How long have you been interested in fitness/yoga and a vegan diet? What led you into it…
Hey everyone! My name is Angelica and I currently live in St. Paul, Minnesota. I went vegan on October 30, 2016 after attending my local Veg Fest. Shortly before that I reconnected with an old friend who had recently went vegan. I noticed how healthy he looked and how his overall spirit was different. He invited me to Veg Fest and that is when my journey into this beautiful new life started. I actually went vegan overnight which I understand and know that is not going to work for everyone. I noticed within a few weeks my energy sky rocketed, skin was clearer and I just felt overall less foggy. Since I was taking care of myself better, the animals and our world I stopped drinking and found confidence and love for myself. I also started to work out more around this time and joined a yoga and barre studio. I fell in love with yoga and also barre since I was a dance previously. All of the combined helped me lose 40 pounds and I am grateful to say I am in the best shape of my life physically and I am the healthiest I’ve been mentally.
That leads me to the most famous and age old question, “Where do you get your protein?” To answer that question I usually tell people the same place herbivores get their protein. It takes large amounts of protein to make a cow, and yet cows don’t eat meat. And the protein meat-eaters get when they eat meat from a cow doesn’t originally come from the cow meat, either. It comes from the plants the cows eat. That is how I get mine, from plants! Some of my favorite protein sources are chickpeas and beans of any kind, tempeh, tofu, leafy greens, nuts, hemp seeds and the list goes on and on. I do drink protein shakes in the morning not because I am worried about my protein intake but because I truly enjoy them and they work well with my fast paced lifestyle. Fiber intake should be more of a concern than protein in my opinion and when you are vegan you get plenty of fiber!
What is your favorite vegan booty building workout or yoga class?
When it comes to building a good vegan booty I definitely recommend taking barre classes. Barre is just so great overall because you are able to isolate and work your muscles to fatigue. Barre helps to improve your balance, stability, build strength and burn calories. The low impact, high intensity movements are perfect when it comes to booty building. When you use equipment since as resistance bands, and balls in class it truly amps up the work out and you feel the burn big time! Some of my fav moves include, kickbacks, rainbows and lunges.
I am proud to say I am a vegan athlete. A vegan athlete to me means someone who is not only physically strong but also mentally strong. As vegans we get slack from others who are misinformed or uneducated. I believe it is up to us to lead the way and show them how amazing this lifestyle can be. Veganism has truly changed my life for the better and it is my duty to spread the word to others. Who wouldn’t want to live a more compassionate life while also reaping the fantastic health benefits that come along with it?
