Veganuary 2026 has concluded. The month of veganism – my second attempt in 2 years – was not quite the success I’d hoped for when I started out on the 1st of this month.
Weight loss was one goal. I started at 80.5kg after Christmas’ excess, and after dieting – not just following the recipes but cutting back on bread and porridge too – I came down to 73.0. This loss can partly be attributed to a moment of distraction and not checking the ingredients on a pack of vegan sausages, which included my nemesis, mushrooms, which floored me in work and had me sleeping – and fasting - for days. I had them for breakfast and by 10am I had to go home.
Furthermore, a lot of vegan pre-prepared meals aren’t even that healthy. There are a lot of red symbols indicating high fats and sugars, certainly in Aldi’s products.
Another goal was to beat a few personal bests in chinups and dips, and running. I achieved none. I was getting there with these, but I was still nowhere near the records. Some people swear by veganism for fitness. It didn’t work for me.
I managed a few recipes, although not as many as I’d have liked. They’ll appear here over the weeks. I find a lot of vegan recipes quite bland, and not as filling. How dedicated vegans manage, I don’t know. I uploaded one Meetup to vegan restaurant Hinterland, which went down well with a mostly new group of people in Manchester Nightlife. I’d have ran more but the weather is abysmal in northern England in January.
I did misstep at one point, eating some cereal with almond milk. All vegan, until you take into account it was Aldi Honey Nut Cornflakes, and honey is basically bee puke, so not technically vegan.
Once midnight passed, though…
I’ve done Veganuary twice now. I really miss the restaurant deals in Manchester, and all the meat-based food available at cut-price, so I think it would be better to mix in more vegan meals throughout the year than do a full on vegan project.
There are other monthly challenges to undertake. Stay tuned for that...
