Avos (super food) and butternuts (winter squash)
It sort of happened by accident.
One Wednesday, we were chatting with my beautiful wife about the fact that's it's pretty much impossible to find decent meat for a reasonable price at the local supermarket, and contemplating on the state of the farming industry, we started to feel guilty of consuming meat being treated with so little care, shaming us all as a species.
So we played the daring game.
What if we become vegetarian or vegan?
After all, a lot of good people out there are vegan and vegetarian. Nathalie Portman... That's actually the only person I can think of right now, (beside 
So we thought, "Can we just give it a try?"
And this is what I learned.
organic celery is twice as more expensive in a supermarket as at the local veggie market
Eating veggies ain't cheap (if you don't know where you going)
We literally exploded our monthly budget in one week of eating vegetables. I didn't go for the most expensive organic products, I keep it very simple, adding of course carbohydrates (rice, pasta) to each meal. We ended up with a bill that was 10 times more expensive than our average expenditure.
The funny part is except for the vegan mayo, I didn't go crazy on vegan products, like vegan sausage, or vegan patty.
Just plain carrots, aubergine, butternut, pumpkins, sweet potatoes, lentils, green peas, mushrooms, tomatoes, cucumber, celery, and apart from the fact that it was very tasty, we ended up having to eat more than usual, but back to that in a moment.
It's actually quite hard, especially on a restricted budget to get enough protein with a vegan diet, I know that I am probably gonna upset some of you but this is a fact: A steak or fish contains 20-30 grams of protein per 100 grams of product, and the main protein sources for vegan (vegetables, soy, beans, tempeh or rice) contains 5-20 grams of protein per 100 grams). It's not impossible to keep on bulking up on a strictly vegan diet, however adding a vegan shake might raise that bill a little bit more.
Some NFL players showed that it's possible to gain on a vegan diet too and even showed increased performances and recovery time, but they benefit from state of the art equipment, supplements, that will affect their protein intakes and testosterone level.
It just shows how this society is fabricated and how we are forced to consume meat, it has become cheaper to buy a hamburger in your not-so-local-food-chain than buying an organic apple.
Update (a month later):
We found a place around our area, with veggies in bulk, so it's actually possible to find cheaper veggies, but requires to hang around markets, and specialized shops. (and think ahead)
Packing up some ammo
Some couldn't even fit in the fridge
It's harder to be original in the kitchen
My wife did all the cooking this week, while I was at work and came back home with a different recipe ready to be consumed each day of the week, I have to admit that she was game, and it was a lot of extra work, so thank you so much for trying it out with me :)
The first few days were a lot of fun.
Friday was a feast with caramelized pumpkins, roasted sweet potatoes, and rice for the carbs. It was nice...
After few days, it started getting harder and harder, as all I could think of is that something was missing, however, I have to admit that the digestion was easier, and I didn't feel as heavy as I normally do after consuming meat.
I think it's important to add that some of my core beliefs were shaken, my mother has always considered me the carnivore type.
Especially here in Africa since I arrived 10 years ago, I realized how much meat the South Africans of all the 11 cultures/languages consume.
Sometimes you only get pap (corn puree) and sausage & gravy, and that's it, dinner's served. That could explain how they survived being chased by lions and avoid becoming dinner, and it would explain why South Africans are known to be strong, throughout generations of stacking up some proteins and carbs.
My wife still managed to make a different complete meal every day which I think is pretty amazing, especially in a restricted amount of time. I admit that after few days I decided to give a hand with all the cutting veggies, and even kept the seeds and flesh of the butternut, caramelized it, there's almost a protein scavenger mindset that gets triggered, everything becomes protein oriented, and it was quite interesting.
Needless to say that eventually, you will start eating the same thing twice in a row, which isn't a problem for me, fortunately. I ate so many carrots this week, I can feel a rabbit tail growing. 😝🐰
Sweet potatoes and mushrooms pasta in sweet basil and celeri leaves
Gas Warfare
I've spent nearly 6 years of marriage without farting once in front of my wife. I know, I have some serious issues, there's something about farting that repulses me.
I don't mind burping, but the fart for some reason is a nono.
It took a week of eating veggies to throw this out of the window, just like that...
I wasn't prepared for this. Apparently, it has something to do with the fact that your gut flora is adjusting to your new diet, the fact is that I've farted more in a week that I probably did in a lifetime. It apparently doesn't stay forever, and your body eventually adjusts to the diet change.
And it's not just the farting. I had to go to the bathroom every hour to pop some rabbit poops, and still feeling that I didn't accomplish much in there.
I can't believe I am being that real right now...
Mushrooms cooked in cream (yep I am not crazy) with spinach
Energy and recovery
I work out every day from Monday to Sunday, and, so it was interesting to see the shift in my energy levels. After a few days, I could really feel lighter on my feet, having no issue to wake up very early, and much better cardio. I guess digesting meat does take indeed a whole lot of work and a toll on your body.
There's one day, I think it was Monday, where I passed out after coming back from work, my body just gave up, a tingling sensation in my arms and legs, and probably a bit more irritable than usual, but we will get back on this in a moment.
I certainly looked better, more refreshed, and my body fat percentage drastically dropped to 8-10% within the first 48 hours. I looked good, but did I feel good?
