Feel Like Switching up Your Diet? Try the Pegan Way

You’ve definitely heard of a vegan diet before, and it’s one that you may have heard can be difficult to maintain. Being vegan means your diet consists of no animal products at all — ruling out yogurt, cheese and even candies like gummy bears that contain animal byproducts. While the Pegan diet consists mostly of fruits and non starch vegetables, it does incorporate lean protein. Are you ready to give it a try?

What is Peganism?

The Paleo and Vegan diets inspired this diet, so it’s a diet that consists of the two types of diet. The Pegan diet was designed to be a long lasting diet. A lot of people like to say it’s the Paleo diet plus a Vegan diet, but we think that a Vegan diet is a Vegan diet and should not be associated with meat products. Go Vegans! A Pegan diet is a balanced diet that gives you plenty of eating options and lots of sensible solutions for meals. The diet consists of eating 75% fruits and non starch vegetables (think broccoli vs a potato). The diets’ proteins come from grass fed, pasture raised meat and free range chicken eggs. They also come from eating seeds, nuts, coconut, and wild fish that are low in mercury. Learn how to maintain the basic tenets of this diet, and you’ll become a committed pegan before you know it.

The Pegan Diet

The Pegan diet does contain a few taboos, but what good diet doesn’t? First, avoid all forms of sugar. That means you shouldn’t be drinking alcohol, eating sweets or filling up on a lot of refined carbohydrates. Whole grains are acceptable in small amounts, but anything that’s highly-processed is not. Avoiding processed foods in general is a smart dieting decision that can help you lose weight and feel better physically.

Eat lots of vegetables. The Pegan diet is built around eating plenty of veggies. Fill your meals with leafy greens and healthy veggies, while avoiding potatoes, corn, beans and other starch-rich vegetables.

Low glycemic fruits like berries, apples, cherries, pears, mango and pineapple are a win for the Pegan diet.

Eating healthy fats is equally important in this diet. The human body needs fat to function, so don’t leave it out of your diet. The Pegan diet allows you to feast on avocados, olive oil, nuts (no peanuts), fish, whole eggs, meat and butter. As long as you aren’t overeating and you are keeping your portions at the right size, these items incorporated into your diet will help you feel healthier.

You don’t have to eliminate milk products completely. The Pegan diet allows you to enjoy yogurt, butter, cheese and the other dairy you want to eat — though you should think about trying goat and sheep dairy products, as opposed to cow milk.

How it Works

The creator of the Pegan diet says that it works by balancing your blood sugar while reducing inflammation. Because you’ll be avoiding sugars, unhealthy fats and processed carbs, this diet can also help you lose weight and/or maintain a healthy weight.