A review by emilyjackson
VB6: Eat Vegan Before 6:00 by Mark Bittman

5.0

For the month of June this year, I did a vegan challenge. No meat, milk, cheese, eggs, ice cream, or animal products for the whole month. When I was done, I felt awesome and had lost 6 pounds, but as a person who loves food, I had to admit that I missed the flavor you can only get from real blue cheese or the creaminess you can only get from real ice cream or just the meatiness of a real meat hot dog(even if I did enjoy the vegan alternatives to these things, I just missed the real stuff). With Mark Bittman's philosophy, you don't have to miss out on those flavors, textures, and ingredients, but still get a lot of the health benefits of a vegan diet. Basically, everyday before 6 pm, you eat a vegan diet. Then, after six(dinner time), you can have whatever you want. He says that he tries not to go crazy after 6 pm, but if you want to go out with your friends and have a bacon cheeseburger, you can. And he says that as time goes on, you'll naturally just want less non-vegan foods for dinner. He also says that when you do have meat, you make meat the side dish rather than the main event and I can for sure get behind that. He includes a meal plan and lots of recipes for breakfast, lunch, dinner, AND snacks, and I plan on trying the 28 day plan starting next week.

I just liked his whole philosophy. Even if you do go crazy after 6, over and over again, he says, "Tomorrow is another day." Most "diet" books don't have that mentality. I also liked how you can be flexible. If you have a breakfast date, you eat whatever you want at breakfast, then eat a vegan dinner. Have a potluck at work, same thing. It's more about balance than a straight vegan diet and I really liked that. If you're at all interested in a vegan diet or just a healthier diet in general, you should check this out. It's very well written and researched.