“Being vegan is easy. Are there social pressures that encourage you to continue to eat, wear, and use animal products? Of course there are. But in a patriarchal, racist, homophobic, and ableist society, there are social pressures to participate and engage in sexism, racism, homophobia, and ableism. At some point, you have to decide who you are and what matters morally to you. And once you decide that you regard victimizing vulnerable nonhumans is not morally acceptable, it is easy to go and stay vegan.”
— Gary L. Francione
Hello, Beauties! Sometime ago I wrote “I Wish I Knew This Before Going Vegan” and this post received many positive comments and feedback so I am happy to report that I am finally ready with Part 2.
If you haven’t got the chance to check the first post, you can do this now, I’ll wait for you.
Ready? Great!
So we can continue right from where we left…
6. EAT VARIOUS PLANT-BASED FOODS
There is widespread misconception that vegans eat mainly… grass. This can’t be further from the truth, yet it is easy to get stucked into a routine and until you’ve realized you spend your week eating only pasta and potatoes. Again – speaking from experience.
Although I love pasta and potatoes and I have no objections to live solely on those two, I know that my body requires a variety of plant-based foods to obtain the nutrients it needs. And so does yours!
So give your body what it needs by feeding it with variety of plant – based whole foods such as grains, nuts, seeds, legumes, beans, fresh and dried fruits, veggies, leafy greens, root vegetables and spices.
As many people say “strive to eat the rainbow”! This means to incorporate as many colorful plants as possible in your meals in order to give your body the optimal nutrition.
A good rule of thumb to follow is to include in every meal complex carbohydrates, protein, variety of veggies and healthy fats. Buddha bowls are great example, plus they are easy to make and can be prepared in advance. Packed with flavour they are both satiating, tasty and super healthy.
My favorite “Buddha” bowl combo is brown rice, steamed broccoli, oven baked sweet potatoes, sprouts, spinach, tomatoes, carrot sticks, avocado, hummus and sesame seeds. Love in a bowl!
7. GIVE YOUR BODY THE TIME TO ADJUST
Health is one of the reasons why people are going vegan or plant – based. We’ve all heard stories about how awesome you are going to feel when you make the transition. Although, some people experience great results right from the start for many the first few weeks (even months) of the transition can be very difficult.
Some of the most common transition symptoms are headaches, dizziness, lack of energy, brain fog, insomnia, bloating, stomach ache, skin rash and/or acne. I know it sounds scary but this is absolutely normal, even if you are doing everything right.
I’ve experienced quite a few of those myself and although it wasn’t the best thing in the world they all disappeared after a while. Just be patient and give your body the time to adjust to the new lifestyle.
The reason why you are experiencing all this is because now you are giving your body the right foods and this gives your body the opportunity to heal and detox itself from all the years of eating meat, dairy and eggs.
What you can do is to drink plenty of water and herbal teas that will assist your body in the cleansing process. Also make sure you get enough sleep and rest, as those internal processes are taking a lot of your energy. Include green smoothies and juices rich in fibers, vitamins and minerals to help with the digestion.
8. THERE IS A VEGAN OPTION FOR EVERYTHING
What people often ask me when they find out I am a vegan is “What do you eat?” and my answer is always the same… “Umm, food?!”. Like pizza, burgers, pasta, sushi, tacos, burritos, sweets, treats, chocolates, cakes, muffins, ice cream… Oh, and salads of course. After all I have a stereotype to keep up with! LOL!!!
But in all seriousness, there is vegan option for everything. Everything, really! You won’t miss on anything but the cruelty and the murder involved in the animal products. Whatever your favorite dish is – there is a vegan option for it out there. Internet is exploding with vegan recipes.
Pinterest and Youtube are your best friends. You can check my Pinterest board with vegan recipes here. I am also preparing post with my favorite vegan Youtubers, so stay tuned for that.
Furthermore, new vegan options are coming up in the super markets every day, so we just need to keep our eyes open. Meat substitutes are great, especially during your transition, although I don’t recommend you to consume them on a daily basis. Why? You can check Tip No 3 from the first part of this post here.
There are healthy and not so healthy vegan options of basically every food and dish so all you need is a little patience until you get the grip on this lifestyle.
9. Seek SUPPORT
Slipping off the vegan wagon can be really easy, especially at the beginning. Not having enough knowledge on what and how to eat, the lack of preparation and the pressure that comes from family and friends are only few of the the things that can challenge us in our journey. The easiest way to stay committed to your new way of living is to be crystal clear on your BIG WHY and to seek support when it’s needed.
If you struggle with your new lifestyle ask a friend who went vegan before you. Reach out to vegan bloggers and Youtubers. There are also some great communities on Facebook who were and still are to this day a great help in my own journey. Here are some of my favorite:
Whatever your problem might be, the chances are there are people out there who’ve already dealt with it and you’ll be surprise on how willing they are to help you. Oh, and feel free to ask me of course. Either in the comments below or you can send me an email from here. It brings me great joy to hear from you!
10. DON’T STRESS OUT
The transition to your new lifestyle can challenge you in ways that you’ve never imagined but this doesn’t mean that you should be hard on yourself. Don’t stress out if you find difficulties on your way and if things are not as you expected them to be. Please remember that you are overcoming a lifetime worth of habits and this is not an easy task even for the most disciplined among us.
You can’t expect to change overnight, although if you can that would be great. Unfortunately, not all of us are that lucky. Remind yourself that there are many ways to the same destination, so don’t compare your journey with someone else’s. Strive for progress, not perfection and be kind to yourself – always.
The same way you want the world to be kind towards the animals!
I hope you like this post and find it useful!
Thanks for sharing Lily! Whether you’re vegan, vegetarian, pescatarian, lactose-free, gluten-free etc. it can be really mentally, physically and emotionally challenging and draining to find alternative meals and stick with it. You’ve done a great job to provide understanding and support through this post x
Thank you so much for those words! It means a lot to me! I know the struggle and I just want to make it easier for others! xxx
This is such a great post. My best friend has recently gone vegan and is three weeks in so I’ll be sure to share this with her.
Thank you so much! I hope it will be useful to her! If she has any questions in particular it would be a pleasure for me to help her 🙂 xxx
These are great tips and so helpful for vegans. I am not a vegan my self but i have friends and sometimes i really enjoy eating with them their favorite vegan food.
Thant’s amazing! Yes, vegan food can be super delicious 🙂 xxx