V E G A N
On May 12th, after being vegetarian-ish for about 8 months, watching numerous documentaries and reading books on the matter, I decided I wanted to go vegan.
Over the past 3 months I’ve learnt that the subject of food is incredibly complex and somewhat taboo.
Transitioning to veganism was like coming home after a long day at work. Don't get me wrong, the transition was not plain sailing and i’m sure there are some obstacles I've yet to encounter, but I definitely feel more grounded not only in my body but also in my values.
I’ve always tried to be “healthy” and always considered I was, even though I spent most of my teenage years overweight. I might go into that one day but I’m still unpacking that time of my life and its repercussions now on my adult life. Anyway, I grew up loving vegetables thanks to my health conscious mum. Because of the aforementioned weight situation, I yo-yo, low-carb, dieted between the ages of 18 to 30 which was when I found the Ketogenic diet.
I dropped 23kg and promised myself that when I got to my goal weight I would then look at vegetarianism because logically, meatless diets seemed to make more sense. BUT I held the view that they were not conducive to weight loss because...carbs. In 2018 my body decided it just didn't want meat anymore. It was a very curious and slow process. I craved vegetables more and didn't enjoy the taste or texture of meat as much. I still clung to fish and cheese but, my mind then caught up when I dug a little deeper into the meat agriculture, dairy and fishing industry.
The thing is, knowledge is key. There are so many mixed messages when it comes to food, often fueled with hyperbole and fear mongering. But at the end of the day, I believe It's all about being and staying informed to make your own choices.
I'm not sharing this to cajole anyone into veganism. I'm suggesting we all try and get active so that our decisions about what we eat are rooted from a place critical thought and reason based on facts and information from multiple (and reputable) sources.
Anyway, here are a couple of things that I found interesting while transitioning from an omnivore to a herbivore.
Veganism isn't as scary as I thought and I guess it helps that I love veggies and I love to cook. My fear came from a potential change of mindset and admitting that this lifestyle was more aligned with my personal values. Once I overcame that fear, the rest was easy. Only small snag was others reactions to this decision. Again, I discovered food choices are super taboo and political but i’m learning to be more patient and understanding when i’m questioned or faced with defensive behaviour. Oh, and being vegan in Japan is in itself an obstacle but ill talk about that in my next post.
It is said that vegan diets are restrictive and deficient personally I haven't enjoyed eating this much in FOREVER. Not only do I get to eat a larger volume of veggies, which are my favourite, but I get to introduce things that were touted as bad in all the previous “diets” I've been on such as, rice, legumes and lentils, fruits, soy based products, bread etc. Most vitamins or nutrients we get from meat is a by product from what the animals eat so...basically eating veggies, nuts, seeds etc is cutting out the middleman.
Veganism goes deeper than just not eating animal products. Not only is a more plant based diet connected to disease reversing magic but the LIVES of so many beings would be saved, including our own. The planet would suffer less, which in turn would have less impact on developing countries and their environments as well as exploitation of those are directly affected by the animal product industry’s practices.
Like all new changes it will take time for the body to get used to the changes. I was really nervous about gaining weight (this did happen at first) and I was pretty susceptible to fatigue and any viruses that were going around. But this was just because it was a completely new way of eating; I didn’t realise I had to eat MORE as I was getting less calories. After three months of trial and error coupled with a bunch of research I now have a better understanding of what my body needs. This is also reflected my relationship with food which again, is another story.
Have you ever considered becoming vegan? If you’re you vegan in Japan, what has your experience been like?
Next up: ”Beegan in Japan?” Resources I’ve come across so far for those in Japan.