Room For Debate

Interesting and diverse thoughts about being vegan. I'm still processing all of the opinions in these articles but overall I have to say that I would never say that everyone on the planet should be vegan. It's a choice and nobody should be made to feel bad because of their choices. Read and reflect...

http://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2012/04/17/is-veganism-good-for-everyone/?hp

Eggs

I meant to post this link the other day but never got around to finishing the article myself! Here is Nicholas Kristof's thoughts in the Times about an investigation of a massive egg producing company.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/12/opinion/kristof-is-an-egg-for-breakfast-worth-this.html?_r=1&scp=2&sq=nicholas%20kristof&st=cse

More than anything else, eggs are hard for me to completely give up on my quest to be more vegan. I still like to have the occasional hard boiled egg and I certainly won't turn down a cake made with an egg or two. However, I try my best to by the eggs from local farms that are sold in Whole Foods or even Price Chopper. They are certainly more expensive (sometimes double in price) but it makes me feel good knowing the the eggs have come from a small production, and what's more, the eggs taste a whole lot better. Even better would be if you could get your eggs directly from a local farmer in your area. Do a little investigating to find out who sells eggs in your neck of the woods. 

For the love of yoga

I love yoga. Period.

Every time I finish practicing yoga, I feel amazing! Whether it is a 20 minute, gentle morning routine or a more intense and lengthy power yoga DVD, the results are the same--strength, flexibility, focus, and peace. I wanted to post today about yoga because there has rarely been a physical activity for me that I can adamantly say every time, "I am so glad I did that today. I feel fantastic!" Now listen up, I love my running. Oh how I love to lace up my shoes and go! But there are definitely days when I return after several miles and think, "Ooh I think I pushed it a little to hard" or "Well, now my knee is bothering me."

But yoga demands that you focus and stay present. Yesterday was a very full day for us. From the moment we woke up, we were going. We closed on our new house (yay!!!) and then had what felt like a million other things going on as well. Even prior to yesterday, I was beginning to feel a little stressed and run down. When we finally got home last night and got CJ to go to sleep, my body and mind were practically begging me to do yoga. I popped in my Rodney Yee "Power Yoga: Total Body" DVD and proceeded through the routine. I began by setting the intention of just staying present and giving strength and confidence to my practice. As I went through each sequence of poses, I was forced to focus on exactly what I was doing in that moment. There were no thoughts of closing papers, whining three year-olds, or contractor appointments. It was simply "jump back to push-up position... upward dog... downward dog... step through to a lunge... warrior 2... and breath." Each step calls you here and keeps you here.

Yoga encompasses all aspects of your being: physical, mental, spiritual, and (dare I say) moral. When you give yourself the gift of yoga, you are showing compassion for yourself and in turn you are able to show compassion toward others. The great thing about it is that you don't even need to twist yourself into crazy postures to experience the benefits. Lying in relaxation pose for even five minutes can be so beneficial and yet it is hard for many of us to do! Simple stretches feel wonderful on your muscles and joints. Yoga means union: the union of your physical, mental and spiritual self, but also the union of you with all of creation.

100%

Last week I was at Lululemon (my new yoga/running clothes store obsession!) and got into a conversation with one of the salespeople about being vegan. I told her that I was taking my cousin to Fud to enjoy some yummy vegan food. She said, "Oh are you vegan?" to which I replied "Yes." We then proceeded to give each other a high five of support. I added, "Well, I'm like 90% vegan." Her question to me was "Why not 100%?"

It's a good question; why not 100%?

I feel like I give 100% in most areas of my life, but sometimes that ends up looking and feeling like a lot of pressure to put on myself. I am pretty close to having perfectionist tendencies and while this can be beneficial at times, it can also make me feel like I have the weight of the world on my shoulders. I was raised to work hard and give my best effort no matter what. When I don't reach that 100% mark, however, I can feel like I have failed in some way. This was a big problem when I was trying to nurse my son and it wasn't quite working out. I felt like I was failing him as a mother, like I wasn't being "natural" enough of a parent. I beat myself up over it and, quite frankly, it was a contributing factor to my postpartum depression. In retrospect, that experience was so important and it was the lessons learned from my breastfeeding experience that have caused me to draw the following conclusion: Sometimes it is okay to not give 100%. Sometimes doing the best you can means letting go and giving in when you need to.


