The Veggie Challenge: Oct 2013
The month of October marks our Veggie Challenge. It’s easy and healthy too…and like all our monthly challenges it can be tailored to your living needs.
We all know fruits and vegetables are good for us. And diet is such an aspect of life that can always be improved upon and further refined. The month of October is an ideal time to start implementing those dietary enhancements.
So what does the Veggie Challenge entail? Incorporating more plant based foods into your diet.
This will exist along a continuum so you can participate in a manner that best complements your needs. For instance, those who eat primarily frozen or canned vegetables can begin to incorporate more fresh vegetables into their meals. Those who generally have a meat-based dinner can adopt Meatless Mondays for the month of October. Or perhaps you have already chosen to eliminate red meat from your diet, then this might be the time to reduce your in-take of poultry or fish. In that case you might turn to some of the great bean and legume recipes. And if you are already an ova-lacto-vegetarian, then you might try going without eggs, or without dairy – that’s right eating vegan. If you are one of the ones who turns to salty, packaged goods for a snack, try going with sliced raw veggies like pepper, carrots, or celery. Or try one of these great snack options. You are also welcome to explore Bethanne’s blogsite for ideas and recipes – she’s the chef for our Eating Healthy seminars. Bethanne further recommends this blog – Healthy. Happy. Life. – for great info, recipes, and incredible photos.
So there are lots and lots of ways to do this and best of all you and your loved ones get the benefits right away – that very moment. And none should think that this is beyond their reach – all can do it – after all when one of the most famous junk-food eaters or our time can go vegan, than anyone can make dietary improvements. And indeed I know many in our yoga community who have done so and gotten the benefits. Those with success stories should write in and share with us.
Throughout the month I will be updating this blog post with more resources, or video links etc. And this will serve as the main page for you to pose questions, share recipes and tales, and inspire others. So let’s join in together as a team, as a community, and as a humanity and see what we can do. Plant-based nutrition is universally good for all humans and the human body has been designed accordingly. In addition, a vegetarian diet has long been the way of the yogi.
Here following are some references for those wanting more information about a plant-based diet and human health.
Physicians Committee For Responsible Medicine
Look forward to hearing from you as the month gets going…Share with us your challenges and victories along the way!
Note 08 Oct 2013: Please see the follow-up post on this topic that features 4 videos on health and diet.
You’re on! 🙂 I love a good food challenge! Maybe we can use the comment section to share good veggie recipes. One tip I wanted to share is that you can replace egg with flaxseed when baking. 1 egg = 1 tablespoon ground flaxseed + 3 tablespoons water.
great ideas Sarah – thanks for sharing the tip about flax seed!!
Yes, Satyam, thanks for a challenge we can really sink our teeth into! (Couldn’t resist). I am in, and hope to build up some extra credit for your upcoming crow pose challenge! Sarah, love the recipe exchange idea. Really looking forward to this!
Annie – each and every challenge is self-standing!! That’s the inherent rule 🙂 Nothin’ I can do about that…
Though I wholly confident you will nail any challenge coming your way!!
I love these challenges! What a great idea. I often eat vegetarian, but meat as well. Now I will do it consciously. I also would love to share some recipes like asian tofu, ratatouille, kale and sweet potato soup. Ok, now I’m getting hungry!
Great to have you on board Patty – look forward to those recipes or any other type of sharing…they sound wonderful…
I am always working on this. I go without meat for a few months then go back to it. Meat is not too hard for me to give up but cheese is my down fall. I LOVE cheese!!
Take it step by step – keep the meat out as best you can – and continue with the cheese (ideally organic and without rennet which is from a cow’s intestine (I believe) & used in making cheese.
Here is the intro of what Wikipedia says about rennet:
Rennet /ˈrɛnɨt/ is a complex of enzymes produced in any mammalian stomach, and is often used in the production of cheese. Rennet contains many enzymes, including a proteolytic enzyme (protease) that coagulates the milk, causing it to separate into solids (curds) and liquid (whey). They are also very important in the stomach of young mammals as they digest their mothers’ milk. The active enzyme in rennet is called chymosin or rennin (EC 3.4.23.4) but there are also other important enzymes in it, e.g., pepsin and lipase. There are non-animal sources for rennet that are suitable for consumption by vegetarians.
