The Vain Vegan

 …then eating live food keeps you alive, and eating dead food will keep you dead. So put down that ham and cheese sandwich, and pick up some real, LIVE food.

I have very sensitive skin. I can’t use Bath & Body Works (they break me out in a horrible red rash), and perfume tends to make my skin feel like it’s burning, especially when I’ve just bathed. To moisturize, I mostly use various oils or shea butter. However, recently I’ve been wanting to smell “pretty,” but I can’t find the products. I tried looking into Carol’s Daughter, but not only did some of the products smell horrible, but it was also expensive. So, I thought to myself, “Why not make your own scented oil and body butter?” That’s exactly what I did. I went to my local health food store, and I bought some scented oils (Musk, Rose, and Mango). I’m not going to mix them together because I love them individually. Later, I plan on making my own scented oils and blissfully wearing my handmade scents :)

Besides being a vegan and ultra fab *tongue in cheek*, I’m also a runner. I enjoy working out at the gym and being physically fit, but running is at the top of my list. It gives me a since of freedom, and when I’m pissed, it calms me down (which I should be running more often because my anger has been through the roof). Also, what good is having a great eating habit when you’re being lazy? All you get is a flabby, soft body. So today, I’m going to give this a try:

1. For 2 minutes: Warm up by walking at a moderate pace (3.0-4.0 treadmill speed)
2. For 4 minutes: Jog at a moderate pace (70% MHR; about 6.0-6.5 on treadmill)
3. For 3 minutes: Run at a fast pace (80% MHR; about 7.0-7.5 on treadmill)
4. For 2 minutes: Run faster (85-90% MHR; about 8.0-8.5 on treadmill)
5. For 1 minute: Run at your fastest pace (90-95%+ MHR; about 9.0-9.5 treadmill)
6. For 2 minutes: Cool down by walking at a moderate pace (3.0-4.0 treadmill speed)
7. Intermediate runners: Repeat from step #2 one or two more times, Advanced runners let me see you do it 3 full times.

(via)

I’m a huge lover of vitamin C. I started consuming it on a daily basis last year when I started running. Running on a daily basis was causing my face to break out and be extremely dry due to the extreme sweating. After receiving a facial, my esthetician told me that I should consume vitamin C daily due to its many benefits. Not only is it an immune booster, but it’s also filled with many antioxidants, which are perfect for having a good skin texture, clearness, and health.

After my workouts, I usually mix a vitamin c packet with some water and drink it. It’s better than one of those sports drinks because its natural, and I still get my adequate electrolytes, vitamins and minerals. So, if you’re battling bad skin, try some vitamin C. Besides, doesn’t beauty start from within???

I’m very fortunate to have a boyfriend that is supportive of my eating habits. Prior to being with him, I’ve dated guys who had problems with it. I heard everything from “it’s weird” to “your eating habits are too expensive.”

Whatever.

Although my boyfriend loves his meat and cheese, I’m glad that he is willing to at least try my way of eating. Not only do we often venture to vegetarian / vegan restaurants, but he is also willing to cook vegan dishes with me. Relationships include compromise, but it also includes support. I support him in his decisions, and he supports me in mine. We make it work, and I’m enjoying it.

Eating healthier and making a cognizant effort to be a vegan has actually helped me save money via some of these steps:

• I plan out my meals ahead of time, portioning them out for each day.
• To make sure I know the quality of my food, I make my own meals. This saves me money from eating out all of the time. Besides, cooking has become one of my passions.
• By me loading up on vegetables (preferably raw), fruits, grains, and nuts / legumes, I get full quick…making me eat less and saving up on my food (and my money).

Her: So how long have you been a vegetarian?

Me: Well now I’m a vegan, but I started in January of last year. It’s really great! You should give it a try.

Her: I would like to, but it’s too expensive.

