The Vegan and Vegetarian Secrets Blog …

People are constantly asking me what the best way to succeed with living a vegan lifestyle is.

We’ll get to that in a second but first let me clarify that my answer to this question is the same for almost any goal you would want to set.

Here’s my answer…

‘Try Modeling Others.’

In my opinion, the best and fastest way to succeed within a vegan lifestyle is to locate others who have already accomplished what you are aiming at and find out how they did it, period.

That’s right! Maybe you’ve heard this before that you don’t have to re-invent the wheel?

This actually can apply to any form of success your aiming at (i.e. lifestyle, nutrition, meditation, business, sport, goal setting etc.)

Once you have found others that have reached a level of success you are seeking…

Either ask them or yourself a few questions just like these:

“How did they get from being a non-vegan to being a full fledge vegan in this meat-eating world?”

“How are they attaining the successful results wtih their nutrition and lifestyle today?”

“What are they doing that I am not doing, but need to start doing so I can get even healthier?”

“If I’m not successful can I seek from their example to help me understand what not to do?”

Sometimes you may even be lucky enough to either talk with them directly or grab access to some form of information product like books, audios or videos with such top performers where they can help share some of their own personal secrets to living the vegan and/or vegetarian lifestyle. You may even discover the secret strategies to their outstanding health.

When you have an opportunity like that, it can be pure gold.

Usually the only problem with this is that the investment to meet with a top consultant is out of reach for most people due to all the commitments we have as humans living in this very busy world.

But then every once in a while you might stumble across people truly “paying it forward” by sharing some of their secrets for free or for a small price of what they could charge for consultation.

Here is an example of that in action:

Vegan Secrets

Take a look for yourself and see just how valuable this information can be for taking you to the top of your vegan or vegetarian existance. Going to the next level in your health will benefit you on every level.

You’ll understand the ins and outs of others who are living abundantly on a vegan lifestyle as they share exactly how they peak those results and more importantly how you can maximize your own results using some of the same methods.

Many of the strategies and techniques shared are exactly what I was discussing with several contacts recently. This IS the stuff the successful ones use to reach better health, avoid illness, plus gain more energy.

Remember don’t try to re-invent the wheel. Simply follow the path of those who have already driven the road to health and success and learn from those around you. 

Food for Life Global knows that there is nothing as “cutting edge” and cool as going veg. And according to a report done by the University of Chicago going vegetarian actually reduces carbon dioxide emissions 50% more than buying a new $20,000 Toyota Prius! 

 Food for Life Global promotes the growth of self-reliant communities through the distribution of pure vegetarian food and education on the value of holistic simple living.

This year we hope to make this message clear: that the “greenest technology” is to invest in our own bodies and stop eating meat!

Even the UN recently acknoledged that animal agriculture is the biggest contributor to global warming, and yet why don’t we hear more about the merits of a veg diet?

We urge our friends to get behind Food for Life Global this year and help our volunteers at Burning Man put some plain old common sense into the discussion.

Help them by donating for green food distribution, eco-friendly educational materials, and promotion of the next step in conscious evolution.

(Krishna Camp is an official branch of Food for Life Global whose members are passionate about pushing the edge of positive environmental and conscious change).

Please support them now!

My new favourite vegan thing this week would have to be ‘Fabulous Fudge Factory’s’ Dairy Free Fudge. Finally it has arrived Down Under and when I first tried it this week I was in total heaven.

Now I have to say I’ve NEVER been into fudge that much, but was always a huge ‘Coconut Ice’ fan (anything coconut has always been at the TOP of my wish list), due to the fact that it was one of those great treats my mother use to make us kids when we were young (Mmm … I still remember the days!). And it just so happens I’ve been trying to source out a really good quality vegan coconut ice recipe or actual product for the past few months, so when Jeremy from Vegan Perfection informed me that he had just added fudge (including a coconut ice variety) to his list of goodies I had to try it – desperation was getting a hold of me afterall.

The great thing about this fudge is that it’s approved by the vegetarian society, is vegetarian and vegan suitable – dairy free of course, has no hydrogenated fats, artificial colours or preservatives, is cholesterol free, all ingredients are GM free plus it’s also gluten free.

