I decided to start this blog off with a useful post and one that's not just preaching to the choir. The process of going vegan is going to be different for everyone, but I just wanted to offer my advice for people who might be similar to me.
Do your research. Going vegan is a big step away from the mainstream (but maybe it won't be very soon since veganism really seems to be exploding, just in the 7 years I've been vegan). It's important for you to establish a firm foundation, so you won't get thrown off by common objections like, "you're not going to get enough protein or calcium." Or "why can't you just eat humane animal products?" Or "animal cruelty cases are isolated and not regularly occurring." Or "animals are killed in the fields where vegetables are harvested." Read up on nutrition and ethics. There is so much vegan content on the internet now that a quick Google will give you eloquent responses to most of these questions. As a new or potential vegan, you will find yourself easily getting concerned and worried and doubtful when these kinds of points are raised if you're not confident in the basis of veganism. Before and during going vegan, I went on a massive reading binge.
Make a list of ten easy vegan meals that you can make regularly at home. Again, Google is your friend. It was kind of a joke when I went vegan seven years ago that if you're a vegan, you have a blog, so there were tons of blogs back then, and that number has just exploded ever since. You should have no problems finding meal ideas. YouTube and Instagram are also great places to check for this. So many people do what I eat in a day videos on YouTube or keep food diaries on Instagram. If you like to cook, check out some vegan cookbooks from the library or invest in some highly rated ones. Also, research vegan options at national chains. You'd be surprised how much is out there. veganeatingout.com is a great site for this, and happycow.net will tell you about places that aren't necessarily chains where you can get vegan food anywhere in the world.
Go easy on yourself. I find that the most enjoyable way to make a major diet change is to find all the foods and products you love and eventually crowd out all the stuff that doesn't belong in your life anymore. This is much more painless than just going cold turkey, though there is nothing wrong with that approach if that's what you really want to do! When I went vegan, I gave away most of my nonvegan food items to a friend, and eventually I donated my wool sweaters to GoodWill. A few nonvegan items remained in my fridge and closets for a while, but eventually they all got replaced with cruelty free items.
Find a supportive vegan community either in person or on the internet. It feels terrible to be the lonely vegan. You will find no shortage of vegans who want to be your friend on Facebook. Check out the #vegan hashtags on Twitter, Instagram, or tsu.co
Sunday, March 22, 2015
Hello World...
And welcome to The Vegan Crab! I'm not too sure what direction I'm going with this blog. As a vegan of 7 years, I just felt the need to finally start writing and putting some content out. Obviously, I'll have mostly vegan related posts, but I do want to be authentically me, so I might share some other aspects about myself as well.
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