Plant-Based Diet 10 Best Tips to Start a · 10 hours ago · 10 Best Tips to Start a Plant-Based Diet 10 Best Tips to Start a Plant-Based Diet When times get tough and your tempted,

10 Best Tips to Start aPlant-Based Diet

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10 Best Tips to Start a Plant-Based Diet


“Plant based” means something different to everyone. For some, it means living a healthier and more vital life.For others, it represents a more peaceful way of life, which would prevent animal suffering. Alternatively, it canmean choices that could improve the environment. The path to a plant-based diet looks different for everyone.Some people switch to a purely plant-based diet and never look back. For others, it’s a process of ups anddowns that can take several weeks, months, or even years. If you are interested in a plant based diet andwondering “how do I start a plant based diet?, this article is for you. Below are 10 Tips to Start a plant baseddiet.

#1 Tip to Start: Know WHY you want to go plantbasedYou may have many reasons for choosing a plant based lifestyle. Maybe you want to do something good foryour body, prevent illnesses, and focus on fitness. Or, perhaps you are more focused on the welfare of animals,and the environment and want to make an impact through your nutritional decisions. Maybe you are intolerantof certain ingredients or have a food based allergy and are therefore motivated to make a change in your diet.

No matter which reason you chose for this step, you should always be aware of why you want to make achange. When things get complicated, people tend to make excuses and fall back into their old patterns. Tohelp prevent this, keep in mind why you chose to do this whole thing in the first place. Remember, the healthbenefits that you’ll reap by eating veggie. Recall how good you feel when you’re eating clean and healthy. Feelgrateful for the opportunity to make an impact on your world through the little daily decisions that you’vechosen to make. You are a rockstar- own it and enjoy it!

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When times get tough and your tempted, remember why you made this decision. The more detailed you canrecall your reasons, the higher the likelihood of successfully switching to plant-based foods. Write down yourreason somewhere, save the answer on your cell phone and always have it handy. This way, you canremember during those challenging moments WHY it is worth staying strong and not buckling.

2. Go slowSwitching to a plant based diet can be a big step. So, another tip to start a plant based diet: do it gradually. Youmight find it difficult to stop eating all animal products at once. Give yourself some time and drop these foodsslowly. Perhaps you start with a 5/2 approach where you eat veggie all week (M-F) and flex a bit on weekends.Or, you could start with a veggie dish a day, and migrate more towards your plant based goals at your ownpace. Furthermore, you could choose to start with more of a traditional vegetarian protocol excluding meatslike beef, chicken and fish, but still incorporating eggs and dairy. The bottom line is that you’ve decided tomake more healthy choices with your diet. Now, your ready to put that into practice at your own pace.

When you are out with family and friends, look for restaurants, bakeries and other eateries with veggieofferings so that you can also eat well while your out and about. When it comes to family celebrations, offer tobring something plant based with you. Plan ahead to make your life a little easier. Give yourself the time youneed to work it out, find your favorite alternatives, and move in the right direction, one step at a time.




3. Eat whole foods and cook for yourselfBy starting a plant based diet, you are embarking on a culinary journey of discovery. Here, you will get to knowmany new and delicious foods. Nowadays, there are a ton of plant based alternatives available everyday atyour local grocery store. Focus on real, whole foods rather than industrially processed meat alternatives. Thatmeans preparing most of your meals from unprocessed plant foods such as fresh fruits, vegetables, grains,legumes, nuts, and seeds. Most people find that they enjoy the vibrant colors and flavors of fresh wholeingredients over processed and packaged foods. Plus, you’ll avoid many of the unwanted additives andpreservatives that are often found in the processed meat alternative foods. Therefore,highly processed meatalternatives should not be the basis of your menu, but only an exceptions, or a now-and-then convenience.

To get the most out of your plant based diet, it’s good to start eating veggie as often as possible. If you are notalready doing this, try to get into the habit of cooking for yourself. There are plenty of awesome cookbooksavailable online. You can find a good plant based cookbook from amazon. Having a good plant basedcookbook at home will do wonders for meal inspiration. There are also a lot of fantastic recipe apps, mealplanners, and websites available for use on your mobile, iPad, or laptop. Some favorites include The Engine 2Meal Planner and the PCRM app. Both are easy to use and full of colorful and flavorful recommendations.


https://mealplanner.plantstrong.com/

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/pcrms-nutrition-guide/id1339343668



4. Crowd out the meat with the good stuffThe standard American diet consists largely of animal and processed food products that are very high insaturated fat and empty calories. In contrast, wholesome, unprocessed, plant-based foods generally havefewer calories, are low in fat, and contain more fiber, nutrients, and antioxidants. When you go green, you mayfind that you can eat a larger quantity of food per meal. Veggie meals tend to pack a more nutrient punch permeal and are oftentimes loaded with helpful fiber that keeps things moving along. If you know what I mean.Furthermore, removing meat and dairy from your diet removes much of the high calorie, high saturated fatingredients. This helps you to keep each meal at a more reasonable calorie count. That can help you hit yourhealth goals quicker.

