Living a more compassionate lifestyle: going vegan

Sooo I find it difficult to talk about this out loud without sounding like a bit of a douche bag so I’m hoping that writing it will be better. I’ve definitely been intrigued by going vegan and have read how much healthier it can be for you. However it’s never been a lifestyle that I thought I could follow as it always seemed too extreme.

Then I read this article last week from The Guardian on how the dairy industry works and what actually happens to enable us to have milk. I’ve never really heard that much about the milk industry or looked into it before as I think on some level I knew I wouldn’t like it.

After reading this article I literally felt sick. Something changed in my head and I felt that I didn’t feel right ignoring what I’d read and it was time to make a change.

I don’t want to sound dramatic about this considering I’ve never even been a vegetarian. Although I’ve always felt guilty at the thought of murdering animals for meat. I don’t agree with animal testing and it just feels like the right time to make some positive changes.

I’m not currently calling myself a vegan as I’m not, not yet anyway. I want to make realistic changes at a realistic pace. The plan was to cut out dairy and then introduce a few vegan meals a week and go from there. However I’ve found myself  diving into it more and more.

I’ve done a meal plan for the week and the majority of meals are meat, dairy and egg free. I’ve replaced all of our snacks with vegan friendly alternatives such as dark chocolate.

I’ve found there are quite a lot of foods which I never realised are actually vegan like oreos, party rings and crumpets. Knowing that I can still have some treats makes the transition a lot easier.

So I’ve been reading lots and finding out what foods are suitable and where to get your protein and vitamins from, looking at vegan recipes and pinning ideas.

Part of changing my lifestyle to vegan is thinking about food in a different way. Before, most meals revolved around meat and now it’s a combination of vegetables, pulses, rice, potato etc. I’m looking forward to discovering new meals and recipes and enjoying food knowing that no animals died or were mistreated.

One thing that I struggle with is tea, it just doesn’t taste the same with soya or almond milk. If anyone has any suggestions please send them my way!

I’ll keep you updated on my vegan journey, if anyone has any great advice or recipe suggestions let me know!

XOXO