How to Go Vegan Cold Turkey: 14 Steps to Take Overnight

It’s common advice to transition to a vegan diet gradually. But while that works for many, it’s not what I did. Fourteen years ago, I decided to go vegan in a single instant—and I haven’t looked back.

If you wanna go vegan cold turkey, I say all the better. Take action while you’re motivated! This post is your guide to going vegan overnight. We’ll cover 14 steps every new vegan should take in those first few hours and days for maximum success.

My Story of Going Vegan Overnight

I still remember the moment I decided to go vegan. I made the decision in a single instant—and, not counting accidental slips, I’ve been vegan for 14 years since that moment.

I had been considering going vegan for a while. I had seen a few videos about the way animals were treated on factory farms. I had flirted with vegetarianism.

But one morning, after seeing another video about factory farms the previous night, I decided I just didn’t want to eat the eggs I had planned on the menu. I decided enough was enough.

That first day, I just ate the vegan foods I already had in the house: A banana, some carrots, some saltine crackers and peanut butter. Not a great diet!

But I made a decision, and I used the emotional momentum to just GO with it.

In the next few days, I looked up resources online about how to be vegan. I drove two hours to the nearest natural foods store (since I lived in a small town without one). I bought some “vegan cheese,” which was pretty bad back then (it’s gotten better in the past 14 years), and other supplies.

For me, it was the right decision to just commit to this and DO IT already. Other people like to transition gradually, and that can work, but it wasn’t my style. Once I decided to do it, I wanted to leave my past diet behind and get on with it!

14 Steps to Go Vegan Cold Turkey

If going vegan overnight sounds right for you, here are my tips—one for each year that I’ve been vegan myself.

The first two steps are kinda about goal-setting. All the others are a bit more “practical,” but these first ones will give you a solid foundation to actually go vegan for the long-term.

1. Get Absolutely Clear on Why You’re Doing This.

Going vegan can be amazing, but it can also be challenging, confusing, or awkward at times. So you need to know why you’re doing this.

As someone who has made it 14 years, trust me. I’ve seen a lot of my friends quit. Why? Because they forgot their reasons.

A lot of people get emotionally inspired to go vegan after watching a documentary or something. But then, a few weeks later, they forget about their reasons, lose motivation, and give it up.

Here are two important questions to ask yourself:

1. Imagine a future where you’ve been a vegan for a year and things are going perfectly. What does it look like? What kinds of foods are you eating? Has it impacted your health or body at all? Has it changed the people/places you hang around? Do you feel good about it? Why? What is so good about it? What are you able to do, have, or be now? What’s changed in this dream scenario that matters most to you?
   
2. Identify the strongest impulse urging you away from animal foods. Imagine a cheeseburger on a plate in front of you. Now—what’s the strongest emotional reason you feel NOT to eat it? Are you thinking of the cows who suffered, maybe even a specific detail or video you saw? Are you thinking of how it’s causing disease in your body, and how that could cut short your time with loved ones? Or how it’s made you overweight and embarrassed about your body? Or how the Amazon rainforest is being destroyed by this industry? Connect with your deepest, most emotional reason for doing this.

Knowing both of these things—what’s pulling you toward veganism and away from animal foods—will make it much easier to stay vegan. But you have to know them on a real, emotional level. Not just logical.

So spend some time on this reflection: Why do you even care enough to go vegan? Some days, it will be inconvenient. You need a why.

Another thing: It’s okay for your reasons to evolve. When I first went vegan, it was completely for animal ethics. But now, 14 years later, I eat a specific kind of healthier vegan diet to keep my skin clear and to help keep my abs. (I have a whole post on “How to Get Six-Pack Abs with a Vegan Diet.”)

So get clear on your current motivations. They’re your foundation. If you feel strongly about them, they’re unlikely to change soon.

Side Note: This is the best free video introduction I’ve found on adopting a plant-based diet—the right way. You’ll learn how to lower your risk of cancer, heart disease, type-2 diabetes, Alzheimer’s, and obesity—all with plants. Watch the free Masterclass here.

2. Just Decide You’re Doing This.

If you’re doing this, then do it. Don’t just say “I might try veganism.” Commit while you feel connected to your reasons.

I remember listening to a Tony Robbins talk once where he pointed out the power of our decisions.

Tony emphasized that the word “decide” comes from the Latin word decidere, which is a combination of de- (“off”) and caedere (“cut”). Deciding is the act of cutting off other possibilities.

Tony emphasized that it’s in our moments of decision that our life is really shaped. This was a powerful realization for me.

If being vegan is a direction you want to take in life, then just decide. Cut off the possibility of not doing it.

You don’t necessarily need to commit to doing it forever. But commit to trying 30 days, 90 days, a year, or whatever feels right to you. But commit. Then you can reassess after a certain point how it’s going, whether it’s made your life better, and if you want to keep going.

Side Note: If you’re interested in the Tony Robbins talk, it was part of his audiobook Awaken the Giant Within (Amazon link).

3. Identify Vegan Foods You Already Like.

As a new vegan, you will be exploring a ton of new food. It’s potentially a very exciting time! But to make the transition even easier, you should start with a list of plant-based foods you already know and love.

Some of these will be obvious:

• What fruits and vegetables do you like?
• Do you like any nuts or seeds?
• What about beans?
• When it comes to grains and starches, do you like rice? Pasta? Corn? Potatoes? Quinoa or couscous?

In a later step, you’ll be going through your pantry and identifying what is vegan and what is not. So in that process, you’ll probably find more packaged foods that are vegan, too.

