Adventures in Veganism

For a solid 12 years of my young teen through adult life, I was a vegetarian. I did not eat meat of any kind. There was no political or religious motivation for me not eating meat, although I did join the “Save the Animals” club in high school and we watched lots of PETA videos; I simply did not like meat. I did not like the taste, the texture, and so I basically excluded it from my diet. Soon, I lost any kind of interest for meat. I never even had a craving or curiosity. I admit - it was not fun for my family who always had to make a separate meatless dish for me during holiday gatherings, or have to make sure a restaurant menu had a vegetarian dish available for me. But my body got so used to it, that if I even ate something that had beef broth or “seasoning” in it, my stomach would get very upset.

I tried to counterbalance my iron deficiency by taking vitamin supplements. But in full disclosure, I never consulted with a dietitian or nutritionist, so I probably took the incorrect amount and again, my body reacted in a negative way. My regular doctor urged me to introduce real protein back into my system. So eventually in my early 20s, I began to eat some fish and chicken. I liked it, it tasted good, was pretty mild, and did not upset my stomach. Slowly, my body got used to eating meat again and now I eat all seafood, most poultry, and on very rare and minimal occasions some pork. Keith thinks I should graduate and eat red meat (he loves steak), but I do not believe I ever will. Even if the apocalypse comes and no other food is left, I will not eat red meat. If he grills steak outside, he must put the chicken on a separate plate as my stomach is still sensitive to red meat juices/sauces/seasonings.

While I was a vegetarian, I still ate cheese and bread products, and I wore leather shoes thus I was not a vegan. A vegan is merely a vegetarian who omits all animal products from the diet, and as further defined by the Collins English Dictionary, is a person who refrains from using any animal product whatever for food, clothing, or any other purpose. A well planned vegan diet can be extremely healthy. In fact, as the global obesity epidemic persists, a number of prominent health organizations like the Physicians’ Committee for Responsible Medicine and The American Dietetic Association are urging overweight patients who suffer from diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease to adopt a vegan diet.

A little while ago, I came across the LivingSocial deal to try a week’s worth of vegan meals from Gobble Green. All of their gourmet meals are made without any animal products or byproducts, and they are delivered easily to your home. They also offer gluten-free options.  With summer approaching, I thought it would be a fun, convenient, and healthy way to eat a little better since I’ve been overindulging at restaurants lately. I recently received my vegan starter kit, which came with seven days worth of three gourmet vegan meals, and wanted to document my adventures in veganism here on What Micky Eats. Stay tuned for the next post in this series describing my first vegan meal.  I plan to sprinkle my vegan posts with other regular posts, just to provide variety and keep the interest of all my readers.

Are you a vegetarian or vegan? Do you have a favorite vegan meal or recipe to share? Please leave a comment below!