While the initial change was hard to swallow, Dave's lifestyle change actually helped our entire family adopt healthier eating habits, especially me.
He started helping more in the kitchen, and he turned out to be an amazing cook, finding creative ways to not only incorporate vegetables into most of our regular meals, but he also found vegan alternatives for some of our favorite meals, like tacos, replacing ground chicken for tofu. And when I wanted to eat out, he would find options he could still enjoy from our favorite places.
Aside from switching up some of our lunches and dinners for vegan alternatives and adding more vegetables in general, I was eating everything else I did before and was fully satisfied. I even started finding vegan options for him and trying them myself!
In April I came across a video from a fellow blogger discussing her love of granola and the fact that she eats it as cereal. I immediately wrote it down and bought some on our next grocery run, thinking it could be a good breakfast option for Dave, since breakfast was the one meal he struggled with because he loved eggs, bacon, and cheese so much. I ended up liking the granola with soy milk so much the very first time I tried it, that I immediately swapped my daily orange juice based smoothie, turkey bacon and toast breakfast I had eaten every single day for 8+ years, for french vanilla and almond granola with soy milk. Now that’s what we both eat for breakfast everyday, even when we travel!
In June we moved, and then went on a week long vacation shortly after. When we got back from our trip, I realized I still had a full bottle of headache meds in my purse, not having to take anything for the usual migraine that rolled around every afternoon. I couldn’t figure out what had changed, then it donned on me: I was no longer having my morning smoothie packed with sugar, and I hadn’t had the milk and cookies I usually had every night, in at least two weeks. I also noticed my clothes fit better, no longer tight in certain areas, so I got on the scale. To my surprise I had lost 12 pounds.
Initially, I pressured Dave to explain why eating less meat (simply going from 3 times per day to once most days), switching up my breakfast and no longer eating cookies everyday had contributed to weight loss and no longer suffering from daily headaches. But then I decided to stop analyzing and just pay attention to the way I FEEL. After all, I felt amazing, healthier and happier, so what was there to question?!
Now here we are almost 10 months into what I can now comfortably say is our lifestyle change, not just Dave’s, and I find myself sleeping better, more focused throughout the day, and rarely do I have a headache. I’ve lost the 2o pounds I’ve gained over the past 3 years, and I feel better than ever. I’m able to indulge in whatever I want, when I want, and I still eat my favorite chicken dishes at least once per day, along with a conscious effort to eat balanced meals with hearty portions of vegetables every chance I get.