Here is the wikipedia link to read more: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rennet
Thanks for the info.
Ok, tonight after yoga I REALLY wanted a peanut butter and honey sandwich and I had a big salad of mixed greens and tomatoes instead…feeling righteous although the reality is I will end up having the salad AND the sandwich…
personally I think the two sound ideal!!!
nuts, legumes, grains are all part of the plant-based diet – only we should aim for the least amount of processing when using these food products – I am assuming you have a solid, natural brand of PB 🙂
I’m in!
Thanks for all of the great information!
4 cups of water, 1 cup of steel oats in the crock pot on low overnight is a great porridge! Good cold the next day, too!
Any other grain porridge recipes out there for crock pot?
I’ve been having oats, cashews and raisins soaked overnight in almond milk for breakfast. Unbelievably yum and easier than cooking.
Dinner last night was an easy soup of sauteed veggies with herbs, spices and tomato paste, add lots of water and 1/2 c of red lentils. Simmered till the lentils and root veggies were done. Served over leftover millet, rice or quinoa….
I’ve been veggie for a while now so its not as much of a challenge as the plank challenge. The question “what will I make for dinner?” has always been a challenge for most people even if they eat meat. It takes a couple months to stop building meals around chicken, beef or fish but its not as difficult with all the resources available on the internet.
Enjoy!!
Nice Catrina – thanks for sharing those recipes and real-life experience of eating veggie – what a great and easy way to make cereal…and I appreciate the contrast you make between last month’s challenge with this month’s!
That cashew breakfast sounds awesome!
I went through a major diet change in January when I found out I had celiac disease – it was tough because all my meals were centered around gluten and I felt like I had to relearn how to cook and think about food. This challenge is tougher than I originally thought for the same reasons. My biggest struggle so far is eating enough – I have a hard time staying full for long periods after I eat without the meat or dairy. I’m starting to add more protein based grains, fruits, and veggies into my diet and found this awesome recipe for Buckwheat Waffles that I thought I would share (You can also top it with fresh strawberries, bananas or blueberries). Buckwheat is actually a high-protein fruit and not even related to wheat.
Ingredients:
1 cup buckwheat flour
1 cup chickpea blended GF flour
4 tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
1 ¾ cups almond milk (or more if needed)
2 Tbsp flax seed mixed w/ just enough warm water to form a soft gel (about 6 Tbsp)
½ coconut oil (melted)
Directions:
Combine dry ingredients in one bowl. Combine wet ingredients in another bowl. Whisk wet ingredients into the dry until well combined. Turn the waffle maker on. Let mixture rest while waffle maker heats up. Pour batter on the waffle maker. Cook until your waffle maker deems it has made an acceptable product.
Good one Sarah – I will aim to try out that recipe…
Also on the point of feeling full, I think you will have no problem reaching that point of satiation in your meals as you gain more facility with using various ingredients and learning that balance of preparing meals with heavier (starches, grains, legumes etc) and lighter foods (steamed veggies, raw greens, soups etc)…
Look forward to hearing more…
Have oats, cashews and raisins soaking for morning break fast! Thanks for the idea!
Bethanne’s Breakfast salad soon to follow!
After a recent bout with diverticulitis, my eating naturally stretched back to plant based diet.
Very thankful for this challenge!
Heard from a very reliable source that it is easier to change one’s religion than one’s eating habits…
Moving to a new country made it really east to fall into bad eating habits…living off of packaged baked goods from convenience stores and frozen dinners from those same stores wasn’t exactly a fantastic idea. I switched from a vegan diet to a vegetarian one even though I had multiple qualms with it just to facilitate this sort of life.
But no more! I’ve decided October is as good a time as any to get back to doing what I believe in (and taking better care of my body) So I’m returning to a vegan diet, and only eating foods I’ve cooked myself until the end of the month.
I’ve been struggling with binge eating since I moved, and I had chalked it up to the stress, but just a few days into eating vegan, whole and healthy again, I’m beginning to think that I was starved for nutrients. I feel super full all the time (to the previous posters, try oats, or snacking on tvp–the latter sounds weird, but it’s packed with protein is low cal and has a satisfying crunch!), and have enjoyed breaking up with the junk food section.
I think the easiest ways to add fruit and veggies into your diet is with soups, stews and snacks. You can pack a lot of veg into a soup or stew, and replacing your snacks (say you have three a day) with veggies or fruit gets you a big leg up on your daily requirements!
