Whole grain and plant based diets

lucero22

So I was watching the doc "Knives Over Forks'' and I am really interested in the whole grain and plant based diet, for many reasons. Has anyone tired it or is on that diet? Any suggestions? Thoughts? How do I get started etc....THANKS

BuffyEat2Live

I'm not on a specific diet, but I am vegan and eat a lot of whole grains! Feel free to friend me for ideas, as I share my diary with friends only.

I still haven't watched Forks Over Knives, and I think I'm the only vegan left who hasn't! :laugh:

UponThisRock

Step 1: stop eating meat and other animal products

lucero22

Thats great thanks! You should its a great doc!

lucero22

Step 1: stop eating meat and other animal products

My concern is going cold turkey and "relapsing" or if I should just slowly stop eating those products.

HealthyAcademic

I posted yesterday in another thread someone started about going vegan. I eat mostly vegan (supposed to eat entirely vegan for medical reasons but I slip sometimes).

I also fell asleep during the forks over knives premiere. But I am sure it was good and I was just tired.

HealthyAcademic

Here is part of the post I put up yesterday that you might find useful:

Some books I would recommend:

Breaking the Food Seduction
The Kind Diet
30-Day Vegan Challenge

There are also a ton of excellent vegan cookbooks. If you are looking to lose weight while eating vegan, Appetite for Reduction is my most favorite cookbook because everything is low-calorie but from a chef who loves food (she has a ton of other cookbooks) and everything I have made from there I have LOVED. I even make some of those recipes for non-vegans and they don't turn their noses up.

fiberartist219

I don't see myself giving up meat anytime soon, but I do love whole grains and veggies. They help me in the bathroom.

it_be_asin

I'm vegetarian, not vegan, but eating lots of veggies and whole grains works for me - keeps me healthy, regular and the taste is fantastic! Give it a go.

oceanrose78

It depends on your personality as to whether you can go plant based immediately. I was a pescetarian (I ate fish 1-2 times a month) for 6 months, watched Forks Over Knives, found the Happy Herbivore blog, and challenged myself to give up dairy and eggs for 2 weeks. I never started eating it again. I was a huge cheese addict but I found I didn't miss the cheese as much as I thought I would. I make a vegan cheese sauce when I really crave it, and I love Vegan baking, yesterday I made chocolate brownies that are awesome and totally vegan! It's really, really fun!

I've now gotten all my immediate family eating this way, and we are all feeling absolutely awesome!

You'll never know unless you start.

JasonSwetland

I started by going Vegetarian first, using only milk and cheese products. I went cold turkey on milk and switched to almond milk in August and havent missed it. The 'nut milks' all taste good. (Coconut, Almond etc.) I have slowly eliminated cheese which hasnt been as big of a deal as I originally thought it was. I do miss pizza. But Tofurkey makes a cheese substitute that melts that Ill try on a plant pizza this week. My last day for real cheese for good will be tomorrow as we are having a veggie alfredo' meal and itll have cheese in the alfredo sauce. After that No more cheese. Ever.

The last step is to become more and more strict (Milk Chocolate- gotta go) Checking all the ingredients on stuff when I eat it to make sure its not an animal based additive preservative or other thing. After I am comfortable that I am being strict about cheese then I will take on that task.

I would say its more of an overwhelming task to remember eveything you have too look for. Do as much as you can without feeling overwhlemed until its a habit. Then tighten the belt another notch. Remember make it a habit not a fad.

catdoc1

I've been doing the FOK diet since the end of August and love it. For me, the first month was a little hard because I'm very busy and didn't know what to cook. I spent lots of time gazing into my frig, trying to figure it out. But, as I gathered some new cookbooks, some experience with that I like to eat (and my kids, harder part), and found some websites, things have gotten a lot easier and it's a new, easy way of life. I don't even think about what I'm not eating any more. I feel great. I'm losing weight. I don't have any more cravings. And my cholesterol dropped 100 points! You will not believe how GOOD food tastes when it's not all covered up with fat, salt, and sugar. I have been amazed, as has my skeptical husband.

Here's my current list of go to recipe sites, but there are LOADS of sites and cookbooks available:

Happy Herbivore cookbooks and blog
Peas & Thank You cookbook (with a few modifications, as she uses some oils) and blog
The Forks Over Knives book (the back half is a cookbook)
Plant Based Diet for Dummies
www. fatfreevegan.com
www.postpunkkitchen.com
www.lunchboxbunch.com (Happy.Healthy.Life. -- I have no idea why the blog address is different from her site's name)
/www.bryannaclarkgrogan.com
http://delectablyfree.com/

catdoc1

I went cold turkey and had not problems, but "all or nothing" fits my personality. Please read this account and see where you fit:

http://www.nomeatathlete.com/

IsleOfThanet

I'm a carnivore that enjoys tasty vegetarian food. While I've gone weeks at a time without meat or fish (in India where the veg food is varied, spiced and tasty), I like meat.

I'm fully committed to being a vegetarian every-other-day. During the course of every day life I often go several days at a time veg, but I like eggs, dairy, cheese, fish, poultry and meat.

I truly believe a meat based diet help propel the evolution of our species to the top of the heap.

lucero22

WOW! Thanks so much guys, I appreciate all the help...I hope to transition into that lifestyle and try it out...I am ready for a change. I hate feeling sluggish and want and need the engergy that foods that are good for you naturally provide. Thanks again!!!

drechiz

Thank you for the recipe sites! I am new to the whole grain, low fat, plant based way of life, but so far I am loving it. I've been implementing it gradually into my diet for about a month but have only been consistently doing it for about 10days. I can already tell that I have more energy and I feel lighter and cleaner. I used to be quite the meat, egg, and cheese eater and like many other Americans, I thought I should eat as much protein as I could get a hold of every day (via meat and dairy). I also didn't realize that plants were a sufficient source of protein and fat. I love this diet, but am wondering how long I can keep it up. What is your secret to consistency over a long period of time?

drechiz

Whoops, my reply was meant for catdoc1.

RillSoji

If you are worried about going cold turkey then just take it a step at a time. Some people, even lots of people can change a diet just like that no problem. But there's nothing wrong with taking a year to change your diet. Just change one thing per week. That's how I did it. I was too scared/timid to make the big change. So I made a bunch of little changes. Now I'm completely happy and satisfied with my vegetable base diet. I still go out on occasion and have whatever I feel like but a healthy body can handle those occasionals. I'm not vegan, I still eat meat and cheese. I try to keep the animal protein down to 1lb/week. Some weeks it's more, some less. Just strive for balance and do what you're comfortable with!

You're welcome to check out my blog where I post my menus and recipes. RillsMenu.com . Hope it helps and good luck!

privatetime

In 'Forks Over Knives', the emphasis is on the link between consuming animal proteins and disease. Maybe if you keep that in mind, it will spur you to minimze, then eliminate, animal proteins from your diet?

meganbilbao

I too have recently watched Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead as well as the beginning of Forks over Knives. I grew up eating a lot of non-meat foods, but my mom thought it would be easier for my sister and I to find more options if we ate meat. I would like to have a healthier diet in general. One of my challenges is that I have a nut allergy and I can't seem to find enough protein that I enjoy. I also am rather particular in what I do like. I would love any advice, support, recipes, or better yet, great places to buy yummy things.

meganbilbao

thanks for posting all those sites. I will definitely take a look at them