Does anyone else feel a general sense of malaise when eating fast food or anything that we consider unhealthy? It is amazing the difference in my energy levels and general sense of wellbeing when I eat my old way versus plant based. Whenever we have our rare inappropriates there is always a sense of my energy dragging for a few days after. I used to search for ways to boost energy before, taking B12 supplements(ironically still have to with being vegan), CoQ10 supplements, and anything else I researched that promised more energy (and lots of coffee); but nothing gave me sustained energy. I would get a few days of pumped up feeling after starting something new, but it never lasted long. I always just thought that was normal, that we all just felt run down all of the time, and that we just had to find the right drug or supplement to combat that. I did everything I could do to combat that feeling, even taking workout supplements daily even though I wasn’t working out. I wish I could go back in time and start this so much sooner in life. And let me be clear, I have no ethical problems with eating meat, I love a juicy steak or hamburger, and I have tried my best throughout my life to eat a healthier version of my old diet that included meat, I even went keto multiple times, but nothing has done for my energy levels and general well being as whole food plant based eating. When I was keto, I certainly felt more energy, but I also seemed to run out of breath more often, and my chest would hurt, not like a heart attack, but it just didn’t feel normal. Maybe it’s just me, I know plenty of people that have done amazing on keto in short time frames, but I don’t personally know anyone that has done keto for any real length of time. It is a very restrictive diet, I would argue even more so than vegan, so sustainment is difficult. On the flip side, you meet more and more people that are vegan these days, and they can do it for the long term. Granted a lot of these people are doing it for ethical reasons, so they can get a bit preachy about animal rights, but it is becoming a more normal thing, and I wish more people would think about changing not for the animals, but for themselves. We started this blog because Katie and I are just trying to figure out how to be healthier, we believe that being unhealthy is a leading cause of unhappiness, I know that is was for us. And now that we are on our path to a healthier life, I can promise you it has made us happier.
-Matt