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How to Vegan: 20 Vegan Diet Hacks

How to Vegan: 20 Vegan Diet Hacks

Zen Habits has a great list of 20 motivation hacks, and they work very well for motivating you to do anything new and stick with it, including starting a vegan diet. Here’s the list adapted to helping you start and maintain a vegan diet:

 

  1. Chart Your Progress. Keep a log on an excel sheet of everything you eat. You can cross reference this with your health and performance as well.

 

  1. Hold Yourself Back. Ease into a vegan diet. Sometimes if you change too suddenly, you’ll feel overwhelmed and be tempted to quit. 

 

  1. Join an online (or off-line) group. Find vegan Facebook groups. They’re fantastic. And continue reading the updates on this blog :-)

 

  1. Post a picture of your goal someplace visible. Whatever that may be. You holding up a plate of delicious vegan food. A really cute picture of a happy, living animal.

 

  1. Get a workout partner or goal buddy. Having a buddy makes it a lot easier and more fun. Especially someone you live with.

 

  1. Just get started. Some days you may not want to put in the extra effort (and being a vegan takes extra effort at this point in history). Talk yourself into just taking the first step.

 

  1. Make it a pleasure. Make it fun. It’s one of the greatest joys in life to exercise this kind of control and compassion over how and what you eat.

 

  1. Give it time, be patient. If you aren’t always perfect, forgive yourself and keep trying.

 

  1. Break it into smaller, mini goals. Learn how to cook 3 recipes by X date. Stock your pantry with these ingredients this week, then those ingredients next week.

 

  1. Reward yourself. Often. Vegan ice cream. New wok. Bamboo skewers for delicious vegan kabobs. Whatever motivates you. This is part of making it a pleasure.

 

  1. Find inspiration, on a daily basis. Again, vegan Facebook groups and websites. Keep reading this blog :-)

 

  1. Get a coach or take a class. A vegan cooking class in you area can be a lot of fun. Can’t find one? Organize and teach one.

 

  1. Have powerful reasons. Know your reasons. Make them emotional and powerful.

 

  1. Become aware of your urges to quit, and be prepared for them. Know what could stop you and be ready to overcome it.

 

  1. Make it a rule never to skip two days in a row. When starting a vegan diet for the first time, this can be a very powerful rule to help you stay on course.

 

  1. Visualize your goal clearly, on a daily basis, for at least 5-10 minutes. Think about why you want to be vegan and what it looks like, the benefits you get from it, be very specific and visual as you imagine and reflect 

 

  1. Keep a daily journal of your goal. One fun way to do this is take a picture of everything you eat. You can even keep a public or private Instagram of this.

 

  1. Create a friendly, mutually-supportive competition. See who can go vegan the longest. That’s how a very good friend of mine has stayed vegan for over a decade.

  

  1. Make a big public commitment. Announce it on Facebook. Tell your family and friends.

  

  1. Always think positive. As in anything you undertake to do in your wonderful life!

MEET SOME OF OUR TEAM MEMBERS

In 2022 we had 100 Team Members. BE APART OF THE FAMILY AND SHARE YOUR STORY

Meet Team VPA member Renee @runtrails_eatplants . It is her second year on the team and she has been helping out behind the scenes on our IG @team_vpa and our FB pages"Life is too short to stay inside your comfort zone, reach for the sky. I’m Renee and I am an ultrarunner living outside Atlanta, Georgia. 14 years ago, I went plant based for my health and I never looked back. After a bad foot injury, I discovered I loved lifting as much as I love running the trails. So, at the age of 50 I added lifting heavy to my training plan. I am passionate about spreading the message that age is no limit and you can not only thrive on a plant-based diet, you can help end animal cruelty and have a positive impact on the environment too. So, get out there and go for it!"

