Looking for former vegetarians

sunn_lighter · May 2015

I have been a vegetarian for 20+ years and while for a long time I thought it worked well for me and my body, I am coming around to the idea that being a vegetarian is negatively impacting my health. Im not saying that's true for all vegetarians/vegans, but I'm a bit of an outlier when it comes to health issues. In particular think the lack of protein, B-12, bad reactions to soy, and the tendency for vegetarian diets to be high-carbohydrate are all hurting my body. At the very least, considering the medical cr*p I'm dealing with, I owe it to myself to give eating meat a try just to see if it makes a difference.

After being vegetarian for so long, I have a pretty severe aversion to meat. I think I will try making meat based broths and work up from there. If there are any former vegetarians out there, I'd like to know how you transitioned into eating meat again and what (if any) changes you experienced in your body/life.

RodaRose · May 2015

Do you eat eggs and dairy?

crazyjerseygirl · May 2015

I was a veggie for 17 years. I switched because my son made me anemic for whatever reason!

I actually started out buying direct from small farms. I could see the animals and talk to the farmers. When I told them about my situation they gave me a little tour to meet the meat.

It was a bit weird but it helped me know that what I was eating had a good existence till the end. I've branched out since then (I can't afford them for all my stuff) but that helped me start.

And remember, if it doesn't work for you, you can always go back.

Also, avoid bacon. It's just a salty mess, bleh!

azulvioleta6 · May 2015

I was a pescatarian for about 20 years. I've been eating meat for about 5 years. I still don't eat beef and have only recently started to eat some pork. I mostly consume chicken and turkey.

I just can't handle the carbs of a typical veggie diet, and I can't get enough calories and protein without meat.

krupskaya · May 2015

I've been a veggie for 25 years before becoming a pescetarian (I a eat fish). This gives me plenty of extra grams of protein in my diet as well as being super tasty. Is that an option for you OP?

KetoGirl83 · May 2015

I was a vegetarian since my teens, with some macrobiotic and vegan thrown in. I never wanted to believe that my problems could be due to being vegetarian. Mostly I didn't feel "ill", even though the lbs kept pilling. I think I had forgotten what it means to feel good. I just didn't want to eat meat, I was not someone that would eat meat.

All changed when I was diagnosed diabetic. Due to family history I knew diabetes is a very serious disease that can end badly. I went online to search for info and alternatives to medication and found LCHF and then MFP. I tried vegetarian LCHF but I don't especially like cheese and there's a limit to the number of avocados one can eat. So I started eating meat within a balanced LCHF diet and the results have been so amazing that I will keep to it likely for the rest of my life. Effortless weight loss, more energy, never hungry and, best of all, glucose numbers on the high side of normal without medication (and getting lower). All my health markers have improved, even the critical HDL and B12 that were dangerously low.

I still don't exactly "like" meat (and for the life of me can't understand the appeal of bacon) but I eat it because I can see and feel the good it's doing to my body. The way I see it, it's better to eat meat, be healthy and have diabetes controlled without medication than to be a sick vegetarian, forever dependent on growing medication.

Best of luck with your transition!

::flowerforyou::

Numberwang22 · May 2015

I was vegetarian for 15 years or so but slackened off when organic/free range became easier to get hold of. I did find though issues in being able to digest meat at first, like I had lost the enzymes to deal with it...?! I had a lot of stomach pain/discomfort eating meat but eventually went away.

I prefer not to eat too much meat & cheese is currently giving me same issues, so almost thinking a pescatarian veg option may suit me better.

Ketogirl - sounds like you've done well with your choices

Mediocrates55 · May 2015

Former and current vegetarian here. I stopped eating meat at 12 and didn't again until my 20's when I got pregnant. Then one day I looked at a cheeseburger, thought "My God, that looks divine" and sat down and demolished it. My youngest is 6 tomorrow and I'm having continued stomach problems that only go away when I remove meat from my diet. Been meat-free again for about a month and already my stomach is feeling better and I'm not gacking up blood between meals and rolling around the bed in pain. Yay!

TL;DR
Former veg, dove straight back into meat with no problem, stopped eating it again.

goaliesmate · May 2015

I stopped eating meat for years but continued with eggs, fish and dairy proteins. Now I add a portion or 2 of beef every week plus lamb about 3 times a month. Other days alternate between fish and chicken with more fish as I often have tinned fish for lunch. I was worried that I was not eating enough meat to supply protein. MFP shows me that with all the vegetables added in I am well within recommended protein every day, with most days being over minimum thanks to eating back activity calories.

lemonlionheart · May 2015

I was a strict vegetarian for 5 years, and this year have begun to be a little more flexible in my diet. I was vego for ethical reasons relating to the environment and sustainability. I was never one to judge others who chose to eat meat and always felt that it was ok to kill an animal for food- it was more the factory farms I was against. I'm a bit of a foodie who loves trying new things, so my new philosophy on eating allows for trying something when I eat out even if it contains meat, and eating food that my friends and family cook for me without demanding that they make me something vegetarian. I still eat mostly vegetarian at home, though while trying to lose weight I have made a further allowance for tuna and salmon so that I can have more protein options without the carbs. I think that many people see vegetarianism as an 'all or nothing' thing or a restriction, but I feel that it is jut as valid to have a preference for vegetarian eating based on ethical reasoning without it being a hard rule.

titania_one · May 2015

I was vegetarian for a long time, and now just eat fish (truthfully I just don't like any other meat). I do also eat dairy and the occasional egg. But fish/seafood might be something to try for you? Protein, good fats, tends to be leaner (assuming you cook it right LOL). I don't feel too different (I didn't go back to meat for health reasons but really just because I really craved fish) but did notice my cholesterol levels improved significantly once I added fish. Edit: I see you say fish gives you a headache. Can you try freshwater fish? Might be easier on you. Good luck.

kshama2001 · May 2015

I have a reverse aversion. I was involuntarily mostly vegetarian for three years from 2001-2004 while I lived in yoga communities and to this day I cannot stand soy. It took me 11 years before I could eat oatmeal again. I have to cook the hell out of it. Maybe that would help you too - try using meat in very small pieces in soup that has been cooked a long time. I like your idea of starting with meat broth.

