When I first considered veganism as a lifestyle change, I unexpectedly came across some incredible resources to glean information and ease my transition.

 

In this age of the internet, featuring a growing utilization of social media, information can travel from person to person instantaneously while reaching a wider array of audiences. Long gone are our encyclopedia days –with paragraphs upon paragraphs of nearly outdated text with a black and white photo thrown in every few pages or so. Am I dating myself? (I’m only 26, send help!)

 

It is 2018 already! The future is now! (Is the future vegan? Let’s find out.)

If you are stuck in the stone age like myself, no need to fear. The following ten (low-tech) resources can help ease the transition to a more vegan-friendly lifestyle.

No app required—I don’t even own a smart phone! However, for the following tips, internet access is required.

 

 

Go easy with the changes.

I’d be hard pressed to find someone who actually did “go vegan” overnight. A complete lifestyle transformation such as this may take weeks, months, or even years. Between researching, planning, and executing the changes, “going vegan” took me a little over two years! Baby steps are key!

“Going Vegan” involves many stages. To start, try setting a reasonable and attainable goal for yourself. I can’t tell you what your stages may be or what your goals might look like or even how long it will take to go through each one. Each person’s journey towards a vegan lifestyle is different. This is your time to explore your needs, boundaries, and creativity. Take your time and enjoy the journey.

Maybe your first goal is to research veganism and learn how the lifestyle impacts our health, health of our planet, and welfare of animals.

Timeframe? You decide! A few months? 1 year? Both are fine.

Your second goal might be to put some information that you have learned into action. Why not try “Meatless Mondays”? Why not try “VB6” or “vegan before six pm”? (Essentially, a vegan breakfast and vegan lunch every day.) How about cooking with plants and eating vegan solely in the home?

Timeline? 1 Year? Perfect! You do you!

Again, I wanted to stress that it does not matter if you’re able to switch to veganism in four weeks or four years. You are in charge of your own transition. The best way to make a large lifestyle change is to take small steps over time at your own pace. You are more likely to stick to it that way! No need to be “too hard on yourself” during any point on your journey. Aim to make a positive choice each day! Even if that positive choice is to choose to be informed! By choosing to be informed about our food system, you are choosing to understand the truth over continuing to wear rose-colored glasses. Choosing the truth is bold. In this way, you are making steps towards transparency in our food system. Well done! What else can you do? What can be done next? Keep the momentum going. 

 

 

Keep a journal of your thoughts during your transition, such as a gratitude journal.

Changing one’s eating habits can be an emotional experience. Keep track of this. Create a dialogue with yourself. Make this a positive transition. In my journal, I also kept track of meals that worked for me. These were meals that were both satisfying and meals that I knew that I could cook with consistency. I also kept a running list of foods that I liked and listed some ways in which I could further incorporate them into my cooking.

 

 

Look for inspiration online.

Pinterest is such a great resource. Make an account with your email address to create a “Vegan” board in which to “pin” other websites. Pinterest is a great way to search recipe ideas in a colorful, exciting, and easygoing manner. You may be amazed with what you can find.

 

 

Sign up for email notifications.

Have you ever searched “One Green Planet”? This site is an amazing resource for all things “green” and has information on sustainable food choices, current animal and environmental issues, and tips on living a more “green” lifestyle. Add your email address to the notification list to receive a newsletter in your inbox on the latest happenings on these aforementioned fronts as well as plant-based recipe ideas. I look forward to my newsletter! Just recently, I learned that an all-vegan grocery store is about to open within driving distance from me! How cool!

 

 

Read books and/or listen to audiobooks. 

Topics such as personal vegan transformations memoir-style or science-based books on the benefits of a plant-based diet both work well here. I have two posts about book/audiobook recommendations of which I will link below. Of specific note, I highly recommend Rich Roll’s Finding Ultra on audiobook as he reads his own work aloud. In this way, his story of his personal triumphs seem to come alive, which makes for a truly inspiring and captivating read. Try checking it out at your local library!

