In the summer of 2009 I happened to pick up a free PETA DVD at a hardcore show, and this DVD is what originally inspired me to give up meat and dairy. After doing my own research on the many physical and mental benefits of a plant-based diet, and discovering amazing NYC vegan restaurants with the help of my new vegetarian girlfriend (now vegan wife!), I had my last bowl of Matzah Ball Soup on March 29th 2010 (Passover) and never touched anything with meat and dairy every again. As a personal trainer in NYC, one of the many things I love about what I do is educating my clients on the benefits of a plant-based diet. I’m proud to say that all of my clients who train with me eat mostly a plant-based diet. We need to stay super healthy and represent for the vegan community. Whether you like it or not, if you are vegan, you are a representative of the plant-based lifestyle. Why not be the best representative you can be of your people? We need to watch what we eat. For health and ethical reasons. And we need to make sure we DON’T do the following things to avoid being a junk food vegan.
I know it’s hard saying “no” to bagels, especially if you live in NYC like me since you can’t walk a single block without passing a “World’s Best Bagel Shop.” And as vegans, pizza, sandwiches, and bagels are some of the easiest and cheapest things to order. Some of you may think you are doing a healthy move by ordering whole wheat bread instead of white bread, or whole wheat pasta instead of regular, but the fact is wheat makes you fat. A big mistake that I often see is when people begin to dabble in a vegetarian lifestyle, they load up on carbs. And, more often than not, they load up on carbs from whole wheat. This is an unhealthy choice because wheat has a high glycemic index rating. Meaning, when you consume wheat, your blood sugar levels rise, your body only feels temporarily satisfied until your blood sugar levels go way down again, and you start craving more wheat-like foods. Ever notice after you have a wheat-heavy breakfast (i.e. toast, bagels, sandwich, etc..) VS a nutrient dense breakfast (i.e. protein shake, scrambled tofu, oatmeal, etc..), you’re ravenous a few hours later? That’s due to the high glycemic index rating of wheat. In Wheat Belly, William Davis explains how there have been studies that confirm people who eat a wheat-heavy diet, tend to eat more than people on a non-wheat diet.
It would be criminal of me not to mention the ever so popular gluten protein that is found in wheat, especially with the gluten-free fad that’s going on these days. Ever have seitan? Of course you have, and if you’re vegan, you probably love it! The chewy, juicy, tasty plant-based protein seitan IS wheat gluten. Gluten has been linked to a number of negative health issues. One of which is the gnarly sounding “Leaky Gut Syndrome,” which is where unwanted materials leak out of the tight junctions of your stomach walls and into your bloodstream which can cause a wicked case of gas, cramps, and bloating. No, you don’t have to give up seitan completely. I personally love to have a seitan dish at Candle 79 or Blossom every now and then. But, I don’t make a habit out of it. It’s like a lot of things - fine in moderation. Ask to see a gluten-free menu. If there isn’t one, try to find the gluten-free meals that will usually have (GF) next to them on the menu. Some of the gluten-free options at my favorite restaurants have become some of my favorite dishes. Like the Moroccan Tagine from Blossom, and the PomegranateChipotle Grilled Tempeh dish from Candle 79. Instead of getting a wheat belly, you should check out gluten-free breads like Food for Life or Manna Organics as a substitute. Also, stick with gluten-free grains like quinoa and brown rice instead of gut leaking stuff like whole wheat pasta. Two slices of whole wheat bread has been shown to raise blood sugar levels more than two teaspoons of sugar. Speaking of which...
Hide your kids, hide your wife, hide your husband, because sugar is making everybody fat around here! In your soy milk. In your cereal. In your favorite sauce. In your sports drink. In your health bars (pictured to the left). Even in your ketchup! No wonder the average American consumes 22 teaspoons (I wish I was making this number up) of sugar daily!
