Transitioning to Plant Based
Originally posted May 2022
My first week into adopting a plant based diet has been a positive experience and has brought to light many things that I will need to adjust along this journey.
Grocery Shopping - I was prepared with a list and luckily have access to a quality grocery store that I know will have plenty of healthy options, Trader Joes. The one thing that shocked me grocery shopping, as well as everywhere else I consumed food this week, is just how many products have milk or eggs in them. Foods that I previously assumed had no dairy in them I was surprised to find did. Besides fruits and vegetables I was sure to check the label of each item I bought to confirm that the item contained no surprising animal products. Another thing that has helped me this week to make sure that I always have good quality food at home, is buying frozen veggies in addition to fresh. Having a stock of frozen vegetables ensures that I always have healthy food options at home. Do take the extra minute to make sure the ingredients are indeed vegan because some products may surprise you.
Early on in the week I noticed that my energy levels were better than they have ever been. For about 2-3 years I have dealt with serious fatigue that has not seemed normal to me. So the increase in my energy was instantly noticeable. Is this change correlated to the elimination of animal products or simply due to eating healthier? This transition already implies a healthier diet just due to being more conscience about what I am putting in my body, so is the increase in energy due to the lack of animal products or better food? Only time will tell. I am finding that even when I do not get enough sleep that I still have more energy available to me to get through the day.
Navigating work events - This first week presented a lot of challenges with situations that many of us are familiar with; work provided lunches and work events where food is served. My first week was also Teacher Appreciation Week and we all know that the only way people show appreciation is through food. I attended a work event in the evening where dinner was being provided, the menu for the event was not shared in advance so there was no way to know if anything would be available. I naively anticipated that if anything these would be salad. I was, again, surprised by the lack of any food options. There was salad…with a creamy dressing. Even the rice had meat in it. Prior to the event I had a few snack at home just in case they did not provide any healthy food options. It has been a while since I have been somewhere that did not have at least one option but this is another area I will have to navigate. The next day we were provided lunch at work and to my surprise even a veggie wrap would bring challenges. My biggest takeaway from these experiences is to always bring something I can eat. It is going to have to be my responsibility to make sure that I always have a healthy food option.
An eye-opener that I took away from this first week is just how ingrained animal products are into our society. It is the expectation, the norm that our foods contain animal products. I contest it should be the opposite. We should expect all foods to be vegan and those with animal products in them should bare the warning.
This week I also attended a family event and had a half marathon which I cover in their own posts.
Eating at home was so simple. I enjoy experimenting with new foods and also appreciate that this experience is really making me think about what I put in my body. The feedback from friends and some family has been very interesting. Many people who I wouldn’t have thought to find interest in this conversation have expressed that the information I have shared so far has been helpful and compelling. It has made them think about their choices which is the best thing I could hear. Being able to open people’s eyes to this research and information is why I am doing this.
