When/what made you go for the vegetarian/vegan lifestyle?

twinketta
twinketta Posts: 2,130 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I am a meat eater...bad me, for all you that are vegetarian/vegan.

But a lot of the time when I cook/eat meat I look at it and it makes me feel a little sick.

I don`t have a problem with eggs/cheese but the whole meat thing really affects me...but I am not sure I could live my life without eating meat?

Any suggestions?

Replies

  • CristinaL1983
    CristinaL1983 Posts: 1,119 Member
    I ate vegetarian for 3 years when I was 16-19. I read this book called "Mad Cowboy" and then I read "The Jungle" (don't read either if you already have a problem with meat :laugh: ) so I quite eating meat for a while. I tried to go vegan but I love eggs and cheese and milk too much.

    I went back to eating meat when I joined the Navy. The options at boot camp were kind of eat meat or become malnourished (no real protein options and not much in the way of healthy, tasty greens). I liked it because it exposed me to a bunch of different food options that I likely wouldn't have found otherwise. I do like meat and fish and would likely not go back to being vegetarian but there isn't anything wrong with trying it out for a while if you feel like it. IMO, you have to be a lot more careful with nutrition when you don't eat meat but it can be done.
  • pinky_pinkster
    pinky_pinkster Posts: 56 Member
    I'm a vegetarian and have been since 2005, mainly because I don't like the taste of meat and I found I was eating all the 'wrong' types of meat e.g. fast food! Gross. I really don't like cooking or touching meat but feel I should sometimes for my boyfriend - it's not fair for him that I always make veggie food as he loves meat.
    I don't crave meat at all, maybe give it a try for a week and see how it goes.....
  • BlackEyedPanda
    BlackEyedPanda Posts: 86 Member
    I became a vegetarian in late 90s and a vegan about a year ago. I did this because I think what the meat/dairy industry does to animals is horrifyingly wrong.
  • ZekeK
    ZekeK Posts: 7
    Most vegetarians and vegans don't care if you eat meat, OP. We have family and friends who eat it after all. ;)

    My reason is part religious/spiritual, part documentaries, and part just never really being into it. I used to eat whole racks of ribs by myself, and then one day the desire to eat it just quit. I think the reason we desire meat is for some of the nutrition and because my diet was more diverse and full I wasn't getting instinctual drives to seek out meat because I was getting the nutrients somewhere else.
  • twinketta
    twinketta Posts: 2,130 Member
    I think it is the whole animal thing that makes me feel a bit sickly...I bought some lamb and I moved in the supermarket from a leg to a shoulder and brought it home and felt really bad putting it in the roasting tray..it just seems so bad cooking animals...I already eat a lot of veggies, but I have the problem of once the meat (poor little animal is cooking) I want to eat it...

    Do you get over the whole craving meat thing eventually?
  • daffodilsoup
    daffodilsoup Posts: 1,972 Member
    I had been an off-and-on vegetarian for almost a decade, but about two and a half years ago, I did a lot of reading on the dairy and egg industries and decided that it just wasn't something I could support.

    I love vegan cooking and baking, and my soul just feels lighter since I've mad the decision to live compassionately. It is truly a part of who I am now.
  • daffodilsoup
    daffodilsoup Posts: 1,972 Member
    I think it is the whole animal thing that makes me feel a bit sickly...I bought some lamb and I moved in the supermarket from a leg to a shoulder and brought it home and felt really bad putting it in the roasting tray..it just seems so bad cooking animals...I already eat a lot of veggies, but I have the problem of once the meat (poor little animal is cooking) I want to eat it...

    Do you get over the whole craving meat thing eventually?

    I am one of those vegans that still thinks meat looks and smells delicious. The smell of a cooking pizza makes me salivate. It's something that will likely be with me forever. However, because I know how it got there, and the suffering that was involved in creating it, almost as quickly as I think "wow, that smells delicious", I also think about the suffering and pain involved in that one moment of gustatory pleasure. It just becomes not worth it, and not something that I want to contribute to.
  • v70t5m
    v70t5m Posts: 186 Member
    I am a meat eater...bad me, for all you that are vegetarian/vegan.

    But a lot of the time when I cook/eat meat I look at it and it makes me feel a little sick.

    I don`t have a problem with eggs/cheese but the whole meat thing really affects me...but I am not sure I could live my life without eating meat?

    Any suggestions?


