I WENT VEGAN FOR TWO WEEKS AND THIS IS WHAT HAPPENED
Veganism has gained recent popularity across the world. To some people it’s madness, and to others it’s the best thing that’s ever happened to them. When restaurants start adjusting their menus, then you know it’s a thing. (Remember the banting trend of 2015?) Documentaries like The Game Changers and What The Health, have brought to the table shocking research that can scare even the most carnivorous of humans into a plant-based diet.
So I decided to try it for myself. Lately my eating habits haven’t been the best, so I thought it would be a good change to try veganism for two weeks. My original plan was to be really scientific about this experiment and to test my blood pressure, blood sugar and cholesterol levels, but because of Corona-Virus I decided to stay away from clinics.
Firstly, going vegan for two weeks was actually not that challenging. Many people demonize the diet but, if you do it correctly, it’s a very healthy lifestyle. Just like all things, Veganism can be done right and it can also be done wrong. It is important to remember that ‘vegan’ does not mean healthy. In the same way, there are many products that are labelled vegan, that are just as processed as non-vegan products.
As a testament to my energy levels, I was feeling extremely lethargic, foggy and slow before my vegan journey. Within three days of eating vegan and plant-based, I could feel a distinct change in how I was feeling. I felt ‘light’ and full of energy for the first time in a while. I also experienced much lower levels of brain fog during the week.
During this experiment I quickly gained knowledge into how many processed products actually contain animal by-products. It’s scary. White sugar, most alcohol and obviously sweets. I also learned that most bread is vegan (thanks woolies).
This was not a weight loss experiment, but I did lose 3 kgs during the two weeks. This didn’t actually come as a shock to me because your food options are obviously limited, and when the dairy is out the window, the amount of calories you eat drops significantly. All in all, I surprisingly didn’t crave any meat during the two weeks until the last night of my experiment.
There are many positives that I’m taking out of this experience, the first is to include more fruits, veggies, nuts, seeds and legumes into my diet and less red meat. This is solely for the way that these foods make me feel. That being said, for me personally, the vegan diet is not sustainable. I admire people who practice it everyday and have learnt many things doing this experiment.
I feel that in the ‘normal’ eating world, people have such little knowledge about food and the variety of foods that actually exist. Veganism definitely challenges you to explore worlds and tastes of different foods. It really has opened my mind and mouth to tastes that I never knew existed.
The morning that my two week experiment ended, I made myself a well-deserved egg, bacon and cheese toastie, and it was delicious. If you would like a detailed account of what I ate during these two weeks leave a comment below!
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