Go Vegan.

On August 1st, 2017, I decided to make a drastic dietary change.  Now let my tell you why I did this. Several weeks before I decided to go vegan I was feeling off. I told my girlfriend that I am no longer craving meat. I spent hours and hours contemplating if I should try a vegetarian or vegan diet. I then decided to watch the documentary film What The Health to possibly find some more useful information about food. Now listen to this first. I actually started to watch What The Health months before! When the film started bashing poultry and eggs I turned it off. Simply because I didn’t want to know about anything negative about foods I eat on a daily basis. Let’s just say I had a different perspective after finishing the documentary. I was completely shocked by what I had learned. Not to mention that all of the information is backed by scientific peer-reviewed studies to prove its authenticity. Shortly after finishing the film I made a decision, I’m going vegan.

Now at first this was a bit of a struggle. I really just didn’t know what or how much to eat. I started off by trying different kinds rice and beans. I got burnt out on that very quick. I was trying to figure out how much food I should eat to become full. It was all just very confusing and stressful. After about a week I began branching out to new vegetables and fruits that I wasn’t used to. I then fell in love with sweet potatoes which I never liked before until recently. I also discovered that I have a deep love for mangoes! I started really liking more and more foods that I wasn’t used to. This made going to the grocery store fun and exciting every time I went. There are endless amounts of unique produce items to try. Now after a month, I feel like a master. I am very confident with how to cook and use the foods of a vegan diet. My love for food has completely skyrocketed since going vegan.

Okay let’s get down to it. Here are 5 things that happened to me mentally and physically since going vegan.

1. Better Energy and Sleep: Since going vegan I have been able to easily get out of bed and get to the gym before 6:30 every morning. I look forward to it! I usually will stay up until about 10:00 or 11:00 p.m.. Since going vegan, I literally sleep like a baby every night. I remember in the past waking up a lot in the middle of the night. I never have this issue anymore. I sleep through the night every night and feel alive and refreshed the moment I wake up. I never feel tired throughout the day. Even after a morning of working out and an afternoon of playing tennis in the heat. I always feel like I can be alert and active even after what most people would consider intense exercise.
2. Loss of Fat and Increased Muscle Mass: Seems like it would be impossible to accomplish this without meat, but that’s how culture makes veganism seem. The crazy thing is I was getting actually more protein than I was before on a meat based diet. For example, tempeh has 16 grams of protein per serving. TVP (Textured Vegetable Protein) has around 12 grams of protein per serving. Beans and Quinoa are also delicious and healthy sources of protein. I even had a plate of vegan nachos and cheese the equaled out to be over 45 grams of protein in one serving. I began losing my lower belly fat fairly quick. Two weeks into it my body basically transformed. I have always been an athletic person and I know my body and capabilities very well. I started to find it very easy to play basketball for hours without cramping. I found myself finding it much easier to dunk and run in general. I noticed that my muscle definition improved and the size of my muscles increased. I simply felt better, and looked better. MUCH BETTER.
3. I Have Become More Positive: I have always been a bit pessimistic with most aspects of life. I mean, look at the world and the way people live. All of the violence, health issues, corruption, and ignorance. Once you open your eyes to the truth, it changes your mindset. I have more compassion for animals and their lives. We as human beings could never understand how it would feel to be alive as an animal. Some animals are more intelligent than humans in certain aspects. Not to mention that pigs are known the be one of the most intelligent social animals on the planet. So why slaughter and torture animals that have similar feelings to those of your dogs or cats? Or even yourself? We just need to understand that animal cruelty is wrong. We are killing them for no reason, wasting precious and beautiful life. By doing this, we are not only destroying our health by consuming them, but destroying the planet as well because of what animal agriculture does to the environment. I see things in a different way now. I not only advocate for a vegan diet for animals. But for all people as well. I want everyone in the world to feel as good as I do. I want all animals to be free from pain and suffering. This would also be beneficial for human beings, to experience less pain and suffering as well.
4. Increased Sex Drive: I know, this one is a strange one but WOW. Let me just tell you right away, go vegan for this alone. Not to get too down and dirty with the details, but my sexual stamina has definitely increased. I have also noticed a change in sensation. Everything just feels better and more sensitive. I can definitely tell that I get aroused more quickly and frequently. Foods like 70% cacao and above dark chocolate, watermelon, and bananas are just a few foods to try to boost your sexual health!
5. Enhanced Taste Buds: You would probably have had better luck getting me to jump out of a moving car than to get me to eat mushrooms in the past. Guess what? I dig mushrooms now. If I took a bite of raw broccoli two months ago I would’ve spit it out right away. Now, it is one of my go to snacks that I crave. Once I started trying all these real foods, my brain began to go crazy. There were so many foods that human beings have been eating for thousands of years that I’ve never tried. It really gives you a sense of being human. We are not made to eat highly processed junk. The foods we are accustomed to eating ruin our taste for the foods we are meant to eat. Let me tell you something. I crave fruit, vegetables, nuts, and beans more now than I have ever craved chicken or steak. I honestly want to gag when I think about eating real meat again. Once you get rid of the meat, dairy, and eggs, you begin to really appreciate the flavor of real food.

