maybe going vegan

[PeaceVegan]

And if said hunters were to have a freezer full of meat from such hunts (meaning that is the only meat they eat, no supermarket meat) and they enjoy the taste of it, does that make them immoral and selfish for the sake of their taste buds?

If the meat in their freezers came from hunting animals to control overpopulation then as I said earlier I do not have a problem with that. I would also want to find a better long term solution to the overpopulation if it is human influenced.

[vesteroid]

I am always correct.

From my perspective.

[PeaceVegan]

To the people of this thread that do not understand the difference between Vegan and Vegetarian you should understand that they are not interchangeable terms. There are significant differences between the two. One such difference is that Vegans have made a decision to eliminate both the use of animal products ( leather, etc ) and the consumption of animals ( meat, dairy, eggs, fish, etc. ). Vegans, for the most part, believe that all animals have basic rights and that those rights should not be taken away simply because one group of animals ( humans ) have the strength, ability and lack of compassion to enslave, control and kill others animals. Humans justify those actions in various ways or simply refuse to acknowledge that anything is wrong by placing themselves above the other animals. It is shocking to Vegans that humans are incensed should humans behave this way to other humans but give it no thought at all when it is happening to other animals. Vegetarians do not eliminate the animal products and while some are herbivores most are omnivores that will consume some animals.

[Rx Rider]

Live long and prosper PeaceVegan

[mtalinm]

well I guess it was predictable that this thread would end up polemical. anyway, as an update at the end of the first week:

been pretty much strictly vegan + mostly unrefined grains and natural foods.

feeling good generally though a little more hungry than usual.

not much weight loss to speak of yet.

thought I was a bit low-energy on my last ride, but Strava tells me I actually set a personal best on my favorite hillclimb.

[Big Pete 1982]

well I guess it was predictable that this thread would end up polemical. anyway, as an update at the end of the first week:

been pretty much strictly vegan + mostly unrefined grains and natural foods.

feeling good generally though a little more hungry than usual.

not much weight loss to speak of yet.

thought I was a bit low-energy on my last ride, but Strava tells me I actually set a personal best on my favorite hillclimb.

Cool beans man! If it works for you, great! Who cares about the crazy opinions of people on the internet anyway?

[vesteroid]

well I guess it was predictable that this thread would end up polemical. anyway, as an update at the end of the first week:

been pretty much strictly vegan + mostly unrefined grains and natural foods.

feeling good generally though a little more hungry than usual.

not much weight loss to speak of yet.

thought I was a bit low-energy on my last ride, but Strava tells me I actually set a personal best on my favorite hillclimb.

Keep posting in this every now and again, I would like to see how it works for you. Just remember to fuel correctly regardless of the diet. I learned that the hard way.

[Rx Rider]

feeling good generally though a little more hungry than usual. that's what i hate about eattin veggies, you need to eat much more food.
not much weight loss to speak of yet.
give anything you try a good three weeks of effort before you decisions make.
thought I was a bit low-energy on my last ride, but Strava tells me I actually set a personal best on my favorite hillclimb.
this is what copious amounts of esspresso is for, yeah energy.

yes, I like talking like Yoda, so what? YOU should check out the e-net for recipes of vegs that go well together
when you fry everything up in a skllet or wok, I mix up some brown rice and dried wasabi peas into the majority of my meals.
cut-up old rye bagel, hiding under soup is a good meat counterfeit.
OH and take pride in your new abundance of gas and thanks to a meatless diet your gas will be so much fresher.
once you lose the spare tire, you'll have more room under you for a longer stroke, zoom zoom.

[PeaceVegan]

well I guess it was predictable that this thread would end up polemical. anyway, as an update at the end of the first week:

been pretty much strictly vegan + mostly unrefined grains and natural foods.

feeling good generally though a little more hungry than usual.

not much weight loss to speak of yet.

thought I was a bit low-energy on my last ride, but Strava tells me I actually set a personal best on my favorite hillclimb.

Make sure you are drinking plenty of water also. Many people don't consume as much as they should. It really makes a big difference on how you feel and how your body will function for you. Carry around water with you all the time. Start off conservatively at first then gradually work your way up to a gallon or so per day ( spread out evenly ).

[UpL8]

I too am considering dietary veganism as an alternative "treatment" of my Type 2 diabetes. I think I have hit the wall with my original plan of action: I am slowly regaining weight and my medication doesn't seem to impact my blood glucose like it used to. But to say that embracing dietary veganism is a last resort would be incorrect; it seems like a good, healthful approach from what I have read on the subject.

I am not remotely committed to any conscious political view around veganism. I just want to do what is best for my health. For me, at the moment, veganism seems "right". Just the same, at the moment it's all theoretical...I still have a little preparation to do, plus, I practically have an anxiety attack at the thought of giving up animal products - I gotta hope that'll pass!

