Vedge Your Best, Vegan Ideas for Everyone At Any Age

None of your options is perfect?
This Election Day, I’m talking about choosing the best AVAILABLE—in the voting booth, at the dinner table, and in everyday life.
I reflect on the hard-won right to vote, the connection between Election Day and food production, and the limited food choices my Nana had growing up in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. How can we appreciate the choices we DO have while continuing to ask for better ones?
That might mean ordering the vegan dish already on a restaurant’s menu and asking for more options. It also means listening to useful criticism without making everyone’s approval a condition for taking action.
In this episode:
• Why I think of voting and having food choices as privileges worth taking seriously.
• Supporting an imperfect option while continuing to ask for more.
• Handling criticism that you’re doing too little or going too far.
• Why someone’s objection doesn’t automatically mean you’ve made the wrong choice.
• Using All-or-Something to act on your values today.
This week’s All-or-Something practice:
Finish this sentence: “Today I can __________ because I care about __________.”
Make it specific enough to do. Choose one action that reflects something you care about.
“You can support the best choice available today and still work for better choices tomorrow.”

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For more information, to submit a question or topic, or to book a free 30 minute Coaching session visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠veganatanyage.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠or email ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠info@micheleolendercoaching.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Music, Production, and Editing by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Charlie Weinshank⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. For inquiries email: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠charliewe97@gmail.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Virtual Support Services: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://proadminme.com/⁠

Feeling overwhelmed by everything you need to do, decide, or figure out? Sometimes the best way forward is to solve just ONE problem.

This week on Vedge Your Best, I'm sharing a little of my own overwhelm after returning from Greece—and how I caught myself turning a long list of ordinary tasks into 99 problems. (Apologies to Jay-Z)

We do the same thing when we're starting or restarting a vegan or plant-based practice. Before we've figured out what to eat for lunch, we're worrying about protein, family dinners, holidays, travel, and every possible challenge that might come up.

In this episode, we'll talk about:

•

How our thoughts can make everyday problems feel bigger than they are

•

Why you don't need to solve every vegan challenge before getting started

•

The difference between identifying a problem and deciding when to address it

•

Why complicated productivity systems can become another job

•

How solving—or simply making progress on—one small problem can create energy and momentum

Your All-or-Something challenge this week: Forget about finding the perfect next step. Choose one thing that's taking up space in your head and do something about it. Then take a moment to notice what you've accomplished.

You don't need to solve all 99 problems today.

Just solve one.

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If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe and leave a review on your favorite podcast platform. Your feedback helps us grow and share the message of plant-based living with more listeners.

For more information, to submit a question or topic, or to book a free 30 minute Coaching session visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠veganatanyage.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠or email ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠info@micheleolendercoaching.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Music, Production, and Editing by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Charlie Weinshank⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. For inquiries email: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠charliewe97@gmail.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Virtual Support Services: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://proadminme.com/⁠

Going vegan—or moving further in a plant-based direction—doesn't require more discipline. You just need a few things in place that make it easier to follow through.

In this episode of Vedge Your Best, I’m talking about building the small systems that support a vegan practice in the life you actually have.

In this episode:

• Why change can require effort without becoming a grind.
• The “couch to Ironman” approach to going vegan—and what it leaves out.
• Let "All or Something" help build your vegan infrastructure.
• Preparing for holiday meals, conversations with your host, and the questions you know are coming.

This week:

Put ONE thing in place before you need it.

Mentioned in this episode

Ben Meer’s “Year of Systems,” Field Roast Celebration Roast, and Gardein plant-based roasts.

Subscribe & Review:

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe and leave a review on your favorite podcast platform. Your feedback helps us grow and share the message of plant-based living with more listeners.

For more information, to submit a question or topic, or to book a free 30 minute Coaching session visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠veganatanyage.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠or email ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠info@micheleolendercoaching.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Music, Production, and Editing by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Charlie Weinshank⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. For inquiries email: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠charliewe97@gmail.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Virtual Support Services: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://proadminme.com/⁠

Visiting Athens as a vegan?

My favorite meals weren’t at vegan restaurants.

Beautiful seasonal vegetables, greens, split peas, tomatoes, zucchini, potatoes and mushrooms are the basis of Greek cuisine.

In this episode:

•

My number-one vegan travel tip.

•

Vegan food on Emirates to Athens

•

Why I like to have the first dinner of a trip planned in advance

•

Eating vegan at traditional Greek restaurants

•

Vegan restaurants in Athens: Veganaki, Winners—and a giant raw vegan tiramisu

•

Why “no problem” is the answer that makes me nervous.