I hear that last statement often, and I don’t buy it. Being a vegan has actually helped me with my finances (as well as my health) because I purchase in season produce, I’m always finding coupons for soy and/or almond milk, and legumes / beans are cheap. Also, I’ve learned to portion out my food sizes, and since most of my diet is plant based, the fiber fills me up very quick. Overall, it’s more economical and healthier.

If I’m not mistaken, chicken, fish, pork, eggs, and milk aren’t cheap! I don’t see how someone who eats meat every week (even every week) can say something like this. One of my professors is a vegetarian, and when I asked her about the reason why she changed her diet, she said, “I was in grad school, and I was broke. There was this little spot that sold burritos, and the vegetarian ones were cheaper than the ones with meat, so I started eating them. Pretty soon, I realized buying apples were cheaper than buying a pack of chicken.” That is so true! I bet if you go to any eatery, the vegetarian options are cheaper. Why????? Because produce isn’t as high as meat (and it’s less of a health hazard).

Maybe I’m different, but I value my health and my bank account, and meat is no where in it.

My first tasting of alu tikki, was last summer after watching a friend of mine eat some Indian food in the hair salon I was in. The food was smelling delicious, and I just had to get some. Although she was eating food with meat in it, I still wanted to go to the restaurant, and get me some food. I went to the restaurant and ordered the alu tikki along with rice, vegetables, and lentils. To this day, alu tikkiis one of my favorite dishes. It’s a wonderful mixture of potatoes, chickpeas, onions, cilantro, and various delicious seasonings.

Its a must try for anyone who is a foodie like me :)

I’m having a huge craving for some vegan chili hot dogs.

Black vegans get no love. We’re shunned at dinner parties, given mistrustful glances on buffet lines and never asked to contribute to the church potluck. I’ve been told more than a few times that my eating habits are “bourgeois,” as if the deletion of meat and dairy from my diet has somehow placed me in a culinary caste system.

… A good friend hipped me to the “Fit for Life” nutritional principles and I adapted a strict vegan regimen to lose fifty pounds. As soon as I took charge of my health, a state of wholeness–physically, spiritually and emotionally–set in.

Once I embarked on this journey into nutrition and wellness, I became hungrier for more knowledge. I went searching for kinship and community and I found both in Dr. Nathan Rabb, a naturopathic doctor and trailblazer in the holistic health field…He caught my attention because his theme song is the psychedelic Curtis Mayfield classic “Junkie Chaser” …But I would soon discover that junkie chaser is an apt description for the work Dr. Rabb is doing in his neighborhood–trying to rid it of the dietary monkeys riding the backs of many blacks. 

“Our community suffers greatly because of slave mentality diets,” Dr. Rabb tells me. I’m sitting in his Inglewood office and we kick holistic ballistics for a few hours. A Huey Newton of natural health, Dr. Rabb is passionate about educating people on nutrition. One of the main things we mull over is why blacks seem so reluctant to embrace alternative ways of eating.

“We hold on to traditions,” laments Dr. Rabb. “We still want to eat chitlins on New Years, and we attach that with something that’s supposed to be good luck. I don’t know how it can be good luck when you’re eating waste”.

…A lot of this waste has translated into higher incidences of illness and cardiovascular disease, which is the number one killer of African-Americans. …I’m all for more soul in this holistic health movement. Maybe once African Americans start revolutionizing our dietary habits will we experience a greater level of wellness. Who knows? Maybe even Trader Joe’s and Wholefoods will start opening up shop in our neighborhoods. Maybe the term “black vegan” won’t be viewed as an oxymoron along the lines of “military intelligence.” Whatever the outcome of our mobilization, as Dr. Rabb points out, “the ultimate goal is to eradicate ignorance, illness and disease. Ignorance is number one; it makes more people sick than anything.”

(Via Nicole D. Sconiers)

I’m back for 2011! I fell off during the last part of 2010, but I’m vowing to do better this year with more personal experiences, more recipes, and just more kick ass stuff about veganism :)