Now, I have only been vegan a very short one month. But, these changes in my mental and physical health have been plenty of evidence to keep me in this lifestyle forever. These were just a few examples. I keep discovering more and more everyday as I go along.

I know most people just simply ignore listening to information about vegan diets. But please, for your own sake, just do some simple research. You may find issues that you or your family faces that could be changed with a vegan diet. If you are on the edge and you are considering a vegan diet, watch documentaries and do your research. I recommend What The Health on Netflix for learning about the health and environmental aspects of a vegan diet. If you want to do it for the welfare of animals, watch Earthlings. Earthlings is a look into how we use animals for food, clothing, and entertainment. It is a very graphic and difficult film to watch. You wouldn’t believe the tragedies these animals have to face every single day. I am a tough nut to crack and it brought tears to my eyes. Take time out of your day and just watch Earthlings. I promise it will change the way you think about food.

I just want to wish everyone a healthy and happy life. I am not trying to force information down your throat. I am just simply trying to bring more awareness to veganism. It really is a great option for any of those suffering from many health and weight issues. This lifestyle could truly save your life. The time to start improving yourself is right now. Don’t wait until you have diabetes. Don’t wait until you have cancer. Don’t wait until you have a heart attack. Make a change now so you can watch your kids grow up. Set an example so they can live long healthy lives along side you. Boost your self-confidence and energy. Boost your happiness and sense of adventure. The fate of the world is in our hands. Let’s save the animals. Which in turn will save us, save the planet, and save our future.

My Unexpected Vegan Journey

Let’s just say I have treated my body like dump truck my entire life. Throwing loads and loads of garbage like cheeseburgers, pizza, soda, and french fries in my body. I started eating bad when I was young like most other Americans. I grew up in the ghetto where I never learned anything about proper nutrition. My mom was raised in a family who never learned about nutrition either. I am glad I realize how important it is now. We all have access to the information and should really pay attention to it. It is a matter of life and death. My life has completely changed in many ways since going vegan. At the end of this blog there will be a challenge! I want anyone who reads this to follow it. Now let me tell you about my reasoning behind going vegan.

Reasons for Going Vegan

I am going to jump straight into it. My dad passed away when I was 19 years old. I never understood why he passed away so young at 42. When I contacted the coroner to find out exactly what happened, he told me it was his heart. My dad had a blocked aorta which lead him to a fatal heart attack at just 42. If I had known what I know now, maybe I could’ve saved him. It is not too late for some of you. Right NOW is the time to start changing your lives to become more healthy and active. Don’t wait until it is too late. There is no point of going through life sick and unhealthy when it is completely preventable.

My father passing away is one thing that lead me to a more healthy lifestyle, but my family’s health is the main reason I have switched to veganism. My aunts and uncles have all had major health issues the older I’ve become. It is a very sad thing to watch when I know so much of their problems have to do with food. Below I will display what has happened to my family because of their diet.

• Aunt Kathy: Stroke
• Aunt Debbie: Dementia
• Uncle Keith: Kidney Failure/Kidney Stones
• Uncle Jerry: Stroke
• Uncle David: Heart Attack
• Uncle Terry: Alzheimer’s 

The only people remaining in my family who haven’t had major issues are my mother and one of my uncles. Both of them are the youngest of their family. It is very scary to watch this happen right in front of me. There comes a time when you need to realize this isn’t how life is supposed to be. My uncle Jerry can barely make a sound. My aunt Debbie is a completely different person and is spaced out all the time. My uncle Terry doesn’t know who I am. This breaks my heart. My dad is gone and can never come back. That is why I need to set the example of a healthy life and pass that on to my family and you. So you and your family don’t have to go through the same things that I still do. I want to see my mother live for a very long time so she can be there when I have kids. I didn’t have my grandparents because they were gone before I was alive. I want my family to improve, not decline.

