I know there are a few vegies among the STW ranks, but what about any vegans? Why did you become so, are you strict and does it work well for you?
I flirt with it now and again and feel great when I do, but have never managed a long term commitment to being vegan.
I was a vegan for three months. Not for any particular ethical, moral or even food-taste reason, but i was living with one so i thought i'd give it a try. It was okay, i wasn't super strict (i didn't really think about using animal products outside of food, e.g. leather), but in the end i felt less healthy than when i ate everything. First non-vegan item i had was a can of tuna.
My ex was a vegan, my parents are pig farmers... It was doomed from the beginning!
....tooo......weak......to.....raise........hand.......
Nurse! This man needs 200cc of Beef dripping! Stat!
Being a vegan means no bacon sarnies, no roast beef, no sausages, no black pudding, no steak, no roast chicken, no kebabs, no ham, no salami, no lamb etc. etc.
Are you quite mad?
....tooo......weak......to.....raise........hand.......
I know a few vegans who are damn fast on the bike, weak they are not!
Its more tricky to get a balanced diet but it can be done.
SSP
yep, i've been vegan for nigh on 15 years.
i became vegan because earth crisis told me to on one of their records.
i'm pretty strict with it, but if little transgressions occur accidentally i don't beat myself up over it and learn from them instead.
although initially it was for entirely ethical reasons, i think that as time went on it became just as much about my own health (especially since i had heart/hypertension issues and i also don't smoke or drink any alcohol at all).
it works well for me in as much as when i ended up in the ICU with a BP of 270/155, i didn't die mostly because my blood vessels are in such good condition that they held up a lot longer than those of someone who had a diet high in cholesterol, saturated fats and/or sodium (all this was told to me by the senior consultant cardiologist at MRI).
if one were to scrutinise most long term vegans, you'd find aspects that appear hypocritical. especially if that's what you were setting out to achieve.
the thing is, i DO NOT CARE what anyone else chooses to eat/not eat, or wear/not wear. so i don't really see why anyone else should care what i eat/wear/do. therefore, i'm not interested in anyone trying to pick holes in my choices; TO EACH THEIR OWN.
i don't preach about how you have to be vegan or anything pointless like that, but if you're genuinely interested in a vegan diet/lifestyle though, i'd be glad to help/advise if i could...
My GF was vegan when I met her and so by default I lived as one too. I found it pretty easy really and even when I cook for myself I usually go at least veggie but more times than not go vegan. Now she is pregnant and has a massive craving for cheese she has started eating that but will return to vegan after the birth. I never thought I would turn down bacon, beef, lamb etc but now I don't fancy them.
I was vegan for a couple of years, during which I did a 24 hour off road solo on a unicycle (I believe I was the first person to do this, and even held an unofficial world record for a couple of months), commuted 80 miles a week (again on a unicycle), and still had the energy to go for 8-10 hours of off road rides most weeks ( a night ride plus at least one weekend ride).
I stopped it because I like cheese, and I like eating out. You can't get (nice, meltable) vegan cheese, and most vegan friendly eating out is rubbish (with the exception of some Indian places).
I never really noticed the feeling weak thing that people talk about, I was as fit as anyone else I knew (a lot fitter than most of them), and I've never been as good up hills as I was then. I think the feeling weak thing is often more due to eating an unhealthy diet or not eating enough than anything else.
Joe
My wife told me she was when I met her but I'm sure she'd had other boyfriends............
Im still reeling from your stance on honey xherbivorex. It is the food of gods. Our dog hates honey with a passion- once 
.... I smeared honey allover his snout and stood back laughed. Evil.
Been Veggie since i was 15 and Vegan since 21 , I'm now 40 and to be honest cannot imagine living my life any other way...
Works for me...
The weak thing is made up by meat eaters so they can have a laugh before suffering a heart attack/bowel cancer. You've got to laugh at something.. 
I also flirt with it now and again and also feel physically really good when I do. I think it's good not to get too set into eating the same things so I don't get too wound up about diet, just make sure what I'm eating is healthy and that I enjoy it.
VEGAN and pretty much agree with xherbivorX above. Only leather shoes I have a cycling ones GRR have looked but nothing about.
