Any flexitarians? How do you explain your diet to others?

LB2812

How about "I prefer to limit my intake of meat to just a few meals a week."? This isn't all that unusual, you seem to be making more out of it than you need to.

^^ This.

If you need a label, you are an "omnivore." How often you eat meat is irrelevant. You are not at all a vegetarian if you are still eating meat a few days a week. You are just a regular omnivore who doesn't eat a lot of meat. You don't have to explain why you are choosing a meat-less option anymore than you have to explain why you are choosing a meat-full option. A simple "this one looks good" or "I"m trying to eat less meat" or "wanted something light" would suffice. You are making it much more complicated by trying to explain or defend it.

pobalita

You are an omnivore who sometimes orders vegetarian meals. If you eat meat, you aren't vegetarian. No need to create a special category here.

ponycyndi

I love vegan food, and I love beef. I'm an omnivore.

Also, anyone who asks if I'm a vegitarian because I ordered vegetarian food is an *kitten*.

_Terrapin_

You are an omnivore who sometimes orders vegetarian meals. If you eat meat, you aren't vegetarian. No need to create a special category here.

Of course it is needed; liberal, conservative, evo pescatarian, vegan, omnivore, and on and on. Every week I'm asked if I'm vegetarian and every week I say "No". It is the way of the world.

cavewoman15

Loving this discussion! It's informative and heated but not angry. Let's hope it can stay this way!

melimomTARDIS

I think the term flexitarian is a little silly. The way I eat has been called "semi-vegetarian" by others, also, "Californian".

I just explain it like this, I think meat is expensive, and isnt very good for ya. So I avoid it most of the time. I am not a vegetarian, as I have meat (tilapia fillets,boneless chicken breasts, and ground venison) in my freezer.

As time goes on Id like to consume less and less meat. Then when I eat none, I'll call myself a vegetarian.

Zerodette

"I'm not a vegetarian, I ordered the dish that sounded the most appealing."

Why make it more difficult than that??

lporter229

This is the first time I have heard the term "flexitarian" and I have to say that I think it's pretty silly. Vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, and even pescatarian are terms that define your dietary restrictions. You don't go to a restaurant and ask if they have "flexitarian" options, do you?

AliceDark

I will admit that I get a little irritated when people who do eat meat call themselves vegetarians, only because it seems like I have to field a lot of questions about why I don't eat fish, or chicken, or whatever ("...but my vegetarian friend eats fish!"). It also makes me a little nervous when I'm eating food prepared by other people, because then I'm never sure if they understand that vegetarian really does mean NO meat.

Having said that, though, I'm always happy when my omnivorous friends try to incorporate more veg meals into their diets. Meatless Monday is trendy right now; have you thought about saying something like "you know how Meatless Monday is a thing? I'm doing Meatless Thursdays."

You could also just spin it as a positive: "no, I still eat meat, but I love spinach and the vegetarian lasagna sounds amazing."

ILiftHeavyAcrylics

Why tell them anything? I'd just say "no, it just sounded good."

I also think the term flexitarian is silly.

cavewoman15

Great discussion! I was considering saying that I am a 'weekday vegetarian'. That is almost always true, and I'm not crazy strict on myself, but I think it gets the idea across.

Flexitarian is a strange, sorta new-agey term, I agree. It is synonymous with omnivore in terms of behavior, but I think it conveys a different ideology about food. Technically, everyone who eats any amount of meat is an omnivore.

Again, just to reiterate. I don't need a label for myself - I'm good with what I'm doing. I feel good about having made some real changes to my diet, and I'm continuing to try to reduce my meat consumption because that is my own personal goal. However, the concern here is that other people tend to need labels and categories to make sense of me. Right or wrong, that's the reality in my experience. So I'm just trying to figure out the best way to respond to offend the least number of people - I don't want to offend vegetarians by claiming to be one when i'm not and i don't want to offend meat-eaters by being seemingly judgmental about their preferences.

cavewoman15

the 'it sounded good' thing will work well at restaurants, but not when i pre-order a vegetarian option. then, i often don't know what it will be.. i just know it won't have meat. so it doesn't really make sense to say it sounded good when i didn't know what it would be.

Serenitynow29

Last summer I met someone who is primarily 811 (80/10/10, low-fat raw vegan) but she drinks alcohol and eats animals. I don't ever eat animals but I developed my own way of saying what she explained to me. I try to focus on frutis and vegetables first. Our diet is fruit and vegetable forward. Ultimately, it doesn't mean you ever have to worry about a "gotcha" when you want ribs, or even McDonald's, but it explains why you may prefer vegetarian options or huge amounts of fruit and vegetables.

Peace,

cavewoman15

I will admit that I get a little irritated when people who do eat meat call themselves vegetarians, only because it seems like I have to field a lot of questions about why I don't eat fish, or chicken, or whatever ("...but my vegetarian friend eats fish!"). It also makes me a little nervous when I'm eating food prepared by other people, because then I'm never sure if they understand that vegetarian really does mean NO meat.

So true! Or when people think picking the meat out of food is no big deal and act offended when you don't want to eat pizza with the bacon picked off it. :sick:

this is all very clearly understandable, which is why i want to be sensitive about this. thanks for your inputs!

redwoodkestrel

Just to clarify, most vegetarians ARE omnivores (since there seem to be a lot of replies stating "you're not a vegetarian, you're an omnivore"). Most vegetarians are NOT herbivores, because they still eat some animal-based foods, like dairy products and eggs.

Vegans are herbivores.

I like being an opportunivore, myself. :drinker: :laugh:

ILiftHeavyAcrylics

the 'it sounded good' thing will work well at restaurants, but not when i pre-order a vegetarian option. then, i often don't know what it will be.. i just know it won't have meat. so it doesn't really make sense to say it sounded good when i didn't know what it would be.

So just say "I didn't feel like having meat" or "I don't like meat all that much."

I rarely justify any of my choices to anyone and very few people press me about it. Maybe I just give off a "this is not open for discussion" vibe.

eta: honestly I'd probably say something snippy. "Why did you order the vegetarian option?" Because that's what I wanted to order. :huh:

tquill

How about, "The vegetarian dish sounded good to me, today" and leave it at that?

Agreed. I'm not sure there needs to be a label for every possible diet out there.

I have milk and a bagel every morning. Let it be known from this day forth, this eating style shall now be referred to as Milkagle-Ante-Meridiem-tarian. (TM)

212019156

I don't eat mammals. Is there a name for that?

AliceDark

So I'm just trying to figure out the best way to respond to offend the least number of people - I don't want to offend vegetarians by claiming to be one when i'm not and i don't want to offend meat-eaters by being seemingly judgmental about their preferences.

Makes sense! I think I would still couch it in positive terms ("I'm trying to eat more vegetables" or "lately, vegetables have been sounding really good to me") if you're worried about meat eaters feeling judged. Some people can take other people's preferences really personally, so if you keep it focused on what you like to eat (instead of what you don't/won't eat), it can make situations easier for everyone to deal with.

Sabine_Stroehm

How about, "The vegetarian dish sounded good to me, today" and leave it at that?

This

or just "this is what sounded good".