Why Going Plant-Based is Life Changing

I’m not one of those people that chose to eat mostly plant based because of my love for animals. It wasn’t because I wanted to be more eco-friendly. Those were pleasant side effects for me but not the reason I did it.

I’m also not that chick who never liked meat or didn’t like to eat. In fact, I used to easily crush a steak, hamburger, ribs, insert-meat-here. I’ve always had a healthy appetite.

My motivation for going plant-based was my health. I was sick – a lot. I always joked that I had the immune system of a newborn baby. Or that I was going to buy a new one on Amazon.

This was in January 2018. Not a good way to start the year.

I started researching how to build up my immune system (click here to read my transformation story). All roads lead to eating habits. 70% of your immune system tissue is in your gut. Let that sink in.

That means that whatever you eat is either keeping you well or making you sick. Plus I had my own focus group – me. I had done the Daniel Fast so I knew firsthand how great eating plant-based made me feel. I decided to try make it a lifestyle and I’ve never felt better.

I get lots of question on what it means to be plant based. The basic principles of a plant-based diet are:

Eat mostly plants

Vegetables, fruits, whole grains, legumes, seeds and nuts should make up the majority of what you eat.

Limit or avoid animal products

Many people ask what’s the difference between being plant-based, vegan and vegetarian. Plant-based is more flexible in which you don’t necessarily need to avoid all animal products. You can choose to just limit them. For instance, I will occasionally eat fish and shellfish but no chicken, turkey, beef or pork. I limit my dairy consumption. I don’t drink cow’s milk but I will eat cheese (although I do try to limit it as well). My diet is made up of mostly fresh fruits, vegetables, whole grains and beans and I limit the consumption of animal products. As I progress on my journey I may choose to exclude more animal products. Maybe not. The flexibility is what makes plant-based a great first step to a much healthier lifestyle. It’s customizable to what works for you.

Eat whole, minimally processed foods as much as possible

We eat so much processed food these days. Stopping at the drive-thru 3 or 4 times a week has become totally normal and it’s making us sick. A plant based diet is much more mindful about eating whole foods that are as minimally processed as possible. What does that mean? Go to your pantry. Pull out a box of cereal or bag of snacks. Read the label. If there are 75 ingredients and 25 of them you can’t pronounce, don’t eat it. Or only eat it sparingly (cause Oreos save lives sometimes, just sayin).

Eat locally sourced organic food whenever possible

Typically the closer it’s grown to your crib, the fresher, healthier and tastier it is. And of course organic is always best.

So you might be saying well I don’t have the same problem as you. My immune system is iron clad. I haven’t been sick since 1993. Why should I try a plant-based diet? Glad you asked!

Here are 3 (of the many) reasons to give that plant based life a try:

Prevents chronic diseases like diabetes, heart disease and cancer

Let’s talk about diabetes, or “the sugar” as the culcha calls it. Almost 10 million American adults have diabetes. African Americans represent 13% of them (2nd highest only to Native American/Alaskan.Another 84 million Americans have prediabetes, a condition that if not treated leads to type 2 diabetes. Type 2 diabetes is entirely preventable. There is a ton of research that suggests eating a plant based diet can reverse a prediabetes/type 2 diabetes diagnosis as well as keep diabetes completely under control.Heart disease and cancer have long been linked with the consumption of animal products. This Newsweek article suggests that regular meat consumption leads to a 60% increase in the risk of heart disease. We’re continuing to hear so much about the correlation between processed meat and red meat to cancer. The evidence continues to mount on poultry, egg and dairy consumption leading to cancer as well. Science suggests that limiting or removing animal protein from our diets and focusing on eating more plants is best for our health.

Eating mostly plants supports good gut health.

The gut is often called the second brain of the body. The good bacteria in your gut is super important to your immune system, heart, brain, weight and many other aspects of your overall health. Scientists have started to draw links between bacteria in the gut and obesity, heart disease, type 2 diabetes, crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, inflammatory bowel disease and colon cancer. Because the gut is jam packed with nerve endings that communicate with your brain a lot of research suggests a connection between gut health and central nervous system disorders like anxiety and depression.

Eating mostly plants can help you drop pounds and maintain a healthy weight

It’s not rocket science folks. Eating mostly plants will help you lose pounds and maintain a healthy weight. Replacing meat with plants guarantees that you’ll shed that extra weight you’ve been carrying around. Relieving your body of those unwanted pounds will increase your energy. You’ll feel better and look it too.

If you’ve experienced health challenges, need to shed some pounds or are tired of feeling sluggish I encourage you to try a plant based diet (or even the Daniel Fast) for 21 days and see how you feel. At the very least you’ll be doing something good for yourself.