The final reason I decided to go vegan was my mind and body. Eating a healthy plant-based diet is fantastic for your brain health and your body. Also when I speak about my mind, I think about the animals. There is absolutely no need to eat animals. They are innocent and intelligent beings. They too have feelings and lives just as we do. We will never truly understand the feelings and thoughts of animals. I feel like the life of an animal matters just as much of the life of a human. You always hear the people say “But what about protein?” Well what about it? Think about the largest most powerful animals on the planet. Gorillas, elephants, rhinos, and buffalo are all herbivores. They eat nothing but plants. I think it is safe to say if you want to grow strong, a plant based diet would be a great choice.

Improvements

I have witnessed my body fat shrink before my eyes. I have been working out but very rarely. I’ve noticed dramatic changes. My muscles are more well-defined in the past two weeks. I think more clearly and don’t get confused. I am always awake before 6 in the morning with energy read to begin the day. I sleep amazing and never wake up at night. I feel more happy and don’t get sick. My allergies have vanished. My sex drive has increased tremendously. These are all things that I have noticed in just 17 days of being vegan! I can’t wait to see how it benefits my life forever. I can say for certain that I have become a happier person.

Now I am not telling people what to do and trying to shove this down your throat. I am just sharing the benefits that I have seen personally. I feel amazing and I wish the same for everyone. There is so much sickness in the world and it leads to depression, anxiety, and many other things that affect how we live and treat people. I simply want to share a way to improve your self-image, improve your health, and improve your life as whole.

My Challenge To You!

I want to challenge you to go vegan for just two weeks! Also, I want you to keep track of your progress. Answer these questions before and after the challenge:

• Are you happy?
• Are you comfortable with your body?
• Do you often feel tired?
• How much do you weigh?
• Are you excited about your life?

Keys to the challenge:

1. No meat, dairy, or eggs! No animal products at all.
2. Drink only water
3. Exercise as much as you can

This will help with your results greatly! Trust me, I know this will be hard. Just hang in there and it will continue to become easier.

I want you to answer the questions and follow the keys to the challenge. Then please get back to me at my email officialtreyjordan@gmail.com and let me know how your progress is going.

I am really looking forward to any interaction with this challenge. I am hoping that you all take the time to really focus on what is important in your life. I simply want people in the world to be more happy and healthy. All it takes is one step in the right direction to get to where you want to go. Just believe in yourself because I know you can do it. If you need support don’t hesitate to email me. Also if you need recipe ideas, follow my girlfriend and I on Instagram (garliclovecouple). We post daily photos of the healthy food we eat. Maybe you’ll find something you’ll want to try!

Have a beautiful day everyone.

 

Your Environment Is Everything.

Everything around you is a direct reflection of who you are.

If you feel like you are not happy in your life, you need to look within yourself and realize the cause of that problem. What is it that you are not doing? Why do you feel stressed? Why are you unhappy? Why are you not succeeding? Why are you not where you want to be? Often time people are quick to blame other things that have nothing to do with their success. You hear things like well I grew up poor, my dad wasn’t in my life, my parents were on drugs, I have been in bad relationships. Sure, those are difficult situations to deal with, but, that is no excuse. You have to look in the mirror and point your finger at YOURSELF.

If you are not where you want to be, it is time to stop playing the victim. No matter what happens in your life, YOU choose how to react. Also, YOU choose your surroundings.

You must be willing to destroy everything in your life that is not excellent.

If you are surrounding yourself with losers, you will end up being a loser. If you surround yourself with people who are doing drugs, you will probably end up doing drugs. If you surround yourself with people who don’t have any drive or passion, you will not have any drive or passion. Think about it for a minute. What do the people around you want to achieve in their lives? What do those people think of themselves? Are they happy? Do they make smart decisions? Are they taking steps to improve and benefit their life? If the answer is no to those questions, get those people out of your life.

Get the energy drainers out of your life, people who have no goals, people that don’t want success, people who are not challenging themselves, people who aren’t growing, people that have stopped dreaming. If you surround yourself with people like this, you will absorb their energy, their attitude towards life, their character, and you will probably end up making the same mistakes as them. Do you want to live your life believing that you are worthless, believing that you have no potential, or that you have no chance of a phenomenal life? If not, it is time to make drastic changes in your life to start moving in the direction that you want to go. Stop letting people treat you however they want, stop being a victim, stop acting like everyone is out to get you because if you don’t, it will become a culture. You will begin to feel comfort with failure, comfort with bad relationships, and comfort with being a victim. It becomes a routine that people are used to. For your sake, I hope you never fall into that trap.

