My Big Fat Secret

This is a continuation of my whole-foods, plant-based lifestyle journey that began January of 2015. I am sharing this journey as part of the Write 28 Days Blogging Challenge. 

Shame is Powerful...

I have always felt a lot of shame around food.  When I was in the first grade my mother threatened to make me wear a girdle to school. She was worried about my weight and felt the need to limit my food intake. Goodby after school snack. I really missed my snacks. I learned to sneak food at a very young age. For a six year old, I developed some serious stealth manuevers.  After tucking me in bed each night my mother would join my father in the living room where they would watch television.  When I felt they were duly occupied, I would make my way from my bedroom to the kitchen.  This required that I crawl behind the sofa where they were sitting.  Once in the kitchen I would slowly open the cabinet and quietly extract two cookies.  Then I made my way back to my bedroom. Some nights two cookies were not enough and a second mission was necessary.  I don't remember ever getting caught. My parents certainly didn't think me bold enough nor smart enough to execute such a plan.

Fast forward fifty years.  I returned to Whole Foods every Monday for the Engine 2 Challenge.  I became more confident with the passing of each week.  We gradually eliminated animal foods from our diet and learned about the life saving qualities of plants.  By the end of challenge I had gone from one end of the spectrum to the other, however, there was one big road block that kept me from being 100% plant-based.  I couldn't tell anyone about my progress because my new lifestyle was a big fat secret. I was ashamed that I had to resort to to this kooky way of eating just to lose weight and be healthy.  I didn't know enough to explain it to others. Most of all, I wanted to enjoy my progress without scrutiny.  I still cooked the food my husband expected and he never noticed I wasn't eating the meat.  To avoid suspicion when we ate out, I ordered salmon. We still enjoyed our Sunday morning bacon and egg breakfast. My new lifestyle went unnoticed.

The Secret Revealed...

One day, my secret was exposed.  I posted a plant-based recipe on Facebook.  It came from a well know vegan blogger.  My daughter saw the post and texted me to ask if I was following a vegan diet because she had given up eating animal products in January.  What a shock.  We both took the same path at the same time.  My daughter does not do kooky things so maybe my decision to follow this plant-based lifestyle was not so bizarre.  That little spark of hope I had safeguarded was ignited. I had a plant-based friend now and it was my daughter.  💗

My Journey to a Happier, Healthier Life Begins

On My Way...

This is a continuation of my whole-foods, plant-based lifestyle journey that began January of 2015.

I left work and had little time to get to Whole Foods.  Tonight would be the first meeting for the Engine 2 Challenge.  I don't know if it was my own self doubt or the rush hour traffic, but my nerves were on edge. The whole idea of being a vegan seemed, suddenly, ridiculous.

I arrived with a few moments to sit and collect my thoughts. I took stock of others in the room. It was a diverse group ranging in age, race and sex.  I was wrong when I assumed I would be the oldest person there. I learned that some had practiced plant-based living for a couple of years.  These were the people that gave me hope for successfully transitioning to plant-based living.  There were a number of couples who had made the change and experienced significant health benefits. They were returning to the challenge to offer support and enjoy the company of like-minded people.  Little did I know how important community would become as I transitioned to a whole-foods, plant-based lifestyle.

Playing It Safe...

Listening to the program leader and hearing the testimonials was very motivating.  It was a lot of information to take in but it gave me hope that I could do better than I had with so many other failed diets. Before going home I had one last thing to do.  We were asked to choose a path that would achieve the outcome we envisioned.  We had four paths to consider:

• Path #1 - Use the four week challenge as informational but make no changes to our diet.
• Path #2 - Reduce the amount of meat and processed food we were eating while also adding more whole foods to our diet.
• Path #3 - Eliminate meat, poultry and fish from our diet but continue to eat dairy and eggs.  This would be a vegetarian diet.
• Path #4 - Eliminate all meat, poultry, fish AND dairy products and eggs.  This is what many people refer to as a vegan diet.

My heart was telling me to go all the way but my brain told me to be careful.  Don't bite off too much Terri.  You don't have a good track record.  Do you want to explain another failure?  My emotions took control.  I raised my hand and announced that I would take Path #2. As soon as I said it I felt better. I felt safe.

Sweet Greens and a Big Ham Sandwich on a Train

It was a warm spring day in Paris. My husband, Mike, and I  were excited to board the high speed train that would take us south to Provence and the French Mediterranean.  Our week in Paris was memorable yet exhausting. I looked forward to sitting still while traveling forward at 200 mph. Before boarding, we bought a sandwich to eat on the train. This was not your typical American ham and cheese. It was a very long, buttered baguette stuffed with meat and cheese.   Soon after departing, I dove into my sandwich.  There I was chomping away on my big sandwich when I glanced across the aisle and saw a woman eating her lunch.  She had a clear bag filled with a mix of spring greens.  She would admire each leaf as she plucked it from the bag. She closed her eyes as she chewed. I was fascinated and couldn't stop staring. She continued, slowly, eating leaf after leaf until the bag was empty.  There I sat with crumbs in my lap and a perplexed look on my face. This could not be real. How could anyone enjoy eating a bag of lettuce?  She seemed to savor each bite and it wasn't even a salad. I could not accept the notion that a plain green leaf could be satisfying or nourishing.  It took me years to understand the power of plants. It was not until I was well into my own plant-based journey that I remember the lady on the train.

Do you know when something just doesn't seem right?  December of 2014 was a turning point for me.  I didn't feel well and I knew something had to change.  The buzz word was "lifestyle change" and I needed one.  It's true what my mother had told me. It all catches up with you when you turn 60.  In my case it seemed as if I had gone from 60 to 100 in a split second.  If I kept going with my bad habits, my golden years would be dim and dire.

I believe all things happen for a reason. There are no coincidences. Opportunities present themselves when we least expect them so we must always keep sharp eyes.  I must have been in the right frame of mind when I saw the Facebook invitation. My local Whole Foods was hosting an Engine 2 challenge during the month of January. Engine 2, known as Plant-Strong by Engine 2 today, promotes a whole-food, plant-based lifestyle encouraging people to eliminate animal products from their diets.  Whoa, I thought, this is seriously different than anything I have ever undertaken. Nothing could be more of a lifestyle change than giving up all meat, fish, milk, cheese and eggs.  I wavered.  This is not me but I want it to be me.  Please let it be me.  I could at least go to the first meeting. I clicked the "Going" button and registered for the event.

Challenges - New and Old

I'm dusting off this very old blog for the Write 28 Days Blogging Challenge which begins today.  I was so excited about the writing part of the challenge that I somehow missed the part about putting it on a blog.  It has been a challenge just getting this blog up and running.  My design skills leave me no choice but to keep it simple.

Through the month of February, I plan to write about another challenge I undertook a few years back. Five years ago I joined a small group of like-minded people at my local Whole Foods for something called the Engine 2 Challenge. By the end of the 28 day challenge I had eliminated all animal products from my diet.  Yes, I started living the whole-food, plant-based lifestyle.  It has been a challenging five years yet rewarding.  For the next 28 days I plan to write about the many stages of my journey and how the term "plant-based" has changed over the past five years.