Stephanie Winter is a young vegan blogger from the island of Antigua. Her blog Wadadlivity features homemade original vegan recipes for meals and snacks as well as yoga instruction. Winter believes that her blog will be successful if at least one person is inspired to make lasting improvements to their lifestyle. With this in mind she hopes that someday it will prove to be an online resource for people who want to live healthier lifestyles but are unsure how to begin.
What inspired you to start a blog focusing on health and wellness?
It started with my own transition to a vegan or plant-based diet. Once I stopped eating animal products for a continuous period, I felt better both physically and mentally.
In the Caribbean, we suffer from a high number of illnesses that could be prevented or at least managed with proper diet and exercise. I created Wadadlivity to encourage people to be more mindful about what they eat and engage in activities that improve their overall wellbeing.
As a vegan have you faced any difficulties in finding tasty vegan meals when eating out in the Caribbean?
There’s definitely room for improvement. I would say the challenge is finding vegan meals that are both tasty and nutritious. A lot of vegan options tend to be fried or nutritionally unbalanced. There aren’t many dine-in restaurants that offer high quality vegan options, but if you’re up for the challenge you can find a few.
Your blog features appealing vegan recipes and meals, could you tell us more about your journey to creating some of these meals?
Thank you! It’s honestly a lot of experimentation. I draw inspiration from everywhere: restaurant meals, foods I ate before I was vegan, produce I find in markets, other bloggers, etc. I enjoy trying new things and sometimes my experiments turn out really well. Other times it’s a big flop, but that’s all part of learning. The successful recipes make it to Wadadlivity.
What do you think needs to be done for young people to embrace a more conscious approach to diet and exercise? What would you advise them to do if they face a negative response from peers?
It starts with awareness. There needs to be more dialogue within our communities about how the foods we eat impact our health. In my experience, negativity comes from lack of understanding. They can explain why they are making these changes and if their peers are still unsupportive, that’s ok. There are lots of resources online where they can find encouragement from like-minded people - blogs, Instagram profiles, YouTube channels and Facebook groups.
Do you think young people are exposed to the benefits of healthy eating and exercise?What advice would you give to young people about healthy lifestyle choices?
What advice would you give to young people about healthy lifestyle choices?I think for the most part young people know that healthy eating and exercise are good for them, but they may not know how to incorporate it into their daily routine. We need to show them it’s easy to make healthy choices everyday. For example, prepare more meals at home, eat fresh fruits instead of sugary desserts, set aside some time each day for physical activity.
Start simple. Sometimes we get so caught up in the idea of “getting fit” that we take on too much and become overwhelmed. Focus on one realistic improvement at a time and work from there. Maybe your first step is cutting out sodas or drinking more water. Whatever you choose, stick with it. It gets much easier with consistency.
Thank you for sharing your story with us Stephanie! Interested in her blog? Check it out at http://www.wadadlivity.com/