Also, I just finished Dr. Greger’s How Not to Die. Although dense in material, the work is written in an easy-to-read manner. In his work, Dr. Greger makes an irrefutable case for a plant-based diet for all. For those who are science-minded and enjoy a fact-based read, pick this one up!

 

Top Five Reads on Minimalism, Veganism, Wellness, and Navigating Food Culture

Another 5 reads on Minimalism, Veganism, Wellness, and Navigating Food Culture

 

 

 

Bookmark vegan/vegetarian restaurants as “to-try”.

“Yelp” is a great internet resource for this purpose. Simply type “vegan” or “vegetarian” in the search box as well as your location to find restaurants in your area. If you aren’t near any vegan/vegetarian restaurants, try searching a different location as a frame of reference or using the map feature. If the options appear to be outside a short driving distance from the home, try using this as excuse to plan a special day trip on a weekend! Even purusing through a vegan/vegetarian restaurant menu may spark some inspiration as for what meals to cook at home.

 

 

Check out the website, Cronometer.

Make an account and track the nutritional content of your meals. Tracking the amount of vitamins, minerals, and protein that you intake daily will allow you to monitor gaps, if any, in your nutrition. Using chronometer, I came to find out that I was consistently around the 80% RDA marker for potassium each day. I started integrating more servings of coconut water, potatoes, and bananas into my meals and quickly made my goal. Cronometer is such an amazing and useful tool.

 

 

Start (or continue) a collection of Recipe Cards.

Check the grocery store or search Amazon for the prettiest recipe cards you can find. A change in lifestyle requires a change in recipe cards! Write down your favorite vegan meals! Additionally, write down vegan recipes to try out! Bring these cards with you for your next trip to the grocery store in order to get the necessary ingredients! Or do what I do and stick the recipe cards in your gratitude journal and bring the whole thing to the store.

 

 

Watch videos on YouTube and follow some vegan-specific channels.

Watching recipe/how-to videos as well as videos on the science behind a plant-based diet as well as videos on vegan lifestyle tips have been instrumental in my personal transition to the vegan lifestyle. I give credit “Caitlin Shoemaker”, “Liv B” , and “Mic. the Vegan”. Check out their channels!

 

Below are my favorite videos from each;

Caitlin Shoemaker – What I Ate Today // The BEST Vegan Milkshake

Liv B – What I Eat in a Day | Winter 2018

Mic. the Vegan – How Your Body Transform On A Vegan Diet

 

 

Cook for others.

After a while of integrating and perfecting some vegan meals into your weekly rotation, you might be inspired and compelled to show others how easy (or at least not as intimidating) it can be to make a delicious plant-based meal. Bring a vegan dish to a potluck dinner! Have friends or family members over for dinner. Host a Vegan Thanksgiving! (I hosted a Vegan Thanksgiving for my boyfriend, his parents and grandmother in 2016, before I was 100% vegan myself! A post will be written about this in the future.) Talk about changing up a tradition! The sky is the limit!

 

 

 

Side note;

The reason I don’t recommend ‘the big name’ vegan films? Well, because I haven’t seen many of them myself.

I’ve only started getting into the ‘vegan films’ genre, such as “What the Health”, etc., only after nearly a year of becoming vegan. I was hesitant to watch these type of movies at first because I was worried that the movies might prove too distressing or too overwhelming in terms of how much information would be thrown my way. One of my New Year’s Resolutions this year, however, is to actually sit down and watch these. I hope to see ‘Earthlings’, ‘Cowspiracy’, and ‘Gary Yourofsky’s Speech’ over the course of this year. I am by no way, however, against these films. I just know myself and understand that best way for me to learn about difficult or sensitive topics would be to read about it in books or on online platforms or watch short videos. Baby steps! I follow my own tips!

 

Just because I am 11 months in, doesn’t mean I have any less room to grow. Veganism and a plant-based lifestyle has given me a compass by which to seek direction.

 

Again, you are on your own journey here. Going plant-based is an enlightening, scary, yet ultimately beautiful experience. Seek information in a way that you find is best presented to meet your learning needs.

 

 

 

 

March 2018 update: I recently finished watching Vegan: Everyday Stories on Youtube and highly recommend it. Start popping that popcorn!