Any other Vegans?

[Storz]

My wife has been eating a vegan diet now for a little over a year, and this year I am also going to start. I've been mostly vegetarian for about a year or so, so its not going to be a huge change.

Anyways my wife has amassed quite a few awesome vegan cookbooks and I wanted to share a few.

http://veganyumyum.com/

[ame="http://www.amazon.com/Kind-Diet-Simple-Feeling-Losing/dp/1605296449"]Amazon.com: The Kind Diet: A Simple Guide to Feeling Great, Losing Weight, and Saving the Planet (9781605296449): Alicia Silverstone: Books[/ame]

[ame="http://www.amazon.com/Vegan-Table-Unforgettable-Entertaining-Occasion/dp/1592333745/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1295102555&sr=1-1"]Amazon.com: The Vegan Table: 200 Unforgettable Recipes for Entertaining Every Guest at Every Occasion (9781592333745): Colleen Patrick-Goudreau: Books[/ame]

[Scott Brady]

I have traveled with several pescatarians. It is certainly a healthy way to live.

It has also proven possible to travel that way too, but it requires some reasonableness. For example, the beans in Mexico or the rice in Asia. It will likely have some animal fats. If you try to be anal about it, it will ruin the trip.

Best of luck. I have slowly been transitioning to organic and game meat when back in Prescott.

[Corey]

I have been a vegetarian since around '82, and shortly after my X wife got me on a total vegan diet which I followed even after our divorce, but I went back to vegetarian around '89.

But when I was a total vegan (not eating any dairy products at all including ice cream, cheese, milk, ect) I was a scant 147 lb with hardly any body fat, and I was very healthy and strong as an ox.

We did the soy cheese, soy ice cream, the whole nine yards when it came to keeping out all dairy or animal products.
If we went out for pizza, we told them to hold the cheese

I now eat cheese in limited quantities, and I eat eggs only on Saturdays.
Being on this diet has cured a lot of my allergies I have had since childhood.

[Storz]

Thanks Scott. It is def going to be easier since my wife sort of blazed the path for me, and I've already been eating a mostly vegetarian diet for quite some time now. I've always been pretty lactose intolerant and have avoided dairy most of my life because of it, so giving it up really isn't much of a change at all.

Def going to miss that NC BBQ though

[AmericaOverland]

NOT going to miss that BBQ. If anyone is trying to go Low Fat Raw Vegan (LFRV), it's going to be very hard to deal with the temptations. I just got through a very bad spell of some sort of infection or something, where it hurts to urinate. I don't know if it was kidney stones, but it sure felt like it. I cursed for two mornings straight this week and almost passed out in the shower once. I'm still recovering from it. Why did this happen? Because I had something salty, greasy a few times a week, and finally, it hit me. I find that I tolerate less and less of a cooked diet the longer I stay on the intended dietary.

You might try a book called The Pleasure Trap by Lisle & Goldhamer. I read the book once and am rereading it again. I struggle with it even though I have been vegetarian for over 17 years and vegan for 14 of those years. I have attempted to go LFRV for stretches of time for well over a year now. It's not easy when people have their senses fooled (1 - pleasure-seeking; 2 - pain avoidance; 3 - energy conservation) by the modern situation today which puts extremely concentrated amounts of calorie-rich foods within easy reach. It was only the kings and queens of the distant past that suffered these diseases commonly. Even Pharaoh Hatshepsut had such health problems BECAUSE of animal products and her station in life which could afford those things.

[Storz]

Good info, thanks!

[PJPR01]

Vegan here now for 1 year, eat lots of raw vegetable/fruit smoothies using the Vitamix, and still do cook vegetables/food, can't quite go raw completely as I do like hot food, but I realize that cooking destroys some of the nutrients. I find that I don't miss the meat or the dairy/cheese at all and all my sweet tooth cravings disappeared as well.

Net result: Dropped 30 lbs with little effort in 4 months, blood pressure dropped to 110/60, resting heart rate dropped to 60 from 80, down 5 inches on my waist, and find myself with TONS of energy all day long, and no longer need stimulants like coffee to stay awake in the afternoon. It works for me and my girlfriend...we are both vegans ( she for 5 years).

I have found it easy to travel and eat this way as well, I just wish there were more varied vegan restaurants here in Houston, but on a recent 6000 miles LR round trip this xmas from Houston to Chicago/Milwaukee, then to Vermont/NH/Boston and New York/Philly, we found tons of fantastic vegan restaurants everywhere.

If you have an Iphone, you can download an application called VegOut, and it will show you vegan/vegetarian restaurants in any city.

Going organic is also helpful, as tons of vegetables and fruits hold pesticides like sponges.

Vegan table is a fantastic book...lots of good stuff there.

[Storz]

Right on, very encouraging words from everyone!

[ScottReb]

My wife and I have been vegan for 2+ years. It rocks. Were both nurses and see how people our age often look and how frequently 40 year old people die. I lost 50 lbs in about 4-5 months as well. Nice to see there are some fellow plant based eaters around. Great eating fresh and raw especially since it requires a lot less refrigeration.

We also have the Veganyumyum book. Isa Chandra Moskowitz has several good cookbooks. Veganomicon is the big one. Great stuff.

If any of yall are at Overland expo, Ill be doing some cooking. Please stop by and say hi.

[ScoutII]

I would normally skip this post, but read some are looking to also be healthy.
You best bet is to look at different cultures and what they eat and why.
Soy is like number 3 on the alergic list. Want to know why?
It because we don't prepare it like they used too.
http://www.naturalnews.com/025513_so..._soybeans.html

Eat what you want, I do.