Introduce Yourself!
alybran
Posts: 199 Member
In just a day, we've increased from one lonely member (yours truly) to 15. Take a moment to introduce yourself!
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Replies
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I'll go ahead and introduce myself first!
I'm Rachel. 22-and-three-quarters (23 in May). I've been vegetarian since June 2016, but I was a flexitarian for almost a year before that. I'm vegetarian for several reasons: a mixture of health, weight loss, and ethics. I generally think society (especially in the States) eats way too much meat, more than necessary or natural.
I'm excited to be able to just talk (sometimes rant) with other people on the vegetarian spectrum, and share our recipes and experiences!3 -
Hi everyone! My name is Sara, I'm a MFP veteran, (who occasionally gets fed up with the forums and deletes my account, only to get sucked right back in
).
As far as weight loss goes-I'm 4 years into maintaining a 50lbs loss. I started this whole thing due to high glucose numbers and the weight loss has normalized those, along with improving all my other blood work panels/health markers. According to my doctor I'm in excellent health now and I have a current bmi of around a 20.
While I had no problem losing the weight and improving my health by eating a typical SAD diet, with just less calories, recently I've been feeling led to change direction and I'm now focusing on a more nutrient dense, whole foods woe. Along with that I've drastically decreased my meat intake and upped my intake of veg/fruit, whole grains, beans and fish. But, I'm still keeping things real and still eat daily Fritos and am having a love affair with Halo Top ice cream
Because of the health benefits of fish, I don't ever see myself going full vegetarian, but I do think at some point I'll end up completely meat free, except for fish. So right now I think I'd be labeled a flexitarian, on my way to becoming a pescetarian.
I'm 38 years old, a stay at home mom to my 3 kids and I'm also their learning coach (they do an online school program through a local public school district). We recently bought a 147 year old house that we're going to be doing major renovations on, and then if there's any spare time left if my days I'm either plugged into MFP or reading!4 -
Hey, I'm Ash, 21 from Sydney, AU.
I've been vegetarian for 11 years, and in that time I've tried veganism, the raw food diet (no food that's been heated about 50°C, yikes!), and have now settled back into vegetarianism. I don't eat meat, fish or gelatine.
My experience with MFP (lost 10kg, 5-10kg to go) has given me a great interest in human nutrition, so much so that I am planning on completing a Masters of Dietetics. At the moment I'm studying a Bachelor of Medical Science, majoring in anatomy and physiology.
I'm always up for experimenting with food and am still working on making the perfect seitan!4 -
(((WAVING))) I'm Sue, and I just turned 50. I grew up primarily plant based, with a crazy for health mother. Typical weeds and seeds upbringing. I married a meat lover, and have cooked with his taste in mind for the last 20+ years.
Unknowingly I've been brewing a major health crisis due to an autoimmune disorder called Graves. Last Easter Monday I was in the hospital attempting to get my heart to go back in to rhythm, and not die in the ER. I then spent time in the ICU, then the intensive cardiac unit recovering from pneumonia, battling a thyroid storm, pulmonary edema, Graves, diabetes, congestive heart failure, a-fib, and one other heart condition that escapes me now. It was, in it's entirety, all brought on by the autoimmune disorder Graves. I have never eaten poorly in my life, so having a-fib, and congestive heart failure is a great big slap in the face. I find myself annoyed by those acting as though I brought this health crisis on myself. If I had done this to myself, I'd own it, and give you all the story as a cautionary tale. But it just isn't true. When I got in that ER on Easter Monday I had a bad cholesterol of 35! But if I could give everyone one here one life saving caution it would be to get your thyroid levels checked regularly, you don't want to be in my shoes.
I'm coming up on my one year anniversary, I survived a year! YAY! Woo Hoo!! 20% don't have that privilege. The next five years are critical for me. 50%-60% don't make it to the end of year five. Less than 20% make past 8-12 years. I am now in stage 3 Congestive Heart Failure. There are only 4 stages. There is the possibility of a heart transplant in my future. Only time will tell. At this moment my energy is focused towards beating those odds. I am at present a Flexitarian diet, but in truth I am primarily plant based, and I would be hard pressed to eat any meat other than seafood at this point. Even so, I'm not a big seafood person. * I should say that I will eat lamb, venison, chicken as long as it's free range, and for occasional very rare, celebratory reasons.
