Thinking about becoming vegetarian.

[Amy555]

I became a vegetarian when I was 15 and and now in my 15th year of being a vegetarian. Basically it comes down to doing your homework. Donuts and french fries are not a balanced diet, for anyone, vegetarian or not. To help make sure I was getting all of my nutrition my mom bought a big variety set of Carnation Instant Breakfast that I drank with milk every day, even when I went off to college. I no longer drink milk, but it was a great way to transition. And like has been mentioned, meat provides a lot of iron and protein so you need to learn what vegetarian food you can use to supplement. Beans and legumes are good for protein (you dont have to jump head-first into tofu) So think black bean tacos, hummus in your sandwich, smashed lentils to make your own gardenburger patty. (Also check out Indian food, they have lots of options to try). Spinach has lots of iron and I know to try to eat more when I'm feeling sluggish. And I'm not a big fan of salads either -but! there are a lot of really awesome combinations I never bothered with before that are pretty good. Grilled corn and black bean salad with creamy avocado dressing. Spinach with dried cranberries, roasted almonds, blue cheese, and raspberry vinaigrette. Trader Joes has lots of individual lunch sized vegetarian salads that you can try (they really have tons of veg stuff in general too). PM me if you have any questions.

 

[GorillaJTA]

I think I'm going to remove all direct meat from my diet but I will allow myself to eat things with white meat indirectly, if you understand.

My former boss was predominantly vegetarian. He always had something with a small amount of animal protein in a couple times a month to keep his body used to it. He did that so that if he was served something with meat (like maybe a broth in a soup), he would not get violently ill. From what he told me, people who go cold vegetarian lose the ability to process animal proteins and fats and it will make them physically sick if they accidentally eat it.

 

[Rebecca1122]

Thanks, Amy! That was very helpful information

And Jeremy: I will keep that in mind. My plan is to not eat meat directly for a little bit and then to go vegetarian. But we'll see what happens down the road.

Thank you everyone! Any more advice or information would be nice, but everyone has helped me a lot so far.

 

[Sdo9396]

I've been a vegetarian for a few years now and I'll have to say that if you're going to become one, definitely be prepared and decide what you're going to eat. I just decided suddenly one morning that I was going to be a vegetarian and had nothing in the fridge but meat so I had to run to th grocery store quickly to get vegetarian food. I'm Asian so Ive been eating tofu ever since I was young so it wasn't hard for me to find protein elsewhere. I don't eat any meat or eggs and eventually, I want to cut out dairy products. Hopefully your parents will be okay with it because my best friend recently became a vegetarian and didn't have her family's support so they try to sneak meat into her food. Thankfully, my mom is very supportive and a cooks great vegetarian food. Good luck and if you ever have any questions, feel free to PM me )

 

[ChinnyMom]

one thing i would suggest is to not cut out dairy products. young women such as yourself need as much calcium as you can get. osteoporosis is a concern as women get older, and calcium deficiency plays a part in that.

 

[Rebecca1122]

Yeah, I am going to be a lacto vegetarian - no eggs, but i can have dairy.

 

[Amy555]

Also there are fortified orange juices with Calcium and Vitamin D that are equal to milk. And most rice milk and soy milk comes in an 'enriched' version as well.

http://kidshealth.org/parent/growth/feeding/calcium.html# "good sources of calcium include dark green leafy vegetables, broccoli, chickpeas, and calcium-fortified products, including orange juice, soy and rice drinks, and cereals."

 

[AZChins]

I've been a vegetarian for about 18 years and a vegan for over 16 years. I'm not sure how to tell you to start up with being it being gradual or not because I don't remember how it was when I started, it was just so long ago.

The three main things that I can tell you to do are 1) eat lots of healthy fats. You need to eat a lot of oil, nut butters and things like avocados. Fat is crucial in keeping your body running properly and it is so easy to go vegetarian or vegan and cut out necessary fats.

