Why am I eating Vegan?

Today is the final day of a week-long herbal cleanse and I figured a good moment to expound on my recent change to consuming vegan. I will not go into excessive detail, but I will provide some insight as to why I am motivated to permanently eat vegan.

During this cleanse I returned, yet again, to a raw vegan diet. While I have been eating plant-based food since early last summer, this diet has key restrictions. I prepared every meal myself with fresh uncooked vegetables, nuts, seeds, dried fruits, and whatnot. What I have come to enjoy about raw food are the many unique seasonings that I’m introduced to whenever I decide to try a brand new recipe. Since I first began to intake plant-based foods as the bulk of my meals, very particular seasoning has become a crucial point in cooking. I cook for myself, but I also enjoy sharing with my family and friends. I have grown a soft satisfaction from having those whom I adore enjoy plant-based meals prepared by myself.

New combinations and flavor from traditional meals that one can recreate raw and healthy versions of happen to taste amazing! While I enjoyed eating such energizing meals this past week and will continue to balance post-cleanse, I also missed warm food. I cannot lie! When it rained last week, I was especially craving some warm vegetable soup. However, I remained focused on my short but effective cleansing. Why did I not give in? When the body is cleansing, it is best to ingest food that will be easier for the organs to break down as the herbs do their part to cleanse each one. Raw food is uncooked, thus retaining all natural nutrients and vitamins that its meant to provide to the human body.

The hu(e)man body is made of energy and water, therefore needs vast amounts of both to run properly. To stay simple, raw fruit and vegetables are live food that convert to energy fuel in our bodies. It is incredible that our food and medicine were designed to grow from the earth. Through visual techniques such as Kirlian photography, we are able to capture and compare the amount of energy within fresh vegetables and fruits versus cooked meat.

To those who tend to claim that we (humans) are built to ingest the flesh of animals, I ask; would you still consume your meat raw, with the same pleasure?

We are what we eat, literally. Whenever I think of meat, it is the suffering of the helpless animals that must linger energetically, even after being cooked. I ate a lot of meat growing up and my body reacted to it in ways that I am still healing from. My body told me that whatever junk I was eating often wasn’t good for me through minor acid reflux, gas, and other recurring symptoms that I thought were normal to myself and unpreventable. Of course, I was not aware at the time. The biggest message from my body was the way I gained excess weight in a short span of time. I now feel and look better than I ever have. As someone consciously moving to better myself, I am more comfortable with meat-less alternatives which not only agree with my body, but do not harm the planet. It is a fact that the production of beef has a huge impact on the global environment. One of my personal goals in life to eventually settle on land and grow a beautiful garden where I can harvest my own plants. It is a peaceful dream which I will manifest, sooner or later.

“If we could live happy and healthy lives without harming others…why wouldn’t we?”
-Pam Ahern

For the cleanse, I made fruit smoothies for breakfast, which is what I also do regularly off the cleanse. I recently added the superfood spirulina as one of the main ingredients to smoothies, whether it’s a green smoothie or a fruit one. I prepped a lot of cranberry and kale salad with brussel sprouts, broccoli, pumpkin seeds, poppy and avocado dressing. It’s amazing. I also made a delicious zucchini noodle pasta with an avocado puree several times. And one of my new favorites is raw vegan tostadas (or tacos) with big red cabbage shells, walnut “meat”, salsa, guacamole and a creamy sauce that’s based with cashew and basil. I have been eating really good. My regular meal plan changes a little every week, as I am constantly trying out new recipes. I love beans and Mexican vegan food. Anyone who knows me knows that’s my favorite kind of flavor! I might do a more detailed post on my favorite meals/juices next.