becoming a vegetarian?

IRISH DAYWALKER

hi everyone i recently have been giving a lot of thought to becoming a vegetarian for certain personnal reasons anyway i was just wondering does the transition from eating meat to not eating it t all take a toll on your body? and what do you do to get all the good stuff you normally get from meat like protein and iron? thanks in advance

sweet-rasmus

Just eat a balanced diet It's mainly a matter of getting out of the meat and two veg concept for dinners and to get creative.

Have a read through some past posts for some ideas for the transition.
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055378279
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055443471

Tar.Aldarion

IRISH DAYWALKER wrote: »

hi everyone i recently have been giving a lot of thought to becoming a vegetarian for certain personnal reasons anyway i was just wondering does the transition from eating meat to not eating it t all take a toll on your body? and what do you do to get all the good stuff you normally get from meat like protein and iron? thanks in advance

Hye mate, it's not that hard, particularily if you buy the imitation meats to help you transition at the start.

Here is a quote from the info sticky about what you are asking:

Tar.Aldarion wrote:

Protein:Many People believe that vegetarian and particularly vegan diets cannot
possibly provide sufficient protein.This is an old wives' tale.
Eight essential amino acids are needed to make a complete protein.Dairy products,eggs and
soya products(tofu,tempeh,soya drinks and desserts)all provide complete protein in themselves.

Combining whole grains(unrefined wheat,rye,millet,barlet,spelt,rice,quinoa)
with pulses(beans,peas,lentils)and supplementing with small amounts of nuts and seeds also
provides plenty of protein.All the essential amino acids are found in combinations
such as beans on toast,lentil curry with brown rice,musli with milk,hummus made from chickpeas
and sesame tahini,peanut butter sandwiches made from wholemeal bread.It isn't even necessary
to combine different food types at the samee meal since our bodies can store amino
acids for later use.

As with meat-eaters,it is important(and normal) foe vegetarians to base their eating pattern
on a wide variety of high quality foods.

Iron:is another nutrient often thought to be deficent in plant based diets,and
iron deficiency is indeed the most common deficiency in both vegetarians and meat-eaters diets.
Whatever your diet,you should avoid drinking milk or tea a mealtimes because both calcium in
dairy products and tannic acid in tea inhibit the absorption of iron from other foods.

Iron rich foods include dried fruits(weight for weight dried apricots contain
four times more iron than lamb does)nuts(especially brazils),wholegrains,dried peas,
beans and lentils,leafy green vegetables,molasses and egg yokes.Although iron may be absorbed
more easily through meat,the plus for vegetarians is that they eat foods which contain good
amounts of vitamin C,not contained in meat,and this boosts their absorbtion of iron.

Anything else you want to know about?

CokaColumbo

IRISH DAYWALKER wrote: »

hi everyone i recently have been giving a lot of thought to becoming a vegetarian for certain personnal reasons anyway i was just wondering does the transition from eating meat to not eating it t all take a toll on your body? and what do you do to get all the good stuff you normally get from meat like protein and iron? thanks in advance

The dietary side has been pretty much covered already.
If you're packing a bit of extra flab, don't be surprised to see it slowly disappear; I lost a nice portion of excess baggage. That said, you may find yourself feeling a little more hungry, a little more often so fill up on the beans, lentils and broccoli.

I found it strangely easy to cut out meat 100%. I would recommend, based on my experience, to just cut it out immediately instead of a phased withdrawal. Long protracted good-byes are not a good idea IMO.
Its not that hard going Veggie and once you get over the initial stage of "am I going to wilt away because of this..." you will be ceart go leor.

Chicks dig Vegetarians also and it makes you stand out of the crowd once people know of your persuasion.
Id say for me, the hardest part of being Vegetarian is the opposition I receive from certain family members; my dad actually wanted me to get a "psychiatric evaluation" when he heard of my decision to go Veggie. When he realised that Vegetarianism was not just a phase, he got seriously pissed at me and wanted me to stop; heated arguments ensued.