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Vegan Tips

Posted: Mon Jan 11, 2021 1:59 am
by Aeden Dsouza
Hello Everyone. Happy New Year!
From this New Year I have decided to become Vegan. I am vegetarian and want to become a dedicated Vegan.
I have referred this article "How to Go Vegan", but couldn't find much informative. Please anyone can help me with the tips to become vegan! I am more into Body Building, so it would be more beneficially for me if you give a complete guide.

Re: Vegan Tips

Posted: Mon Jan 11, 2021 4:28 am
by thebestofenergy
Hello Aeden,

welcome to the forum!

I'm glad you came here asking for advice, as it can be difficult to understand what you have to do on your own at the beginning.

We have a Wiki dedicated to veganism and philosophy, and a section to helping people go vegan.

Yes, after seeing your link it does indeed seem pretty unhelpful, and there's also harmful advice such as 'don't worry about the nutrients' - which just sets you up for failure.

When switching to a vegan diet, a mostly whole foods one is recommended, which is simply healthier (whole foods = more nutrient dense, less sugar and trans/saturated fats). You might want to pay attention to fiber intake at the beginning, as for some people switching from a diet with almost no fiber to a whole foods vegan diet with more than 60g of fiber a day can be problematic at first (if you have gut problems from the initial spike of fiber intake, try to slow into it with less fiber-rich foods first, such as mock meats, tofu and pasta as your main staples, until your gut bacteria adjusts and you can increase the amount of fibers you eat).

That said, legumes are the best staple meals to have (chickpeas, lentils, black beans, kidney beans, tofu, etc.). Then vegetables should also be had regularly, such as dark green leafy vegetables, carrots, sweet potatoes, broccoli, just to name some of the best. Whole grains, such as whole-wheat pasta and barley, can accompany legumes well in a meal. Nuts and seeds should also be a serving at least once a day, to make sure you get enough fats (peanut/almond butter, flax seeds, etc.). Fruits have quick diminishing returns in terms of what they provide, and keeping it limited to just 1-2 servings per day is probably best (prioritize berries).
You can also have processed mock meats here and there too, to help you stay vegan, but don't make it a habit for it to be your main staple (unless you need low-fiber foods at the beginning, and you're struggling to stay vegan, but as a long-term plan, legumes should definitely be prioritized over mock meats for protein sources).

Here you can find a vegan diet plan for a week, whole-foods and healthy, with all the nutrients and costs written - although it's based on 2000 kcal/day only, but you can always simply increase portion sizes to fit your body building needs. We're getting around to writing a bodybuilding one soon.

Here you can find a growing list of healthy recipes: wiki/index.php/Index_of_Recipes

In this section, instead, you can find general advice on a vegan diet: wiki/index.php/Table_of_Contents#Culinary_advice

Then, of course, you need to supplement B-12 (cyanocobalamin) and D3.
Here you can find a page that addresses the nutrients of concern on a vegan diet: wiki/index.php/Nutrients_of_Concern
(this is very useful as you begin, everything is science-based and plenty of references are given to show what the scientific consensus is)

We also have threads on the forum section to help you out, if you go in the vegan section of this forum (feel free to check the pinned ones).

If you have any more specific questions, do ask.

Re: Vegan Tips

Posted: Mon Jan 11, 2021 4:40 am
by thebestofenergy
I should also mention, do not get overwhelmed by the amount of information.
You don't have to get everything right in the first few days, it took most of us months to get the diet right.

The important part is that you get it right for the long-term.

And of course, we're always available for any doubts you have, so you don't have to struggle with research.

Re: Vegan Tips

Posted: Mon Jan 11, 2021 4:47 am
by Aeden Dsouza
thebestofenergy wrote: Mon Jan 11, 2021 4:40 am I should also mention, do not get overwhelmed by the amount of information.
You don't have to get everything right in the first few days, it took most of us months to get the diet right.

The important part is that you get it right for the long-term.

And of course, we're always available for any doubts you have, so you don't have to struggle with research.
Thank You Very Much :D

Re: Vegan Tips

Posted: Tue Jan 19, 2021 12:17 pm
by brimstoneSalad
Hi Aeden, welcome to the forum, I hope you like it here and please don't hesitate to jump into discussions or start a new thread if you have any questions or there's something you want to discuss.

@thebestofenergy Do we have something like a more comprehensive how to go vegan guide on the wiki? I know we have the forum thread, but a wiki page on it would be good to link to. What you have up there is a good start.

I could also make a custom forum tag that embeds a couple paragraphs summary and links for how to go vegan, which might be helpful (kind of like the tag that embeds the vegan definition).

Code: Select all

[vegandefinition]
Which shows up like this:
"A philosophy and way of living which seeks to exclude—as far as is possible and practicable—all forms of exploitation of, and cruelty to, animals for food, clothing or any other purpose; and by extension, promotes the development and use of animal-free alternatives for the benefit of humans, animals and the environment. In dietary terms it denotes the practice of dispensing with all products derived wholly or partly from animals."
Source (Vegan Society)
Something I should probably add to the style bar.

Re: Vegan Tips

Posted: Wed Jan 20, 2021 1:11 pm
by thebestofenergy
brimstoneSalad wrote: Tue Jan 19, 2021 12:17 pm @thebestofenergy Do we have something like a more comprehensive how to go vegan guide on the wiki? I know we have the forum thread, but a wiki page on it would be good to link to. What you have up there is a good start.
Here it is: wiki/index.php/How_to_go_vegan

@Aeden Dsouza ^ that should be more concise and offer you more help. Let me know what you think and if there's something else you'd like covered in the page, as someone that is in the process of going vegan can see practical problems that vegan veterans might not remember.

If anyone has suggestions on what to add, please let me know.