Tips for Succeeding at your First Veganuary

What is Veganuary?

Veganuary is an annual campaign to encourage people to take up a vegan diet for the first month of the year. Its aim is to show people if that eating a diet without meat or other animal products is possible for January, it is also possible for the rest of the year. Veganuary has been running since 2014, and thousands of people have taken part so far.

Why do Veganuary?

If you’re trying your first ever Veganuary, you might reach a point where your determination is wavering. If you’ve always eaten one way up to this point in your life, you’re completely used to that sort of diet. Changing your diet to not be centred around animal products can take a big effort. That’s why it’s important to be clear around why you’re trying Veganuary. If you go through moments of uncertainty, try reminding yourself of why you started in the first place.

You might have wanted to do Veganuary for your health. Lots of people notice a quick improvement in their wellbeing when they stop eating meat and animal products. And the long term health benefits of a plant-based diet are highly evidenced.

Some people choose to try Veganuary because they are concerned about the impact that animal farming has on the environment.

Other people are primarily motivated by a desire to be kinder to animals. Whatever your reason for trying Veganuary, use it as a driving force if you’re finding it tough to begin with.

What do you think you’ll miss?

Eating a diet without animal products doesn’t need to mean missing out on your favourite treats and snacks. Snacks are often a major pain point for people starting Veganuary – particularly if you aren’t used to making satisfying meat free meals. But vegan alternatives to almost any snack you can think of are available these days. Ensuring a steady supply of the treats you enjoy the most can often be key to succeeding at your first Veganuary.

Which meals could become vegan?

While there is a vast variety of vegan cooking out there for you to try, often the easiest way is to adapt meals you already know. If you’re a big fan of spaghetti and meat balls, just start by using meat-substitute meat balls, and nutritional yeast instead of parmesan. No one is expecting you to immediately become a master plant-based chef overnight – so don’t be too hard on yourself. If you’re eating the same sort of meals you’re used to and enjoying them without the meat and diary – you’re succeeding at Veganuary.

What was always vegan and you didn’t know?

Fortunately, many of the meals and snacks you have always enjoyed are and always were vegan – you just didn’t realise. Many traditional biscuits, such as Hobnobs, Jammie Dodgers, Bourbons and Oreos are vegan – although they don’t always advertise themselves as such. It is worth checking out your own cupboards and taking a look at what things you have in that are already vegan – it may be more than you’d thought!

Who else is doing Veganuary?

Making major changes to your diet and lifestyle is much harder if you feel like you’re on your own. You might have started Veganuary with members of your family or friends. For many people however, the toughest moments of the month can be when they feel like other people don’t know what they’re doing. This is where it is worth looking for local vegan groups – either online or in person. Knowing that there are other people out there who may be having the same questions as you can help you through any tough moments.

What new meals can you try?

The easiest path to a successful Veganuary is to alter and adapt things you already eat all the time. Perhaps, however, the path to a new long term lifestyle is to try new things. Vegan and plant-based cookery is a whole new world of delicious cooking for you to enjoy. Trying out new recipes and ideas is a great way to make Veganuary not just something to get through, but an opportunity to enjoy yourself and enjoy your meals more than you have for years.

Can you plan ahead?

Many people find the easiest way to succeed at Veganuary is to not allow themselves moments of uncertainty. Planning your meals (and even the snacks) ahead of time means there won’t be any moments where you are at a loss for what to eat and tempted to eat the sort of things you used to eat. Making a plan enables you to get all the food that you need for your recipes in at once – so if you find shopping stressful, you can limit the amount of times you need to do it. Planning ahead can also make your month cheaper and easier to plan a varied and interesting diet.

Are there useful resources available?

If you’re trying your first Veganuary, you might not have the knowledge base of someone more used to eating a plant-based diet. That’s where it becomes very useful to look for the resources available to you.

At the Vegetarian Society, we have a massive based of vegan and plant-based recipes available to you – to suit all skill levels and tastes. We also run a vegetarian and vegan cookery school – COOK! with the Vegetarian Society – perfect for either starting a whole new part of your repertoire or expanding your recipe base. Often, the people who have trouble succeeding with Veganuary are those who don’t know enough about the options available to them. Doing your research, trying new recipes or foods and experimenting in the wide world of plant-based diets is the easiest way to succeed at Veganuary.

Are you going to carry on?

Veganuary is often something people approach as a short term ‘challenge’ – something to get through and endure rather than the potential start of a new chapter in their life. However, this was never really the idea behind the Veganuary movement. Rather, it was intended to show people that if they can do something for one month, they can do it for longer. Whether Veganuary inspires you to lifelong veganism, or it encourages you to adopt a vegetarian or even flexitarian diet, you will be making a massive impact on your health, the planet and the lives of animals worldwide.

The Vegetarian Society works to support and represent anyone who eats a meat-free diet in the UK – and to encourage those that want to give it a go. We have a massive bank of recipes suitable for a range of diets, and campaign to make living an ethical, healthy and environmentally conscious diet easier and more possible for everyone.