Vedge Your Best Podcast Template

Episode #5 “What Do You Practice Not Practicing?” Date of Recording - September 30, 2020 Date of Publishing - October 6, 2020

I have an Instapot - one of those electric programmable multi function pressure cookers. I use it every - well maybe 3 times a year. It’s good but every time I pull it out I can’t remember how the gasket works, and which side the valve should be on and what buttons to press… Not that I really have to remember, I keep the instructions in the pot…

I know I just need to practice using it more often, but right now I’m practicing NOT using it. And I’ve gotten pretty good at that.

Welcome to Vedge Your Best, the Plant Based Podcast My name is Michele Olender. I’m a certified life coach, a practicing vegan, and I’m here to try and convince you to show up, eat more plants, and not wait a single second longer, to set an impossible goal.

Episode 5, Where we discover what you’re practicing NOT practicing Welcome and Welcome Back, Vedge Heads.

Thank you to the many people who reached out this month and gave me great feedback on the podcast. I really appreciate the reviews and the emails and next week I will start answering some of the questions that have come in. I love working with people who are struggling with starting or maintaining a Vegetarian, Vegan or Plant Based diet.

So for today, let me introduce you to the Vedge Your Best process and the three cornerstones of the method and what Plant Based Coaching with me is all about.

And No - there is no meal plan. No recipes. Not even a smoothie.

I know and you know that you can decide to go Plant Based or Vegan without a coach at any time. You certainly don’t need a coach to NOT eat meat dairy, eggs and fish.

But like my Instapot, if you are not actively practicing your Plant Based skills then you are actually practicing NOT eating plant based.

Geek alert - time to quote the Stoic Philosopher Epictetus who warned us QUOTE “Not to be satisfied with mere learning, but to add practice and then training. For as time passes we forget what we learned and so end up doing the opposite.” UNQUOTE Meaningful practice and training, not just knowledge. That’s what Epictetus suggested not quite 2000 years ago.

That is what I offer my coaching clients. It’s quite likely that you will never hear anything on this podcast that you don’t already know about Vegan or Plant Based eating, but I hope to give you meaningful practice and training in terms of implementing what you already know and think.

The Vedge Your Best process is coaching for individuals and groups who are looking to reduce or eliminate the consumption of animal products because of environmental, ethical or as in the case of a lot of my listeners, health concerns.

Often it’s a combination of many reasons. Those reasons belong to each of us and it is my belief that you KNOW your why and it is never my job or my place to tell you what your why SHOULD be.

So that’s another thing you won’t get from me, preaching. So no meal plan. No recipes. No smoothies and no Soapbox.

Vedge Your Best is exactly what it says - Vedge oriented. Your Reasons. To live and show up the BEST way you can. As YOU define it. So this week I am going to share with you the 3 parts of my coaching program as I have developed it, and how we practice it together to get very different results than somethings you may be more familiar with.

Things like Meatless Mondays, or a 21 day vegan food plan or working with one of the Plant Based physicians.

They are all great ideas. Wonderful plans. There is Compelling medical evidence.

And…. Some of us still struggle with eating in alignment with our intentions, medical advice or our ethical beliefs.

It’s not surprising.

It also does not mean there is anything wrong with you. Nothing is wrong with your commitment or your willpower.

Because This world is not exactly set up for you to accomplish YOUR goals.

Mostly it’s set up for you to accomplish someone else’s goals. And that’s not necessarily a bad thing as long as you feel good about it.

But for some of us who want to make other choices.

Who want to reduce or eliminate animal products from our daily consumption, it typically means swimming up stream, going against the , choose your own metaphor here. It means making choices that are conscious and deliberate rather than automatic. It’s like learning any other new skill. A little like my Instapot is for me.

Awkward at first. Very awkward for most of us. And a little tiring because for most of us our daily food choices have been practiced for years or decades - so long that they are automatic.

My job is to coach you so you can efficiently make the choices you want, create the results you want, ask for what you want without apology and live the life YOU want. On your own terms.

So at the beginning I said there were three main cornerstones of this coaching practice that I use with Vedge Your Best for people who are having trouble starting or maintaining a Plant Based diet.

Number 1: Think about what you are giving rather than getting. 2 Decide like a leader rather than a follower. 3 Embrace a bigger picture and a grander goal.

Still no smoothies.

That’s right, because this is what in coach speak is called “mindset coaching.”

I really do not think you need anything but your own mindset to accomplish exactly what you want . So number 1 - Think about what you are giving rather than getting.

