Need to change my view of being a Man

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DRB2013
DRB2013 Posts: 9
in Motivation and Support
I want to be healthy. I'm considering going to a vegetarian diet. (Engine 2 Diet)

One of the problems and maybe a barrier to achieving good health in the past is that I can't identify with men who choose to be healthy.

I can't identify with being a vegetarian guy. The guy I've always been, has been the guy who likes hot dogs and beer. A good guy to share a juicy burger with. I don't look down on healthy guys, I just have a hard time seeing myself as one. I was brought up in area to think that they weren't real men. There is no logic to that, but the feeling exists. I have to change my worldview on what a "man" is. Easier said than done. Maybe this is just me whining, but a few weeks ago we were at a prime rib buffet with another family and my buddy was celebrating each trip to the beef station. I completely identified with that. Celebrating manhood by eating the roast beast. I can't be that guy anymore. I can't identify with the guy who asks the chef to prepare a vegetarian (or God forbid, a vegan meal). My buddies would torment that guy (probably behind his back) - I know its wrong, but that's my view. I have to give up that hold/view of the world


I have a hard time swaying my preferences and feelings. Healthy guys are men, they just aren't what I envision. I need to become one - I'm having a hard time trying to figure out how to reconcile my obviously flawed belief system. Has anyone else had to deal with this
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Replies

  • bdburch
    bdburch Posts: 127
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    Just wondering, why exactly are you considering a vegetarian diet? You can be perfectly healthy by still consuming meat (just look for lean meats).

    I just figure that even if you were to make the switch, if you truely feel this way about the lifestyle change, it may not stick.
  • Calantorntain
    Calantorntain Posts: 172 Member
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    Why don't you watch the documentary "Forks over Knives"? I have a problem with some of their scientific methodologies (and the way they present their findings), but there's a badarse vegetarian fire fighter in there who might inspire you. What is more badarse than a fireman?

    I suppose astronauts are more badarse. And look, there has been multiple of those!
    In fact, there have been several vegetarian astronauts. Lieutenant Colonel Timothy J. (TJ) Creamer, NASA Astronaut and Mission Specialist candidate, is a vegetarian. Astronaut Kalpana Chawla was a strict vegetarian. Dr. Janice Voss, another active astronaut with over 900 hours in space, is also a vegetarian.

    As for reframing you view of "manliness," you know what makes men men? Tools. Heck, it's what sets us apart from animals! You are a man, and your primary tool is your body. And this means you should maintain it. Who do you respect more: the craftsman with the well cleaned shop, filled with sharp saws and greased cogs, or the guy sitting around a messy garage with rusting equipment? Find what foods best prime your body for manly success. Smaller portions of leaner meat. Big, bad salads with all sorts of manly toppings. This is the fuel that gives you the energy to go out there and succeed.
  • Alex_is_Hawks
    Alex_is_Hawks Posts: 3,499 Member
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    i know lots of very healthy men who are MEN....

    we're talking hot, sex, MFKN men....who still love a beer, occasional cigar and burger....

    they just fit it in to their macros.

    jus sayin
  • RHSheetz
    RHSheetz Posts: 268 Member
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    I have met Vegans who are VERY unhealthy, and I have met meat eaters who are extremly healthy.

    I consider myself "healthy". I have no medical issues, I eat food that fuels my body and does not promote fat storage, I eat mostly single ingredient foods (with some exceptions), and i exercise failthfully. To me, that is being healthy, and Yes, I eat RED meat. I LOVE red meat.

    I think you need to think about this choice and share why you want to make it.
  • skinnyinnotime
    skinnyinnotime Posts: 4,141 Member
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    I don't understand, after reading your post, why you are thinking of becoming vegetarian?

    You can be healthy by eating meat/fish/seafood.
  • ash8184
    ash8184 Posts: 701 Member
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    I'm obviously not a guy, but I can identify with this because my boyfriend is looking to become more healthy, and he is the exact same way - beer drinking, steak loving, celebratory style.

    What I would tell you is that there are lots of men (manly, macho kinds of guys) who are vegan or vegetarian athletes - and by athlete, I mean Ironman-doing, record-setting, marathon-running, Olympian kinds of athletes. My bariatric surgeon is vegan, and he is about as manly as they get. What might be helpful to you is to get involved with a local running/biking/other athletic club and you'll meet men just like you who have managed to stay "that guy" and eat more healthfully. It doesn't make you any less of a guy to not eat meat, but I think you'll need to get used to it. Don't be afraid to have a beer and kick back every once in awhile too if that would help.

    Once your male friends see your health improving, they'll leave you alone :)

    Check this out: http://www.mnn.com/food/healthy-eating/photos/9-superstar-athletes-who-dont-eat-meat/fueled-by-vegetables
  • rickyll
    rickyll Posts: 188 Member
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    Just wondering, why exactly are you considering a vegetarian diet? You can be perfectly healthy by still consuming meat (just look for lean meats).

    I just figure that even if you were to make the switch, if you truely feel this way about the lifestyle change, it may not stick.

    Unfortunately, you're not 100% right about this statement. Yes, you can be healthy while eating meats, even fattier meats if you eat them occasionally. The problem is not in eating meat in itself, it's in eating the meat North America provides us. The cattle, pork, and chickens are, in most cases, pumped full of hormones to grow larger, produce more milk and meat. They are fed grains and other stuff that is not part of their natural diets etc. This ALL leads to us eating exactly what they eat and it's HORRIBLE for our bodies, especially the hormone crap they give the poor animals. I could go on for a while.

