The vegan bandwagon, that is. Boy, I was on my way. I was 90% there. I saw the finish line. I couldn’t wait to declare myself a bona-fide, tried and true vegan.
Except…
Life happens.
And you start eating things that are not a part of the vegan regimen. I tried to give up cheese, I really did. But vegan cheese is disgusting. Don’t even try it. Just take my word for it.
I really was committed to this new lifestyle, but let me tell y’all…being vegan is hard. It’s not just getting used to eating things you never ate before, it’s all the substitutions. “Substitute egg in a recipe with such-and-such”. Ummm, okay but I don’t have any such-and-such. Now I have to go to the store and purchase the such-and-such, just so I can make muffins that don’t have egg in them.
It was just too time-consuming.
And every time, I thought, hey I got this… I really didn’t have it. Slowly, I added dairy back in. I realized I missed yogurt and ice cream and baking.
With real eggs.
I missed fish and having a good bowl of clam chowder, so I added fish back into the food mix.
And I am starting to feel better.
Cause you see folks, I have been tired. Tired, exhausted, any other adjectives to describe wanting to permanently attach myself to my couch. And that’s no way to live. I thrived with the vegan lifestyle during the summer, but last month I hit a wall. Big time. This way of life just ain’t for me. Mama needs some nourishment.
So for now, I am no longer a vegan. I don’t know what I am… a vegetarian most days, a flexitarian other days? I’m not sure, but I am not going to label myself.
Being a vegan does work for a lot of people; there are countless stories of people who have been vegan for years and never looked back. But I also believe that every single person is different and one has to listen to what their body is telling them. I’m trying to feel better, and not be so tired. I need my energy levels back up.
I need to get back to being me again.
I think it would be really to be vegan all the time. We have been eating much less meat….maybe once a week. The reason we dont go full on vegetarian is because bacon is so damn delicious.
It really is a hard lifestyle to maintain, let me tell you!
Oh man I don’t think I could ever go vegan, not even vegetarian. I like meat too much.
Yeah, so does my husband! He tried to go vegetarian, but it just didn’t hold 🙂 I applaud him for trying though!
Great blog by the way!
Thank you!!! 🙂
Glad you listened to your body. And you’re right, vegan cheese is just not right. Go big or go home. lol! OK you know what I mean. 🙂
Vegan cheese….bleh. I don’t even know why they make it. It is sooooo gross! LOL, yeah I know what you mean 🙂
You gave it a try – give yourself a pat on the back for that! I think the only way I could be vegan is if I had a personal chef. So much effort. So rewarding, I’m sure, but I don’t like food to be difficult, ha. Thanks for the vegan cheese warning – I’m staying away!
Exactly! It is sooooo much effort! And yes, stay away from vegan cheese; it tastes like plastic 🙂
At least you gave it your best and let your body decide for you. If it didn’t like the vegan cheese and fake eggs then you don’t need to be a vegan 🙂 Your body knows you best. Welcome back to the real world. (not that there is anything wrong with vegan)
The vegan lifestyle is a good one, but it is a hard one to maintain 🙂
[…] So, I Fell Off The Bandwagon…-The Random Path […]
My husband and I decided to try a vegan menu for 5 days. We wanted to change how and what we eat, so we thought that a big jump like that would show us more clearly what works and what doesn’t for us.
We took out of it more than we expected. Our diet didn’t change that much after the 5 days, but it IS changing towards more fruit and veg. And that’s good.
Your lesson was just much longer I guess, but I’m sure you also gained more knowledge about what you truly DO like to eat and need to feel full in body and mind. =)
I think it was definitely a great experience to go vegan. We had never eaten kale before, and now it is a staple in our kitchen. We continue to eat a lot of vegetables and beans. And I still stay away from red meat.
Everything in moderation, I guess 🙂