Now Driving: Plant Based Eatz

I became a vegan back in 2010, but my transition was an interesting one. When I was a little girl, born and raised in South Carolina, I was surrounded by meat. I wasn't fond of the texture and I LOVED (still do) animals. Growing up with southern roots along with everything southern fried and smothered to the side...I had to literally be forced to eat everything on my plate. It wasn't until I started noticing how many of my loved ones began to suffer from lifestyle diseases. Mentions of my family members having heart attacks, high blood pressure, Type II Diabetes, and hypertension were things that I knew to be diet associated and I wanted no part of that lifestyle.

In 2004 I decided to experiment with being a vegetarian. I was loving the way I felt when I didn't eat meat, but it proved difficult at times because of the training environment while on active duty in the Marine Corps. I would ask health professionals how to "survive" the training while not eating meat...I was told that it wasn't possible that in order for me to maintain a "constant state of readiness" for training, one must consume animal protein because it is "good for you." This occasional vegetarian status went on for years until 2013 when I had surgery on my Achilles. Under a lot of stress from my job, not to mention being mentally and physically drained from trying to "recover" from my injury. Hearing that my training would be delayed 9 months and the mobility in my foot would never be the same was devastating as a dancer and as a Marine. I wasn't really sure how to cope with going from being on the move and "healthy" to sitting around waiting to heal. So, I used my time wisely and began to read more books and articles on how to heal my body in a more natural holistic way.

In my healing process, I adopted yoga, among other aspects of fitness, and phased out animal products completely. I began to feel better and noticed that I had more energy and more flexibility. Being vegan has been amazing! I haven't looked back. I love the way I feel and how I have the energy to go above and beyond previous levels of training. Because I believe in helping others become the best versions of themselves, I became a living example for my family and my husband and daughter are also now vegan. It's like a dream come true! We are living each day with true purpose and are physically, mentally, and emotionally healthy. I've always been a veggie lover and had my sentiments when it comes to eating "meat." I love animals. I've always been active and after reading many articles and books on plant-based living, I felt that I could take that knowledge and help others.