So here is my answer to why I am not 100% vegan: I am doing the best I can. That is all anyone can do. We keep a nearly vegan home with the exceptions of eggs and, very rarely, cheese.  In the past two years we have eliminated our consumption of meat and reduced the amount of products that contain animal by-products (i.e.--shower and shave gel, shampoo, make up, etc.). I try to frequent vegetarian establishments, order vegan at mainstream restaurants and I do my best to avoid buying leather. But here's the thing: If a friend goes through the trouble of inviting us for a beautiful pasta dinner and puts parmesan cheese on top, I am not going to refuse it. If a friend bakes a banana bread and uses eggs, I am going to eat it. If I go back east and order a bagel, I'm going to get it with cream cheese. If the only thing CJ will eat on a menu is mac and cheese, he is getting the mac and cheese.

I think there are times when we just have to let go and do the best we can. If you are making an effort and are aware that we should be working toward the greater good, that is a step in the right direction. If it stresses you out to try to eat, act or be a certain way, give it up and let it go.

Running by the light of the moon

I love the early morning, especially when it is my own choice to get up before the sun does.

This morning I woke up early to run by myself. I have to say that I am very fortunate to live where I do with well-lit streets and plenty of sidewalks so this makes early morning runs a whole lot easier. Often I'll take my personal trainer (Kasey Moe) with me on such runs but there are days when I just need to go it alone. This morning was one of those days and it was absolutely beautiful. After unseasonably warm weather, we have had some cooler evenings and hence mornings so I threw on a sweatshirt and running pants and set off on my neighborhood route. I don't run with headphones (ladies, please don't run with headphones outside, especially in the dark!) and the stillness at 5:30 is so peaceful. What made this morning's run even more perfect was the full moon still hovering in the west. If you are looking for distraction during a run, focus on something beautiful around you--the flowering trees, the baby bunny enjoying his breakfast, the birds cheering you on. This morning, my beautiful was the full moon and my thoughts about everything and nothing. This is why I run.

Eat More Fud

I returned to Fud, Kansas City's best vegan restaurant, today for lunch. This is the forth time I have eaten at this adorable little eatery on 17th and Summit and I am more and more impressed each time. When Brian and I checked it out a year ago, Fud was newly opened and very slow. The food was definitely good at that point but we waited over an hour for our meals to be served. In the past month, I have visited Fud both for lunches and dinners and the service is exponentially more efficient. I'm really happy about this because the dishes they serve are so delish and I was hoping for the service to match.

Today I had the tostada with a side salad. All the ingredients are very fresh and tasty. On the tostada, you have a choice of "meats," one of which is called "wild mild." While I am not 100% sure of the ingredients, I can guess that there is wild rice, mushrooms, and a variety of spices that make it extremely tasty. The side salad was great too, loaded with fresh, crispy veggies. Here is what the meal looked like...

I know I am partial to vegan food but any carnivore would have to admit that the mixture of tostada ingredients is extremely tasty and substantial. I really enjoyed my meal and unlike usual days when I eat at home, I didn't feel the need to have an afternoon snack between lunch and dinner.

I am not a food critic so I am not going to go into detail about the qualities of the ingredients or their combinations. Simply put, I thoroughly enjoyed my lunch! The other aspect of my dining experience that was exciting is that the restaurant filled up while I was there. This has been my experience every time I have eaten at Fud. It is encouraging to see how many vegans there are and/or people who are willing to try vegan food in this land of barbecue!

It's What's for Breakfast

People will often ask me what I eat for breakfast as a vegan since I try to avoid eggs and breakfast meats. Now, I am a huge fan of breakfast so I like to take the time to put together a fairly substantial meal. I realize some of you don't like to eat much in the morning so you can always adjust based on your body's own needs. But study after study shows how important it is to eat breakfast! Try it out and you will feel more complete throughout the day.

So the picture above shows my tofu scramble. Last night, I sliced up onions, peppers and mushrooms so I didn't have to do it this morning. I sautéed these veggies first and then crumbled some tofu on top, continuing to cook the mixture for about five minutes. I also added a little Italian seasoning and pepper for some extra flavor. Topping it off with 1/2 an avocado will add some healthy fats and delicious taste to the mix! Today was a running day for me so I also had Ezekial toast with peanut butter so I am not starving in a few hours (I am always more hungry throughout the day when I start with a run). Finishing this off with a clementine makes the breakfast complete.

I must admit, I am definitely a morning person so the thought of putting a full breakfast together is fine with me. But even with an early run, followed by a shower and making breakfast for CJ, I still had plenty of time to put this all together. When you slice up the veggies the night before, the morning work for this meal literally takes 7 minutes. Not as fast as putting a pop tart in the toaster, but a heck of a lot healthier!

