Nachos from Vx, London
I thought I'd do a post about the process of going vegan as I see so many people ask the best way to go about it. This obviously depends on the type of person you are the diet you've had previously. I was pescetarian for a while before making the decision to go vegan and I transitioned very slowly, using up the last of the food I had that wasn't vegan friendly before replacing them with vegan ones. I partly did this so that I would phase these foods out slowly to make me miss them less and also to save on food waste - I'm not just vegan for animal ethical reasons, for the planet too. It was also very useful for me that my brother had been vegan for about two years already by this point and could give me some great recipes and replacements. I definitely found cheese the hardest thing to give up because as a vegetarian, most meat free options included cheese and it was a food I came very used to eating quite often but once I found a cheese I liked for pizza replacements, this is no longer an problem.
So here are a few things to consider if you're debating with yourself about whether or not to do it.
'I don't know where to start'
Check out vegan blogs, magazines, cook books and talk to vegans. Some people will find it easier to throw themselves straight into it, some will find it easier to take it slow and work out what's best for them over a period of time. I really honestly suggest just replacing a meal a day with something vegan so you can work on your cooking skills and find out what you like and don't like, especially if a vegan diet isn't something you're familiar with at all. If you're already vegetarian or a meat eater that eats a large amounts of meat free meals anyway then it may well work out better for you to just go straight into it because you already have some practice. Basically, baby steps or throwing yourself into it, don't be afraid to ask for help and advice! I'm still discovering new things I love day to day and improving my knowledge on my health all the time.
Getting enough protein
It is so easy to get enough protein on a day to day basis if you have a healthy diet. If you go vegan and only eat pot noodle then this probably won't work out for you, but if you're eating a balanced diet then yes you will get enough. Unless you're really trying to build muscle mass then you only need 40-60g of protein a day to keep healthy. Everything has a bit of protein. Bread has some protein. Beans have protein. Sweet potatoes have protein. Even Pringles have protein in them. Honestly don't worry about it, if you end up slightly under on the odd day you certainly aren't going to die, it's just something you'll only need to be slightly more careful about depending on the type of foods you generally like to eat on a day to day basis.
Missing other foods
The thing I have to say to this is that you don't have to go fully vegan to make a change to your lifestyle. I would absolute encourage anyone to make the change to eating much less meat and much less dairy but if you think you're going to miss a cheeseburger too much then have one every now and again. If you're only concerned about not doing this because you can't call yourself a vegan then maybe you're doing it for the wrong reason. There are replacements for pretty much everything nowadays and a friend of mine has rigorously tested which milk replacement is best in tea/coffee without changing the taste too much and he recommends rice milk. If you're a bit of a fussy person then it's more of a case of trial and error as to what you'll end up liking, but going long enough without certain foods and you won't want them anymore. Dairy to me now tastes like sour dirt, milk chocolate is far too sweet and the thought of ever eating meat again makes me feel a little queasy. Throughout my blogposts I have given recipes for many popular foods such as brownies and pizza that, IMO, are way nicer.
Eating out
Okay with this one I will admit that it makes eating out a little harder but only in the early days when you don't know what to look out for. It's becoming increasingly common for restaurants to have a vegan option (pizza express, wagamamas, McDonald's and nandos all have an option) as well as vegetarian and vegan restaurants popping up all over the shop. The app HappyCow shows you vegan restaurants and/or shops in your area and has been really helpful since I went vegan. Of course if you go to a steakhouse then you're going to find it hard to get a vegan option but I've also found that most places are happy to make changes to food on their menu because at the end of the day they want to keep their customers happy.
Eating too many carbs
Again with this one, yes it is very easy to eat a lot of carbs if you don't know what you're doing but it's the same if you also do eat meat and dairy. A lot more foods are carbs than people realise and you do actually need carbs for your body to function. Refined carbs in large amounts have very few benefits but if you are genuinely worried about it then switch to brown rice and pasta, or cous cous, quinoa and bulgar wheat, wholemeal bread, pitas and wraps and sweet potato instead of normal ones.
Whether it's actually more healthy or not
This one is a big fat YES. Yes cutting out meat and dairy from your life has proven health benefits. You don't have to go fully vegan to see this but people in the western world do eat way too much meat and dairy and you only have to do a quick internet search to see why and to see the various health benefits that come with either reducing or removing these foods entirely from your diet. There are of course things to consider - something many people aren't aware of is that B12 doesn't occur in a meat and dairy free diet and this vitamin is absolutely essential to remain healthy. We have a small supply ourselves but this does run out after a while so it's imperative to take a multivitamin that contains B12. The Omegas are also really important but these can be found in linseeds. Part of the reason becoming vegan increases health is because generally people become much more conscious of what they put in their bodies once going vegan but of course this can also apply to people who still eat meat and dairy and are aware of how much they should actually be eating (hint: it isn't every day, several times a day) and also there will be some people who are technically vegan because all they'll eat is chips.
I would recommend to anyone thinking of going vegan that they do their research before making the switch, from learning why it's important not only for health but for the planet and animals too, to checking what foods need to be eaten for optimum health.
Listening to: Freak of the Week ft. Jeremih - Krept & Konan
No comments:
Post a Comment