Experience Vegetarian Weight Loss And Have Fun!

For most folks who want to lose weight (whether it be a vegetarian weight loss diet or not) going on a diet might work for a while. But once the dieting stops, so do the results. For lasting benefits a truly comprehensive approach is necessary.

In our experience, what made the difference between success and failure was making the decision to concentrate on eating healthy, not losing weight.

When we were able to stick with it, the excess weight just came off naturally. We weren't on a boring diet with the intention of losing weight. Rather we got ourselves involved in an adventure of recrafting our entire culinary outlook on life. And we learned that, in spite of ourselves, vegetarian weight loss can be fun!

Way back in 1968 when I was a junior in college I participated in a school-sponsored, summer abroad program. We flew over to Germany where we worked for three weeks and then had three weeks to travel around Europe before flying back home.

Back then I wasn't yet a vegetarian and I sampled every kind of unfamiliar fare that I could find during our stay over there, going expecially heavy on the kartoffelsalat (German potato salad), bratwurst and German beer.

When we left the states departing for Germany I weighed about 170 pounds. Stepping off the plane on our arrival back in the states, I had billowed out to a porky 205 pounds in just 6 weeks! The brats and the beer were delicious. But I hated the way I felt!

Up until then, I could eat anything that I wanted to eat and not gain weight. But this European experience drove home the reality for me that, just because something tastes good, doesn't mean that you should eat it. That's when I started looking at food from a new perspective and eventually started toying with the idea of going meatless.

So I never really went on a diet. Instead I began to rethink my entire approach to food.

Not only did I gradually lean toward becoming vegetarian, I also became suspicious of highly processed and refined foods as well as certain cooking methods like breading, frying and microwaving.

Around the time that my wife, Skye, and I met, I was working as a chef and, although I was still only toying with going meatless, my efforts at that time weren't all that serious or successful. Skye and I were both uncomfortably "heavy" but we still indulged in eating out regularly at different restaurants in order to "broaden our horizons".

Finally after getting our fill of all that, we both made the decision to follow through and go all the way with our plans to eat healthy and become vegetarian for good. After we made that shift in our approach a reality, the extra pounds came off and we haven't looked back.

Without dieting or counting calories, we experienced vegetarian weight loss that was appropriate for each of us and our body weights have now naturally stabilized at comfortable, ideal levels.

The only difficult part for us was actually deciding to follow through with our intention to make a change and say "no" to the S.A.D. (standard American diet). Once we did, that's when it all turned into a fun adventure for us and we have absolutely no regrets.

It doesn't really matter if you want to pursue a vegan diet, a lacto-vegetarian diet or a mixed diet that includes eating meats. If you're eating junk foods, you're not going to be healthy and you probably won't lose any weight. But if your emphasis is on eating a healthy, meatless diet, vegetarian weight loss should just come naturally for you. So have some fun with it!

Here are some pointers on making healthy vegetarian weight loss a reality in your, life. The sooner you give it a try, the sooner you'll start to see some positive results and the sooner you'll also be having fun in your vegetarian kitchen.

* Say goodbye to fast food joints. There is usually never anything healthy to choose from.

* Whenever possible, stay away from restaurant food and eat in at home. Restaurant food prep is usually high in the bad fats, salt, sugar, highly processed and refined foods. And fresh, quality produce is often scarce at best.

* Center your meals around fresh fruits and vegetables . This one is key for vegetarian weight loss. Meals based heavily on grains, pastas and breads, especially the highly refined starches, are one of the leading causes of obesity and disease. Even whole grain products should be eaten only in moderation.

* Eliminate breaded and fried foods from your itinerary of food choices. They are heavy in the bad fats category and are never a healthy option.

* Cross off pastries, baked goods and most desserts from your personal menu. They're full of sugar, salt, refined flour and unhealthy fats. If you want something sweet, choose fresh fruits, which you don't need to cook.

* Refuse to purchase or consume any more soft drinks. They are one of the worst things you can drink for your health. Diet soft drinks may even be worse. Dr. Maoshing Ni wrote in depth about the dangers of drinking soda pop in this article. Instead, choose water, diluted fruit juice or unsweetened tea for a healthy way to satisfy your thirst.

* Keep it simple, especially when you're giving your new vegetarian lifestyle a test drive. Don't expect that you have to be an iron chef when you're just coming out of the starting gate.

* Enjoy yourself and have fun. A simple diet based around fresh, natural produce and other healthy foods in moderation is highly satisfying and enjoyable.

* Take advantage of available organic foods whenever possible. They are preferable and now affordable.

This list may seem to be a tall order of "no-no's" to have to tackle all at once. If you're like us, you will probably start by experimenting with a few of these items at a time. That's fine. Eventually, you will discover that it's not that tough, after all.

At that point, you'll be ready to finalize your resolve and make the change to eating healthy a reality in your life. You won't regret it and vegetarian weight loss will follow naturally for you, without even trying. So, while you're at it, just let loose and have some fun with it!

Do you need a new hobby? Try Backyard Gardening ...for the fun of it.

---

---

Return to Meatless Living from Vegetarian Weight Loss

---