There are also great resources online for seeing what foods are “Accidentally Vegan.” If you’re okay with eating processed foods, you should look through at least one of these lists! They may surprise you! Here’s one from PETA.

Just be aware that many of the “accidentally vegan” foods are still very unhealthy (like Nutter Butters and Oreos, for example). Don’t assume everything “vegan” is healthy! For the healthiest vegan diet, stick to whole plant foods.

4. Look into “Veganizing” a Few of Your Favorite Meals.

Everything can be veganized. Everything.

If you love cheesecake and you’re worried you can’t “give it up,” just search for “vegan cheesecake recipes” online. If you’re worried you can’t live without mac and cheese or pizza: Just type the food plus “vegan recipe” or “vegan alternative” into Google.

Sometimes, you can just veganize a meal by quickly replacing the animal-based component with a “mock meat” or a plant milk. Other times you’ll have to make it all from scratch.

But this can be a very fun process. I still remember my first attempt at making vegan cake. Honestly, it turned out pretty bad! But it was fun, and I got better over time. (This is the recipe you need if you’re doing chocolate cake, FYI.)

I live in a vegan household today, and one of my roommates is constantly eating cereal. His favorites are Rice Krispies, Cheerios, and Corn Flakes. He just uses soymilk instead of cow’s milk. This is one of the simplest forms of “veganizing” a meal.

Check if your own favorite cereals are vegan, or if there are vegan alternatives! (You’ll find some controversy about the fortified vitamin D in cereal—here’s my response to that.)

Some people like soymilk, while others prefer almond milk, coconut milk, or oat milk. Try them and see what you like. Once you have your go-to plant milk, you can plug it into any recipe that calls for “milk,” and it should work fine.

One more quick thing you should know about: You can make vegan “ice cream” from frozen bananas. And it’s SO GOOD. Here’s a guide on how to do it.

5. Try to Convince a Friend to Try Vegan With You.

For some people, going vegan is easy, and for others, it’s quite hard. What’s the #1 factor that affects whether it’s easy or hard for you? In my opinion, it’s your social environment.

If you can find a vegan buddy, or a few—or at least someone willing to try some vegan foods with you—that will make this transition so much more fun.

You want to find the people in your family, friend group, or larger community who will support you in this and join in. If you’re only eating vegan food alone, and if your veganism is a wedge between you and your loved ones, that may be hard.

You at least want someone who’s willing to come over and bake some vegan food with you (or at least try the food you make)! Someone who will come along to some vegetarian restaurants in your city. That kind of thing!

Start reaching out to some of your friends. Send a text right now, and say: “Hey, I decided I’m going vegan cold turkey. Want to do it with me? Or at least share some meals?”

If they’re not convinced, maybe show them the same information that convinced you. Show them a vegan documentary. Show them health transformations other people have had on the diet. Talk to them about why you believe in making the switch, and see if you can get them on board.

Note: Sometimes, you may convince a friend to try vegan for a week or two, but then they’ll give it up. They may end up being less committed than you. Even in those cases, it’ll still help you to have a vegan buddy for a while, and someone who understands it and can chat about it.

6. Sign Up for Nutriciously’s Free Vegan Transition Course.

Nutriciously is one of my favorite vegan blogs. They have a number of e-books and free courses that are great for getting started on a plant-based diet.

If you’re going vegan cold turkey, I’d highly recommend their free vegan transition email course. You can sign up in 10 seconds now, and then you’ll get more high-quality vegan guidance sent out to you over the next 10 days.

The course includes specific meal plans along with more general advice, and it busts some of the most common myths about veganism.

If you’re going vegan for weight loss, you could also check out Nutriciously’s free weight-loss challenge. Along with some vegan basics, they also teach you about calorie density, too, so you can make sure you lose weight. Learn more about their healthy weight loss challenge here.

7. Get Rid of Any Animal-Based Foods You Have.

This would be optional if you were transitioning gradually… But if you’re doing this cold turkey, there’s no reason to hold onto non-vegan foods you have around. They’ll just go to waste or, worse, derail you.

The easiest and quickest option is just throwing them in the trash.

But if you have non-vegan friends or family who want them, you could give them a donation. Getting them out of your house and out of your sight will help cement the fact that you’re doing this.

When it comes to non-food animal products, like leather boots or coats, it’s really up to you. Some vegans are grossed out by them and go donate them to a thrift store. Other vegans keep the leather they already have but just stop buying new leather.

So anyway, go through your pantry and start checking what’s vegan. Which brings me to the next point:

8. Learn How to Check If Things Are Vegan.

There are several ways to check if foods and other products are vegan. The one I recommend most is outlined in my blog post called “How to Check If Any Food Is Vegan: 3 Easy Steps (with Pics).“

That post shares the 3 steps I go through when looking at any food label. It might seem tedious at first, but it quickly gets faster. Often, you can stop at step 1 or step 2. You’ll be surprised how fast you get.

Another way to check the vegan status of a product is with an app. There are at least a few—Vegan Pocket and Is It Vegan are two apps I personally have tried. They both work by scanning the barcode of each product. They’re okay. I reviewed them both in the label reading post.

Another option for checking the vegan status of things is just Googling “Is _______ vegan?” Several blogs specialize in answering these questions. In fact, I’ve answered a few myself. (See my posts on BBQ sauce and liquid smoke.)

It’s possible to find huge lists of animal ingredients online—PETA has an old one that I remember printing off when I first went vegan. It was 21 pages long. But is that necessary?

I would say no.

Don’t worry about the animal by-products that just occasionally get used in small quantities. Especially when you first go vegan! Just avoid the main ones. I covered the ingredients I avoid in my label reading post.

9. Order a Go