    No, no, not bad you. Don't perpetuate that myth! Everyone's diet is their own choice and their own responsibility. My food choices have no impact on you and vice versa.

    However, if you don't like meat, why are you eating it? That is one of the reasons I cut it out of my diet. I didn't like the taste or texture or fat in meat. I just leave more for the meat eaters! :)

    10 years later, I don't miss it. I still buy meat for my dogs, and they eat it raw. The smell of cooking meat can turn my stomach.
  • EDesq
    EDesq Posts: 1,527 Member
    I am a meat eater...bad me, for all you that are vegetarian/vegan.

    But a lot of the time when I cook/eat meat I look at it and it makes me feel a little sick.

    I don`t have a problem with eggs/cheese but the whole meat thing really affects me...but I am not sure I could live my life without eating meat?

    Any suggestions?


    OK...Your BODY IS talking to YOU...LISTEN to it!!! I am there NOW; It first began with rejecting coffee after over 30 years of drinking it, then getting sick at the stomach with eating Salmon and chicken. I would say, ok, I'll eat maybe 2 or 3 oz of chicken with My dinner...I'd end up eating only everything else because just smelling the meat made me nauseated. Some people are SUPPOSED t o be Vegetarians, this is My feeling, and with those people it will not be forced. AS you get Healthier YOUR BODY WILL talk to you, LISTEN or you may go into Bad Health. Listen to your Body!

    ETA: Oh and Protein is EVERYWHERE...in Veggies, Seeds (Pumpkin Seeds, Sunflower...) and Nuts (Cashews, Walnuts, Almonds... Legumes) and the micro nutrients are through the roof !!! So when you hear these so called Vegetarians who load up on "Fake" protein bars and a bunch of fake "protein burgers" from morning star or the like, bye-pass them. Eat great whole grains (which are loaded with protein), loads of green leafy and colorful veggies, fruit, seeds, nuts, legumes...and have a BALL eating! Vegetables, nut, seeds, legumes are the BEST sources of GOOD Fats, Protein, Calcium, Micro-nutrients!!!
  • BlackEyedPanda
    BlackEyedPanda Posts: 86 Member
    I think it is the whole animal thing that makes me feel a bit sickly...I bought some lamb and I moved in the supermarket from a leg to a shoulder and brought it home and felt really bad putting it in the roasting tray..it just seems so bad cooking animals...I already eat a lot of veggies, but I have the problem of once the meat (poor little animal is cooking) I want to eat it...

    Do you get over the whole craving meat thing eventually?
    ¨
    Yes you do. After a while you don't associate meat as food, just corpses. Who would want to eat a corpse? Not very appetising ;) there are plenty of veggie versions of meats that taste really nice and people who used to eat a lot of meat before tend to consume them. They are often cheaper than real meat as well.
  • LittleMissDover
    LittleMissDover Posts: 820 Member
    I gave up eating meat around 6 months ago, I still eat dairy and fish, I'm not ready to give those up and not sure if I ever will TBH.

    My reasons were this. I have never liked the meat industry but the fact I liked meat was more important at that point and the meat substitutes I had tried years before were vile. I tried some of the newer substitutes and they're great AND much lower calorie and fat than meat which is a bonus in my weight loss quest!

    The boyfriend had a beefburger last night and I must admit it smelled really good and I wavered when he offered me a bite (I was starving waiting for my take away to be delivered!) but I said no and I really enjoyed my king prawn noodles.

    I personally would say take it one step at a time, cut out meat, then fish/seafood, then dairy if you want to go the whole hog, get used to one thing at a time.
  • Shadowknight137
    Shadowknight137 Posts: 1,243 Member
    Yes you do. After a while you don't associate meat as food, just corpses. Who would want to eat a corpse? Not very appetising ;)
    there are plenty of veggie versions of meats that taste really nice

    Because fake corpse is a much more enticing thought.

    1068020-image-shows-a-stainless-steel-knife-having-stabbed-red-apples.jpg

    MURDER I SAY.
  • anaquay
    anaquay Posts: 150 Member
    I've been a veggie all my life, simply because I don't like the texture or taste of it. Caused lots of problems for my parents as in the 60s they hadn't heard of vegetarianism but because eating flesh made me physically sick, they didn't force it on me. It's just a way of life for me now and I can't see myself ever eating it. I do, however, like my cheese so I could never be vegan.
  • gemmaleigh1989
    gemmaleigh1989 Posts: 241 Member
    I've been vegetarian for 23 years. My entire existence. I was obviously raised that way as my mum is vegetarian also but I always was given a choice.

