Engine 2 Diet - My 28 day plant-based diet trial

JPriceGA

Hello there! I started the Engine 2 diet yesterday. I've not traveled a vegan road before, so I'd love some support. I'm following the book, just because I'm fond of roadmaps when in uncharted territory.

The basic idea, I'm sure, is quite familiar to you:
*eat nothing who had a face or a mother
*no dairy, eggs, or animal products
*no white sugar/flour/pasta
*no oil (this idea was very new to me)

So, I'm trying new ingredients I've never heard of like "nutritional yeast" and "liquid amino acids." Others, like "textured vegetable protein" are more familiar, but kinda creep me out - Isn't that just another processed food?

I watched "Forks over Knives" after reading the Engine 2 Diet book, but I haven't really looked to see if there are differences in the E2 plan and the FoK plan. I'm currently reading "The China Study".

My motiviation is simply to get off of blood pressure and cholesterol medicine.

I had a lipid profile run yesterday so I'd know my baseline numbers. With my meds, my numbers are good, but my goal is for them to be just as good without the meds :-) Before hearing about this, I didn't know that was possible - so that's my story.

So far, the recipies have been good and featured very generous portions. I haven't been hungry, which often is a problem and has made it hard to be consistent with MFP.

I'd really appreciate any tips you have for surviving in a non-vegan world!

sphyxy

Well I commend you for going the raw vegan route. I recently transitioned from a guilt stricken meat eater to a happy herbivore and find its pretty easy. That said, I still use oils and not as extreme as the engine 2 diet. There are so many wonderful websites out there that I suggest you spend some time on them. Type vegan recipes, vegan transition, or anything of that nature into Google and you get lots of results! Anything can become vegan with the right substitutions. Take some of your favorite foods that you loved before and learn to make them vegan and healthy. They may not taste the same but you may fins that you enjoy them more!

I recently learned that I LOVE cheeseless pizza! So amazing without drowning in cheese. Good luck and don't he afraid to experiment!

JPriceGA

Thanks sphyxy! I'm having cheeseless pizza for the first time for dinner tonight!

sphyxy

Just be careful with the doughs. Some sneak dairy into their dough : / It's amazing how many companies sneak dairy or gelatin into their products that really don't need it in there. It can be VERY frustrating sometimes!

FlaxMilk

Agree with above--some nuts have gelatin in them. WTF?

Also, if you have Netflix, there is something on the Engine2 on the instant que. I hope it's still there--I wanted to watch it.

mamaclose

I have a super simple vegan pizza dough recipe I can share once I get home after work.

carld256

The Engine 2 Diet is one of my favorite books. It's really just excellent. I've read E2 at least three times. However, I follow "Dr. Neal Barnard's Program for Reversing Diabetes" which is basically the same diet, but it comes at it from a low-glycemic angle. I've had excellent results, down 80 pounds, my last A1C was 4.7 (Dr. was shocked), Triglycerides down 300 points, etc. etc.

Survival in a non-vegan world can be tough. You have to stick to your guns, and especially in these forums let the criticism roll off your back or just ignore it. Vegans take a lot of abuse in the main forums. Sometimes it's just easiest to say that you eat a plant-based diet, as they say in Engine 2, instead of calling yourself a vegan. Some people just freak out over that word.

I can't recommend Engine 2 enough, and if you know someone who's diabetic Dr. Barnard's plan is fantastic.

carld256

Agree with above--some nuts have gelatin in them. WTF?

Also, if you have Netflix, there is something on the Engine2 on the instant que. I hope it's still there--I wanted to watch it.

Yeah, it's still there. It's not "Forks Over Knives", but it's still pretty good.

_TastySnoBalls_

some other great online recipe resources include:

fatfreevegan.com
happyherbivore.com
ohsheglows.com

Good luck, I hope you stick to it indefinitely.

melsped

Congrats on your new healthy diet! Best thing about the vegan diet is the endurance it gives you. I run a lot and prefer long distance over short sprints or 5ks and I find this diet optimally suited for longer distance exercise

JPriceGA

Thank you for all the feedback!

Melsped - I'm hoping for more endurance! I finished my first sprint triathlon in June, and I'm very proud of that! I definitely want to continue cycling & swimming, with just enough running to get by ;-) I was concerned that the switch would impact my stamina. Hearing that it is likely to make it even better is great news!

Skimpstah - thanks for the websites to check out!

Carld256 - great results! How awesome! I have some diabetic family members. My plan is to avoid traveling the road to diabetes if I can! I'm not sure I'm ready/willing to give myself a label because of how I eat yet - and I think they intentionally talk about a plant-based diet to widen the appeal of the book/food plan. Rip tells some fun stories about being a firefighter, and makes good analogies from them. I was also impressed that he was such a good triathlete.

Mamaclose - love your cycling pic! I'll look forward to the recipe!