My husband is AMAZING! Completely willing to eat a vegetarian diet, and not clamoring I make him something separate each meal. He's been eating what I make with not discord.
I look forward to getting to know everyone.
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Hello all! I'm Stacey, I am 48. I turned vegetarian 4 years ago right after Easter. the last straw a chicken wrap I got sick after I ate it. YUK! I was never a big meat eater to begin with, also very small amount as I just could not get over the whole animal it came from and the suffering that animal must have gone thru. Please don't get me wrong I am not one of those who picket the local farms or toss paint on fur coats, but I just hate looking into my cats eyes an knowing they have feelings and think so do cows, chickens and pigs. I just couldn't do it anymore. I went complete vegetarian and didn't tell my family to see if they would notice. After a week nobody said anything so I came clean, there response was "its about time!" I have three boys (25, 21 and 13) about a month after I cut out the meat so did my youngest son, he was only 8! shortly after he started to add in fish to his diet, but has not had meat since. I find it challenging the most with him, although the local public school he goes to has a vegetarian menu, he still had a tendency to eat nachos and cheese for lunch. He is a very active Boy Scout and the camping trips are "interesting". he has taken pride in educating the other boys on his Pescitarian diet and because of this they will make so interesting meals (one camping trip they eat claim cooked on the fire with garlic butter sauce, who does that on a scout camping trip?), but I always have to make sure he is getting enough nutrients that his body needs. He is planning a hike in Arizona next year (75 miles) I am already stressing over the food he will need on this hike.
I really thought that I would be eating more salads and loose all sorts of weight, but I got into the pasta and processed meatless food, I am just starting to work on getting that out of my diet. I plan each week of dinners in advance, doing a lot of recipes from Pintrest. I feel so much better being a vegetarian then I ever did before. But still get a lot of teasing from my extended family, especially by brother and his son. and if one more person asks me how can I live without eating bacon, I think I will scream. LOL.
My hope is that this life style I have chosen will do good for my hubby. I do 90% of the cooking. He is a type one diabetic and has high cholesterol (which is common with diabetic) He is so supportive of my choice, makes me love him more (this after almost 30 years!) currently we have more total vegetarian meals, I cook with the attitude of "meat on the side" . He sees his doctor soon and can not wait to see if he cholesterol has gone down.
I look forward to getting to know all better and the advice I will get from you all that will help me improve on my journey ahead.6 -
Hi all.
36/m/London.
Flexitarian / aspirational vegetarian (slip ups only happen with booze!)4 -
Hey everyone! I am 35 years old from the US. I am not actually a vegetarian, but I am trying to eat less overall meat and especially red meat. Lately I have noticed when I have a red meat heavy meal, I end up with lots of stomach/digestive issues. So while I am not 100% cutting that out, I am going to try and only have red meat a few times a month and eat less of it at any one time.
Mostly I want to eat mainly vegetarian with fish and poultry being the main meats I still work into my diet on a regular basis. It would be nice to do 50/50 honestly, but baby steps right now.
I also have a medical condition that is very food sensitive so I have a list of "avoid" foods on top of this. This includes tomatoes, soy, citrus, and a bunch of other stuff. It can make finding safe recipes a bit more difficult.2 -
Hi! I'm Jodie- 46 year old married mother of two from NJ. I have been a vegetarian for almost ten years for ethical and health reasons. I am the sole vegetarian among my family and friends so am excited to meet others on MFP to exchange tips and recipes with. I'm really trying to focus on health and lose about 15 pounds. My biggest challenge is finding time for meal prep and exercising.3
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Hi! My name is Rebecca,
I've been off again on again vegetarian/vegan for the better part of the last 7 years. I've been back to vegan since November of last year and am hoping not to go back. I always feel like my body is cleaner and healthier. I too am the sole one in a family of meat eaters so it's great meet others who chose to go meatless.
