, felt worse) - so I moved on to something else. 

In one of the books I read, it said to look at the people around you and find the people who most look, feel and act the way you want to be - those who have already achieved your end goal.  It says to surround yourself with those people, and you will achieve the goal you have set out to attain.  If you surround yourself with people who eat junk food, you will not be as successful as if you had surrounded yourself with people who eat healthy and exercise.

I looked at the people around me.  There were two people in my life that I wanted to emulate.  Both were super healthy and fit.  My coworker - a runner and whole-foods-plant-based vegan - and my massage therapist - a yogi and "mostly" vegan (her words, not mine).  I did a lot of research, and committed to six weeks to see how I felt.  The six weeks flew by, and I felt amazing.  After watching a few videos to solidify my choice, I committed to eating this way for the rest of my life.

I encourage anyone considering a vegan lifestyle, or looking for a way to improve their health, to watch these game-changing videos:

• What the Health? - an eye opening look at misinformation given to consumers
• Forks Over Knives - why going plant based is best for your health (available at the library)
• H.O.P.E. - showing how what you eat matters
• Food, Inc. - a look at where your food comes from
• Earthlings - a graphic video of how animals around the world are abused by humans
• Vegan 2018 - a look at how veganism has transformed through 2018

In one of my early posts, I talked about how this journey isn't just for my body, but also for my mind.  I want to live a life that I can be proud of, and one that is full of happiness, peace and harmony.  I feel like this negativity is going against everything I'm trying to achieve, and I think it's really unfair.  Why are so many people concerned with how I eat, and what I do with my life?  I'm eating healthier than I ever have in my life, feel great, look so much better, and yet everyone around me questions it.

Is it that they're insecure about how they're living?  Are they struggling with contributing to the harm to animals, or destruction of our planet?  Or, are they simply jealous because they see how happy I am, and how great I look, and they don't think they can adopt the lifestyle I've chosen, or they don't even want to?

Fine... I get it.  But, I'm not going to let them destroy my happiness... destroy what I'm working so hard to achieve.  This is MY journey.  This is MY decision.  If you want to be part of it, great.. please pull of a seat and make yourself comfy.  If you are going to criticize me, make fun of me, or make me feel guilty... then please.. let me show you the door.

~ Alisa ~

Week 8: What's on the Menu?

Baked Apple-Pear Oatmeal

I have certainly fallen off the posting boat on this one. The last couple weeks, I basically ate the same super easy soup from my last post.  It was just too easy not to.  This week, I decided I still needed easy, but wanted way more taste.  After a week of lazy breakfasts (a.k.a. cinnamon raisin pre-made bagels with Earth Balance butter spread/peanut butter), I needed something more fun and substantial.  This is absolutely delish!  It's baked oatmeal, with pears, apples and maple syrup. So good!  In fact, I was so hungry making my soup, that I decided to eat it for dinner.. and use up the last of my coconut milk whipped cream.   O!M!G!  It was basically apple crisp dessert.  So good!  Not quite as good heated up the next morning, but a splash of almond milk before heating up, or a splash of maple syrup after did the trick. 

with Coconut Milk Whipped Cream!

Sweet Potato Chili

Lunches are a repeat of the Sweet Potato Chili from a few weeks prior.  This chili smells divine when you cook it, and again when you reheat it.  I always get compliments at work when I stink up the office. Or maybe they're just happy it's full of cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg, and not onion and garlic!

So Delicious Holiday Nog
and Chocolate Haystack
Cookies

One snack I will miss having around are my chocolate haystack cookies, and So Delicious Holiday Nog.  This is my favourite combo around Christmas.  Unfortunately, the Holiday Nog is seasonal and not around anymore.  <<insert sad face here>>  And that is perfectly ok.. because I think the Nog and cookies were a direct hit on my waist these past few weeks.  So good, but maybe not the best for me.  I look forward to re-introducing them again next year though!  Hopefully by then, I will have hit my goal weight.

~ Alisa ~

Merry Christmas and Happy 2019!

It has been a very busy two weeks - hence the lack of posting. I am happy to report, however, that I managed to stay vegan throughout the holidays and only managed to gain 2lbs (despite all the over eating, and random vegan junk food).

