Things i wish i knew before transitioning to a Vegan diet

Today is the 100th day of me being on a vegan diet. This was a journey i never thought i would ever embrace. Frankly, when i started, I did not even know difference between words Vegan and Vegetarian. Vegans in addition to not eating meat, poultry, pork, fish etc do not consume any animal products like eggs, dairy, cheese, honey or any similar product derived from animal . Needless to say this has been a challenge for someone who had his upbringing in an orthodox Christian family in a small state of Kerala in India where eating meat is deeply rooted in culture. It is hard to recollect a single family occasion or even a normal Sunday during my childhood when beef, pork, poultry or fish was not served. This whole vegan adventure inspired me to jot down few things i experienced and learned as part of this progress so far.

Food

In contrary to what many people believe, vegan food can be delicious and flavorful. By spicing up, combining flavors and textures or slow roasting, any food can be made delightful. I tried food combinations which I have never ever tried before, like kale and chic peas and found it to be quite good.

Cooking tasty Indian vegan food consumes lot more time that cooking chicken, turkey, or similar. This may not be the case for everyone. I have done lot of cooking experiments in the past but most of it was some sort of chicken curry. After following vegan diet on some days I have spent couple of hours cooking a single meal. This has been challenging on the days when I was busy with work.

Plant based foods which looks and taste exactly like meat are available in market. I did try ‘Beyond meat’ and few other brand multiple times but I tried to limit it after initial attempts. They seem to be highly processed.

Foods i thought were vegan are not vegan. Example – Honey, chocolate,  miso soup, jelly.

Avocados, blueberries and strawberries are part of daily diet. I never liked blueberries before. Now i like it in smoothies mixed with almond milk or oatly milk.

Dining outside was reduced heavily due to lack of options and also due to COVID-19. This was good because staying healthy while dining out frequently can be stressful.

Body

It elevated my overall energy levels in the initial days when i started. Over a period of 3 months i realized that it may not be vegan food, but reduction of food in general is resulting in higher energy levels.

Lost a great deal of body fat in a short period of time. Almost 15 pounds in 2 months without any extra exercise.

My dry skin is getting noticeably drier. It could be because of the weight loss or may be lack of any nutrition. I am not so happy about that.

Noticed thinning of hair. I am not sure if it is related to diet. I will be keeping an eye  on it in months to come. I will probably start adding pea based vegan protein powder to smoothies.

Reduction in blood pressure. My BP was not on the higher end, but it reduced further.

Mind

First couple of weeks were challenging in terms of adjusting with new type of foods. It was not too bad.

Social and family life was not impacted in any way. Family and friends were very understanding and encouraged it.

I noticed i was getting less annoyed or resentful, lesser angry, more forgiving and better sense of gratitude for the things i have in my life.

Above all, to know that an animal was not killed to provide food for me, feels great.

If you have any questions feel free to comment below, connect with me via email – donpauly@gmail.com or twitter – https://twitter.com/don_pauly