We are talking about processed sugars, not natural sugars found in fruit. Processed sugar are the bad guys. These are the sugars that have been refined, stripped of their vitamins and minerals, and have no nutritional value. I use the term “hidden sugar” because it’s sugar found in foods that many people identify as healthy. Like wheat, processed sugar has a very high glycemic index rating, so upon consuming sugar, your blood sugar levels rise, insulin is released, and this all leads to fat. I feel that processed sugar is the culprit behind the obesity problem in America because it’s so easy to get addicted to sugar. YOU are probably addicted to sugar and you don’t even know it! Dr. Robert Lustig, a Californian endocrinologist went on record in 2012 saying that not only does sugar cause cancer, obesity, diabetes, and heart disease, it’s also just as addictive as cocaine!
When you consume sugar, your brain secretes a “feel good” hormone called dopamine. This is why your eyes roll to the back of your head in a euphoric daze when you eat donuts or cookies. When you experience the comedown effect of the sugar crash, you feel down in the dumps, and your body starts craving more sugar. Sugar is both the cause of a sugar craving and the only thing your brain desires to go to in order to stop a craving. That’s how you get addicted to crappy foods with a ton of processed sugar! In Jackie Warner’s book This is Why You’re Fat, she talks about the benefits of not consuming anything that has more than 5 grams of sugar per serving. Your body won’t store fat if you consume anything with less than 5 grams of sugar in it! Plus, if you are constantly monitoring your sugar intake, you will be less likely to develop sugar cravings. Look at the nutritional data on the back of your favorite health bar. How many grams of sugar does it contain? If it has more than 5 grams of sugar per bar, throw them out and switch to Simply Bars! The Coconut Lime, Cocoa, Cinnamon, and Chocolate Peanut Butter flavors all contain less than 5 grams of sugar and are vegan. We need to educate ourselves on what is truly healthy and what is crap. Just because something is marketed as healthy, doesn’t mean it’s actually healthy! This is why I have such a problem with juicing...
Sometimes I hear non-vegans tell me they went vegan for a week. “Oh really?” I’ll say excitedly. “Yeah,” they say. “It was a juice cleanse.” FACEPALM. Let me just say… Juice isn’t TERRIBLE, but it is counter productive to operating at your fullest mental and physical capabilities. When you juice a fruit, you extract the sugary water from the whole food, and you leave behind a lot of good stuff like fiber. You do get a little bit of vitamins and minerals from the juice, but not nearly as much as when you consume the whole food, especially since a lot of fruits contain the most amount of nutrients in the skin or pulp of the whole fruit. The major negative to drinking juice is that it makes your blood sugar levels rise, which will cause sugar crashes, which lead to cravings later.
Can you lose weight from a juice cleanse? Sure you can. If I ate nothing but 1 cheese burger a day (which I’d never do because I’m vegan) I’d lose weight too. Calories are calories, and if you’re on a juice cleanse, you’re probably not consuming a lot of calories. But why would you want to lose weight in a way that will leave you feeling depleted and loopy?
Also, the second you start to eat real foods after a juice cleanse your body gains pretty much all the weight back that you lost during a cleanse which gives the whole “lose weight” on a juice cleanse reason a bit of a false advertisement. All the weight you lose during a juice cleanse is water weight. The average person also may do a juice fast to detox. Why? Water (which is free) detoxes your organs. So does sweating. In fact, Dr. Nasir Moloo, a gastroenterologist (fancy name for “digestive system doctor”) went on record in 2007 saying “Your body does a perfectly good job of getting rid of toxins on its own. There’s no evidence that these diets (juice cleanses) are necessary or helpful.“ I’ve had quite a few clients in the past who have attempted to do a 3-5 day juice cleanse while working with me. They try it once and never again. Their performance in the gym was subpar compared to sessions when they were on a normal whole foods diet. Their attention span was noticeably shorter, their strength and endurance was down, and above all else, they just couldn’t really function like they did on a whole foods diet. Always choose smoothies over juices! Instead of juice, blend. I use my Vitamix every morning to blend my daily protein shake. When you blend the whole foods into a liquid shake, you still get all the nutritional benefits of eating the whole foods, it’s just in a slushy form.