2) Eat an extremely varied diet. You have to do this and even people that eat meat really should do this. You need to eat nuts and beans and and brown rice and fruits and soy and other things. Your body requires certain amino acids to put together the proteins it needs. You can't just eat lettuce and steamed veggies.

Vegetables are very low in calories and so is a lot of what vegetarians eat regularly - be prepared to have to eat a lot of food. If you ask anyone who has been around me when I eat, they will tell you that I eat everything placed in front of me. I have to eat every three hours or so and I consume more food than anyone I know. Yet my body is always wanting more energy because what I eat things that are low in calories but are extremely nutritious. Don't fill up your diet with junk foods just because they supply you with calories either.

3) Take a good multivitamin. Everyone should do this anyway because our food isn't as nutritious as it should be and it's hard to get everything that is needed. Vegetarians do well with a multivitamin and maybe an omega supplement and definitely b-vitamin complex supplements.

You should talk to your doctor about your diet and make sure that you aren't deficient in anything from the beginning. I had blood tests done a couple months back and I found out that I am deficient in magnesium and my cholesterol is extremely low. The solution for me was eating more fats (more olive oil, coconut oil, etc) and to take a magnesium supplement. That's the worst that maintaining a strict vegan diet has done to me - low cholesterol and a slight magnesium deficiency (everyone that my doctor sees is deficient in magnesium regardless of diet, so I can't say it was eating a vegetarian diet for sure.)

 

[mercynursie]

Originally Posted by Rob Walker
More meat for me

:thumbs:

:thumbsup:Amen! That's what the Good Lord gave me canines(teeth that is) for! But I can understand that some people don't want to eat meat.

 

[Rebecca1122]

Also there are fortified orange juices with Calcium and Vitamin D that are equal to milk. And most rice milk and soy milk comes in an 'enriched' version as well.

http://kidshealth.org/parent/growth/feeding/calcium.html# "good sources of calcium include dark green leafy vegetables, broccoli, chickpeas, and calcium-fortified products, including orange juice, soy and rice drinks, and cereals."

Thanks, Amy, I will check out that website. Did you get my PM?

I've been a vegetarian for about 18 years and a vegan for over 16 years. I'm not sure how to tell you to start up with being it being gradual or not because I don't remember how it was when I started, it was just so long ago.

The three main things that I can tell you to do are 1) eat lots of healthy fats. You need to eat a lot of oil, nut butters and things like avocados. Fat is crucial in keeping your body running properly and it is so easy to go vegetarian or vegan and cut out necessary fats.

2) Eat an extremely varied diet. You have to do this and even people that eat meat really should do this. You need to eat nuts and beans and and brown rice and fruits and soy and other things. Your body requires certain amino acids to put together the proteins it needs. You can't just eat lettuce and steamed veggies.

Vegetables are very low in calories and so is a lot of what vegetarians eat regularly - be prepared to have to eat a lot of food. If you ask anyone who has been around me when I eat, they will tell you that I eat everything placed in front of me. I have to eat every three hours or so and I consume more food than anyone I know. Yet my body is always wanting more energy because what I eat things that are low in calories but are extremely nutritious. Don't fill up your diet with junk foods just because they supply you with calories either.

3) Take a good multivitamin. Everyone should do this anyway because our food isn't as nutritious as it should be and it's hard to get everything that is needed. Vegetarians do well with a multivitamin and maybe an omega supplement and definitely b-vitamin complex supplements.

You should talk to your doctor about your diet and make sure that you aren't deficient in anything from the beginning. I had blood tests done a couple months back and I found out that I am deficient in magnesium and my cholesterol is extremely low. The solution for me was eating more fats (more olive oil, coconut oil, etc) and to take a magnesium supplement. That's the worst that maintaining a strict vegan diet has done to me - low cholesterol and a slight magnesium deficiency (everyone that my doctor sees is deficient in magnesium regardless of diet, so I can't say it was eating a vegetarian diet for sure.)

And thanks for the detailed reply! I do understand that this is a big change and will make me change other parts of my life.
I do intend on finding a good multivitamin as well as talking with my doctor and possibly a nutritionist.

Thanks!!