5. Stock your kitchen with healthy ingredientsOne way to ensure your success is to stock your kitchen with healthy ingredients. Remove all the unhealthyproducts from your fridge and pantry ( i.e., meats, dairy (yes, that includes cheeses) and processed foods, etc.)and replace them with healthy, wholesome plant foods. Keep some quick and healthy options ready to eat inyour cupboard or fridge. Fresh cut veggie sticks like carrots, celery, and cucumber are easy to prep and grabon the go.




6. Create a weekly meal planThe old adage goes, “ If you fail to plan, you plan to fail”, right? Why not give yourself a big advantage and takea moment to plan your meals a week out. Don’t fret, this doesn’t have to be difficult. There are plenty of freesample plant based meal plans online. Many will create a custom shopping list just for the items you’vechosen. A paid app like the Engine 2 Meal planner can do it all for you, also. It provides custom meal planscurated to your preferences.

Whichever you choose, planning your meals will take a lot of stress out of your life. Meal planning will geteasier the more you do it. Eventually, if will be second nature and you’ll have your favorites memorized andready to go.

7. Stay connected with your tribeJoining a community like Dad Goes Green is a great way to stay connected with other like-minded people. Weall need to feel heard and supported and there’s no better way to do this, these days, than to join a group.Together, we do more, and are more powerful through our interactions and encouragement of one another. Weall have exposure to different information and who knows, you might learn something new from a fellow groupmember.




Most importantly, however, is to stay positive. Remember that the potential short term challenges that you mayface in your migration to plant based will be short lived. The benefits, however, will be with you for a lifetime.

8. Live, and Let LiveLikely, you will also have to face confrontations with family, friends, or colleagues because they do not want toaccept your nutritional change. This often manifests itself in ridicule and stupid comments, sometimes alsodiscussions and arguments. Instead of engaging in arguments with them, you should openly explain howimportant your change is to you, and how well you are doing. Remember that you made this choice becauseyou wanted it for yourself. Try to engage with them respectfully.




On the other hand, you may be doing so well with your plant based diet that you may bring everyone on boardwith you. Choose to set a good example and be a positive inspiration for your circle of friends and family. Don’twaste a lot of your time and energy convincing them. Let them see the change in you first and believe me,many will follow.

9. Learn to love to learn It can sometimes be very frustrating when your friends, colleagues, or relatives do not understand you andmay even stand in your way. From time to time, you may have the feeling of swimming against the current.

The best way to remedy that is to choose the path of continuous education. More simply, become a student ofnutrition. It doesn’t have to be formal education, but learn to love to learn. This is your body and health thatwe’re talking about, after all, right? You want it to be cranking at its peak as often as possible.

Another great key to start your plant based diet is, read up on the benefits of a plant based approach. Try outnew recipes. Experiment with new ingredients (Tempeh? What’s that?). And, share your experience with us hereat Dad Goes Green…and with friends and family. It’s fun to learn and we all feel better when we’re expandingour capacity and becoming the best version of ourselves.




10. Have fun on your journeyTaking the journey to a plant based lifestyle slowly and methodically will help you discover somethingwonderful about yourself that you should celebrate. Enjoy your culinary voyage of discovery and personaldevelopment that comes with changing your diet. Even if it is sometimes difficult, try to see the challenges asan opportunity to learn and grow. We’ll be here to support you all the way.

ConclusionSwitching to a plant-based lifestyle requires perseverance. So, how do you start a plant based diet? You keepyour goal in mind and remember why you are doing this. Eat a generous amount of vegetables and fruit dailyand supplement this with nuts, legumes, whole grains, potatoes, and seeds. This is the foundation of your newhealthy lifestyle. Be kind to yourself during this process. You don’t change your lifestyle overnight, and that’sokay. Making mistakes is human. Be patient and stay positive if you want to achieve your goals. You’ll be gladyou did.


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Plant-Based Diet 10 Best Tips to Start a · 10 hours ago · 10 Best Tips to Start a Plant-Based Diet 10 Best Tips to Start a Plant-Based Diet When times get tough and your tempted,