Anyone working toward going vegetarian?

sunshinestater

I know there are vegetarians and vegans here, but is there anyone in the process of going toward vegetarian? I want to go veg for both health and ethical reasons, but there's no way I can go cold turkey. I know I can't handle full vegan, but so vegetarian is the eventual goal.

So far more than half of my meals are vegetarian, and I'm really enjoying all the meat substitutes. I can't believe how many options there are. Also, even though I'm not going vegan, I've switched to almond milk for everything but coffee, where I must have my half and half. I'd love tips on this process from others on the same journey.w

Gmtribble90

I know you don't want to go complete vegan, but this has some wonderful tips!

http://features.peta.org/how-to-go-vegan/

I'm not vegetarian, but I did use a vegetarian diet at one time to help me lose some weight. It really helps

hungrypotato

i'm vegetarian except for meal times :laugh:

Gmtribble90

http://www.peta.org/living/vegetarian-living/making-the-transition-vegetarian.aspx

Nonnyette

I've worked on this. I've never gone fully vegetarian but my general goal was to eat much less animal protein and increase my vegetable and legume intake. Until I moved in with my SO, who is a confirmed meat-eater, I was eating meat only once or twice a week. What I found really helped was learning how to cook Indian food. Most of the Indian subcontinent is vegetarian, and they have developed a rich and varied vegetarian cuisine. I still cook vegetarian as frequently as I can trick my SO into it, and use Indian recipes all the time.

I really like Madhur Jaffrey's book, "World Vegetarian" - it is probably the most used cookbook in my kitchen.

Pamela_June

...I am slowing going veggie...like you for both reasons....I will take any help I can get....glad you asked the question.

:blushing:

crlyxx

I was a vegetarian for around 7 months when I was a lot younger. With how my meals are, I'm thinking of doing it again. I tend to avoid virtually all meat since I feel it has too many calories.

brdnw

I think it's funny you said "going cold turkey" ha.

anyhow i'm slowly approachign it, not for ethical reasons but for health, i pretty much eliminated all red meat and really only eat grilled chicken right now with occasional salmon. my reasoning is just bc i don't want fatty meat in my diet.

EmiVReyes

Bump. I'd like to see more responses on this one. I have considered going full veggie as well or at least only eating fish. Sometimes meat just seems yucky to me.

laserturkey

I'm vegetarian and have been a long time, but there are two meat-eaters in my household and I've been working on finding ways to cook things that will make all of us happy.

sonyap32

i've been vegetarian for three years, and it was an easy transition for me. The hardest thing to give up was seafood, so i steered clear of sushi restaurants for a good three months in the beginning. After that, i had enough momentum built up that I didn't feel the desire to break the veggie streak. That was in 2010 and i've been going strong since. If you announce it to your friends and family that this is something you are trying to do, it makes you accountable for your actions and you never know, perhaps they will be supportive and help keep you motivated.

thisismeraw

I have been vegetarian for almost a year now... with the last two months being mainly raw vegan.

I personally cut it all out at once. I made the switch for ethical reasons and cut out all meat when I made the switch. I couldn't leave in a certain type of meat or still consume fish since I was making the switch for ethical reasons. I personally wouldn't do it for health as there are a lot of unhealthy vegetarians out there. I found it a lot easier to just cut it all out at once.

I still cook meat as my husband still eats it and if we have people over for dinner I still make meat for them. I don't consume meat substitutes. I have at times but I prefer to stay away from them. I don't want to eat meat so I don't want to eat something that is made to replace a certain type of meat. Tons of ways to get protein in without the substitutes.

Zampa13

I eat mostly vegetarian food...Never really been a meat lover. Chicken makes me gag when you get a chewy bit, plus im never quite convinced its cooked properly. Pork and lamb, I just dont eat. Beef Id probably eat the most of but only due to making a beef stew from a recipe my mum makes!

I was vegetarian for about 8 years from the age of 15 that was more down to ethical reasons but my Iron levels were quite low so reintroduced meat back in to my diet.

Now I eat more beans and pulse type foods...soups, lentils etc. I recently bought some Quron vegetarian style chicken breasts that were only like 90 cals so switching to just veggy has passed my mind a number of times however sometimes I get an overwhelming craving for a steak so feels wrong to deprive my body of the meat/Iron that im obviously craving.

sweetheart1982

I also eat mostly vegetarian food and meat a couple times a week. I like tofu and use it to substitute for things. I made an awesome veggie pizza last week and added avacado and sprouts when it was done cooking...sounds weird but it was really good. I tried being completely vegitarian last year and gave up b/c I was craving meat big time. But for the most part I can go w/o eating meat for a long time I just like to eat it once in a while

thinklivebefree

I know there are vegetarians and vegans here, but is there anyone in the process of going toward vegetarian? I want to go veg for both health and ethical reasons, but there's no way I can go cold turkey. I know I can't handle full vegan, but so vegetarian is the eventual goal.

