FORMER VEGETARIANS- Can I be helped?

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  • jam3sblond3
    jam3sblond3 Posts: 9 Member
    For the iron... there's no need to get some expensive supplement, just go to Smith's or wherever and find the WHEAT Chex cereal. One serving is 80% of your daily iron and I find it really easy to eat 2 or 3 servings. I personally eat it because it's high in carbs and the iron is just icing on the cake. However, I'm told that it tastes like cardboard... I don't really care though because it isn't hard to stomach and you get used to the taste. Plus the milk you add to it is gives you a decent balance between carbs, fat, and protein along with iron, potassium, and calcium that is really perfect to start off your day.

    As for the meat... really you should just buck up and do it. What do you think your ancestors thought when they saw a vein or some fat? Nothing. They didn't care. Veins are actually more iron dense than the meat surrounding, and fat is a macro nutrient and nothing to be afraid of. I'll agree that the fat texture is somewhat disconcerting, but it disappears if you just cut smaller pieces and get a little a-1 or barbecue sauce. Plus, cutting smaller pieces of meat will not only cut down the time to chew (reducing the time that you feel the fat texture), but it will also make you feel more full. Also... if your afraid of the "blood" and that turns off your appetite, you'll be happy to know that it isn't blood. You can Google it if you like, but I've watched/read several things about meats and the most common thing outlined is the misconception about "bloody" meat and the vegetarian hysteria that ensues.

    One more tip... go on a nice long distance run... right after you start getting hungry. After the run, meat will have never tasted so good, fat veins and all.
  • rbfdac
    rbfdac Posts: 1,057 Member
    jam3sblond3 wrote: »
    For the iron... there's no need to get some expensive supplement, just go to Smith's or wherever and find the WHEAT Chex cereal. One serving is 80% of your daily iron and I find it really easy to eat 2 or 3 servings. I personally eat it because it's high in carbs and the iron is just icing on the cake. However, I'm told that it tastes like cardboard... I don't really care though because it isn't hard to stomach and you get used to the taste. Plus the milk you add to it is gives you a decent balance between carbs, fat, and protein along with iron, potassium, and calcium that is really perfect to start off your day.

    As for the meat... really you should just buck up and do it. What do you think your ancestors thought when they saw a vein or some fat? Nothing. They didn't care. Veins are actually more iron dense than the meat surrounding, and fat is a macro nutrient and nothing to be afraid of. I'll agree that the fat texture is somewhat disconcerting, but it disappears if you just cut smaller pieces and get a little a-1 or barbecue sauce. Plus, cutting smaller pieces of meat will not only cut down the time to chew (reducing the time that you feel the fat texture), but it will also make you feel more full. Also... if your afraid of the "blood" and that turns off your appetite, you'll be happy to know that it isn't blood. You can Google it if you like, but I've watched/read several things about meats and the most common thing outlined is the misconception about "bloody" meat and the vegetarian hysteria that ensues.

    One more tip... go on a nice long distance run... right after you start getting hungry. After the run, meat will have never tasted so good, fat veins and all.

    I almost hurled just reading this.
  • robbienjill
    robbienjill Posts: 456 Member
    A B12 supplement helps me...
  • Traveler120
    Traveler120 Posts: 712 Member
    rbfdac wrote: »
    teanahk wrote: »
    I quit being a vegetarian a few months ago when I realized I was only getting around 40 grams of protein on what I thought was a good day. I didn't have any stomach problems with the switch and I basically jumped on with a rack of ribs.

    I still find the thought of cooking meat to be too icky so I compromise by mainly eating vegetarian at home and eating delicious meaty things when we go out. I do keep some frozen precooked turkey meatballs to add to dinner if my protein for the day seems a bit low.

    I found chicken breast, ham, sandwich meat, bacon, meatballs, pepperroni, sausages and burgers to be the easiest to eat to start with. I do still occasionally get grossed out by chicken with bones in it. Shudder.

    I agree with some previous posters that you can probably get enough protein as a vegetarian, I just found it to be kind of a pain in the butt to manage that while in a calorie deficit.

    I will quote what a PP said above--- I'm too lazy to be a vegetarian. Sure, I can get the protein and iron I need while being a vegetarian, but it's a lot of planning and cooking! I want to eat meat-- that's easy!

    I ate a piece of ham the other night and got it down, but chewed like a dog the whole time because I didn't want to feel the texture. I got some thin sliced deli ham that I think I'm going to try to eat as well. Sigh...

    So rather than the 'tedious' process of opening a bag of spinach or a can of black beans and pouring it into a pan, you'd rather put up with eating something that disgusts you and is hard to get down? Strange.

    Also, FYI, if you're eating ham for the iron,
    spinach has 16% iron/cup
    black beans have 25% iron/cup
    ham has 7% iron/cup

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