It's a new year, and instead of making a resolution, I've decided to make a lifestyle change. This blog is about my transition off of the Standard American Diet (S.A.D.) to a gluten-free plant-based diet. The journey begins today.
Most people have amazing stories about how they overcame health problems, but I've been lucky so far and just suffer from the most common side-effect of S.A.D. - obesity. Today, I'm 175 pounds and 5'4", which puts me right on the other side of the BMI charts to be considered obese. I've been overweight my whole life. I'm 31 years old and have a family history of diabetes. I suffered from gestational diabetes when I was pregnant, but thankfully I was able to control it by modifying my diet and I gave birth without any complications.
Over the years, I've watched loved ones valiantly fight losing battles against cancer. I've made donations to and participated in fund-raising events for cancer charities such as The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, St. Baldricks (yes, I shaved my head), and the American Cancer Society. I put all my heart and soul into selflessly helping these organizations in hopes that a cure is found. Then it occurred to me that cancer can disappear off the face of the planet if we all could leave the Standard American Diet behind. I still support these organizations, but, as the saying goes, prevention is the best medicine.
If only we could change the world just like that. Because I'm only human, I can start with myself and my children. My children are healthy, and I haven't been diagnosed with diabetes or cancer yet, so I'm making an investment in my family's health right now, so that my babies will stay healthy and I'll live long enough to see them have healthy babies themselves. My husband, who is the ultimate cheese burger, pizza, and chicken wing lover, may take some time to convince, but I intend to drag him along as much as possible. I'm taking advantage of the fact that he denies all ability to prepare a good meal for himself. So I do all the cooking anyway.
My husband recently began a six-week challenge with a friend to lose the most weight in six weeks. I thought six weeks is too short, but at least it's a start. I also have plenty weight to lose, but I want to lose the weight by permanently changing my lifestyle. I started by drinking green smoothies and eventually purchased a Vitamix blender so that my smoothies will actually be smooth.
I found YumUniverse™(YU) - a website promoting plant-based gluten-free vegan diet - through Vitamix's Facebook page. YU is hosting a Plant-Powerful 30-Day Challenge that begins on February 1. Part of the challenge is to keep a journal, which is why I created this blog. Although I would love to win a new Vitamix blender (because those things are expensive), I'm doing this challenge to kick-start a new lifestyle.
The challenge doesn't start until February 1, but because my husband has already started a weight-loss challenge, I can prepare our family for the YU challenge by adding more vegetables in our meals. Our transition to a gluten-free vegan diet will be a slow one, but I will keep my sights fixed on that goal.
Vegucated is an awesome documentary and that's fantastic that you're trying to change you (and your family's) eating habits so that you can be healthier but is there a health-related reason that you're going gluten free too? Wheat sensitivities? Celiac?
ReplyDeletePeople think that gluten free will help you lose weight and are healthier but that's not always true. Some gluten free foods have even more calories and are on the pricey side. You may want to do a little more research on gluten-free diets before you limit yourself that much.
For new vegans, sometimes it's easier to stick with it if you focus just on the vegan part at first. If you feel like you want to go gluten free too, I would suggest holding off a few months until you get the vegan thing down.
Good luck on your journey! :)
Thank you!
DeleteWe don't have any wheat sensitivities. I will do more research.