How Going Vegan Changed My Life

How Going Vegan Changed My Life - YesIMadeMyDress

2 years ago I decided to make a major change to my lifestyle by switching to plant based eating and ditching all meat and dairy from my diet.  Now before you start thinking, ‘here we go, another tree hugging vegan and her crazy talk,’ hear me out.  I can honestly say that I never thought I would even be one of those proud plant lovers. I was an avid meat eater who was serious about her free range steak and organic cage-free eggs in the morning.  And being Nigerian, a majority of our traditional meals are meat based.  I never imagined that a vegan lifestyle would even work for me.

So why would I even give up meat forever? Why make such a drastic change? For months I was suffering from chronic indigestion and digestive issues.  During a hospital visit, my doctor told me that I would have to take an over the counter tablet everyday for the rest of my life.  I said ‘no ma’am, not me.’  The light bulb went off when I realized that it had to be what I was eating.  I started my personal research on how food is used to heal and used as preventive medicine. The questions about what exactly I have been eating for years encouraged my research.  What I kept finding was that our bodies thrive the more we fuel them with plants and veggies, healthy grains, and legumes.

Spiralized zucchini with kale salad - How Going Vegan Changed My Life - YesIMadeMyDress

Spiralized zucchini with kale salad

The transition to the vegan lifestyle wasn’t so easy.  Only because it went against everything I had been taught about food.  I found myself questioning my eating habits.  Why exactly do we eat certain foods? Who told us that we should eat this and not that? How do I benefit from eating certain foods and how is my body suffering from doing so?  During my transition, I moved from eating meat daily, to cutting out chicken and beef.  I held on to seafood, some dairy (because I lived for cheese and ice cream, despite being lactose intolerant), and eggs for a while.

But let me tell you…I felt so much better.  My digestive issues and indigestion drastically reduced.  After several months of doing that, I eventually gave up everything and focused on being 100% vegan.  The whole process to a full vegan lifestyle took about 10 months to fully transition.

Vegan Pizza - How Going Vegan Changed My Life - YesIMadeMyDress

Vegetable pizza with no cheese from Fellinis Pizza

vegan jerk pasta - How Going Vegan Changed My Life - YesIMadeMyDress

Homemade vegan jerk pasta

Practicing a vegan lifestyle has taught me so much about my body and food.

  • Not all vegans look malnourished.  Yes, I did loose a lot of weight in the beginning but that was also because I was doing rigorous hour long workouts daily.  But these days my thickness has returned but I can manage my weight more than ever.
  • It really opened me eyes to another lifestyle that I was so quick to judge in the past.  No not all vegans are walking around picketing, throwing paint at fur wearers, or acting out towards meat eaters.  But I can say that I am more compassionate about the treatment of animals and our environment.  It just comes with the territory.
  • It solidified my love of food from other cultures. I have always loved international cuisine and during my research, I found myself searching for foods from other cultures that have a lot of vegetarians and vegans.  My meals are influenced by Indian, Thai, Chinese, Japanese, Mediterranean, and East African culture.  My spice cabinet is seriously all over the place.
  • You can veganize any meal.  Just a few ingredient replacements and the meal can easily be considered vegan.
Avocado rolls - How Going Vegan Changed My Life - YesIMadeMyDress

No fish sushi – Avocado rolls

I appreciate and value what I put in my body much more than I have ever done in the past.  I create 95% of my meals in my kitchen and I manage to find tasty meals when I’m out and on the road.  So to help show how life as a vegan can be beneficial to your body and the types of meals I create as a busy individual, I decided to do a 14-day vegan challenge.

I recently made an Instagram poll to find out if anyone would be interested in trying vegan for just 14 days.  I was overwhelmed by the responses from my followers about how interested they were.   The challenge will include recipes that take less than 30 minutes to prepare, a simple shopping list filled with ingredients you can easily find, and types of restaurants to try for your cheat meals.   Wouldn’t you like to join in on the fun?  The challenge starts November 5th.  The sign up form is below.

SIGN UP FOR THE 14 DAY CHALLENGE

 

vegan wrap - How Going Vegan Changed My Life - YesIMadeMyDress

Vegan wrap from Kale Me Crazy

Mediterranean salad - How Going Vegan Changed My Life - YesIMadeMyDress

Mediterranean salad at the airport

No fish sushi – Avocado rolls
Trader Joe's tempura cauliflower - How Going Vegan Changed My Life - YesIMadeMyDress

Homemade glass noodles and tempura cauliflower from Trader Joe’s

I’m so excited to complete this challenge with y’all!!

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12 Comments

  1. Christy Okonji
    October 30, 2018 / 2:47 pm

    Am hyped.

    • ChiChi
      Author
      October 31, 2018 / 7:33 am

      I’m so happy you’re joining us!!

  2. Sheena Steward
    October 31, 2018 / 1:10 pm

    Okay so my mouth is watering lol. All of this looked so good and surprisingly simple to make. I have really bad heartburn too. I think I should look into doing a slow transition myself.

  3. Kita
    November 1, 2018 / 1:19 pm

    All of this looks so good. I keep wanting to do Vegan. I may start with a few days a week and work myself up.

  4. November 1, 2018 / 8:20 pm

    May I have the recipe for the kale and zoodles?I temporarily went vegan after watching what the health; it lasted about 8 months. Now, I would say I am a pescatarian. I do eat more veggies and fruits than anything though.

  5. chante
    November 2, 2018 / 8:35 am

    I think it’s time for me to join in, my body just doesn’t feel right these days

  6. November 2, 2018 / 11:36 am

    Glad you were able to find something that works for you and your health! These meals all look pretty tasty!

  7. Kiwi
    November 2, 2018 / 5:35 pm

    I can feel you on how a new food lifestyle changed your life. I feel the same as I went pescatarian.

  8. November 2, 2018 / 9:05 pm

    I say do what works for you and your body. It sounds like you have really found your groove. If I had to take a pill daily for the rest of my life I would make some changes as well.

  9. ShaBree
    November 3, 2018 / 7:17 am

    I love this! I accidentally became vegan after going gluten free. Let me tell you, GAMECHANGER! I’m so glad that I did. The challenge sounds like fun!

  10. November 4, 2018 / 7:17 pm

    I went vegan for about 2 weeks, (I’m currently vegetarian) its really not as hard as some make it out to be. The meals on this posts looked really good.

  11. November 6, 2018 / 1:50 am

    I think the vegan diet, will take some time but I’m gearing up to start eating cleaner.

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