•

Protein while traveling

•

A small rant about cameras and selfies at museums and historic sites

Mentioned in this episode:
Le Basque / City Roots Hospitality in NYC
ManiMani Athens
Veganaki Athens
Winners Athens
Pantos Kairoy Piraeus

Subscribe & Review:

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe and leave a review on your favorite podcast platform. Your feedback helps us grow and share the message of plant-based living with more listeners.

For more information, to submit a question or topic, or to book a free 30 minute Coaching session visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠veganatanyage.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠or email ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠info@micheleolendercoaching.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Music, Production, and Editing by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Charlie Weinshank⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. For inquiries email: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠charliewe97@gmail.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Virtual Support Services: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://proadminme.com/⁠

86 days left in 2026! Does that make you think, " Time is running out.” Or "I'll just start fresh in January.” That's all-or-nothing thinking.

What IS the best way to go vegan? It’s not by planning for open consistent days full of supportive friends and family. The next three months are likely to be full of travel, family, holidays, guests, meals out, and a lot less structure.

Then we spend some time on protein, because it's having a “moment" and because "beans don't agree with me" is one of the most common reasons I hear from folks that they just… can't.

In this episode:

• Why "time is running out" and "I'll start in January" are the same mistake
• The case for "All or Something"
• Naming the friction you're anticipating in the next three months
• Building bean tolerance slowly, with lentils or hummus
• Soy foods, hemp seeds, nuts and quinoa when beans don't work for you
• The oat milk to soy milk swap
• Three behaviors: I ask, I decide ahead of time, I come back at the next meal
• Why a sustainable practice still has a shape when life gets crowded

Subscribe & Review:

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe and leave a review on your favorite podcast platform. Your feedback helps us grow and share the message of plant-based living with more listeners.

For more information, to submit a question or topic, or to book a free 30 minute Coaching session visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠veganatanyage.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠or email ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠info@micheleolendercoaching.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Music, Production, and Editing by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Charlie Weinshank⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. For inquiries email: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠charliewe97@gmail.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Virtual Support Services: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://proadminme.com/⁠

No more room on your "dance card" today. This week we take one idea from the Harada Method and use it to make "being vegan" feel a lot more manageable. Instead of one giant goal, a chart full of small, learnable skills.

If you know why you want to eat fewer (or no) animal products, you've read the books and watched the documentaries, and you're STILL struggling, this episode is for you. Maybe you don't have a vegan problem. Maybe you have an empty square on your chart.

IN THIS EPISODE

Why "go vegan" sounds like one thing and is actually fifty or a hundred things. Maybe more depending on where you are starting.

The Harada Method, the 64-square chart, and the one idea underneath it that changes how you look at your goal

TRY THIS WEEK

Take a piece of paper. At the top write: WHAT WOULD MAKE MY VEGAN LIFE EASIER? Start by listing 20 very specific things you could learn, practice, decide or solve. That's your chart. Then pick one, not the most important one, just one that would make your life a little easier, and pencil it in.Inspired by the Harada Method, developed by Japanese track-and-field coach Takashi Harada. If you want to go deeper, search "Harada Method" or "Open Window 64"; there are videos on it for every kind of goal you can imagine.

LET'S TALK

Email me or DM me on Instagram and tell me.

If you'd like support with your own chart, I'm happy to chat by phone or email.

Subscribe & Review:

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe and leave a review on your favorite podcast platform. Your feedback helps us grow and share the message of plant-based living with more listeners.

For more information, to submit a question or topic, or to book a free 30 minute Coaching session visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠veganatanyage.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠or email ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠info@micheleolendercoaching.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Music, Production, and Editing by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Charlie Weinshank⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. For inquiries email: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠charliewe97@gmail.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Virtual Support Services: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://proadminme.com/⁠

The late Thomas Leonard, the grandfather of life coaching, developed the idea of “tolerations.” Those everyday annoyances that wear you down or distract you. The drawer that sticks. The tap that drips. The email you're not answering. The monthly card game you no longer want to be part of. The windshield-washer fluid light that keeps coming on. (Ask me how I know.) None of them is big enough to force your hand, and that's exactly how they survive. But they aren't neutral. Each one is running in the background, taking a sliver of your energy, your attention and your confidence.

Most of us assume the fix for a stalled goal is more discipline, more willpower, more grit. Doubling down on the goal. But, very often the real problem is that the runway is cluttered. You can have the best engine in the world and still not take off if there are tolerations littering the path or dragging you down.

In this episode:

Why working through tolerations was the first thing I ever did in coaching, and why I still do a version of it, which I call "find the friction," with my own clients

How a closet full of clothes that no longer fit became the friction I'd stopped noticing, and how naming it out loud turned it into a decision with a plan.

Why the same thing applies to a plant-based practice.

The "pick one thing" idea from coach Natalie Bacon that stopped me from turning one small goal into twenty.

