Any ex vegans or vegetarians out there?

I was vegetarian for 17 years, and vegan for one year. I just started eating meat again about six months ago and LOVE it. It didn't make any particular difference to my weight loss (I was losing about 5lbs a month before, and that continued), but I think the way I eat is way better and I have more energy for it.

Benefits include going into a restraurant and being able to consider the WHOLE menu when ordering (so much easier to find something healthy). Also its much easier to eat a lot of protein, particular in snacks (I eat a lot of plain chicken or turkey for small snacks through the day).

Definitely have no regrets, and so glad I have switched back to eating meat after so long.

I didn't have a taste for it for a while, but by gradually incorporating it in small amounts to keep my digestive track from protesting, I started to enjoy the taste of it.

I was a vegetarian for almost three years, but have to say I am much more happy now eating meat. I do not eat beef or pork, well I eat pork once a year. I do eat chicken, seafood, and turkey. Once I stopped eating beef I felt much better. However, I just could not do without meat entirely for the rest of my life. Also many people eat too much bad food regardless of whether or not they are a vegan or vegetarian. I knew a girl in college who was a vegetarian, and she ate so much pasta and junk food while I was eating meat and was more healthy than she was. It definitely takes some getting use to, especially the guilt. Till this day if I eat the tiniest bit of beef or pork I feel bad, but as long as you make sure your body is getting what it needs you should be fine.

bump

I've been a vegetarian for the last 4 and a half years, although since starting working out and running I have re introduced fish into my diet. I feel great and much more satisfied when eating :-) I tend to stick to tuna or wild salmon but will have shell fish and oily fish like mackerel etc....
Good Luck!

MisLaxCore, I have no idea how I am still alive. If there was ever a catastrophe I would be the first one to go.

For everyone else. I have Gastroparesis and Celiacs and hormonal imbalances

I CANNOT EAT
GLUTEN, RICE, SOY, CITRUS. I am allergic to all of these.

I HAVE A SENSITIVITY TO
BEANS, QUINOA, LENTILS

And when I say I sensitivity I mean I break out into rashes and hives that last days.

I have to avoid dairy because the hormones are too much on my system and cause me to miss periods or give me periods so heavy I faint.

I have been living off of fruits and vegetables and cannot eat enough to stay full. I feel dizzy and exhausted.

Sorry my first post missed the point. I've edited it, but here's my latest ideas again. If you'd like to stay away from meat, you may want to look into:
1 hemp or pea protein powder
2 probiotics
3 acupressure to relieve food allergies

I hope this was more helpful
4 maybe see a naturopath?

Those are some good suggestions. There is also organic brown rice protein powder. You can have coconut milk. My son is allergic to gluten/wheat/soy/citrus/egg/dairy and I don't eat gluten or dairy either. I would bulk up on nuts and protein powders and use almond/coconut milks. probiotics/digestive enzymes/l-glutamine are a stomach's and stomach issue's best friends.

Personally I could never be vegetarian again because of my thyroid. I tried it one more time via a diet my old naturapathic doc put me on and we tested thyroid before, and three months after, my thyroid was perfect then went HAYWIRE from the soy/vegetarian stuff and not getting enough good fats and/protein and keeping it low carb. That's just how my body works. I still don't love beef, but I do have to eat it from time to time for the iron, as my whole family runs low on it.

Former lacto-vegan for 4-5 years (I did this thinking it would make me immune to illness as well as lose fat) converted to omnivore 3 years...I regret nothing because I did what's optimal for my health. I combined what I knew about human physiology with what I learned about nutrition while being vegan to realize that the diet just is not natural or optimal for health.

Well, actually, I regret the time wasted being vegan, but got a valuable lesson out of it, so it was still a mixed experience for me.

The ethically raised ones have a pretty good life. The cattle get to drink yummy warm milk, then play in the fields with their friends and eat delicious green grass for three years.

Just an fyi companies can label their meat as "free range" or "ethical" but it's still not this fantasy you're imagining.
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), "free-range" beef, pork, and other non-poultry products are loosely defined as coming from animals who ate grass and lived on a range. No other criteria-such as the size of the range or the amount of space given to each animal-are required before beef, lamb, and pork can be called "free-range." "Free-range" and "free-roaming" facilities are rarely inspected or verified to be in compliance with these two criteria. The USDA relies "upon producer testimonials to support the accuracy of these claims."(9)

Even when "free-range" cows, sheep, and pigs are allowed to live outdoors, they are still subjected to excruciating mutilations without painkiller or analgesic, such as castration, branding, dehorning, tail-docking, and tooth-grinding. Once they are fattened to market weight, they are trucked to slaughterhouses. They are denied food, water, and adequate protection from extreme temperatures once in the vehicles, and many die during the trip. These cows, sheep, and pigs are still slaughtered in the same violent ways as factory-farmed animals: They are pushed through narrow chutes, hung upside down on conveyor belts, and have their throats slit; some are dismembered while still fully conscious.
http://www.cok.net/lit/freerange.php

I've been a lifelong vegetarian. I'm perfectly healthy and have muscle and size etc. I heal quickly and have lots of stamina/energy. Lack of any of these is usually the 1st thing you hear from people who tried being a vegetarian where it didn't suit them. I am not vegan, so I don't know about how they do ( its probably way harder). I've heard alot about how typical people from the West (Americans/Europeans) try to switch over to being vegetarians - I'm afraid they are doing it all wrong. This isn't a put down but just an observation - westerners don't have the deep cultural tradition so they are just flailing in the dark (or worse, becoming a super scientific fiend about it). Like, you do dumb things like try to reconstruct a meat-eaters plate as a vegetarian plate (for example, instead of protein and two vegetables and one carb, they'll keep all the same but substitute tofu or a veggie burger for the meat - that won't work). What you need to do is look at how cultures with strong vegetarian traditions eat (like Indians/some chinese/some thai/some indonesians). None of these cultures is super unhealthy just because of lack of protein, nor do they use rocket science in constructing their meals. Even most Italian/greek etc cultures traditionally use minimal meat.

so, I'm not advocating any one way, but if you do go veggie, then do it correctly - its less stress that way, and healthier. Also, a side note - if you weren't raised a vegetarian, I personally feel you will have a difficult time - and since there is no real strong reason to do it for such a person (IMHO), just don't.

What's my reason? #1 is I was raised this way, and don't feel a huge need to change my tastes. If I look at meat, yes sometimes the fancy techniques and preparations look appetising (like on the Food channel), but its just that, the prep work and presentation, or just the side flavorings....not the meat itself that is attractive at the end of the day. In fact (and meat eaters find this VERY DIFFICULT to accept) when I see meat, mostly I have a baseline revulsion that is no less that if I were looking at someone eating bugs or some other weird meat product. You need to be raised a veggie to have that sort of feeling, and so if you were raised a meatie, then I think you'll have a difficult time of it.

I was a vegetarian for 10 years, and healthy the entire time. I only started eating meat because it is more convenient to be able to eat the same meal as my husband. I did eat eggs though, which probably helped with protein. For breakfast, I'd have 2 eggs and an apple. Lunch was whole wheat bread with cheese/lettuce/tomato/pickles and baby carrots. Yogurt for a snack. For dinner, I 'd make soup with beans, potatoes, and various vegetables. That is more or less what I'd eat and I had no health issues. Maybe you need to consider what you are eating throughout the day and whether or not you are getting all your food groups.