- checking login information
Loading...Advice From a Veganism Advocate
- Megan, selected from Experience Life
- August 10, 2009
- 7:21 am
- 29 comments
Author and veganism advocate Rory Freedman isn’t afraid to get in your face about animal rights, but what she really wants is for you to be as happy and healthy as she is.
Rory Freedman speaks with such conviction about healthy eating that it’s hard to believe she once lived on a daily diet of bacon double cheeseburgers, fried ham-and-egg sandwiches and soda.
But 15 years ago, Freedman received a PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) magazine in the mail, and after reading an article about slaughterhouses and factory farms, she knew her life would never be the same. “Up until that point, I had always called myself an animal lover but had never really thought about what was going on with the animals I was eating,” she confesses. “Once I learned about it, I knew that I couldn’t possibly contribute to the torture of animals just because I liked the way meat tasted.”
On that day, she vowed to stop eating mammals and eventually cut seafood and other animal products from her diet. And as she changed her eating habits, her entire outlook began to shift. “I started caring about my health for the first time in my life,” she says.
Still, Freedman, now 34, was the epitome of an “unhealthy vegetarian” at first, eating pizza 10 times a week and basing her diet around convenience foods. Gradually, though, she began to incorporate more fruits and vegetables into her diet, and the persistent nausea she had once experienced finally dissipated.
The transformation she saw in her own well-being, combined with her commitment to animal rights, inspired her to share her vegan beliefs with others. When her friend and eventual coauthor Kim Barnouin suggested they go into business together, Freedman had an epiphany. “I realized that while there are some great books out there that talk about veganism, factory farms and slaughterhouses, they often don’t reach the mainstream because, in general, nobody wants to read about this stuff,” she says. “We’re very much a ‘don’t tell me, I don’t want to know’ society.”
Freedman and Barnouin’s Skinny Bitch (Running Press, 2005), a vegan manifesto packaged as an irreverent diet plan, soared to the No. 1 spot atop the New York Times bestsellers list while also stirring up a hornets’ nest of criticism for their “hidden agenda” and in-your-face approach. “People don’t want to be rattled,” Freedman says. “If you read the book and you’re angry that you’re getting information that you didn’t plan on getting, then to that I say, ‘You’re mad that I’m telling you these atrocities are going on, but you’re not mad that they’re happening and that you’re a part of it?’”
The book, which Freedman says is not intended as a weight-loss guide, encourages readers to eliminate animal products and bolster their diets with fresh, whole foods — leafy greens, veggies, fruit, nuts, legumes. “The truth is, when you’re eating the right foods, and you’re happy and you’re positive, your weight sorts itself out.”
Freedman concedes that many people are intimidated by the all-or-nothing approach and might not be ready to make dramatic shifts in their diets. So, she encourages people to do what they can. To that end, she recommends that people feel free to experiment with “fake” meat and cheese products designed to make the veggie-centric shift easier. (For other expert views on the pros and cons of such products, see “The Perils of Fake Meat,” in “The New Veganism.”) “Don’t be worried about being perfect overnight,” she advises. “It took me 15 years to evolve into being a vegan. Just do something.”
Freedman has definitely followed her own advice. With a new title, Skinny Bastard (Running Press, 2009), set to hit bookstores this month, she and Barnouin will have published five books — including a cookbook, a guide for pregnant women and a self-help journal — as well as a series of workout videos, all in the past four years.
Now living in Los Angeles, Freedman balances the intense demands of her schedule by making nutrition a priority and spending time with her best friends — including her two adopted labs, Timber and Joey. “I take the dogs hiking every single day,” she says. “Just getting the sun on my face helps. I’m working hard but enjoying life.”
Even with her success, Freedman acknowledges that she doesn’t have all the answers. “I often limit my opportunities and my experiences by dismissing things because I think I already know exactly how it is or how it’s gonna be,” she says. “I think the best thing for people to do is to just stop for a second, step back from what it is you’ve already decided, or what you think you know, or how you’re sure you feel about the issue, and visit the possibility that the way you’re doing things can be improved upon. And that your life can be dramatically different by making small changes to your diet.”
Kaeti Hinck is senior associate editor of Experience Life.
Experience Life magazine is an award-winning health and fitness publication that aims to empower people to live their best, most authentic lives, and challenges the conventions of hype, gimmicks and superficiality in favor of a discerning, whole-person perspective. Visit www.experiencelifemag.com to learn more and to sign up for the Experience Life newsletter.
Read more: Diet & Nutrition, Food, Health, animal rights, veganism
By Kaeti Hinck, Experience Life
Megan, selected from Experience Life
Experience Life magazine is an award-winning health and fitness publication that aims to empower people to live their best, most authentic lives, and challenges the conventions of hype, gimmicks and superficiality in favor of a discerning, whole-person perspective. Visit experiencelife.com to learn more and to sign up for the Experience Life newsletter, or to subscribe to the print or digital version.
Disclaimer: The views expressed above are solely those of the author and may
not reflect those of
Care2, Inc., its employees or advertisers.
people are talking
Sometimes a plain old glass of good cold water can be equated with heaven itself!!
Thanks...good to know :)
thanks for sharing!
(Interesting). may be better to thnk NO on marriage unless you really 'have to'...(hehe)
Great news! Thank you Gov. Hickenlooper.
29 comments
+ add your ownThat last paragraph in it's entirety should have read:
I look forward to the day when our daughters are motivated first and foremost by concern about the injustices inflicted upon other creatures, because they are secure and comfortable in their own bodies and realize that the bodies of other animals are equally worthy of respect, no matter 'what they look like'.
