Vegetarian? Me?

bjenegiles

Well, I have been toying with this idea for about two years. I tried it out for about 2 weeks a year ago and was sick and had NO energy due to the lack of protein because I wasn't really eating properly. Well, now I am ready. I am ready to become a vegetarian!! I love veggies!! I don't eat red mean anyway. Poultry and seafood are the only meats that I eat. Now, I will only except SOME seafood. I am soooo excited about this new journey. This is not only for weight loss (even though becoming an vegetarian doesn't necessarily equal weight loss). This is for health!! I feels lighter and just better when meat is not around. If anyone has any suggestions, PLZ give them to me. I am doing this a week at a time. Wish me luck all!!

khskr1

This is awesome! I became a veggie over 6 years ago for health reasons. There are lots of us on here. Feel free to message me with any questions (I'm also studying nutrition too). But yes, like you already found out, you still have to eat healthy even as a veggie. Make sure you get enough protein in. Women should take in 60 grams minimum a day, it will also keep you from going for those unhealthy snacks. Good luck!!

Luckymam

I class myself as a "part-time vegan". In general, I don't eat meat or dairy, but if I eat out (not very often) I opt for fish, or go to someone's house for a meal, then I'll eat whatever they give me as they've gone to the trouble of cooking me a meal.

It's really easy to be vegetarian as there are so many meat or dairy-free versions of things now.

Good luck!

leavinglasvegas

Great decision! I went full Vegan this past February after years of being veggie. I have some great links for you.

Vegetariantimes.com has a great getting started guide plus thousands of recipes!

http://www.21daykickstart.org/ is hosted by the Physicians Commitee for Responsible Medicine. There is one coming up soon, they email you a daily menu, weekly shopping list, have celebrities like Alicia Silverstone and John Sally that offer tips and tricks, even inspiring phone calls.

Good luck to you and I hope you enjoy the transition! Feel free to add me as a friend or PM me for advice.

kayemme

i have lots of vegetarian ideas on my food blog http://scratch.kerimarion.com

i don't really use recipes, but i list the ingredients.

SugarDiva

I've never felt better since going Veggie about 6 months ago. One of the best things I think I ever did for myself. You can check out goveg.com too. Great starter ideas and recipes. Also, a new favorite of mine is veggieboards.com it's a great forum that I stumbled upon while looking for new and exciting recipes to try. There's lots of people there to talk too and everyone sharing ideas and stories. (kinda like here :happy: )
Feel free to look at my food diary to find ideas. I'm happy to share recipes. That goes for everyone else too :happy:

Jane1848

Lots of good tips. :-)

I've been Vegan for 6 years, Vegetarian for 10+ years. It's just natural to me now.

When someone asks me about becoming vegetarian, the first piece of advice that I give is to make sure you don't become a junk-food-vegetarian. So many new vegetarians load up on refined carbs and processed vegetarian convenience foods, and they begin packing on weight.

Focus on healthy whole-grains: it's easy to make a pot of quinoa or wild rice and use it as a base for your meals for a couple of days. Eat whole fruits and veggies. And always keep some hummus around... :-) A couple tablespoons makes a quick sandwich spread or a life-saving snack that will give you some good-quality nutrition for energy.

Good luck! :-)

rja108

I have recently become a vegetarian what do you mean by processed vegetarian products?

TheMaidOfAstolat

Being a vegetarian is great. There are a load of resources out there...do it properly and your body will be very happy! My food diary is public and you can take a look if you wish (you'll have to go back a month-haven't been on here in a while). as Holly said vegetarian times is a great magazine/site. try www.vegweb.com for lots of recipes as well. Remember to take a B6 vitamin and depending on how strict you'll be going that you will need to see a doctor to check your blood work to make sure that this change is okay for you to do. Anemia is common among beginner vegetarians because they often do not get enough iron. Take a supplement (I take Raw One by Vitamin Code and it is a complete multi for women that are either veg or vegan). Feel free to pm me if you want to talk. I've been a vegetarian for all of my 25 years. Good luck! :bigsmile:

TheMaidOfAstolat

I have recently become a vegetarian what do you mean by processed vegetarian products?

Eating only Boca or Morning Star type products for protein and other minerals. The best way is to stick to as natural form of protein as possible. Lentils, beans, chickpeas, quinoa, whole grains, ect. While these 'meat' products are fine in moderation they are high calorie and usually loaded with sugar and sodium. check out www.vegweb.com for some great recipes.

TheMaidOfAstolat

Well, I have been toying with this idea for about two years. I tried it out for about 2 weeks a year ago and was sick and had NO energy due to the lack of protein because I wasn't really eating properly. Well, now I am ready. I am ready to become a vegetarian!! I love veggies!! I don't eat red mean anyway. Poultry and seafood are the only meats that I eat. Now, I will only except SOME seafood. I am soooo excited about this new journey. This is not only for weight loss (even though becoming an vegetarian doesn't necessarily equal weight loss). This is for health!! I feels lighter and just better when meat is not around. If anyone has any suggestions, PLZ give them to me. I am doing this a week at a time. Wish me luck all!!

How are you doing? You haven't updated us on how the lifestyle is going this time around?
Another site you may want to look at is www.vegparadise.com it's full of info.