To go VEGAN???

[Mocca8]

Hi I'm thinking about going vegan for a couple of reasons, mainly to improve my body health. I'm 40 and ache all over every day and feel just blurghhhhh I have a generally OK diet although need to change it hard with 3 small children but feel I need to do it for them and myself to have more energy and feel better. Everyone recommends going vegan saying it'll change my life and get rid of my aches and pains not to mention loose the 2 stone I've been carrying extra for a while. I have no idea where to start or is there any recipes anyone can recommend or free websites/pdfs/links etc I'll be cooking for myself as my family aren't up for this so I'll be cooking for them and me but worried I'm going to add even more stress to a busy homelife. I love all veg and fruit I will.miss meat but not too bothered if I get the results I need. Has anyone been on this same journey? Any help and advice would be welcomed thank you!

I went vegan and gained weight, but I'm a special kind of idiot who discovered and fell far too much in love with flora plant butter, so maybe others would fare better!

The only vegan I know well is very thin and has no energy at all, in fact she's really rather ill. I often think she's in need of protein.

She craved meat while pregnant and gave in and ate it for medicinal reasons, but that was long ago.

If it's for weight loss then you need a sustainable diet that you can maintain forever otherwise you'll gain weight back.

Sorry can't help re recipes etc, but just to say being vegan doesn't make you healthier. Maybe if you're concentrating on the health side of things you'll subconsciously cut out all the rubbish too so by default lose weight, but you can do that and still eat meat.

Obviously there are a wide range of people out there with different outlooks to a vegan diet, but as it happens, the 3 vegan families I know are all overweight (eat mainly pasta from what I can tell with very few veg) and the kids all take extra vitamins and are still very sluggish and pale. My point is that there isn't a blanket of health glowing around people just because they stop eating animal products!

Just to chime in - I am vegan, but avoid all processed fake meats and the like, they are full of fat and salt!

As PP has said, the heavy carb things like pasta and chips are also vegan (unless fresh pasta, of course), so it does take a little bit of getting used to - it took me a good 6 months to properly educate myself, but 3 years later and I've got it down and cooking from scrath is my daily luxury. My DP is also vegan though, and we've no kids, so a dinner that takes 45mins to an hour to prep and cook doesn't matter too much..

Also as PP has said, it needs to be sustainable for you. I'm vegan for an ethical reason over anything else, which makes it easier to stick with, but if you find adding some fish in to a meal etc. makes it easier to eat healthier, then go with that.

The temptations to eat fatty, high sugar foods are always there and available (Nomo chocolate is lush! And vegan KitKats!), so it's not a quick fix!

I don't think being vegan is a magic pill for weightloss but it certainly means you have to consider your food choices more and ideally become more aware of nutrition and what's needed for a balanced diet as dairy and meat is the way a lot of us are used to getting these nutrients (absolutely yes possible being vegan just takes some learning). I'm not saying I think it's bad to try, being vegan is wonderful both ethically and for health reasons, but perhaps a more measured approach and transition? Add more veg into your diet to start and slowly phase out meat or something?

One of the vegans I know lives on chip sarnies, fake bacon and vegan pizza. Not at all healthy! Others do well though, and make a lot of plant & pulse-based meals but they take a lot of prep and cooking.

I think it’s a good thing to try as it makes you more aware of what you are eating. There’s so much information about how to have a healthy vegan diet that there really is no need now to live on pasta.
If it encourages you to make healthy choices try it!

I'd highly recommend going whole foods plant-based kind of vegan. That's where most of the health claims come from, as opposed to eating vegan pizza or sausage rolls.

There are loads of YouTube videos and recipes and Facebook groups for WFPB. I'd recommend recipe books like Deliciously Ella (also her app) and the Green Roasting Tin. Basically, you eat nothing processed, so loads of fruit and veg, beans and pulses, some grains, etc. You will almost certainly feel healthier and lose weight if you stick to it.