Really people???

I'm installing a new segment on this blog called "Really people???" to point out some of the stupid (sorry but there is no other way to put it) things that humans do to animals. Here is an article from the New York Times that talks about the practice of dyeing baby chicks while they are still in their eggs so they hatch in all manner of colors. How bored are we as humans that we have to do things like this?

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/02/us/dyeing-easter-chicks-raises-concerns.html?_r=1&hp

Return to Local Burger

Well hello, Lawrence. It's so nice to see you again!

I returned this afternoon with Brian and CJ to the one and only Lawrence, Kansas... home of the NCAA championship-bound KU Jayhawks. Lawrence has always been one of our favorite places to visit since we moved out here, but for whatever reason, we have not been in over a year. Perhaps our impending move gave us the excuse we needed to head twenty minutes west of Lenexa to explore this fun, hippie, yummy town once more. Either that or the 85 sunny degrees on the first day of April!

So after picking up some Keenes for Brian (making our family summer footwear complete!), we ventured over to Local Burger to pick up some dinner. First off, I love walking into a restaurant knowing we are going to have more than one choice on the menu. For vegans, Local Burger has several options including possibly the most fabulous veggie burger (or at least my favorite) in the area as well as tofu burgers. Of course this is a burger joint but everything they serve comes from very local farms. Anyway, Brian and I ordered the veggie burger with our choice of toppings and little CJ requested the kiddie tofu burger which he enjoyed with a side of fresh organic fruit and rice milk. On my burger, I added lettuce and tomato and Veganaise! It may seem like a little thing, but I get very excited when I see things like rice milk and Veganaise on a menu. We finished our meal with a gluten-free, vegan chocolate chip cookie which was okay but a yummy cookie nonetheless.

After spending the week showing my cousin all the vegetarian and vegan options Kansas City has to offer, working on ordering cheese-free food (at a pizza place no less!), and feeding the baby calves at Deanna Rose this morning, I ate my veggie burger feeling so good about the choices we've made in the past few years about our eating. Sometimes it can be a real effort to turn down the ice cream or the cheese pizza (and lord knows I don't always do it!) but when I make conscious choices to eat vegan, I am completely satisfied that we are making the decision to bring health to ourselves and to the world, one veggie burger at a time.

Local Burger

714 Vermont Street

Lawrence, KS 66044

www.localburger.com

Vegan Bodybuilding

Even though I am not exactly a follower of the bodybuilding circuit, I was excited when I saw this article posted on the home page of the New York Times this morning. Traditionally, bodybuilding has been associated with the stereotype of steroids and steaks. On the other hand, the stereotype of a vegan is that they are skinny, lacking muscle and strength. These bodybuilders show that you can, in fact, build muscle on a plant based diet. Just remember that everything has protein in it! I think people forget that vegetables and fruits have protein, and that protein is important but it is not the be all end all in food nutrients.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/05/sports/vegans-muscle-their-way-into-bodybuilding.html?_r=1&hp

A Healthy New Year

What does it mean to be healthy?

To be honest with you, my own definition changes from time to time. There are times when I feel unbelievably healthy because of the way I am eating and exercising. Between Thanksgiving and Christmas, I did a version of the vegan juicing cleanse we did back in February. I felt fantastic! It was amazing to go into the holiday season cleansed of sugar, processed crap, caffeine and alcohol. I practiced yoga every day, did moderate but challenging workouts, and meditated at least ten minutes every morning. The perfectionist in me swore I would never put a drop of refined sugar in my body again because I felt so amazing living and eating the way I was.

But really? I should know myself better... and allow myself some moderation and balance. Because let's face it, I love my coffee... and it's okay to have a tall soy no whip peppermint mocha... and I enjoy a glass of wine now and then.

So does true health come only from drinking green juice, holding down dog for a good length of time, and rejecting all cookies that come your way? Can you only be healthy by eating all organic produce and spending your whole paycheck at Whole Foods? Of course not! Such a way of life would cause so much stress that it would counteract any health benefits you might receive from your healthy habits.

The key is to find balance and moderation. Since we're starting the new year, I would like to find something to focus on for 2012. I'm not necessarily calling this a resolution, but I do want to focus on finding balance and moderation in my nutrition and exercise and let go of those silly perfectionist tendencies that cause too much stress. Finding health in 2012 is going to be synonymous with finding balance.