THE FOOD

Apple Crisp

Our Festive Table

The week before Christmas, we had a potluck at work for our department.  Everyone was signing up for various meat products, so it was quite obvious early on that there was going to be nothing there for me to eat.  I decided I would bring my usual soup, and make a dessert for everyone to share.  I figured that apple crisp was something that people wouldn't turn their nose up at if it was vegan, since there really isn't much in a normal recipe that would be considered non-vegan (maybe a little butter).  I made it from scratch the night before, and it smelled amazing.  Unfortunately, I didn't really have enough apples, and so the ratios were off.  I like a lot of the topping (I always double it), but this didn't work with the lack of apples I had.  I still tasted delicious, but I would have tasted better if I had more apples.

Christmas got even crazier this year, as I had decided to host my family on
Christmas Day for dinner.  It worked to my benefit, seeing as how I could prepare vegan foods that I could eat, but it was a lot of work.  The Saturday prior, I ended up spending the entire day cleaning.  Sunday was groceries and dinner at my inlaws (not vegan, so I had to prep and bring my own dinner and dessert); Christmas Eve was making dessert and the stuffed squash for Christmas Day; and then Christmas Day was opening presents and a lot of cooking.

Stuffed Squash
Maple Carrots
Peppermint-Chocolate
Mousse

As far as my menu went, I made stuffed acorn squash (totally delicious), mashed potatoes (which turned out ok, but were headed for disaster when the recipe didn't go as planned), maple glazed carrots (also delish), stuffing (which didn't even make it to the table because it didn't turn out at all - but also wasn't vegan (and I hate stuffing) so no loss to me), a turkey roast for the meat eaters and, finally, the most delicious chocolate peppermint mousse (there are four Lindt bars in there!).  I decided against cooking an actual bird because I didn't want a carcass laying around, and certainly didn't want leftovers.  Because everything had to come together very quickly, and I was totally sweating and starving, I completely forgot about taking photos.  I did remember to take a couple of some of the leftovers. 

Gardein Crispy Chick'n

One thing that was a total lifesaver this Christmas, was being able to turn to "junk" vegan food in a pinch.  I'm trying to stick to whole foods as much as possible and skip all the extra additives in the processed food.  Although I could notice a difference in how I felt when I re-introduced additives, I still haven't felt as bad as I did before going vegan. The big game changer for me was finding Gardein products.  Their Crispy Chick'n is amazing!  The Porkless Bites are also pretty good, and I'm looking forward to trying the Beefless Tips that are currently in my freezer.  I also discovered So Delicious coconut milk ice cream bars - which is awesome for me because the hardest thing for me to think about giving up forever is ice cream, and I love coconut, so this was a great find.  I also purchased a vegan trio of desserts from M&M Meat Shop.  The trio includes nanaimo bars, brownies (which I highly recommend eating at room temperature), and chocolate-coconut bars.  They were so nice to have around during the holidays.

THE GIFTS

I was spoiled!  The first surprised I received was when I came down the stairs and noticed that my stocking was full.  Normally this would not be a surprise; however, in our family your stocking is always filled with candy (mostly chocolate)  on Christmas morning.  My husband had told me that he was confused as to what to put in it, and I had made a few suggestions of non-candy items he could add, but he wasn't having any of it.  So to see anything in my stocking was a bit of shock. The first item I opened was Swedish Berries (which I love), and as I started checking the ingredients he remarked that they're vegan.  He had Googled vegan snacks to find out what candy I could have, and then bought them.  I thought this was incredibly thoughtful!  Along with the Swedish Berries, I also received black Twizzlers and Skittles.  I know there are a lot of chemicals and sugar in them, but I was allowing myself to eat the junk during the two weeks of Christmas holidays, and then I'd go back to my healthy ways after that.  My body certainly showed me that it prefers the healthy stuff, so going back will not be an issue!

My next surprise was Mickey Mouse pajamas, which are so cozy and warm, and a food
processor/chopper.  I'm also excited to report I received an Instant Pot and the cookbook Vegan Under Pressure.  These, however, were not much of a surprise since I picked up the Instant Pot at the post office one night.  Amazon did not do a great job of hiding the box  - they just stuck the postage label to the outside of it!  I have yet to try the Instant Pot, but look forward to incorporating it into my routine.  I find it a bit intimidating at the moment, to be honest.  I'm afraid I may blow up the house!

All in all, it was a really great Christmas spent with family.  I feel very blessed to have such a wonderful, thoughtful, loving and giving family.  There isn't anyone else I would rather spend my time with, or take this journey with.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

~ Alisa ~

Happy 1 Month Veganniversary to Me!

