cutting meats off diet?

I gave up eating meat on Jan 1st and I have to tell you I feel amazing!!! You really do need to feel open to trying new things For example I love beans which is something I never ate before. There are so many amazing veggie cook books out there it like a whole new world. Haha Just have fun with it and make sure you don't just fill up on too many carbs.

Best of Luck

and meat stays in the body a LOT longer which is why ppl feel so full from it...and since it has almost no fiber it moves incredibly slow through your system....so when you eat less meat and more plant based foods your system handles it better and is healthier for it

I dont tend to eat much meat (unless I go out for food) I got food poisening a while back and dont cmpletly trust myself cooking it anymore, I eat a lot of the meat subsitutes like quorn and its really good, quite good for you too!

I'm not a vegetarian, but like to consider myself an honorary one, even more so now. I will eat grilled chicken if it's prepared for me, but I don't make it myself because I think it's kind of disgusting. I've been working on getting my protein from other sources. I eat a lot of Boca/Morning Star veggie burgers, which I actually find really delicious. Also, you can get a lot of protein from greek yogurt, soy products (soymilk, etc), tofu, etc. I've started eating protein enriched bars as well to get it all in.

Do a search for vegetarian. You will be overloaded with info.
Great news, you can still be mostly vegetarian and still eat seafood. (Perscaterian)
not sure what you call someone who eats tukrey too.. Omnivore?.

Clean eating is definitely good for the body. . and if you want meat a few times a week. . then I would say go organic. . . I currently only eat fish if I am going to eat meat. .

Pescatarian. . And yes. . I understand what you mean about your body processing it easier. . .There is a lot of information as someone else stated on vegetarianism online. . There are also a number of vegetarians and vegans on this site. . So if you use the search function on MFP and type either one of those in. . you should find some info. . Good luck hon.:bigsmile:

I eat about a 70% vegetarian diet at the moment, with plans to eventually switch over to a 90% vegan diet.

It shouldn't be hard to get all of the nutrients you need by cutting out most meat from your diet. As long as you don't fill up on junk food or processed food, and instead go for more plants, beans, nuts, seeds, and whole grains, you should be fine. One thing I worry about is B12. This is something that comes from the soil in the plants that we used to be able to get from just plants. Now that we clean off our produce so much, we no longer really get B12 this way. The only reason why meat is now a source of B12 is because the animals eat those plants, including some of the soil. But, there are a lot of non-dairy B12 fortified "milks" out there-- almond, coconut, and soy are usually the ones fortified with B12.

The other things that people say you should worry about, like iron and calcium, really are myths. I get plenty of both. In fact, I tend to go over the minimum daily value recommendation of these, even on my vegan days. Protein is personally difficult for me because I don't really eat tofu, tempeh, seitan, or a whole lot of fake meat products made with soy. I am going to try adding a vegan protein powder to help with this though. Since you're still going to include meat, and it sounds like you're still going to eat dairy, I think you should be fine with this.

Good luck! :flowerforyou:

I am not anti-meat but you can definitely find other sources of protein, lentils, legumes, nuts, etc etc ad nauseum (sp)

The other things that people say you should worry about, like iron and calcium, really are myths. I get plenty of both. In fact, I tend to go over the minimum daily value recommendation of these, even on my vegan days.

Like anything, that depends of the person. I'm a vegetarian and it's not a myth for me that I need to make sure I'm getting enough iron in my diet. If I don't, I become very sleepy and that makes it difficult to function. It doesn't hurt to keep track of those things to make sure it's not an issue in your diet.

True, but I think it depends more on the diet than the person. Junk food vegans and vegetarians would likely not get enough iron or calcium. So of course it doesn't hurt to keep track, but I meant that as a vegetarian or vegan, it is quite easy to get enough of these nutrients if you're eating a whole-foods, plant-based diet, and if you're consuming enough calories. Obviously, if someone is worried about it, there are supplements out there.

I'm a vegan and feel that you can get enough protein from plant based foods. Check out my blog for recipe ideas. They are not my recipes but recipes I tried and LOVED.

....I LOVE making and eating black bean burgers! and lentil sloppy joes!

Any way you have recipes for these? Sounds great! I'm not creative enough to figure them out on my own....

Sometimes I find it hard to get sufficient calcium so I've begun taking a calcium/magnesium supplement. Its the only vitamin I take though and I've been vegan 11 months so far.
I think you CAN definitely have a healthy balanced diet. I would be sure to read up on it though to make sure you are eating things that will give you all of the proper nutrition you need, just like with any other diet.
Try The Kind Diet by Alicia Silverstone! She also has a website called the Kind Life, where she posts really good info, recipes, etc.

i actually did make the lentil sloppy joes and they were yummy I just copied that part from a msg i sent someone else lol