You have a reason for moving towards or committing to a Plant -Based Vegan diet. It’s very possible that reason will grow or evolve over time but you have a reason now. How does that reason benefit others? How does that reason benefit your family? How does it help draw attention to animal agriculture or sustainable environmental practices. How does it save water or decrease the use of antibiotics in our food system, or reward plant based entrepreneurs and food producers?

How does it help lower cholesterol? or Inflammation and blood sugar?

That might be an amazing gift you can give yourself, the people you love, the people who love YOU…

What is your reason? Or reasons for reducing or eliminating animal products? How do those reasons connect with your community and your environment? Those are reasons you make for yourself. How do you model your concern as a citizen and why is it worth the trouble sometimes? Why is it bigger than you? How do your daily choices make more choices available for those who haven’t learned what you’ve learned yet? How do your food choices support others who need your support.? How do your choices support your health which allows you to do important work in the world? Making vegan choices can be more trouble than just automatically accepting what’s out there. Especially at the beginning decision fatigue can set in and we can think -why can’t my family make it easier for me. -Why can’t the hotel or restaurant or airline support my requests better? -Why aren’t there more options for me at work? -Why do I have to explain myself? -Can I get a little help here?

It’s not a problem if you feel that way from time to time. Even now, when there are exponentially more choices and more support for choosing Plant Based than ever, you are still taking the road “less travelled.”

And the antidote to all that “why isn’t it easier “ energy is a mindset shift you can remember, practice and commit to .

Think about who you are serving, what you are modeling and underwriting. My Vedge Your Best Cornerstone number one - Think about what you are giving, rather than getting.

Cornerstone Number Two - Decide like a Leader rather than a follower.

So many of us began their - for want of a better phrase Vegan Journey, consuming so much information. We watch documentaries like , GameChangers or Earthlings or .

We listen to podcasts like Vegetarian Zen, Howard Jacobson’s Plant Yourself, No Meat Athlete Podcast and the Rich Roll podcast.

We read books and buy vegan cookbooks. Follow Plant based Physicians like Dr Dr Laurie Marbas, Dr Esselstyn Joel Kahn, MD Doctor Kim Williams and so many others

There are on line courses like the Forks over Knives Plant Based Cooking Class - which I haven’t taken - yet.

Or the Plant Based Nutrition Certificate at Cornell University, which I have.

Don’t worry I am always updating the resources on my website micheleolendercoaching.com if this is coming at you too fast.

The point is many of us - most of us? Come to as students or followers, devotees if you will of thought leaders who are creating amazing content about a Plant Based lifestyle.

We follow on Facebook, Instagram, on Youtube - so many Youtubers creating amazing content. Following energy is exciting. We want to know more? Each new source, or menu, or authority, or vegan extreme athlete gives us another little dopamine hit of discovery and new information and a new way of seeing Veganism through these exciting Vegan thought leaders.

But following is really passive consumption that feels like action. And we can be forgiven for thinking that learning IS action, but learning is only action if you are implementing.

Cornerstone number two is Decide like a Leader rather than a follower. When we are struggling to maintain a plant based diet, we are probably looking for answers. Looking for how? How do I cook How do I order How do I decide which foods and how much? How do I get buy in from my spouse? How do I get my kids to eat Vegan? How do I travel while plant based? How How How

How is follower talk. How questions are follower questions?

Easy to hide out way too long in follower energy - Believe me, I know. I’ve been there.

If you are having trouble going Plant based? Well then you need to read one more book or listen to one more expert or download one more podcast or documentary. I’m just learning - I can’t be held to anything yet. That’s follower energy.

But what if you start to run this part of your life like a leader. Leadership energy makes decisions and then follows through on those decisions.

Leaders still ask questions Leaders still learn and listen But they consistently implement what they learn.

They take action so that their questions from others become specific and they come up with their own ideas to advance their understanding.

Leaders learn so that they can lead better. And leadership begins at home. With the self. Leading oneself

Followers are still in a sort of an adolescent position of having an excuse why they can’t commit yet or decide. They haven’t declared their major. They aren’t ready. But you’re never ready until you do the work of deciding and learning from those decisions. We will talk more about that in another podcast.

And Cornerstone 3?

Embrace a bigger picture and a grander goal.

OK that might seem a bit delusional or uncomfortable - but if there is something about reducing or eliminating animal products that is really resonating with you my experience tells me that you are ready to reinvent at least one part of how you show up in the world. Making a deliberate choice to avoid eating animal products means showing up in a spirit of service and giving -

Remember? That’s cornerstone 1- Think about what you are giving rather than what you’re getting.

Cornerstone 2? Decide like a leader, not a follower.

