Could you eat like a vegan until dinner time? No meat, no dairy or animal byproducts – just fruits, veggies, nuts, grains, yummy whole food goodness for about 2/3 of the day? New York Times’ lead food writer, Mark Bittman, decided to do this a few years ago when he was 40 pounds overweight with high cholesterol levels. He ended up losing about 36 pounds, getting healthier and writing a book about eating vegan before 6pm.
I was a vegetarian for 2 years. Well… pescetarian I suppose. When I discovered I had so many food allergies, my diet became much to limiting, and I decided to start eating meat again. It was a great decision for me. I’ve been enjoying my Deluxe Turkey Burgers and BBQ Stuffed Sweet Potatoes, but I still try to focus on veggies and other non-animal based food sources as much as possible, which is why this week I’m taking the VB6 (Vegan Before Six) Challenge. This isn’t an official challenge, I’m just making it up for myself! The only rules are to follow a vegan diet before 6pm/dinner time. Why 6pm? There’s no science to it. It’s basically just to give time zone to stay focused as well as some wiggle room to go out to eat/be social/not limit the foods you love. I think it’s a great idea!
Lunch will be the toughest for me. I like adding chicken or tuna to my afternoon salads, but for the VB6 challenge, this week I’m going to sub those animal proteins for Dr. Praeger’s Super Greens Burger!
This post is sponsored by Dr. Praeger’s.
This burger is packed full of collard greens, turnip greens, mustard greens, Swiss chard, kale, teff and hemp and boasts just 100 calories! It’s nutrient dense and free of gluten, soy, peanuts, corn and dairy. YESSAAH! My plan is make a kale salad and top it with this burger, cherry tomatoes, avocado and sweet potato! I’m pretty excited about it.
Dr. Praeger’s has a TON of other nutritious vegan options, including 10 types of veggie burgers. Not all of them are gluten/soy/peanut/corn free, but they will all work for the VB6 Challenge!
The rest of my VB6 Day will probably look like this:
Breakfast: Love Grown Foods oatmeal mixed with vegan protein powder and topped with almond butter.
Lunch: Salad with Dr. Praeger’s Super Greens Burger
Snack: trail mix of almonds and dried figs
Snack: snack bar, like one from Vega or WB Kitchen
Dinner: Pulled Pork BBQ Bowls – obviously this is past 6pm ha! (recipe to come)
So now the big question: who’s with me?!
I’m in for the Vegan Before 6 Challenge! Check it out & get some meal planning inspiration….
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If you’re looking for more fun challenges this week, be sure to join in on Week 3 of the #LJInspired Instagram Challenge! Here are your weekly prompts:
Let’s Chat:
Which Dr. Praeger’s burger flavor stands out to you?
Will you do the VB6 Challenge with me?
This post is linked up with Meatless Mondays:
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