The transition to a vegan lifestyle can be challenging. Changing old habits is hard, especially in a very non-vegan-friendly world. If you want to transition to a vegan lifestyle, there are several apps that can help make the process easier and more enjoyable. Here are some popular apps to help you go vegan:
Happy Cow
Happy Cow will be your new vegan best friend. The app works similarly to Yelp or Google Maps in that when you search for a location, pins will be dropped showing restaurants in that area. However, with Happy Cow, there are different symbols on each restaurant depicting Vegan restaurants, Vegetarian restaurants, or restaurants that have vegan options.
Users can post reviews describing which dishes are vegan, upload photos of meals, and can rate the restaurant from 1-5 stars. One of my favorite features is that you can plan for upcoming vacations by using the “trips” section of the app and create folders for vegan options in the areas you will be traveling to. You can also sort restaurants by distance on the home page.
Daily Dozen / Nutrition facts
Nutrition Facts.org Is a website created by Dr. Michael Greger, author of “How Not to Die.” His website provides lots of informational videos and articles with scientific evidence about different questions you may have on a vegan diet. In his book, he establishes the “Daily Dozen,” which lists 12 food groups to aim for each day, including fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and legumes.
The Daily Dozen app can help you track your progress in eating the daily dozen. While I tried my best and only got some categories in one day, using this app for a while made me start diversifying my plate. I realized I would have vegetables daily but lacked vegetables that fell explicitly into the “leafy greens” and “cruciferous vegetables” categories. This pushed me to try new plant-based foods and consume various vitamins and minerals.
Chronometer
A common mistake when going vegan is undereating. Since most vegetables and fruits are lower in calories, a vegan plate the same size as an average American dinner plate will be less filling. On the other hand, some new vegans may find comfort in vegan alternatives to their old favorites that may not have the most nutritious ingredients. To make sure you’re eating enough food and getting a variety of nutrients into your body, tracking your food can be beneficial.
While there are many food-tracking apps and websites, many tend to focus on total calories or only break down proteins, carbs, and fats. I love using Chronometer to track my food because it also breaks down all recommended vitamins and minerals and shows you how much of each you’ve eaten that day. During a week I tracked my food, I realized I didn’t need to take a Vitamin C supplement daily as I got the recommended amount of vitamin C almost every day from the food I ate! It also encouraged me to eat foods higher in vegan protein. While I don’t recommend tracking your food daily for the rest of your life as this can become tedious and restrictive, tracking your food for a few days as you transition to a vegan diet may help you hit your nutrition goals.
Yelp
Yelp is one of the most widely used restaurant review websites with a huge database of information. The app usually has a symbol on different restaurants stating either “Vegetarian Options” or “Vegan Options,” if they have any. If I need to, I can click one that says “Vegetarian Options” and see what on the menu I can alter to be made vegan. A problem with this feature is it sometimes Yelp notes that there are “Vegan options,” yet the only vegan item I can find on the menu is a sad salad and french fries… so I don’t trust that feature alone.
Before looking at a menu on a restaurant’s Yelp page, I go straight into the review sections and search for the word vegan. I will usually find a review discussing a vegan option or a note that the restaurant does not have any. The question feature on Yelp also allows you to ask the reviewers if the restaurant if they have vegan options. The app allows you to save restaurants to various boards.
Before going to a restaurant with friends or on a trip to a new area, I like to check both Yelp and Happy Cow, mentioned above. Happy Cow tends to be more clear and trustworthy with regards to what the vegan options are, but Yelp tends to have more restaurants and more reviews due to its popularity.
Cooking in a new way can be scary, which is why I love following recipes. Pinterest has various vegan recipes, from simple vegan meals to complex vegan desserts. You can search for recipes using specific ingredients or dietary requirements, such as gluten-free or soy-free. You can also save recipes you like for future reference.
On my personal Pinterest account, I have four food boards: 1 for Vegan Savory recipes, 1 for vegan dessert recipes, 1 for smoothie recipes, and 1 for all the recipes I’ve tried and were my favorites so I could easily access them when I don’t feel like experimenting with something new. I sometimes use another Pinterest board titled “This Week,” where I add recipes that I want to make in the upcoming week. These usually include ingredients I have in my house that need to be used up or any other fun recipes I want to try. When I go to do groceries, I can make my shopping list quickly by looking at this board.
On my Eco Friend Faith Pinterest account, I have a board titled “Mentioned Recipes” for any recipes developed by other creators I’ve shared on my Blog posts, Instagram stories, Youtube, or Email Newsletter. This board includes some of my go-to’s!
More on Technology
While on the topic of technology, I recommend catering your social media feeds to the lifestyle you want to live. Suppose you follow food accounts that don’t usually post vegan plates; mute or unfollow them and try following vegan food accounts instead. You can find accounts with simple recipe inspiration or vegan restaurant options in your area.
Living in the 21st Century, technology is all around us. While it can have some down falls, we can also use the resources available to our advantage. By using the web apps discussed above, transitioning to a vegan lifestyle will be a bit easier.
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