    I think, and please correct me if I'm wrong OP, but you're looking to get away from meat because it's hard and expensive to find healthy meat nowadays. You can get free-range chicken, but they yield less meat and are more expensive and are sometimes only available at specialty super markets. Hormone-free beef is pretty much impossible to get!

    BUT, going back to the question at hand: I was born in South America where BBQs are a weekly, family thing and beef is the staple. A meal isn't complete without some form of delicious dead animal. I still eat meat, just a lot less of it and I try going for the hormone-free stuff. All I can say is suck it up that your friends will make fun of you, be a man and do what you think is best for YOU, not for your friends (who cares what they say anyway?). In this case it seems that you're looking to opt for more veggies and less meat. Good!
  • Natihilator
    Natihilator Posts: 1,778 Member
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    I think you are over-thinking this.

    It's OK if you weren't meant to live a vegetarian lifestyle. I wasn't meant to either. You need to define what healthy means to YOU. It isn't just vegetables and calorie counting. It may be more about how you eat, than what you eat.
  • jonnythan
    jonnythan Posts: 10,161 Member
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    Unfortunately, you're not 100% right about this statement. Yes, you can be healthy while eating meats, even fattier meats if you eat them occasionally. The problem is not in eating meat in itself, it's in eating the meat North America provides us. The cattle, pork, and chickens are, in most cases, pumped full of hormones to grow larger, produce more milk and meat. They are fed grains and other stuff that is not part of their natural diets etc. This ALL leads to us eating exactly what they eat and it's HORRIBLE for our bodies, especially the hormone crap they give the poor animals. I could go on for a while.

    I think, and please correct me if I'm wrong OP, but you're looking to get away from meat because it's hard and expensive to find healthy meat nowadays. You can get free-range chicken, but they yield less meat and are more expensive and are sometimes only available at specialty super markets. Hormone-free beef is pretty much impossible to get!

    BUT, going back to the question at hand: I was born in South America where BBQs are a weekly, family thing and beef is the staple. A meal isn't complete without some form of delicious dead animal. I still eat meat, just a lot less of it and I try going for the hormone-free stuff. All I can say is suck it up that your friends will make fun of you, be a man and do what you think is best for YOU, not for your friends (who cares what they say anyway?). In this case it seems that you're looking to opt for more veggies and less meat. Good!

    Please, leave unsupported religious arguments out of this.
  • michellekicks
    michellekicks Posts: 3,624 Member
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    There is a whole range of dietary practice ranging from completely vegan/raw to celebrating gluttony of bacon... choose somewhere that makes you comfortable. You are not defined by your dietary patterns.

    Eat foods that fuel your body in a way that makes you feel good and that you enjoy.

    I'm more likely to be a meatatarian than a vegetarian... but I'd also never define a person by their meat consumption.

    You are a man because you are created that way. Be bold. Be strong. Be courageous. Take control. Decide. Do. Whatever you choose.
  • jonnythan
    jonnythan Posts: 10,161 Member
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    For the OP: just eat meat. Losing all that weight and increasing your activity levels are what's going to have a big impact on your health.

    Cutting out meat won't. And you won't stick with the new lifestyle if you're denying yourself stuff you want.
  • KANGOOJUMPS
    KANGOOJUMPS Posts: 6,472 Member
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    well you can do it,,
    there is NO VIEW of being a man,
    now, that is silly NONSENSE.
  • wmoomoo
    wmoomoo Posts: 159 Member
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    Vegetarian doesn't mean it's healthy. You have to make smart food choices to be healthy; you want to do something that you can do for the rest of your life not just for few weeks or few months. However, if you do want to become vegetarian, do some researches instead of blindly jumping into it.
  • billsica
    billsica Posts: 4,741 Member
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    I real man is just going to do it. Oh except for Alex, you wanna listen to her. ^^^

    I was a vegetarian for over 10 years. I still drank beer and I'd have shared my veggie burger. There great for BBQ's

    Why do you want to be a veggie and be healthy. I think that speaks to your manhood.
    for the record, I have to give up being a vegetarian for health reasons.
  • TomTomato
    TomTomato Posts: 223
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    Well, it's hard to be something you're not, especially if you don't desire to be like that. Is it something you want? For me, I can't ever see denying myself steak, bratwurst, meatballs, beer etc. Just consume in moderation and budget for them. Food is a fuel, but I also believe it is to be enjoyed.
  • MizTerry
    MizTerry Posts: 3,763 Member
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    Meat is sexy. :bigsmile:
  • NutellaAddict
    NutellaAddict Posts: 1,258 Member
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    Man up.
  • Anthonydaman
    Anthonydaman Posts: 854 Member
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    i know lots of very healthy men who are MEN....

    we're talking hot, sex, MFKN men....who still love a beer, occasional cigar and burger....

    they just fit it in to their macros.

    jus sayin
    You talking about me?
  • theCarlton
    theCarlton Posts: 1,344 Member
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    This is so much more complicated sounding than it needs to be.
  • 3shirts
    3shirts Posts: 294 Member
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    I agree with many of the above. Veggie isn't automatically more healthy. Cheese, cream, chocolate, chips - They are all vegetarian.
    Indeed if you are trying to make lifestyle changes, you want to make them small and gradual as that is far easier to stick to long term. Drop portion sizes a bit, avoid cheese on things, have a couple of beers less or switch to a nice scotch or spirits with diet mixers. These are easy changes.
    Same goes for exercise, do a bit more to start with and build it up gradually.

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