There are a lot of people placed at a disadvantage. Trust me, I am one of those people. My dad wasn’t in my life. My mom was a single mother and I grew up poor. I lived in a bad neighborhood. But guess what? None of that is an excuse. If anything, struggling like that should make you even more hungry. I know what it feels like to be at the bottom. I know what it feels like to have no money. I know what it feels like to be hungry. I know how it feels to be looked at as a failure. The turning point for me was when I stopped blaming everyone else for my problems and started taking responsibility for my actions. Just because you grew up poor, doesn’t mean you have to be poor forever. Just because your parents weren’t successful, doesn’t mean that you can’t be. I can say a million more of those, but you get the point. Where do you want to be in your life? How successful do you want to be? After asking yourself those questions, think about the environment to place yourself in to get you to that point.

Surround yourself with people who see greatness in you.

Do you think people who want to be rich should be hanging out with people who are broke? Do you think people who want to be happy should be hanging out with people who are miserable? Do you think people with drive should hangout with people who are lazy? The answer is obviously no. Yet people still surround themselves with people who are destroying their lives everyday. If you are stuck in your life right now. It is time to try a new approach.

Surround yourself with people who refuse to live their life as it is. Surround yourself with people who are hungry for the same things as you. Surround yourself with people that have goals, passion, and positive energy. Get rid of things, people, situations, relationships, friendships, and surroundings that are causing you to fail. Tell yourself that you will no long walk in the direction of those who are causing you pain, those who cause your family to look down on you, and those who cause you to be unhappy. Your environment can impact your life forever. Your happiness, your compassion, your outlook on life, your drive, your behavior, and your success are all a product of your environment.

Think about your environment right now. Think about your home life, friends, places you hangout, work environment, and relationships. If you see problems in any of these, you need to change them. If your friends are constantly in trouble, and constantly causing you to make poor choices. It is time to choose new friends. If you are unhappy at work and hate what you do, quit. Your happiness in more important than a job. If you are dating someone who walks all over you and treats you like shit, leave them. You deserve better for yourself. You will never get to where you want to go if you keep letting people who don’t matter drag you down.

Conclusion

It may be hard to let go of the things that you are used to. We seek comfort in what is familiar, it is human nature. We must break that and think outside the box. If you want to live an unsuccessful life in pain and sadness then keep blaming other people for what you do, keep hanging out with the same people who put you in bad situations, and keep letting people walk all over you. So many people rather just “fit in” than be loyal to themselves. It is time for you to stand up and be inspired by what you want. No matter where you come from or what you’ve done, you can change. You just have to believe in yourself. Surround yourself with people who believe in you. Surround yourself with people that want to see you succeed. Surround yourself with people that love life. Soon, you will develop these habits and be well on your way to a better life. Your environment is everything. Put yourself in the right places, and around the right people. You will begin to see everything in a completely different view. I promise, it will change your life forever.

 

 

Adversity: How A Seven-Year-Old Kid Inspired Me To Become More Positive.

I just wanted to share this positive story.

My cousin Riley is 7 years old. He is the sweetest kid I have ever met. Ever since he came into this world I’ve had a special bond with him. EVERYONE can learn from him.

Riley is blind in one of his eyes. He has been blind in the eye since birth. But, this has never slowed him down. As he has gotten older, his blind eye has become worse. As of now, Riley must get his blind eye removed next month. This breaks my heart to know that he must go through something like this at such a young age. Kids shouldn’t have to worry about things like this, nor should anyone. But, what I am about to tell you next is the best part.

Riley has been nothing but positive about this entire experience. He is aware of everything that is going on. He has such a good spirt about the surgery. Riley has to get a prosthetic eye and he couldn’t be any more excited about it. He even helped the doctor with picking out a new eye. Riley’s only problem with the surgery that he stated was “I’m mad that I have to miss the fourth day of school.” It is difficult to find anyone with this kind of optimism, especially when it is a seven-year-old kid.

Riley is the oldest of my cousin Brett’s four kids. He has set such a great example for his younger siblings when it comes to facing adversity. When I think about his positivity I can’t help but smile and be amazed. Not only has he set a great example for his siblings, but for me as well. When things are going wrong in your life it is hard not to complain and feel upset. We all face problems and struggle with many different things. We should all realize that pain is temporary, it doesn’t last forever. No matter what happens, we always have the love of family or friends to support us. People all around the world are dealing with things far worse than we can imagine. We need to take lessons from kids like Riley to better ourselves and improve our lives.

Adversity is going to hit us all at some point. The best thing you can do for that is to just face it head on. Have a positive attitude about whatever comes your way. Being depressed and destroying yourself over things aren’t going to make them better. All that does is sink you down further. I hope this story lifts your spirt when you need it the most. If anyone is going through any difficulties just know there will be better days. And if you don’t have anyone to talk to, feel free to talk to me.

Riley will have his surgery on the 11^th next month. Let’s all wish this little trooper the best of luck! I love you Ri Ri, and I know that no matter what you go through that you are going to touch the lives of people throughout your life.