Week Ten: Vegan "ish" Meal Plan

Last summer I decided to take on the challenge of preparing for a bikini competition and found myself eating a very strict diet of chicken, turkey, beef, sweet potatoes, oats and rice.

You can imagine how bland and boring this was!

This way of eating is referred to as “bro-dieting” and is a method of eating that is popular among the fitness community and one way of eating that many bodybuilding athletes utilize to get in stage condition.

While I did get into awesome shape, by the end of the summer, you can believe I was ready to take a break from a lot of these foods, particularly animal protein.

It’s not that I didn’t feel good, I just really wanted to try some alternative protein sources and brighten up my diet with a fresh variety of fruits and veggies and I began to experiment with vegetarian recipes because I knew that a very limited diet with alot of animal protein was not good for my body, my digestion or long term health.

However, I knew that for me, it would be difficult to keep my weight off without incorporating some non-vegan foods like dairy and eggs. And so, this week you have a sample Vegan-ish meal plan that I have followed and loved!!

My greatest criticism of many vegetarian meal plans was that they were low in protein and high in carbs. I have always had the best results with a moderate protein and carb diet. By incorporating low fat dairy options like 1% cottage cheese, egg whites and low fat cheese into my vegan-ish meal plan, I was able to keep my macros in check and give my body a ton of new foods.

My Hawaiian Veggie Burger incorporates the store bought Boca Burger patty which is made from TVP or texturized veggie protein. TVP, is a manufactured soy product and frequently used as a meat replacement that has a texture that resembles ground beef or turkey. I have paired the Quick and Light Open Faced Avocado Toast with 2 Morningstar Farms Breakfast Veggie Sausage Links which have 9 grams of vegetarian protein and taste just like the real thing!

To add color and the antioxidant power of 50 bio available fruit and vegetables, the Momshells Superfood Smoothie includes one of my must have supplements, 1st Phorm Opti Greens 50. I started taking this supplement routinely last year and I have never felt better! In reality, our daily diets, even when they are quite healthy, are typically low or void of things like grasses, superfoods and phytonutrients. Opti Greens 50 is a great tasting formulated greens powder that contains digestive enzymes and probiotics to help achieve optimum pH balance in the body.

I LOVE the taste of these greens but I started blending them with berries and 1st Phorm Vegan Power Pro Protein Powder, which is a plant based, all natural, non-GMO and gluten free protein powder for a delicious and super power smoothie! I am obsessed with this! My hair and skin has never looked better and my digestion is spot on:)

While I am back to eating more chicken, fish, beef and turkey, I do enjoy incorporating vegan dishes into my weekly meal plan to give my body different sources of protein to keep things interesting and to stay healthy!

I hope you love the options in this week’s meal plan!

Enjoy!

xoxo Gillian

This Is For Momshells 💖