Fabulous Fudge Factory fudge is made in Devon, England where confectioners understand fudge. Made to a special recipe, and avialable in 3 delicious flavours – Vanilla, Coconut Ice and Cranberry – fudge lovers will delight at these dairy-free, cruelty-free products.

And if all that’s not enough to get your tongues wagging then check this out . . . ‘Fabulous Fudge’ has won Gold at the “Great Taste Award” – Regarded as the industry Oscars, The Guild of Fine Foods Annual Great Taste Awards are the UK’s largest Independent evaluation of fine foods.

If you love fudge then I suggest you check this brand out, you won’t be disappointed. It might just hit the top of your own new favourites list too.

Go to Vegan Perfection to find out more or grab some heaven for yourself.

P.S. The coconut ice flavour is to die for!

Note from Rebecca Bennett: This is an article I wrote recently as I was thinking about the ‘right or wrong’ issue with life.

I once read this statement somewhere: ‘There is no right or wrong – There is only what serves you and what does not.’

So how can one explain such a statement within the vegetarian context of life?

Let me put it to you this way, if there is no right or wrong but only that which serves you or does not serve you would I be correct in saying that eating, wearing and unhumanely torturing animals does NOT serve human living on almost all levels as a whole on this planet?

Let me explain further ….

I do not feel that consuming animals serves humanity on any level and I can state this for quite a few reasons however I will keep my response much shorter to just two of the main key points why.

1) Did you Know that living a Vegetarian Lifestyle Could Help Impact MASSIVE Changes in Global Warming?

Well here are just a few reasons why . . .

• It takes 22 times the acres of land to meet the food energy needs of one person eating meat than it does for one person eating potatoes.
• It takes more than 13 times the water to produce one day’s food supply for an omnivore than it does for a vegan.
• It takes 27 times the petroleum to produce a hamburger than it does a soy burger.
• The land animals confined and killed every year excrete 130 times the faeces and urine produced by humans.
• Livestock production also utilizes more than eight percent of global water use, primarily for feed-crop irrigation.
• The annual greenhouse gas output from burger consumption is the equivalent to the annual greenhouse gas output from between four and 13 million SUVs.
• In the Amazon, approximately 60-70 percent of deforestation results from cattle ranches and soybean cultivation.
• And according to a UN FAO report, “in all, livestock production amounts to 70 percent of all agricultural land and 30 percent of the land surface of this planet.” The USDA says growing crops for animals takes up 80 percent of the agricultural land in the US and animals raised for food in the US consume 90 percent of the soy crop, 80 percent of the corn and 70 percent of its grain.

(Ref: VegNews)

2) Do You Remember being told to Eat your Fruit and Vegetables as a Child (or you might not grow up big and strong)?

Well by replacing animal foods with plant foods this helps reduce saturated fat and cholesterol and increases healthy fiber, vitamin C, folate and carotenoids.

Research has shown that a diet rich in fruit and vegetables can decrease the risk of having a heart attack or stroke, protect against a variety of cancers, lower blood pressure plus has many other health benefits to help you prevent disease.

According to Dr T. Colin Campbell, nutritional researcher at Cornell University and director of the largest epidemiological study in history, “The vast majority of all cancers, cardiovascular diseases, and other forms of degenerative illness can be prevented simply by adopting a plant-based diet.” (i.e. a pure vegetarian diet with no animal by-products).

Plus just think about this for a moment: some of the world’s largest and strongest animals are pure vegetarians e.g. The Elephant, Hippo, Giraffe, Rhino, Cattle, Horses, Gorilla etc. And they seem to be thriving very well living off vegetation and have done so for many hundreds of years. . . . So does this not at least show you that to grow up big and strong we as humans too can gain all of the nutrients and dietary requirements solely from plant sources alone? Of course it does – common sense confirms this statement plus there have been countless studies with much evidence to show that a pure vegetarian diet is one of the healthiest choices you can make for you, the animals and the planet.

