Matt Ruscigno's session at Vida Vegan Con

I was thrilled to be able to attend my second Vida Vegan Con,  one of the best planned conferences I have ever been to and one filled with vegan bloggers from all over the world. This was the third (and the final) Vida Vegan Con and was held in Austin, Texas.

I will undoubtedly write more about Vida Vegan Con and wanted to start with one of the sessions I attended. Matt Ruscigno has a Master's in Public Health and is a Registered Dietitian. He is a rock star in my book. We need to know how to get and stay healthy while loving veganism, and people like Matt make that possible.

His session was about looking at the science of being vegan. It was fascinating and I could have listened for hours. I took notes, and would like to share a few nuggets of wisdom that I learned. What I am sharing here is what I got out of his talk. I want to make that clear as just because this is what I got from the talk doesn't mean I got it right!

Matt let us know that there is very little research that compares vegan and omnivore athletes. I have learned while trying to get healthier that research in vegan nutrition is key.

One of the several things he mentioned that really struck me, and mentioned a couple of times, is the phrase "what we do most often matters most". Love this. For me it means it I eat healthy most of the time, forages into vegan junk food and desserts aren't that bad. Yes, at times my life has been the opposite when eating healthy was not common! I have thought about this a lot and really want to focus on doing more around fitness and nutrition so that when I decide not to work out or decide to grab two cartons of ice cream, it's not such a bad thing.

Remember that I am not a dietitian. I do try to pay attention to what people like Matt have to say.

Matt also talked about that there is no one right way to discuss nutrition and science. That sure was  a relief!

He also mentioned that adding one food to your diet is not going to drastically change your health. I sure needed to hear that. What I am trying to do is to make eating lots of fruits and vegetables part of my norm.

One of the most important things he said was to not exaggerate in regards to veganism and nutrition. Be realistic and be careful with using nutrition as the gateway to veganism.

What Matt gets when at the market?  Leafy greens. Whole grains. Berries. Red cabbage. Quinoa. Lentils. Kale.

Check out more about Matt here.

What's in our fridge!

One of the many things I love about this blog is that every week I get to meet people who have decided to go vegan. It's wonderful being in touch with them and being able to support them and be a resource for them.

One of things that I have realized that seems to be common with people going vegan is that they are not used to buying a lot of vegetables. When I tell them what we typically buy they tend to be a little surprised.

So I decided to write this post and let you know what we typically have in our fridge. You will notice some items that tend to be considered healthy. I definitely do not consider myself an expert in nutrition but I do have links to nutrition experts on the main page.

Here we go:

Rice milk
Orange juice
Dates
Brocolli
Cauliflower
Kale
Swiss Chard
Spinach
Pears
Apples
Red peppers
Celery
Blackberries
Blueberries
Tofurky slices
Daiya shredded cheese
Vtopian cheese
Some vegan empanadas from Maria Empanada
Earth balance spread and sticks
Tofu
Treeline cheese
Tortillas
Veganaise
Braggs

We also have a lot of the compliments, too many to list.

I hope this is helpful to those of you who are new to being vegan, or even those who are looking for new food ideas. We really try to eat more fruits and veggies and less processed foods. We don't always succeed, but I definitely think we are on the right track.

Thanks for reading!

My 14 faves of '14: #2

My next fave of 2014 is Native Food's Soul Bowl.

Native Foods has gone crazy in Colorado, which is awesome for us! Just in the last year three more locations have opened, including in our hometown of Lakewood and in downtown Denver, which is where I work.

I have loved the Soul Bowl for many years. It's on this list because it is truly one of my all-time favorite dishes, and this year I have been able to have it many times.

The Soul Bowl is packed with a variety of veggies, which cover beans and rice, and then is topped off with Native Food's vegan chicken. Before it is served ranch dressing and barbecue sauce is added. I like to ask with an extra side of the barbecue sauce. Oh, and it comes with cornbread!

And when I write that it is packed with veggies, I mean. I would guess there are at least two servings of veggies in the Soul Bowl.

Give it a try. Native Foods is amazing, and I am guessing there might be one near you soon.

Thanks for reading.

Don't fear the vegans

Having been vegan for 18 years, I have been fortunate to see the world change in regards to veganism and animal rights.

Many of these changes are good: Vegan ice cream, vegan mac n cheese, felony animal cruelty laws, etc.

I digress.

If you are not vegan, you have nothing to fear from me or my kind.

I do not hate humans. I actually spend a good deal of my life trying to help humans.

I do not hate you. You might "like" meat and to that I say that we are all on our own path. If you ask me about why I am vegan I will certainly tell you. If you don't want to know, don't ask.

No, you cannot visit me and eat meat in our home. Our home is a sacred place to us. You can dine on my husbands delicious cooking, but it doesn't include meat. You can go out for that if you really have to.

We have more in common with what you eat than you might think. Consider that vegans and non vegans eat black beans, broccoli, carrots, Navy beans, spaghetti, linguine, stuffed peppers, kale, Swiss chard, beets, bread, crackers, cookies, ice cream, potatoes, rice, cauliflower, brownies, doughnuts, cereal, oatmeal, apples, oranges, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, tofu, strawberries, mangoes, pineapple, almonds, cashews, peanuts, macadamia nuts, celery, peppers, lentils, parsley, sweet potatoes, yams, soup, spinach, tomatoes, dates, figs, Popsicles,  pinto beans, guacamole, avocados, onions, etc. Whew, so many things in common.

OK, I admit it. I snuck in tofu knowing many people haven't had the pleasure of creating a delicious tofu dish.

We eat "real food". I have heard from folks who do not want to visit us because they can't eat real food. Seriously, you will get plenty of real food from a vegan.

People choose to be vegan for a variety of reasons. Mine is that I love animals and want to live my life in a way that does least harm to all living beings. The only ones who need to fear that are the ones who profit from killing and torturing animals. And that fear is really only around money.

We go to work, plant our gardens, volunteer, and try to add to our communities. Nothing to fear there.

We want a world similar to the world you want.

And just like that world, we are as diverse in our beliefs and how to make change than any other community.

If you would like more information on veganism in its many forms, check out any of the links on our main blog page.

Thank you for reading!