FOK

My stomach hurts like a mother fucker. Maybe it was that "last hurrah" burger from LBB. Or the refill of diet Coke. Which brings me to my next point.

Anyone else seen Forks Over Knives? Like, whoa. That made quite the impression for me. I know we're probably a bit behind the times, it having been out for well over a year, at least, but hey, we have a 14-month old and don't get to the movies often. Anyway, the documentary streams instantly on Netflix, has been in our instant queue for months, and we finally got around to watching it this week. Again, like, whoa. It's not that the information was necessarily new, but it was packaged in a pretty profound way.

For instance, the biggest component of our carbon footprint is not transportation, as I'd imagined, but our diet. And did you know that instead of feeding all our grains to the fat cows who feed the fat us, we could supply more than enough food for the entire world?!? Plus, the American diet causes cancer. And heart disease. And diabetes. And autoimmune diseases. Duh.

So as it turns out, my little corner of The Interweb might transition from a mommy blog into a bit of a food/diet blog for the next month or so. Alex and I are challenging ourselves to eating a whole-food-plant-based diet for the month of June. Yes, veggies. Yes, fruit. Yes, grains. Yes, legumes. No to dairy, meat, eggs, and to any and all processed or pre-packages foods - including wheat thins, yogurt, string cheese, and graham crackers. You, too, Luna Bars. And definitely no to you, Jujubes, red vines, and any and all diet sodas.

We are definitely not jumping on the "vegan" bandwagon. Mostly because I think "vegan" sounds wholly pretentious and annoying. But also because of the psychology - the word vegan to me is defined by what you can't/don't eat. The words "whole foods" and "plant based diet" sound more like what you CAN (and should) eat. The over-arching goal is to feel better; I'm hoping to have more energy throughout the day, reduce tummy aches, have more youthful skin, have fewer blood sugar crashes, and be independent of my pervasive sweet cravings. Alex is curious about his energy level, his nosebleeds, mood, and whether he feels less gross about being inactive (because of the ACL surgery). We're not wannabe-vegans, we're pretend scientists.

In order to keep myself accountable and to have a mildly more objective way to track changes, I'm hoping to blog regularly about what we are planning to eat, what we're actually eating, and how we feel. But no promises. This lifestyle requires some more serious thinking ahead - meal planning and cooking - which means my hands might be too busy to type.

And for anyone with an extra 90 minutes, go watch the documentary. Or check out the website. Really. 

http://www.forksoverknives.com/

Maybe we can change the world one less pre-packaged protein bar and iced latte at a time.