You know what I’ve found? A lot of times when I tell people I’m vegan, they say things like “Man, I could NEVER be vegan. I don’t know how you guys do it. ONLY eating plants? That’s dedication right there, dude.” No, we do not ONLY eat plants. I think if that was the case I’d go insane. But, you always want to make sure you have your greens with your meals for a number of reasons. Don’t skip out on your veggies! Dark greens to be exact. There’s a lot more nutritional value to kale then there is to iceberg lettuce. Iron is the main mineral we are singling out when talking about dark leafy greens. Vegans (and other folk) need to know that getting adequate amounts of Iron is very important in order to be super healthy. Iron’s main function is to transport oxygenated blood to other cells of the body and to help with the production of red blood cells. This helps with muscle function, and since our brain uses about 20 percent of the oxygen in our bodies, you know we are sharper mentally with a diet high in Iron. Besides Iron, greens are packed with protein! If you are vegetarian/vegan, I’m sure you’ve been asked where you get your protein from more times than you care to remember. You need to tell your meat eating friends that ALL PLANTS HAVE PROTEIN! In fact, most plants have a higher protein density than meat! Broccoli has 11.2 grams of protein per 100 calorie serving, where steak only has 5.4 grams. And, you’re not getting the saturated fat found in red meat when you eat broccoli.
Everyone wants to know where you get your protein from when you’re vegan. Or that’s what non-vegans are programmed to ask upon learning that you’re vegan at least. Anything that grows (nails, hair, muscle, etc…) needs protein. After exercise your muscles are craving protein, because you’ve just created microtears in your muscles. The amino acids your body gets from breaking down protein after a workout will help repair the microtears you just put in them. Feeding your muscles protein after a workout will help reduce recovery time between workouts, aid in muscle growth, and reduce muscle soreness after exercise. I’m a huge advocate of plant-based proteins. One reason is the alkaline forming properties of plantbased protein. Your body’s natural pH is slightly alkaline, so shouldn’t we be on a diet that compliments that? Researchers have speculated that a diet high in alkalinity (mostly plant-based) will increase the oxygen levels in our blood. If you’re an active person, just think how much better you will be able to exercise with oxygen rich blood!
Eating a diet rich in acid forming foods (mostly meat and dairy) can increase the risk of diseases, especially kidney stones. Acid forming foods also cause fatigue and decrease in the body’s ability to absorb nutrients. This makes the body work extra hard to return to homeostasis after a workout, and will use extra energy to remove toxins from the body. Is that really what you want your body to do after a workout? Give it extra work? NO! I always prefer getting nutrients via whole foods, but protein powders are very easy, fast, and economical. Powders are also absorbed much quicker than whole foods, which comes in handy after exercise since you want to replenish your body with nutrients as soon as possible after a workout. That’s when your body is most receptive to amino acids and carbohydrates.
How much protein should YOU consume daily? Here is the math… 1. Weight in pounds divided by 2.2 = Weight in Kg’s 2. Weight in Kg’s x 0.8-1.8 gm/kg = protein grams. If you aren’t lifting weights for more than 3 hours weekly, use the 0.8gm/kg number. If you are a lifting weights 6 times a week, use the higher number (1.8gm/kg).
