I really didn't want to go into this because I didn't want to have to deal with negative people and their remarks, but I'm a strong enough of a person to handle it and I want my story to go on record.
I have had stomach and other digestive problems for as long as I can remember. Some had told me that it was the milk or cheese I was eating and that I need to take medicine and fiber to recover. Sure that helped, but it didn't really cure the problem. In august of 2009 I decided to stop eating milk and cheese. I didn't know if this would cure or even help but I was willing to try. My boyfriend and I were avid about going to the bookstore. He would always read his Mustang magazines and I would read the typical Cosmo or other fashion magazine. One day in the Hardings bookstore in Russellville, Arkansas I was wandering the racks when a book on an end-cap caught my eye. It said "Skinny Bitch" and I laughed. I guess I've seen so many diet books with their sweet and nice titles that this book seemed "real" to me. Like they just put it out there for everyone to see. If you wanted to overwork yourself on a fad diet just to gain all the weight back later-then you could read one of the millions of diet books to help you do just that. But, If you wanted to be a skinny Bitch then you needed to read this diet book. And that's what I did! I sat down at the table with it while my guy read his car magazine and delved into the depths of what would be my future.
It was SUCH an easy read and I was completely hooked. Their language and "realness" is what pulled me in. They weren't sugar coating everything. They were like a best friend that was telling you straight up what was true, what was false, and what you needed to do if you really wanted to lose weight. Breath of fresh air? You bet! They confirmed what I had known all along and put to rest any excuses I had for not losing weight. The only thing in my way was me and I needed to make a change.
It wasn't until halfway through the book that I realized that it was a vegan book!! Part of me wanted to just put it down. I thought "No hippie nonsense for me". But deep down, I knew it wasn't nonsense. I had known in my heart all my life what I wanted to do but I didn't because I had this false idea of what nutrition was. Growing up, my grandma would try and get me to eat a pork chop or some roast and as a child, I did what was expected of me. I would take a piece and put it on my plate just to take a bite and hurry to dump my "scraps" before anyone saw that I was wasting it. I was never shy about spaghetti and meatballs or a chicken salad but the though of just plain meat repulsed me. The thought never occurred to me that I could have spaghetti without meat or salad without chicken. I never thought there was any other way to get protein to your body. I just plain didn't think. (If you want to 'think', read the book, or look online for excerpts.)
Chapter six made me tear up, right there, in the store, around tons of people. Those who know me know that it takes a lot for me to express sad emotions in front of others-especially people I don't know. It's embarrassing to me. The way the book described, in detail, the way the animals were tortured and murderd...it really shook me up. I didn't read the whole chapter. Maybe 3 pages. I stopped when they talked about what happened to the sick horse. I just couldn't read that. If you love any animal in the world, how can you eat another? I believe that it is conditioning of society that chooses which animals are pets and which are murdered for humans. I don't think babies are born craving meat...but that's my opinion and I don't have proof. Anyway, I can't eat another animal as long as I live because it hurts my heart. That simple. And I'm not going to tell anyone else what to eat, but I don't believe in factory farms either. I feel like if you are going to eat an animal, you should kill it with your own bare hands. That way it has a fighting chance I guess.
So getting back to my story, I almost finished the book but we were starving, the store was closing, and I needed to go home. I didn't buy the book that day. I don't know why. Maybe because I wasn't sure I'd stick to it. I have a habit of getting really into something just to lose interest and drop it later. Sometime after, we went to eat at Crackerbarrel and I think I ordered a salad or some veggies or something and so began my struggle to find a vegan way of eating. I tried some of my guy's hamburger (which he couldn't eat) and it made me cringe. Maybe it was just the thought of it, but I just couldn't do it. For a week or so I only ate vegetable soup, oreos, and soymilk. It was that hard to find anything. At the time, we were living in a small town called Morrilton, AR and there wasn't really anything for miles except a few Walmarts. Walmart isn't known for having quality food much less vegan food. I had to find what I could. I had to learn the hard way and learn how to read the food labels. That is another subject entirely!
I basically started out vegetarian. I only knew a few things about veganism and sometimes I would misread a packaging, or it was labeled vegan on the front and had a "secret ingredient" on the list in the back. By "secret ingredient", I mean ingredients that come from animals but aren't labeled in lamens terms: such as, Casesin or Lactic Acid or sodium stearoyl lactylate. It was torture trying to find ANYTHING! My body underwent a total transformation within this week though. I no longer had stomach pains or digestive issues. I didn't feel so heavy and lethargic anymore. I had more energy, and less body pain all together. It's insane the amount of change I went through.
