Becoming vegetarian or vegan can be one of the best decisions of your life, here’s some advice on how to do it.
I stopped eating meat eight months ago. Two months after refusing to eat meat, eggs began to repulse me. Two more months after that, I began substituting dairy products like milk and cheese for almond milk and vegan cheese. Although I prefer to call myself vegetarian over vegan, my dietary changes and habits are leading me into the vegan world – and I couldn’t be happier.
Although I switched to a vegetarian diet less than a year ago, it was something I was contemplating for years. I remember having a friend who was vegetarian who inspired me so much because of her deep care for what she put in her body. I realized, after years of contemplating, that what held me back the most from becoming a vegetarian was living in a house where meat was typically involved in every meal. For me, college could be a fresh start – I had more options for food, and I was forced to cook for myself a lot of the time as well.
Since my family’s diet included meat almost all of the time, I had to look to outside places to get advice on my dietary change and find recipes. YouTube was one of the biggest helps.
First, there is “The Most Important Speech You Will Ever Hear” by Gary Yourofsky. Watching this speech was a pivotal moment for me. I realized that all this time I was eating meat without thinking about it, and there were so many variables to consider when making a decision as big as that. Yourofsky is a strong speaker and he will impact you, but he does so in a meticulous manner, presenting facts and information you can’t get out of your head. If you know someone who doesn’t eat meat and you don’t understand why, watching this video will also be of help.
After watching that speech, along with reading articles and listening to more online advice, I had made a decision. However, it was now time to execute. I wondered where I would start… It soon became clear: I began writing down and printing out new recipes.
Doing a simple search on YouTube for “vegan/vegetarian recipes,” or “vegan/vegetarian what I ate in a day” will result in loads of videos. However, I did find that it was a lot to take in at once to hear advice from all different people who each specify their diets to their own wants, needs, and desires.
Once I came across a YouTube channel called “Hot for Food” I felt like I hit the jackpot. Here’s just a small portion of the content the couple running the channel releases:
Watching these videos, for me, sparked an interest in trying out new ideas and getting myself into the kitchen. From then on, taking matters into your own hands is of huge importance. Implement the ideas from the speech into your mind, and the recipes from the videos into your diet and take it from there!
If this journey is something you are interested in now is the time. We are maturing our morals and ideals as young adults and if there is an interest in exploring a new diet, today is the best day to begin paving the way for your future.