3 - Embracing a bigger picture and a grander goal is the best part of moving toward a Vegan or Plant Based lIfestyle.

Your daily choices start to reflect your thoughts and your commitments and your ideals in a way that connects you very directly and consciously to the environment, our agricultural systems, our health and medical systems, the way animals are treated and most of all deliberate food choices are a way you consciously and authoritatively honor your conscience and your goals.

Living in full and total alignment with our beliefs ? Can I say, I’m pretty sure that is impossible for humans. As we commit to a higher standard and greater follow through, we usually learn something else. Every step allows us to make more nuanced decisions with greater knowledge and finer sensitivities. This evolution can go on as long as we do, and that’s what I mean about Embracing a bigger picture and a grander goal.

This will look different for every human. I have no idea what your evolution should look like, but as a coach I know that it is probably bigger and grander than you allow yourself to dream most days. Taking the steps to reduce or eliminate animal products from our daily consumption is so often one of those decisions that makes 1000 decisions. The skills you learn getting more conscious more decisive, more deliberate with your daily nutrition are skills that you will use in so many other areas you may not even be able to imagine right now.

You may need to trust me on this, but I have seen it so many times. Vegans are not better people - we will be talking about that for sure on an upcoming episode. Vegans do not have more willpower or support.

But the process of going vegan or plant based is so proactive and humbling and challenging and connecting that you will see how much more there is for you in this world. After I committed to Whole Food Plant Based eating, so many things changed for me. In a nutshell, I felt like I had done the impossible and that I was for more connected with all sorts of aspects of our world than before.

What is more intersectional than the way humans fuel their bodies, nourish their young, celebrate, cultivate, build supply systems around, develop infrastructure economies, and dispose of waste?

Our food choices are at the root of our society and our civilization.

Just the process of becoming more conscious and aware of those choices can be a catalyst for a whole new belief in oneself, a belief in ones capabilities. Moving out of the default setting. Belief in other possibilities. That’s what I mean about embracing a bigger picture and a grander goal. I believe in a life for you where practicing a plant based or vegan diet is one of the least interesting or notable things about you.

So that’s an explanation of the 3 basic parts of the Vedge Your Best method.

1. Think about what you are giving rather than getting. 2. Decide like a leader rather than a follower. 3. Embrace a bigger picture and a grander goal.

You have access to all the meal plans, vegan cookbooks, Plant based physicians, documentaries and books. If you like smoothies, you are probably already drinking smoothies.

And If you want to discuss how coaching can help you move toward a Plant Based or Vegan diet in a way that reflects your beliefs and goals, I hope you will email me at [email protected] or look for the link on the podcast info or go to my website MicheleOlenderCoaching.com and we can find a time to talk.

If you have reasons to go Plant Based and are struggling, you don’t need more information. You just need a little Mindset support. A little attitude readjustment. I never thought I could commit to practicing a vegan diet - until I stopped thinking that thought. I hope to talk to you soon. Links to resources mentioned in Episode 5 - What do you practice not practicing?

Plant Based Physicians

Dr Michael Greger at Nutrition Facts https://nutritionfacts.org

Dr Laurie Marbas https://www.healthyhumanrevolution.com

Joel Kahn MD https://www.drjoelkahn.com

Dr http://www.dresselstyn.com/site/

Dr Kim Williams https://doctors.rush.edu/details/1728/kim-williams-sr-cardiovascular_disease-chicago- oak_park

Plant Based Courses

Forks Over Knives Plant Based Cooking Course, Documentary and Books https://www.forksoverknives.com/?gclid=CjwKCAjw2dD7BRASEiwAWCtCb1EbP- CTrRulfZGluidD8Wy55A0AKz00LTy3tkzbOqvG38OBIjdBkhoCaToQAvD_BwE

Certificate in Plant Based Nutrition Through Cornell https://whole.nutritionstudies.org/sample-course/?gclid=CjwKCAjw2dD7BRASEiwAWCtCb- f_K2NXdVN7S1T3opgDWAEn_0u5_GRLC5Pxq-mp7BOFUGPB4tvSwxoCrnIQAvD_BwE

Plant Based and Vegan Podcasts

Vegetarian Zen Podcast https://www.vegetarianzen.com

Howard Jacobson Plant Yourself Podcast https://plantyourself.com

No Meat Athlete Podcast https://www.nomeatathlete.com

Rich Roll Podcast https://www.richroll.com

Plant Based and Vegan Documentaries

What the Health https://www.whatthehealthfilm.com Earthlings http://www.nationearth.com

The Game Changers https://gamechangersmovie.com

Forks Over Knives https://www.forksoverknives.com/the-film/