After reading the above 2 key points can you see more awareness that just maybe animal consumerism on all levels does not serve humanity and only adds to the suffering, disease and unhealthy environment for every species that lives on this planet we call EARTH.

The moral to my ranting is this, the ‘right or wrong’ argument … does right and wrong really exist? – maybe/maybe not. Could it just be an illusion … well I’ll leave it up to you to decide that viewpoint. But remember this, the real truth to life should be about what serves or what does not serve.

I personally believe that pure vegetarian living does serve humanity in so many positive ways it would take me a book to explain them all, but to sum it up in four simple words I would have to say it means ‘positive evolution for all.’ Any form of abuse in my humble opinion does NOT serve us. Animal abuse/testing, human abuse etc. no matter what form of control/abuse it is – can going to war on anyone or anything ever create peace on earth? … Somehow when drawing up my own conclusions to this question, it always seems to come back to “NO.”

So are you educated enough to figure out the answer that might just serve you and your loved ones for the positive  whilst also being ethically sound? (And if you are reading our vegan blog I’m sure you are up to speed with it all, but if not I urge you to think about what I’ve stated here a little more often). If you (or your loved ones) look into it without falling prey to the illusionary conditions of society you may just figure out that what serves you as a living being on this planet might just serve every other being (no matter if they are human or animal).

Just maybe you already know the Truth – you just have to allow it.  

“True discipline is being a discipline to your highest self!”

(Quotation by John Robbins)

by Jeff Popick

Michael Moore’s movie, “Sicko,” is his attempt at placing blame for the American health care crisis on the shoulders of the pharmaceutical companies and the government. Clearly, governmental agencies that are supposedly looking out for the welfare of the citizens are far from innocent, and pharmaceutical companies are anything but good Samaritans, but Michael couldn’t be more wrong on this one and need not look too much further than his own mirror to see the real problem. His denial is problem #2.

The fact is, Michael Moore is just another cog in the big, dysfunctional machine that Americans currently call “health care.” It is actually “disease care,” and therein lies problem #3. Are you beginning to see a pattern here?

Michael Moore, even just at a cursory glance, is flamboyantly committing at least two of the “seven deadly sins” – gluttony and sloth. And he wants health? Michael Moore wants to engage in a problematic way of life and then make those problems that he’s created someone else’s problem. That’s problem # 4. Where does personal responsibility fit in to Michael Moore’s paradigm? Perhaps, it’s just one of those annoying little details he’s overlooked. Where does self-control fit in to his lifestyle? Another annoying, trivial detail, I suppose.

For those who care to deal in reality, until people take responsibility for their own lives and their own health, there will not be health. Nor can the government fix the problem. It is patently impossible to live a disease-producing lifestyle and then expect someone, or something, else to be able to fix it. The health care system is not about health at all, rather it is all about financing disease. And people such as Michael Moore create disease. What we have in this country is disease care, and I suggest Michael Moore be its poster child.

The truth is, our diet is directly responsible for well over 80 percent of the diseases from which we suffer. Heart disease, diabetes, hypertension, gout, cancer, high cholesterol, acid reflux, constipation, obesity, to name a few, are directly attributable to what we put in our mouths, and it is quite obvious that Michael Moore puts a whole lot into his mouth.

The governmental issue of health care exists simply and totally because of people like Michael Moore, and the “war” being waged against disease is folly. If people began eating the right foods, we wouldn’t need to wage a war, we would quite literally eradicate the need for the war. So, what’s the real solution?

People who follow the healthiest diet in the world, a vegan diet, don’t suffer from many cancers, heart disease, hypertension, obesity, etc., etc., etc. So why don’t doctors tell their patients about the enormous benefits of a vegan diet? Not only would diseases vanish, but so, too, would the doctors’ incomes. Also, perhaps, many patients simply wouldn’t follow the advice, so the doctors simply don’t bother. And disease marches on.

And so do most environmental problems, which also stem from a meat and dairy-based diet. To be clear, a meat and dairy-based diet is problematic to our health, our environment, our society and even our spirituality, wheras a vegan diet cures all problems. I suppose Michael Moore would scoff at such a suggestion, and then blame the United States government for the cost of the heart bypass operation (for starters) he’s going to need.