A note before you listen: this episode touches on weight loss and dieting, a subject some of us find triggering. I don't go into much detail, and it's really just my example of a distraction I decided to deal with, but if it's a topic you'd rather avoid, please skip this one and take good care of yourself.

I'd love to hear the friction or toleration you named while you were listening. You don't have to tell me what you're going to do about it. Naming it is the first move. Email me or DM me on Instagram, and we can always have a chat by phone or email.

I want your runway clean and clear, so that you can Vedge YOUR Best.

Mentioned in this episode

Thomas Leonard, coach and founder of the modern coaching profession, and his concept of "tolerations"

Natalie Bacon, coach, and her "pick one thing" approach to goals

Subscribe & Review:

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe and leave a review on your favorite podcast platform. Your feedback helps us grow and share the message of plant-based living with more listeners.

For more information, to submit a question or topic, or to book a free 30 minute Coaching session visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠veganatanyage.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠or email ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠info@micheleolendercoaching.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Music, Production, and Editing by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Charlie Weinshank⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. For inquiries email: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠charliewe97@gmail.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Virtual Support Services: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://proadminme.com/⁠

What are we really afraid of losing when we change the way we eat?

Sometimes it's the taste or smell of a favorite food. But often, the foods we worry about giving up are connected to something much bigger: a grandmother's recipe, a holiday table, a favorite place, a travel experience, or even our identity as someone who is adventurous, easygoing, or willing to eat anything.

In this episode of Vedge Your Best, Michele explores the idea of food grief—the sense of loss that can come with developing a vegan or plant-based practice.

Food carries an extraordinary amount of our lives with it. A smell can take us back to a kitchen we haven't stood in for decades. A cookie can mean Christmas. A bowl of soup can remind us of being cared for as a child. So when we change what's on our plate, it's understandable that it can feel as though we're changing something much bigger.

But we don't have to rush to solve that feeling—or convince ourselves that nothing has been lost.

Instead, we can get curious.

In this episode:

•

Why food grief isn't necessarily about missing the food itself

•

The difference between missing a taste and missing the story surrounding it

•

Why being the person who “eats anything” can become part of our identity

•

The unexpected loss of being a low-maintenance guest or adventurous traveler

•

Why family recipes can feel like edible heirlooms

•

What an old story about Grandma's roasting pan can teach us about tradition

•

Why we don't need to minimize what we're giving up to make a compelling case for what we're choosing

•

How we can experience food grief before we've actually given anything up

•

Why trying to solve the feeling too quickly can keep us from understanding it

•

How thinking of veganism as a practice gives us permission to learn as we go

Instead of asking, “How do I convince myself I'm not losing anything?” try asking:

What do I feel like I'm losing? What am I actually grieving?

And once you understand that:

What do I want to do?

Sometimes we preserve the tradition and change the food. Sometimes we preserve the connection and change the ritual. Sometimes we find a wonderful substitute. And sometimes we simply acknowledge that something we valued is different now.

That's not a failure of your plant-based practice.

That's part of developing one.

You know what to do, Just Vedge Your Best.

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For more information, to submit a question or topic, or to book a free 30 minute Coaching session visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠veganatanyage.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠or email ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠info@micheleolendercoaching.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Music, Production, and Editing by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Charlie Weinshank⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. For inquiries email: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠charliewe97@gmail.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Virtual Support Services: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://proadminme.com/⁠

September energy is back.

Use that energy. But watch out for the consistency fantasy: the idea that before we begin, we need to know how we’re going to keep doing this from now on.

Consistency isn’t something you can accomplish today. Today, you can only do the thing.

Yes consistency is important, but our desire to be consistent can sometimes keep us from getting started at all—especially when we’re trying to move in a vegan or plant-based direction.

Instead of trying to solve December before you’ve even tried Tuesday, I’m offering three questions:

• What could I actually do today?
Not every day forever. Today.

• What would be worthwhile even if I only did it once?
Try the vegan dinner. Experiment with tofu. Ask about the plant-based option at a favorite restaurant. Try the oat milk. Even something you don’t like gives you information you didn’t have yesterday.

• What’s already working that I don’t want to mess with?
New-season energy can convince us that everything needs an upgrade. It doesn’t. Notice what’s already working, protect it, and use your energy where it can actually help.

Your assignment this week isn’t just to pick one thing. It’s to only pick one thing.

Make one choice. Try one thing. Learn one thing.

Because vegan and plant-based momentum isn’t built by standing at the starting line wondering what your life will look like three months from now. It’s a practice you build day by day choice by choice.

Subscribe & Review:

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe and leave a review on your favorite podcast platform. Your feedback helps us grow and share the message of plant-based living with more listeners.

