Hello lovelies! First things first. My dearest Sing Off fans: who else is stoked that Pentatonix became the champions?! They are so incredibly talented and I couldn’t be more happy for them. I still can’t get over the massive sound they create with just three singers and two vocal percussionists! If you haven’t checked out their rendition of “Dog Days Are Over,” get on it!
How was your Tuesday? I had an exam first thing in the morning and it went far better than I imagined. Success! I woke up at the wee hour of 6:00 a.m. and sipped my Meta-D drink while studying.
Breakfast
Today’s morning meal prompted the return of…dun dun dun…cereal!
I enjoyed about half of the above container of fresh pineapple and a bowl of Nature’s Path Flax PLUS flakes, unsweetened almond milk, and chia seeds. Favorite breakfast of all time!
Lunch
After my second class of the day, I came back to my dorm room to make a quick lunch. I was in a bit of a time crunch because I had to head out to conduct an interview for the latest article I’m writing for The Gatepost, FSU’s newspaper.
I had an easy peasy salad – minus peas. 
I combined kale, cherry tomatoes, broccili, and shredded carrots and topped them with a “dressing” made of 1/4 avocado and 2 Tbsp. hummus. For an extra protein punch, I added 1/2 a Field Roast Apple Sage sausage to the mix. Random but divine!
Dinner
This evening, I had the sheer pleasure of jet-setting to Whole Foods for dinner. I simply needed to get out of my dorm for a little while, and figured that a post-kickboxing meal at the mecca of all grocery stores would be the perfect place to do it! Despite being a sweaty mess, I decided to make the trek! Worth it.
I filled my container with cabbage salad, golden beets, roasted carrots, Brussels sprouts and onions, and tempeh. SO. GOOD. I love you, Whole Foods!
How to Give Up Dairy
One of the questions I often get asked is how to give up the dairy (i.e. where to start, how to do it, and how to not feel guilty about giving up foods you love). For me, omitting dairy from my lifestyle wasn’t very difficult. I wasn’t a huge cheese lover and alternatives to milk, yogurt, and ice cream were readily available, so my transition was far easier than most. I also did a fair amount of research on the health benefits and, of course, took pride in the fact that I would not be contributing to animal cruelty. It may seem like a difficult feat but FEAR NOT! You CAN get there and I’m here to help!
Photo courtesy: GlobalAnimal.org
- Ask Yourself Why You’re Doing It. Before embarking on this journey, ask yourself why you’ve decided to give up dairy. Is it for health reasons? Is it because your stomach feels wonky after downing a glass of milk? It is because veganism interests you and you’re simply curious as to how you’d feel? Regardless of your motives, take note of them and use them as inspiration moving forward.
- Conduct a 24-hour recall. Nutritionists often conduct 24-hour recalls with their clients. It is, essentially, a detailed, written record of all food eaten the previous day. I sort of do this on my blog for you every day! Write out your meals and snacks and highlight the meals and/or snacks that contain dairy. Remember that lots of convenience foods contain dairy additives like whey, casein, lactase enzymes, etc. It may seem tedious but it works!
- Take baby steps. After you’ve taken your 24-hour recall and highlighted the places where you consume dairy, don’t freak out! Start small. For instance, say you consume milk at breakfast, have a yogurt for a snack, and eat cheese with your dinner. Start with the milk and research dairy alternatives to the milk. I’ve grown to love Almond Breeze Unsweetened Almond Milk but there are countless other milk alternatives out there – coconut, soy (always choose organic soy!), hemp, rice, oat, etc. One week after you tackle the milk, revisit your 24-hour recall and consider swapping the animal-derived yogurt with coconut yogurt, almond yogurt (it exists at Whole Foods!), or organic soy yogurt. Remember that small changes add up to big ones – and you don’t want to feel restricted or discouraged!
- “But I love my cheese!” This is the most common phrase I hear when talking to people about giving up dairy. To be blunt, no vegan cheese alternative will taste like cheese – simply because every vegan cheese alternative isn’t cheese! Daiya is by the far the reigning king of vegan cheese alternatives. Follow Your Heart comes in at a close second. All other options are not very tasty, in my humble opinion. Changing your habits can be hard, but it will pay off in the end! Your body will love you and you’ll have so much more energy! Plus, the point of giving up dairy isn’t to mimic dairy foods. After all, these are transitional foods. The point is to serve your body in the best way possible by preventing yourself from developing diseases down the road and, of course, to be compassionate to animals! Easier said than done, I know, but just some food for thought. If you must consume some cheese, save it for dinner or an after-dinner snack.
- You’re showing your body love! Many studies, such as this one, have shown that increased dairy consumption leads to more bones broken. Plus, the mucus formed from dairy actually inhibits absorption of other important nutrients (this is why I advised you to consume dairy for dinner or an after-dinner snack). Refer to this post for more information!
