Thoughts after 50 Days Vegan + Tips

Good morning awesome readers. 

Grab a cup of tea or coffee and make yourself comfortable, this is going to be a long one! 

I have mentioned in a video a while back and possibly also in some posts that I did a vegan diet for what I hoped would be 40 days but actually turned into 50. My thoughts before starting the diet were that it's obviously going to be hard, that it will help me loose fat, my body will detoxify and that my skin will clear out. In order to prepare for the 40 days I searched for a lot of recipes and obviously ate almost everything I could possibly crave during the vegan period. Undeniably stuffing your face and pigging out is not the right approach ever, but oh well. 

A few tips before starting a vegan diet:

• Check out your supermarket's vegan selection
• Research vegan recipe alternatives for your favorite meals
• Buy vegan snacks to avoid missteps
• Buy different teas to help with the cravings
• Research restaurants that have vegan dishes - comes in handy when everyone wants to eat out
• Stock up on quinoa, beans and lentils - you need the protein
• Get a friend to start the diet with you -  having a support group helps a lot
• Find a vegan inspiration - could be a cook, blogger, celebrity, whatever helps you. Mine was Beyonce because she's amazing, let's be honest.

The first 2 weeks I was excited and pumped, found it quite easy to cook vegan foods and thankfully had a lot of options when buying lunch. I ate a lot of falafel wraps, soups, curries and stews. However at an event I had the meat dish which was smelling like heaven. It was bad, but I didn't let it bring me down and most certainly I didn't give up. That's a crucial lesson for anyone going vegan, you will have missteps and eat meat or cheese or both, but don't give up. After that episode I learned to be  stronger-willed and more motivated, even ate vegan dishes while others had burgers for example. Let's be honest, it was hard, but you have to respect other people's choices like they respect yours. 

A few ideas for dinner / lunch:

• Red/Green Thai curry
• Mushroom / Quinoa Burger
• Beans / Cauliflower Tacos 
• Mushroom Pho / Ramen
• Rice / Quinoa / Couscous with veggies
• Pasta Arrabbiata / Tomato - Basil / Soy or Rice "Cream" with Mushrooms
• Stuffed Tomatoes / Paprika with quinoa and veggies
• Buddha Bowls
• Vegan Gyros
• Lentil Shepards Pie 

Half way through the diet I started getting impatient, but was still highly motivated. It was in the second half that I started ordering more takeout and buying more lunches. At this point I was comfortable reading the ingredients, which is of the essence as you can find animal products in anything. I wasn't having major cravings, except chocolate thus purchasing some nice dark chocolate.   Preparing a nice breakfast followed up by a hearty lunch helped with the urge to eat junk food. The most difficult for me were the last three days when all I would think about were burgers, ahaha. 

A few ideas for breakfast:

• Coconut yogurt with berries / kiwi
• Fruit Salad
• Green Smoothie 
• Homemade vegan cookies
• Rye bread with hummus / olive pate 
• Chia pudding with fresh mango
• Avocado Toast with tomatoes and chili flakes 
• Overnight oats with bananas, nuts and seeds
• Power balls made with dates and coconut
• Acai bowl 

In retrospective it wasn't that hard. I think it's because of London being full of vegan restaurants and vegan sections in supermarkets. Having a lot of variety helped me keep up with the diet without feeling like I'm missing out. Something you need to know is that I didn't eat salad more than 3-4 times as this was a good time to experiment with cooking more veggies, it was a time of being creative in the kitchen and you all know how much I love to cook. 

Things to know after the diet finished are that I didn't loose any fat percentage - still the same, my skin didn't clear out despite everyone swearing to God that's what happens and on the bright side it wasn't that challenging to be vegan. I did feel overall better and there were a few noticeable improvements like my digestive system not being upset. Before starting, my fitness trainer was concerned I would feel week and unable to exercise, on which I am proud to report he was wrong. I felt energized and motivated to go to the gym. While it didn't all go as planned I am happy for doing this diet. 

A few tips once the diet finishes:

• Don't pig out - which I did and regretted 
• Keep incorporating vegan dishes in your diet - you can have both of best worlds
• Try to give your body a break from processed foods at least once a year
• Listen to your body - if you feel like eating only salad that's awesome, if you want home cooked meals thats amazing as well

Would you think of going vegan for a month or more?

Have a pink-tastic day!

Kisses