For more information, to submit a question or topic, or to book a free 30 minute Coaching session visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠veganatanyage.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠or email ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠info@micheleolendercoaching.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Music, Production, and Editing by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Charlie Weinshank⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. For inquiries email: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠charliewe97@gmail.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Virtual Support Services: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://proadminme.com/⁠

Do you need to know that you can live vegan forever before you take one action today?

Last week, we talked about practical uncertainty in a vegan practice: restaurant plans, backup meals, and the possibility of ending up with romaine lettuce and French fries for dinner.

This week, we go one level deeper.

What happens when you ask your future self to guarantee that you will follow through perfectly for the rest of your life?

Michele often hears people say, “I’m not like you. I don’t stick with things. I don’t have discipline.”

That’s usually not even true..

In this episode:

•

Why commitment is a direction—not a prediction or guarantee

•

How uncertainty can make behavior change more curious, experimental, and even more fun

•

The three certainty traps from Simone Stolzoff’s book How to Not Know: comfort, hubris, and control

•

Why “I could never” is a remarkably confident prediction about a future that has not happened

•

A little Stoic encouragement from Seneca and Marcus Aurelius

•

Why “Can I do this forever?” is an unfair test for someone deciding what to eat on Tuesday

•

How coaching helps us work with the person we actually are instead of waiting to become an imaginary, perfectly disciplined person

Your September Experiment

Complete these three sentences:

For September, I am committed to __________.

Right now I do not need to know __________.

This week, I am going to learn or practice __________.

Keep the commitment meaningful, but make the experiment small enough to give you real information. At the end, you do not need to give yourself a grade. Ask what worked, what did not, and what you would like to try next.

Not knowing is not a problem. It means the answer is still open—and an open answer gives you room to learn, change, and surprise yourself.

You can be serious about your values and curious about your methods. You can be committed without being certain.

Book mentioned:
How to Not Know: The Value of Uncertainty in a World That Demands Answers by Simone Stolzoff

Subscribe & Review:

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe and leave a review on your favorite podcast platform. Your feedback helps us grow and share the message of plant-based living with more listeners.

For more information, to submit a question or topic, or to book a free 30 minute Coaching session visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠veganatanyage.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠or email ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠info@micheleolendercoaching.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Music, Production, and Editing by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Charlie Weinshank⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. For inquiries email: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠charliewe97@gmail.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Virtual Support Services: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://proadminme.com/⁠

How much certainty does your vegan practice actually need? It’s hard to know what being vegan will look like until you get tarted. My job is to help you “stay in the game” long enough to get some traction, gain some skills and have some fun.

After Episode 309 on having a "Plan B," many of you reached out.. Turns out none of us is simply "comfortable" or "uncomfortable" with uncertainty. The unknowns that barely register for one person can take up enormous space for another — and two people with the very same goal may need completely different kinds of support.

In this episode:

• Your "uncertainty profile" — and why knowing yours changes everything
• Two kinds of Plan B: logistical (what will I actually eat?) and emotional (what will I tell myself when it's hard?)
• Two ideas from Simone Stolzoff's new book How to Not Know: the certainty anchor, and building small experiments in order to learn
• Why one-size-fits-all advice ("prepare more!" "be flexible!") misses the real problem — and how coaching finds it
• The Best-Case-Scenario Audit: a four-question exercise to try this week

The four audit questions:

• What has to go right for my current plan to work?
• Which part of the uncertainty actually bothers me most?
• Does this problem need better logistics, more emotional resilience, or some of each?
• What stays true even when the plan changes? (That's your certainty anchor.)

Mentioned in this episode:

• How to Not Know: The Value of Uncertainty in a World That Demands Answers by Simone Stolzoff — https://simonestolzoff.com/how-to-not-know

What kind of uncertainty doesn't bother you much — and what kind makes you panicky? Let me know!

Subscribe & Review:

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe and leave a review on your favorite podcast platform. Your feedback helps us grow and share the message of plant-based living with more listeners.

For more information, to submit a question or topic, or to book a free 30 minute Coaching session visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠veganatanyage.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠or email ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠info@micheleolendercoaching.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Music, Production, and Editing by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Charlie Weinshank⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. For inquiries email: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠charliewe97@gmail.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Virtual Support Services: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://proadminme.com/⁠

You know why you want to eat more plant-based. So why do you keep returning to old choices?

It’s not be a willpower problem. More likely, it’s a programming problem.

For most of our lives, we have repeated the same food choices within our families, communities, celebrations, restaurants, and daily routines. Those choices eventually become automatic. When we try to override decades of habit through determination alone, it can feel like pushing a boulder uphill—especially when life becomes stressful.

In this episode, I explore how old food programming operates beneath our conscious intentions and why familiar choices can return so quickly during travel, illness, fatigue, family gatherings, or an ordinary difficult day.

