Looking back, the foods I’ve fueled myself with have been ever-changing. We didn’t have soda, chips or Twinkies when we were growing up, but I gobbled up my fair share of pizza rolls and ice cream. I enjoyed plenty of sweets, but they were homemade and often even healthifed. Grandma would swap out some of the fat with applesauce in baked goods and top my pancakes with apples and cinnamon. Since I can remember, eating healthy has been important. Mom insisted that a veggie be served with every meal. Chicken noodle soup was never without peas, carrots and celery. Pizza was veggie-topped and colorful, even if it also had hot dogs!
It seems like small changes occurred every year. By the end of college I recognized that I felt much better without dairy – especially cheese. During grad school I learned how to cook beans but it was 100% related to the fact that I was BROKE and beans were CHEAP. I also survived on tons of carrots and apples because, as I quickly learned, they were also cheap!
Moving through my career as a Dietitian, I began really looking at the evidence. Quickly it became very clear that eating whole unprocessed foods from plants is the best way to prevent disease, feel my best, perform my best, look my best and simply be my best self. As a Dietitian I’m trained to help people make healthy, sustainable changes to their diet. So, at this point, my training kicked in!
First I started eating all plant-based lunches. I didn’t have to worry about pleasing anyone else at this meal so this was easy. My go-to was a huge baked sweet potato with black beans, broccoli and salsa (also CHEAP.. is there a theme here?).
Next step, at evening meals I would leave the animal products out of my half. Common meals were black bean tacos and veggie pizzas. I then moved on to breakfast.. oatmeal instead of omelets. Finally, a few months in, I 100% plantified all evening meals (by this point Kyle was pretty used to plant-based meals.. and he’s just a wonderful, supportive husband:)). I never set out to completely eliminate animal products but in a shockingly short amount of time I completely lost a taste for animal products and found they left me feeling pretty dang crappy.
As my journey has continued, I stopped using oil. We continue to make tweaks, finding new favorite ingredients and ways to add more nutrients. It’s fun and my eating has never been more exciting and delicious!
The deliciousness keeps me going, but I also enjoy some pretty great benefits. I never understood the improved recovery that plant-based athletes raved about.. until I was 100% plant-based for a few months. Painfully sore muscles after a super hard workout? Non-existent! I used to get sinus infections a few times a year and now I absolutely love not getting sick. It’s fabulous knowing that my risk of acute and chronic disease is very low. My body can deal with stress in this high-stress world. Menstrual cramps that keep me in bed all day? Something of the past! Eczema that I’ve struggled with my whole life? Gone. My total cholesterol went from a high of 217 to a low of 143.
I am so stinking blessed to enjoy these benefits, scarf down delicious food and share it with friends and family. Thank you for joining Lex and I on this plant-powered journey. We’d love to hear about yours!
