Why I went Vegan

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Why I went vegan.

Easily the best division I’ve ever made, don’t get me wrong it wasn’t always easy but in the end it is always rewarding. I went vegan on the 5th of june 2017. I could remember the specific date because I was living up to that moment and overjoyed that I was doing something that I myself could totally stand for. I even got a tattoo to symbolize it. It's ahimsa written in Devanagari, meaning non-violence; consciousness for all that lives. This might seem like a rushed decision and quite radicle but bare in mind that I had been vegetarian for 2,5 years at this point and tried a plan based diet for 3 months before going on my gap year. I had to put a stop to this since I was going to live on campus in New York and even the term vegetarian was somewhat difficult for them to comprehend. I had to live off of dry bagels, over or under ripe fruit, plain white rice with little veg and sometimes some plain tofu. It wasn't glamorous or very healthy for that matter. At this point I was only doing it to lessen my impact on the environment and save some lives by not eating meat or fish. When we went out for dinner I always made sure it was vegan and those meals really did me good. When I transferred to Hawaii I stayed in a host family the first month, my host mom could cook vegetarian but didn't use egg, butter and cheese and sauces sparingly. Although the wide tropical fruit selection was amazing! After a month I moved to the residency where I had to cook my own food. After being away for well over six months my pockets weren't as filled as in the beginning and Hawaii being an island didn't help much. Everything has to be imported, and i didn't have excess to any tools beside a pan and knife. So my dinners ended up mainly being mac and cheese. And yes the gross bacteria filled, cholesterol bomb cheese kinda thing. Looking back I coulee easily just bought tined tomatoes to create a sauce out of that, wish I had had that revelation sooner. However, consuming cheese for most of my meals did make me not miss it at all after going vegan so that's a plus. 


When I came home after spending nine months abroad the time had finally come to turn to veganism completely. I had all the resources and consumed all the information I could fit into my brain at this point. I was ready. I switched to moment I walked into my house and never looked back since.
It wasn't that hard for me, I never miss meat, cheese on rare occasion. If I do want one or the other I turn to a plant based alternative and my craving is satisfied. Milk and yoghurt are easily replaced. I never have to walk past the sweets isle, because there ain't anything for me anyway. Therefore I don't get tempted to buy anything. Obviously I do cheat, I like me some chocolate, cookies, ice cream, burgers, fries anything junk. Everything in moderation. I don't believe that restricting yourself completely is healthy, not mentally.
When I moved to Amsterdam that summer it became even easier. I live next to a big market and there is wide range of veggie restaurants in there. My housemate/ best friend didn't mind eating plant based with me. Slowly but surely I showed her all the documentaries and shared my knowledge. She turned vegan half a year later. My other best friend had turned at the beginning of the school year after I spoke about it with her. My parents are mostly vegan too and my aunt/uncle/nephew eat plant based as well. They turned at about the same time as me, for health reasons only. Recently a good friend of mine, who has struggled with diet/bad digestion for quite some time now, went vegan as well. She also discovered she had a gluten intolerance, the combination off plant based and gluten free food has completely cured here stomach aches and bad digestion. She's also eating more then ever and losing weight while doing so.
This isn't uncommon. All the people I know who went vegan lost some unnecessary weight, myself included. But this isn't the only positive effect, my skin is clearer then ever before, my nails don't brake anymore, my hair grows faster, my skin glows golden and my ability for endurance sports went up high.
During a school assignment I got the chance to measure my metabolic age. Your metabolic age will give you an idea of what kind of physical health you are in using your base metabolic rate. If your metabolic age is lower than your actual age, it means your body is in good health. My metabolic age rounded up to only 12, I am 19. It was nice to have the confirmation that besides feeling healthy, my body was indeed very healthy. 

 Being vegan isn’t just about following a plant based diet, it’s a lifestyle. 
Helping the environment and not depriving the earth of everything it has to offer. Health, choosing the right food to nourish the body and not sponsor the fucked up medicine, dairy/egg, meat/fish industry. Saving souls, just because our species (humans) our able to verbally express our feelings doesn’t mean other beings don’t have them.
If you are interested in becoming vegan or even if you just need some motivation to eat a little less of the bad and more of the good, follow this link to my blogpost where you’ll find all the scientific prove plus a lot more to why it’s the best for well everything/everyone.

Why become vegan? 
Scientific proof and a lot more:
what the health                     (Netflix)
Cowspiracy                          (Netflix)
Forks over knives                (Netflix)
Earthlings                             http://www.nationearth.com
Food matters                        (Netflix)
Blackfish                              (Netflix)
Dominion                              (Netflix)
Nutrion facts                         https://nutritionfacts.org/
101 reasons to go vegan       https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W4HJcq8qHAY&list=WL
best speech ever                 https://www.youtube.com/watchv=UROxRLbVils&t=0s&index=8&list=WL
Peta                                       https://www.peta.org

People who inspired me:

Niomi Smart                       https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChtada9QdvOZOKgEIT-VL7Q
Ellen Fischer                       https://www.youtube.com/user/MangoIslandMamma1
James Aspey                       (Instragram)
Chase Armitage                  (Instagram)
Leonardo DiCaprio             (You know him)
Supreme Banana                  https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCjyZ22xCMnPjZ7J1rqCrSXA
Tess begg                             https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBCiDM0WrCAvTHmdVz_GDzQ
Maddie lymburner               https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCH7fZDHwZR7ww23A50R1ppA

How to eat vegan?

Pinterest is your best friend, trust me on that one. Just look on my Pinterest or search for any recipe with vegan behind the search and you will find the plant-based option.
Example: Shepherds pie vegan https://nl.pinterest.com/pin/542824561328834934/
Furthermore, I'd recommend you to download the app HappyCow, it show all the veggie restaurants near you. You can also plan ahead a look for places in other areas. (it also includes shops/vegan options in vegetarian or non-veg restaurants)

These people have tons of amazing recipes, check 'em out!

Healthy crazy cool               https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCHmZjV16rxExTImGh6I_buA
Gaz Oakley (avantgardevegan) https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCF-ACPYNN0oXD4ihS5mbbmw
Simonet nutrition                 https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCpyhJZhJQWKDdJCR07jPY-Q
Hot For Food                       https://www.youtube.com/user/hotforfoodblog
Frommy bowls                    (Instagram)



Bulking or getting lean? These are some incredible vegan fitness influencers! 

 Tess begg                             https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBCiDM0WrCAvTHmdVz_GDzQ
Maddie lymburner               https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCH7fZDHwZR7ww23A50R1ppA
Jon Venus                            https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCE-LXXVl3u9yJO3WRGTrEoA
Naturally Stefanie               https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCeJwqpwIzRiAR1eglS3bguQ
Grace fit uk                         https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC1QbgAuzMDsWn7eCtImRB7Q
Brain Turner                       https://www.youtube.com/user/HumerusFitness

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