Pocket Guide to Veganism

Pocket Guide for New Vegans

It isn’t hard to go vegan. In fact, it’s never been easier, and this Pocket Guide for New Vegans will prove it to you.

There are so many tasty meat and dairy replacements that even major fast food chains and supermarkets are stocking this stuff.

You can replace ground beef with Gardein beefless crumbles, chicken with Quorn products and the Boca “turkey” burgers taste just like regular burgers. No need to eat any animal. Meat eaters cannot tell the difference and neither can most vegans.

Also Field Roast Italian sausage is really good, too. There are so many alternatives.

I have had several people ask me about plant based, dairy free eating.

Here are some resources to start you on the path to a better diet:

Essential Vegan Documentaries

Forks Over Knives
What the Health
GMO OMG
Dominion
Cowspiracy
Earthlings

Earthlings Documentary

Essential Vegan Reading:

How Not to Die

How Not to Die

The China Study

Plant-Based Muscle

Vegan Facebook Groups:

Vegan Beginners 101
Live Kindly
Plant Based News
Plant Based and Loving It
Phyto Physique
What Vegan Children Eat
Vegan Shreds 101

Favorite Dairy Free Products:

So Delicious vanilla creamer.
Ripple, Calafia milks.Nada Moo mint chocolate chip nondairy ice cream.

Nada Moo Mint

Tofutti sour cream.

Earth Balance or Miyokos butter.
Miyokos or Kite Hill cream cheese.
Follow Your Heart, Violife or Chao cheese.
Any JUST products, JUST Ranch, JUST Chipolte mayo, JUST Mayo, JUST egg.
Helmanns Vegan Mayo – literally tastes the same as regular and is actually good for you.

There are lots of dairy free ice creams provided by Breyers and other companies.

Monk fruit sweetener, Agave syrup, maple syrup, coconut sugar instead of processed sugar and honey.

Plant Based meat (“faux” meat):

Beyond Burger
(Other Beyond meat)
Tofurky
Gardein products
Boca

A few protein sources (plant based meats also provide protein):

Spinach, kale, broccoli, mushrooms, cauliflower, cabbage, green pepper, spinach, asparagus, brussel sprouts, artichokes, argula, avocado, lentils, Quinoa, Green Peas, Black Beans, Chick Peas, Chia Seeds, Hemp Seeds, Pumpkin Seeds, Almonds, Peanut & Almond Butter and protein shakes.

Pea Protein

Don’t let anyone who has no idea what they are talking about lecture you on “protein.” Plants have more than enough protein, and in the exact quantities and varieties that we need it in the most.

When you eat meat, your body cannot do anything with those proteins, they have to be broken down into amino acids. However, when you eat plants, you are mostly getting the specific amino acids in the pure form, without having to break them down. And no, you don’t have to “combine foods,” to get the right proteins, that is a debunked myth.

Hemp seeds, pumpkin seeds, chia seeds, peanuts, spinach, peas, etc. all have excellent amounts of protein, more than we could make use of in a single day, but don’t get too caught up in the “protein rich foods” fad. Even fruits like apples and oranges have protein. All natural food has protein, and despite what you may have heard, we don’t really need all that much to be healthy.

It’s far more important to get a wide variety of crucial vitamins, minerals, and phyto-nutrients. Protein will come on its own if you simply eat well.

The Only Vegan Supplement You’ll Ever Need

Deva Vegan Vitamins Daily Multivitamin & Mineral Supplement

Other Vegan Supplements you should check out.

If low in iron black strap molasses works well.

Amazing Vegan Cookbooks:

Forks Over Knives
How Not to Die
Thug Kitchen

Essential Pinterest Recipe Boards:

Perfect Smoothie Recipes

Holistic Health

Vegan Ice Cream

Alkaline Diet Tips

Vegan Breakfast Ideas

Probiotics

Recipes With Chia Seed

Facts About Veganism

Vegan Cake Recipes

Vegan Sushi Recipes

Vegan Protein Information

 

Breakfast ideas:

Overnight oats

Avocado toast. We add tomatoes.

Dave’s killer bread raisin toast with peanut butter or earth balance soy free butter

Protein shake or smoothie – Smoothie King also offers vegan smoothies if out and about

Make your own vegan muffins for the week.

Vegan waffles or pancakes

Lunch:

Salad.

Veggie Wraps.

Peanut butter sandwich on vegan bread.

Tomato and lettuce/spinach sandwich with vegan mayo.

Also carrot sticks, fruit like dates.

Dinner:

So many options, anything you ate before has some kind of vegan form.

If you’re short on time, meal prep is the way to go.

Stir fry (so many different dishes you can make).

Spaghetti with veggie pasta, organic sauce, can add veggies and beyond meat crumbles if wanted.

Veggie tacos or faux meat tacos.

Lentil loaf, garlic mashed potatoes, veggies.

Jackfruit (pulled “pork”) sandwiches with veggies.

homemade veggie soup in crockpot.

Black bean burgers, Roasted Brussels sprouts with sriracha, home made French fries.

