Things You'll Need:
- Recipe books for vegan diet.
- Whole-grains, fresh produce and vegan meats.
- A walking route to enjoy the environment.
- A trampoline or Yoga class for variety.
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Step 1
Begin your journey into veganism with a motivating reason in mind, like a love of animals. Alicia was able to stick to her lifestyle choices because her motivations were ethics and health (instead of fitting into a smaller pair of jeans.) If you want to start eating fewer animal products, begin slowly by first trying out a vegetarian lifestyle by eliminating all forms of animal meat (like chicken, fish or beef) and replacing with plant proteins such as organic raw peanut butter, beans and legumes.
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Step 2
Give your body time to adjust to a vegetarian lifestyle by gradually making the change to vegan or raw eating like Alicia (who eased into the process.) With patience and forward thinking, you can slowly eliminate other byproducts of animals like cheese, milk or eggs, to create a vegan diet. It may seem at first like there is nothing to eat when animal products are eliminated, but Alicia is a wonderful example of the vast amounts of food groups that can be enjoyed.
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Step 3
Be willing to buy and cook creative foods. For example, Alicia creates recipes from her favorite vegan books, stops by raw food restaurants and invents her own concoctions at home. Try snacking on dates, figs or dried organic fruit for candy, using tofu cream in place of sour cream or eating whole-grains instead of simple white carbohydrates. Alicia chooses meat replacement products like tofu or tempeh for additional protein and makes many tasty vegan recipes including enchiladas, soups and desserts.
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Step 4
Fit activity into your life by keeping a laid-back attitude. Alicia doesn’t follow a strict regimen or physical fitness plan, but instead strives to do something active every day like taking long walks or hikes with her dogs or gardening at home. Try creating a similar fun and relaxed workout program by volunteering to walk dogs at a local animal shelter (or hitting the pavement with your own) or creating a small garden to grow fresh herbs and vegetables for cooking.
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Step 5
Stay active every day like Alicia, who occasionally fits Yoga classes into her schedule or jumps on the large trampoline in her yard whenever possible. Create a similar routine by purchasing a small exercise trampoline that can fit safely indoors or exercising at home to a challenging Yoga video.
