How is this Vegan Year going to work?

So here I am about to start my year of only vegan eating and I thought I lay a few ground rules to start with.

First off my 365 days of eating only vegan starts tomorrow January 7, 2013. Why didn't I start this on the first day of the new year? To be honest I wasn't sure if I really wanted to embark on this endeavor and 2nd is that we were on the road traveling home after Christmas break on the first day of the new year. I also knew that if I was going to be successful I have to set myself up for success right from the beginning. One doesn't just wake up in a typical american home with a typical american fridge filled with the foods a typical american family eats and go vegan. I needed time to prepare, make a plan, go over a list and really make sure I do my best to set myself up to avoid failure.

As part of my preparations I have had to decide how far I would take this vegan thing in our home and daily life. What I decided is that I will not drag my husband and kids into this new way of eating. All attempts to do so in the past have ended up with everyone being mad at me and lots of sneaking banned food into the house. I would love for my entire family to be healthier but I know my family and I know they need to be gently exposed to changed and that they don't react well to anything that is forced. So, with that said I plan to make many vegan dishes for all of us to enjoy but I will by no means tell them they can not have their other  favorite foods. There will be some meals where we can all eat the same foods and others where I eat a modified vegan version of what I prepare for my family. I am sure there will also be meals where I prepare something totally different for myself. For example my family loves chili dog night but I don't like any of the vegan versions of chili dogs so that night I may just make myself something totally different. It will be a pain on days that I have to make two separate meals at a time but I feel it is worth it to not be the kind of parent or spouse that forces their family to do something they do not want to do. Of course I will be thrilled if they come to like  many of the vegan dishes I prepare but I am not crossing my fingers.

The rest of my preparations involve just deciding what I will and will not eat. Obviously I will be eating vegan but there are actually some different variations of vegan eating I have learned through experience. First of all I have yet to decide about the honey issue so until I do I will just avoid honey. I also don't want to fill my meals with lots of "vegan junk food", those processed chemistry experiments that come in the form of traditional foods but are actually not they are suppose to imitate. Sure these products are vegan but they are also mostly chemicals and additives and are about as much as food as twinkies are. I plan to eat foods that are close to their natural form as possible. Also unlike many vegans I will no be overloading on soy products.   They jury is still out on how soy effects those with thyroid issue and would rather just not risk it until I have more information and research on the matter. I will use tofu however since it isn't made from soy bi products like most soy products but because tofu can be high in fat I won't use it all the time. This leads me to my next guideline for my vegan journey....I will be eating a mostly fat free or low fat vegan diet. Ever wonder why so many vegans are still fat, its because of all the fat they still eat in the form of oils and such. So I will be using very little to no oil in my cooking. For more information about low fat vegan eating check out Dr. McDougall's website. It is mostly his plan that I will be following.

Now for what I will be eating. Yippee! I will be eating lots of veggies particularly the starchy ones and the green ones. Also on my menu will be plenty of wholesome grains, rice and pasta....yes carbs but the good kind. Oh and fruit also! Love me some yummy fruit. So really all I am "missing" is meat and dairy products and eggs. Before when I was eating this way and felt so wonderful my typical daily menu would be something similar to this....
Breakfast- a bowl of oatmeal or breakfast buritto(taters and veggies only) and some fruit
Lunch- baked tater or  pasta with veggies
Dinner- whole grain rice with veggies or just a big plate of my favorite veggies like mashed taters, corn, peas and carrots.
Snacks- fruit, veggies, rice balls, smoothies, etc,....

I also made lots of vegan style casseroles since we love casseroles. One dish I prepared was the enchilada recipe I got off of Dr. McDougalls website, my family really really loved it so I made it alot since it was great eaten as leftovers too.

As far as drinks go, I very very rarely drink any type of alcohol although I do cook with it at times. I will pretty much be drinking water mostly,  fruit juices and my beloved ice tea as well as my  hot herbal teas.

I think my biggest challenge will be eating out. We enjoy eating out and I know it is going to be very hard finding something on the menu that is vegan or that I can have the chef veganize for me. If I liked salads I would just order a salad but I don't like salads so..............
I figure Asian type places will be easy since I can just order some plain rice and veggies. Mexican will be hard because most places put loads of fat in their spanish rice and beans which is what I would normally order when trying to eat vegan. Typical American style establishments will not be too horrible hard so long as somewhere on their menu is a baked potato that I can order plain. It will be a challenge for sure but I am up for it and hopefully will find some new places to eat that we had not considered before.

I have not gone shopping for my new food stuffs as of yet but I have some oatmeal I am planning on having for breakfast tomorrow and then I will head out and go grocery shopping. Today I am working on finishing up my menu and grocery list for this week so I will be prepared.  I plan on posting my menus and recipes on this blog to share with everyone as well.

Admittedly I can't decide if I am excited or scared about this new challenge I am giving myself. I know I am excited because I have already gotten a taste of amazingly better I feel when I eat this way but at the same time I know how hard it is going to be simply because it is hard to alter your way of life. I am a southern gal who loves real southern food after all.

I think it is important that I clarify right now that this is not weight loss diet. It's not really a "diet" at all just a change in the way I eat with hopes of achieving better health and to be more environmentally friendly. I have deeply held beliefs that make it very easy to be an ethical vegan as well which I will share in more detail on this blog at a later date.

So tomorrow is the first day of my vegan year and hopefully the first day of better health.