VERY STRICT 20 ish years + wife is as well. DonÃt eat Honey not that keen on it is main reason. TO answer questions above by poster
Works for me but you have to get used to the different foods and tastes you get with veg compared to meat. Most meat eaters will eat any over cooked veg mush given to them as long as the meat tastes fine they are ok with it. They also eat a rather limited choice of veg and dishes (meat and two veg with one being spuds) This does take time depending on your diet prior to going vegan. Not much of our traditional british diet is Vegan friendly. Much af asian / FAr east food is as they tend to not eat milk / cheese anyway. Works well for me cant see me changing on this.
Became vegan as I dislike factory farming ... eating meat / killing may be naturall but once you farm for food it is inherently cruel IMHO - lambs live for 6 weeks on average. milk cows are artifically inseminated to keep them lactating and the young destroyed etc. Bucket load of hormones in each
The hypocroicy amongst meat etaers is there would be a lot less if they were given live food and had to kill it themselves and personally i could not do this some can / could/ would / do kill and fair play it is your choice.Less criticism to them than the people who could not kill a live animal but still eat meat ... think they are the real hypocrits in this debate.
you do get some good arguments when you bring your kids up as vegans
Argument one
1. Why donÃt you just let them eat meat and then decide later?
response : Why donÃt you let your kids smoke fags, drink booze be prostitutes etc and then let them decide later depending on how argumentative annoyed I am at the time.
2. IS that not like imposing your will on your children?
Response - is that not what I do all day long when I try to teach them to be a responsible person and go to bed at an appropriate time and to not throw things at people and be nice to their brother etc etc etc or What like sending them to church if the person I am speaking to is religious.
DonÃt miss cheese as much as I thought I would or cream... Vegan cheese is rubbish, expensive and plasticy.
FWIW - a lot of nonsense from both sides re whether vegans can be athletes as healthy / healthier than meat eaters. only two things as far as I can see
It is healthier in the sense that there is a vastly reduced intake of cholesterol + saturated fats BUT you do REALLY need to watch what you eat to ensure you get the right food stuff which a meat eater may/can be lax about
Pointless vegan factoids
Karl Lewis was/is a vegan and was voted Olympian of the century
Clint Eastwood is a vegan
Sadly so is Bryan Adams ... oh the shame the shame
yep, i've been vegan for nigh on 15 years.
i became vegan because earth crisis told me to on one of their records.
I had the same problem with Morrisey telling me to be Veggie
I'm not Vegan just strict Veggie (for 20 years) however I have kinda gone semi Vegan this last year by cutting out milk and cheese, I will still eat free range eggs sometimes but to be honest that wouldn't really be hard to cut out. I like it, eat a great variety of tasty free food and feel good on it. The idea of drinking milk just seems weird now.
tasty fresh (not free)
Interesting responses, thanks... Not really politically motivated to do it, I just have the vague sense it would be healthier and that I'd feel a lot better.
I suppose in this financial climate the ability to eat well for less is a pleasant side effect.
Most meat eaters will eat any over cooked veg mush given to them
That statement alone is just so much bollards.
Vegan = faddie food hater
I'm happy for you, no really I am, it's great that you live in the 21st century and you can get all the stuff you want at any time. Personally I'd prefer a balanced diet based on seasonal, locally produced and
....sourced food.
he hastened to post after hitting the send post too quickly the last time. 
Clint Eastwood is a vegan
Bl@@dy hell - must have been all those spaghetti westerns and beans 
i was joking about the earth crisis part.
although a couple of them are friends of mine...
nickc - there's an edit feature
I'm not, but Mrs Humphry is! Makes eating out very interesting 
Most meat eaters will eat any over cooked veg mush given to themThat statement alone is just so much bollards.
Vegan = faddie food hater
I'm happy for you, no really I am, it's great that you live in the 21st century and you can get all the stuff you want at any time. Personally I'd prefer a balanced diet based on seasonal, locally produced and sourced food.
Thanks for that nickc. You are absoluetly right. Veganism is post-modern indulgence affordable only because of the polluting technology that allows it to happen (transport). I'm with Gordon Ramsey on this one.
As to the bowel cancer b*ll*cks mentioned by traildog, I can only say that if that kind of scaremongering had any legitimacy, it is astounding our ancestors lived long enough to propagate us.
I'm with CFH, mmm bacon...
NIckC FFS - what on earth do you think I eat them imported food from Africa/Asia as far away as possible or seomething? And lets be honest neither your average vegan nor meat cares a great deal about locally sourced sadly.
