I've been a vegetarian my whole life (except the occasional piece of bacon or pepperoni pizza, sorry Mom!) and have been experimenting with a vegan diet lately. I'd like to think 20 years of a non-meat diet qualifies me to at least throw out some tips to make your diet transition easy and healthy, so here is what I find to be the most important tips and tricks:

1. Think about the reasons you are compelled to change your diet. Are you cutting out meat or animal product for health reasons, ethical reasons, or are you just curious about the diet/lifestyle? That will help you create a better grocery list. If you aren't looking to immensely improve your health, you will have a couple more options for meal staples.

2. Focus on protein sources. For a vegetarian, this isn't very difficult. As you can still eat eggs and yogurt (opt for a higher protein option such as skyr or Greek yogurt), these should be the base of at least one of your daily meals. Vegans have a much harder time maintaining a proper level of protein in their diet. Every meal should consist of protein dense, relatively speaking, foods. Legumes, nuts and gluten-based faux meats are the best sources I've found, and I still make sure to have a plant-based protein shake most days. This was particularly concerning to me as I was trying to gain muscle mass, as many of you may be as well. If you aren't going vegan for health reason, switching soy as a meat and dairy substitute is also a good protein option.

3. Decide if you are looking to change your lifestyle or your diet. If you are changing your diet for ethical reasons you may be compelled to consider a vegan lifestyle—all vegan everything, not just food. Don't overlook cleaning products, bathroom products and clothing.

4. Don't try to convert others. Changing your diet or lifestyle is a personal choice for your own unique reasons. Nobody wants to chastised for what they eat, so don't be that person, just don't. Plus, if you really want people to make a change, isn't it better to lead quietly by example instead of shoving unwanted propaganda down everyone's throat?