I remember my last meat meal. It was a PF Chang’s frozen chicken dinner. I ate it in the dark living room at 9:30pm in a rental we lived in my junior year of high school. I looked at it and thought to myself, “This is my last day eating meat.”
I remember a friend said (jokingly) “Bri, I bet you couldn’t even be vegetarian for a month!” but she was wrong. I was vegetarian for a month, then another month, then a year, then ten years.
I have a lot of thoughts on food restriction in any way, but that is for another piece. For today, here are
Ten Things I’ve Learned from Being Meat Free for Over Ten Years:
- Do what works for you. There is no need to be vocal about your eating style, unless someone seems excited to talk about it with you. I found that plant-based eaters who preach only their way and put down others often portray a need to control or be holier than thou? My favorite and only time to talk about it is when someone brings it up or asks, or if someone else is on a plant-based journey as well and you can nerd-out about it together. If you are going to eat at a friend’s house for dinner, you may want to give a gentle heads up that you don’t eat meat so you do not offend them by declining a meal they prepared specifically for you. You may also offer to bring a dish or a side to ensure you have something to eat and share. That way you don’t feel weird putting anyone out, but you also have an option and don’t feel awkward. Please don’t be that person that is going out of their way to express pure disgust at someone else eating meat, even if you feel that way. We most likely don’t want other people commenting that our meals are gross, so let’s not do that to anyone else. If it violates your boundaries triggers you to be close to meat, remove yourself from the situation.
- Try different types of vegetarianism to see what works for you. I do not necessarily consider myself a picky eater. I don’t have texture aversion, with the exception of spongy foods like under cooked mushrooms or eggplant. Although I do like those if they’re cooked right, so I feel like that doesn’t count. I am lucky enough to live in a place where I have access to a variety of foods, including locally grown organic varieties if I would like even here in a small town in the Midwest. That being said, listen *clap* to *clap* your *clap* body *clap*. Please listen to your body. If you are feeling depleted, or undernourished, or are not feeling your best, talk to a professional or try switching up what you eat. If you are someone who has an auto immune disease or lots of allergies, again, consult with specialists before making big changes. Remember that choosing not to eat something is different than a food allergy. I try not to frame situations like “I can’t eat that” to “I choose not to eat that”. I have learned a lot through my personal hobby of researching nutrition, but I am definitely not an expert. I do not believe that a plant-based diet is the best option for everyone. Full disclosure I did have one month where I tried to be pescatarian and tried to only eat sustainably caught things like salmon and tuna. At the end of the month I still didn’t really like seafood. I’ve also had many weeks/months of being vegan off and on. I’ve found what feels the least restrictive to me is no meat, everything else is okay. I stay away from most straight up dairy products these days except for ghee or sauces just for skin and breastfeeding reasons. I always buy oatmilk (transitioned from almond milk) unless I need something specific for a recipe. However, play around with it! Especially if you have a female hormonal cycle, I would encourage you to research further for yourself how your blood sugar is affected. There is a great book by Alissa Vitti I highly recommend called “In the Flo” all about hormone health. Life changing. If you want to learn more about introducing more animal products after being vegan, I strongly encourage you listen to Yoga Girl’s podcast.
- Try new things. Trying new things is definitely what made the biggest difference for me in my success of sticking to a vegetarian diet in the beginning. It’s not all Tofu and Kale over here in veg head land. I don’t really care for either one of these things unless they are cooked in a specific way. Which brings me to another point – try cooking things a new way or try something new at a restaurant that is cooked in a way you haven’t experienced the food before! Personally, I don’t eat much Tofu because it’s hard to digest, but for the longest time I thought I was not a fan at all. Turns out all I needed was to be cooked another way. If you truly love a food that isn’t vegetarian, and eating it brings you pure joy, then don’t give up that food! This is for the person that says “I don’t want to be a vegetarian because I don’t want to give up ___.!” (Insert bacon, steak, or whatever) You love bacon? Don’t give up bacon then! It’s really the reduction that makes the difference, not the all inclusive restriction that makes the difference. The meat I missed the most at first was chicken strips. The extra crispy kind. With ranch. If I have those sort of cravings now, meat substitutes do the trick. I like the Impossible and Beyond foods but I try to eat those no more than once a week because they are so processed. Sometimes ya girl just be cravin’ though. I go through periods of giving up dairy because it makes me feel inflamed, or makes my allergies, mucus, acne and things like that flare up sometimes, but I regularly eat eggs, ghee, chocolate, and some other things. Again, find what works for you and your body.