More importantly, I share two simple tools for beginning to install a different program: the redo and the rehearsal.

A redo helps you revisit a moment that did not go the way you wanted and calmly practice another possible response. A rehearsal lets you imagine handling an upcoming restaurant meal, family gathering, work event, or stressful evening as the person you are becoming.

You do not have to fight the old program or make one enormous decision. Through awareness, repetition, and practice, plant-based choices can gradually become more familiar, natural, and automatic.

Try This: A 60-Second Rehearsal

Choose one moment tomorrow that could be challenging.

Perhaps you will be tired at dinnertime, eating with family, attending an event, or looking at a menu with few obvious vegan choices.

Relax your shoulders. Unclench your jaw. Take a full breath.

Now imagine yourself moving through that moment calmly. See yourself asking simply for what you need or choosing the food that supports your plant-based practice. Let the choice feel ordinary rather than dramatic.

You are giving your brain a new possibility to practice.

The Key Takeaway

You are not the old program.

You can notice the patterns that have been running automatically and begin installing patterns that better support the way you want to live. With repetition, today’s awkward and unfamiliar actions can become second nature tomorrow.

Subscribe & Review:

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe and leave a review on your favorite podcast platform. Your feedback helps us grow and share the message of plant-based living with more listeners.

For more information, to submit a question or topic, or to book a free 30 minute Coaching session visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠veganatanyage.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠or email ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠info@micheleolendercoaching.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Music, Production, and Editing by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Charlie Weinshank⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. For inquiries email: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠charliewe97@gmail.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Virtual Support Services: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://proadminme.com/⁠

Drifting" away from your plant-based intentions? Here's how to gently turn back toward what you value.

Maybe you started the year strong and now it's August and there's cheese back in the fridge? This one's for you.

Inspired by the Gottman Institute's famous relationship research (hat tip to Maggie Reyes of The Marriage Life Coach Podcast), this episode borrows a powerful idea: relationships rarely end in explosive fights. They drift — slowly, silently, through a failure to connect in tiny everyday moments. Your relationship with your vegan intentions works exactly the same way. The gap between where you meant to be and where you are isn't failure. It's drift.

In this episode:

• How the Gottman Institute's "drift" research applies to your plant-based practice (and your fitness, finances, and relationships too)
• The currents that move all of us: busy weeks, travel, family reunions, the path of least resistance with Parmesan on it
• Why noticing you've drifted is good news — it means you're paying attention
• Look where you want to go: what skiing, and driving teach us about target fixation and steering toward your future
• Data, not drama: borrowing the scientist's lab coat so your meals become data points, not a moral report card
• Why every plant-based meal counts even if you're not fully vegan — three plant-based dinners a week is 150+ meals a year, and consistency compounds.
• If "vegan" feels overwhelming as an identity, make it an action instead: just vedge your best

I'd love to hear from you: Where did you notice yourself drifting this summer — and what's one turn you made back toward what you want? Send me a message; your answer might make it into a future episode.

If this episode helped you, please share it with someone who could use a soft place to land this August — and leave a rating or review to help others find the show.

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Music, Production, and Editing by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Charlie Weinshank⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. For inquiries email: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠charliewe97@gmail.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Virtual Support Services: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://proadminme.com/⁠

One thing almost every great goal is missing? A Plan B.

Whether you're going vegan, strength training, starting a business, or cutting back on alcohol, most of us have only ever had Plan A: perfection. And when it cracks — it always does — we don't slow down. We stop.

Stop planning only for perfection. Start planning in advance for reality - YOUR reality. Just like professional educators.

Mentioned in this episode

• Sid Garza-Hillman — MOTT: "most of the time”

• Marcus Aurelius: "You have to assemble your life yourself, action by action.”

• Day-tight compartments (Dale Carnegie)

• The abstinence violation effect (relapse research)

• Rigid vs. flexible dietary restraint

Having a clear Plan B isn't planning to fail — it's the reason you won’t. Plan B is there to jump in the moment you'd usually give up so you keep making progress.

Subscribe & Review:

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe and leave a review on your favorite podcast platform. Your feedback helps us grow and share the message of plant-based living with more listeners.

For more information, to submit a question or topic, or to book a free 30 minute Coaching session visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠veganatanyage.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠or email ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠info@micheleolendercoaching.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Music, Production, and Editing by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Charlie Weinshank⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. For inquiries email: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠charliewe97@gmail.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Virtual Support Services: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://proadminme.com/⁠

Does your to-do list say things like doctor, camp, garden, library, tofu—or simply dump?

Those words may remind you that something needs attention, but they don’t tell you what to do next. Often, a vague item keeps moving from list to list because it isn’t actually a task yet. It may be a project, an unresolved question, a missing decision, or something that requires another person’s help.

