Plant-Based Vs. Vegan and Why I Gave Up Oil

Jeanmare

For me the plant-based diet has been a journey- a never-ending one to be sure.  The way I eat now is invariably different from how I ate in the beginning.  Giving up animal protein left me with incredible energy; I was lighter on my toes and in my spirit.  However, I stopped losing weight within a few months after eliminating dairy, the main reason I started this diet in the first place. I was met with an incredible amount of frustration at one point a couple years ago, thinking I had already given up so much and I still was not where I wanted to be. 

Was it my age?  Was it my genes?  Was it just my body type? Was it fate???

I knew there was more work to be done before I'd give in to believing I was just getting older and getting heavier is just what happens as a result.  I took a good look at the amount of oils/overt fats I was still consuming and cut them out.  I began releasing unwanted body fat again (and still am, albeit slowly but surely) and my cholesterol numbers came down significantly.

​Much of my resistance during that time I attribute to my mindset and perspective of "giving up" so  many foods already and not seeing all that I'd be gaining by taking my diet to the next level.  I know this much:

In order to have a different outcome, we need to do things differently.

It's uncomfortable.  Change.  Especially when we see it as deprivation.  The uncomfortable-ness is how we know we are growing and changing.  As Lindsay Nixon has recently said in her Shortcut to Slim podcast, Seek discomfort.  Then you know you're changing;  if you're feeling comfortable, then you're probably not. 

​Here's an updated blog post from the archive on why I gave up oils and how I make it work.  There's also a little caveat on being vegan vs. plant-based.  It's cathartic for me to go back to where I once was, remembering that what I have done to release unwanted body fat is what I will have to continue to do to keep it off.  I hope you'll find some inspiration here, too.

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Why No Oil?

I get this question A LOT.  It comes right after my refusal of the French fries or the dismissal of the house salad dressing when eating out  and often after I’ve been outed as eating a plant-centered or "vegan" diet:  no meat, no eggs, no dairy, no oil. The confusion comes primarily because many of the more trendy oils out there are typically not derived from animals.

So what’s the problem?

Let me back up a sec.   7 years ago I began my plant-based journey first giving up meat, then eggs, then dairy.  I had read about the elimination of oils in many plant-based books, scientific studies and resources.  That is to say, the plant-based “diet” is stipulated by medical researchers and leading experts in the field to not include oils due to, largely, their direct correlation to heart disease and obesity epidemics.

Vegan vs. Plant-Based

By and large, this is what separates the plant-based movement from the vegan community. By definition, being vegan is to not eat or use animal products.  Period.  It states nothing about health. Veganism is a philosophy deeply rooted in animal rights and activism.

A plant-based diet is, by definition, a diet based on fruits, vegetables, tubers, whole grains and legumes; and it excludes or minimizes meat (including chicken and fish), dairy products and eggs, as well as highly refined or processed foods like bleach, flour, refined sugar and oil.

So it can be said that someone who is following a plant-based diet is a vegan, but it doesn’t go the other way around.  Surprisingly, there is an endless list of "accidental" vegan foods, meaning foods that are not created to be or marketed as such: Oreos, Ritz Crackers, Pillsbury Crescent Rolls, Duncan Hines Creamy Homestyle Frosting, Duncan Hines cake mixes, Jello Instant Pudding Mix, Betty Crocker’s Baco’s Bacon Flavor Bits and McCormick's Bacon Bits.

​(Yeah, you read that right bacon bits are vegan).

Accidental Vegan "Foods"

Wow.  I totally got distracted by that.  It seems like such good news, doesn’t it?  We know this list of familiar foods is vegan, but we also know they are NOT plant-based...or healthy.  

Ok.  I think I beat that drum long enough.

The Problem With Oil

Here's the problem I, personally, have with oil.  Oil is 100% fat, has very few nutrients and contains NO FIBER.  Oil is also a huge calorie bomb.  In 1 Tablespoon of olive oil, or any other vegetable oil there is roughly 120 calories and 14g fat.  And we haven't really had any food yet!

Lindsay S. Nixon, author of Happy Herbivore's Guide to Plant-Based Living

Pushing Through Weight Loss Plateau

It took me 2 years to get my head around giving up the oils.  The fact is that oil is in just about every  item that lives on the shelves of the grocery store.  Giving up oil meant I would have to eliminate even store-bought condiments like barbecue and teriyaki sauces, salad dressings, chips and crackers.  

But, as far as my weight loss and cholesterol levels were going, my progress had really slowed and even stopped a short time after giving up meat and dairy.  Even then my cholesterol was still over 200, just being vegan.  I had lost weight early on because plant foods naturally have fewer calories and fat than the animal-derived foods of the Standard American Diet (SAD). 

​I had made obvious changes, but the hidden oils/fats prohibited me from continuing to create that caloric deficit needed to lose more body fat. (The only simple thing about weight loss:  If there is no caloric deficit, there is no weight loss.)  This is the reason that it's harder to lose those last few pounds; the closer we get to our goal weight, the harder it is to create the deficit, leaving very little room for error.

"The Food Myths", Simply Nourished Workshop Series

Progress Over Perfection

Full disclosure here:  it’s hard to eliminate oil completely.  In fact, I have found it nearly impossible to 100% eliminate 100% of the time.  It's a mindset thing.  Those little allowances (lies) or rewards (justifications) I give myself when I'm unprepared at a restaurant or those times when "life happens". 

I fall down.  I get back up. 
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Making it Work

The truth of the matter is that it gets tricky when you haven’t made the food yourself.  You can sauté vegetables beautifully with water or vegetable broth.  And applesauce, pureed pumpkin or mashed bananas make excellent substitutes for oil when baking.  I have DIY recipes for the barbeque and teriyaki sauces, but, more recently I've have found oil-free brands pretty easily in our local grocery stores.  

​Salad dressings have been the hardest to transition from. I was once married to bleu cheese dressing.  But, it’s not impossible and I’ve come to love new favorites using dates, tahini, lemon and lime juices, miso, Dijon mustard, vinegars, salsa, hummus, nut butters, avocado, Sriracha, vegan mayos and spices. 

​As you evolve, so will your food choices.​

I know what you’re thinking.  First, I made you get rid of all your stuff, then had you cancel the cable, quit your job, revoked your Sam’s Club membership and now I’m asking you to ditch the oil: the olive oil, coconut oil, sunflower oil, avocado oil, truffle oil, walnut oil...

​Maybe this will help!  Here’s a recipe that’s adapted from the Whole Foods No-Oil Balsamic Dressing and happens to be my husband’s favorite.  I start small with the Dijon mustard, working my way up  because it’s  strong for me.  The dates give the dressing a nice and familiar body and the quantity can be adjusted for a sweeter variation.  This makes about 1 3/4 cups of salad dressing. Click the picture below for the recipe!

Oil-free Balsamic Dijon Salad Dressing