Green Juice

Lately Edamame has been my new obsession. Whenever people ask me as a vegan how I get my protein I usually kind of lie and say tofu and beans and whatnot. It's a simpler answer then trying to explain that most food you eat contains some protein, and that protein deficiency's are extremely uncommon in North America. The general public's been conditioned to think that you're always in some kind of race to get enough protein/calcium/whatever in. That's not to say you don't need those things, but due to advertising from the meat and dairy industries I think we're overestimating the amount you need, not to mention milk is a terrible way to get calcium in. Animal protein actually depletes the body of calcium, and research shows correlation between countries with high dairy consumption rates and osteoporosis. Ironic, no?

Anyways, since I've been trying to build more muscle as of late I've decided to make more of a conscious effort to increase my protein intake(not overly, since that can be bad for you too, but just a bit). As well as since I've been working out a ton it's making me hungrier more frequently. To be honest I've never been a huge fan of beans. I'll eat them if they're in front of me, but they're not something I really go out of my way to buy. Except for chickpeas. I think I've just been scarred from childhood songs about them(you know the one), and my dad always threatening to fart if they were ever around.

I eat tofu a couple of times a week, but I want to try to experiment with other forms of vegan protein. I usually mix protein powder into my oatmeal in the morning, and I've just started to become obsessed with Edamame. But as for lentils, and pretty much every other kind of bean, I've never attempted to try to do anything with them. Whenever I see them on the shelf in the grocery store I'm never really inspired by how they look on the shelf. Fruits and veggies always distract me cause their displays are so lovely. That and I circle them like a shark while trying to sneak samples covertly and hoping no one is looking. But I really think I should make an attempt to start using more beans, so hopefully this is the start of something good!