BellaOnline Forums Food and Wine Vegetarian What Are Your Health Resolutions for 2009?

1 of mine is to continue to better my health and the health of my family.

What's yours?

My health is definitely at the top of my list.

We're all becoming more active outside. Our home is filled with reasons and activities not to go outside (DVR, HD T.V's, ipods, computers, several video game systems, cable, DVD's, air hockey table, pool table, games etc...) Since my son is in little league (just finishing up), it has inclined us as a family to get out more and do more active things. Yeah, we have a home gym, but nothing is like everyone being on a bike riding through the park on a bike trail or even just playin' some hoops in basketball outside.

So, our health resolutions will definitely differ from previous years of being "comfortably home bound". Thanks for the inquiry and happy harvest everyone!

Jason,

This is it - in addition to trying to make everything I wear or use, like cosmetics, clothing, even decorating my own place - I am doing it this year - I am going to do my best to go veggie all the way.

Now - I may start out being a ovo-laco-pesco(?) veggie. It will be hard for me to give up shrimp, eggs, cereal with milk....

Tired of knowing how animals that they use for food are raised. Then - the way they are treated at slaughter.....I have known it - I have given small talks at Shaklee meetings on factory farming...and still I do it.

NO MORE!

Hey Robin,

Thanks for your response. I'm sure that you've touched on a few things that so many can relate to.

Have you locked your process in place yet to ensure your success in these areas? and if so would you be open to sharing them/or a few of them with us.

Hope you had a Happy Thanksgiving!

Yes Jason, I sure will

Hey, Jason. One of my sister's shocked me with this one: get this, she says she's going vegan...what the heck does that mean? My daughter is a vegetarian and her change of eating habits became quite expensive considering no one in the family eats what she does but to go vegan, my daughter, told me is totally a drastic change.

What is the difference? Are there health habits to consider? Should a doctor recommend this or do we just make such a choice?

She's trying to get healthier she says (my sister). Anyone else can chime in on this too.

Hey Kimmie!

Thanks for the ???'s. I think they're good questions where we can springboard off of and hit on a few considerations and strategies in later articles and posts.

Vegan Definition:

Vegan is a diet and life in the absence of animal products and by-products. No: dairy; eggs; white sugar; honey; products that contain animal or animal derived items; etc.

Some folks are vegan in diet only, while complete vegans carry the practices into their entire lifestyle. [i.e. no animal products or by-products in their cosmetics, clothing, furniture, etc.]
To keep the challenges down to a minimum you have to map it out.

Vegetarian Definition:

'Vegetarian' as many define it [I say it this way, because I don't necessarily agree with the way that it is classified as a whole, but that's a whole other post that I probably won't take the time to go into.] is a diet consisting of fruits, vegetables, grains, roots, nuts & seeds, herbs & spices, dairy, fish, poultry, & eggs (the last mentions truly aren't "vegetarian") but are more transitional phases of becoming vegetarian.

Health Considerations:
When making any shift to your lifestyle there are always adjustments that the body/system undergoes. Usually all good [although it may not feel that way as your body begins to cleanse itself] so long as it's done the correct way.

without giving medical advice... I can tell you some of the experiences that I've personally witnessed with past clients, within my own health and that of my friends & relatives.

Before I changed my lifestyle to a vegetarian/vegan one [a little over 20 years ago] it was hard and challenging. I didn't know the 1st thing about it.

A lot of trial and error. I was a sugar and junk food addict. Seriously. I used to dump white sugar in my bowls of soup, make sugar jelly and butter sandwiches, use to eat sugar straight by the spoonful. It was really over the top!

For folks who get freaked out from body aches and pains, they may want to engage the services of a knowledgeable health care professional to help encourage and guide them through those tough areas. [There are a lot of things the body goes through when you make drastic changes to your eating habits that can be quite daunting if you don't have a road map of what to expect during your process.]

I've always encouraged my clients to set themselves up with what they needed before we embarked on their journey to a healthy lifestyle. They've always gotten the most bang for their buck when they approach it from that perspective.

Regain Balance
Detoxify
Nourish & Rebuild

These are the most important aspects of any nutritional program. If they are lacking in any of these, there's a potential problem waiting to arise.

Well structured vegetarian diets [diets consisting of all of the vegetarian food groups] are extremely beneficial. They are, what is called alkalizing (they balance the body's pH - make makeup to make it more alkaline as opposed to acidic, which greatly helps to diminish the ailments the body can experience) and healing.

For your Road to Health

What are you doing it for?

What do you need to have in place for your success?

What are some of the things that you may/could experience in your transition?

What does my support look like?

How are you going to source your supplies?

These are, really, just a few of the questions you'd ask yourself before starting on a vegetarian/vegan lifestyle.

Here's a product that I absolutely love for many reasons, from 'A' to almost 'Z' , and how to get it and / or share it with folks who are transitioning to a healthier way of living and need support in that process.

Hope this answered your ???'s

That helps me, too!

I need to plan a good grocery list and make sure I have enough variety so that I am not just eating rice and black beans, peanut butter and jelly on wheat, etc.

Although - I am eating mushroom slices and baby carrot sticks with Russian dressing for snacks. This is more healthful than I have been in a while.

People need ot stop bringing in the fudge and cupcakes (or I need to just stay away)....

hahahaha That's funny Robin. Same thing here at my house with the treats and eggnog.

Thanks so much Jason. Good info for my own knowledge and to pass on. You are very knowledgable in this field. Glad you could help out. Bye and happy holidays to all.