After a month or so, (SEPT) my tastes buds were different, like they were finally *awakened* and everything seemed to taste better than before. I could actually feel when I had too much or not enough sugar. I don't know if that makes sense, but its like my body could tell what it needed. It was beyond feeling tired or awake, but more like "I need potatoes" or "Actually, right now I think I have had enough carbs." It probably won't make much sense because most people only know "hungry" and "not hungry" but I can tell if I need a protein snack. Also, I dropped a few pounds maybe 5-8. I was feeling good!
Then around January, I had lost 30 pounds. I know! Crazy. I guess I was a little nervous about gaining it back, but I didn't! I went from a size 18 to a 15 in 5 months. That's not as fast as you see some people lose it, but it was a healthy way of shedding it that wouldn't hurt me or leave an option for it coming back. I was shocked! And then...
We ate at Chili's in Conway, about 30 mins from Morrilton once. I believe we had already moved to Conway by this point. I explained to the waitress that I was vegan and couldn't have meat, dairy, or eggs. She said I could have the beans and rice, mashed potatoes, and coleslaw. WHATEVER. I found out later that the beans contained lard, and the rest had dairy. What in the world was she thinking?! I guess she really didn't know what vegan meant. Some think vegan is the same as vegetarian- it's not. Vegetarians eat everything but meat. Vegans don't eat (or even wear) anything from an animal. That includes dairy, eggs, gelatin, etc.
It's now March, 2011 and I am so pleased with the vegan lifestyle that I will recommend it to everyone who wants to know how to have a healthy life. I live in Baton Rouge, LA now and am lucky enough to live close to a Whole Foods. It's easier now than it's ever been and I regret nothing. I don't feel as if I am missing out on anything. I still have hamburgers (made of wheat protein not cow) and icecream (made with coconut milk, its even better than dairy icecream, promise!) and even cheese. Yes, I said it. CHEESE. The newest cheese to hit the world is Daiya (GOOGLE THEM!) and they are the best vegan cheese I have ever tried. (all of these things in moderation of course!) Its amazing. I feel good, I live well, and all the struggling to learn was well worth it. If anyone has a question, feel free to leave a comment on my daily blogs and I promise to write you back! Thanks for reading my story and I hope it has been interesting to read! If you are a struggling vegan, you are not alone and it does get better! I'm here for anyone who needs help!
Lots of Love
KYNZ
Viva La Vida Vegan!
It was SUCH an easy read and I was completely hooked. Their language and "realness" is what pulled me in. They weren't sugar coating everything. They were like a best friend that was telling you straight up what was true, what was false, and what you needed to do if you really wanted to lose weight. Breath of fresh air? You bet! They confirmed what I had known all along and put to rest any excuses I had for not losing weight. The only thing in my way was me and I needed to make a change.
It wasn't until halfway through the book that I realized that it was a vegan book!! Part of me wanted to just put it down. I thought "No hippie nonsense for me". But deep down, I knew it wasn't nonsense. I had known in my heart all my life what I wanted to do but I didn't because I had this false idea of what nutrition was. Growing up, my grandma would try and get me to eat a pork chop or some roast and as a child, I did what was expected of me. I would take a piece and put it on my plate just to take a bite and hurry to dump my "scraps" before anyone saw that I was wasting it. I was never shy about spaghetti and meatballs or a chicken salad but the though of just plain meat repulsed me. The thought never occurred to me that I could have spaghetti without meat or salad without chicken. I never thought there was any other way to get protein to your body. I just plain didn't think. (If you want to 'think', read the book, or look online for excerpts.)
Chapter six made me tear up, right there, in the store, around tons of people. Those who know me know that it takes a lot for me to express sad emotions in front of others-especially people I don't know. It's embarrassing to me. The way the book described, in detail, the way the animals were tortured and murderd...it really shook me up. I didn't read the whole chapter. Maybe 3 pages. I stopped when they talked about what happened to the sick horse. I just couldn't read that. If you love any animal in the world, how can you eat another? I believe that it is conditioning of society that chooses which animals are pets and which are murdered for humans. I don't think babies are born craving meat...but that's my opinion and I don't have proof. Anyway, I can't eat another animal as long as I live because it hurts my heart. That simple. And I'm not going to tell anyone else what to eat, but I don't believe in factory farms either. I feel like if you are going to eat an animal, you should kill it with your own bare hands. That way it has a fighting chance I guess.
