A month without yogurt; giving the vegan life a try

There have been years when by the third day of January, my resolutions have already fallen by the wayside. Often, that’s when they’re wiggly: promises to be more patient, be nicer. That hasn’t stopped me from vowing to be more patient, but I am mindful of how hard it is to judge what, exactly, is “more” patient.

With that in my thoughts, I’ve decided on one concrete plan. I will eat vegan for the month of January. I am totally in love with my morning yogurt, and I haven’t even been a vegetarian. I have no fondness for faux meats. So this won’t be easy. But it’s just 31 days. And I’m going to give it a good shot; they say after a month, habits and perhaps taste buds will be altered.

At the risk of distressing animal lovers everywhere, it’s not an ethical decision, although I signed up for the email nudges and advice from a British-based project called veganuary.com, which has support from many animal rights groups. And I don’t expect to remain vegan come February.

But maybe like being nice, I will be “more” vegan. I think I might feel healthier with a more produce-heavy diet. And I’m curious. I also admit this is a project much more appetizingly accomplished in a Southern California winter than in a northern Minnesota one.

I’ll be keeping track here and at latimes.com/eatvegan of how it goes. Send along any ideas or advice you’ve got.

Can I do it? Follow my progress @mmacvean and “like” Los Angeles Times Science & Health on Facebook.