JPriceGA

For the fourth I went to a friends house who was having a vegan potluck for the 4th. That made it really easy to get through a holiday with no problems!

I took a lasagne from the Engine 2 Diet (E2) book. It took a long time to prepare - over an hour, but it smelled great when it was cooking, and everyone really liked it. Here is the recipe:

http://vegetarian.about.com/od/vegetarianlasagnarecipes/r/engine2lasagna.htm

I used only one box of lasagna noodles instead of two, and had about two cups more filling than would fit in my 13x9 pan, so you could cut down a bit on all of the chopped ingredients (onion, corn, broccoli, carrots, red pepper, tofu) and skip the second box of noodles.

Everyone took some home with them, so you know they really liked it too!

carld256

I'm not much of a cook, but I've been tempted to try that lasagna several times. Maybe I'll be adventurous and give it a try this weekend.

JPriceGA

I tried the meatloaf last night. It was probably an "8" out of 10. I'm still not used to the idea of "veggie crumbles" as a protein. I also fixed collards from a Dean Ornish book - "Everyday Cooking with Dr. Dean Ornish" http://tinyurl.com/82fxy7x The collards were a "10" out of 10!

Tomorrow will be a week, but I've lost 4 lbs this week. That hasn't happend in a couple of years. I'm sure it's sodium reduction, but it feels great.

mamaclose

Vegan Pizza Dough

Ingredients:
1 package active dry yeast (0.25 oz.)
1 c warm water
2 c whole wheat flour (I use Bob's Red Mill WW Pastry Flour)
1/2 c wheat germ
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp agave nectar

Directions:
Place warm water in small bowl. Add yeast. Allow yeast to dissolve and set aside until mixture becomes creamy (about 10 min).
In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, wheat germ and salt. Scoop a well in the middle of the mix and add agave and yeast mixture. Stir until ingredients are well combined. Cover mixture with plastic wrap and sit in a warm place and allow to raise for about 5-10 min. *At this point I drizzle with grapeseed oil, but not necessary*
Roll dough on floured pizza pan. Using a fork, poke a few holes in dough
Bake at 350 degrees until desired crispiness.

JPriceGA

Vegan Pizza Dough

Ingredients:
1 package active dry yeast (0.25 oz.)
1 c warm water
2 c whole wheat flour (I use Bob's Red Mill WW Pastry Flour)
1/2 c wheat germ
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp agave nectar

Directions:
Place warm water in small bowl. Add yeast. Allow yeast to dissolve and set aside until mixture becomes creamy (about 10 min).
In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, wheat germ and salt. Scoop a well in the middle of the mix and add agave and yeast mixture. Stir until ingredients are well combined. Cover mixture with plastic wrap and sit in a warm place and allow to raise for about 5-10 min. *At this point I drizzle with grapeseed oil, but not necessary*
Roll dough on floured pizza pan. Using a fork, poke a few holes in dough
Bake at 350 degrees until desired crispiness.

Sounds good an no more complex than anything else I've made this week!

When you use it, do you bake it a bit before adding toppings to make it toasty on the bottom? The first one I made stayed doughy because of all the liquid cooking out of the veggies.

martielou

Thx for the pizza dough recipe! I just got a new cookbook- heart healthy pizza- (I think that's the title) and I'm excited to try out some low fat vegan pizzas. Maybe even find one my husband will eat without cheese!

mamaclose

Yes I usually cook the dough for a few minutes in the oven then take it out and add sauce/pesto & veggies then cook it again!

BobbyDaniel

New to plant based diet here, primarily for nutritional purposes...but I like that "don't eat anything that had a face" thing; something to consider!
For me the big thing I'm learning is read labels a little closer. I've been pretty good at that since trying to get healthy over the last couple of years, now I'm having to take things to another level. It is pretty easy when the label says something like "vegan", but others aren't so bad if you see "allergen warning", that may be a clue that there is going to be some sort of dairy or other animal protein.
Hope this works out for you!

ckleczka

GPrice,

How is your E2 experience going?

I have recently switched to a plant-based diet and settling into it well. The resource that has helped me the most to date has been The Complete Idiot's Guide to Plant-Based Nutrition. I have delved into other related books as well, but am finding this one to sort of bring everything together for me.

maradot

Stock your fridge with a variety of fresh fruits, veges, and nuts. Have some emergency vegan food on hand like frozen beanie burgers. Buy Almond milk. I like the unsweetened vanilla 40 - if I want it sweeter I can add a drop of stevia.

Most of all keep yourself motivated by learning about how other people work their vegan diet. There is a lot on U-tube. If you are in a city there may be a vegan "community.'

I recently watched, "Fat, sick and nearly Dead" on http://www.hulu.com. It is about a man who went on a vegan juice diet for 6 months. Not necessarily what you want to do, but still interesting.