Diary of a Vegan: Month One

Today, I complete one month as a vegan.
I wanted to talk about this journey- not to sound preachy or force this idea upon anyone, but also as a way to keep track of the little things I have accomplished for now. I also know many people who don't actually know as much as they think about this lifestyle, and while there are quite a few vegan food bloggers/vloggers I can name off the top of my head right now, the majority of the people I personally know are still a bit in the dark. To give an example, I know a few people who think vegans are radical vegetarians who fight for the rights of animals...which I guess could be plausible, but is still off the mark.

How I define the vegan lifestyle: When a person decides to cut meat and dairy out of their diet, and any food that contains an animal byproduct.

One thing I learned quickly was that food companies tend to sneak animal products into food that normally shouldn't have. This is mostly in canned or boxed goods, so I don't plan on continuing that anytime soon. For example, I was going to eat some falafel that my mom made last night, and then my sister decided to tell me that the box clearly listed gelatin as one of the ingredients. Sigh.

Here is where I would like to amend the title of this blog post. I have been a vegan about 99% of the time, which is why I'm calling this my vegan diary. Because the truth is, this is a process, and a trip to Vegantopia. And I'm still miles away. But, I have taken major steps by completely cutting out dairy and meat.

So far, I have felt healthier, and lighter- compared to when I used to eat meat, and I would feel heavy and drowsy. And as for energy, I feel full of energy all the time. What's nice is that I feel great so far, and that's a great way to start!

Thanks for reading!