Well after only 2 days of changing diet, I injured myself at soccer on Thursday night between my shoulder blades. It was more like a pinched muscle and it went away after 24 hours.
However, the last night, I sprained both of my thighs after playing soccer again, and I couldn't walk. I was in so much pain, I had to stay away from running for at least 5 days.
The fact is that inadequate protein consumption, leads to protein deficiency, slow recovery and you are becoming prone to injury.
Edema, fatty liver, hair, skin and nails issues, poor growth and weaken the immune system. I felt that I lost muscle mass and even my bones felt less dense.
I know that I am gonna infuriate vegans, and I am not saying that it isn't possible to still lead a healthy life on a vegan diet, but you might want to add protein shakes or hemp protein (unstable polyunsaturated fatty acids). So it was obvious that I would weaken myself after a few days, and swim against the current.
Update (1 month later): I injured myself again, showing that it might just have been because I am getting older and careless, meat or no meat...Damn...
Photo from pixabay
Agressivity
I have to admit, I think it was easier for me to stop smoking weed than to stop eating meat.
I feel that it triggered a very primal instinct, i went into "hunting mode", argued with my coworkers, people walking by, dogs barking, and some of my customers. I went into full confrontation mode, full head-on collision, with absolute no fuck given for the repercussions.
It's apparently linked to the fact that meat is a source of tryptophan, amino acid, and precursor to the feel-good chemical serotonin. Low levels tryptophan are associated with an increase in aggression, and I think some people are just more subject to it than others.
As mentioned earlier, I was born with a piece of meat in my hand, meaning I could just eat meat all day and was discarding the greens, I can see that my children are doing the same naturally, even if I can't deny the cultural impact that we/society might have enforced, I notice that there's a part of them behaving almost instinctively, drawn to meat.
It might be linked to our own ancestral lineage, some people are just descending from a more carnivore oriented culture and it might have impacted the way they process and metabolize food throughout centuries of the same diet, even millennia, whereas some of us might just have been more drawn to a more plant-based diet because their ancestors were better gatherers a very long time ago.
During the end, my wife indulged herself with a poached egg and aubergine curry. Advice: Do not deny anything to a pregnant woman!
Consumption
I had to eat way more than usual. I started with 5 meals a day (breakfast - 930am - 12 pm - 15 pm - 1930pm) and ended up today with literally a meal every hour (9 meals a day).
I had a tomato and cucumber sandwich every hour, I added cheese the last few days, because I am not a turtle, though I would probably eat one right now.
I come from the country of Camembert, Brie, Roquefort, Raclette, Gruyere, so I have to admit that it was hard to let go of the cheese and I went back to it almost immediately, so I've never really experienced a full vegan diet, but more of a vegetarian one (and pescetarian the last week).
Surprisingly I didn't lose weight this week, making sure that I eat my fair amount of carbohydrates, and still managed to work out every day and feeling energized. However I got leaner, my body fat percentage drastically lowered, which is a good thing
Vitamin-wise this is what I lacked this week:(which can be easily fixed with supplements)
Amino acids(taurine), collagen, gelatin proteins, quality fats(saturated fats, cholesterols, omega 3, CLA or conjugated linoleic acid, DHA or docosahexaenoic acid).
Essential minerals (calcium, heme Iron, zinc), vitamin K ( K1 can be found in plant and K2 in animal foods such as butter, cheese, milk, eggs, meat, and liver). Most of the vegetables contain small amount of absorbable calcium but you need to eat large quantity to benefit from it, something like 2 pounds a day(1kg).
Vitamin D(sun exposure might help produce it, however, the morning sun is apparently less efficient, and I spent my days at work in an office), so it might be more practical to add fish to your diet at least once a week.
Vitamin A (some people can easily convert the plant version of the vitamin A into the animal version of the vitamin A, depending on your genetic profile this conversion can vary by as much as 700%)
Vitamin B12 (important for brain function), creatine, choline, carnitine, and carnosine.
Conclusion
It was very interesting and eye-opening. I have respect for vegans, especially knowing how much they to work to reach a balanced diet and fight the good cause.
It's not impossible, however, it will require a lot of dedication, consistency, and an awareness of what you need to add to get a complete diet.
From an ethical standpoint, vegans are an example to all, as they probably respect life in so many ways, and I have the utmost admiration for them.
I don't think there's a "however", I just realize that right now a vegan diet doesn't fit my lifestyle.
Does it mean that I am rushing to KFC and add meat to every meal?
Certainly not, I will try to limit my consumption to a reasonable amount, but I have to be realistic, there are deficiencies that I cannot allow myself to have to maintain a healthy brain, and body, and the same goes for my family.
It's important not to end up disrespecting the vegan community when writing about such an experiment, I know that they are very passionate about their diet, and I respect that.
Maybe in a distant future, I can too choose to do the same but for now I can see myself focusing on avoiding to tap into the agro-alimentary industrial complex (meat or plant-based) because they do not respect as it's pretty clear that we're destroying ourselves by doing so.
I hope that in the future we can become more aware of the impact of what we eat on life on earth, and maybe find a kinder way to grow and raise our food.
Spinach pasta with home-made free-range chicken wings
Raspberries home-made baked cheesecake