In this practical end-of-July episode, Michele shares how to turn vague reminders into specific next actions your future self can actually use.

You’ll learn:

• Why one-word list items are often topics or projects rather than tasks
• Four questions to ask when something keeps getting postponed
• Why asking, deciding, researching, and delegating all count as progress
• How to add the context your future self will need
• Why action verbs such as call, ask, choose, schedule, log in, buy, and order make a list more useful
• How context-based next actions can help you organize tasks by where, when, or with whom they can be completed
• How the “one big, two medium, three small” approach can make an overwhelming day more manageable

Michele also applies the idea to plant-based living. Instead of writing vegan or tofu, your real next action might be finding a vegan lasagna recipe, adding extra-firm tofu to the grocery order, asking a restaurant server about vegan options, or calling your doctor to discuss appropriate bloodwork.

Try this

Find three vague items that have been sitting on your list. For each one, ask:

•

What did I mean when I wrote this?

•

Is there something I still need to know, find out, or decide?

•

Does someone else need to be involved?

•

What is the next action I can actually complete?

Then put that specific action on your list, your calendar—or, when appropriate, someone else’s calendar.

You don’t need a new planner, a complicated system, or color-coordinated markers. You need a list that helps you make progress.

Mentioned in this episode

April Perry and LearnDoBecome’s work on Context-Based Next Actions Lists:

https://learndobecome.com/episode63-2/

This week’s reminder

Your to-do list should not be a collection of mysterious documents for your future self to puzzle over. Make it specific enough to show you where to begin—and then take the next small step toward vedging your best.

Subscribe & Review:

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe and leave a review on your favorite podcast platform. Your feedback helps us grow and share the message of plant-based living with more listeners.

For more information, to submit a question or topic, or to book a free 30 minute Coaching session visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠veganatanyage.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠or email ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠info@micheleolendercoaching.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Music, Production, and Editing by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Charlie Weinshank⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. For inquiries email: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠charliewe97@gmail.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Virtual Support Services: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://proadminme.com/⁠

What happens when you stop letting the algorithm choose what you learn and start building your own course of study?

In the first installment of my summer" personal curriculum," I open Peter Singer’s Animal Liberation Now: The Definitive Classic Renewed, the updated 2023 edition of his influential 1975 book, Animal Liberation.

Why start here? Singer’s work supplied much of the vocabulary and philosophical framework still used in conversations about animals today. We break down speciesism, sentience, utilitarianism, and the difference between animal welfare and animal rights—without assuming you already speak the language of philosophy. ( Because I don’t.)

We look at factory farming and animal experimentation, how Singer weighs a human preference for taste or price against an animal’s interest in avoiding suffering, and why the question of plant sentience does not necessarily weaken the vegan case.

There are criticisms of Singer’s work, including disability-rights objections to his views on euthanasia and profound cognitive disability.

This episode is neither a blanket endorsement nor a takedown.

It is an invitation to read critically, understand some of the ideas that helped shape modern animal ethics, and decide what holds up for you.IN THIS EPISODE

• What a personal curriculum is—and why it can be an antidote to fragmented, algorithm-driven learning
• Why Animal Liberation Now is the first book in my vegan personal curriculum• Speciesism and the equal consideration of interests• Utilitarianism explained in plain English
• The difference between animal welfare and animal rights
• Factory farming, laboratory research, and the scale of animal suffering• Singer’s most controversial arguments and disability-rights criticism
• Why plant sentience does not necessarily undermine the vegan case
• Food, memory, displacement, and the Viennese recipes that close the book

CONTENT NOTE

This episode includes discussion of factory farming, animal experimentation, animal suffering, euthanasia, disability rights, and ethically complex questions involving infants with profound, life-limiting disabilities.

What subject would you choose for a personal curriculum of your own? And how does this new series land for you—intriguing, too academic, or exactly the nudge you needed? Reach out and let me know.The next personal-curriculum book episode will arrive in a couple of weeks. Until then, I’ll be here every week to cheer you on as you Vedge Your Best.

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For more information, to submit a question or topic, or to book a free 30 minute Coaching session visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠veganatanyage.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠or email ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠info@micheleolendercoaching.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Music, Production, and Editing by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Charlie Weinshank⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. For inquiries email: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠charliewe97@gmail.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Virtual Support Services: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://proadminme.com/⁠

What would it look like to build your own Personal Curriculum around veganism, animal advocacy, and our relationships with other animals?

This week, Michele introduces a summer reading series centered around her Personal Curriculum for the summer of 2026 and invites the listeners to join her.

Shared references can help us have better conversations — more precise, more thoughtful, and more useful — especially in a world where we are often working from different facts, different frameworks, and different emotional starting points.

