Let's Get It! Oct 2015

I started this series to hold myself accountable on my monthly goals and as a chance to reflect on the previous month. Check out my goals post from last month here

I can't believe it's the last quarter of the year. Time is flying!

My birthday was this week, so naturally I've been thinking about what I want for my life more than usual.

How did I do last month?

Here were the goals:

• Being in the moment in Costa Rica
• Attend One Live Event
• Promote a New Meal Planning Master Class
• Homeschool Plan
• Consistency Consistency Consistency

Being in the moment in Costa Rica - I was definitely in the moment! OMG! This trip was amazing from start to finish. I ate some amazing food and connected with my extended family on a deeper level. 

Attend One Live Event - Even though I consider myself an outgoing person, I have a hard time getting out the house to attend events. I went to Vegan SoulFest in Baltimore last month and had a great time.

Raw vegan goodness from Khepra's  - almond hemp burger, cauliflower bites, curried wild "rice", broccoli and "fried" plantains

There was plenty of delicious food, live entertainment, I connected with several of my YouTube viewers (heyyy!), listened to a couple of speakers and watched a cooking demo.  

with Chandra Lee of OrganicFlavas

I'm so glad I went!

Promote a New Meal Planning Master Class - I used my email list, social media and virtual workshops to promote this class. I really want to present more workshops (online and off), so I invested in an online course to help me become more efficient. I'm really excited to share my experiences and teach more families how to start a vegan life.

Homeschool Plan - I finally have a plan for the new year that I know will work really well for the boys. They're taking online classes for some of the day to give them more structure and to take some of the pressure off of me. I'm feeling really good about this transition!

Consistency Consistency Consistency - Confession time - Before I started working on this blog post, I didn't think I did anything last month. Even though vacation was amazing, it felt like it took me a long time to get back in the groove. I was out of commission for 2 weeks.

My goals for consistency each month are:

• 2 podcast episodes (posted 1)
• 2 YouTube videos (posted 2 woohoo!)
• Post daily on social media  (I went a whole week without posting anything) 
• Send out a weekly newsletter to the folks on my list (done)
• 2 blog posts that aren't related to my YouTube videos & podcast (I wrote a whopping 7!)
• 1 free virtual workshop (I did 2!)

Takeaways: I am way too hard on myself! Even though I didn't have perfect consistency, I covered a lot last month and would have never known if I didn't write this post.

I struggled to get those 2 YouTube videos out on time, so I will probably start a monthly series sharing a vegan tip. Vlog style videos are usually easier for me to edit, so I can record and batch that content in less time.

I will also make sure that my podcast episodes are recorded and mostly edited by the end of the first week of each month, so that I don't have to scramble to get those out on time.

Being inconsistent with social media has shown that I need to finally invest in a scheduling software to stay on top of it. I can schedule all my posts in advance and not worry too much about my Facebook and Twitter turning into a ghost town.

 

5 Intentions for the New Month

7 Day Detox/Cleanse - I haven't done a detox in a few years, so this will be interesting. I really feel like it's time for a reset, so eating all raw/fresh food for a week will be helpful. If you want to follow along with the cleanse or join in, follow me on Facebook - We're starting on October 11th.

Walk or Lift Weights Daily - I walked each day all summer for a minimum of 30 minutes. The vitamin D, consistent movement & sweat (detox) did wonders! I kind-of got off track when I went on vacation, so I want to get back to doing it daily this month.

Upgrade my lighting & sound quality on YouTube - I am still researching this but it's definitely time to upgrade my production quality over there. I have some big plans for the new year, so the uplevel is about to get real.

Wake up at 6 AM each morning (including Saturdays) - In a perfect world, I would wake up at 4 AM and finish all my biz work for the day by 9 AM. I always have a productive day with both work and family when I do this....but maintaining this is another story. For this month, I will test out 6 AM and see if that's more of my sweet spot. Then again I should probably just work on going to bed earlier. *sigh*

Attend one event - I will pay attention to my Meetup notifications for events, attend DC Veg Fest or Hip Hop Green Dinner this month.

That's it!

What are you goals for the new month? Leave me a comment  

Vegan Options at Target + Plus Mini Grocery Haul

Most people don't think of Target when it comes to grocery shopping, but there are many vegan options there (and it doesn't have to be a Super Target).  

I actually went to Target for cleaning supplies and candles, so it's always good to throw in a little grocery shopping, too. I needed to do my real grocery shopping at my normal store but wasn't in the mood. I know you can relate.

In this video, I put together a Target tour and mini grocery haul with some of the items I picked up.

Click below to watch....

My store has a small produce department with plenty of fresh fruit, vegetables, tofu, etc.

I also show you convenient pre-packed vegan options for those times when you just don't feel like cooking.

Of course, you should eat as many whole ingredients as possible. I just LOVE showing you all the other options out there! I never want lack of access or information be the reason you don't start a vegan life. I hope the info in the video is helpful!

Download the FREE vegan shopping list

Shopping list includes: protein, fruit, vegetables, grains, condiments, spices, snacks and dairy & egg replacements.

