Anyone working toward going vegetarian?

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  • MorgueBabe
    MorgueBabe Posts: 1,188 Member
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    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
    adwilliams03 Posts: 147 Member
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    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
    Athijade Posts: 3,250 Member
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    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
    BrendaLee Posts: 4,463 Member
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    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
    sea_tern Posts: 5 Member
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    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
    mkwongh Posts: 279 Member
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    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
    evansproudmama Posts: 496
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    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
    crose24 Posts: 3
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    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
    dtucker4403 Posts: 47 Member
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    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
    smoofinator Posts: 635 Member
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    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!
  • angel_of_harmony
    angel_of_harmony Posts: 188 Member
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    I was pescatarian off and on for two years and really enjoyed it. I lost 20lbs but when I went back to eating meat I gained it back. I would like to slowly cut back the amount of meat I eat and eventually return to that lifestyle. Everyone has their own reasons, for me it is for my health. Although I support ethical treatment of animals.

    The spicy chick'n burgers made by bocca are really good as well as the pizza meatless burgers.
  • Garlicmash
    Garlicmash Posts: 208
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    I really want to stop eating chicken,I go most of the time with only eggs being the meat i ever eat,and i do have to say i couldn't imagine not eating eggs. I think pescetarian is more likely for me to end up.
    But I am eating chicken which other than an odd time of turkey has been the only land animal meats i have eaten for the last 17 years and I find i tend to eat less meats now than I did before apart from eggs.
    It is a goal in the back of my mind to completely rid it from my diet but I find it is best for me personly to not think of it to much or tell anyone my plans and then I tend to find my self doing what i set out for. I don't tell ppl i am trying to loose weight i do it with out saying anything to anyone and the same for the eating less meat as i don't eat much anyway and eat mostly vegetables,I seriously love vegetables.
  • themirandamarie
    themirandamarie Posts: 1
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    I actually went vegetarian at age 9 (Don't start with the "So unhealthy! Where were your parents? crap because they supported me and I went to a doctor regularly to make sure it was okay) And this may not work for you, but for me, just looking at videos of animals dying in a slaughter house did it for me. I started on morals ground, and that's why I'm still there, it's been 9 years and I don't crave meat at all anymore. It just becomes a part of your life. Think in moral terms, watch some PETA videos, you won't touch it.
  • DatMurse
    DatMurse Posts: 1,501 Member
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    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.
    I will let you know this about meat. I am not going to attack of you for going vegetarian w/e.

    The filling of meat(Even lean meat) is much more filling calorie for calorie than most fruits. It is easier for me to eat 300 calories of meat than it is to consume 300 calories of bananas to go for quite a time without eating.

    on top of that protein itself takes about 20-30% of its own calories just to process it into your system.
    So you would be consuming less calories technically.
  • DatMurse
    DatMurse Posts: 1,501 Member
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    I actually went vegetarian at age 9 (Don't start with the "So unhealthy! Where were your parents? crap because they supported me and I went to a doctor regularly to make sure it was okay) And this may not work for you, but for me, just looking at videos of animals dying in a slaughter house did it for me. I started on morals ground, and that's why I'm still there, it's been 9 years and I don't crave meat at all anymore. It just becomes a part of your life. Think in moral terms, watch some PETA videos, you won't touch it.
    I support animal rights. I buy range free meat, milk, and eggs if it is available for me. One of hte main reasons I love chipotle

    I am fine with the health of vegetarians or pescetarians. I do not support veganism(raw vegans especially).
    If people choose that lifestyle that is fine, but to claim it veganism is healthy is absurd).
    While you can obtain those vitamins from supplements. You shouldnt have to resort to supplements or fortified food(which pretty much has supplements added to it) to make sure you get adequate b12 in order for your diet to be healthy. On top of that you shouldnt have to be 100% dependent upon supplements to make sure your baby isnt born with a neurological problem

    My problem is if someone says it is healthier than being an omnivore.
  • sunshinestater
    sunshinestater Posts: 596 Member
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    I've seen the PETA videos and know what goes on in the slaughterhouses, and that's a huge factor in my decision to move toward vegetarianism. I've owned horses for decades and have been through the horse slaughter debate, and then I had to ask myself why it was so repugnant to me that people inhumanely slaughter and eat horses when I can happily eat a cow or chicken or other animal raised and killed inhumanely.

