My grandmother followed a strict vegetarian and macrobiotic diet that shaped much of my early understanding of nutrition. While her rigid vegetarian lifestyle worked well for her, I quickly realized that it wasn’t the right fit for me. Growing up, I craved variety and flexibility in my diet. In this post, I’ll share my personal journey with nutrition, why a strict vegetarian diet didn’t work for me, and how I found balance through a flexible, macros-balanced, plant-based nutrition approach.

my grandmother’s Strict vegetarian and macrobiotic diet

My grandmother was a strict vegetarian who also followed a macrobiotic diet. I would even say that she was vegan, except that every once in awhile, she ate certain amounts of honey.

My grandmother’s vegetarian and macrobiotic diet consisted of whole, unprocessed, organic foods. She grew large amounts of organic fruits and vegetables. I remember her eating fresh tomatoes from her garden for breakfast and eating vegetables at night before she went to sleep.

She ate a variety of legumes. Her favorite was chickpeas, which she bought dried from a local health food store and cooked for hours. She also loved lentils. She regularly bought wheat bran, wheat berries, and cracked wheat-and only ate whole wheat products.

She occasionally ate wheat bread, peanut butter, crackers, and cheese. However, she usually avoided regular crackers and substituted shredded wheat bites instead. She loved oatmeal with raisins and especially enjoyed organic fruits and vegetables. These foods made up the majority of her vegetarian and macrobiotic diet.

She never ate fish, meat, or eggs. She didn’t eat yogurt, use butter, or drink milk. She even worried about the frozen orange juice she bought from the grocery store. There was never any soda in the house. She only cooked and ate whole grain brown rice-never white rice. She considered pancake mix, white rice, and white pasta to be junk food. Overall, she lived on very small amounts of carbohydrates.

How She Adopted Her Vegetarian Lifestyle

My grandmother didn’t grow up as a vegetarian. Her husband actually introduced her to the vegetarian lifestyle. It wasn’t just a diet to her-it was a personal commitment she maintained for the rest of her life.

I never got to know her husband-my grandfather. He died of congestive heart failure at the age of 47, when my father was only ten years old. However, I do know he loved candy bars and often ate them before coming home from work. Although he wanted my grandmother and father to follow a strict, rigid dietary lifestyle, he wasn’t as disciplined when it came to eating healthy himself.

The Rigidity of Her Diet and Its Impact

My grandmother was very strict and rigid about what she ate. In fact, she was afraid of food. She refused to eat any processed products from the grocery store. For years, she ate large amounts of fruits and vegetables that she grew in the beautiful organic gardens she cultivated herself.

My grandmother ate this way for the rest of her life. Once a year, she would make pancakes. Once a year, she would buy ice cream. Once a year, she would make spaghetti. And once a year, she would cook a turkey-but never ate the meat herself. She truly believed in this way of eating. For her, it wasn’t just a diet-it was a way of life.

She would get upset with relatives if they gave me any kind of junk food, like cookies. She always told me to say no-but of course, I always said yes.

My grandmother never realized she was a nutrition coach by hobby. She was always giving nutrition advice to her closest friends and family. She was rarely ever sick. Once in a great while, she might catch a cold. She lived to nearly 97 and outlived most of her friends and family.

My Personal Experience Growing up

My grandmother was also a bookkeeper and worked for most of her life. When I was growing up, she was always busy doing something. She worked hard and rarely had time to cook or bake.

When I was a kid, I would occasionally have steak or other meat, even though my grandmother never ate meat. Dinner always included a salad, three different types of vegetables, and a potato-and it was usually the same every night.

There were fruits and vegetables I loved-especially because of their color-and others I couldn’t stand, like radishes, lima beans, and wheat berries.

Childhood Food Preferences and Challenges

Looking back, I was very fortunate to have access to so many organic fruits and vegetables. I loved and regularly ate asparagus, potatoes, tomatoes, peppers, butternut squash, green beans, corn, strawberries, apples, pears, and rhubarb-all straight from the garden. I had plenty of nutritious food and vitamins. I also enjoyed fresh raw milk from a local farm, along with cereal, toast, peanut butter, cheese, and yogurt. I ate a very healthy diet filled with foods I truly loved. One of my favorite vegetables was beets. I also loved tomato and cheese sandwiches, pepper and cheese sandwiches, and peanut butter and honey sandwiches.

Struggling with Weight Management Challenges and Cravings

As I got older, I wanted more choices and variety. Even though I ate regularly, I never felt satisfied-I was always hungry. I started eating more carbohydrates, chocolate, and sweets whenever I had the chance.

I loved the nutritious food I ate at home, but I also craved chocolate, sweets, and ice cream. By the time, I was sixteen, I was 5’6″ and weighed 160 pounds.

The weight slowly crept up on me, and I hated it. Even into my late thirties, I struggled to maintain my weight. Losing weight was never the problem-it was keeping it off that was so hard. I failed many times and always felt fat, which I really hated.

There were many times when I didn’t want to look at my body in the mirror because it reminded me of how much weight I had gained. Trust me-I understand the pain of wanting to look a certain way and be a certain size, yet struggling horribly to get there.

why a stict vegetarian diet didn’t work for me

My grandmother’s strict and rigid way of eating ultimately didn’t work for me. I love food and unlike my grandmother, I don’t fear food. I also don’t love eating the same things all the time. I crave variety. I have learned that what works for someone else doesn’t always work for me. I believe in a macros-balanced diet that doesn’t exclude any important food groups. I don’t follow trends, fads. or extreme diets. As healthy as my grandmother was, she still missed out on some essential nutrients.

Although I learned a lot about nutrition from my grandmother, I find a vegetarian lifestyle too rigid for me. However, I do love fruits and vegetables and believe in eating as many as possible every day. I definitely believe in the power of plant-based nutrition.

final thoughts

In conclusion, my grandmother’s strict vegetarian lifestyle taught me valuable lessons about healthy eating, but I needed a more flexible approach that embraced variety and balance. I believe in a macros-balanced diet that includes all important food groups without following fads or extreme diets.

Focusing on plant-based nutrition and eating plenty of fruits and vegetables has helped me find a sustainable path to health and happiness. Remember, what works for one person may not work for another, and finding your own balance is key.

Join Me On This Journey!

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