Why I am trying to be Vegan
And can anyone do it and why would you want to?
Well lets start with why I am even trying. I am 55 years of age and I have always been a meat and diary eater, eggs for breakfast, chicken or turkey sandwich for lunch and possibly a steak or more meat including in my evening meal. I started my journey only recently and have decided to write this blog as a way of following my own progress and possible helping others whom have decided to take this journey into the unknown. I as possibly most of us have had at the back of my mind a loathing for killing and harming animals, yet as long as I couldn’t see how the meat got to the supermarkets I was glad to go along with the same old story that I had been told since I was a child. Meat is good for you – You need it for protein – Dairy is really good for you, nice healthy bones and teeth, yada yada yada…. and I believed it.
My eye opener
Scrolling through netflix one evening and always being one drawn to strange titles, (believe me if you have watched “The Lobster” you will understand that not everything that you watch is even remotely to do with the title) however I am a curious person so when I saw the title “Forks over Knives” I was not sure what was in store and certainly not for a moment did I think just watching this documentary would completely change my life, outlook and health for the better. If you have not seen this yet and are of an open mind and prepared to have all your illusions and trust in the food industry shattered then go ahead, its a must watch.
After watching the enlightening documentary and of course like many menopausal women gaining more and more weight round my middle and being told, oh do not worry this is just what happens, I wanted to lose some weight, and hey ho, I have tried pretty much every diet under the sun so why not give it a go for couple of weeks. I had started to have aching joints and my hip had been aching for some time, I at first put it down to a number of things, tossing and turning during the night due to hot sweats, perhaps I had twisted something, however after a few months and a trip to my doctor was told, oh your at the age its most likely arthritis setting in….. Oh my goodness I am only 55 how can that happen and why should I just take it on the chin (about the only place in my body that was not aching by now)…
I would like to honesty say that I am attempting to become vegan because I want to end all suffering to animals, however I am afraid that really that was not my initial real motivation but selfishly it was all about me…. I wanted to lose weight, I didn’t want to fall victim to possible heart attack or stroke (my cholesterol level was high). My sister had just been diagnosed with diabetes, I was told off my doctor this runs in the family and I was a prime target being overweight and having two family members with this diagnosis (my grandmother also had this before she passed over). My mother had recently been diagnosed with a long list of illnesses not any of them pleasant such as osteoporosis, cpd, Parkinson’s and to put the cherry on the tree Alzheimer disease. My Grandfather and Father both died early of heart attacks and both in their 60,s.
Needless to say I had plenty of motivation as my future was not actually looking like the rosy life I wanted if I was going to go off family history.
Never too late to start
After following the advise in the documentary and removing all meat products and Dairy (more about dairy later) after only 3 days I was actually amazed at how well I felt. My aching hip was not as bad and my skin (not that it was really bad before) had started to take on clearer glow. Wow I thought this is amazing if I feel this good after 3 days what will happen in a few weeks. So I thought I would continue with it.
After 6 Weeks
I had many blips and still do (eggs are my downfall as I really love these and have to say I have not quite got to the stage of giving these up yet, although I have cut down consumption dramatically and only buy from a local organic farm where the chickens really do roam free – as many people on their way to pick up their kids from school can confirm, there is usually an odd one joining in the school run).
Ok its now been 6 weeks since I have eaten any meat and all milk products and cheese and yoghurts have been removed from my diet. I am nearly 7lb lighter (still enjoying my glasses of wine – that may have to be another story, but for now lets take baby steps) – My pain level in my joints has gone from say 7/10 to 2/10 and most amazing of all is I have not suffered from one single night-time hot flush in the past few weeks, and thats after having them for months and months and being kept awake every night because of them.
Well this is my introduction as to why I am trying to be vegan and hopefully you will stick with me as I will be writing another one soon with what I actually eat, how I have adjusted to dining out and dinner parties, (you just know people are going to freak when they have a vegetarian or vegan as a guest) and also will keep you updated on any other health benefits that crop up or not as the case may be, its still early days, but I feel so good I am happy and actually looking forward to a nice hot bowl of vegan mushroom soup followed by a delicious stuffed pepper. (listen to me I would have absolutely never thought that sentence would have come out of my mouth weeks ago, let along gone in it) until next time….
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