I get my veg from a local organic box scheme and therefore it is seasonal as well NickC- do you think i eat the poor quality veggie stuff you see in a supermarket?and yes it is Vegan certified before anyone smart enough to know asks which in the grand scheme of things is about the best i can do and better than most.
Saxon .. please continue with your great knwoledge I mean food relies on transport for vegans ... how exactly is meat delivered then? Does it walk round and die on your doorstep to save on distribution costs?you clearly dont have great grasp of modern agro economice nor knowledge of the location of slaughterhouses nor the mass distribution of supermarkets but hey ho.
To be fair everyones diet relies on mass transportation to a greater or lesser degree and I can see no reason why a Vegan would be more reliant than a Meat eater. In fact (Google it as you wont belive me)Veganism is one of the greatest thing an individual can do to reduce their carbon footprint because it takes 20 x or thereabout the energy to create meat (KG v KG)as it does veg so on the green argument a vegan really will win hands down on that front.
PS the average age of our ancestors was roughly 40 until the 20 th century the major advances coming from better diet .. they probably did not live long enough to get bowel cancer but hey what do those stupid doctors/scientists /researchers know about disease that saxon and a opinionated chef do not know.
Honestly if you want to eat meat do so ... just let me eat what I want and yes perhaps a luxury of modern living but so is that shinny bike thing and this darned internet forum thing and cars and electricity and i think you get the picture.
Every single time vegetarian/vegan ism is mentioned on this site, it is the meat eaters that have a problem with it. Why? I have been vegetarian for about 14 of my 36 years, and can't see me going abck to meat - but my family eat meat, I'll buy and prepare meat because that's their choice to eat it.
As XherbieX says...each to their own.
As to the bowel cancer b*ll*cks mentioned by traildog, I can only say that if that kind of scaremongering had any legitimacy, it is astounding our ancestors lived long enough to propagate us.
Although much of the evidence suggests that the early hunter gatherers ate a diet far lower in meat than the average person nowadays - meat being much more of a luxury than it is now with widespread farming and meat cheap and easily available.
Joe
My missus is veggie (17+ years) and I'm not. She's never tried to change me nor me her. She cooks meat for me too - Makes THE best steak and kidney pie I've ever tasted! She tried to be vegan but couldn't manage it.
So respect to you vegans for sticking to your guns, Really!
But I simply could never, ever do it. I like my meat. And I'm one of the few that's actually caught, killed and eaten their own (Not often, but it still counts) so I'm happy with my principals, too.
One of the more successful cancer hospitals...
Have a read if you get a few minutes...
Sorry don't know how to link on this new forum...
<http://veganforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=822>[url=http://http://veganforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=822]null
Saxon rider the BBC food programme looked recently at whether the UK could be self sufficient in food production using the seasonal locally produced food you want to eat. The result was that the most efficient way to achieve that would be with a vegan diet using some of the aspects of industrial farming.I wasn't able to find the references on the website but there are some other studies referenced on the vegan entry on wickipedia which might be of interest to you. I'm sure as a lecturer you wouldn't want to base your arguments entirely on the opinions of a failed footballer turned cook.
Less criticism to them than the people who could not kill a live animal but still eat meat ... think they are the real hypocrits in this debate.
That's not being a hypocrit, i'm not too sure what the word is, but it's certainly not that. For instance, i'm pretty certain that although I wouldn't work in a sewer, the fact i'd happily poo in a lav wouldn't make me a hypocrit
I'm sure as a lecturer you wouldn't want to base your arguments entirely on the opinions of a failed footballer turned cook.
TouchÈ!
Not, but veggie for about last 28 years, pushing vegan. Nutritionally I'd have no problem being 100% vegan, and would be just as fit and healthy as I am now. Eggs (or a very small ammount of cheese) is a pretty rare event for me. Biggest problems with being too single minded about it would be travel and socializing.
Leather remains damn useful stuff for some uses, even though it's produced in some pretty revolting and environmentally damaging ways. There are nearly always alternatives though, and I'd be the first to shun gross or unnecessary application.
I always select "vegan" where given an option at public events, work xmas dinners, airlines etc, because to call oneself "vegie" always dictates the hosts will inflict a revolting goats cheese or cream mushroom concoction.
So it's a fine idea, if a little impractical at times.
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