One Day at a time...

Step by step...

It's the hardest thing in the world to do...have patience.  It's this feeling, almost like adrenaline that just courses feverishly through your body for no reason and all you can do is go with it. I've got that now. I want to go in every direction at once, I want to run, I want to fly I want to climb a mountain. In all realness, that is not possible, so I'm putting this energy to use. I'm following up on last week, now where did I leave off? Oh yes, about my coworker trying a more plant based diet for five days. As I've been making what I deem life improvements and taking steps to a less waste more sustainable lifestyle, I've been encouraging friends to try and make small improvements to their lives as well. I've been posting pictures on Instagram and everyone that's seen them has asked me about where I grocery shop and what ingredients I use. I'm more than willing to share any information with those who ask. Now, last week I made breakfast and lunch for my colleague as a trial, so she can begin to learn what a plant based diet is all about. I asked her the Friday before we were to start, to on Sunday, assess how she felt after she ate. Was she tired? Was she still hungry? How large were her portions? Did she feel the need to snack between meals? She could eat however she wanted over the weekend, but come Monday, she needed to be very strict and keep to this diet for 5 days. I would provide two meals a day for her and give her a daily summary by email but dinner would be up to her and she would have to tell me, the next day, what she had for dinner. Each day for breakfast, there would be a whole grain of some sort, oatmeal or yogurt paired with a fruit. Lunches consisted of greens and veggies with a snack of a nut or fruit. I prefer to eat more fruits than veggies due to my sweet tooth but I add in veggies, nuts and whole grains as well. Spinach salads and Kale salads with veggies or fruit and a dressing of balsamic vinegar and a little bit of extra virgin olive oil. Sometimes I put some fruit, blackberries or strawberries in the salads. For snacks I provided almonds, oranges, bananas and homemade spinach bolani with organic basil pesto. For dinner, I would text her tips on what foods would be filling, what I was having and if she was out at a restaurant, how to pick healthier options. After our 5 day trial I asked her again, how she felt, if she was tired after eating, if she felt she needed to snack between meals and how she felt about the portion sizes. To my surprise, she said that by the last day, she wasn't craving chips mid-day, but fruit and she felt like she had more energy. After eating breakfasts, she was full until her normal lunch time so at lunch she didn't feel she needed to eat as much. She made healthy choices for dinners, incorporating more vegetables and fruits, foregoing red meats and cheeses and not adding any salt to anything she ate. This was really good news! We did a 3 mile charity walk on Saturday and to my surprise early in the morning when she got there, she was alert, energized and ready to go. The three mile walk was a small struggle for her, but after she said she felt great! There was all sorts of "health" food at this event and she went for the fruit that was offered and water in place of sugary granola bars and supplement shakes. I was so proud. Sunday, she text me to get tips because she was going to go grocery shopping. I followed up with her today and she stuck to the plant based guidelines and bought organic fruits and veggies. She will be finishing the other foods she already had so for the time being integrating healthier foods into her diet. I couldn't be happier that she's taking this so seriously!

 I urge anyone out there to try it, for just five days. Take the time to prepare you meals ahead of time. Make the effort. Be conscious of your food choices, know where your food comes from and make healthier options. I've been keeping track of changes and improvements I've seen, but that story is for another day. So, until then....