Discussion Vegetarian?

[The Blackangel]

I've been considering going vegetarian for several years now, but don't know if I could stick to it. Granted I do love vegetables, but I also love meat. A few days ago, I ate more than 2 pounds of beef for dinner. And I loved it. I spent a good amount of time on the toilet, but it was worth it.

All that said, I don't know if I could do it or should try it. My reasoning is my feelings about animals. Animals matter more to me than the human animal does. Actually, people don't mean jack shit to me. But that's another conversation for another time.

So I'm hoping to get thoughts and opinions from both sides of the aisle. I'm sure that there's at least one person here who is vegetarian. I'm not considering going vegan. Just vegetarian.

 

[U. A.]

Don't approach it as a binary pass/fail. Eating kilo of meat in one sitting is....something, and as we are omnivores, it isn't likely you can just go cold turkey (ha) if your body is used to that much. Start by eating less. Then less, then eventually none.

Also learn in advance what nutrients (micro and macro) you'll need to get elsewhere. Iron and vit. B12 are the main ones.
Protein is in fucking everything; don't believe the hype, but you will need complete protein over the course of time which means all essential amino acids. Between eggs, dairy, legumes/pulses, and grain products, you won't have trouble.

 

[trashisland]

im basically vegetarian, I dont eat meat at all. but it wasn't a choice I made consciously, so maybe thats why its been so easy for me. I just hate the thought of parasites and eating what is essentially a corpse or rotting flesh, so that really puts me off. and I hate the texture. ive never considered it a bad thing. sure my diet isnt exactly balanced but Ive never cared for nutritional value. it depends on your feelings. if you really care for animals and dont like the thought of eating them, you can try. maybe slowly wean off of it and replace meat with substitutes. eventually you can get sick if you eat meat and you haven't for a while, that happened to me. its just the body adjusting to things you haven't had in a while so it isnt serious, so even then you can turn back if the option isnt right for you.

its all up to the individual. like I said for me it isnt really something I consider or make effort into continuing, its just how it is. I dont ever crave meat either. but ultimately eating animals has always been part of humanity. people hunted and now people breed animals to be able to produce meat. its not really something that can stop, but if your feelings are just personal as in you have an issue with being the one to contribute to it by eating meat, then it doesnt hurt to try. its not like its permanent, you can mess up and eat meat sometimes but that doesnt change your efforts. its hard to just stop cold turkey. and you can change your mind at any point if its not the right thing for you, so it really doesnt hurt to try whatever you end up settling with. good luck!

 

[Forever Sleep]

I've been vegetarian a few years now. Same reason- always loved animals and decided I should make more effort to live by my feelings. I'm incredibly lazy though so- I tend to worry veganism would lead straight to health problems for me and, I'm selfishly not that good.

I ended up getting a lot of headaches initially and tried vitamin and iron supplements- that seemed to help. Biggest worry is always protein. I was really careful at the start but, that's been slipping. Truthfully, everything's been slipping. Meal times, diet itself.

There are quite a few fairly decent pretend meats out there. Not exactly amazing. Pretty processed tasting but then- lots of meat itself is now too!

I've managed to become a fat vegetarian though. I hoped it would make me slimmer and healthier but- I think that takes more effort.

Still, tonight I have mediteranean vegetables, edame beans and fake tuna. So- not so bad. Good luck. I hope it goes well for you.

I did manage it though- from the off. I suppose I've slipped up now and again- gelatine in sweets etc. It's more boring eating out or getting take away- if I'm honest. But, it still feels worth it.

 

[sonnyw]

I am vegetarian and I would go vegan if I lived alone. You definitely should at least give it a try, it's easier than you think and there's a lot of tasty food you can make without meat or fish. Also, there are many "fake meat" products like Beyond Meat that, although I've never tried them personally because they don't sell them where I live, from what I've heard they have the exact same taste and feeling in your mouth as the real meat

 

[SASU-KE]

I've also been considering going vegetarian. It'll give me even more reason to catch the bus.

 

[sonnyw]

I've also been considering going vegetarian. It'll give me even more reason to catch the bus.

Why if I may ask?

 

[SASU-KE]

Why if I may ask?

It was a joke. I meant that I like eating non veg so much that eating vegetarian will make me miserable(even more than normal) enough to CTB.

 

[sonnyw]

It was a joke. I meant that I like eating non veg so much that eating vegetarian will make me miserable(even more than normal) enough to CTB.

Okay... vegetarian food is good though but you do you

 

[SASU-KE]

Okay... vegetarian food is good though but you do you

Oh, I love vegetarian food. As long as I have a non vegetarian side dish.

 

[gunmetalblue]

I was a vegetarian for 8 years. You absolutely have to think about either adding supplements to your diet, or really researching on ways to keep up your iron and protein levels with plant based alternatives. And you can stop eating meat slowly to allow your body and mind to start getting used to the difference. It affects the digestive system and changes will happen when you don't eat meat for a while.

 

[The Blackangel]

I often go without meat, but that makes me crave it all the more. Hell, I make a type of sandwich that I have named Carnivore's Delight, because of the different types of meat on it. All there is to it is bread, meat, and cheese. Then toss it in the oven for about 10 minutes to get it hot and the cheese to melt, and it's damn good. But a nice salad is good too. But I add meat to that too, if we're out eating at a buffet like Golden Corral. It seems that no matter what I do, I'm eating meat. And the times I'm not eating it, is because I quit eating all together. I'm not intentionally fasting, and it's not for any significant reason. I just quit eating. I'm not sure why, it's just how I am. Aside from a couple handfuls of chips, I haven't eaten in the last 5 days. My weight isn't in danger. I weigh roughly 265. But I'm also over 6' tall. My wife says I wear it well due to my height. But to get back on topic, my eating habits are totally out of whack. I couldn't live if I wasn't allowed vegetables. But I'm not sure if I could live without meat either.