So getting back to my story, I almost finished the book but we were starving, the store was closing, and I needed to go home. I didn't buy the book that day. I don't know why. Maybe because I wasn't sure I'd stick to it. I have a habit of getting really into something just to lose interest and drop it later. Sometime after, we went to eat at Crackerbarrel and I think I ordered a salad or some veggies or something and so began my struggle to find a vegan way of eating. I tried some of my guy's hamburger (which he couldn't eat) and it made me cringe. Maybe it was just the thought of it, but I just couldn't do it. For a week or so I only ate vegetable soup, oreos, and soymilk. It was that hard to find anything. At the time, we were living in a small town called Morrilton, AR and there wasn't really anything for miles except a few Walmarts. Walmart isn't known for having quality food much less vegan food. I had to find what I could. I had to learn the hard way and learn how to read the food labels. That is another subject entirely!
I basically started out vegetarian. I only knew a few things about veganism and sometimes I would misread a packaging, or it was labeled vegan on the front and had a "secret ingredient" on the list in the back. By "secret ingredient", I mean ingredients that come from animals but aren't labeled in lamens terms: such as, Casesin or Lactic Acid or sodium stearoyl lactylate. It was torture trying to find ANYTHING! My body underwent a total transformation within this week though. I no longer had stomach pains or digestive issues. I didn't feel so heavy and lethargic anymore. I had more energy, and less body pain all together. It's insane the amount of change I went through.
After a month or so, (SEPT) my tastes buds were different, like they were finally *awakened* and everything seemed to taste better than before. I could actually feel when I had too much or not enough sugar. I don't know if that makes sense, but its like my body could tell what it needed. It was beyond feeling tired or awake, but more like "I need potatoes" or "Actually, right now I think I have had enough carbs." It probably won't make much sense because most people only know "hungry" and "not hungry" but I can tell if I need a protein snack. Also, I dropped a few pounds maybe 5-8. I was feeling good!
Then around January, I had lost 30 pounds. I know! Crazy. I guess I was a little nervous about gaining it back, but I didn't! I went from a size 18 to a 15 in 5 months. That's not as fast as you see some people lose it, but it was a healthy way of shedding it that wouldn't hurt me or leave an option for it coming back. I was shocked! And then...
We ate at Chili's in Conway, about 30 mins from Morrilton once. I believe we had already moved to Conway by this point. I explained to the waitress that I was vegan and couldn't have meat, dairy, or eggs. She said I could have the beans and rice, mashed potatoes, and coleslaw. WHATEVER. I found out later that the beans contained lard, and the rest had dairy. What in the world was she thinking?! I guess she really didn't know what vegan meant. Some think vegan is the same as vegetarian- it's not. Vegetarians eat everything but meat. Vegans don't eat (or even wear) anything from an animal. That includes dairy, eggs, gelatin, etc.
It's now March, 2011 and I am so pleased with the vegan lifestyle that I will recommend it to everyone who wants to know how to have a healthy life. I live in Baton Rouge, LA now and am lucky enough to live close to a Whole Foods. It's easier now than it's ever been and I regret nothing. I don't feel as if I am missing out on anything. I still have hamburgers (made of wheat protein not cow) and icecream (made with coconut milk, its even better than dairy icecream, promise!) and even cheese. Yes, I said it. CHEESE. The newest cheese to hit the world is Daiya (GOOGLE THEM!) and they are the best vegan cheese I have ever tried. (all of these things in moderation of course!) Its amazing. I feel good, I live well, and all the struggling to learn was well worth it. If anyone has a question, feel free to leave a comment on my daily blogs and I promise to write you back! Thanks for reading my story and I hope it has been interesting to read! If you are a struggling vegan, you are not alone and it does get better! I'm here for anyone who needs help!
Lots of Love
KYNZ
Viva La Vida Vegan!
Well, i for one LOVED IT! U arent shoving ur lifestyle in everyones faces you are just sharing ur excitment with the world. i am so happy for u and ur "reincarnation" because its as though uv been born into a whole new world and a whole new body. i dont think i could ever have the disipline it would take to cut out my deer meat and meat sauce speghetti but more power to ya if u have come through it with flying colors. Those who look down on you for what you do dont understand ur decision because they themself do not have that type of disipline. you are a wonderful friend and a wonderful person all together and i applaude you! <3
ReplyDeleteAlea you bring tears to my eyes :) You're the BEST!!!! *BIGGEST HUG EVER*
ReplyDelete