I’ve been vegan for quite a few years now and it definitely improved my health. I don’t each much processed stuff though, rarely have the fake meats as I don’t really like them anyway. I eat lots of stews, soups, salads, whole grain pasta and rice dishes. Lots of beans, peas, lentils, nuts, seeds, fruit and veg. I drink oat milk.
Aches and pains disappeared, endometriosis symptoms improved dramatically and I rarely get headaches, I used to get quite a lot. I probably lost a few pounds but was a healthy weight anyway. And I can run further now.

Get a couple of recipe books and try it. You can always cut things out a bit at a time to make it easier. I was vegetarian for years before becoming vegan so it was relatively easy.

I was vegan for a year and after an initial stone weight loss put it back on and more!!!

Once you find the vegan junk food it's easy to fall into bad habits

Original oreos
Hobnobs
Skittles
Jam donuts from the cooperative
Some Bottled beers
Endless carbs

I was soooooo unhealthy

Who is the 'everyone' recommending veganism to you? Is it a couple of your mates who are vegan themselves?

Going vegan isn't really a 'for your own body' thing: it's quite a struggle to get all the nutrients you need. It's a 'for the greater good' thing. It's perfectly possible to be healthy/unhealthy on a vegan diet. It's perfectly healthy to be over/underweight.

Cooking separate meals for yourself will soon become tedious and I imagine you'd soon start snacking on the vegan bits of the kids leftovers, meaning you'd be following your vegan plan but actually making yourself less healthy.

If you're willing to cook separate meals for yourself though, why choose veganism? There's plenty of other easier ways you could go about it (ie taking your portion of the main meals and altering the macro split, for example)

Go veggie and try to eat "unprocessed" foods... do an ingredients check:

• no more than 5
• anything you don't know or is an known artificial chemial try to avoid.
• allow yourself the odd treat
• remember greatest ingredients listed first
• it takes time for your body to adjust (it took us 6-8 months)
• it's a lifestyle, bot a quick fix

And remember to still enjoy your food!

Thank you all so so much, I did have a giggle as can imagine myself just gorging on vegan pizza and pasta (and oreos lol) as it'll be easier where I don't really eat them now. My main reason for the change would be for the body aches and pains. The weight loss would be a bonus. The doctors don't seem to listen or take anything further test wise for arthritis or am I perhaps menopausal? At 40? Just wondered if going vegan would improve my body dramatically like the vegans I know have told me it will (lol) lots of lifestyle factors too to consider. You have all helped make my mind up although I'm not against going vegan I worry about iron levels and feeling more exhausted. I know what I should be doing and not eating....so I'll just have to be so super strict with myself and hope the weight loss I get along the way will actually help with the aches and pains on my joints, muscles and bones. Wish me luck. Thank you all for the super comments its really helped me!

What’s your diet like at the moment? I’ve been vegetarian all my life, but lost 4 stone over the last 12 months by focussing more on the quality of what I eat. So lots of whole grains, vegetables, beans, pulses, nuts etc and not too many highly processed foods. I also upped the exercise and have gone from feeling tired and sluggish all the time with pains all over my body, to feeling full of energy.

My diet now is as vegetarian as it was last year, but it’s a totally different thing in terms of the nutrition it gives me. I’m sure it’s not too hard to do something similar with a more meat based either, plus it may be easier to convince others to join you, so you don’t end up cooking different meals all the time.

If you decide to go for it feel free to pm me as a buddy!

I've started this on Monday as there's so many health benefits I think it's worth a try for a month and see how to goes

I'm finding it tricky to keep costs down though as we're a family of 4 and only me trying it

My top tip so far is to get either oatly barista or alpro barista oat milk for hot drinks, the own brand ones aren't as good in my opinion

All of the non-communicable diseases can be traced back to inflammation, and inflammation is caused by a surfeit of carbs.