Any man who truly wishes to improve his life must stop blaming everyone else for the problems he creates. Otherwise, and by any real definition, he is a Sicko. Michael, put down the burger and listen up.

About the Author: Jeff Popick, also known as “The Vegan Sage,” is a keen visionary and a leading expert on the diverse effects our diet has on our health, environment & even our spirituality. Jeff has worn many hats over the years, from Hollywood stunt man, to radio host (“Vegetarian Lifestyles,” KIEV 870AM) to millionaire businessman to passionate author & speaker. For more info go to Jeff Popick or The Real Forbidden Fruit.

This avocado recipe has a very nice twist on the usual cold salad style. You can top this with either vegan grated cheese, parmesan or simply leave the cheese alternative off it. It’s great with or without the cheese topping.

You will need:

• 3 medium avocados
• 1 medium tomato
• 1 medium red onion, finely chopped
• 1 red capsicum, finely chopped
• 1 stick celery, finely chopped
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 2 teaspoons sweet chilli sauce
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 1 cup grated vegan cheese (optional)

Here’s what to do with your ingredients:

1. Preheat oven to moderate 180 C, and prepare a non-stick oven tray.
2. Cut avocados in half lengthways and remove seeds. Scoop out two-thirds of the flesh, roughly chop. Retain shells.
3. Peel, seed and finely chop tomato. Combine avocado, tomato, onion, capsicum and celery in a medium bowl.
4. Combine sugar, chilli sauce and vinegar in a small screw-top jar. Shake until combined and pour over the other ingredients in bowl and mix well.
5. Next spoon the fill into avocado halves; sprinkle with the vegan cheese. Place onto prepared oven tray and bake for 7-10 minutes or until heated through.
6. Serve immediately with corn chips, crackers or sour dough bread.

We’ve known for years that vegetarians make better lovers. Physicians agree that eating meat clogs up the arteries that go to all organs, not just the heart, which means that eating meat causes impotence. Because pure vegetarians are about one-ninth as likely as meat-eaters to be overweight and report that they need less sleep and have more energy than meat-eaters, you will become more appealing in the bedroom.

But there’s even more good news: Many vegan foods are loaded with natural aphrodisiacs—nutrients and chemicals that boost your and your partner’s sexual arousal and performance. Research has shown that vegetarians enjoy greater amounts of the nutrients that help boost sexual health and performance—such as vitamins A, C, and E and potassium—than meat-eaters do.

Watch a Sexy Veg Video Here

** Plus you’ll find out Why the below listed foods are great for your love life.

• asparagus
• bananas
• berries
• carrots
• chili peppers
• chocolate
• ginger
• licorice
• nuts
• pumpkin
• soy

Here’s a nice recipe for those who are addicted to ‘Peach Cobbler’. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 4 c. peaches, sliced
• ½ c. brown sugar
• 4 tsp. arrowroot powder
• ¼ tsp. nutmeg
• ½ c. water
• 1 T. lemon juice
• 1 c. self-rising flour
• 2 T. sugar
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• ¼ c. vegetable oil
• 1/3 c. water
• Pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.  In a medium pot, combine brown sugar, arrowroot, nutmeg, and ½ c. water.  Cook over low heat, stirring until bubbly and the mixture begins to thicken.  Add the peaches and the lemon juice.  Cook until the entire mixture is heated through.  Place in a 1-½ quart casserole dish.

To make the cobbler topping, mix together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and a small pinch of salt.  Stir in the oil and the water.  Mix lightly, until the mixture is thoroughly moistened.  Spoon the biscuit mixture over the hot fruit filling in about 6 mounds.  Bake for 20 to 25 minutes and serve warm.

This is a really easy ‘ice cream’ alternative for those who may not have an ice cream making machine or are in a rush to make it simple.

You will need: 1/2 cup ground cashews, 2 ripe bananas, 1 t vanilla and 4 fresh dates.

Blend all ingredients together and freeze. Then stir to ensure consistency.