I'm on here to get back into shape and lose about 20lbs. Just had my fifth and last baby so I am so excited to get my body back for good this time.4 -
Hi everyone! My name is Rachel, and while I'm not 100% vegetarian, I only eat meat maybe 2-3 times out of the week. And no red meat at all! On the occassion when I do eat meat it is chicken or fish, although honestly I've never been a huge meat eaten anyway. I was diagnosed with endometriosis a year ago, and I've noticed a mostly vegetarian diet has helped tremendously with the pain I deal with almost daily.
I was in fact vegan for several months, but my health started to decline quickly. I was sick almost every other week, and even ended up in the hospital towards the end of my vegan run. I was sad to have to change my diet (because I hate quiting!), but once I incorporated a little more dairy and meats into my diet I have not been sick since.
I definitely love the versatility of a vegetarian diet, and I LOVE to cook so I will be on the lookout for some awesome recipies, as well as maybe posting a few delicious ones of my own
I'm so glad I stumbled across this awesome group, I can't wait to get to meet new people and seeing people achieving their goals makes me happy!
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Hello!
I'm Rae, I'm 28 and from the gloomy United Kingdom. I've been on MFP for nearly two years and have lost 70lbs from my highest known weight but 64lbs by my current scales (I had another pair that were 14 years old and I broke them with my fat XD)
I'm a flexitarian mostly because while I don't necessarily enjoy the feeling (weight) of meat in my stomach, I require it to do the level of intense training I participate in. I never eat red meat and stick mostly to lean cuts of turkey and white fish. It can be really hard sometimes as well to participate in the main forums when they're pushing meat eggs meat eggs for muscle growth. I want to like eggs but sunny side down is the best I can do.
Health wise I'm pretty lucky, my lifestyle isn't dictated by any pre-existing health condition other than my Irritable Bowel Syndrome that doesn't necessarily cope very well with high volumes of meat but it also doesn't deal well with certain fruits and veggies so it's swings and roundabouts. In fact, it's actually just nice to have a vegetarian/flexitarian place where we're not made to feel less than because we still eat meat on occasion. So thank you, Rachel!
If anyone has any questions or whatever, feel free to ask me, friend me (just let me know you're from here). I don't log my food anymore because while I'm categorically still losing it's more done by eye (food weighed accurately to a general daily cal intake approximation) to stop myself in engaging in past disordered eating behaviours. And I generally eat the same things: porridge or a croissant for breakfast, cheese sandwich, 2 lattes throughout the day, or soup for lunch and dinner is usually meal prepped multiple servings of one dish. That sounds so boring but I really do love it.
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Hi!! I'm Elizabeth, 55 yrs old. And live in chicago. I consider myself a flexitarian. I do eat meat..but am trying to cut back ( don't look at my diary this week tho) and please don't judge. I love cooking vegetarian meals, experimenting with beans, lentils and finding recipes that limit meat and are vegetable heavy.
In 2001 I was 261 lbs and slowly got down to about 180. After I hit 50 yrs old I slowly gained about 30 lbs. Last year, 2016, I dropped about 25. Unfortunately I've put back about 8 in 2017.
I'm super lucky that I don't have any health issues. I did have an eating disorder (bulimia) in my 20s and 30s.
I love bike riding, strength training and gardening. I can't wait to plant my vegetables!! Pergaps we can start a duscussion on gardening?
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Hi everyone
My name is Elizabeth, 37 living in Tucson Az and I'm vegan. I became vegetarian about 10 years about and switched to vegan about a year or two later ... so vegan for about 8 years I'm pretty new to MFP I was doing/currently doing Weight Watchers because my mom is doing it and it's worked for me on the past- I generally eat healthy but have quite a sweet tooth and have realized that my portion control can be a lil wonky I'm the only vegan in the family but my son is pescitarian and husband always teases that he'll go veg some day but not yet it's nice to have dedicated chat room for us veggies (or wannabe eat'n less meat) peps. I look forward to swapping recipes and ideas 2 -
Hi. My name is Becca. I've been meat free for a year or so now and don't eat fish or gelatin either. I'm slowly cutting back on oil, eggs, and dairy, but do still use all three on occasion.1
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Hey everyone. My name is Shelby, I'm 25 years old and living in Atlanta, GA. My husband and I went vegetarian(ish) last July after a trip to Denver, CO where we noticed our friends eat a lot less meat than we do here in the South (and look a lot healthier). We do eat fish very occasionally but are starting to cut that out because our ultimate goal is to one day be vegan. I just started a schedule where I eat vegan (mostly raw) until the evening, and then vegetarian at night. I've noticed it's become easier and easier to not crave dairy using this approach, plus I'm eating way less calories than I was previously.
