becoming a vegetarian...

Another great book is called "Okay, so now you're a Vegetarian" by Lauren Butts. It gives a lot of information about good sources of various nutritional requirements as well as some general definitions of words that new veggies may not know (such as what tempeh and quinoa actually). There are some awesome recipes in there. The first time I dropped meat, it was a life saver for me. Now I have a little larger budget and own my own kitchen and I rely on "Vegetarian Planet" by DiDi Emmons. It has a few more exotic ingredients and assumes that you can cook, but it's also got a bunch of recipes, so you can pick and choose. Many mainstream cookbooks, such as some of the Rachael Ray titles have options to alter the recipe to leave out the meat or may have a vegetarian section. It takes a bit of work sometimes, but that's part of why I like being a vegetarian. Sometimes we have to plan ahead and that makes me make better choices, before I would find myself eating Cheeseburgers and chicken wings because I had no real rules about what I would or would not eat. :drinker:

I have been a vegetarian all my life (vegetarian parents) and right now I'm thinking the opposite. I want to start eating meat so I can increase my protein, have a more balanced diet and lose weight.

I would say: DO NOT become a vegetarian only because you think it will help you lose weight. It probably won't. If you have moral or emotional objections to meat or you want to be healthier (which is different than losing weight) or if you think that vegetarianism is more environmentally sustainable, fine. But simply being a vegetarian will not automatically make you lose weight.

If you want to be a vegetarian, you need to be prepared to:

1. shop at multiple stores & spend more time shopping - ALDI is my one stop shop for the rest of my family. Then, for my food I have to go to Wal-mart and sometimes yet another store to find soy products, TVP, veggie burgers, etc.

2. spend more money on food - prepared foods like frozen dinners cost way more when they're marketed to "vegetarians." It's five bucks for four Boca burgers, or four morning star corndogs. My weekly food budget for me is easily double that of my meat eating finace.

3. deal with people - besides the constant questioning about WHY you're a vegetarian, people will also ask "do vegetarians eat chicken?" and other stupid questions. My extended family also makes me feel bad by trying to accomodate me at family dinners, which usually results in them making something either really nasty or really unhealthy that I then have to eat and pretend to like.

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We were created to eat meat. Our eyes are in the front of our head and we have canine teeth.

True...but God also gave us free will. We have the option to eat meat or not. Animals go by instincts not reasoning.

Bravo! Love you response!! Yes, we have the teeth but if you use that logic you would then believe that we cannot go above and beyond how we were born? Then those who were born heavy shouldnt even try??? .... Im fine with people who think differently and eat differently, just interesting how the train of thought inst really though out just regurgitated back...

Thank you. The truth is simple...it's the acceptance that takes time.

Hi all,

I'm vegan so even dairy and eggs are out, which really limits eating out in most restaurant. Hemp seed are a complete protien with 11gr of it in 2 tbsp, at 160 calories, not to mention omega fatty acids. I put them in my cereal or as the protien in smooties, just blend them in. They took a little getting use to so start out small, now I love them. I just started on this website and I always wondered if I was getting enough protien. I have hit or gone over my protien everyday so far. Everything has protien in it, it just depends how much. I don't think just becoming vegetarian will make you lose weight, it is a matter of calories in vs calories out, just like the meat eaters.

I have been a vegetarian all my life (vegetarian parents) and right now I'm thinking the opposite. I want to start eating meat so I can increase my protein, have a more balanced diet and lose weight.

I would say: DO NOT become a vegetarian only because you think it will help you lose weight. It probably won't. If you have moral or emotional objections to meat or you want to be healthier (which is different than losing weight) or if you think that vegetarianism is more environmentally sustainable, fine. But simply being a vegetarian will not automatically make you lose weight.

If you want to be a vegetarian, you need to be prepared to:

1. shop at multiple stores & spend more time shopping - ALDI is my one stop shop for the rest of my family. Then, for my food I have to go to Wal-mart and sometimes yet another store to find soy products, TVP, veggie burgers, etc.

2. spend more money on food - prepared foods like frozen dinners cost way more when they're marketed to "vegetarians." It's five bucks for four Boca burgers, or four morning star corndogs. My weekly food budget for me is easily double that of my meat eating finace.

3. deal with people - besides the constant questioning about WHY you're a vegetarian, people will also ask "do vegetarians eat chicken?" and other stupid questions. My extended family also makes me feel bad by trying to accomodate me at family dinners, which usually results in them making something either really nasty or really unhealthy that I then have to eat and pretend to like.

I've been a Vegetarian for about 7 years (on and off vegan), and I understand wanting to eat meat to up your protein levels but it sounds like (from the advice you offered) that you eat alot of processed foods. If that is the case then all 3 of your points are valid ones.

However, I only shop at the health food store for things like Nutritional Yeast or exotic ingredients like chinese five spice or umeboshi plums...ect. Everything else I find at either a local supermarket or Walmart. So I don't have to make multiple stops.

Also because I prepare most of my food myself, I don't spend a ton of money on food. (as a struggling college student, i would know) I make lots of yummy food for a fraction of the price of Amy's frozen dinners or Kashi's food (which by the way is pretty gross to me)... Soaking dried beans to make soups, stews, chilli, curries, dips etc. is just one way to save. A bag of dried beans is less than a buck.

And lastly, you can't allow others to run your life for you. I get the dumb questions (multiple times from the same people, lol) "Why don't you eat fish?" "..but chicken isn't meat, it's poultry!", lmao. I have eaten a plate of side dishes at restaurants so many times is not even funny. I have had family members take me out to eat and bring me to a steakhouse (no lie). It's about why you do it.

If you are really passionate about the reasons why you choose to give up meat, that should outweigh the stupidity of others....