Hello, Need a bit of advice and don't know where to start?

[mariathib]

Hello everyone!

I'm a bit new here but I've recently turned 18 and decided I wanted to do something meaningful especially in terms of compassionate living So I've decided to leap into the vegan world. Actually I'm taking baby steps . After seeing so many documentaries and reading more in depth on the state of factory farmed animals, meat and animal products dont seem at all appealing. Dairy and eggs haven't really been my thing and Ive always loved greens so I supplement with collards and kale and also drink non-dairy beverages to fulfill my calcium requirements. I also take a multi just in case

I was just looking for some pointers on where to start. Possibly some books and such I can get.

Also, I was active quite a bit when I was younger but have been slacking a bit lately. I'm planning on seeing a nutritionist to get things rolling. I love vegan cooking and its a lot of fun experimenting. Plus the food is a lot tastier and I feel better knowing I didn't take the life of or take advantage of an animal to eat. My mom isn't keen on the idea, but I'm out to prove her wrong, I actually made a mac n cheese recipe the other day without dairy and she was surprised at how awesome it tasted despite having no cheese!

Anyways, if anyone has any info, articles, helpful sites, books, magazines, things like that it would be super helpful!

P.s I am a yoga addict and love weights, but I'm worried I wont be able to sustain an active lifestyle where I work potentially work out 5 days a week, sometimes 6. I'm still eating meat for the time being but I'm looking to make a full switch in the next year.

Let me know if anyone has any suggestions and look forward to hearing you all!

[hardcore iv]

Well done on seeing the reasons why you should go vegan. Now you just have to do it

Though I personally haven't read it, Becoming Vegan is meant to be one of the better books about a vegan diet.

The best websites are:

http://www.theveganrd.com
http://www.jacknorrisrd.com
http://www.veganhealth.org

and of course the forums here.

If you have any concerns about eating vegan and an active lifestyle, check out these folks who don't seem to have a problem with it http://www.veganfitness.net/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=723

One thing we sometimes see in someone making the change is eating a lot of low calorie unrefined foods and inevitably finding that they lack energy due to limited calories. So keep on making the vegan mac n cheese.

[Sid Delicious]

[quote]P.s I am a yoga addict and love weights, but I'm worried I wont be able to sustain an active lifestyle where I work potentially work out 5 days a week, sometimes 6. I'm still eating meat for the time being but I'm looking to make a full switch in the next year.

[morg]

also check out these profiles if you have worries about being able top be active etc when vegan
http://www.veganbodybuilding.com/?page=bios

I can tell you from experience that the only thing you will lose when stopping eatimg meat is the sluggish feeling that you dont even realise you have untill you see just how much more energy you have after the swith.

This site has some great helpfull articles that will help get rid of any worries you have
http://www.veganhealth.org/

seeing a nutritionalist my not be such a good idea[unless you mean a vegan one?] as lots know little if anything about the vegan diet and still cling to outdated and dissproven ideas about protein, iron, calcium etc

[mariathib]

I talked to my mom about it, and she thinks that its good for me to be a vegetarian and I shouldn't go as far as veganism. I will try and talk to her more about it, but I'm happy that she is being open about it, and accepting. Here's hoping all goes well