Recovering Vegan goes Primal! page

[avocadogirl]

Let me start by saying I feel fantastic! Wow, one week primal and I'm so energetic, even having a baby that won't sleep isn't slowing me down the way it used to.

I was a vegetarian/vegan for many years and developed RA and chronic fatigue. I'm looking forward to feeling much better and losing a little weight. I'm about 5'2" and weight 122 right now. I'd like to hit about 115 with more lean muscle and less fat. Most importantly though, it's all about my long term health and keeping up with my two busy little boys.

Right now, my biggest challenge is eating enough meat. I started buying grassfed, grass-finished beef at my local farmer's market, but am not used to cooking it so this is like starting all over again with learning how to cook. I'm allergic to shellfish and don't eat pork at home (we keep kosher at home). I've been having fish, chicken, turkey and plenty of veggies, some fruit and full-fat Greek dairy yogurt. My mainstays are eggs, avocados and coconut (milk, oil, flour).

I'd love to interact with others who have transitioned from vegetarian or vegan diets. Any advice or tips would be great.

My menu yesterday 7/16:
Breakfast: 2 hard-boiled eggs, blueberries and gooseberries

Lunch: 1 avocado, 1 can wild caught salmon, apple, some fermented veggies, glass of coconut milk

Snack: Banana, 1/2 cup full fat greek yogurt (local dairy makes their own, so awesome!)

Dinner: Huge local wild greens salad, tomatoes, chicken kabobs, small glass of kombucha

Snack: a few almonds, small piece of 70% dark chocolate

Today:
Breakfast: Blueberries, 1/2 cup full fat greek yogurt

Snack: Almonds, hard-boiled egg

Lunch: meeting my husband at a Sweetgreens for a salad.

Thanks!

[avocadogirl]

Oh, and I took a 40 minute walk with dog and two kids yesterday (one I wore on my back). And then I did 40 squats, 20 pushups and plank holds during their naptime in between doing laundry.

Today, I took a 30 minute walk alone with the dog (such a luxury!).

[palebluedots]

Hi, welcome! I am also a recovering vegan (was veg/vegan for 12 years). I still avoid dairy at all costs, but I feel so much better now that I'm eating meat. Can't wait to hear how it goes for you!

[avocadogirl]

The hardest part for me as vegan was cutting out dairy. I grew up next to a dairy in Switzerland (for real!), so before I moved here I ate plenty of real and sometimes raw cheese and yogurt. So, as I go primal I've reintroduced local, real full fat yogurt and I feel my constitution is suited for it. I don't drink pasteurized milk or eat much cheese but the real yogurt is part of my plan right now.

[anna5]

The hardest part for me as vegan was cutting out dairy. I grew up next to a dairy in Switzerland (for real!), so before I moved here I ate plenty of real and sometimes raw cheese and yogurt. So, as I go primal I've reintroduced local, real full fat yogurt and I feel my constitution is suited for it. I don't drink pasteurized milk or eat much cheese but the real yogurt is part of my plan right now.

So, you grew up in Switzerland and then switched to soy milk, soy cheese, soy butter and soy chocolate. Smart girl. If I understand it correctly, arthritis is pretty common among vegans. You are probably very young, so you will be able to fix what your veganism destroyed. Ah, eat your yogurt (or cheeses).

[avocadogirl]

Thanks Anna. I was never a big soy-anything person except for tempeh and sprouted tofu. I mostly stuck to rice, almond or coconut based stuff. But all the grains got me, and the hidden soy in the processed foods. I don't know what I was thinking but it seemed like a good choice back in the day.

[avocadogirl]

Having an energetic day despite going on the 6th night in a row of baby waking very 2 hours or even more. I'm not sure why he's waking so much. It's likely teething but it also he just wants to nurse more. Despite such sleep deprivation, I feel pretty great physically.

Breakfast:
Eggs, blueberries, gooseberries, coffee and almond milk

Snack:
Avocado (of course!), banana

Lunch:
Greek yogurt, almonds, macadamia nuts, cherries, and some zucchini "noodles"

I learned that I need more carbs in my diet to continue nursing my baby without dropping my supply. So, I'm trying to add more fruit into the mix. I'm also not going to feel guilty if there's some coconut milk ice cream in my future.

[avocadogirl]

Another great day! I'm still waiting for the crash, or the hunger pangs. But they aren't happening and it's now day 11.

Last night's dinner:
Wild-caught canned salmon with a little butter, relish, homemade mayo, chopped onion and tomatoes
Kale chips
Apple, cherries

"Dessert" with the kids: I ate just a handful of dark chocolate chips while they had some fruit and chocolate milk.

After the kiddos went to bed I did 40 squats with weights, 20 pushups and 3 plank holds followed by a cooling yoga stretch. Then I was too tired to do anything else! Baby still waking at night so getting to bed earyl is a priority.

I did learn a very important lesson in reading my ingredients closely. Both the canned salmon and the dark chocolate that I purchased had additional non-primal stuff in them. The canned salmon had canola oil (what?), and the dark chocolate had soy lecithin.

I'm cutting myself that slack as I wouldn't have thrown that food away, but I need to be more vigilant. Sometimes when I shop with my kids, I'm just grabbing things and not always reading every ingredient. I do shop at Whole Foods, the farmer's market and so on, but sometimes I'm in a traditional store looking for something.

This morning's breakfast:
2 hard-boiled eggs, banana

Mid-morning snack:
Almonds

I'm out and about today, so I'm not sure what I will have for lunch but I'm going to aim for a place that has salads with some protein. I hate eating at places like Panera, but sometimes I have no choice when there are other people involved.


Happily Grokking along!

[avocadogirl]

Oh, and I have to add this because I never thought I would say it:

I'M HAVING STEAK FOR DINNER!!!

Seriously never thought those words would come out of my mouth or keyboard

I have to lovely grass-fed, grass-finished local flank steaks I bought at the farmer's market defrosting in the fridge right now. I'm thinking of a simple rosemary rub-down and some fresh pepper. I want to enjoy the flavor of the steak and not overdo it with seasonings.

Yep, avocadogirl is having STEAK for dinner. Woot!

[zoebird]

Sounds like the transition is going ok for you.

I was vegetarian/vegan for a decade. Been primal now for nearly 2 years (that'll be november). As a vegan, my cholesterol got too low, and as a vegetarian, the grains/beans were causing issues with "damp" (from a Traditional Chinese Medicine perspective). DH also had GAPS and other gut issues, so this process just made sense. We immediately got leaner, healthier, and more vibrant, etc.

And DS is incredibly healthy. It's insane!

I loved eating at panera before moving here. I miss that place.