I will say - when I first became vegetarian, I started working out at the same time and lost 10 lbs pretty fast. We've tried to focus on being plant-based vegetarian and I think that definitely helped. I also had really bad IBS-D for years that was honestly ruining my life, and that magically disappeared when I went veg! Plus my psoriasis cleared up and never came back. I'm super grateful to this lifestyle for helping me feel like a normal, healthy human again. I'm happy to have found others with similar stories!5 -
Hello all! My name is Becky, I just decided last week to go flexitarian. Since I made the decision I haven't had any meat- though I still eat dairy and eggs- and so far don't miss it at all. Which is a surprise because I was a die hard carnivore, I mostly made my decision for environmental/general health reasons. So I may end up deciding to take the dive into full fledged vegetarianism. Time will tell.2
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Hi all!! I'm 48 and just looking to live a healthy life. I'm 9 months into a vegetarian lifestyle. I don't miss eating meat at all, but trying to balance my french fries addiction and good carbs. I've been with MFP for 5 years off and on, but today pressed the restart button.3
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Hello, everyone
I've just joined MFP - and this group! - and am aiming to lose just over 40lbs. I'm an English teacher and art student, love yoga (although I haven't done much of it lately!), and walking my two rescue dogs, especially on the beach.
I live in Scotland and have been vegetarian for most of my life - I've recently been trying to include more vegan choices and cut back on dairy as I don't think it agrees with me all that well. I'd love to connect with more people who can help to keep me motivated and encourage me to stay on track when life gets busy or I start to lose my willpower!
Feel free to add me as a friend! 3 -
Hi Everyone
I lost 22 kilos through whole foods plant based eating - And I'm still losing (hopefully)!
Through my vegetarian transition and weight loss journey I discovered my passion for plant based healthy eating and I now work as a Weight Management Practitioner giving advice to people who are transitioning to veg/vegan or who are trying to lose weight in general. Feel free to ask me any questions as to how I lost the weight - I love to talk about everything I've learnt.
I've been losing weight consistently for more than a year now so it's nice to find a community of people to keep me motivated! Go team!2 -
Hi!!
My name is Lori, I'm from the US I started my journey with vegetarianism back in November and have been loving it ever since! I always wanted to be meat-free, and taking and maintaining this lifestyle is very important to me and feels like a big accomplishment. My girlfriend and I are both vegetarians and my favorite part is making delicious, healthy meals with her and showing my family and friends that meatless meals can be great! (And of course the ethical reasons behind it all.) I'm pretty new to MFP and would love some vegetarian friends to follow! I feel supporting others is an important step in one's success.
Have a great day! 2 -
Hi all! My name's Alice and I live near Venice, Italy. I have been vegetarian for a number of years now, I love animals and have a huge furry family. All my furry babies are rescues: Dorian Gray the cat, Luna and Tara the dogs, Mr Jingles the mouse, John Snow and Khaleesi the rabbits. I have suffered from eating disorders for the past 25 years. I had gotten in a decent shape recently, but an injury while training ( I do HEMA) forced me to stop all physical activity for almost a year, and all my weight came right back on. I have subscribed to MFP because I want to get rid of the extra weight once and for all, and to stick to a healthy lifestyle. And it's awesome to see that there are many other vegetarians here!3
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Hi I am Liljon, I am a vegetarian (not vegan) from WV.
I also the World's fattest non-meat eater weighing in around 350lb,
I don't like meat and do not find it a struggle to not eat it, but I do love cheese and eggs, and have not found a great substitute for them.
