As a vegetarian/wanna be vegan (like 89% vegan) who wants to get pregs, I have received an onslaught ofopinions and theories from other people.
#1. I would have to start eating meat again if I want the baby to get the proper nutrition or even just to conceive, “bone broth, bone broth, bone broth”- ugh!
#2. But the cravings! If the baby wants meat, mama is going to have to eat meat.
#3. It’s not healthy to be a vegetarian/vegan and get pregnant, be pregnant, nurse, etc.
#4. Blah, blah, blah!
Welp! Shut it up! I mean, I know that when most people share thoughts and opinions, it’s coming from a well-meaning place, but I’m just not into meat like that. Sorry meat, it’s not you, it’s me. Oh, also the pure disgustingness that is factory farming, rotting flesh that’s been on the shelves longer than it should be and a whole bunch more that’s actually our government’s fault! I’ve never been a big meat eater and have loved veggies since I was a kid, broccoli was my ish! I was a vegetarian in elementary school, ate meat (amongst a number of other unhealthy habits) in high school and then came back around to my veggie-lovin self consciously, 4 years ago. I kind of figured that someones, somewheres out there had to have had healthy conceptions, pregnancies and children with a plant-based diet and thus I was led by one of those people to two books. The Kind Mama by Alicia Silverstone and Skinny Bitch Bun in the Oven by Rory Freedman and Kim Barnouin. They both definitely echo each other, but hey, repetition is the mother of mastery and they confirm all the theories of my own intuition, that a plant-based diet is a totally doable and healthy way to have a pregnancy. I watch my protein, my calcium, my folate (the natural occurring version of folic acid), etc, etc on an app called My Fitness Pal, it’s heeeeeeella tedious, but I know where I’m coming up short and/or over on. I feel like I’m watching my food intake more now than when I went through a fitness bootcamp pre-wedding sans working on my 6-pack, let’s be real, my 4-pack! But it’s for da baby!! Happy healthy eating everyone!
Mmmm fruit smoothies and preventative food medicine that packs a nutritional punch! POW! There’s a number of things that make a smoothie great and if you’re a little veggie-lover like me, one of the major things is making sure I’m getting the right fats and PROOOOOTEIN! I’m all about that protein life and it’s the annoying question every carnivore will ask, “how do you get your protein?” “Umm there’s a rack of sources, oh limited thinker that’s been conditioned by our meat industry.” Each of my protein shakes typically has 30+ grams of protein per serving. Now, let me hurry up and write this post so I can go make one!
My typical daily smoooovie!
– Almond Milk. 8-12oz. I’m not that intense yet that I make my own almond milk and I tend to lean towards the unsweetened option of the Trader Joe’s brand.
– Juice, *optional* If I happen to have some delish fresh juice in the house, I’ll add a few ounces up in the mix for flavor and to thin it out a bit.
– H2o. I always add a couple ounces of water because my smoothies tend to come out on the thick side and Mama likes to be able to actually drink them sans a spoon!
– Coconut Oil. 1-2TB. Fat, fat, fat, fat, fat! We need fat, point blank period and this is coming from a pretty vain Queen, but our bodies need the good fat to function properly. The fat that comes from coco oil helps balance our hormones, gives our body the fat it needs to use and store as well as giving us healthy fat for pregnancy, our future babies’ brains and has been shown to increase the Laurie acid content in breast milk! BOOM! Not to mention it’s great lube too ;)~ don’t worry, that will be a whole ‘nother post in itself! Trader Joe’s has a pretty good variety of coco oil to choose from these days.
– Flax Seed Oil. 2TB. Hands down if you’re a vegetarian or vegan, you need Omega 3s, it’s a must for us! Flax seed is a great source of omega 3s and fiber, but it’s not the only way to get them now. We also have the option of chia seeds and walnuts, but they don’t go down as smoothly in a smoothie without additional prep work, so I opt for the Snappie way and oil it is! I eat chia on my oatmeal, cereal and salads and snack on walnuts on their own! You can find it in the vitamin section of Trader Joe’s!
