Raquel transitioned into a fully vegan lifestyle In 2016 with no guidance or knowledge on the topic.
She quickly realized that many people she encounters are curious about this lifestyle choice, and she found her true purpose in sharing it with them. Meatless Movement recently had the opportunity to chat with her.
Raquel told Meatless Movement that combining her degree in film, a passion for writing, and first-hand experience led her to building an educational hub for all things vegan.
The Vegan Lady is all about sharing knowledge from the plate and beyond. This lifestyle blog will highlight the journey of a vegan, from grit to glamour. Here you’ll find reviewed products, honest first-hand experiences, and tips & tricks to help navigate life as a vegan.
Please tell us more about yourself
Hey there- I’m Raquel (also known as My Vegan Lady) I am 25 years old, I am dating an omnivore, and I have a 5-year-old boxer named Zeus.
If you know me at all you know i eat sleep and breathe food
Raquel
Born and raised in an Italian family in New York, I grew up a self-acclaimed food critic.
As you can imagine, I loved meat. At a whopping 4’6 and only 12 years old, I would order myself an entire rack of ribs- leaving nothing behind. For years, my birthday dinner of choice was king crab legs and filet mignon. I drank milk more than water- always whole milk.
So it’s understandable why those who knew me best find it hard to believe that the same girl is now a fully committed vegan advocate.
Its true that they say you are what you eat, choose wisely
Raquel
I guess it’s safe to say I’ve always been outspoken, maybe it was the New York in me. Around my early teen years, a friend of mine had mentioned the idea of being a vegetarian. Before giving my response, I took some time to think about the idea. The verdict was that if the animal was already dead, I was wasting its life by not eating it and letting it go bad.
I was too young to understand the concept of supply and demand. I coined veganism as ‘extreme’ because it just sounded ridiculous to avoid all of the things I enjoyed when technically the animal didn’t die for it. That was the end of the discussion, and that thought wouldn’t be revisited for at least another 5 years.
It was the first week of my freshman year of college. I had been waiting for this moment for as long as I could remember, and my heart was filled with nerves and excitement. There were only two things on my mind, finding a place to party, and looking good while doing it.
Eat more plants
Raquel
I turned to my friend who seems to know everything, Google, and asked for ways to lose weight and stay thin. Among the long list of quick fixes was a plant-based diet, which I believed would work considering I had never seen an overweight vegan.
I walked over to my pantry and cleared out anything that had meat or dairy. My shelves were empty. I kept my dorm stocked with healthy snacks to keep me going and that semester I ate a lot of Chipotle.
Cutting out meat and dairy from my diet overnight like that was hard. Nobody I knew well could offer guidance because they didn’t understand, and I felt like I was depriving myself of more than I could handle. I knew so little about how to eat vegan in fact, that I thought it was okay to eat the skin of fried chicken because it wasn’t the actual meat. (I laugh about this now)
To no surprise, I fell back into old habits. Before I knew it, I allowed myself to eat chicken and fish again whenever I pleased. However, those few months unlocked something in me that wasn’t there before. I couldn’t eat red meat again- steak was my favorite food and cows have always been my favorite animal, but I finally made the connection that they were the same.
That tiny spark in me never went away, and I couldn’t unsee the animal in what I was eating. I decided that if I was going to give this lifestyle a try, I had to do it right. If this kind of change was going to stick it required dedication, planning, and research.
Set a goal for the day, and work to accomplish it.
Raquel
If you plant a seed you cant expect it to be fully grown the next day🤷🏽♀️🌱
In short, the plan was to transition into eating vegan by replacing different products in phases beginning with whatever I liked the least. The main purpose of this was to not only remove components of my diet but find easy alternatives to allow me time to adjust. For example, once I removed chicken I learned that my favorite substitute for it was tempeh.
Next, I decided that it was time for a social media cleanse. Almost half of the accounts I followed were food pages that tempted me to not eat vegan. I spent an afternoon unfollowing all of those pages and looking for vegan accounts that created recipes I liked.
Finally, I spent time with myself reflecting on why I even wanted to do this in the first place. It was clear that something inside me was itching to do this, and I was only going to find that out by putting my pen to my journal.
The answers to these questions amongst others reminded me of my intention, and kept me on track whenever I revisited them when I needed a reminder:
- What do you care about most?
- How do you want to treat your body?
- Could you do it yourself if you looked that animal in the eye?
- What impact do your decisions have?
The dedication and planning must have paid off because I have been vegan for almost 7 years now, and I don’t miss meat or cheese one bit. There is something weird about going vegan that you wouldn’t expect to happen, some relationships fail. It is rare to see someone wholeheartedly dedicated to something and is often met with opposition.
Maybe it will be from your best friend, family member, or even a significant other. For me, it was my boyfriend at the time who did not like the idea of change. You will quickly learn who has your best interest at heart, and who doesn’t.
