This post was most recently updated on November 25th, 2018
LOSE WEIGHT LIVING A FLEXITARIAN LIFESTYLE
Do you want to know the number one way to lose weight before the holiday season??? Well you have come to the right place.
Let’s be clear, the answer is not a magic pill and the answer is a lot easier than you think. Maintaining a healthy weight is very important for a number of reasons including: OPTIMAL HEALTH, LOWER MEDICAL COSTS and obviously LOOKING GREAT!
Before we get to the number one way to lose weight, I’d like to give you a little background on myself (Maia). I have been on literally every diet out there from Keto to Paleo to Raw Vegan and Auto Immune Protocol! It’s safe to say that I have done them all.
I have also incorporated intense exercise, albeit for only several months at a time, into my daily routine with what seems like excruciatingly slow results. While I do believe exercise is EXTREMELY IMPORTANT AND VITAL to living a long and healthy life, we all can identify with those days where we just don’t seem to feel like getting off the couch. For those days I recommend doing 10 minute workouts on Youtube to at least burn a few calories.
I have never had the pleasure of having a speedy metabolism (I’m sure many of you can relate. As I have gotten a little older, this problem has gotten worse. Gone are the days of heaving drinking, late night taco bell and early morning frappucinos without the weight gain aftermath. I look at a slice of cake and it sticks to my a$$. It’s pathetic.
In my younger years I was a distance runner and a swimmer. I was able to maintain a constant weight even with crappy eating. Now it seems as though I have to work 10x as hard to lose weight and I eat a healthy diet!!!! NOT FAIR! Anyway, I’m rambling, so back to the number one way to lose weight and keep it off without exercise.
A PLANT BASED DIET IS A FAST AND EASY WAY TO LOSE WEIGHT FAST BEFORE & AFTER THE HOLIDAY SEASON!
So you may be thinking well that was anti-climactic. If so, I’m sorry to let you down. But if you’ve never tried it, then don’t knock it!
I’ve been an occasional vegetarian for over 20 years. I hate to label myself as such, because the moment someone sees me eat a chicken nugget, I feel as though I have committed the ultimate crime. As if I can’t eat whatever the heck I want, when ever I want.
Over the past few years the term flexitarian has emerged and if I had to classify myself, I would definitely fall into that category.
Henry made the switch to a plant-based diet several years ago and hasn’t looked back since!
Now don’t be fooled, just because you are plant based doesn’t mean that you are going to just drop the weight automatically.
I ACTUALLY GAINED 10 LBS AS VEGETARIAN!
The first time I went vegetarian was in my sopohmore year of college. I stayed vegetarian for almost five years from this point. But lets just say this was probably the unhealthiest I HAVE EVER EATEN IN MY LIFE.
My dietary staples were ramen noodles, boxed meals such as Hamburger helper (without the hamburger of course) pizza, fries, fast food. Taco Bell was my fave. I would get the Nacho Bell Grande without meat. I also loved going to Wendy’s to order a combo burger meal. I would tell them I wanted the “fixings” without the patty. I received some crazy looks for that, but as you can see my diet was far from healthy.
I was pleasantly plump and people were always shocked when I said that I was a vegetarian.
Remember that commercial?!?! Although I had experimented with being a vegetarian, I had never once considered Veganism.
It wasn’t until I was diagnosed with Chiari Malformation I, that I considered going vegan. Chiari was wreaking havoc on my body and I needed to lose weight fast.
I really wanted Henry and kids to be a part of this as well. Well as you can imagine, he wasn’t trying to hear that! He was pretty much like that’s not going to happen. He was not giving up meat!
But here’s the thing, when Henry decides to do something, he goes in 100%. Two books (The China Study; The 80/10/10 Diet) and several documentaries later, his interest was peaked and he decided he was all in. WE MADE THE DECISION TO GO VEGAN!
BUT BEFORE YOU SAY “THAT’S NOT FOR ME….THERE’S NO WAY”
YOU DON’T HAVE TO BE A FULLY COMMITTED VEGAN OR VEGETARIAN TO LOSE WEIGHT AND KEEP IT OFF!!!!
What we learned is that being vegan is a pretty drastic lifestyle change at first. I mean, just going out to grab a bite to eat becomes a full on scavenger hunt. There are apps to help like happycow.net but restaurants are few and far between depending on the city that you live in. Also, Henry didn’t like vegetables or salad…..wth….So if he could do it, ANYBODY could do it.
MEATLESS MONDAYS – Remember the goal is to lose weight and keep it off. Monday is a great day to start off your plant-based week. Chances are you could use the detox from the weekend debauchery!
You can start your day with a green smoothies, tofu scramble, steel cut oats, or chia pudding!
For lunch you could have a large salad with greek yogurt, vegetable soup, or a loaded veggie potato.
For Dinner you could do a burrito bowl (chipotle style), cauliflower wings, pulled jackfruit or something simple like pizza.
RAW TIL’ 4 – I’m really not sure who coined this phrase but it’s kind of a big deal in the vegan community. It means that you have a raw breakfast, raw lunch and a cooked dinner.
This method will literally melt the pounds off of you.
You are essentially replacing cooked breakfast and lunch with raw fruits and vegetables which are nutrient dense and low in calories.
SWAP OUT THE MEAT – You can still create your favorite dishes but look for meat-free alternatives to replace the meat. My favorite brands of meat alternatives include Gardein and Beyond Meat.
The Beyond Meat Beast Burger is Gluten and Soy free!! If you want to go less processed which is always a great idea, you can use chickpeas, tempeh or homemade veggie burgers.
So everyone will have different results based on the level of commitment. In my house, Henry had the most dramatic results with a 50 lb weightloss!
I was pretty close to my goal weight so my results weren’t as dramatic, but the cool thing is…my weight doesn’t fluctuate!!
I have since ditched the vegan bandwagon but then again….I am a flexitarian so I can do whatever I want!!!!
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