In this post I’m sharing with you some of my favorite vegan resources that can empower us to take our health and happiness to the next level!
Part of my 6-Week Plant-Empowered Coaching Program is making sure my clients are set up for continued success by arming them with a ton of awesome resources to continue guiding them on their transformational path. Now I’m sharing them with all of you! I sorted them by category and have personally tried all of the resources on this list so I can give you honest reviews 🙂
Vegan Food/Drink:
Barnivore
This awesome website and app is the best resource for checking to see if the beer, wine, and/or liquor you want to drink is vegan-friendly or not. In case you didn’t know, a large percentage of wines use animal products such as eggs and fish bladder in the filtering process. There are also liquors and beers that have non-vegan ingredients such as dairy and honey. Unfortunately these ingredients don’t usually show up on the labels. Barnivore has over 22,000 entries that have been checked and often double or triple checked by the Barnivore community, letting you know products’ vegan statuses. And now they have also released an app to make it easier to do your research on-the-go!
Happy Cow
A website and app, this resource has been helping travelers and people everywhere find vegan, vegetarian, and healthy food wherever you go since 1999. This is not only a restaurant and health food store guide, but also an online hub that serves as a one-stop resource for everything veg.
Vegan Nutrition Information:
NutritionFacts.org
Dr. Michael Greger releases a new, short and to the point nutrition-related video or article every single day (amazing)! He has a huge database of videos and articles at this point covering just about any vegan health related question you may have. Everything he presents is based on the latest research from the most trusted sources. Bookmark this website for sure! I also love that all the proceeds from the sales of his books and DVDs go to charity.
Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine
This website combines the expertise and experience of over 12,000 physicians to give us the most up-to-date, scientifically accrued information on health related to diet. In addition to tons of articles, they have a free 21-day Vegan Kickstart program designed for anyone wanting to explore the health benefits of a vegan diet (based on research by Neil Barnard, M.D.).
Vegan Health
Founded and run by Jack Norris, RD, this website is a project of Vegan Outreach and a great resource for getting answers to your top nutrition and health questions.
Healthy Vegan Recipes/Vegan Diet Plan:
Dreena Burtan’s Plant-Powered Kitchen
Dreena’s focus is on natural, non-processed ingredients and most of her recipes are fairly simple and definitely delicious.
Fat Free Vegan
Susan Voisin creates and posts delicious dishes made with whole foods and without added refined oils.
Oh She Glows
A fantastic, inspiring blog full of tasty recipes by Angela Liddon. Many of these are more complicated than I’m up for doing myself, but if you enjoy cooking then you will love what she offers on this site. There are also many easier, more simple recipes that are more my style, you just have to do a little searching to find the ones that work best for you.
One Green Planet
There is a huge variety of healthy vegan recipes submitted and approved by people all over the world on this website. There are so many it’s slightly overwhelming, but also ensures you will find whatever you’re looking for.
The Six Weeks To Sexy Abs Meal Plan
This is my new book in which I guide you through an easy-to-follow 6-week meal plan that’s designed for anyone with the goal of a lean, strong body. The idea is that no matter how hard you workout, if you’re not eating the right food it’s impossible to lose those last few pounds that are hiding your six pack! I give you a hundred simple, whole-foods based recipes with grocery lists to go with them. The plan and recipes are designed to be totally do-able for even the busiest people. I make them as practical as possible. I also give guidelines for the plan so that if you go out to eat, or want to create your own recipes it’s totally fine, as long as you’re following the guidelines of the plan. The book itself is also very high quality with beautiful pictures to go with the recipes. It’s also available in kindle format. To see the blog post I wrote about the book click HERE. Hope you enjoy!!!
