What I’ve Been Eating (One-Year Challenge)

Ive got more updates for you coming up about my One-Year Challenge. If you missed it, I decided this year to do a No-Compromise Challenge. Here are the elements of my challenge, for 2023:

• Diet: Consuming no concentrated sources of fat (oil, avocados, nuts, seeds, and coconut products.) and eating strictly plant-based.
• Exercising daily.
• Consuming no alcohol.
• Quitting caffeine

Today, I want to talk about the specifics of what Ive been eating.

Its not that different from what Ive done in the past. Its a mixture of my own low-fat diet of the past, Dr. Esselstyn and Dr. McDougall.

I eat:

• Fruits, vegetables raw or cooked.
• Grains, mostly whole, but some refined.
• Some condiments.

I dont eat:

• Anything that contains oil.
• Avocados, nuts, seeds, or coconuts.
• Animal foods, including chicken, cheese, milk products, eggs, and fish.
• Anything that Im not 100% sure of the ingredients.

I also dont take any supplements. But the no-sugar, no-oil soy milk that I use contains added vitamin B12, and some vitamin D. so Im getting some that way.

I mostly stick to three meals a day plus a snack. I dont really care about trying to eat something specific for breakfast every day, like oats or fruit. I often eat vegetable soup for breakfast, or leftover rice and beans. Other days, I eat something sweeter, like a cereal bowl or fruit.

Here are some examples of the foods Ive been eating.

Vegetable Soup I make a big batch of vegetable soup and eat it throughout the week. It always contains white beans and a different selection of veggies.

Its been cold in Montreal, so Im not eating much salad. But I would eat big salads if it were summer.

Pasta e ceci This is a delicious Italian recipe, which means pasta and chickpeas. Its a thick savory stew, containing tomatoes, small pasta and chickpeas.

Black beans I eat lots of black beans, turned into spreads or dips, or alongside rice or potatoes.

Potatoes Speaking of which, Ive been eating lots of potatoes, mostly white. A meal can be: potatoes, black beans, corn and salsa.

Pico de Gallo I love making a fresh tomato and oignon salsa.

Fat-free hummus I came up with a great version of this recipe, which is basically a chickpea spread.

Pita sandwiches One of my favorite recipes is a sort of pita burrito (in the same shape as the Lebanese pita sandwich), which contains my fat-free hummus and lots of toppings.

Burritos a variation of that can be made with a black bean spread inside an Ezekiel no-oil added tortilla.

Rice dishes the simplest being rice and beans.

Cereal bowls My idea of a cereal bowl is to use rolled oats, uncooked, with another type of cereal, like the Ezekiel brand, topped with lots of fruit, some raisons, and plant-based milk.

Of course, I eat fruit on its own.

These were just some examples of what I make. I think the reason why its so delicious is that I make almost everything from scratch. I never use canned beans, for examples. It doesnt take that much time, but it makes a huge difference.

Ill be giving you more details in the future, but this article was just to give you a basic idea.

This diet is easier to follow than a raw-vegan diet. The health results have also been more impressive for me. But in terms of macro-nutrients, its close to a low-fat raw vegan diet, so roughly: 10-12% protein, 7% fat, and at least 80% carbohydrates.

Ill be sending my 60-day health update soon!

Frederic

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