Stay lovely,
Question of the Day: Have you ever considered omitting dairy from your lifestyle? If you’ve already done so, was it difficult for you?
I was a huge cheese-lover. Earlier this year, I was told by a kinesiologist that I was intolerant to dairy. I suspected this, but I was SOOOO dismayed anyway! I was of the opinion that “everything tastes better with cheese…”
To my surprise, after the first few days I didn’t even miss cheese anymore. The milk and yoghurt was easy, since there are so many alternatives available now.
Recently I ate some cheese in a salad. I took one bite and had to spit it out. It was disgusting!! I was sure it was “off”!!! Everyone else continued eating happily. No, they assured me the cheese was completely fine.
Then I realised it was just that my tastebuds had changed.
Isn’t it amazing?! Casein, one of the milk proteins in dairy, turns into “caseo-morphin” when it crosses our blood-brain barrier. Like morphine, it becomes addictive. So, to your point, it’s totally mental! I’m so proud of you for taking that step, Kate. And your tummy loves you for it, I’m sure. Thanks for sharing.
I cut most dairy out of my diet when I became a vegetarian a few years ago. Once I read the book Skinny Bitch, there was no way I could look at a glass or milk or a slice of cheese the same. They actually gross me out now quite a bit. But, I was wary of committing myself to the vegan title just yet. 1.) I wasn’t sure I could handle all of the questions and judgement about it, even though my body feels most optimal when I do consume a completely vegan diet. I just didn’t have enough support or knowledge to nourish my mind and body correctly. However, I’m working on this and soon I hope to be more well versed and confident on the subject. Do you have any recommended online reading material suggestions? 2.) The difficult part for me has been more the resisting foods that have been made with milk products. I know that probably sounds silly, but it’s much easier to just down a baked good when you can’t see the ingredients that have been put in to it. Unfortunately, ITS STILL THERE, typically along with unhealthy amounts of sugar and trans fats. So, there you go. I just convinced myself to take baby steps towards a vegan lifestyle.
Hey Meagan!
First off, thanks for your thoughtful and honest comment. To address your first point, I suppose this goes back to revisiting the first bullet in this post. Why are you giving up dairy? If it’s for your health and your body’s well-being, SCREW OTHER PEOPLE!
You have to do what is best for you and surround yourself with people who will be accepting of your lifestyle. If people aren’t accepting and judge you for it, they might not be people you want to surround yourself with. Kimberlysnyder.com, ChoosingRaw.com (Gena Hamsaw), and JulieannaHever.com are all certified nutritionists in the field and know what they’re talking about. Kathy Freston is also a great source for vegan lifestyle choices. And as always, I’m here for you, babe!
Resisting convenience foods that already contain milk products can be really difficult. But like I said above, just start small. If that is your biggest obstacle, you might want to start with something that is more feasible for you, like switching to almond milk. Sometimes, it can be as easy as looking at the label and asking yourself “Do I need this?” It might be helpful to create a list of alternate vegan-friendly snacks that you can enjoy in order to have a “plan of attack” against dairy-containing convenience foods. Would that work for ya?
I LOVE that you gave a step by step guide! Often giving something up is so difficult, but breaking it into steps makes it so much more manageable!
Thank you so much, Merrie. so glad that you found it to be helpful. Woo Hoo!
giving up dairy was not too difficult for me, though for Michelle it was, as she was more of the cheese lover. though now with all the great dairy alternatives it is easier.
Couldn’t agree more, Lori! The vegan world has definitely come leaps and bounds in that area. We’re very lucky!
I also found it fairly easy to give up dairy, although I still eat the occasional piece of pizza or frozen yogurt maybe a few times a year. I was never someone who drank milk, and find almond milk to be really delicious. Daiya is okay in moderation too, but I don’t love the way it makes me feel (kind of bloated).
I think you make a great point about not trying to find a substitute for things like cheese – there simply isn’t a vegan exact match. Instead, I like to focus on just eating foods that taste good and also make me FEEL good. There are so many wonderful foods we can eat as vegans. I never feel deprived.
That’s really interesting that Daiya makes you bloated. It could be the sodium content, which is fairly high for such a small serving (10% per half cup). I feel like we would have the best conversations, Amanda. Let’s plan to meet up when Winter Break hits!
Since I am asian it is quite difficult for us to digest dairy products especially milk and heavy cream. So giving up dairy products is possible whether you are asian or not.
Totally agree with you, Angel! My friend, who is also Asian, is lactose intolerant and has taught me a lot about the Asian culture’s high incidence of lactose intolerance.
I love this post! Thanks for the tips…I’ve been in the process of eliminating dairy for probably a good year now. Cow’s milk and ice cream made me terribly sick (achy stomach followed by a migraine the next day). Cheese is, of me at least, the hardest to eliminate, but I’m working on it!
Aww thank you, Danica! I’m proud of your outlook…stays true to the mantra of your blog! Progression is all that counts.