[chasm54]

Make sure you are drinking plenty of water also. Many people don't consume as much as they should. It really makes a big difference on how you feel and how your body will function for you. Carry around water with you all the time. Start off conservatively at first then gradually work your way up to a gallon or so per day ( spread out evenly ).

This is interesting, actually. Since I started eating virtually no meat and increasing the fruit/vegetable/pulses content of my diet, I have found that I need to drink more water to feel at my best. I don't know why that should be?

[vesteroid]

Many recent studies suggest even the old diet adage of 8 8 oz glasses a day is too much for many people. In reality, water like food, is the in vs out theory.

If you are exercising and breathing hard, and / or working in heat, then of course you need more. But for many of us that simply is not true on a daily basis.

[mtalinm]

I am not remotely committed to any conscious political view around veganism. I just want to do what is best for my health. For me, at the moment, veganism seems "right". Just the same, at the moment it's all theoretical...I still have a little preparation to do, plus, I practically have an anxiety attack at the thought of giving up animal products - I gotta hope that'll pass!

amen to that. I'm not doing this to help subsidize the inflated salaries of "non-profit" execs @ PETA.

I tenhd to say that I "eat vegan" rather than "am vegan" as the latter seems to imply some adherence to the meat-is-murder lifestyle. other times I say that I'm eating an "unrefined plant-based diet". works pretty well

[dehoff]

Many recent studies suggest even the old diet adage of 8 8 oz glasses a day is too much for many people. In reality, water like food, is the in vs out theory.

If you are exercising and breathing hard, and / or working in heat, then of course you need more. But for many of us that simply is not true on a daily basis.

And for every study that says it's "too much", there's one that says it's "not enough" such as the study cited by the Mayo Clinic that found an average male needs 3 liters of beverages.

As with most everything, do what works for you.

[chandltp]

And for every study that says it's "too much", there's one that says it's "not enough" such as the study cited by the Mayo Clinic that found an average male needs 3 liters of beverages.

As with most everything, do what works for you.

Yup.. when I'm at work I drink about 1 1/2 gallons a day (+/- 1/2 gallon), plus another 2 quarts at home. I don't really try to, it's just what my body seems to like. I seem to function fine on the weekends when I drink less than half of that, so I don't know why I do it. The only ill effects I seem to suffer is excessive bathroom breaks.

[Big_Easy51]

My wife and I are vegan. I became a vegan on 21 January this year, and my results have been impressive and dramatic. HOWEVER, to be clear, there are fat vegans. My wife (a long-time vegan) calls them "Junk Food Vegans."
French fries: vegan. Twinkies: vegan. Vegetarian pizza made without cheese or meat, but with processed white flour: vegan. Beer? vegan. Get the idea?
I strongly recommend "Eat to Live" by Dr. Joel Fuhrman. He explains what a healthy vegan diet looks like, and why you might want to consider it.
Whatever diet you choose, MAKE IT YOUR OWN. It has to work for you or you won't stay with it.
My cholesterol has gone from 258 with a statin to 114 with no meds. My blood pressure (220/120 unmedicated) and around 138.84 with 4 medications is now 110/62 with no medication. My weight has dropped dramatically.
If you have been a meat eater, you likely have about 2 years worth of vitamin B-12 stored in your body. If you go vegan, you will want to ass a B12 supplement at some point. Also, pay attention to the omegas. I get an algae derived DHA supplement, and include flax, hemp and chia seeds in my diet.
If you are going to use soy, try FERMENTED soy, like tempeh. As has already been mentioned, unfermented soy can raise hell with endocrine and digestive systems.
Which ever way you go, I wish you luck. You will know when you are on the right diet. It will be easy to do, you will feel better, and your cravings will disappear after a week or two.

Get a CMP and lipid panel done before you start, and re-check after a few months. It's good to have a baseline and then track changes. You can get both done without a doctor's order and cheaply. I pay $12 for the CMP (Comprehensive Metabolic Panel) and $10 for lipids (cholesterol and triglycerides). The CMP will also show blood sugar (glucose) , sodium and potassium. You will need to fast for a minimum of 8 hours before you have the test performed. At some point, see if your doc wants a magnesium level. That one needs an order from a doc, and (here), they cost about $33.

I find the healthy vegan diet a good fit for me. It isn't for everyone. But it might be for you.

[mtalinm]

well here's an update after 5 weeks.

the first week was wild - like going through detox - felt weak, bad times on the potty, etc.

the next couple of weeks were about stabilization - figuring out what to eat and so on. for travel-related reasons I wasn't able to do a lot of cycling.

the past couple of weeks I've been back on the bike, with great results. I have none of the fatigue/bonking I used to have when trying to do low-carb diets - obvious to many, I'm sure, but I was worried I wouldn't have enough energy when eating "just plants." but it has not been a problem at all. if anything, I feel better.

I also never have "sugar headaches" or that Atkins bloat. it's occasionally hard to find food, though much easier than 15 years ago when I first tried this.

down about 10 pounds without trying too hard. will push hard(er) on that this month