    It's taken me this long because I have Eastern European heritage, which meant growing up on things like blood sausage and hackepeter, a German dish that is basically ground raw filet with a raw egg. But it's getting easier with all the meat substitutes, and even though I don't plan to go vegan, good alternatives like almond milk are allowing me to still move away from some dairy products.

    I'm also lucky to live in a fairly veg-friendly area. I'm near Disney, and last year at the Food and Wine Festival they had their first-ever vegan booth. It was jam-packed with people, and I swear at least some of them had no idea the chili was vegan. I was at a media event there last week, and one person was vegetarian. At our French dinner in Epcot, I actually envied her the amazing meal they prepared.

    It's going to be an interesting journey, but it's something I've wanted to do for a long time, and I see it as a way of living more genuinely. I'm sure I'll always have a bit of a craving for meat like I was raised on, but I think I can make the leap.
  • wow29
    wow29 Posts: 283 Member
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    bump
  • DatMurse
    DatMurse Posts: 1,501 Member
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    I've seen the PETA videos and know what goes on in the slaughterhouses, and that's a huge factor in my decision to move toward vegetarianism. I've owned horses for decades and have been through the horse slaughter debate, and then I had to ask myself why it was so repugnant to me that people inhumanely slaughter and eat horses when I can happily eat a cow or chicken or other animal raised and killed inhumanely.

    It's taken me this long because I have Eastern European heritage, which meant growing up on things like blood sausage and hackepeter, a German dish that is basically ground raw filet with a raw egg. But it's getting easier with all the meat substitutes, and even though I don't plan to go vegan, good alternatives like almond milk are allowing me to still move away from some dairy products.

    I'm also lucky to live in a fairly veg-friendly area. I'm near Disney, and last year at the Food and Wine Festival they had their first-ever vegan booth. It was jam-packed with people, and I swear at least some of them had no idea the chili was vegan. I was at a media event there last week, and one person was vegetarian. At our French dinner in Epcot, I actually envied her the amazing meal they prepared.

    It's going to be an interesting journey, but it's something I've wanted to do for a long time, and I see it as a way of living more genuinely. I'm sure I'll always have a bit of a craving for meat like I was raised on, but I think I can make the leap.
    Honestly if you could buy range free animals I dont see why you wouldnt be in support of animal rights.
    Technically buying range free products will increase the demand and it will eventually be cheaper.

    Eating an animal is one thing, torturing it is another
  • Littlemissjackie1
    Littlemissjackie1 Posts: 122 Member
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    I stopped cold turkey and didn't consume any meat for an entire month. The transition wasn't tough for me and I didn't have any meat cravings because I never really consumed a lot of meat to begin with. What sucked for me, was the lack of support. I told my entire family, coworkers, friends ect and when we would do dinner, they would make my plate and pile on the meat or I got ridiculed. So my motivation sort of ceased. Now I just eat chicken about once a week or every two weeks. I do want to stop eating all together, and familiarize myself with more recipes so I can try it out again. I want to make the change for health reasons.
  • sunshinestater
    sunshinestater Posts: 596 Member
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    I can actually get free range eggs here (the real thing at a family farm, not the bogus debeaked store brands) and fresh milk. I know of local butchers, too, but have never pursued that since veg is my goal. Local sourcing is getting big around here, and the small farms are much more humane so I really hope the demand will have a positive impact on humane production. I love driving around and seeing cows out in real pastures, just being cows. We have an amazing number of them right around Disney World because of the big agriculture tax break.

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