10 Helpful Tips to Start Your Plant-Based Journey
Updated: Nov 2, 2021
You want to make the transition but feel stuck? Making the decision to go vegan is the biggest step you can make to a healthier lifestyle, but the best decision! Here are 10 simple steps to making that transition.
Find a good "milk" substitute. Try all the kinds, all the brands. Sweetened plain almond milk tends to be popular among new vegans.
Eat as much as you want of anything while you adjust. If you want a vegan cookie, have a vegan cookie. Let yourself off the hook this first month. Adjusting to a new diet and way of thinking is hard enough. Don't try to also hold yourself to a strict or restrictive diet. If you're worried about weight gain, exercise.
Have a laundry list of 10-25 recipes that are easy to make. Pick ones you've had before or ones you know you'll like. Keep the ingredients for those recipes on hand.
Make meals that yield leftovers like lasagna rolls, red lentil dal and chickpea noodle soup.
Have a well-stocked pantry and fridge of basic like wraps, refried beans, beans, salsa, instant brown rice, frozen veggies and pasta. Remember that meals don't have to be complex. Slap beans and salsa into a wrap. Combine equal parts soy sauce and sugar and mix it with cooked stir-fry veggies and rice.
If you really liked meat or cheese get yourself some fake stuff. I lived on Boca burgers at first, I'm not ashamed to admit that. Heck, I still eat fake meat and cheese from time to time. Gardein, Field Roast, Gardenburger, Yves... and Daiya! All good stuff.
Network! Start a blog, join online veg groups -- make friends through social networks... build an online community of friends you can swap recipes with, ask questions and talk to. Most vegans are really welcoming and happy to meet new people. I know I am!
Try new things every week-- at least one! whether it's something you've never had before like tempeh or something you previously disliked. Before I was a vegan I *hated* mushrooms and now they're one of my favorite foods.
Examine cravings. Is your body asking for a nutrient (iron, calcium, protein) that you're simply associating with animal products or is it more mental and you're looking for a comfort food. Even people who are not typically emotional eaters can get mentally-charged cravings.
Stash vegan food everywhere -- your locker, purse, car, desk at work -- over load it so you're never without options. Know where Subways are at all times, too! if possible too!