I am looking for some vegetarian friends, I have great non-vegetarian friends on MFP, but would like some that I can share recipes, stories and support with.1 -
Hi, my name is Kelsey. I'm 32 and live in South Florida. I first dabbled in vegetarianism when I was 6 years old and saw a cow slaughtered. From then, I was off and on vegetarian until Thanksgiving 2009 when I took the plunge to go full time. I love animals and cannot in good conscious eat them knowing how cruel the meat industry is. I try to stick to cruelty free dairy products and eggs because I know how bad those industries are as well. I am trying to adhere to a more ovo-vegetarian diet, but am having a hard time cutting out all the dairy! I also have a crazy sweet tooth and sometimes wish that all those delicious bakery items and candies weren't veg so they wouldnt be so tempting!
I would love to connect with more like minded individuals. I've found that the weight loss community is pretty ignorant on dietary advice for vegans/vegetarians and hope that we can all share some of the successes and failures with one another.0 -
Hi all! I'm new to MFP, so I'm taking a tour of the communities. I'm 42, Mom of two, working full-time, and a Buddhist. I have been a vegetarian on and off throughout my life, but after recent Buddhist practice, it has now stuck. Except... I was gaining weight! What?? Joining MFP is part of a journey to not only lose weight, but to have a more mindful, balanced approach to what I eat. It's not all about grilled cheese and french fries!0
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Hi my name is Kathy. I'm 62 and only have been meatless for a few months. I have always thought about going meatless but never did until I had to get false teeth and since it was too hard to eat I thought it was a good time to start. I find it interesting that I do not miss it. I lost a lot of weight on MFP a few years ago but gained most of it back. But back to loosing it again very slowly but happy with that. I do eat dairy and eggs. I know to speed up my weight loss I need to exercise more. I have been over busy lately but it will be slowed the next few weeks so I hope to get back in the habit. I have to admit I went meatless not so much for my health but because I always felt guilty eating animals. I do feel better now in both mind and body.0
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Hi, I'm Lori. I'm 51, married with two grown kids, and live in Northern Wisconsin. I've been a vegetarian for about a year and a half, mostly for ethical and environmental reasons, but also for health and hopefully weight loss. I've been overweight for a long time, but unfortunately, I gained even more (20 pounds) almost immediately upon becoming vegetarian. I do not consume animal products except eggs, honey, and Greek yogurt and certain cheeses (I'm somewhat lactose intolerant). My main problem is that I'm a truck driver and eat out a lot of the time, and truck stops are rather lacking in vegetarian options. So while I can keep my calories under control, I'm having lots of trouble maintaining my macros, especially my protein levels. I'm hoping to get some ideas for non refrigerated foods I can keep on the truck for healthy vegetarian meals and snacks, as well as get some much needed moral support and make some new friends.
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Hi all,
Been a vegetarian for 12 years. Been working out (properly) since my baby was born in Feb and she's been my focus to lead a healthier life and get the body I've wanted since I was a teenager.
MFP has been a great help with my goals as I track and weigh most of my food stuffs and the tracking has allowed me to get the feedback I need as to whether my results are working or not.0 -
Hi from Louisiana. I have been reducing my meat intake and joined for recipes and inspiration. --Dennise0
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Hi, I'm Sue from Shropshire, England. I am maybe 90% vegetarian at the moment, just using the occasional minced beef or bacon for flavouring. I am interested in finding tasty alternatives, though. I have reached [and exceeded] my weight goal and am looking to stabilise it with nutritious meals and maybe do some vegetarian baking.0
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Hi everyone, my name is Dawn. I have been a vegetarian for over 30 years. My children and grandchildren have all been raised this way and have a strong love of animals. I am very overweight and really have to get back to basics. Looking to evolve to a more clean/green eating and as much vegan as possible. Move away from all things processed. I don't find veganism all that difficult but I still seem to slip back into old habits. Hoping to make this year a focus on health. My obstacle, my husband absolutely loves to cook. He loves gourmet food and every day will make amazing food that certainly is not healthy oriented. He is trying to help but OMG his stuff is hard to resist. So for this hurdle, I need to focus on quantity (taste, not gobble). As an example, he made a creamy roasted corn sauce over zucchini, mushrooms, Quorn, fettuccini last night. Tried to stay away from the pasta and ate a smaller portion than my norm, especially since pasta was such a main component. It is going to be tough but I really need to get my weight under control.1