Documentaries like Cowspiracy, Earthlings, The Game Changers, and Dominion have helped bring countless people into the vegan and plant-based conversation. But books offer something different: the chance to slow down, build an argument, question assumptions, take notes, push back, and develop a more durable intellectual framework.

Deep reading can help us become harder to fool, better able to name what we are seeing, and more equipped to understand the language used around food, animals, “humane” labels, sustainability, health, and ethics. Maybe reading is an important form of activism.

What books have shaped YOUR thinking? What belongs in a shared set of references for vegan and animal advocacy conversations? What perspectives are missing from the usual lists? What have you read recently that challenged you, changed you, frustrated you, or helped you think more clearly?

Books Michele is considering for her personal curriculum:

Animal Liberation by Peter Singer

Why We Love Dogs, Eat Pigs, and Wear Cows by Melanie Joy

Eating Animals by Jonathan Safran Foer

The Sexual Politics of Meat by Carol J. Adams

Dominion: The Power of Man, the Suffering of Animals, and the Call to Mercy by Matthew Scully

Some We Love, Some We Hate, Some We Eat by Hal Herzog

Michele wants to hear from you:

What books belong in this conversation? Particularly those from a non-white, indigenous or colonialized perspective.

Which books shaped your vegan, vegetarian, plant-based, or animal advocacy practice?

Which arguments have helped you? Which ones have not?

You can leave a short voicemail through SpeakPipe, DM Michele on Instagram at @Vedge_Your Best, or send an email to info@micheleolendercoaching.com

By leaving a voicemail, you are giving permission for your message to potentially be played on a future episode of Vedge Your Best podcast.

No mandatory homework. No quizzes. No pressure to keep up. Just an invitation to read, think, question, take notes, and connect over some shared references — one chapter at a time.

Links:

SpeakPipe voicemail: https://www.speakpipe.com/VedgeYourBest

Subscribe & Review:

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe and leave a review on your favorite podcast platform. Your feedback helps us grow and share the message of plant-based living with more listeners.

For more information, to submit a question or topic, or to book a free 30 minute Coaching session visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠veganatanyage.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠or email ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠info@micheleolendercoaching.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Music, Production, and Editing by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Charlie Weinshank⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. For inquiries email: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠charliewe97@gmail.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Virtual Support Services: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://proadminme.com/⁠

This week on Vedge Your Best podcast, we revisit the Save Our Bacon Act and the 2026 US Farm Bill, and ask what backlash against veganism, animal welfare, and plant-based change actually mean? There’s still time to communicate with the Senate here.

It can feel discouraging when vegan, plant-based, and animal advocates are trolled online or dismissed as extreme. But what if some of that backlash is also a sign that compassionate food movements are becoming visible enough to challenge powerful systems?

We explore how social change happens, why we may not need everyone to agree all at once, and what we can learn from research on active participation, coalition-building, and visible support. Drawing on Erica Chenoweth’s work on nonviolent movements and the “3.5% idea,” we see why visibility matters, why purity debates can shrink movements, and how widening the on-ramp can help more people take meaningful action.You’ll hear about:• How visible participation helps others feel less alone• Why backlash can be a signal that a movement is being noticed• What vegan and animal advocacy can learn from the anti-smoking movement• Why coalitions matter, even when people do not agree on every tactic• How schools, restaurants, hospitals, and laws can build better “infrastructure” for compassionate choices• Why imperfect participation can still move us forward• Practical ways to show up more visibly without burning outMaybe we don’t need everyone to do everything. We need more people doing something, more visibly, together, over time.

Subscribe & Review:

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe and leave a review on your favorite podcast platform. Your feedback helps us grow and share the message of plant-based living with more listeners.

For more information, to submit a question or topic, or to book a free 30 minute Coaching session visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠veganatanyage.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠or email ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠info@micheleolendercoaching.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Music, Production, and Editing by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Charlie Weinshank⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. For inquiries email: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠charliewe97@gmail.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Virtual Support Services: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://proadminme.com/⁠

The 2026 House Farm Bill — a $1.4 trillion piece of legislation — contains a provision called the Save Our Bacon Act that would wipe out every state-level animal welfare standard for farm products in the United States, current and future. It passed the House 224–200 and is now heading to the Senate for debate in July. This episode explains what's at stake, who it affects, and exactly how to make your voice heard before it's too late.TAKE ACTION — US LISTENERS

The most important thing you can do right now is contact your senators directly.

https://www.senate.gov/senators/senators-contact.htm

Enter your state and you'll get your senators' phone numbers, email contact forms, and office locations. A phone call takes two minutes. A message through their contact form takes five.

