Viva La Vegan Rewind

Before attending UNC-Chapel Hill for my master's degree I attended a tiny school on top of a mountain in Southwest Virginia called UVA-Wise. My time at UVA-Wise was some of the greatest years of my life. Most people have never heard of it or when you say UVA-Wise all they hear is UVA and automatically assume that you are talking about Charlottesville. Needless to say that navigating a vegan lifestyle while also being a college athlete in this small rural area was not easy. That is why in this week's feature of Viva la Vegan I will be giving my tips and tricks on how I navigated a vegan lifestyle in a small town.

Balancing being a college student, a college athlete, and a member of almost every organization on campus is hard. Now add figuring out how to manage a vegan diet in a town without any vegan restaurants or stores. Luckily I lived at the off-campus apartment complex and had my own kitchen. So that leads me to my first tip which may seem self-explanatory but it is quite loaded.

TIP #1: Learn to Meal Prep!!

Learning how to cook for one's self is part of the college experience. Luckily for me I lived in an off-campus apartment since my sophomore year so cooking for myself was not uncharted territory for me. Finding one or two times a week to cooks meals in bulk and have them prepped for the week was my saving grace. This starts with having a consistent weekly grocery list. Having a grocery list that hits all of the major food groups ensures that the shopper is going to be filling their body with all the nutrients they need!

TIP #2 Take an Adventure

The area where my college is located had nothing close to a vegan option. However, about an hour away in Tennessee there are larger grocery stores and more restaurants which meant vegan options! Luckily I had a roommate who loved road trips as much as I did! So every Sunday, my roommate Charlotte and I would adventure out to Tennessee and try a new restaurant and then finish the trip with some grocery shopping at Earth Fare and The Fresh Market. Through our adventure we realized that Asheville,NC had even more vegan options and even a Trader Joe's and a Whole Foods! After we found that out we bounced back and forth from Asheville and Johnson City, TN for our Sunday Adventures.

TIP #3: Listen to Your Body!

With practice, games, weights and conditioning a college athletes burns thousands of calories a day from workouts. Often times after workouts left me wanting to eat everything that was in front of me. It took me a bit to learn to eat for the long term rather than satisfying the instant hunger then being hungry again an hour or two later. This falls back on adding meal prepping to your weekly routine. Making sure you are getting all the nutrients that will keep your muscles strong and your body healthy is incredibly important. However, listening to your body and making sure you are eating food that you enjoy and keeps you full is even more important!

Overall, going vegan was the best decision I have made. Having friends who support my lifestyle and will go on adventures helped me tremendously. Whether you are navigating being a regular college student or an athlete make sure to listen to your body and always do your own research before making any huge changes to your lifestyle! Make sure to subscribe for next week's feature of Viva La Vegan!