Game Changers-Making the Change

So this week I watched the documentary "Game Changers" on Netflix. Now I have to say I was usually always very flippant and dismissive about vegan and vegetarian diets, I grew up in Alberta where beef is a staple part of our diet in addition to this I grew up in a family where my grandfather was a butcher and though he died before I was born his legacy lived on very much in the way my family approached food. In my experience I had only ever experienced extreme versions of these ways of eating but I never really took the time to find out why or what had caused these people to make the decision to live this way.

Now taking you all a back a step into my story, as some of you may know I have been struggling with a multitude of health issues in recent years. This has resulted in me being diagnosed with Ehlers-Danlos Type 3 (Hypermobility), Irritable Bowel Syndrome, Adenymyosis ( A condition similar to endometriosis) and Raynaud's Syndrome. I also have high cholesterol despite living a healthy life being active, never smoking and very very rarely drinking. I was told that I would be on statins by the age of 40, the doctor I saw suggested making lifestyle changes to try to reduce my cholesterol, even though at the time of the appointment and knowing my lifestyle was unable to provide me with constructive changes to make, only to suggest that if I find anything I can change to consider it.. Helpful!! My medical history is starting to read a bit like an article from a medical journal and I frequently joke that when I die I am going to leave my body to science.

Now as you are reading my blog you will know from previous posts about my journey with food, eating well and weight loss, as well as my passion with Running, Triathlon and Weights. in addition to the above conditions, I also had my gall bladder removed last year, and since then I have struggled with what I could eat safely before I felt unwell, which has spurred me on a journey of discovery of what foods can help me manage my conditions. There are many ways of eating out there to manage IBS and there are other ways of managing gynaecological issues like adenymyosis. These ways of eating do not always run symbiotically beside each other but one thing that both had in common was gluten, so I have cut out gluten but it has to be said that this can prove to be difficult and requires a degree of organisation and planning which at times is definately not my strong point. If I was Celiac I am fairly certain I would be in serious trouble as will power is in short supply more often than not when it comes to the office cakes and biscuits.

However simply cutting out gluten isn't enough as when I eat meat my stomach is not happy about it and it makes it known in no uncertain terms I Feel stodgy, bloated, heavy, crampy and at times physically sick. So when I watched the documentary "Game Changers" it made perfect sense that I should to adopt a more plant based diet in an attempt to manage my symptoms, which lately have been becoming worse.

Now in addition to the fact that my body has already forced me to cut meat from my diet, this documentary made some very real and valid scientific cases of how a more plant based diet can impact our health for the better, one of which was a significant reduction in cholesterol but also examples of improved athletic performance. Now it really had my attention and have found this fascinating, but to my surprise so did my 57 year old, British, meat and two veg, Sunday Roast dinner loving husband! Not only have I decided to become vegetarian, but Brian was so bowled over by the examples of evidence that was presented in this documentary about the health benefits of this way of eating that he has decided to give being a Pescatarian a try (vegetarian but will eat fish)... Definately wasn't expecting that!

So here we are almost one week into our meat free week..I have found some really great recipes for dinners and so far we are enjoying the new and creative ways in which I have been able to serve vegetables but in a way that no one has felt deprived and also delicious! I think the real challenge will be to continue to find exciting ways to make this way of eating work for us and our busy lives. The children can continue to eat meat should they so wish, as that will need to be a choice they make though George has always been a vegetarian he has never ever liked meat and this has become quite a comical topic in our house as we always viewed George's incredibly restricted diet a bit odd turns out he may have been the healthiest one of us all.

I am certainly hoping that by cutting out meat and the majority of animal products that I can reduce the amount of inflammation I experience and the pain that I am in, and I shall keep you updated on our progress and whether I notice any benefit to my own athletic performance. By deciding to try this way of eating I have discovered a website called Deliciously Ella. They have amazingly tasty products, but also their website has some incredible recipes and I have also really enjoyed listening to the podcast. The name sake Ella Mills became vegan in 2012 and incidentally through writing this blog I found out that the reason she became vegan was that she was also diagnosed with Ehler-Danlos syndrome and she has been on a mission to make plant based food delicious and make this way of life something normal every day people can live. Check it out! #deliciouslyella https://deliciouslyella.com/

Link to Game Changers trailer here on Youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iSpglxHTJVM