Setting the ultimate vegan New Year’s resolution

According to a recent Forbes survey, the five most common New Year’s resolutions for 2024 are:

• Improved fitness

• Improved finances

• Improved mental health

• Lose weight

• Improved diet

These are all respectable goals. But what if there’s a single resolution that could check all those boxes? A new year’s resolution to go vegan (or, at least, to eat more plant-based than the year before) can be a critical step toward better mental and emotional health and a bigger wallet. 

How, you ask? We’ll walk you through it. 

What is a vegan New Year’s resolution? 

Here at the Good Life Refuge, we see a vegan New Year’s resolution as a resolution to reduce your use of animal products. This could be as simple as adopting a Meatless Mondays routine or as intensive as switching to an entirely plant-based diet. 

How far you go is up to you, but some example resolutions you could consider are: 

1. Complete Veganuary

2. Stop buying animal-based clothing (e.g. leather and wool)

3. Adopt an animal-free skincare routine

4. Only eat animal products when you’re out

5. Go vegan

Why veganism is the ultimate resolution

Veganism can be something of a hack to achieving many of the goals you have. While it’s true that no two vegan lifestyles are alike, eating plant-based can put you in the fast lane toward better health, finances, and the many other goals that most Americans have in common. 

Back to the common resolutions we listed earlier: 

1. If your goal is to improve fitness, consider that plant-based diets can improve performance: A 2022 review showed that a well-planned plant-based diet can minimize disadvantageous nutrients found in plants (phytate and tannins, for example) and offer performance-enhancing effects thanks to complex carbohydrates and powerful antioxidants and phytochemicals.

2. If your goal is to improve finances, consider that plant-based diets are more affordable: Oxford University recently studied the cost of several different sustainable diets. Vegan diets were the most affordable and cut food costs by as much as one-third. 

3. If your goal is to lose weight, consider how plant-based diets help with weight management: The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine noted that plant-based diets can help people lose weight and keep it off for many reasons, one of which is that the high fiber content keeps you full without overloading calories. 

Benefits of being plant-based in the new year

Setting the relationship between a vegan New Year’s resolution and other popular resolutions aside: being vegan can be an adventure in and of itself. While it’s true that you may find yourself foregoing old favorite foods, beauty products, and clothing items, there will also be a world of new experiences to explore. 

When you start a new year vegan, you open the door to: 

1. More experiences: There are tons of delicious plant-based foods, many of which omnivores don’t think to try. Juicy seitan, smoky tempeh, and creamy tofu are plant-based foods vegans love but many non-vegans never sample—and that’s just the proteins! When you say yes to a vegan New Year’s resolution, you say yes to experiences that never crossed your mind: vegan restaurants and markets, vegan activities, and even vegan volunteering at places like the Good Life Refuge. 

2. More kindness: Going vegan is the most compassionate choice anyone can make for animals. A vegan New Year’s resolution ultimately reduces harm, which improves the welfare of farm animals everywhere. How good will it feel to know that animals can live fuller, healthier lives because of your resolution? 

3. More mindfulness: In our globalized world, it’s easy to forget that our decisions have consequences. While we can’t ever erase our impact, we can substantially reduce it by going plant-based. Your one resolution can reduce your carbon footprint, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and reduce the amount of water attached to your diet—all wins for the planet. 

4. More connection: Veganism is a choice, but it also comes with a community of people similarly committed to reducing harm. In our experience, these are empathetic, compassionate people who believe that all beings are worth fighting for. Those can be powerful people to have in your corner. 

What’s your vegan New Year’s resolution? 

Only 9% of Americans who make their resolutions actually keep them. There are several reasons for that, but one of them is that people don’t always break their goals into smaller, more measurable chunks. The great thing about a vegan New Year’s resolution is that it’s easy to break into smaller steps. For example, you can start with Veganuary, then keep Meatless Mondays, then move on to Meatless Weeks, and so on. 

If you are taking the plant-based plunge, what exactly are you committing to? Comment below and consider that comment your accountability tool. And remember—there’s no such thing as a bad vegan New Year’s resolution. Even one more meatless meal is worth it.