10 Things To Consider When Switching To Vegan Eating

If you’re considering switching to a vegan diet, then here are a few things you should consider that will help you be successful:

Identify Your Why

When you make any significant lifestyle change, it can be difficult to maintain motivation, especially during the early stages. For example, you will probably miss some of the foods you have previously enjoyed, such as meat and dairy products.

That’s why it’s crucial that you understand why you are moving to a vegan diet.

Are you doing it for health reasons, including weight loss?

Have you decided that going vegan is a better fit, ethically (e.g. in terms of the environment as a whole and/or with regard to animal welfare), for who you are?

Either way, write down any and all reasons for going vegan, and make sure you keep these reasons at the front of your mind at all times for those moments when you are struggling.

Other options to help you include putting your reasons on the fridge door, where you will see them frequently, or using affirmations.

Education

Before you make the switch, you should read up about vegan eating as much as you can, so that you know what you are letting yourself in for.

For example, if you’re going to eliminate entire food groups from your diet (e.g. meat, dairy, eggs), you need to know what minerals and vitamins you obtain from those foods and how you can ensure an adequate intake of those from vegan sources.

Of particular concern is protein, but the good news is that there are plenty of non-animal sources of protein.

Don’t Make The Change All At Once

Both mentally and physically, it may be extremely difficult to give up all of your non-vegan foods in one go. It would be like going cold turkey – or not cold turkey, in fact.

So, perhaps you want to try reducing then cutting out specific foods, one at a time. Maybe you could begin by eliminating meat, getting used to that, and then working on removing eggs next, and so on.

Some people also like to become accustomed to the foods they will be eating while they still eat animal-based meals.

All of this will make the transition longer, of course, but it’s more likely you’ll stick to your new diet.

Find Substitutes For Your Favourites

Some foods you will probably be able to eliminate without much trouble – these would be foods you like or tolerate, but only eat occasionally, rather than ones that are your “go to” items when you need some comfort food or a quick snack.

So, identify your favourite meals and snacks, and find suitable alternatives that will, after you acclimatize to the change, provide you with that same feeling.

The good news is that there are vegan-friendly alternatives for most popular foods these days (e.g. burgers, ice cream), although you should expect them to taste and/or feel different at first.

I remember when one of my favourite snacks, back in the 1980s, made a recipe change by removing artificial colours and flavours. Initially, the snack tasted weird and less satisfying – even though I knew (or assumed) it would be less unhealthy, but it didn’t take me long to get used to, and prefer, that new recipe.

Stay Healthy

When you give up meat and other non-vegan foods, there may be a temptation to replace them with junk.

You still need to choose foods that not only provide the nutrients you need, but are also healthy (e.g. no GMOs, organic if possible, as few artificial ingredients if you can).

One example here would be soy, often called textured vegetable protein. It’s worth remembering that a large proportion of the soy grown in the USA is GMO. (If you want to read more about the entire GMO controversy, I highly recommend this book.) The point is, soy-based products are often highly processed, and as a general rule, highly processed foods are not as healthy as unprocessed or minimally processed ones.

Finally, here, remember to check the labels of everything you buy – just because something is labelled as “vegan-friendly” (or “natural”) does not mean it is necessarily good for you.

Variety

In order to obtain the necessary intake of minerals and vitamins, you are probably going to have to look for a more varied range of ingredients (e.g. fruits, nuts, seeds, vegetables).

The more different foods you eat, the easier it will be to get all of the necessary nutrients.

Vegetables

While we’re on this subject, vegetables are probably going to play a major role in your new vegan eating lifestyle, and that’s because they often provide a good range of the nutrients your body needs.

One idea is to choose a vegetable as the centrepiece of your meal, and then build around it using other ingredients.

Grains

It’s also likely you’re going to be incorporating grains into your diet, so try to use whole grains wherever possible – they’re typically less processed and therefore healthier (or, at least, less unhealthy).

Experiment

People have a perception that both vegetarian and vegan diets are boring – sort of like rabbit food.

But this need not, of course, be the case.

It simply means you need to experiment with different ways of adding flavours to your meals.

For example, there are a wealth of herbs and spices you can use, and probably a wider variety of, for example, beans, than you might at first think.

Social Media

While there are undoubtedly some downsides to social media sites (e.g. they are great time-wasters), there are some advantages to them, and one of those is the ability to find like-minded people easily.

Whatever type of diet you are contemplating (i.e. not just vegan, but gluten-free or keto, for example), you will find a selection of Facebook groups about that specific regimen.

Joining one or more of those can help you get any questions you might have answered, and you’ll likely find recipe ideas for when you find yourself stuck.

Conclusion

Of course, going vegan is about more than the foods you consume, even though those do play a major role in this lifestyle, which is why it’s important to get it right.

If you eat the wrong foods, your mind and body will likely suffer as a result. For example, one of the most common features of people who don’t eat meat I’ve noticed over the years is how anaemic they look, which I’m assuming is down to them not finding suitable alternative sources for the nutrients (e.g. iron) they used to get from meat.

However, if you choose not to buy leather goods, there is little chance of that affecting your health.

But if vegan is your choice, then I wish you well with it – just make sure you’re well-prepared first!

Additional Resources

These are suggestions for those who wish to delve deeper into any of the above:

1. Affirmation Software
2. Altered Genes (an enlightening book about GMOs)
3. Plant-Based Recipes
4. The Minimalist Vegan