When it comes to diets, I usually the last person in the world to jump on board. Those popular eating plans and cleanses - South Beach, No Carbs, Master Cleanse, etc - always seemed to be a 'quick-fix' way to lose weight that involve restricting your diet in one way or another (although some people do make it work). For myself, when it comes to food I'm very passionate. I cannot live without Pasta (fettuccine alfredo), desserts, and carbs; theirs no way I could ever give those goodies up in the name of losing weight.
Over the period of eight months, I noticed myself getting lazy with my food. Being a vegetarian, my options are somewhat limited. I found myself dining out a lot, and eating a lot of junky food. After Christmas, I decided to make some changes. Going to the bookstore, I found this pretty little book titled The Gorgeously Green Diet by Sophie Uliano. I flipped through the book, and decided on a whim to buy it.
It was one of the best decisions I've made in awhile.
Why? Well, my eating habits have changed for the better. I no longer buy fast food and expensive cafeteria meals. My clothes feel more comfortable, and don't cling tightly in all the wrong places. My energy levels are much higher, and stay that way all day. I've also noticed an improvement in my focus levels in school.
Basically, I feel that this book is more of a lifestyle than a diet. It's suited for vegetarians and meat eaters alike.
Here's a brief breakdown of the book:
Chapters 1-3: Uliano introduces her topic, and then goes on to discuss the eco-impacts of our food, and why we deserve to eat real, yummy, fresh, and filling food.
Chapters 4-6: My favourite part of the book, and the pages I flip to the most. Uliano goes into detail about the pesticides that go on our food. She talks about what we should by organic, and discusses the main food groups. Chapter 5 is the meal plans! I love these, as they break down everything you will be eating in two weeks. These really are fantastic.
The rest of the book deals with purging your pantry, excersize, beauty, more about organic food, recycling and recipes. Most of the recipes are really easy to make, and actually taste pretty darn good.
Pros:
*Each day is broken up into six meals/snacks. Every day starts with a glass of lemon water, and then goes on to breakfast, mid-morning snack, lunch, mid-afternoon snack, and then dinner.
*It gets your metabolism going! You will eat a lot. You may think you will gain weight, but actually, it speeds up your metabolism and helps your system burn fat.
*You will never be hungry on this diet.
*You will bring really delicious things with you to work and school to munch on.
*It teaches you how to snack properly
*It gives you three diet-plan options. "Light Green" for starting out, "Bright Green" for already healthy eaters/environmentally friendly people, and "Dark Green" to go full-on eco-friendly.
*The recipes include curries, salads, shakes, desserts, soups, casseroles, and more.
*You get to eat lots of rich, full-fat food (my favourite part) in moderation.
*Their is no compromise on flavour.
*The quality of food you eat will increase tenfold.
*You will actually get your 4-5 servings of fruit/veggies a day, but they will all taste great the way Uliano suggests you prepare them.
*You will lessen you eco-footprint.
*You will save money on food after the first few weeks on the diet.
*You will help stop bad farming practices, and will aid in animal welfare.
*You will have so much energy!!!
Cons:
*Sometimes the meal plans can feel scattered. For instance, in one meal she will have a vegan suggestion, and in the other she won't.
*Some of the chapters feel a little airy-fairy, but it still makes for a good read.
*She includes the shopping lists after each diet plan, but I don't suggest you use them unless you are following the diet exactly (for instance, I didn't eat the lamb chops since I'm a Veg, and I ended up buying fresh rosemary that I didn't use).
*She doesn't mention that the first few weeks will be expensive. The reason for this is, you need to buy all the ingredients to make this stuff. whether its tahini, sundried tomatoes, or almond butter, it adds up on the bill, but lasts a long time in your fridge. Eating this way does get cheaper as the weeks go on.
All in all, I think this book is a fantastic read. Even if you already eat pretty healthy, you will probably learn a thing or two from it, even if its just a really good curry or some quick snacking ideas. I think the best part of this whole 'diet' is that it's not restrictive at all. I can still treat myself with a cupcake from the little shop down the street, and I get to eat all the decadent food I want. Of course, moderation is the answer to eating all these rich foods.
You can also check out Sophie Uliano's website
here. 
These lights have been up since Christmas, and I thought they were beautiful.
These weirdos have a picture of pinhead on the back of their truck. They were being very, very obnoxious, yelling things out their windows and blasting their music. At least they were having fun.
I'll be heading down there again tomorrow...for my Birthday Party! More pics of Olympic madness coming soon! Hope you're all having a fabulous week, 
I'll be heading down there again tomorrow...for my Birthday Party! More pics of Olympic madness coming soon! Hope you're all having a fabulous week, 
On New Years Day I was feeling blah, so I decided to colour my hair dark brown. It's a change for me, who has had blonde hair my entire life, changing it only last year to red for the first time ever.
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