Makeover Momma

The Diet:  Vegan or Vegetarian Eating

            The clean or vegan lifestyle has long since by toted by such stunning celebs as Alicia Silverstone and Natalie Portman (and even Pamela Anderson, who swears her fit physique is compliments of vegan eating and not exercise.) Even diet loving Oprah has recently tested out this toned down diet, by cutting gluten, alcohol, sugar and all animal products out of her diet for 21 days (via popular book “Quantum Wellness.”) Although none of these afore mentioned celebrities or women are busy mothers, we had to wonder…can an animal friendly lifestyle, fit into an animalistic motherhood routine?

The Pros= No matter how un-glamorous “clean eating” may seem compared to fancy diet plans and regimented eating systems, it goes without saying that healthy food trumps diets every time (for lifelong weight loss success.) Numerous studies continue to show the vastitude of long term health benefits that a well rounded vegetarian or vegan diet provides. This way of eating can prevent disease, lower cholesterol and risks of diabetes and so much more (even if it has a bad reputation.) Basically, if you clean up your way of eating in any capacity, you will be healthier, leaner and live longer for your children. The added bonus? Cutting your meat and animal product intake just a few days a week can greatly help the environment, which means you can “go green” while eating your greens.

The Cons=  Although we personally advocate clean living, a lot of us just love a good steak…or hamburger…or sausage (and secretly scoff at crazy tree huggers). If parting with your pork is just too hard to bare, start by simply trying to eat fish and chicken during the week, and save red meat only for weekends, eating out or special occasions. If you want to help the environment while still eating meat, simply try choosing organic or local cuts of meat (which may also cut down on your overall intake).

Is It Motherhood Friendly? – Going veg can be more affordable than meat-laden diets, is great for your health and generally will keep the weight off. Still seem too daunting? Read these simple tips…

•         Begin by choosing white pieces of meat instead of red (chicken or turkey instead of pork and beef.) Also, try choosing lean cuts of meat such as salmon, shrimp or grilled chicken, and save fatty dark meats for the weekends.

• If you want to take on this lifestyle whole heartedly, than try weaning yourself off of meat and choosing other forms of protein instead. Go for organic peanut butters, beans (chick peas, black beans and more), legumes or lentils, nuts and fortified whole-grain products instead. If you want to go vegan, bypass the egg whites and dairy (good protein for mere vegetarians) in place of soy milk and yogurts, tofu scrambles, tempeh or “faux” veggie meats.

• In order to garner all of the benefits of veggie eating, it is important to keep your diet full of variety. Instead of choosing carbohydrates like cereal and bagels at every meal (a common pitfall and source of weight gain for many new vegetarians), seek out a wide variety of deep vegetables, vibrant fruits, unsalted nuts, seeds and more.