Hello from the northeast!

seekingdhamma

Newcomer
Joined
Oct 24, 2018
Reaction score
6
Age
38
Location
NY
Lifestyle
  1. Vegan
  2. Vegan newbie
  3. Vegetarian
  4. Other
Hello, all!

Hailing from the Northeast here - smack dab in the middle of all the awesomeness.

I have been a pesco-pollo vegetarian for many years. I know, I know - that is a little... well, conflicting. I have mainly eaten a vegan-based diet, no dairy, no fried foods, and as many whole foods as possible. My main source of protein, however, has been chicken and egg whites for as long as I can remember. Let's call it the 'bodybuilder' kind of diet. I was very active in the gym, lifting weights, etc. This diet always worked well for me, even though I had a plethora of digestive issues. (Duh. Light bulb.) I also have a pretty romantic history with anorexia and EDNOS, so restricting my food was also a mental thing, and eating anything with too much fat, sodium, cholesterol, sugar, or anything threw me into full blown panic mode.

In the very recent past, I was diagnosed with an autoimmune disease that is affecting my digestion and nerves. I also found that I have venous reflux disease, which affects my legs and causes pain all the time. Like, all the damn time. I have been in pain for as long as I can remember and truly thought it was a way of life, so I dealt with it by eating non-inflammatory foods . Additionally, I've gained an incredible amount of weight, which has left me feeling less-than-stellar about myself and the way I have been doing things. I also don't sleep very well. That's become problematic.

I stumbled upon the WFPB diet and have recently transitioned to vegan (while attempting to use up the rest
of the "non vegan" items in the house first). I have also been on an emergency vitamin D dosage as my levels were dangerously low. My metabolism is pretty much non-existent, and my energy level had totally zapped. I went from walking 3 miles and then running 3 miles a day to barely able to walk down three stairs. Talk. About. Bummer.

Fortunately for me (!!!) I am feeling quite a bit better, actually. Two months in - I haven't had one of my flare-ups since transitioning into the vegan, WFPB lifestyle, even with some small slips here and there. I am finding that I have zero cravings for anything chicken related, so that's pretty cool, too. Tempeh has become a new staple for protein and I don't mind it one bit!

Just wanted to introduce myself and reach out to new people. I enjoy music, Broadway, being outside, staying active, and baseball - GO RED SOX!

Looking forward to hearing from some of you :)
 
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welcome and all the best with your transition and your health - and as I recommend to most newbies.... watch YouTube videos of other vegans for their lifestyle, their recipes, their "what I eat in a day"... there are tons of speeches by the plant based doctors available on YouTube, just a plethora of information to surround yourself with so as to make it easier to make the needed changes

congrats on your health improvements so far and we look forward to hearing more about them as you progress!

Emma JC
 
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Hello, all!

My main source of protein, however, has been chicken and egg whites for as long as I can remember. Let's call it the 'bodybuilder' kind of diet. I was very active in the gym, lifting weights, etc. This diet always worked well for me, even though I had a plethora of digestive issues. (Duh. Light bulb.)

Looking forward to hearing from some of you :)

hello again

On rereading your original post I realized you had referred to bodybuilding and so I thought you might be interested in some of the amazing vegan bodybuilders.

Jon Venus
Derek from Simnett Nutrition
Brian Turner
Nimai Delgado
Dominick Thompson

and so many more and there are many women vegan athletes/bodybuilders also (sorry not sure if you are male or female)

I hope things are still going well for you.

Emma JC
 
Hello and welcome! I wish you luck going vegan. Sorry to hear about your health problems. I'm deafblind, asperger, and have an underactive thyroid and had epilepsy and various mental health issues including anorexia and over eating.