What to say: "I am calling to ask Senator [Name] to oppose the Save Our Bacon Act — the preemption provision in the 2026 Farm Bill (H.R. 7567, Section 12006). Please protect state animal welfare standards."

Capitol Switchboard (they'll connect you to your senator's office): (202) 224-3121

Find and contact your senators
Your contact matters most if you live in one of these states

These states have senators on the Senate Agriculture Committee, which is where the bill is being shaped:

Arkansas · Mississippi · Iowa · Kansas · Kentucky · Alabama · South Dakota · North Dakota · West Virginia · Nebraska · Minnesota · New Jersey · Illinois · California · Pennsylvania · Michigan · Colorado · New Mexico · Georgia · Vermont

Pre-made action alerts (they do the work for you)

These organizations have built easy contact tools — you can send a message to your senators in under five minutes:

Humane World for Animals — Stop the Save Our Bacon Act https://humaneaction.org/protect-state-laws

ASPCA — Oppose Attacks on Animal Protection Laws in the Farm Bill https://secure.aspca.org/action/fsfp-act

Animal Legal Defense Fund https://aldf.org/project/oppose-the-farm-food-and-national-security-act-of-2026-house-farm-bill-federal/

BACKGROUND AND FURTHER READING

What is the Save Our Bacon Act? https://www.humaneworld.org/en/news/whats-happening-california-prop-12-farm-bill-save-our-bacon-act

Why the Farm Bill is no place for this provision (Civil Eats op-ed, May 2026) https://civileats.com/2026/05/28/the-farm-bill-is-no-place-for-big-porks-save-our-bacon-act/

ASPCA on the federal attack on state animal welfare laws https://www.aspca.org/news/federal-attack-farm-animals-and-states-rights-revived

Senate Agriculture Committee — signs of resistance https://sentientmedia.org/senate-ag-committee-set-to-spare-this-animal-welfare-law/

The 2026 House Farm Bill (H.R. 7567) — full text on Congress.gov https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/7567

INTERNATIONAL LISTENERS

United Kingdom The UK-US trade deal (2025) opened British markets to US beef produced under welfare standards that would be illegal in the UK — putting British farmers who invested in higher welfare practices at a competitive disadvantage.

Compassion in World Farming — UK trade deal and animal welfare: https://www.ciwf.org.uk/our-campaigns/other-campaigns/trade-and-animal-welfare/

European Union The EU's Farm to Fork strategy promised to phase out cage farming across member states. Those commitments have been dropped from the 2026 Commission Work Programme after years of delays.

EU Animal Welfare Intergroup — warning on 2026 Work Programme: https://www.animalwelfareintergroup.eu/news/intergroup-warns-against-omission-animal-welfare-proposal-2026-work-programme

Canada Animal Justice published a national vision report in 2026 calling for stronger federal animal welfare standards.

Animal Justice — National Framework for Farmed Animal Protection: https://www.animaljustice.ca/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/Vision-Report-2026.pdf

What if the reason you're struggling with your plant-based choices has less to do with willpower — and more to do with the food culture surrounding you?

In this episode, I got completely hooked by a New York Times piece about financial habits — and couldn't stop thinking about how perfectly it applies to the way we eat. The article, by Paulette Perhach, makes the case that every friend group has a financial culture, whether anyone named it or not. Turns out, every friend group has a food culture too. And most of us didn't choose ours on purpose. We absorbed it.

We talk about what social contagion actually is, why it's not as scary as it sounds, and how it might explain why plant-based eating can feel so much harder than it should. We also talk about how to use it in your favor — without lecturing anyone, debating at dinner, or turning into the vegan police.

In this episode:

• What social contagion is and how it shapes the way we eat
• The research of Nicholas Christakis on how behaviors spread through social networks — and what a 2024 study says about who drives change most effectively
• Why changing your food is never just about the food
• The concept of the "plant-based friend" — and why that role matters more than you might think
• Three questions to help you see the food culture you're swimming in
• Where to start if you're brand new, starting over, or just trying to get your footing back

Three questions from this episode:

• What food culture are you catching?
• What are you signaling with food that you may not even believe anymore?
• What do you want to spread?

Resources mentioned:

• "Your Friend Group Has a Financial Culture. You May Not Have Chosen It." — Paulette Perhach, The New York Times
• Research by Nicholas Christakis on social networks and behavior

This week's challenge:

Choose one place to be less passive. Suggest the restaurant. Bring the dish. Tell the host ahead of time. If you're just starting out, find one recipe that excites you, one account that makes this feel doable, or one person who gets it. That's enough.

Enjoyed this episode? Leave a review on Apple Podcasts — it helps more people find the show. And if this one resonated, share it with someone who might be ready to hear it.

You don't have to do it perfectly. You just have to Vedge Your Best.

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