The Simplest Way to go Vegan

You’ve watched “The Game Changers” or “Cowspiracy“, or you’ve just read the latest IPCC report on Climate Change or maybe you’ve even been intrigued by some Vegan friends. And now you want to give this Vegan thing a go. But where do you start, and how do you start in a meaningful way so that you know you’ll see results?

This is an important question, because the Vegan movement has been growing from strength to strength and with amazing speed. Unfortunately with that astonishing growth, comes the nasty aspects of trends, fads and people who want to make a quick buck off of a compelling movement. How do you become Vegan in a meaningful way so that its a permanently lifestyle shift?

Cash Grabbers and Fads

I recently saw a body builder do something very cringe worthy. After watching “The Game Changers“, he immediately started posting to his social media accounts about trying out the Plant Based approach to sports. Hardly a week hard past before he was selling eBooks on Plant Based nutrition. This was a blatant cash grab, because obviously you can’t have any deep awareness of a subject after a couple of days. Many Vegans called him out on this.

Similarly I’ve seen many Social Media influencers try and capitalize on the Vegan Movement to increase their numbers and within weeks go back to eating meat. This is harmful to people who really want to give Veganism a go, so here are some ideas that will really make the lifestyle stick.

Whats your Why

I’ve always known that eating animals is wrong. However, growing up in South Africa which is a heavy meat eating society, it was really hard to stop eating meat.

A while back after some very compelling arguments from Pamela Anderson and the Kentucky Fried Cruelty campaign, I decided to give Vegetarianism a try and I stuck with it for a while. But ultimately after being bombarded with meat adverts I caved and went back to eating meat. I know…that’s pretty sad of me!! I thought to myself, this is hard, this is difficult in South Africa.

Some years later after joining a Veggie Meetup, watching and reading Dr Marco Springmann’s Report, I went Vegan overnight and never looked back and I now I’m vegan for life. I literally went Vegan the day after watching Cowspiracy. The reason I was able to make change stick was because I found my why!

The Climate Crisis is my Why! I can’t stand the idea of humanity destroying the planet in pursuit of trivial things such as meat. As much as I like animals, preventing the wholesale destruction of the Planet is something that must be stopped. I found my why to be a vegan.

Biggest Motivators for going Vegan

With this experience I realized that there are a whole number of reasons as to why someone would commit to going Vegan. Finding the one that compels you makes a massive difference. Here are five reasons ranked according to my preferences.

Stopping the Climate Crisis

According to Dr Marco Springmmans report if everyone on the planet went Vegan today then by the year 2050 we will cut green house gas emissions by two thirds. That’s the climate crisis done and dusted. Planet saved! and everyone has got a brand new start.

Negating Income and Wealth Inequality

Veganism is crazy cost effective. After all, a can of beans costs a whole lot less than the meat. Couple that with never getting sick, and your wallet starts feeling thicker indeed. Veganism increases your disposable income significantly, and I see this a means of pulling people out of poverty especially here in Africa. If you care about addressing inequality, then Veganism is a great place to start.

Health

Hands down Vegans are the healthiest people on the planet. I used to severely complain as a meat eater when I could never hit my Body Mass Index, now as a vegan its an automatic bonus. I’ve never been sick since going Vegan, I heal crazy quick and my speed, power and endurance are enhanced. I’m also significantly less tired now.

Animal Welfare

I have never really been into animals, heck I’m not into most people. But I wholeheartedly believe the everything and everyone on this earth deserves respect and freedom. If this is an idea that resonates with you, then Veganism is a natural fit for you.

Other Reasons

There’s a good couple of other reasons to go Vegan from Wealth creation to Spirituality, but I reckon the ones listed above are the biggest ones. See which reason compels you into action, and more than likely it will stick.

Conclusion

If you’re going to go Vegan, know for sure what the reason for that decision is, otherwise you might just be a dabbler who never fully embraces the wonder the is Veganism.

Find your Why, and you’ll never looked back. You will only see strength upon strength, benefit upon benefit and become a renewed person.

Photo by Melissa Belanger on Unsplash