Vegan roll call?

Just curious how many of us vegans are on the site.

Maybe just say if you are vegan, for how long, and why you made the choice?

I've been vegan for 5 years... made the choice for only ethical reasons (but now it's ethics and health).  I went cold turkey (no pun intended) from eating meat to being vegan....

I've been vegetarian for 6 years and have recently looked into going vegan. I tried it for a month this past January, but I have a severe devotion to fresh fruits and vegetables so winter was probably a stupid time for a first attempt. I lasted 3 weeks.

But I did like how my body/health reacted to the diet, so as I look at trying again, I've been thinking about some other issues- like is it more important to eat vegan or eat local? I live in Amish country, so getting fresh local eggs and raw milk feels pretty healthy and sustainable- which would be reasons for giving them up if they weren't easily accessible. And from a health point, wouldn't it be better to give up refined sugar than honey? And I'm not interested in eating processed soy products, will mixing my grains and legumes as well as eating nuts supply enough protein for a healthy diet?

Any feedback more experienced vegans care to give would be lovely.

I have been a vegan for 7 years and I was a vegetarian 3 years before that.  I became a vegetarian for ethical reasons.  After reading Jon Robbins Diet for a New America I realized that by consuming dairy products I was contributing to the meat industry so I evolved to veganism. 

Hi, i am new to this site and been vegan for 13 years. i was vegetarian at 16, vegan at 18, and never a regret. my choice was based upon ethical reasons and the desire to not inflict harm upon another feeling being, in as far as i am able.

i love food natural and harm free food, hence the weight needing to come off! ;)

 

hey i went vegan last august so i am still a newbie at this. :) i describe myself as a total vegitarian because my lifestyle is not completely vegan friendly yet.  most of my cosmetics are safe and so are my shampoos and soaps, but my shoes and bags aren't quite there yet.  i had most of them before i went veg and i have been more conscientious of my purchases.  it hasn't been that hard at all, but cooking was a real challenge for me the first few months.  i haven't noticed any weight gain or loss, but i am pretty active and athletic and i eat the same calorie-wise that i did before.  needless to say i am pretty frustrated... :(

;)

My mother was vegan at the time of my birth and eventually went to the "dark side" as she became more popular and successful (she's an executive chef). I on the otherhand didn't waiver from my upbringing until i was about 15 and had my first scoop of ice cream...went all down hill from there. I spent the next 7 1/2  years eating all the cream and cheese and eggs i could get my hands on, lol. I am now a born again vegan and have been for about 2.5 months. Even though this a lifestyle I am completely proud of and extrememly comfortable in because of the way I was raised, I am much more understanding in my reasoning and feel liberated that I had the ability to make the choice on my own this time.

 

BTW...How much does fake meat taste like the real thing...I think my mom lies to me about how similar they taste...

 

:)

vegan about a year, on cc about six months. i was vegetarian for 7 years (would have been longer, but my parents continued to force me to eat meat) because i hated the texture of meat. once i became more aware of what was happening in the animal-product industry, i decided to try to give up dairy. everything was easy for me except cheese. it's still something i struggle with.

i don't tell other people what they should and should not eat, and if i'm at a party where there's no vegan options but it'd be rude not to eat the food, i may eat something with cheese on it. but i do my best, and every little bit helps!

I have been (mostly) vegan since October - at first I lost 20 pounds - but then I got pretty lax about looking at ingredients in things and taking the less healthy and less balanced vegan route (ie -- fritos and oreos are vegan - but not so healthy...) and gained back all 20 pounds... so here I am -- new to CC+ for just a few days now -- I like it so far - still feel a bit confused by the whole bmr thing - but it seems there is a lot of controversy on the boards here about it too... I only know a couple other veg*n's but none closely.

Hello everyone!  I watched the King Korn movie which initially started me thinking about the environment, and then my sister watched a PETA video a few weeks ago and it changed her life.  She warned me not to watch it unless I was ready to make a radical change in my life also.  Well, curiosity got the best of me; I watched and literally sobbed through the whole thing, called my sister and decided we would be each other's support.  It's only been 2 weeks, however I went from eating meat and cheese every day to zero animal products overnight.   