Inspirational Vegan-Related Podcasts:
Rich Roll Podcast
I can listen to many of Rich’s podcasts over and over again because they are not only inspiring, they’re also entertaining and very “rea
l”. Here’s how it’s described on the website (I couldn’t describe it better if I tried!) “Each week Rich delves deep into all things wellness with some of the brightest and most forward thinking, paradigm busting minds in health, fitness, nutrition, art, entertainment, entrepreneurship & spirituality. Intimate, deep and often intense, these are not interviews. They are conversations. A weekly aural dance designed to provoke, educate, inspire and empower you to discover, uncover, unlock and unleash your best, most authentic self.” He also has an app that makes it easier to listen to all the podcasts he’s ever done.
Main Street Vegan
Main Street Vegan is a “lively hour devoted to your health, well-being, and ways to live lightly and lovingly on planet Earth.” Host Victoria Moran is super entertaining and brings you the latest on the vegan life every week. If you simply want to look and feel amazing, eat extraordinary food, help animals, and “create a physical body perfectly attuned to spiritual growth” you must check this podcast out. Victoria’s guests range from vegan authors, activists, physicians, chefs, spiritual leaders, and even some of those glittery celebs. I’m honored to announce that I will be featured on the show on February 16th, 2016!
Planted In Miami
I found out about this one when I got a message from Jeanette asking if I would be a guest! Jeanette and Alex, the hosts, also lead the No-Meat-Athlete meet-up group in Miami and are the most delightful couple you’ll ever meet. This “New & Noteworthy” podcast is all about the business owners, artists, musicians, farmers and others who are moving Miami forward through social awareness and community engagement. From environmental causes to healthy lifestyles, animal welfare to conscious living, it’s about giving people the information that they need to make informed decisions about living a more thoughtful and compassionate life. I had a ton of fun recording the episode I was featured in – I also wrote a post on the experience and more details about the hosts HERE.
Overall Happiness:
Mind Body Green
This website is a platform with the mission of revitalizing the way people eat, move, and live. The site has a ton of articles and posts from different contributors giving you tips, tools, and ideas to help make your life better and inspire you to be your best self. The blog post/article categories are “Eat,” “Move,” “Live,” “Breathe,” and “Love” to give you an idea of the variety of information offered. I recommend checking it out for sure! I was thrilled to be able to contribute two articles, one called, “What I Tell My Clients Who Want To Eat For Toned Abs,” and one with recipes from my new book, “Slow-Cooker Sunday: Quinoa Soup With Sweet Potato Mash.”
Headspace
Described as ‘meditation made relevant to modern life’, Headspace is a platform that makes meditation more accessible for everyone, especially people like me who have only dipped my toe in meditation before, never achieving consistency. The founder and former Buddhist monk Andy Puddicombe is present throughout the app (he’s got a great English accent that’s very pleasant to listen to) imparting his words of wisdom and guiding you through the process one step at a time. The first ten-minute lessons, (or exercises of the mind you could call them) are free. If you then want access to a huge library of guided meditations, and to join over a million users you can pay a monthly fee (or year in advance to make it cheaper). You can also map your journey, track your progress, and get rewards as you go. You can even buddy up with friends and motivate each other along the way. It’s pricey, but trying out the first ten sessions will help you decide if you can commit to continuing your meditation practice in which case I think it’s worth the cost.
10% Happier App
This is a great app for newbies and skeptics of meditation. I have known about the basics and benefits of meditation for years, but until recently have not been motivated to actually commit to doing it (sitting still is not my strong suit)! I’ve struggled with insomnia for over 10 years and have tried everything else that’s ever been suggested… except meditation. So I finally decided to give it a shot and this app was a huge help to stick with it. Dan Harris gives very short, interesting videos that precede each meditation. The guided meditations begin very short – 5 minutes, and move to 11 minutes. And it’s extra cool that you get an actual person as a meditation coach who texts, emails you, answers any questions you may have, and gives you encouragement. The app starts out free so you can get a feel for it, and then you pay $19.99 (one-time fee) if you want to continue.
Vegan-Related Documentaries:
Forks Over Knives, Earthlings, and Cowspiracy are all simply must-see movies for everyone. Please check them all out!
*For more information on the 6-Week Plant-Empowered Coaching Program, and to apply for a free strategy session with Ella click HERE!