So far more than half of my meals are vegetarian, and I'm really enjoying all the meat substitutes. I can't believe how many options there are. Also, even though I'm not going vegan, I've switched to almond milk for everything but coffee, where I must have my half and half. I'd love tips on this process from others on the same journey.w

thinklivebefree

Have you tried going weekday vegetarian? Only eating meat during the weekend??

FeatherBoBeather

I'm vegetarian working towards becoming vegan.
I find the most helpful thing is to diversify meals, try new things & make the most delicious recipes I have.. this keeps me fully satisfied without even realizing I'm not eating animal products. :-) I will always recommend the book 'Vegan on the Cheap'. I cook out of it *all* the time and have never disliked anything I've made from it. It's all about the right type of spicing.

twinketta

About 3 or 4 weeks ago I just decided that I could not face eating meat anymore the thought of eating it made me queasy. Not because of the animal aspect, too much and not because I was considering the health factors.

Maybe it was because I have eaten a really high protein meat diet since I started on MFP. The first week I thought maybe I would convert to eating fish after 2 or 3 days I found I couldn`t face fish either.

So now I am eating a vegetarian diet. I have been really enjoying making stir fry vegetables. Sliced white cabbage, red onion, peppers, courgettes, mushrooms, mange tout...basically I throw all sorts into the pan it takes about 4 minutes to cook and I can eat loads of it for very few calories. So am adding some boiled new potatoes or a jacket potato.

Today I made a pastry free quiche with a recipe from here.

On a side note I have lost 2lbs since I started this new plan and my `toilet habits` are so much more regular lol

kateelizabethdc

I am working towards going vegan. I started by giving up red meat. Then exactly one year later I gave up all poultry. One year after that, dairy. And slowly, seafood is going. I think you have to give your mind time to adjust to each loss. No need to rush. You will get there! There are still things that I crave, but I'm doing okay.

You could try to find soy or almond creamer. It's easy to find at health food stores or Whole Foods type places. It tastes just like real creamer. We use BestLife Buttery spread for cooking and it tastes great.

KrazyAsianNic

I read somewhere that to start, just start by adding fruits and veggies to each meal adn eating it first, then slowly moving away.

I'm not working towards being vegetarian, but have been making vegetarian meals as practice for when I need to cook for my boyfriend's vegetarian mother.

sunshinestater

Wow, so many great stories and suggestions. Right now I don't do veg on certain days but mainly with meals eaten at home. I just replace the meat with a substitute (for example, tacos with veg crumbles in mole last night) or leave it out entirely (like in chili). I'll definitely have to try the veg creamer as the almond milk just doesn't cut it in coffee, although I prefer it for everything else. I've always loved both vegetables and animals, so it's a natural progression for me. I have a good friend who's vegan, and she's turned me onto some great products and recipes (she does a vegan chocolate cream pie that's out of this world!). I could never be as disciplined as her, so I'm aiming at veg with partial elimination of other animal products.

MorgueBabe

I did very slowly.
I cut out red meat, then after a year, I cut out pork, then after another year poultry etc.
There are tons of amazing things to eat.
http://theveeword.blogspot.com/ has sooo many great recipes full of flavor.
I'm allergic to dairy but there are so many good options like So Delicious, Flax milk, and Daiya cheese.

adwilliams03

I quit red meat six years ago, and have never gone back to it. I don't miss it. I do tend to eat a lot of turkey and chicken, and for ethical reasons I often feel compelled to give them up. I'm still not fully decided, but considering.

Athijade

I am not working on becoming a vegetarian, but I am working on reducing the red meat I eat and having more vegetable based meals in general. Mostly because it can be cheaper especially in the summer when I have access to well stocked farmer's markets and we have very few places to access local meats, but also for general health reasons.

I suggest the cookbook "How to Cook Everything Vegetarian". It is amazing.

I am NOT a fan of "fake" meat. Tofu is okay (love it in Asian food), but the fake meat is just... yuck. When I do cook vegetarian I focus on real whole foods and new ways to enjoy them.