It's been exactly one month since I decided to start eating vegan, and I can't believe the difference a month makes!  I feel so much better.  I have had a few digestive issues as my system adjusts to the additional fibre and beans, but am otherwise feeling better.

I've lost weight and inches, without really even trying.  I'm down a total of 10.5lbs, and 16.5 inches.  I've never felt hungry, am not counting calories, and haven't even set foot in the gym yet.  I'm really excited to get back to the gym in the new year (once my lunch time Christmas obligations wind down, and I can get back into a routine) and see what fun things happen then.

All in all, I feel like this is something I really want to stick with.  When you feel better, and see great results, it makes it worth the struggles you encounter along the way.  The key is to stay focused, and remember why you're doing it in the first place.

Thanks for following along!

~ Alisa ~

Week Five: What's on the menu?

This week I needed to prep easy things.  Saturday I had a massage, and Sunday was my husband's birthday and we were having dinner at his parents house.  This limited my time for kitchen prep.

Banana Coconut Quinoa Muffins

I decided to try something new for breakfast this week since I was getting really bored with oatmeal every day.  I baked up some Banana Coconut Quinoa muffins from a recipe I found on Pinterest.  They turned out so good! And they're super easy to grab and go in the morning.  Yumm!

I decided to repeat the broccoli salad from last week for lunches, and opted to recreate the chili from week one for dinner - but added lots and lots of mushrooms.  Both turned out really well, and were really easy to put together this weekend with limited time.

I also thought it would be good to remake my chocolate haystack cookies from last week as my daily snack.  They were so good.  Unfortunately, the store didn't have any coconut palm sugar so I used raw cane sugar instead (thinking nothing would be different) but they turned out really bad!  They almost taste burnt, didn't stick together at all, and left me with a big heap of chocolate granola, basically.  I won't make that mistake again.  Who knew sugars could be so different, and yield such different results!

~ Alisa ~

Recap: Week Four

Weight:  178 (down 10.5 pounds and 16.5 inches)

I can't believe it's been almost a month already.  The past four weeks have gone by like a blur - in a good way.  Although, I am seriously behind on everything at home - cleaning, prepping for Christmas, and just general "stuff."  I feel so much better though.  I'm still wiped at the end of the day, but I chalk that up to moving offices and the general busyness of the season.  I cannot wait for Christmas to come!

Thanks for checking in!

~ Alisa ~

Week Four: What's on the Menu?

C is for cookie, and cookie is for me!  Yes... I was able to veganize my absolute favourite Christmas cookies!

Chocolate Haystack Cookies

Ever since I was a kid, I can remember my mom making chocolate haystack cookies at Christmas.  I even remember stirring at the stove, while standing on a stool, and falling off and taking the boiling pot of chocolate with me!  I love, love, love these cookies.  So, how could I eat them now that I'm vegan?  Well, I traded the processed white sugar for organic coconut palm sugar, the butter for coconut oil, and the milk for coconut milk.  The rest of the ingredients stayed the same.  They didn't turn out exactly like my mom's cookies, but they still taste really good.  My mom's are more of a chalky texture (in a good way), and mine are more chewy.  But still.. yumm.  So yum, in fact, that my friend at work asked for seconds (and I can't stop eating them!)!

Coming off my spicy week last week, I decided to dial it down a few notches, and try for more of a sweet/savory type of dish.  I also couldn't decide which dish to eat for lunch and which for dinner, so I just figured I'd alternate as the mood caught me.

Broccoli Salad

For lunch today, I enjoyed a veganized version of a broccoli salad I've always taken to potluck dinners.  I ignored the bacon requirements, swapped the raisins for dried cranberries, used vegan mayonnaise, and organic raw cane sugar instead of processed.  My lunch today was amazing.  I wanted more... and could have eaten way more (thanks to an office move that made me quite active all day today).

For dinner today, I tried a box of Daiya cheezy macaroni... as my son said, it tastes like Play Doh.  And it does.. yuck.  I should have stuck with my soup for the week (which was ready to go).

Butternut Squash Soup

My soup this week is a butternut squash soup, with cauliflower.  I only tried a taste when it was done and before I portioned it out for the week.  Because of all the activity at work today, I knew I would not want a hot dish so I took the broccoli salad. I should have stuck with the soup for dinner though.  I'm sure (even if it is bad), it's better than eating Play Doh!



~ Alisa ~