In most instances, when someone says that they are vegan to anyone who eats meat, that person is met with a rolling of the eyes or questions asking about their purpose in being vegan. Many people like to argue why milk, eggs and meat is necessary for a healthy diet, which is not necessarily true for everyone from what I have researched. Now I understand that being vegan is not for everyone, and I am not writing this article to convince you to become vegan and to change your mind about animal products, but rather to let you know what my personal reason is.
As I look through my photos, I am extremely unhappy with how I look and how I feel. I am a 20-year-old college student who has struggled with my weight for the past seven years, and I am ready for a change and in need to boost my self-confidence. So, I feel that a vegan diet of plant-based food is the best way for me. Since I can remember, I have been a huge fan of steak, chicken nuggets and cheese curds, making going vegan extremely difficult. I have tried being vegetarian before, but I found that I ate too much cheese and that it was not enough to help the environment. I am sick of having no energy, feeling like crap after I eat and I want and deserve a change.
Now, when considering different ways to lose weight, I knew that I did not want to do something temporary that helps me lose weight quickly. I wanted to lose weight in a way that I could continue to sustain throughout my life and slowly lose the weight to have less of a chance to gain it all back. I thought about doing Whole 30 or Paleo, but in the back of my mind I have always thought about being vegan. I have always wanted to go vegan due to environmental and animal cruelty purposes, but I thought I should wait until I was older and had less on my plate.
I began researching the best recipes and videos about those who went vegan and lost a ton of weight. Jinti Fell, a YouTuber who advocates for veganism and minimalism, truly changed my life and the way I see the world. She discussed why she became vegan and it really clicked for me. I also frequently watch food documentaries on Netflix such as Food Choices, Cowspiracy and Food Inc.
I have decided that vegan is the choice for me because I want to only put natural foods in my body and I don’t want to continue to consume processed foods and foods that hurt something else in order to benefit me. I am not any greater than an animal and am saddened by how many of their lives I have already taken in my life. When I commit myself to eating vegan, I am committing to eating a healthier, more balanced diet. Along with dieting, I am also going to exercise more, start a healthier morning routine and take my time eating.
I am hoping to eventually have all my beauty products be vegan because after reading labels of foods I am consuming, I have started reading the labels of items that I am putting on my body and that is starting it make me extremely uncomfortable. I am not going to toss out makeup or perfume I currently own because I do not want to waste them, and as a broke college student waste is not an option!
So, I start my journey on April 11th, and I hope that this day will be a new start to a healthier me. To keep myself accountable and have something to look at in the future, I will be documenting it on an Instagram page @planteaterincollege. Maybe in the future I will be writing an article for Her Campus Iowa about how amazing I feel being vegan. Stay tuned!
P. S. Here are some other amazing vegan YouTubers: