How Rigorous should we go?

This past week has been met with a lot of questions about our diet...oh, and must I not forget...success, too.  That's right.  I am now down 9 pounds, to date without really working hard on the exercise front, and frankly, just staying away from animal products.  I must admit, I've had more than my share of sugar and crap, thanks to parties and stress.

Each time we've gone to a get-together, I've been asked about what we're eating these days.  People have been more than willing to try to accommodate our family's new plant-strong lifestyle.  Its much appreciated.  I must say though, I've been really lax about it when we are outside of the home.   Too funny, but L's teacher thinks this makes me the coolest mom.  Not really.  Its part laziness, part not wanting to be confrontational, part not wanting to be a hassle to our family and friends and lastly, not wanting to burden my children with always having to think about food.

What's that mean?  Let's see if I can make that a little more simple.  When we are out, I want my kids to be able to choose whatever they want to eat.  If L and J are at school, I don't want them to feel as if they can't have the same foods that the rest of their classmates are having.  I don't want them to have to explain to other kids that they don't eat meat or drink milk.  This is a decision they can make themselves as they grow.  I don't want my kids to feel uncomfortable, or my friends and family, when it comes time to eat.  Food is already such a stressor for people; why should we make it even more so?!

I've read tons of literature on healthy eating and seen tons of documentaries.  All you can really be certain of is that nothing is the definite right way to go.  Many people say veganism is unhealthy.  Many people say that consuming meat is unhealthy.  Dairy is unhealthy. Others say consuming grains and legumes is unhealthy.  Wow!  That sounds to me as if there really is nothing that is healthy to eat.  Right?  Confused yet?  I know I am.

Here's how our family has decided to proceed and tackle the each food groups.

Dairy: P and the kids still consume milk in tea.  I use almond milk which has more calcium and equal vitamin D as cow's milk.  We sometimes consume cheese, like when we are out (read: pizza) or when a dish that I've cooked really needs it.  I still have some butter, and yes, we've buttered our bread for toast twice since our new way of eating.  Oh, let's not forget the occasional ice cream. hee hee

Legumes and Grains: We are sprouting our grains and legumes in our to increase their nutritional value and their digestibility.  This requires a lot of planning, which I'm not great with, so when I don't plan properly, we eat unsprouted beans and grains.  Oops.  I've got to get better with that.

Nuts:  (Before you read this part, get all your giggles out.  Okay.  Done?  Continue)  We've started soaking our nuts over night, and then drying them in the oven to more easily digest them.  The kids and I love our nuts.  They are great as snacks, on salads, or ground up with dates and some coconut as a treat.

Animal Flesh:  We have not purchased nor consumed meat in our home since we have started our plant-strong approach to eating.  Now, that being said, P has been on business trips and ordered steak.  L has ordered hamburgers, hot dogs and chicken at school.  Every Sunday, the kids consume meat and eggs at my grandparents' house for brunch.  Tonight, they had pepperoni pizza, chicken wings and dairy based dips at my brother's Superbowl party.  Last night, pizza and hoagies at a birthday party.

Processed foods:  We stay away from processed foods as much as possible.  What's that mean?  We don't really buy anything that's already made in a box.  That being said, I will buy a couple boxes of organic cereal this week, just in case I don't have oatmeal made for breakfast or stuff for a green smoothie.  With this class of foods, I will add tofu and all non-animal animal products (vegan cheese, tofu, vegan meat).  I'm pretty certain that God didn't create those things, so why should we eat them?!

Soy:  This goes for soy milk, tofu, edamame and any other soy products.  If its not organic, I'm not purchasing it.  That's it.  Non-organic soy is not healthy, especially for developing reproductive systems.  Hmmm...Monsanto, maybe you should stop poisoning your consumers!  You can read about the dangers of soy here or here or just do your own Google search for dangers of soy.  Organic soy, especially when fermented, and served in small condiment sizes are safe.  So, occasionally, I will offer soy to my family, in organic form only.

Eggs: I'd say that we consume eggs once or twice a week, typically on Sundays and in baked goods.  Eggs are hidden quite well, and frankly, I don't have the time, energy or inclination to search for them.  Who does? Sheesh.  We've got lives to live.

Fruits and Veggies: These are always available to my kids, and they typically choose to snack on fruit.  We try to eat as many as possible, though some of us are more successful than others.

Healthy Fats: There is a big debate about healthy fats.  Some say that no fats are healthy, some say you need healthy fats to live and lose weight.  One argument made is that there was a big fat free push several years back, and as a result, our culture got fatter.  To the arguer, this means that fat free is bad.  Let's look at this a different way.  During the fat free fad, the items that went fat free were mostly processed foods to which extra sugar was added to make up for the lack of taste. We know that processed foods and excess sugar contribute to weight gain, so we can not be certain that the fat free diet caused the weight gain.  The Engine 2 Diet pushes no fats, or very little.  For my family, especially with an infant, toddler, preschooler and kindergartner that don't have weight problems, we feel that healthy fat is fine and don't shy away from it.  We offer avocado, nuts (preferably pre-soaked), coconut milk and unsweetened coconut.

In a nutshell, at home, we are striving to stay away from meat, increase our veggies and fruits, sprout our legumes and grains, soak our nuts, reduce our dairy and in general, stay away from as much sugar as possible.  Outside of our home, we have decided to just allow our kids to make their own decisions. As far as the adults?  P chooses meat occasionally.  I have only eaten meat once, out of desperation and sheer starvation.  We have just resolved to try to make healthy decisions, but indulge when it is appropriate and in the appropriate manner.  

Let me be honest here.  If you invite me over and have baked goods, I'm going to try some.  Okay, I've said it!  The sweet tooth reigns supreme.  But, if you come to my house, you shouldn't be surprised not to find those same items here.  Instead, we will be more than happy to offer you our fruit, veggies, legumes, nuts and grains.