It’s the first month of the year, as Omicron spreads rapidly amongst the U.S. and many haven’t celebrated for New Year’s Eve the way we would’ve liked because of the vicious spread. But fortunately, this is an apparent much milder variant, so, if you’ve made it to 2022, wonderful, and HAPPY NEW YEAR!
While the U.S. has been in a flux of trying to handle COVID, the most common new year’s resolutions are centered around health. Most want to exercise more, lose weight or simply get in shape; which is fair. You’ve just gotten over the hump (the holidays) of doing the most eating you’ve done all year. Gained a few pounds from all the holiday parties with lots of food and alcohol and cheated on your ‘diet’ 40 times in the last three months. IT’S OK…lol (new year, new you ;-)
So...I understand your inspiration to shed that hibernation weight.
Believe it or not the United States has been dealing with an obesity epidemic since the early 90’s. Because COVID greatly impacts those with pre-existing health conditions and the elderly; according to studies, those under the age of 18 have a 3.07% greater chance of experiencing hospitalization of COVID, if they’re obese.
As of 2021 the obesity rate of adults 20 years old and over is 40%, as 71% of adults are overweight. This is astonishingly high.
The amount of fast food restaurants in the U.S. is 204,555 and has gone up by 1,3% as of this year (2022) and were only 10 days in!
To me this doesn’t sound like a lot but doing the math that’s about 4,091 fast food companies in each state. And where would these fast food restaurants be commonly located? You guessed it…in black and brown neighborhoods.
The obesity rate of African Americans is number #1 at 40%, Hispanics at 35%, White’s at 30% and Asians at 11%.
I’m sure you’re wondering where I’m going with this, since I mentioned something's wrong with the vegan diet when fast food restaurants don’t sell vegan food and veganism isn’t the cause of obesity; (for some, because overweight and obese vegans DO exist).
Before you continue; this isn’t a bashing veganism post—although some vegan representatives are quite annoying, there’s still something wrong with the vegan diet.
As overweight as Americans are, I’m not upset that veganism is trending, or being shoved down people’s throats. You’re challenged to eat more fruits and vegetables and lay off the meat, so what? Big deal! As a whole, we need it!
The problem is that vegans assume everyone needs to be on a vegan diet. That it fits everyone’s lifestyle when that simply is not the case.
Human beings are the one of the most diverse species on the planet; we come in different shapes, sizes, complexions and features, so why would you assume we have the same digestive system or dietary needs for our body to thrive?
Most attempting veganism for the first time are viewing it like any other diet; a trend. Assuming it’s a get skinny quick ordeal and a destination—when the reality is, it’s a lifestyle.
Going from fast food, meat and dairy products to veganism overnight will likely throw you back to your old habits twice as hard and scare you off from veganism for good; just to claim, ‘it doesn’t work.’ Like many abused things, food is an addiction and at our disposal. You’d have to ween yourself off your old lifestyle to begin your new one.
If you’re planning on running a marathon, you train for it, practice and prepare, it’s the same way with changing your diet so it can actually give you the results you want. But veganism may not be the way. Many are choosing veganism because it’s another trending lifestyle and many have found the loophole: carb loading.
Instead of incorporating more fruits and veggies, they’ve removed the meat and dairy in exchange for more starch; pasta, French fries, cakes and cookies and other sugary items that are all on the line of veganism. What happens to starch in the body is it’s broken down and turned into sugar (for energy) but ultimately stored as fat. Someone who is overweight doesn’t need the heavy carbs because they are likely non active and eat these items on the regular basis when its unneeded. This can increase your chances of becoming type 2 diabetic and in this sense, veganism is a complete failure.
The key is to get to know your body. How do you do that?
1. Pay attention to your skin.
Do you have regular acne? What did you eat the day before or even that week that caused a break-out? Often times sugar can be the culprit, that’s: pastries, soda’s, candy, ice cream, even your coffee if it’s loaded with sugar and sugared creamer.
2. Pay attention to your stool
Its ok, look at your turd’s before you flush them down, I know you look at them anyway lol; but pay attention. Is it rocky? Was it hard to push? You’re likely constipated; constipation typically happens from eating too much meat, having a diet that's low in fiber or getting little or no physical activity.
Was it runny? You might be lactose intolerant and switching to vegan dairy products without going fully vegan may be a good choice for you. Do you poop very little? Once a week, every few days? Are you rarely pooping? Having irregular bowel movements can contribute to your diet as well.
