Recently I saw someone who I hadn't seen in a while (I was so excited to see her). She is younger than me. She is a nutritionist. It came up in our brief conversation that I has just turned 50 in September and she said "WOW! You look amazing! Is it because you workout so much?" My reply: "Well working out does have some to do with it... but I feel great and look the way I do, I believe because I am gluten free and vegan".
I have a long and frustrating story when it comes to eating well. My 20s and 30s were filled with a typical SAD diet which included sodas all day and Tylenol PM at night to help me sleep. Most people wouldn't have known but I was hiding the fact that I was struggling with extreme fatigue and oh boy was it depressing. When I restarted my journey in my late 30s I had a history of caloric restriction and working out like crazy to loose weight, only to gain it back. Over the last 10 years I have learned true health has a LOT more to do with my food choices than it does with my workouts. I tried all sorts of nutrition routes; I drank powders and took supplements, I cut out all processed sugar for a good while, I cut out all cooked foods and became raw vegan several times for a bit because of a health issue I was having and YES it did correct it and helped me avoid a surgical procedure. I knew, even within my frustrating struggle to learn to love the food that loves me back, that I had to look at food differently if I was going to have true change, but who wants to do that. Reality sucks and I was unable for a very long time to admit that I was doing this to myself.
In 2012 I watched Forks Over Knives and it completely changed the way I viewed what I ate. Did I "turn vegan" right after watching it? Was this movie like a magic wand that reset my brain and emotions and magically stopped my cravings for bad foods? NO. But it sure did make me aware that food was much more part of my issue that I wanted it to be and I started making an effort to eat a lot more fruits and veggies. It was this film that made me realize the food I ate didn't just effect my outside and how much I weighed but literally the health of my blood vessels and heart and every thing else inside my body. I was just like many women awash in the belief that if I was thin then I was healthy, Forks Over Knives baptized my Spirit and convicted me to fact my food addition and fears.
Most people probably see Whole Foods Plant Based/Vegan diet as extreme, that use to be me too. I looked up to people who were vegan and admired the fact that they could control their impulses so much. Over the next few years I slowly reduced my intake of processed foods, I committed to be present with my food, and I gradually began cutting out more meats and increased plants in my diet. But I still struggled. Some months and weeks were better than others. But I hadn't found my reason yet. Sure, stomach upset from being accidentally glutened and exhaustion from eating poorly should be reasons enough but it wasn't. I still fluctuated. Self care is hard y'all. Self care take practice. Self care means starting over no matter how many times you fail. I have finally found my reason and I continued to begin again after I failed.
Most people probably see Whole Foods Plant Based/Vegan diet as extreme, that use to be me too. I looked up to people who were vegan and admired the fact that they could control their impulses so much. Over the next few years I slowly reduced my intake of processed foods, I committed to be present with my food, and I gradually began cutting out more meats and increased plants in my diet. But I still struggled. Some months and weeks were better than others. But I hadn't found my reason yet. Sure, stomach upset from being accidentally glutened and exhaustion from eating poorly should be reasons enough but it wasn't. I still fluctuated. Self care is hard y'all. Self care take practice. Self care means starting over no matter how many times you fail. I have finally found my reason and I continued to begin again after I failed.
Alzheimer's ... it runs in my family. My sweet Grandma had it, and my Mom currently has it, dementia is also in my family tree, so is Diabetes. I have done a bit of looking into Alzheimers, and I am by means no expert but I have learned a lot. I'm now fascinated with the connection between Alzheimers and diet. Research shows that many people with Alzheimers also have high cholesterol.
I got my blood work done in 2017 and then again in 2018, check out these results:
2017 I was eating "healthy", and I was surprised my numbers were high. My diet back then consisted of very limited beef, meats like turkey and chicken a few times weekly, I was milk free, gluten free but ate cheese occasionally even though it hurt my stomach. In December of 2017 I got sick (I hadn't been ill in many many years) and was on an antibiotic for bronchitis. I had an allergic reaction to that antibiotic the day before Christmas Eve and spent that day wondering if I should go to the ER because my stomach ache and my trips to the toilet continued to worsen. I managed to make it through without that trip, stopped taking the antibiotic. I gradually introduced foods back into my diet began with things that were easy on my tummy. As I returned to adding meat back to my system I had stomach upset. So I stayed vegan most of 2018, what I call a Reluctant Vegan .. for about 9 months. Fast forward to August of 2018 and I began eating chicken and turkey once a week or so, event though it hurt my stomach but about two weeks before my blood was drawn I went back to vegan. I was shocked at my numbers. I was esp shocked at my total cholesterol and my glucose. I thought to myself if my numbers changed that much and I wasn't perfect in my diet I wonder what it would be if I stayed off meat for a few months. I plan to get blood work done in the next few weeks, Ill keep you posted with my results.
So here I am 2 months in to being 99% vegan. I did cave and have 4 chicken nuggets about 6 weeks ago... But I am feeling great and excited to see my numbers!
I have a LOT of thoughts on how I eat. I will save that for a later post as well. Needless to say I now crave beans and mushrooms instead of turkey or chicken and I miss my green veggies if I don't eat them. Who am I becoming? Hopefully someone who can stave off developing Alzheimer's for an extra 10 or 15 years or maybe even not ever be diagnosed with it. I have goals for sure. ;)
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