No, nothing is wrong with me. I haven’t been in an accident or suffered any disease. I’ve just not been able to eat and exercise like I normally had been because of our house remodel. I haven’t put on any weight back on, but I feel awful. So, I’ve decided to document my “Road to Recovery” as a learning tool and motivation for myself.

Morning
My air mattress quit on me, so I had to sleep on a cement floor with a small amount of padding. Needless to say, I didn’t sleep well, and didn’t have time for exercise. Damn. Now my back hears, and my abdomen muscles feel like garbage. So for breakfast, I’m having a bowl of grape-nuts with just a little soy milk. Hopefully, that will get my system on the way to recovery.

In this op-ed by Amy Lanou, Ph.D, she lays out the case that a vegan diet for a child is just as healthy and probably safer than the typical American diet:

Health by Veganism

In a side note, Clark Hoyt of the New York Times mentions the problem with an op-ed by Nina Planck called “Death by Veganism”. Ms. Planck claimed that a vegan lifestyle for a baby was irresponsible. She was wrong, of course. There is plenty of evidence to counter her claims. Hoyt’s point, concerning Planck, was that the Times didn’t present the other side of the debate, and has not presented the other side in sixteen years.

While this recipe isn’t ground breaking, I found it to be a very filling meal for dinner:

3 slices whole grain bread ~ 300 calories
4 slices Peppered Tofurky Deli Slices ~ 140 calories
2 slices Soya Kaas Monterey Jack style soy cheese ~ 130 calories
2 tablespoons mustard

I stack the sandwich like this:

1 slice bread
2 Deli slices
1 slice of cheese
1 tablespoon mustard
1 slice bread
2 Deli slices
1 slice of cheese
1 slice of bread

I also added some carrots on the side, which added another 70 calories. Total for the meal was 640 calories, but it was very low fat, high fiber, and super filling. You will feel satisfied, without a feeling of sloth than overcome you when you eat a huge meal full of simple carbs and raw starches.

Just a couple links to stories about the benefits to eating vegan. Less animal fats lead to less cancer, not to mention it’s better for the environment.

Soul Times

Huffington Post

Post Chronicle

Taipei Times

For the record, I am of the opinion that human activity can effect our climate, but I don’t believe we really know what will happen in the future. Irrespective of the science of “global warming”, I see no reason that we human should pollute and use more resources than we need. I think using our resources as efficiently as possible is sound policy. On that basis, I’m promoting the vegan lifestyle as an environmentally friendly and healthy way to live. Once you’re on a low calorie vegan diet, you can’t believe the amount of energy you have!

I found an interesting article in the New York Times discussing “farm” subsidies that greatly effect the price of healthy fresh produce versus unhealthy soft drinks, milk, and meat. While soy is mentioned as a subsidized crop, the article suggests that it’s mainly for fat, not the protein. While I do benefit from the subsidy of soy bean crops, I would gladly pay more for soy products, if it meant the country would pay less for fresh fruit and produce.

Check out the article here: http://www.nytimes.com

My apologies if the New York Times link causes problems.

From the Daily Californian:

http://www.dailycal.org/sharticle.php?id=24535

“Emily Thurston is a category one cyclist. She is also a vegan.

Thurston, a Berkeley resident, rides with Team Vegan, a Bay Area cycling team working to change a perception that athletes need animal products to perform at their peak. The team, part of the nonprofit organization OrganicAthlete, is the first elite cycling team in the United States whose members exclusively follow a vegan lifestyle…”

One thing I noticed when I became a vegan was an increase in energy and a feeling of “quickness.” This doesn’t surprise me at all.

FYI…

Have you been able to improve your diabetes with a vegan diet?

If you’ve had success treating your diabetes with a vegan diet, and would like to help others combat their disease, please consider sharing your experience with us. We often hear from journalists looking for success stories and we may want to put them in touch with you. If you have a compelling story you’re willing to share with the press, please contact me at PCRM at 202-686-2210, ext. 309, or simonc [at] pcrm.org.

Simon Chaitowitz
PCRM Senior Communications Specialist
Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine
5100 Wisconsin Ave., N.W., Ste. 400
Washington, DC 20016
Phone: 202-686-2210
E-mail: info [at] pcrm.org

PCRM = Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine.

More info on veganism and diabetes here.

———————

Tagged: pcrm Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine diet vegan veganism diabetes

Sorry I’ve been away for so long. Things have been busy, and I haven’t been setting enough time aside for Hell Food. No longer! Hell Food is always a good time to think about my own health, as well as inform the public. A month or so ago I promised to write about eating healthy at fast food restaurants, and I shall start that now. My first fast food restaurant to investigate is McDonald’s.

McDonald’s has made a small effort to offer healthy options on their menu, though they still sell mostly hamburgers. It is possible to eat somewhat healthy now. The offer their own version of a healthy diet right here. In terms of calories, the meal choices look okay, but there is one obvious thing you will see once you order their meals. They’re not very filling. Most of McDonald’s food is very calorie dense, with lots of added sugars. You will not feel full after having a hamburger, small fries, and small Coke. Your body will continue to feel hungry and for 650 calories of intake, you’ll not have much to show for it.

However, in recognizing that for some families, McDonald’s represents a cheap source of food, I will lay out here what I would recommend you eat there:

1) Snack Size Fruit & Walnut Salad (without yogurt)
2) Caesar Salad (without chicken or cheese)
3) Side Salad
4) Medium French Fries
5) Apple Dippers

That’s it. That’s all I can recommend. As a vegan, I can’t endorse a meat product. As a health food site, I also can’t endorse a meat product. Oh, and if you want something to drink, just get water.

Writer/director/actor Kevin Smith, aka Silent Bob, decided to drop some weight for the new year. To spur him along, he’s chronicling his journey over at SilentBobSpeaks.com, in a weekly segment he calls “Fat-F*ck Vs. Food.”

Just letting you know that, from here on in, Monday will be the blog day in which I write about what I’ve lost (if I’ve lost), and what I want to eat so badly that I’d be willing to step on all your necks just to get a taste… but won’t, because I’m committed to a cause.

First post here.

Spoiler: obscenities abound, so read with caution.

————–

Tagged: Kevin Smith Silent Bob weight loss food diary

———- Forwarded message ———-
From: DawnWatch – news [at] dawnwatch.com
Date: Feb 1, 2007 1:06 PM
Subject: DawnWatch: Veggie cooking demo, reversing diabetes lecture — Phoenix and elsewhere 2/1/07…..

Dr Neal Barnard of the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine is on a book tour promoting his new book, “Dr. Neal Barnard’s Program for Reversing Diabetes.” He is currently in Arizona.

This morning, Thursday February 1, the Phoenix show Sonora Living, on ABC 15, included a cooking demonstration by chef Jason Wyrick, executive chef of the Vegan Culinary Experience. Wyrick was diagnosed before age 30 with diabetes and reversed it with a healthy vegan diet. He cooks a 20 Minute Black Bean Chipotle Chili. You can watch the demonstration on the show’s website at http://www.sonoranliving.com. It starts at about fifteen minutes past the hour.

Please take just a moment to thank the show and let them know you would love to see more veggie cooking demos. You can email them at sonoranliving [at] abc15.com.

Feedback matters!

The show also publicizes a lecture by Dr Barnard on how diet can offer dramatic improvements for those Americans living with diabetes.

Read the rest of this entry »