I’m looking forward to getting back into yoga next!
Morning report – glad to give up the crock pot for almond milk soaked steel oats with cashews and raisins – wild new texture – tastes like health – thanks!
At local gas station yesterday I chose sesame sticks after observing all the scrapple, sausage and ham breakfast sandwiches; this morning I gained a whole pound and a half – thinking that I have found a food allergy in my diet – but it was a pleasant vegan choice!
Off to drink my morning 24 oz of water… drinking 1/2 my body weight in ounces a day. Love my water, too!
Nice Janel – you did not waste any time in getting Catrina’s cereal into action – wish I were that speedy!!
Great shopping tale and good drinking habits too!
Thanks Tara for contributing to the discussion and sharing your personal experiences – you raise a number of meaningful points – one of which is how life changes can adversely affect one’s diet – we see that with stress & as well as with change in location, as you point out. Plus in many other circumstances. Anyone can slip, yet it is those who rebound in such a positive way that make for such a great example. Definitely appreciate how you have responded and advanced ahead…
Thank you kindly for writing in!
Satyam
Thanks for the support Satyam!
I think the important thing for anyone trying, or coming back to, a healthier or more aligned lifestyle is that life isn’t an all-or-nothing game. We all, from time to time, deside that the frozen meal is easier or that we really just want the cookie (vegan or not). That’s human. It isn’t the end of the world.
The goal isn’t to be perfect, it’s to try.
It’s also good to start thinking about one’s life more holistically. I was binging because I wasn’t eating good food (and wasn’t eating vegan), but I was doing that because I was in a new place and hadn’t established routine (or any way to cook!) which was stressing me and starting everything all over!
So, when starting over, or fresh with a healthy lifestyle my main suggestion is to not stress, and to make it as easy as possible on yourself.
I wish everyone luck!
Thanks for a great chat about food this morning Satyam! Glad to be back in class…
So a few weeks back I told Satyam I was “going 100% vegan Mon-Fri!” And guess what- I lasted exactly one week. In reality, I’m eating about 80% vegan during the week and still indulging in some pescatarian behaviors on the weekend. I have stopped buying cheese and eggs altogether (my whole life my favorite breakfast has been an egg and cheese on rye) which is a HUGE step for me! Instead of feeling down about how I didn’t keep up my original intention, I’m trying to look at it as a work in progress. BKS Iyengar said that we cannot go from bad to good in one day. 🙂
Oh, and my new favorite breakfast of all time- avocado on rye toast. Delicious!!!
Hi Amanda,
So glad we had the opportunity to continue our ongoing conversation!!
It sounds to me like you are on the path of progress and making good headway in your endeavour.
And indeed, wonderful to hear about your new favorite breakfast. I cannot tell you how many times I have eaten that myself – all day long. Back in the day I would eat that at every opportunity and turn it into “cake” by adding nutritional yeast and soy sauce – in that era I added those two ingredients to virtually everything – tasty times!!
Thanks for the remembrances Amanda!!
Satyam
Cannot go from bad to good in one day – thank you for that, and it was good look up BKS lyengar, thank you!
The book Healing Digestive Illness by Russell Mariani introduced me to the term Chronic Unintentional Dehydration leading me back to the mat, back to vegan and here to this blog. 1/4 teaspoon of Celtic Sea Salt per 32 oz of home distilled water – drinking 24 oz within the first hour of waking.
Anyone ever heard of a bit of sea salt with you water? Wildly helping my digestion progression…
Yes – a touch sea salt mixed with a some fresh lime and then adding warm water it is absolutely wonderful for digestion as well as for making your system more alkaline…glad you are onto that Janel!!
Do try mixing lime / lemon with the salt; and then add your water – I prefer warm – and see how that goes…as you may know lemon and lime are the two most alkaline foods on the planet – great for the blood, joints, and overall health…
I have enjoyed this challenge as well. Already a moderate meat eater, I have consciously moved toward only eating fish, and no meat at all on Monday and Tuesday. It’s been surprisingly easy, even when on vacation. Thanks for giving me the incentive.
That’s a nice transition you’ve made Sherrod – you have definitely put the challenge to good use!
Great to hear how smooth the switchover has been for you…