So, yesterday (05.20.2019) I started a Challenge. No, not a gym challenge; just one that I wanted to see if I could do. I gave up meat. For one month. I truly wanted to see what I would feel like. Would I feel better? Would I feel H-E-A-L-T-H-Y?? My niece is a Vegan. She posts a lot of stories and takes pic’s of her food. It seems interesting. I mean, I like a good steak. I LOVE tacos. I like me a good burger. I have NEVER said no to a Dick’s burger. And I suppose I never will. Why would I give up meat? I’m not sure. I’m not even sure I can. Could you? It’s a staple in my house. My parents were the ones that had the friends that had kids in the 4-H. They bought beef from them for YEARS! My husband and I continued that tradition until the man that we bought from died. I love fish, chicken and pork, too. I’m giving those up, too. At this point, why not? I did ask my niece – “How do you get your protein…?” When you eat meat, that is so simple. If I am meal prepping for the week, am lazy and want to eat some what good, I just go to Costco and buy a rotisserie chicken. Good, protein and filling. AND easy… Today for lunch I had a bit of rice and peas. Yeah, rice and peas. I know–WEIRD! It was actually really good. Filling and I would eat that again. I may have it again, tomorrow.
Day 5 – Friday
So far, so good. I’m not craving anything. The hardest part so far, is figuring out what you need to eat if you go out to dinner. Yes, I can get a salad, however, most salads now have a meat on it. I do like salads, but not over-the-top fan. I’m also not a big fan of dressing and I don’t like a salad without it. See what I’m saying? Tonight we went to our favorite Mexican restaurant. Of course, I have never even looked to see if they have a “vegetarian” section on their menu. They do. Like maybe 4 or 5 things. What is interesting about it is that there is really no information that goes along with it. You know, if you were to order Fajita’s on the “normal” side, it would go into – chicken, beef or shrimp, red and green peppers, onions, sour cream and guac. On the Veg menu it just says “Fajita’s”. I decide to order them. I’m thinking they will just be like the normal fajita minus the meat–Right?? No. No meat, but cauliflower, lima beans, carrots – no peppers. They were really good, but very different. I’m sure in a bigger city, these issues would be no big deal.
Day 8 – Tuesday
Okay, Tuesday is my Bible Study night. It starts at 6:30 and I typically leave the church by 8:30 – 9 pm. — Yes, we all love to hang out after class… Okay, so anyway, I had a few things I wanted to get done at the house before I left. Because of that, I didn’t grab a bite to eat. When your in this situation, cereal is GREAT! It can be a go-to. But, no, I didn’t grab anything. Big mistake. Soooo, I ended up ordering a pizza. Light cheese, on garlic crust. It was divine. I don’t think I will ever eat meat pizza again. Seriously. BUT, when your used to eating so “light”, the crust became such a filler. I ate 3 pieces. Yes – THREE pieces. I was miserable. I swear the crust grew in my stomach. After I went to bed I still felt so full. I woke up at 4:15 am the next morning to do the gym thing. Miserable. I could barely lift and when it came to punching or kicking (yes, I’m a kick-boxer) — I was miserable. Actually, it’s been 5 hours since my workout and I still feel full. Gross. So, yes, the pizza was “vegetarian”, but you can still make better choices. I will be eating rice and beans for lunch and eating very clean today. Will I have pizza again?? Duh. Of course. You could probably convince me to have it again tonight…. But, in the mean time, I need to get back on track. And I will. Tonight I will be doing BARRE and Boom Boxing. I will make up for this morning. Ugh…
One thing that I find interesting, as a vegetarian, you can actually eat a lot. Sometimes you feel a bit hungry; more often. No biggy though, you just eat an apple or two. I never feel icky with the things I eat. Or how much, I eat. Before I started this, I did feel like I might feel icky. But, not at all. So far, giving up meat has not been hard at all. There are so many “other” things to eat. The thing that I find odd is how much we depend on meat. For instance – Sunday comes along and your getting ready to make lunches for the week. You make rice and broccoli and run to Costco and grab a chicken. Easy, peasy. You eat that for lunch and your great for the rest of the day. The chicken is super filling and full of protein. Done and done. When your are eliminating meat, you have to come up with a different plan. You have to pack other stuff. Fruit, granola bar, yogurt. This is new for me. But I like it. The other night my husband had bought a watermelon, I halved it and that was my dinner. Things are different, but so doable. I’m liking it. A little over 2.5 weeks left. I totally got this…
4 Days Left – Friday
I am still meat free. How does it feel? Good. What have I noticed? Giving up meat has actually been easy. The hard part – if you don’t plan on what you are eating and everyone around you is eating meat, that can be a challenge. There are actually several restaurants that do not have vegetarian menus. Some in which you are surprised that they don’t. I did have a work conference and had to eat what they served. It was all meat and my co-workers and I just traded food. They gave me rice for chicken; or steak for potatoes. It worked. The questions I keep getting asked – Have I lost weight? No. Have I gained any? No. I have learned that not eating meat; I eat a lot of carbs. ie. Rice, potatoes, cereal… I don’t mind that, but the carb thing is always in the back of my mind. Someone asked if bowel movements are different. Nope same. Will I eat meat again? Yes. I will not eat much meat, but I do like pepperoni pizza. I love me a Dicks burger. Taco’s, etc. Will I continue to order vegetarian? YES!! The thought, right now, of eating any kind of meat, gags me. However, I eat a lot of fish and that is what I am hungry for. I’m craving fish. Fish taco’s from the Highlander Grill. I leave for Hawaii next week and I still plan on eating Musubi and fish…
Duhn, Duhn… Drum Roll, Please…
Was I able to do it? For the most part. What does that mean? After my work Conference, I came home and did the usual “stuff”. You know – mostly cleaned. As I Was cleaning out the fridge, I noticed there was still a bit of meat left from Calvin’s Graduation Party. I instantly went into, OMG – I should have put this in the freezer! Bah! I then made a meatloaf. Calvin would be working, my husband would come home hungry, it would be perfect. Chris didn’t get home until around 6pm. We were both starving. I just made a meatloaf sandwich. Totally forgot. Yes, I ate it. Chris did remind me, but at this point it was to late. Was it good? Divine.
Did I enjoy this experience? Yes! I figured out how to get around things I didn’t like in the first place – lunch meat “things”. Ewww, the smell of deli meat – GROSS! *Insert Green Face Emoji* I really like cheese pizza. All in all, I totally could stay away from meat. It can be an inconvenience, but really, that’s it.
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