Also try it in very small pieces in stir fries.

An interesting thing about my Thai cookbook - 8 oz of beef is supposed to serve 4 in the Pad Sei Ew (Street Noodles) recipe and 1/2 C of pork in the pork fried rice (2 cups cooked rice, 1.5 C veggies) is also supposed to serve 4. This low proportion of meat is consistent throughout the cookbook. So maybe think Thai portions of meat rather than American.

kshama2001 · May 2015

I have a great deal of respect for vegetarians and especially vegans but unfortunately I just didn't feel good eating this way. These days, I strive to be a humane-i-tarian - http://www.humaneitarian.org

Orphia · May 2015

azulvioleta6 wrote: »

I was a pescatarian for about 20 years. I've been eating meat for about 5 years. I still don't eat beef and have only recently started to eat some pork. I mostly consume chicken and turkey.

I just can't handle the carbs of a typical veggie diet, and I can't get enough calories and protein without meat.

Similar to me, except I was pescetarian for 12 years (on the rare occasion I ate chicken) and have been eating meat for 16 years. Seafood is still my favourite meat, but I eat the occasional spaghetti bolognese or cheeseburger. And bacon.

I started eating meat because I was sick of feeling tired all the time, and sick of being so picky about my food.

OP, have you tried eating chicken? Being white meat, it's a bit like fish or tofu.

The first meat I ate other than chicken was a pork chop.

SpicyBaconCake · May 2015

I was a vegetarian for 7 years "back in the day" and played vegan at summer rainbow gatherings.
When I went back to eating meat, red meat just upset my tummy soooo bad. So I started with fish, then chicken, worked in some pork, now I love a steak!
Just keep paying attention to your body and act accordingly

FIT_Goat · May 2015

I was a vegetarian, nearly a decade ago, for almost three years. That may or may not be a meaningful amount of time. I pretty much jumped right back into meat eating. I think I had a pound or more of meat the first day I decided to eat meat again. And two servings were gas station hot dogs. LOL

I didn't have any more gastric distress than I had already been suffering from the vegetarian diet. Actually, I felt really good. The hardest part was explaining it to the people around me. I knew what I was doing was right for me and made me feel good. I didn't really lose any of the weight I put on. I went back from vegetarianism to pretty much the standard garbage that everyone else was eating. I didn't know better, I just knew that it was better than what I had been doing.

Now, I've swung pretty far to the other extreme. I guess my only advice would be to listen to your body when you eat.

MimiMayRR · June 2015

I was veggie for about 8 years, although I still occasionally ate meat at family gatherings where I didn't have much of a choice. I started eating meat again because I got really sick and the only thing I could imagine eating, for like several weeks, was chicken soup. So I started by making a really good homemade chicken soup (bone broth and all) and then eased back into eating other meats as well.

Part of me still really wishes I could be veggie again. I hate thinking about eating meat, I don't like messing with it while cooking, and I usually enjoy veggies and grains more anyway. But when I was veggie, I was anemic, obese, and had really high cholesterol. Now I'm not anemic, I'm overweight (but not obese, and getting closer to the normal range every week) and have close to normal cholesterol. I'm sure some of this could have been solved through changes to my eating/exercise patterns even as a vegetarian, but now I have Crohn's disease and can't eat beans, legumes, some grains, or any soy products. When I'm flaring I'm also really limited in what types of fruits, nuts, and veggies I can eat, and how they need to be prepared. So, being a vegetarian just really isn't sustainable or healthy for me anymore.

It sounds like you are transitioning well, so I would just stay stick with things that are really appealing to you at first, and buy meat that you feel better about consuming (for me, that's wild-caught seafood, and as much certified humane/pastured/grass-fed/organic meat and poultry as my budget will allow). And when you are a little turned off by eating meat, just try to focus on all the reasons you decided to start eating it again and the nutritional benefits it will give you. It will get easier in time! Best of luck!

tekkiechikk · June 2015

Numberwang22 wrote: »

I was vegetarian for 15 years or so but slackened off when organic/free range became easier to get hold of. I did find though issues in being able to digest meat at first, like I had lost the enzymes to deal with it...?! I had a lot of stomach pain/discomfort eating meat but eventually went away.

I prefer not to eat too much meat & cheese is currently giving me same issues, so almost thinking a pescatarian veg option may suit me better.

Same here. Was vegetarian for 8 years and just recently started eating meat again, however I make it a point to only eat free range/grassfed/wild game. I still avoid cheese and most dairy, and am selective about the type of fish I'll eat, too. I'm not even sure how good the processed Morningstar, Boca, etc. products are for my body, anyway.

I still eat mainly vegetarian but have incorporated meat into my meals about twice a week. It's definitely helped me ease off the carbs, which was a big part of my diet.

Looking for former vegetarians

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