    For me i remain vegetarian for a number of reasons. Animal cruelty is one. I don't care what anyone says, the way the majority of abbotoirs handle things is NOT humane. Even KFC is incredibly inhumane, chopping beaks off live chickens and pumping them full of steroids etc. Also, I see a cute lamb in a field, there's no way I can then sit down at dinner and eat it. My body is not a grave yard so I won't be putting animal carcasses in there.

    I do eat dairy however. I buy vegetarian cheese (rennet free) and free range eggs. I also make sure I get high quality milk and not home brand.

    I feel healthy and proud being vegetarian. I never try and force my views on anyone else but God it pisses me off when people judge me for it and tell me I "need" meat. Um NO! you do not need meat to be healthy! In fact it's usually the opposite!
  • anaquay
    anaquay Posts: 150 Member
    I buy the vegetarian cheese too, you can't tell the difference. I know exactly what you mean about being judged for your choice, I've been suffering that for 45 years. When I was in primary school I actually got the slipper off the headmaster for refusing to eat meat. Needless to say that when I told my dad all hell broke loose. I wasn't asked to eat it again :happy:
  • gemmaleigh1989
    gemmaleigh1989 Posts: 241 Member
    Yeah, it's annoying hey! I understand curiosity but when they full on try to start debates I get pissed off. I don't know why it has to be a such a big deal. They automatically think I'm a hippy or something and tell me I can't be getting enough protein. Well I can tell them I get over 100 grams of it each day, when I bet they wouldn't even know how much they get or what they SHOULD be getting for that matter!

    OP, call me bias but I say go for it. It might be hard giving it up, just like junk food or whatever but your body and mind will thank you for it.
  • cristina3980
    cristina3980 Posts: 44 Member
    I gave up meat/dairy/cheese for lent & now that lent is over, I started eating those things again & I must say I don't like how its making me feel:( I think I could live without meat but I love my cheese. So I say just try it for a few weeks & see how it makes you feel!
  • vegan4lyfe2012
    vegan4lyfe2012 Posts: 1,239 Member
    I was vegetarian for several years back in my teens, then went back to being an omnivore. I decided last year for Lent to do the Daniel Fast, which is basically vegan with a few additional restrictions. My body felt so good, that when Lent was over, I decided I was going to remain vegan. I had lost 20 lbs, too! Then, I started reading more and more vegan information and discovered all the cruelty involved and it set my decision in stone. I went "cold tofu" on February 22, 2012 and haven't looked back. I used to love love love my cheese and bacon. It took quite a few months to get over the cheese desires, but now I don't even care to have fake soy or rice cheese. My stomache turns now when I smell cooking meats and I've never cared for the faux meats since I knew what the real stuff tastes like. It's been quite an adventure...one that I wished I had embarked on a long time ago. I stick to whole foods and feel so much better. So, long story short (ha!) is that I went vegan for personal health reasons and remain vegan for compassionate reasons. If you are having the desire to try vegetarian or vegan, go for it! There's a plethora of information out there on the web and I applaud you :)
  • BarackMeLikeAHurricane
    BarackMeLikeAHurricane Posts: 3,400 Member
    I went vegetarian when I was 7. I just thought meat was gross so I didn't want to eat it. I still have no desire to eat meat so I continue to be vegetarian.
  • liittlesparrow
    liittlesparrow Posts: 209 Member
    I've been a vegetarian for almost a year now, and I find myself missing meat every now and then, but I also find myself looking in disgust at it. I don't like how the animal are treated and it's something I don't too much want to support, but I know just myself I don't make a huge difference. Also, I don't like the "unknowns" they tend to put in meat nowadays and I tend to make healthier choices knowing I won't eat meat.

    I don't judge others who do eat it though, that is their personal choice and it doesn't mean anything to me :) Plus, I still eat eggs and cheese and stuff so you get the point :p
  • ctheluck
    ctheluck Posts: 14 Member
    I have been educating myself on the food industry for a while and have been watching documentaries and reading. I have definitely cut back my meat and dairy consumption and am looking at growing more, buying eggs from local farmers who still actually let their chicks run around, and eating only the meat that we harvest ourselves such as salmon and moose meat.

    I think the one I watched that drove me in that direction the hardest was Vegucated. I have watched Food Inc, and Food matters, and they all have different focuses but Vegucated had the most immediate and long term effect on what I choose to eat.

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