Even if you doubt this theory (many do, and I'm not here to bunfight), you could try cutting your carbs for a bit, just a short period, and if you start to feel better, think about whether you want to build on that. Carbs are for movement, so unless you're exercising (and even then, actually) the human requirement for carbs is 0% Carbs also make you release insulin, the 'fat storage' hormone. Your body will prioritise using the carbs before the fat (because it's a much lower energy requirement to convert it into energy), so unless you burn your carbs off via exercise, a carby diet will ensure that you don't use your body fat.

Just some things for your consideration. Oh, and when you eat carbs, it takes around 10% to turn them into fuel, so you have a surfeit of 90% to use, or potentially store as fat. When you eat fat, it takes 35% to turn it into fuel, so you only have 65% to use or potentially store as fat. This is why calorie counting isn't very accurate.

I'd cut out processed food, I aim for 7 of my 5 a day and not all fruit plus drink lots of water, no caffeine and I'm trying to cut out alcohol and sugar. These last two are pricing hard so I have so many sugar or alcohol free days a week as that suits me better.

I've noticed a huge difference, my skin is so much better, I'm pushing 50 but a new work colleague thought I was late 30s.

I personally wouldn't make a huge change initially as you're more likely to go back to your previous eating habits.

Good luck

My body didn't change as a result of going vegan, but I've not had any issues getting enough protein, or vitamins, or anything else. I've been vegan five years now and I'm really healthy.
Lots of omnis don't get enough vitamins etc, it's all about what you eat and so navy people generally eat junk or processed food.
If you focus on cooking with fresh ingredients and making sure to have pulses then you'll be fine for protein - it's in everything including veg so it's not hard!

Thank you all so much for the advice and taking the time to write it. Absolutely makes sense that a high carb diet can cause the pain in joints and inflammation too. Not to mention the fat not burning this basically sums up my diet eeeek I think it is 98% carbs 🙈 I am going to take all the advice, not go vegan as don't think it's sustainable with me and will be even more work on top of my already heavy home load and I'll cut the carbs and sugars and see how I go woooopieee thank you!!!!!

The only thing I regret about going vegan is that I didn't do it sooner. 🙁

As previous posters have said, you can be 'vegan' and live on chips and skittles! Not the answer 😂 But if instead you aim for Whole Food Plant Based diet, I would almost guarantee you will feel better and find weight management easier.

(I'm in my 40's and just don't have to think about my weight at all as such a high proportion of my diet is veg and pulses and beans) and we've found such DELICIOUS food, though I eat cakes or biscuits every day without exception.

My massively meat eating partner went vegan 3 years ago (much to my surprise 😱) as he said he couldn't deny he felt much better on a vegan diet.

If you have any questions feel free to message me.

I found The Happy Pear videos on YouTube have some nice recipes,

Or search 'WFPB easy recipes'

or 'WFPB for weight loss' also on YouTube.

I've been vegan for a few years now. I started it to lose weight and feel better - it works for me.

I do eat 90% whole foods. Vegan junk is for meals out/Friday nights. However, I'm maintaining a healthy weight for my height for the first time in my life and it doesn't feel like much effort.

Have a blood panel done before you change your diet. Your symptoms could be a vitamin d or iron deficiency which should inform any changes.

I am vegan. My advice would be to avoid processed foods as much as you can. I aim for about 10% or less. Stick with fruit, veg, salad, beans, tofu, lentils and so on. There's an app called the daily dozen. It's just for very basic goals. You don't have to tick every box every day. Except your B12 probably. I'd chuck an omega 3 in there too. Dr. Gregor I find helpful. Chronometre is a helpful app that measures your nutrition. But it's not about having a perfect diet. Which I found myself obsessed by at first because of all the diet police who are fascinated with vegans and their nutrition. Personally, I found my skin really cleared up, a stomach issue completely disappeared, my aching joints feel much better, I slept great for the first few months, but that's gone back to insomnia again, annoyingly, my mood improved, in that I just feel calm. But mainly my actions are now aligned with my morals, in that I'm against animal cruelty. That's the best feeling ever. My only regret. I wish I'd done it years ago.