Maybe deep down those people would want to go vegan themselves, but feel they never could because they lack the willpower. Either way, they are always waiting to see you slip up. True support comes from people who encourage you to pursue what makes you happy and don’t put their interests above that.
All about Living Compassionately
Raquel
The most common question I am asked is where I can find food to eat at restaurants. In the beginning, the options were slim and I found myself eating before dinner. However, it has become much simpler to find restaurants that accommodate a vegan diet over the past few years.
Resources like Happy Cow offer a list of restaurants in any city that make searching easy. Some basic tips that I follow are to read the menu ahead of time and call to ask if they have a vegan menu. Once you’ve surrounded yourself with friends who understand and accept your diet choices, it becomes standard to only dine at places that offer vegan options as well. All of my friends are meat-eaters, but they always check with me to ensure I am satisfied with the location as well.
Regardless of how corny it sounds, going vegan has changed my life in countless ways. To start, it has changed the way that I view food, and healed my unhealthy relationship with eating. Like many others, I struggled with an ED in my teen years.
Eating vegan helped me to view food as nutrition to fuel my body, and erased the negative thoughts that plagued my mind after every meal. Beyond that, my acne cleared up once I removed dairy, I rarely experienced bloating, and I felt enough energy to consistently go to the gym.
Going vegan has connected me to the pure joy of experiencing and appreciating animals.
Raquel
While I always claimed to love animals, I really only treated pets with the love and care they all deserve. I believe that each animal is as unique and loveable as your pet, and it isn’t for me to decide which deserves to live or die. Additionally, I learned the impact that a vegan diet has on the environment. Once I realized that my diet alone has the influence to save 219,000 gallons of water & 200 animals a year, I felt an undeniable connection to a purpose that was greater than myself.
This lifestyle choice ignited a passion for cooking, food, animals, the environment, and my health. It has become the basis of who I am at my core, and every one of my choices is influenced by it. Honestly, I couldn’t imagine living any other way, because I am the happiest I’ve ever been. Countless nights have been spent drowned in tears over the unbearable reality of the pain I know exists, and the deep desire to make a change. But every tear reminds me that there are people who care- and are willing to make sacrifices to work toward that change.
Above all else, I understand how changing your habits drastically can seem unrealistic. And I too enjoyed the foods you enjoy eating. If you have not yet gotten the chance to try meatless food- I hope I can offer a reason for you to give it a chance. Personally, I’ve lived life on your side of the fence so I can offer an opinion from both angles. Why don’t you try it our way for a bit to see if the grass is greener?
Depending on how you approach giving it a try, you may decide to eat plant-based or vegan. For the first week, I’d say a combination of both is suitable. Some of the best imitation meats are:
Impossible Ground Beef
Impossible Sausage
Gardein Ultimate Chick’n Filets
Sweet Earth Benevolent Bacon (chop it up small into recipes for best texture)
The simplest way to change your diet without changing your ‘diet’ is to google whatever you would normally make for dinner that night and just add the word vegan in front of it. I guarantee a vegan blogger has perfected the recipe for it. As mentioned previously, I am the only vegan within my personal circle. So when I cook, it is for a bunch of meat-eaters. Some of their favorite recipes of mine are BBQ bourbon nachos, ‘beef’ sliders, and a tofu ricotta pasta dish.
Intentionality is Beautiful
Raquel
The biggest misconception about vegans is that we somehow think we are better than others because of our choices. We don’t, it’s actually just the opposite. We believe we are equals with everybody…including the animals.
Most vegans have eaten meat at one point in their life, so they understand where meat-eaters are coming from in their stance. Our duty as vegans is to provide education at the appropriate time and continue to make strides toward a more compassionate future.
Although deemed the more unpopular opinion, I don’t spend my time attempting to convert my friends and family to veganism. I also don’t make comments or judgments toward those I’m dining with regardless of what is on their plate. I choose to live in a mutual understanding that each person is on their own path, and a sure way to make someone never want to go vegan is to shove it down their throat.
I have found great success in living without judgment to keep the door open to interested parties when they’re ready to inquire. In addition, it keeps them warm and open to trying my recipes since I never frown upon theirs. There is a place for all kinds of vegans in the world, and that is mine.
After all, true beauty comes from within
Raquel
If you are new to being vegan or are considering trying it out for the first time, I encourage you to jot down a note on your phone or in a journal about what your intentions are. Emotions change often, so it is helpful to have a place to return to for grounding.
Surround yourself with positivity and a vegan community (online too) to continue learning with and sharing your progress. Every single day counts, and you are making a difference! Keep your pantry stocked, and allocate some extra time to spend in the kitchen. Find me on social media, and we can be friends 🙂
Raquel
✞
All about Living Compassionately 🐮🌷
Ⓥ since 2017
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all images courtesy of Raquel