Being Vegan!

I went Vegan for 24 hours (but most of my meals are currently vegan anyway!)

I've been volunteering in a vegan and vegetarian cafe for around a month. I'd mainly been vegetarian but I decided to challenge myself to be Vegan for 24hours. It may not seem like much, but a month ago, most of my meals contained meat and dairy.

Since volunteering at the cafe, I have noticed so many positive changes! The only negative is that I seem to have an outbreak of acne... but this could be from hot yoga. 

Here is what I have noticed, just in a month,

Healthy lunch: tofu, salad leaves, cucumber, olive tapenade, red onion, rice, olive oil and balsamic dressing & a bullet proof coffee.

1. Tummy pain has gone!

Prior to this experience, I regularly had tummy pain from endometriosis and IBS; basically my tummy loved to cramp and bloat like there was no tomorrow! Now, I don't have a daily reminder about my tummy troubles and my jeans are fitting better than ever.

2. It's easier than I thought, but the 24hours was tough!

It was an odd change of mind set "actively" being vegan as opposed to passively being vegan. Where I am currently staying, I have a daily allowance for food in the cafe and all food in healthy and at least vegetarian. Being vegetarian and vegan seemed to be about 50/50; but actively being vegan seemed more mindful and I was a lot more concerned about what I was eating, where it came from and how it got on my plate!

3. I thought about where my food came from.

It doesn't sound pleasant and I did struggle to eat a steak after this experience. It was on my mind far too much "how were the animals treated?", "where is this meat sourced from?" and "the poor baby animal!". I have made a mental note to research into this more and to actively understand where my food comes from. 

4. The tiredness passes.

The first few weeks was tough, I ended up bulking up my meals with protein shakes (vegan) and tofu and felt much better within a few days. I now make sure I bulk up my food with tofu as often as I can. I can now comfortable do exercise and work without feeling excessively tired. I'm a sleepy person, so I think there will always be an element of tiredness within me :)

5. The dream kitchen.

I've found myself day dreaming about my dream kitchen more and more, with a pantry filled with whole and healthy foods. It seems much more desirable and easy to do. Working in the cafe, I hope I can do this one day; plenty of veg, nuts, coconut oil, cocoa, rice and coconut cream. Oh, and learn to make good dressings! Honestly, some of the dressings I have eaten over the past few weeks are amazing and incredibly taste. My favourite, peanut and lime! That's one to take back to the UK.

The verdict

I'm overall, just very pleased that I think about what I am eating now. I need to research a little more into being vegetarian or vegan, vitamin and nutritional components and whether I really want to do this. 

Dave and I have spoken about being flexi-tarian meaning we are mainly vegetarian but will eat meat around friends houses etc... it sounds like a nice balance... and possibly a good start! The biggest change for me is the lack of tummy discomfort, I thought it would have to be someone I'd have to deal with on a regular basis, forever. Overall, if I don't need another operation and the pain doesn't increase, it seems worth it....

All the good stuff; Nachos. grilled cheese and chocolate treat. All Vegan.