Besides the pesky protein question, I find myself often times explaining to people how simple it is for vegetarians and vegans to get their Omega-3’s. For some reason most people seem to think fish is the only way to obtain these fatty acids. This is incorrect. Omega-3’s are important. They lower blood pressure, lower cholesterol, and reduce inflammation of the joints. I tend to use Chia Seeds in order to get adequate amounts of Omega-3’s. One or two teaspoons of chia seeds a day is all you need to get your Omega-3’s. Chia seeds are easy to use. They are odorless and flavorless, so when I mix them in my protein shakes, oatmeal, cereals, or soup, I don’t even know they’re there. When I put the bag of Chia seeds back in the cabinet it doesn’t make my kitchen reek of fish like salmon does. Plus, when eating fish you have to make sure you don’t swallow any bones. And, there have been several cases of mercury poisoning from fish. Chia seeds are economical. The bags of Nutiva chia seeds I buy are only $10-$15 for about 30 servings. A piece of salmon at a NYC restaurant will cost you about $25 dollars! Do the math!
I’d say being deficient in B vitamins (especially B-12) is the biggest concern for vegetarians. B-12 plays a key role is the metabolism in all the cells of the body. We need it for energy levels, an optimum functioning nervous system and brain activities. This vitamin has also been shown to reduce risk of heart disease. A deficiency in B-12 can lead to tiredness, a sore tongue, a rapid heartbeat, amongst other symptoms. You can get most of your B vitamins through soy milk, dark leafy greens, some fruit, and lentils, but Nutritional Yeast is in my opinion is the way to go for getting your B-12’s. The nutritional yeast contains all kinds of vitamins and minerals, along with amino acids. In one serving you can get up to 200% of the B-12 you need in a day! Plus, I think nutritional yeast makes everything taste better. I always prefer getting my vitamins and minerals through whole foods, as the human body digests and absorbs them much more efficiently than swallowing a pill, but a sublingual tablet is an exception in my book. By taking a B-12 vitamin sublingually, the pills skips the digestive system (where it can lose it’s potency), and is absorbed quickly into the bloodstream by way of all the blood vessels that lay directly under the tongue.
It’s almost too easy to eat really delicious and sometimes bad food as a vegan. We have pizza, cronuts, peanut butter bombs (thanks Vegan Treats), etc… Vegans know that plant-based folk have more than enough options, it’s just the rest of the world seems baffled by how you can possible eat something delicious… WITH NO ANIMAL PRODUCTS IN IT...
Just because it’s vegan doesn’t mean it’s healthy. You know what’s vegan? French fries. So are Twizzlers and Oreos. I know a lot of people who sometimes get dragged out to restaurants for birthdays, work events, or other random occasions and they end up temporarily sabotaging their fitness goals by ordering crappy food. Always read the ingredients to the foods you buy. Be on the look out for crazy man-made ingredients like aspartame. Aspartame has been linked to over 90 side effects/diseases, so even though your Fiber One cereal has been sold to you as health food, it’s not. Don’t get fat off nutritionless food like white rice or white bread. Get your taste buds used to brown rice and gluten-free bread. Don’t waste hard earned cash on food that will provide you with no nutritional benefits like iceberg lettuce. Always go for the darker greens like romaine, spinach, or kale in your salads. As a rule of thumb, the darker the fruit/vegetables, the more nutritional value to the food.
Warner, Jackie. This Is Way You’re Fat. New York: Grand Central Publishing, 2010 April 27th
Davis, William. Wheat Belly. Pennsylvania: Rodale, 2011
Cambell, T. Colin. The China Study. Texas: Ben Bella Books, 2005
Lustig, Dr. Robert. “Is Sugar Toxic?” CBSnews.com CBS Interactive Inc. 01 April 2012 Web.
Blossom – 187 9th Ave, 466 Columbus Ave, and 41 Carmine St Recommended Dish - Moroccan Tagine
Blossom Du Jour – 165 Amersterdam Ave, 619 9th Ave, 259 West 23rd St Recommended Dish – Chickpea Quinoa Salad
Candle 79 – 154 East 79th St Recommended Dish - Pomegranate-Chipotle Grilled Tempeh
Jivamukti – 841 Broadway Recommended Dish – Supergreen Salad
Angelica Kitchen – 300 East 12th St Recommended Dish – Meal Combo Bowl