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Products mentioned in the video:

Silk almond and soy milk

Here's a list of Amy's products that are vegan 

Van's Gluten-Free waffles are vegan but not all of their products are - check the list here

Sweet Earth curry tiger burritos

Simply Balanced Korean BBQ meatless chicken

Beyond Meat vegan chicken strips

Gardein products

Hormel vegetarian chili is vegan 

Amy's chili is vegan (I've used it on chili dogs)

Classico tomato and basil spaghetti sauce

Talenti Roman Raspberry -all of their sorbetto products are vegan

Some of the quick meals I made:

Spaghetti using Gardein crumbles (I prefer Beyond Meat crumbles though)

Tofu and rice

Roasted potatoes and steamed mixed vegetables

Tacos with black beans (I seasoned the beans with cumin, chili powder, salt and garlic powder) lettuce and salsa

Download the FREE vegan shopping list

Shopping list includes: protein, fruit, vegetables, grains, condiments, spices, snacks and dairy & egg replacements.

Success! Check your email to download the grocery list. :-)

There was an error submitting your subscription. Please try again.

First Name

Email Address

We use this field to detect spam bots. If you fill this in, you will be marked as a spammer.

Get the grocery list Powered by ConvertKit

Have you had a chance to check out vegan options at your Target?

How to Read Food Labels | Free Workshop

On this Thursday (October 1st) I will teach a free virtual workshop on how to read food labels while vegan grocery shopping. No more standing in the grocery aisle for too long trying to figure out whether or not your spaghetti sauce or favorite bag of chips is vegan.
My goal is to give you as many strategies as possible on how to start (and stay on) a delicious vegan life.

>>> Click here to register (it's free) <<<

We will go over:

• 5 strategies on how to quickly spot non-vegan ingredients
• 2 free grocery apps that will literally cut your label reading time in half
• 4 common non-vegan ingredients and how to avoid them
• Live Q&A session afterwards 

We meet online at 7 PM EST (we'll be finished before Shonda and crew starts lol)

>>> Click here to register (it's free) <<<

See ya in the workshop!

How to Plan Vegan Meals When Meat is No Longer the Center of the Meal

It took me a little bit of time to understand how I should plan our meals without meat being the center of it.

Before starting this journey, I always saw dinner as:

Meat + Vegetable + Starch + A piece of fruit (ocassionally) 

The idea of not having chicken, steak or fish as the center of a meal left me wondering what to put in its place.

How the heck should you plan delicious and filling meals that you family will actually eat without the meat?

Think of it like this - protein aka "what most of us think of as meat" is still the center of your meal. You will now replace the beef, chicken & seafood with a plant-based alternative that is better for you. 

Once you start a vegetarian or vegan journey, the meat portion of the meal is now tofu, tempeh, quinoa, eggplant, vegan sausage (like this brand), vegan chicken or taco meat made out of walnuts.

This shift can seem overwhelming, but I promise it will get better as you start meal planning for your family.

To put it in perspective, here are 5 different vegan dinners with protein still being the center of the meal:

Lentil Soup with rice and a side salad - lentils are the center of the meal and is a great source of protein

Vegan Fried chicken, mac & cheese & steamed broccoli vegan chicken (this one is a Gardein soy product) is the center of the meal and is a great source of protein

Taco salad with pico de gallo, guacamole, romaine, vegan sour cream and cilantro The "meat" in this taco salad is made out of walnut & sun-dried tomatoes; which is the protein center of this meal

BBQ tofu, rice & broccoli - Tofu is the protein center of this meal 

Chili, vegan Texas toast & steamed vegetables or a side salad - Kidney beans is the protein center of this meal 

As you can see, you're still following the meat + vegetable + starch formula but in a more compassionate, plant-based way.

It's all about shifting your mindset and seeing where the protein is in your meal.

 

Here's a chart with several more plant-based sources of protein

Pic Source

I hope this is helpful!

How to Eat More Green Leafy Vegetables

It doesn't have to be all or nothing to get started on eating a more healthy and compassionate diet.

Even if you're not ready to go vegan, you can still start to crowd out some of that meat, dairy and eggs with more leafy greens and other vegetables.

Eating more green leafy vegetables reduce your chances of high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes and aids in helping your immune and digestive systems.

The 5 tips below will work for anyone, no matter how busy you get.

 

Tips on How to Eat More Greens:

Skip the french fries for a side salad while dining out - This is a hard one for me, but I always feel so much better eating my veggie burger with a side salad instead of french fries. Check to make sure the server skips the croutons (which usually contain diary) & cheese and ask for a vinaigrette instead of a creamy dressing. 

Throw some greens on your veggie burgers and sandwiches - You can use spinach, any type of lettuce or/and massaged kale and throw on as many greens as you can handle.

Blend up some greens - A smoothie with a handful of raw greens is an easy way to bulk up your vegetable intake. Make a quick one with strawberries, frozen banana, liquid (water, juice, almond milk) and fresh spinach, kale, collards, or swiss chard for breakfast. If you've never had a green smoothie, start your green smoothie journey with raw spinach. You don't taste the spinach at all. Check out green smoothie recipes on Simple Green Smoothies Instagram 

Add an extra green leafy vegetable to your dinner plate - Even if you're still eating meat, eggs, and dairy, you should add an extra vegetable to your dinner plate each night to help crowd out some of those dishes. Keep it simple by steaming or sautéing some spinach, collards or bok choy and season it with salt, black pepper, etc. Or you can massage a bowl of fresh kale with a little olive oil and lemon juice and then toss with a little red onion and nutritional yeast.

This salad has spring mix, tomatoes, avocados and red onion 

Snack on a daily salad - I know. I know. You probably already think most vegans eat just salads anyway. I promise this isn't true! I just think salads make for an awesome snack. Make a large bowl early in the week and pack it up to snack on while at work. This is sooo much better than hitting the vending machine every day.

I hope these tips are helpful!

Eat those greens, yo!

 

How do you get more greens into your diet? Leave me a comment below