- Don’t get hung up on the label. If you are worried about fully committing to be in plant-based, gradually ease into it. Personally, if I want to avoid something I find it easier to completely rule it out so I don’t overthink it. When I gave up alcohol for a period of time, it needed to be cold turkey, or I would start justifying one glass of wine with friends, and then a whole bottle of wine at home. So again, figure out what works for you. If labels make you want to do it more, then don’t give yourself a label. If you feel better having more structure and a clear boundary for yourself, then harness that power for yourself. Consider what type of person you are when it comes to things like this, and if you’re not sure, try out both and see which works better.
- Learn to cook and have fun with it! Discover simple recipes, check out easy beginner vegetarian and vegan cookbooks such as The Vegan Stoner Cookbook, one pot plant based meals for students, etc. if you don’t know where to start think about what your favorite meals are and go from there. For more complicated but delicious and fun recipes, check out Thug Kitchen. Minimalist Baker is no longer entirely plant-based, but they have a lot of incredible recipes. Their Vegan Green Bean Casserole is heaven in a dish. Of course, you can internet search pretty much any recipe you are hungry for and find delicious meals that can be altered to your preference. Just food for thought. Plant-based food for thought.
- Get inspired! Maybe start by cooking one plant-based meal a week. Make yourself a goal to try new ingredients or to see what you like or don’t like. Pick up a few vegetarian cookbooks at your local library. Create a Pinterest board of meatless meals (mine is called NOM), or follow some plant-based accounts on Instagram and TikTok! That way when a mouthwatering recipe comes along, you’ll be more excited to check it out. Start browsing your local grocery stores and farmers markets for meatless options that are available instantly. If you’re lucky enough to live somewhere that has vegan or vegetarian restaurants and you can afford to, check those out as well! Often they are owned by local community members so the vibes are usually immaculate – nourishing for your soul and your body. Alternatively, you can of course find options at fast food places including Panda Express, Taco Bell, and of course Burger King. My favorite grocery store is ALDI, hands down, but if you are lucky enough to live to next to an Earth Fare, Lucky’s Market, HYVEE, or Harris Teeter you have plenty of options at your finger tips. Go explore! You may be surprised at how many options you find.
- Know that food is energy. Energetically, do you want to eat food that was sourced in a violent way? No thanks. If you choose to eat meat, please at least source it from an ethical place. Of course, choosing to eat organic and local and sustainably sourced everything would be incredible but when that lifestyle isn’t always an option, eating plant based or meatless helps keep our energy field cleaner and more clear.
- Find a community! If you don’t have any friends (yet) that are plant-based, there are plenty of communities online. There are often local freezer cooking classes or groups offered where everyone batch cooks five or ten batches of the same meal, and then everyone meets and trades them. Everyone goes home with 5-10 different freezer meals for way less cost and grocery shopping/clean up. Or perhaps you do already have a friend who is plant-based or has been before, and you can pick their brain for favorite recipes. Maybe they would even teach you to cook a meal in exchange for your time and enthusiasm!
- Do your research. When I was a blossoming vegetarian, I had plenty of high school and then college papers to write. Persuasive essay, research paper, argumentative stance, you name the prompt and I wrote a paper with it on meatless living. This gave me a great opportunity to do research that was cited correctly and from credible sources. Maybe you don’t have papers to write, but I would strongly encourage you to do your own research and make research based decisions. At the end of the day, you can find “evidence” to support pretty much whatever you want, so I encourage you to use credible sources and go as in-depth as possible. Don’t be afraid to read opposing views, those are often where you learn the most.
- Be proud. Whether you are a Meatless Monday-er, a raw vegan, or anywhere in between, be proud that you are putting in the time and effort to listen to your intuition and do something that is not only benefiting your body and your own energetic field, but the entire world. Whether you choose veg for an hour, a decade, or a century, you are making a difference, and that matters.