Snacks:

Cashews, other nuts.

Peanut butter & jelly.

Chocolate plant-milk.

Vegan Protein bars.

Fruit like dates, apricots, grapes, etc.

Veggies.

Meal Prep Advice

Remember that fruit and veggie smoothies can be made to replace any meal. They are healthy (optimal nutrition) and filling. They just take a bit of prep, but not as much as cooking your average meal. There are literally thousands of combinations and flavors you can get when combining fruits and vegetables like this.

Invest in some plastic containers so that you can create whole meals like lunches beforehand and then eat them on the go. Sometimes stuff like fruit takes a while to cut up, so do it in waves. At the very least get used to allotting specific days and times to fruit prep, this will encourage you to eat healthier and not rely so much on “easy” snacks / processed foods.

Detoxing

Keep in mind that chances are you have had a poor diet for most of your life. For years, your body has been working overtime to quarantine various toxins, and the body does this in a multitude of ways. In certain organs, stones form. In others, there is plaque-like build up. In others, it’s mucus.

Your body has also built up defenses against the harmful acidic foods we eat on a continual basis, like meat and milk.

Once your body gets the signal that the “coast is clear” and that you are only getting real food and optimal nutrition, it will begin to detox.

Detoxing is different for everyone. Some people only need a small detox and may not even notice any real symptoms. Other people experience a wide range of symptoms, from upset stomach, to gas, to breaking out, hives, cramps, headaches, allergy-like symptoms, and more.

This is your body releasing years worse of built-up chemicals and acidic substances through the body for processing.

If you suddenly break out after going vegan, or find yourself with a lot of gas, it may be a sign of detoxing and is nothing to worry about. To facilitate the process, drink plenty of alkaline water, and eat as much water-dense fruit as possible (watermelons are perfect for this).

Nutrition

Lastly, a word on nutrition.

Veganism is our biologically optimal diet. You do NOT have to worry about getting enough nutrients on a vegan diet.

Humans Are Frugivores

The food pyramid and other material produced by the “government sanctioned” health and nutrition industry is a sham. No, adult mammals do not need “dairy.” No adult animal does.

And no, a frugivorous ape like homo sapiens does not need 2 – 4 “servings” of meat a day. It’s all nonsense.

Human beings are meant to subsist on a mostly fruit and green leafy vegetable diet, with the occasional nut and seed.

If you eat a varied diet full of organic fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, and legumes, you will be eating healthier than 99% of the planet. Period.

So if you worry that your “iron levels” are off, or that you aren’t getting enough B12, don’t immediately panic and wonder if you should get blood work done.

Case in point, where was all this worry for your vitamin levels when you were scarfing down bacon-cheeseburgers and cow’s milk? Do you think that stuff actually has nutrients in it?

Remember: the VAST majority of all supplements sold are marketed for people on ordinary Western diets, not vegans. Vegans don’t need supplementation.

If you are concerned about getting enough B12, just drink a little fortified almond milk every now and then, and toss an unwashed organic carrot into a fruit and veggie smoothie and drink up. You’ll have more B12 then you know what to do with.

Same goes for iron. Most people aren’t getting enough iron, yet they chow down on burgers and pork chops every week. Strange, huh?

That’s because the iron in cooked meat is almost completely useless for us. It’s very hard for our bodies to digest it.

Optimally, you can get all the iron you need from green leafy vegetables, seeds, and nuts. Raisins, dates, and prunes are also solid sources of iron.

If you are eating plant-based and are low on iron, you may have absorption problems, which means you would benefit from an alkaline water fast and some exercise.

The bottom line is, don’t be afraid of “getting enough nutrients” when you are vegan. You likely went your whole life until this point never caring one iota where your vitamins and minerals were coming from even though you ate tons of chicken nuggets, fruit rollups, Pepsi, squeeze cheese, carcinogenic meat patties, and bleached grain.

This stuff has literally zero nutrition. You’d be better off eating grass.

Instead, focus your energy on being a better you. Become more aware, learn about where meat and dairy comes from, experiment with new plant-based dishes.

You don’t have to make the switch all at once. Changing your diet dramatically can be a huge life choice. The important thing is giving up one bad food choice at a time and slowly easing into new foods you like. Going cold turkey is great but realistically not everyone can do it.

Although I highly recommend watching the documentaries listed above. After watching those, you may wonder how you were ever able to eat a hamburger to begin with.

Always keep in mind that going vegan is a part of your healing process. So many other things will be falling into place for you as you explore this new lifestyle. It’s not about diving into a “new diet.” This is a fundamental change in how you perceive everything around you.

Not only are you acknowledging that animals have their own bodily autonomy and deserve to not be tortured and slaughtered, you are also extending deeper care to your Self by opting to feed it only optimal nutrition and REAL food, rather than chemicals and acidic (toxic) meat and dairy. This is a huge but necessary change!

Download Your Own Copy of Our Vegan Guide (With Bonus Content!)

Vegan Pocket Guide Cover

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