To Infinity and beyoooond.......FACE!
So it is Sunday night and I have official been one week in on my new journey. I've started meditating, I've been to Ulta, I've dusted off old workout DVDs, and as of today I've been on my first Whole Foods shopping trip!
Now I must make sure that I add that I haven't started the actual vegan eating and I haven't actually started working out -Tomorrow. Tomorrow, I promise. You know, you gotta ease into this.....
As I stated, today was my first shopping trip at Whole Foods and I must say I was intrigued by the atmosphere there. The very first thing i noticed about this store is that it is compact. There really wasn't a lot of cart room to navigate. But at the same time the people you were literally rubbing shoulders with were extremely friendly. One lady helped me when I was super lost at how to buy my beans in bulk. She showed me where the paper and plastic bags where to hold my beans and showed me the pen where I write down the PLU number on the bag so the cashier can ring me up correctly.
After walking around the store in awe for about 15 minutes, this guy named Jaime doing demos showed me pretty much everything I was looking for a suggested much more! Girl, let me tell you.... Going vegan ain't gone be as hard as I thought! There are soooo many substitutes for all my favorite meals! So I bought all the things I needed for spaghetti, tacos, red beans and rice, and smothered potatoes.
My plan is to start off small and work my way into veganism and make meals to last for about two weeks of meal planning. One of the misconceptions i personally had about being a vegan that stalled me from converting was the fact that I would be in the kitchen for hours to make meals! So far that theory is NOT TRUE! I made meaty meatless spaghetti in under 30 minutes (YouTube vlog to
come). So I'll eat on spaghetti for a few days. I even bought all the things i needed for tacos!!! I got meatless ground beef, corn tortillas, tofu like sour cream and tofu like shredded cheese! Like for real though?? Tacos? Yup!
Another misconception I also had about being vegan and by the Instagram posts is that once I walked into Whole Foods I'll walk out with a loaf of bread and yogurt for $700! Totally not true! Now I will say this.... I ain't buying no fruits there! Nuh uh! But I did get all i needed for about $65. Now my bill did come out to be $106 and some change but that is because I got some one time big ticket items like protein that was $21.99, coconut oil that was 7.99, and African black soap shampoo that was 8.99 (my mama was gonna cook my food for me and do my hair and I forgot my shampoo at home). Then I went to Cub Foods for my fruit. So I must say about $120 every two weeks in groceries is suffice.
Man I can't wait to let you know how my first week will go! I'm super excited about this. Slowly but surely I'll expand my palette. This has been a long time coming..
I totally forgot that I purchased INSANITY about 4 years ago! Girl it's time to push these tables to the side hunty! Another DVD I blew dust off of that I actually really liked was Jillian Michaels Yoga Meltdown. My plan is to do the yoga in the morning because here in Minneapolis it's getting a bit nippy and I'm not yet dedicated to my fitness like that to look forward to freezing my ass off outside. NOPE! Then Ill do Insanity when I get home after work. I do have a gym at my place of work and I'm thinking that if I miss my morning or if I know I'm not gonna do my night workout ill jump on the treadmill there. This is my primary worry... I don't like working out. Ugh! I loathe the thought that I have to wake up earlier than I have to Just to workout. Hell, That's why I got dreads! Like, who really likes getting up early to do hair and exercise? Who does that?? Damn! Y'all pray for me.
Ok, so as far as meditating, I really don't know what I am doing. I'm just trying some stuff. I know
you are supposed to sit with your legs crossed and hands resting on your knees palms facing up. I
also know that you have to keep your body relaxed as possible and try to clear your mind. I was strolling through YouTube and discovered a meditation channel named Pinch Me Living. This
channel has different affirmations you listen to while you meditate so that it goes into your self
conscience. I've begun listening to these affirmations, primarily 400+ Powerfully Positive Affirmations. As I listen tho, I find myself drifting off to other things. I'm not sure if I'm supposed to focus on what is being said or not but I kinda get distracted by the lady speaking. I'm not sure of her accent but she pronounces all her "e's" long vowel. It's weird cause as I'm listening I have to decipher what she is actually saying. For example, she will say something like "I am the best at everything I do". But it sounds like: I am the beast at eevrything I do. But yeah, I listen to her affirmations daily. I try to, anyway... Per her suggestion I will listen for the next 30 days to see how that turns out. I say my own prayers to my Lord Jesus Christ to stay focused while listening because if I just sit there my mind will be all over the place and I won't stay focused. However, I get a little iffy because i sometimes get these images in my head of church mothers throwing bibles at my head and body
slamming me on the altar! Lol! Mama noooooo.....
It's all about finding the balance. I truly believe that my inner peace comes solely from The Lord. The Bible even tells me that He will give me peace that surpasses all understanding. So my
meditations are combined with prayer. But I can say that I like that I am working towards staying, acting, thinking and speaking positive with the affirmations I listen to daily.
So on Friday I visited Ulta. I stocked up on some things i needed and I bought some things I wanted to try. I bought a face mask by Freeman called Golden Brightening Mask that hydrates and brightens. I'm excited about using it. I also bought African Black Soap body wash and Shea Butter soap by Shea Moisture. On my outing to Whole Foods I also bought coconut oil for my body and hair. As a woman who is a self proclaimed "girly-girl" I am embarrassed to confess that I get overwhelmed in stores like Sephora and Ulta. There is soooooo much stuff that I want there!!! Oh my Gaaawd. Who told them to put all this stuff in one store??
I seriously get overwhelmed. My thinking when I stand outside of Ulta is "girl, you are here to get this and that cause (insert fav YouTube vlogger here) says it's pretty good and it looks great on her!" But as soon as I step into the store I immediately begin thinking "OMGee... Look at all this stuff I need!! I need this and this and this- ooh look! Girl you need this too!" I swear Ulta is crack for me....
So yeah, one week down and week two to go!
Positivity in your environment is crucial. I am soooo thankful for the people in my life that support my change in my lifestyle. My mama #2 worked with me, helped me find recipes that are fast and easy for me to make on my own and she cooked all my main dishes for the next two weeks so that I won't get discouraged. I would like to believe that when I told mama #1 that I am turning vegan that she started talking about how she is now doing tai chi at her senior apartment building and her church is starting up beginners yoga and she is super excited to go! I'm encouraged to buy her a yoga mat so that she will stay motivated to keep going. My older sister was helpful with trying to find substitutes for soul food. We are working on how to make cornbread dressing without milk and eggs for the cornbread and we are still trying to figure out what is the cream in cream of celery and cream of chicken to see if it can be subbed. My bestie is super encouraging. She calls every morning to make sure Im up to workout and asks what I ate during the day. This is needed. I really appreciate the support I am receiving from my family and friend. It makes it easier but at the same time it's intimidating because now.... All eyes are on me. Lol! That's fine though because I can now say this in confidence that I'm not doing it for them- I'm doing it for me! And only me. Another thing that I experienced as self appreciation is I snuck to White Castle for the last time to eat those shit burgers one more time but the whole experience was horrible! I'm soooo done with bad customer service and bad food at fast food restaurants. As I drove away I became disgusted that I paid someone to treat me like shit and kill me slowly with unhealthy fake food.. Ugh!
Let the transformation begin......
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