Welcome to the team@monica.strattonSport: Triathlon, Cycling, Running

"I have struggled for my entire life with food. It seems everything I ate made me feel sluggish or sick. My husband and I decided to try the vegan lifestyle and we have never felt better. My digestive system is running so much better and I feel I have more sustainable energy through my workouts and life. Being vegan has helped me fuel better for all my races and training.
I am very proud to be a vegan athlete. I have seen what it has done for me and my performance in all my sports. I want to share my story of how being vegan has changed my life in terms of how I feel on a daily basis and in sport. Being a professional athlete my students look to me and how I live my life and I am very proud to tell them how much better my body feels being vegan "

Welcome back@rjsacksVeganism saved my dad's life many years ago. He had horrible blockages in his heart and faced stents and a very dangerous operation, or seeing what would happen if he went whole food no oil plant based. He reversed his heart disease and is healthy as ever and still vegan. He never needed heart surgery. He is now 61 years old and still doing distance cycling rides. I started changing what I was eating during high school when my dad switched his diet. I made the complete switch after I met my boyfriend, a collegiate vegan runner at the time. I was mostly looking at veganism through a health lens until I met him and he helped me face the ethical dilemmas of eating animal products as well. Since I went vegan, my sister went vegan, my mom went vegetarian almost plant based, and my brother (who I thought would never change) has cut a significant amount of meat and dairy from his diet. My dad, boyfriend and I are all vegan cyclists currently. My whole immediate family is very open to veganism and eats vegan at family gatherings. Being vegan has been easy with supports like mine.
I feel strongly about spreading a positive message and hopefully helping make a change. Veganism saves so many animals, it can save people like my dad, and can save our planet. I can show other athletes that vegans aren't frail and sickly, we can compete and do well without eating animal products.

Welcome to the team@prost_1969I had high cholesterol high blood pressure and was 40 lbs over weight. The doctor said statins for the rest of my life because high cholesterol was in my family so I took things into my own hands. Since then I lost the 40 lbs and reversed all the other issues . I now also realize the impact going vegan has on the animals and the environment. I love cycling and running and by joining the team I can reach more people and show them that you can’t just survive without the use of animal products but thrive!!

Meet Team VPA athlete Shari. We are glad she joined us Meet“Hi team, this is my first year with Team VPA. I'm overjoyed to have found this team. I adore the mission statement because it reflects my beliefs too. I'm 48 years young, a small business owner, yogi, group fitness instructor, and outdoor enthusiast. My primary sport is Triathlon, but running will always be my first love with more than 6 marathons under my belt. Vegan for over 15 yrs. Before that vegetarian for 3 years. My biggest vegan athlete accomplishment was completing my first Ironman last year after many years doing Triathlons. This year I'm looking forward to enjoying long cycling tours in Europe! Follow my adventures on IG @sparks_vegan”

Welcome to the team@mattd_team_vegan_athletics"My name is Matt Dellaro. This is my first year as a Team VPA member as well as my first new year as an endurance athlete. I decided last February to buy a road bike and start cycling again after not having done it since my teens...I'm 51 now. I heard about short course triathlons and decided to see what I could do. I have 3 sprints behind me now as well as a 5k and 8k trail running races, a 5k road, two 10k races and a half marathon. I'm looking forward to longer triathlons as I get more comfortable with open water swimming, and working up to a 70.3 or even a 140.6. I've been vegan for over 8 years, and am so loving this new chapter in my life. Thanks to everyone at Team VPA who has been so helpful, supportive and just plain cool."

We are so glad you joined us@barefootjei"My name is Jérémie alias@barefootjei, I'm 28 years old and I'm from Normandy in France.

I have been vegan for 3 years now. I'm vegan for the animals! I'm so happy to have joined the team and to wear our colors in my country.

In 2022 I will be running every day to raise funds that will be donated to two Vegan associations.

My goal for 2022 is a 55km in May and another probably longer race by the end of the year."

"My name is Gloria Perez and I live in sunny Southern California. This is the first year I'm on Team VPA. I have been vegan for 4.5 years. I made the switch after my son inspired me. Becoming vegan has been one of the best decisions I've made for my health and of course for the animals and for the planet we all share. I have 3 sons and 2 grandsons. I've been running for 8 years. I've ran many distances, but my favorite distance is the half marathon. I enjoy both road and trail running. I also enjoy backpacking, cycling, lifting weights, OCR and traveling. One of my goals for this year is to start racing duathalons. I'd also love to do R2R2R (Grand Canyon). I'm also currently learning to speak French. "