My month-long soy free journey is nearly at an end.  As I have stated in past posts, I have felt no change, in energy or weight loss, during this time.  So many pieces of research I have read before and during this trial has stated that there is a direct link with soy and the thyroid and a significant decrease in soy intake will result in heightened energy levels and potential weight loss.  I have read studies indicating consumption of soy in relation to memory loss and concentration issues.   All of those have not proven themselves during this test and so, from my standpoint, are bunk.  During this time not only have I given up the more wholesome soy in its unrefined form but I took out of my diet the processed soy you find in just about every snack food.

I have had visitors to the blog since I started this project who are vegan and allergic to soy.   To me that’s willpower.  Being allergic and unable to consume soy but then taking it one step further and deciding to be vegan for whatever reason, that takes willpower!

Eating out was limited for the past month.  Most items contain some soy additive and sometimes, even with known vegan stuff, you just don’t know if it has soy or not so it was better to abstain.  I did some deep checking into some places and found an item here or there.  One thing I managed to find out was soy free was the sweet & sour at Pei Wei.  I had assumed eating anything Asian would be out during this time and considered myself lucky on this one.  Sweet & Sour vegetables with rice fit nicely and I managed to get a plate piled with fresh veggies and a tasty sauce that hit the spot.  A trip to Atlanta left out most of our favorite eateries except for Eats.  You can’t find soy in the pesto or a big veggie plate and you can’t go wrong at Eats!

After this is over I’ll be going back to soy.  Of all the things I missed I think the soy milk in my coffee would be the first to come to mind.  As I said before I didn’t notice any changes during this time.  Maybe after the upcoming holidays I’ll do this again and have some bloodwork done before and after just to benefit those in doubt.  I’ve made it through one month, I can do it again.  Willpower!

One more day left!

My third week of being soy-free has ended and I can nearly say that if I should be able to notice any changes related to the issues with consuming soy then those issues are myths.  I have no increase in energy and no change in weight.  I have noticed not one single change.  I have one more week to go and without noticing any changes I will be going back to my soy-eating ways.   I may cut down on the processed soy only for the desire to cut down on it.

The past week has been quite uneventful unless you consider the usual trip to the grocery store and looking at labels more intently than a cat looking at a bird.  I did pull off a Thai Green Curry dish that was easily soy-free but little else was out of the ordinary.  My garden is still overflowing with okra so I’ll be frying that up soon.

I’m still looking for that soy-free soy sauce replacement.  Any ideas?

Week two of my soyless existence has passed.  Most notable in changes I have noticed is the fact there are none.  I have lost a couple of pounds but I attribute that to my eating less processed foods.  I am eating more fresh now and even eating out less so the lack of soy can’t take credit there.

It seems eating Asian it very hard to do on a soy free diet.  he one thing I have searched for is a soy-free soy sauce substitute.  It just doesn’t exist, at least it doesn’t exist anywhere near me.  I have stuck with sweet & sour sauce and Trader Joe’s Sweet Chili Sauce.  Both are sugary but have some of the flavor I’m looking for.  I did get treated to an apple pie over the past week as well as German Chocolate Cupcakes.  My wife is the greatest vegan baker and we are usually well stocked with vegan sweets and goodies in the house.  With apple season starting up, I hope for one of pies once a week!

German Chocolate Cupcakes

Apple Pie

It may have been a good idea to have had blood work done prior to starting this event but since I only wanted to gauge my energy levels and weight fluctuations I didn’t think it would be needed.  I don’t have a fondness for needles, either.  If there were any changes in my body that aren’t as evident I’m sure blood work would have showed them.  Otherwise, no changes as of yet but there are two weeks to go.

For the next 30 days I will be giving up a staple in my diet, soy.  As a vegan, soy is included in so many things I eat daily.  If you read labels you will notice soy is in just about everything.  While I realize that I may not be able to avoid every presence of soy I will try to do the best I can to take it out of my diet for the next 30 days.   It may sound simple but I’m aware this will be tougher than it seems.  To be a soy-free vegan may seem impossible but I am determined to get through it.

Our trip to the grocery store today will consist of me trying to find replacements for my usual foods.  I will hopefully find a veggie burger without soy so I can have my junk food nights.  I will replce the soy milk I typically use in coffee with almond and hazelnut milk.  We use Earth Balance to bake as well as on baked potatoes and wherever needed but luckily they make a variety of Earth Balance that is soy-free.  It is the ingredient list of many things where this will get difficult.  As an avid label reader, as most vegans are, this will hone my skills to a higher level.

So, why am I doing this?  There are so many “studies”, which I typically find useless, that point out the impact of soy on the endocrine system that I think I will lend an open-mind to and see if removing it from my daily eating would make any change for me.  I will be looking for apparent changes that are noticeable to myself as I won’t be visiting a doctor to get daily blood tests and such as more scientific plans would include.  I will be looking for increased/decreased energy levels, weight loss/gain and anything else I notice that could be related.  At the end of the month I hope to be able to form my own opinion on soy benefits and drawbacks.  Check back for daily posts as I will document here any changes I notice and just how difficult this may or may not be.