5 Secret Tips to help you go Plant-Based

Thinking of going plant-based or vegan? Here are our secret tips to making it easier...

Secret Tip 1: Figure out your ‘why’.

Being clear on exactly why you are choosing to commit to a plant-based diet will be your driving force behind successfully achieving it! For some people it’s the environment, for others it’s the health benefits, and for some it’s animal welfare. Perhaps it’s all three, or something completely different for you. Do some research around your ‘why’ and get really clear on the information, facts and figures, and try writing a letter to yourself or someone you love (even if you don’t send it) about why you are making these changes. Your why will help you go from ‘I’m can’t eat that’ to ‘I don’t want to eat that’; two very different things.

Secret Tip 2: Don’t go all or nothing

Plant-based doesn’t mean all or nothing. Often, trying to give up all animal products at once can be so overwhelming and so much of a challenge that we fail on the first day. I actually did this twice before I changed my approach (you can learn how I did it successfully and follow my step by step process which resulted in feeling like I no longer wanted to eat animal products in my easy and free Go Plant-Based in 31 days challenge download.) The trick is to do what you can, when you can do it. Do what you feel is possible, and if you slip up, remember it’s all part of the journey and that you get to start fresh with the next food decision you make. If you can only switch cows milk in your tea or coffee for plant-based milk right now, and everything else stays the same, then that’s a great step towards making a difference! Equally, if you’ve given up all animal products, and are eating a fully plant-based diet, but the one thing you can’t let go of is cows milk in your tea or coffee, then you have still made huge changes and that’s just where you are right now. Maybe you’ll be there forever! The point is you are eating more plants, and less animal products than before, and so you’ve made a change to your health, the environment! Maybe you’ll eat the odd egg here and there, maybe you’ll eat fish only when you visit your favourite fish restaurant. It doesn’t mean the other changes don’t exist! Do you.

Secret Tip 3: See it as a culinary adventure!

Some plant-based products designed to replace animal products are terrible. Some are nicer than the original animal product they are based on! When you first begin trying these products they might taste strange, but be patient with yourself. Often our taste buds change, adapt to new tastes and we learn to love new flavours and textures (download my Go Plant-Based in 30 days freebie to see my list of top vegan and plant-based products to try and to avoid!). Equally, if after a few tries you decide an alternative product really isn’t doing it for you, don’t eat it! Try another brand, try another flavour, or just forget about it altogether. Be curious about the new foods you come across and see it as an adventure! For ideas, why not download our FREE One-Day Wellness Plan here - an easy wellness plan including a plant-based meal and supplement guide, PLUS a 20 minute no-equipment workout and two 5 minute morning + evening meditations. Download here.

Secret Tip 4: Remember, you are capable of so much more than this

Yes, food is a huge part of our lives, and yes we get huge enjoyment from it, but its main use is as fuel for our bodies. People often say to me, very seriously, ‘Oh I could just NEVER give up cheese’. And you know what? I feel sorry for them that they believe so little of what they are capable of. Eating less of, or giving up some foods can seem like a big change, but really the changes are just changes in our habits. We are highly adaptable creatures, capable of climbing mountains in altitude ranges that slowly kill us while we climb, of figuring out how to fly to the moon, of teaching our children how to talk complex languages and write and learn trigonometry. You are capable of SO MUCH MORE than giving up cheese, or trying some new recipes. Believe in yourself and the rest will follow.

Secret Tip 5: Be kind to yourself

You are trying to change yourself, change your health, change the world. We humans often resist change, so notice where you are resisting and go back to your ‘why’ to get back on track. No one said this was going to be easy, but the benefits massively outweigh the sacrifices. And really, as long as you are trying your best, you can’t lose. You can’t mess this up. Be kind to yourself, take it step by step and keep checking in with how you feel and what you’ve achieved!

Download our FREE One-Day Wellness Plan here - an easy wellness plan including a 20 minute no-equipment workout, 2 x 5 minute morning + evening meditations, and meal and supplement guide. Download here.