(Wish I could figure out how to avoid getting my last sentence cut off all the time, even though it is supposedly within the character limit!)
Lori,
I have not read the book cover to cover, but yes, I am quite familiar with its content. I'm not at all surprised that your daughters 'love it'...obviously it has a huge fan base.
None the less, the 'dangling carrot' ( to anyone who isn't already leaning in the direction of care and concern for animals. and that is a heck of a lot of people), is the promise that 'you too can look THE WAY YOU WANT TO' (thin) if you eat this way.
Like I said, the underlying premise is that women WANT to conform to a certain stereotype.The authors KNOW how many women are conditioned to think a certain way about their bodies, and that that is why they will buy their book!
The fact that this marketing ploy has been very succesful is one thing. And obviously, anytime a woman is empowered by the knowledge that her food choices affect MORE than herself, that's a good thing.
But there IS a mixed message going on here that I and other women will continue to work hard to raise consciousness about. It is obvious to me that we still have 'a long way to go' before young women (or ALL women) are no longer oppressed by the self-deprecating notion that their bodies just aren't 'good enough'.
I look forward to the day when our daughters are motivated first and foremost by concern about the injustices inflicted upon other creatures, because they are secure and comfortable in their own bodies and realize that the bodies of other animals are equally worthy of respect, no matter 'what they
Woops...typo.
That should have read:
However my point, which I'm sure you understand, is that the use of certain terms to define women in a derogatory way SHOW how both animals and women are often regarded as inferior.
Hey Sarah,
Sorry not to respond to your comment sooner...I have a few to get to from the looks of it since I was here last!
Yes, I know the magazine 'Bitch', and 'yes', reclaiming language that has become derogatory under patriarchy is an empowering act. Another example would be the use of the term 'witch', which of course has been linked with all sorts of bogus unpleasantries under patriarchy but is an empowering term for some women reclaiming kinship with nature and defining themselves on their own terms! Far from the ugly sterotype of evil-doer that the term still refers to in popular culture, 'real' witches today are every day women with values that reflect care and concern for all...women deeply committed to non-violence.
And I have a button from the Sierra Club that I love to wear myself, that says in big letters on it "ECO-BITCH". In small print underneath it spells out: Being In Total Control of Herself!!
However my point, which I'm sure you understand, is that the use of certain terms to define women in a derogatory way should how both animals and women are often regarded as inferior.
When women are called 'dogs' for example, we all know that isn't meant to be a compliment.
Thanks Renee. :-) Sometimes I get frustrated with all the mud-slinging that goes on. I think extremists just don't realize that their tactics backfire because people tune them out. One person on another thread told a story about a militant and borderline abusive vegan she knew. That vegan may have wanted to move people to her way of thinking, but all she did was give people a horrible (and lasting) impression of what it meant to be vegan ... not very persuasive!!!
All that aside though, I have to say that I've gotten a lot out of this and several other Care2 threads about dietary choices, as well as a similar discussion thread I've been following on Amazon. It's made me question some of my own habits and choices, and inspired me to make some improvements and shake things up a little. I may or may not ever make the leap from vegetarian to vegan. But my egg and dairy decisions will definitely be made more carefully and consciously.
My humble thanks to those who make an effort to inform without attacking. Keep up the good work!
Michelle K.,
Thanks for your reasonable and sane response. I eat meat and get sick and tired of the self righteous crap I hear from many vegans, but also would never consider telling a vegetarian or vegan that their choices are weird or wrong.
The only way to change opinions is to talk rationally about them, getting in people's faces and being rude will make people more resistant to what you have to say (on either side of the debate).
I did go vegetarian for over two years and felt like crap the entire time. I won't compromise my health, but what I will do is make more humane choices such as buying free range animal products whenever possible. I just wish they were more affordable.
Michelle, again thanks for being the voice of reason here. It is people like you who will make others think more about their choices.
R
Fire Weed, I get what you are saying, but in regard to the term "bitch", there is a movment to claim it by some women, akin to gays claiming "queer" (although I doubt this was the authors' intent, I havn't read the book). Ever read the magazine "Bitch", a feminist critique of pop culture? I love it.
One of the most thoughtful and compassionate proponents of a plant based diet is John Robbins author of many excellent books on the subject and founder of Earth Save. I really like this organization because they give equal time to the issues of animal suffering, health and the environment and how our food choices effect all 3 of these areas. Two other books which do a really good job of dealing with all aspects of the "food problem" in this country are The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollen and Animal, Vegetable and Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver.
Had to smile when I read the tite of the book Skinny Bitch because a recent book I read that has some great info is Why French Women Don't Get Fat. Fact is people who eat more fruits, vegetables, whole grains, are healthier and not fat.
Neither are those who have a Mediterranean food lifestyle, that does include some fish and lamb, but more akin to 2/3 less what most Americans I have observed eat. A
nd while they may eat homemade yogurt they also use olive oil rather than butter or gawd awful margarine.
Sorry to be a nag Fire Weed, but have you actually read the book? They actually say that they couldn't care less if women are skinny, they just want people to be healthy.
They admit that the title was a clever marketing ploy. Who in their right mind would even look at a book titled "The horrors of factory farming, the dishonest government, the paid off agencies who are supposed to protect us, and how badly these affect you, your health, and your appearance"?
The ladies who wrote the book are not saying you are only worthwhile if you are skinny. They both came from the fashion industry, and know how badly the obsession with thinness messes with people's self image.
Read the book more carefully. It's aimed at younger people. These are the people who must be reached if our world is to change for the better. I think the authors have done an excellent job. My daughters and nieces love the book, and all think a lot more before they eat.
login to add your comment
use your care2 login
add your comment