How To Become a Vegan?

Mentally prepare yourself

When you go vegan, you change so much of your consumer lifestyle. You have to save up your money and wait to find that perfect item or a bit of food that you can’t live without - hopefully manufactured animal and eco-friendly. 

You have to pass the streets that are filled with scents of meat and dairy dinners being cooked and have not yet adapted. Resisting temptation can be very hard when you are trying to break old habits. 

You have to explain over and over again to your friends, family, and acquaintances about what kind of diet you follow and the reasons why. All of this takes effort. It is good to know what you are getting yourself into and check for tips on how to stick to your consumption preference without having to add the extra mental baggage that comes with it.  

Nutrition research

Going vegan means that you will lose sources of vitamins and minerals that you have been getting on a traditional diet. It is good practice to have a diary with a list of all the vitamins and minerals your body needs and which foods contain the nutrients. 

Once you have the list established you can go on to getting a kitchen filled with all the ingredients you need to eat to keep a healthy vegan diet. A 100% plant-based diet is not common and it can be hard to transition at first. 

Just make sure you are taking care of yourself and providing your mind and body with what it needs. If you feel more comfortable, visit a nutritionist and get a review of your blood samples and nutrient levels.

Recipes 

Get prepared to go vegan in the kitchen by having a list of recipes at the ready. Apps for importing recipes and enabling users to create shopping lists related to the recipe of choice are great tools for making sure that your kitchen is filled with the necessary items to cook easily. 

Get recipes that are quick and easy. Gathering the recipes and ingredients can already take up a lot of time. It takes work to plan a balanced diet with all the nutrients you need. Give yourself a break by making the recipes simple and quick. 

Once you get into a routine, you will be able to start doing more complicated dishes. 

Shopping

So many retail stores are popping up in cities across the world. Vegan-friendly stores are decorating the streets of Paris, Rome, Amsterdam, Milan, Berlin and many more. They are responding to the growing demand for vegan retail: an industry that is anti-fur and ant-animal sourced production.

The next step in being a good vegan consumer is to double-check that your products are coming from ethically and environmentally-friendly suppliers. Organic cotton, hemp, and linen are being produced sustainably and sold in the market. Be sure to check if the clothing you are interested in is vegan.

Vegan restaurants

Treat yourself every week by checking out the new vegan place in town. It is also possible that non-vegan restaurants also have meat and dairy-free option available. In that case, contribute to the increasing sales of vegan meals at the restaurant and make an impact on the food industry.

Keep track of success

There is nothing better than being able to reward yourself at the end of a successful week of sticking to your new lifestyle. Record the experience by sharing the different places where you ate or bought a new vegan-friendly piece of clothing or product. 

Stick to it and inspire

All we can do is our best. Even with the pressure of limited choice or difficulties in resisting cravings, keep standing by your beliefs as long as they are justified. It can be hard to transition to a 100% plant-based diet. It can also be a long story to explain why - out of so many reasons available - you have decided to integrate a vegan diet into your lifestyle. 

Flexitarian is a term being used, to sum up, a variety of names. For those who do not know what to call themselves in terms of a consumer, and for those who are 70% plant-based and 30% not - flexitarian is a recognized representation of your preference.