BrendaLee

You may want to start with avoiding meat from mammals. I was vegetarian for just over a year and a half, and I eventually added back chicken and turkey. I found it was a compromise I could live with, and it's probably where I will stay, but it seems like a good first step on the road to vegetarianism.

P.S. If you can find them, SoL Cuisine's spicy black bean and corn veggie burgers are amazing.
___

sea_tern

I slowly went vegetarian and I think it's the reason I've been able to stick with it. Suddenly giving up everything that you just eat as a reflex can be hard. I first cut back on red meat so I was only eating about once a week back in 2002 then in 2007 I became pescatarian (basically vegetarian but still ate fish and seafood) this was actually really easy to do. I then became officially vegetarian in 2010 but still messed up every now and then (i.e. didn't necessarily read all the ingredients in things like candy or yogurt and probably ate gelatin when I didn't realize it). I'm now a fairly strict vegetarian and working towards vegan (something I never thought I would be able to do). I found a few amazing vegan cookbooks and blogs and now I eat vegan at home but scale back to just veg when I eat at other peoples' houses or at restaurants that aren't particularly vegan friendly.

I hope that helps! It doesn't have to be done all at once. Can you imagine how much better off the world would be if everyone just ate vegetarian one day per week! Feel free to add me as a friend if you want to see what I typically eat.

mkwongh

The hubby mentioned going vegetarian recently, and since I don’t eat that much meat anyways, I thought I would join along. We are going to try meatless 6 days, and 1 day on the weekend if we want. I am very surprised how many options are out there that are quite tasty. Tomorrow I am trying a tofu stirfry I found online.

Good luck in your adventures

evansproudmama

Two years ago I decided to start by cutting out red meat and only eating fish, chicken and turkey after about six months I went into a full pescatarian lifestyle where I only consumed fish but I still ate eggs, cheese and other dairy products though I make sure that they are grass fed organic quality products. I stuck for that for a whole year and then brought meat back into my diet. This last December I found the clean eating lifestyle and focused more on the quality of food I was eating vs the type (ie low carb, no meat etc) and we dont eat processed foods very much at all anymore and the weight started falling off then i hit a nasty plateau (three weeks ugh) and didnt lose anything despite eating the same and exercising mildly so I decided to go back to a pescetarian lifestyle where i only ate fish and no other meats, i finally lost two pounds last week lol and feel pretty darn good. I found once i stopped telling myself that i couldnt have something and started saying that I didnt want it or even need it it made the process a lot easier.. if you don't prefer to go cold turkey then I would start with phasing out red meats and then go into just fish and decide if fish is something you want to keep in your diet.

Best of luck feel free to add me for support

crose24

I'm a former vegetarian, and I found that whether it works for you really depends on where you live, and what your lifestyle is like. I come from a very vegetarian-friendly city, but when I moved to a prairie town it was almost impossible to maintain. Being young and single, I eat out quite frequently, and very few restaurants had anything meatless at all on their menus; it was also really awkward whenever somebody invited me into their home for dinner. You also need to be really careful about what you are substituting for meat. A lot of people end up consuming a lot more carbs and a lot less protein, and they gain weight as a result, and/or end up with vitamin and iron deficiencies (this is why I had to stop). Also, a lot of meat substitutes are highly processed and full of wheat, soy, sodium and a bunch of artificial flavorings and preservatives. If you do it right vegetarianism can certainly be healthy and sustainable, but I would recommend doing your research first, then making a gradual transition, or simply reduce the amount of meat you eat without cutting it out all together.

dtucker4403

I have been a vegetarian for 4 years. I just quit eating meat one day and haven't gone back. I read the book "Skinny *****" and became more aware of what was really in some of the things I had been eating. I also really recommend reading Dr. Joel Fuhrman's book, "Eat to Live". For awhile I was a bad vegetarian, meaning I ate a lot of carbs and cheeses. This is just as bad as eating meat. Now I try to eat the majority of my food as fruits and veggies - and as many of them as possible raw. There are hundreds of places to find great vegetarian recipes, and going vegetarian is best if you like to cook. I don't know how you can do it if you eat out a lot. Not much healthy vegetarian food in restaurants.
Good luck. Hope you can do it.

smoofinator

I went "pescatarian" (sea creatures only) last year and it wasn't actually that hard. I have some good go-to "meaty" substitutes recipes that I fall back on from time to time, and I will cheat occasionally if I really want to (example: I'm getting chicken wings for my 30th birthday because that's what I've missed the most!). I think it helps that I really love seafood!

Like other posters I'd really recommend the slow approach. Good luck! Our furry and feathered friends will be thankful!