 

[Someonewhotypes]

have you considered eating sources of meat where the animals are better treated when they're living?
Because it seems you definitely enjoy eating meat and that's probably going to make it hard to quit. So maybe you can reduce your impact on the suffering by sourcing your meat where animals are treated better.
Like local small farmers I'd guess. You can make your research if you want to
It's gonna be more expensive for sure, but that could naturally also lead to a reduction in the quantity you eat

 

[Quantum_Marten0302]

Why do you care about them? Ive never had such feelings for humans that were not close to me, let alone other animals so im wondering where you think your care came from

 

[Mr.Tristesse]

There isn't anything unethical about eating meat.you provided the animals were raised and slaughtered humanely. Humans evolved not *to* eat meat but *by* eating meat. Our cognitive power would not have arisen from a purely herbivorous diet.

 

[Bitch With An Apple]

I was born into a vegetarian household (and I'm very thankful for it) so I'm biased, but to me any small dent anyone can make in the factory farming industry is meaningful

It's probably true that you can't make any real individual change but you can contribute to systemic change. The sheer biomass of human farmed animals is unimaginable. Obviously no single individual who eats meat is at fault for that, and very few of them actually contributed to the founding of that system in the first place, but you can do something just by saying no to it.

Sorry, I know people hate proselytizing vegetarians. But I feel strongly about it.

 

[The Blackangel]

Why do you care about them? Ive never had such feelings for humans that were not close to me, let alone other animals so I'm wondering where you think your care came from

To be honest, I'm not really sure. One reason may be because I've never been betrayed by an animal other than homo sapien. I can count on one hand the people I care about, and none of them are blood kin to me. My kin doesn't mean jack shit to me. I don't love a single damn one of them. If they were drowning, I would throw a bucket of water on them. If they were burning, I would throw a bucket of gas on them. If they were being crushed I would add another stone on top of them. But I'll slam on the brakes and swerve to avoid hurting a squirrel. Yet I still eat meat.

Maybe the reason I can still eat meat is because growing up we raised our own beef and pork. The same with poultry. I never had to look far to find breakfast and supper. Sunday Supper was a big thing for us until my grampa died. But we butchered our own meat every year. Perk of growing up on a small stock farm.

 

[WrathfulGloom32]

I went vegan cold turkey a couple months back. It depends on the person.

I wish you luck or success in trying to go vegetarian.

 

[madameviolette]

I've always been curious about why people have stomach ache when they eat meat. It's one of the only thing I digest well. Vegetables on the other end...

 

[phantasmagoria]

Have you tried alternative meat options like beyond meat, impossible, etc? It's easier if you live in a city where alt meat is actually accessible. Also, I think going mostly veg is good enough if you can't do it fully. I'm vegetarian, by the way, and I haven't eaten meat in 4 years. After a while, you kinda stop thinking about it (at least that's how it was for me).
Have you tried alternative meat options like beyond meat, impossible, etc? It's easier if you live in a city where alt meat is actually accessible. Also, I think going mostly veg is good enough if you can't do it fully. I'm vegetarian, by the way, and I haven't eaten meat in 4 years. After a while, you kinda stop thinking about it (at least that's how it was for me).

 

[orvreader]

If you're asian, being vegetarian should be pretty easy. Meatless food in asia isn't just miserable salad and tofu unlike in the west, and you'd have even more food choices if you allow yourself to consume food with animal broth. And most asian cultures that aren't infected by abrahamic religion purism are built to accomodate vegetarians.

 

[EmptyBottle]

I am more of a minimise-my-meat-consumption type person... if a vegetarian and non vegetarian dish is there, I'd likely try both... if meat and other items are served, I'd have only a small amount of the meat if any.

Maybe one day I can hardly have any meat (only having some of it when served... and making meals myself without meat), tho when I don't make most of my food, it gets a little tricky.

 

[maylurker]

you'd really let yourself down if you change meat on vegies, honestly. we evolved as omnivores with significant meat intake driving key anatomical and cognitive advancements. without supplements iron is essential for oxygen transport, neurological functioning & energy metabolism. meat provides heme iron that has 15-35% absorption rate, non-heme iron plants give only 2-20% inhibited by phytates n oxalates. vegetarians often suffer from low ferritine increasing anemia risk, low iron impairs cognitive function, fatigue resistance. +b12 is absent in plants and only produced by bacteria in animal guts and concentrated in meat organs (liver etc). dha is critical for neuronal membranes, synaptic plasticity, and anti-inflammation while epa support mood and cognition. fish/meat provide direct dha/epa; plants offer ala (conversion <5-10%, often <1% to dha in vegans). vegetarians have lower dha levels, linked to cognitive decline, depression, and dementia risk, low omega-3 Index (<8%) associates with brain atrophy. algal supplements help, but natural fish/meat sources (e.g., salmon) efficiently raise levels for brain structure/function. also EPIC-Oxford found vegetarians/vegans at higher fracture risk (possibly from lower calcium/intake, protein, or b12/dha deficits affecting density).