I have always felt bad eating meat since I believed that if I ever had to slaughter my own meat, I wouldn't eat it, but I never had the courage to make the change until I saw the video.  My husband and friends have told me that all animals are not treated as PETA depicts, but that makes no difference to me.  I'm done! 

I read Eat to Live (recommended in this forum) which was very informative regarding the nutritional value of being a vegan.  In addition, I did quite a bit of research just to be sure I knew what I was doing food wise.  I feel fantastic and am so proud of myself for being strong!  My husband has many questions, however he totally supports my decision and encourages me.  He also is aware that I take this very seriously and has told me he admires my strength!  

I LOVE to prepare healthy meals and am settling into this new way of eating quite nicely.  Thank you all for paving the way!  I so very much appreciate all the information everyone contributes to this site.

I was a vegetarian for 8 years up until the end of Jan 2008, then I became vegan. It was mostly because eating dairy was giving me very bad stomach pains and just overall lack of energy due to eating dairy products. Thought I'd become vegan to be more healthy. It's been a great change and I haven't had any issues now that I am vegan.

I'm brand new on the site, but I've been a Vegan for almost a year now.

I kind of started because I found out I was allergic to casein, but after some more research, I got into it for moral reasons and gave up the rest too.

i have been vegan for about 3 years. i made the decision because of moral reasons and because i knew that it would help me lose some weight as well.

i have stayed vegan for health, environmental and ethical reasons.

Ethical vegan here, living with (married to) a omni on her way to being vegan for health reasons.

Hello,

I am vegan, for 4 months now... I watched this video on animal based foods and i got so grossed out by its health problems and animal treatment that even if i wanted i just could not go back.  I stopped cold turkey.  Ive never felt so good.  Planning to make it a lifestyle.

I've been vegetarian for 7 years for moral reasons.  I tried going vegan about 6 years ago but went back to dairy when I got pregnant.  Just recently became vegan it was my 5 year old son that made think about why I became vegetarian in the first place.  I didn't raise him vegetarian I wanted him to make his own choices and a month ago he started to ask question about where the things he was eating and drinking came from. From that day he's been vegan and of course so have I.  

I was a vegetarian for 10 years before going vegan (its been 6 years.) I believe in equality. That means the we as humans have no right to treat another living thing like we own them, or that they owe us their bodies, for science or because "oh gosh, we're hungry". Thats just the most ignorant bull ever. I have no problem acting against it either. Ive been arrested many times and jailed 3 times for involvment in protests and rescue missions.

Animals **** rule, have you seen them? They're awesome, adorable and anarchist's in their own right. The small ones are irresistably cute. Check out rabbits and hampster if you havent heard of them. Bears are pretty cute too, but im in no way gonna turn into the next grizzly man.

Lastly, I encourage everyone to act out, this isn't just a diet you're involved in, this is a way of life, and there is a genocide of animals everyday that needs to be stoped. And if your masking an eating disorder by saying that you're vegan, your stupid, and now i have to prove to people that yes im vegan and healthy because I eat more than salad. Thank you. Peace. Equality. Earth Crisis. Food.

vegan for 3 days :)

I was born to be an ovo-lacto vegetarian...since conception. It was my dad's idea and I think that if a man from the ranchero country of Argentina can be a vegetarian anyone can! Well when I was a freshman in college I went vegan but did it really unhealthily ie: i was on a meal plan that really only allowed for me buying extreme amounts of haagen-dazs mango sorbet... and i spent all of my "allowance" at whole foods on vegan cookies ... i ended up gaining 15 lbs and after a trip to cheesecake factory it all went downhill. From then on I stayed away from eggs and milk and really only had cheese ... I LOVE CHEESE! Well sometime earlier this year after reading Skinny Bitch I became vegan again. Can't remember the exact day but I think it's been since February? My weight doesn't fluctuate as much anymore but I still need to lose! I've been a CC member for awhile but the vegan thing is new... I'm 21, a new college grad, and want to lose 15 lbs but can lose as much as 30. Any "buddies" in my same position would be appreciated!! 

Vegetarian for 5 years vegan almost a year. Best decision I have ever made in my life. :)

I've been a vegetarian for about three years (on-and-off through my teenage years prior to that). After quite a bit of deliberation, I chose to go vegan this June. The decision ended up being much easier than I had expected and I wish I would have changed my lifestyle sooner!