– Vegan Protein. 1 scoop. I try to only buy protein that has multiple protein sources and at least 20 grams of protein. My FAVORITE brand, again, is Garden of Life specifically their RAW Organic Protein, “Raw Organic Protein is a Certified Organic, Non-GMO Project Verified RAW Vegan Protein powder made with 13 Raw sprouted proteins delivering 22 grams of protein that is dairy free with a complete profile of all the essential amino acids along with added whole food fat-soluble vitamins, probiotics and enzymes.” (lifted directly from their site!) and I mean really do I need to write or sell it anymore?
– Peanut Butter. 1-2TB. Legit, I go through about a jar of PB a week, forreals, in my smoothies, cereal, oatmeal and sometimes just on a spoon with a glass of almond milk. It’s got more FAT, the good kind, it’s a great source of protein and the kind I buy, again from Trader Joe’s, has no other ingredients other than peanuts! GASP!?! We don’t need all those other added ingredients says I? It’s true.
– Shatavari Root Powder. 1/2 tsp. Go here for a full spread on the Shatavari Root, but if you’re just gonna stick to this page, here’s a real quick rundown of Shatavari. It’s an Aryurvedic herb known as “woman with 100 husbands” okay?! It’s a great herb for ampin’ up that libido, fertility and even lactation…pump, pump it up, in all the ways.
– Las fruttas. I eye this out, but if you want measurements, like 1/2 of each piece of fruit I have and I have my faves naturally. Bananas blend hella well, so does papaya and it seems I also use a lot of mango and pineapple (if the latter 2 aren’t in season, I usually buy the bag of chopped and frozen from TJ’s). I love me some avocado too, it makes the smoothie creamy delish and of course adds more of that good fat! Of course if I don’t have any of those, I just use whatever fruit is in the house, apples, pears, melons, blueberries, whatever’s in season and in my fridge. Chop it and screw it!
Now, mix all these ingredients up in whatever blender you have, I use a Ninja, which works totally fine, but am suuuper pressed to get a Vitamix! There’s gotta be a raffle or something somewhere! Let me know!
PS. Do I sound like a Trader Joe’s junkie or like I’m getting a kickback from TJ’s? I wish I was!! Hey TJ, send a gift card this way!
Grow big, grow small, I just ask you to be and bee mine, that’s all.
Here’s a vid about the goodness of prenatals and which to choose for a vegan!
There are SO many prenatal vitamins on the market, name brand, generic brand, basic ass brand, brown, pink, blue? I don’t even remember which ones I took when I was pregnant as a teen, but they were HUGE, pink and given to me by the pro-life clinic I secretly got pregs tested and coerced at. In fact, I couldn’t even swallow pills at 14, so I would chop them into tiny pieces and put them into a bowl of ice cream every night! True story. I didn’t learn how to swallow pills until 16 when I secretly got my tongue pierced and needed some serious pain relief over a swollen tongue! Anyhoo, I digress.
Years later and way more health conscious as a wanna be vegan, it was important to me to find an organic, vegan prenatal pill that would have all the nutrients babe and I needed. I wanted to especially make sure that it had enough folate/folic acid in it, because everyone tries to scare you with fears of “birth defects”, which I’m sure are totally real and I wasn’t taking any chances. Btdub: Folate is the naturally-occurring form of the vitamin. It’s found in foods like spinach, lentils, and garbanzo beans. Folic acid is the synthetic form of the vitamin that is used in most supplements and in fortified foods, (think “enriched”).
I was told by my nurse at Planned Parenthood (what what- love them!!) when I got my IUD out, that I could go ahead and start taking prenatals to start giving my body-ody the extra nutrients I’d need in pregnancy. I did a TON of research and asked my fellow veggie moms what they used and I seemed to really connect with Garden of Life. #1: I already use their protein and #2: Alicia Silverstone is all over this. In case you didn’t know, Alicia is like crunchy mom to the max! She wrote a book called Kind Diet and Kind Mama, both of which I’ve read and she partnered with Garden of Life to make mykind Organics Prenatal Multi. Everybody’s needs are different of course and we all have different moral compasses for ourselves, so do your research and see which prenatal vitamins resonate for you! As long as your taking something, that’s WAY better than nothing, remember: fo-late, fo sho! Also, have the sperm donor in your life start taking multivitamins, if you’re doing this with a known partner and planning a pregnancy. It makes the little soldiers stronger and healthier for conception and for the potential babe!! We chose mykind Organics Men’s Multi for my partner in baby-making!
The Snappie Hippie 