3. Lacking productive sweat glands
It could be blistering hot outside, or you could be doing an intense cardio based workout and you barely break a sweat—this could be due to your lack of water intake.
Whatever it is, the list goes on and on for why the things you consume are causing physical ailments; and the beautiful part about it, your body will always tell you when something is wrong and show you its rejection. (even your lifestyle, being overworked, stressed, depressed etc. but were focused on nutrition—we’ll save the other’s for another post)
Paying attention to your body is an investment, the best investment for your health, longevity and even aesthetically. Even if your goals are to have a six pack, a McRib and a Coke every day isn’t going to get you there. But a plate of strictly leafy greens on the daily basis, although nutritionally better, may not get you the six pack either.
Because of the modern lifestyle; sitting at our day jobs, sitting when we get home, sitting when we go out and having food at our disposal has become a crutch then a help to a very non active society. Being active today has to be forced and intentional because it isn’t a part of life like it used to be. We have access to food 24/7, making the temptation 10x higher to consume an overabundance of food and junk food at that.
Veganism may be wrong for you because you’re allergic to nuts and nuts are found in a lot of vegan products as a substitute for texture. like vegan milk and cheeses, limiting another option for you to gain a sustainable amount of protein, fiber and Iron. Veganism may be wrong for you because you have a fast metabolism and eating fruits and vegetables all day may constantly leave you feeling hungry and keep you under-weight and not sustain you with the amount of nutrients your body needs.
In short, to change your diet, and lifestyle we shouldn’t assume meat is the enemy because it may not be the problem; but how you eat meat and how much of it, can be. Who says your chicken has to be fried? Or your beef layered with cheese? Preparing your food in healthier ways and observing portion control is an astronomical shift to seeking greater health and a much healthier way to ween off the poor diet you trained yourself to have.
Yes, I said YOU. Take accountability, great change begins there.
Understand people may say their poor diet has no negative effects on them, but that’s no negative affects right now; none physically noticeable right now. Being lean gives you an aesthetic pass—but doesn’t mean you’re necessarily healthy.
Realize you’ve been trained to eat the way you do not because its optimum, but because it’s convenient. The American way of eating isn’t mindful—which allows 600lb individuals to train their body to eat their way to that size. Yes, reaching obesity is a form of training, it takes dedication to get your body to that capacity. Training to handle more food, to become immobile, to recline your health and training yourself to an earlier death.
THE FORCE OF VEGANISM
A common area that most vegans fail, is forcing veganism on others. This has caused a wave in split beliefs; I like to call anti-vegans. The annoyance and loud sighs when vegans speak is hilarious. In other word’s a lot of people are sick of your shit.
Vegans love to mention how much GMO, pesticides and artificial ingredients are in our meat, when the same GMO’s are in our produce as well to create ‘prettier’ long living fruits and vegetables. So, unless you’re growing your own fruits and veggies in your backyard, that’s not the best argument. Organic food is your best option, and that’s meat included.
To indoctrinate a very anti-authority and disobedient culture Is going to make them do the exact opposite of what healthier is. Many vegans speak with judgement which is another issue.
Sure, you’ve been vegan for 10 years and it’s changed your life…but you didn’t come out of the womb vegan and does not give you a badge to shit on others who still eat Wendy’s.
Try sharing suggestions or telling your story; but convincing people to go vegan with force, when you’ve found creative ways to make carrots taste like bacon, may not always win people over.
Rule of thumb, one of the greatest attributes MANY human beings have is common sense. Most people are aware that a salad with grilled chicken is healthier than two In-N-Out cheeseburgers. As mentioned previously, food is an addiction, and many had been eating that way their entire lives. It’s going to take consistent practice to break those cravings and habits to ween yourself off that poor lifestyle.
In other words, I’m not asking you to be vegan, or to continue to eat meat, to go keto or start intermittent fasting. I’m not asking you to give up alcohol and never eat a cheeseburger or a piece of chocolate cake at 2AM on a random Tuesday ever again.
What I am suggesting, is you have a balanced healthy diet and lifestyle for YOU and YOUR body, whatever that is.
There is no one size fits all diet for humanity—stop choosing your diet and learn it instead.
-A Readable Adventure
Sources
3. https://www.ibisworld.com/industry-statistics/number-of-businesses/fast-food- restaurants-united-states/
5. https://www.countryliving.com/uk/news/a38576418/new-years-resolutions-2022/