Mei – a dedicated yoga teacher and life coach – has switched between being vegan, vegetarian and flexetarian most of her life. In 2019, when she found out about the various health benefits of a vegan diet, she went all in, and has reaped the benefits ever since.
Meatless Movement recently had the opportunity to chat with her.
Please tell us more about yourself
A lot of people don’t like to hear this but your mood, mental health and immunity largely depend on what you eat
Mei ♌️ Writer | Coach | Wild Child
I was born and raised in Germany but truly I‘m a citizen of the world, currently living in Malta – a tiny island in the Med. I‘m a freelancer so often I travel for several months in a row.
I never liked meat, even as a child I thought it was gross and brutal. When I was a teenager, I was one of the first people in the wider area to become a promoter of vegan living, animal activism and the like. I switched between vegan, vegetarian for a while, also ate some meat and fish again in my 20s but then turned fully vegan in 2019, after seeing the documentary „The Game Changers“.
At that time I was training a lot – martial arts, running, cycling and teaching yoga several times a week, so when I learnt about the health benefits of a vegan diet I switched back again and haven‘t changed my mind ever again.
I initially switched back to fully vegan after I watched „The Game Changers“. It basically started off as a self-experiment to see whether their claims were true for me too, and hell yeah… they were true big time! My recovery after hard training sessions was way faster, I had more energy, etc. etc. so it was truly incredible to see this change.
When I was vegan/vegetarian before, it was always out of compassion for the animals, and of course, this is a massive part of my decision to lead a vegan life, however, it was super interesting for me to learn about the health aspect of eating vegan.
In fact, over the years, I‘ve become so intrigued that I even took a short University course on plant-based nutrition in clinical practice which was incredibly valuable to my further knowledge with regards to a vegan diet.
What are some challenges faced in finding vegan food?
In Malta, there are a few dedicated fully vegan restaurants, however, most mainstream places offer poor vegan choices. My experience is that most restaurants are not very creative when it comes to putting together vegan dishes, so it‘s mainly just pasta with veg, burger with fries and the like. I prefer to cook myself, also because I like to know what‘s going into my food.
I‘m not big on mock meats because they are usually very high in salt and highly processed so my go to protein sources are tempeh, tofu and seitan combined with whole foods, fruit and veg.
What are your thoughts on adopting a vegan lifestyle?
You’re creating a life of joy and peace, enjoy those moments
I feel great. I made the choice for myself, my health and my conscience. As a yoga teacher, I also can‘t eat meat anymore because it affects me spiritually. I don‘t want to have the energy of a dead body inside of me. I always recommend a more plant-based diet to my students and private clients, but I like to promote veganism from a more scientific standpoint.
I learnt that animal activism and slaughterhouse footage aren‘t great tools to educate people on the subject. It‘s much better to point out how their lifestyle and eating habits are actually harming their own health, causing cancer, heart disease and diabetes.
How might you encourage someone who hasn’t embraced a vegan/vegetarian diet to give meatless alternatives a try?
I would approach the subject from a health point of view, as in educating people about the negative health consequences of eating meat, fish and animal products. In fact, I often recommend watching a bunch of Netflix documentaries to people who are interested in living a vegan life but just need that little nudge. Once they are intrigued, I get them with the medical knowledge I have.
As I said before, I believe in positive education, slaughterhouse footage, in my opinion, just spreads more negative energy, and I would never use such videos as a tool to “educate” people.
You are the creator of your life ❤️
Mei ♌️ Writer | Coach | Wild Child
As a person working in the fitness industry, I regularly encounter what I’d call “the protein myth”, the belief that vegans don’t get enough protein, especially if they are training in the gym. I lift heavy weights and I keep growing on a vegan diet without even monitoring my exact protein intake, so when I tell them I do hip thrusts with 140kg and leg press with 210kg on a vegan diet, they are often shocked.
I usually educate them about basic nutrition, macros and how plant foods are great sources of protein and many other micronutrients.
What advice would you offer to someone who is just starting to transition to a meatless diet?
We might resist change because we fear we’re not good enough, we’re not ready, we’re not educated enough, we’re not “that type of person”, etc
Mei ♌️ Writer | Coach | Wild Child
My advice would be to find someone who has been vegan for a long time so they can guide them with regards to foods, supplements, macros and micros.
Depending on the goals and lifestyle of a person, I’d recommend finding someone who is already living this lifestyle on a plant-based diet. For example, if you’d like to start gym or body building, reaching out to a vegan gym person or body builder for guidance.
Mei ♌️ Writer | Coach | Wild Child
Personal Coach
B.Psy (Hons.), M.A., Dipl. Life Coaching, RYT 230hrs
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@wild_joy_plantbasednutrition
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all images courtesy of Mei ♌️ Writer | Coach | Wild Child
Photo credit: @zuluochoa and @prazina.photo