Confessions of a Newbie Vegetarian

So here I am, one week into my new vegetarian livin' ways. I will admit, it is a bit easier than I thought it would be. What I've learned in this short time is I am not a meat eater by instinct. I have absolutely no cravings (YET) for any kind of meat. Except fish...if you've been reading my posts you know I kept the fish and the dairy. I had sushi TWICE in the past week and have a hard time imagining ever giving that up. That and cheese...I love cheese. And fish. But not together of course....

What was I saying?

Oh yes, vegetarian livin'. So yep, I'm liking it. ALOT. Its hard to tell what may be changing in terms of how i feel. It could be that its only been a week, and I'm suspecting i'm jumping the gun on already evaluating how i feel, but I do feel good overall, but not much different. This also leads me to believe that my diet is not that different than before, just minus the ridiculous amounts of chicken I used to eat. 

I have noticed some things though...so here we go. Confessions of the things I'm noticing as a newbie vegetarian.

1) Meat looks strange to me. I don't know why or how I could already see it differently, but I do. I was flipping through the supermarket flyers and there was this huge slab of ribs on sale and I literally had to look at it 2 or 3 times because it looked weird to me. Then I scanned further down the page and saw pork chops...and i am pretty sure, under my breath, i involuntarily said..."ewww".

2) Cooking dinner is going to be a challenge...because it means cooking TWO dinners. I have done some serious reading before I committed to giving this a try and one of the biggest mistakes is eating the same dinner you used to only without the meat. I have to take time and effort to prepare a meal for myself that actually gives me all the nutrients I need to compensate for the meat I'm not taking in. And considering we all know how horrible I am at eating enough food and the right food to sustain me, somehow, by removing meat from my diet, it is forcing me to really pay attention to fueling my body.

3) People are startled and some almost combative about the fact that I have chosen to try out my vegetarian ways. Which I honestly find funny. I'm not out there telling people to stop eating meat. Hell no. It is my own choice, but for some reason, people instantly respond that they would or could never do it. And hey that's ok! Some are simply sharing and that's cool, but some people, like the 16 year old seated across from me at the dinner table insisting all I'll be able to eat as a veggie eater is "broccoli". Which the irony is tonight i prepared a dinner with broccoli but not for me. It was for the carnivores to have with their chicken. I had a delightful portobello  burger with a balsamic glaze, roasted red peppers with a fresh spinach leaf and red onion salad.

4) Eating meat seems odd all of a sudden. Again, this could be psychosomatic or just be part of the newness...i just don't know. But suddenly, the thought of eating meat feels unnatural. For me...again, I say this...for ME. Not anyone else.

All in all, I am feeling pretty darn happy about this decision. And I suspect I might be a natural at preparing vegetarian dishes. I've NEVER been a good cook when it comes to meat. I always over cook it because I've lived in fear of salmonella and any other virus living in raw meat...which I guess should have been my red flag for a vegetarian life years and years ago...but hey, better late than never. On Pinterest I'm accumulating loads of infographic charts and fantastic vegetarian recipes. 

Once the final remnants from holiday dessert leftovers have vacated this house, I suspect a full transition into clean eating may finally be possible and actually desired. I plan on keeping track of any changes I experience and reporting them back via blog posts. So for any of you out there interested in seeing what happens when a lifelong meat eater converts to vegetarian life...this is the place to peek in the virtual window of my life :)

stay strong & eat healthy!

Rachel

Tons of info on the internet for those making this life changing transition to a meatless existance!

Will be trying this one next!!!

Tonight's dinner! Portobello burger with sautéed onions, spinach, roasted red peppers in a balsamic glaze on an english muffin with a fresh spinach and red onion salad with white balsami dressing. So YUM!