Breaking the Meat-a-holic Addiction

in #veganism8 years ago

People ask me all the time, "is it hard being vegan?"

First of all, let me get this straight.. I am NOT vegan, I am plant-based. To be clear, I DO eat meat from time to time. I went through a span of time where I did not eat meat at all, mostly for health reasons, but also to help planet sustainability. There just isn't enough meat for every human to eat 3 times a day. I bet we would run out of animals before the last human even got his or her 3rd meal.

The Transition

Eating less meat is not an impossible thing to embrace. I have been eating less meat for about 3 years now, and by less I mean maybe a couple times a month. The three hardest things about it were:

  1. Changing my mindset towards it
  2. Finding something on the menu at restaurants
  3. Dealing with the social aspect of it

Sometimes a friend's parent will buy me a hot-dog at a sports event and it feels bad rejecting it. It's not easy rejecting food someone bought or cooked for you, but sometimes it's necessary.
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Because of my chronic Lyme Disease, I was forced into figuring out what diet worked best for cleansing and inflammation. I dug deep into research and found that a diet closer to nature is less inflammatory and contains less toxins, allowing the body to cleanse what's already inside rather than what you're putting into it now.


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Believe me, I was reluctant to change at first, but mostly because the idea of meat being "good" or "necessary" was ingrained in my subconscious. Most people know that eating meat 3 times a day isn't good for them, but they just can't seem to break the habit. They think they "need" the protein because of all the marketing the mainstream world has pulled upon us, when really, potatoes and rice have enough protein. They have become victims of their own subconscious mind.

My Reasoning

I eat less meat for a few reasons...

  1. My Health
  2. The Earth's Health
  3. Factory Farming

Think about it:
Do you want to live longer?
Do you want the Earth to be more sustainable?
Do you support the way corporations treat animals at factory farms?

You don't have to go "vegan" to help these things. Do yourself, the earth and the animals a favor and EAT LESS MEAT.

Conclusion

So.. Are you a victim of your own subconscious or are you able to break old habits by retraining your mind about what is "good"?

Thanks for reading and I hope you got something out of my post.

With Love,
Marco


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I wrote something earlier about finding plant-based food items in restaurants. It's a new thing for me and a great challenge.

Mainly I'm about your number (3) but (1) and (2) are nice side effects.

Thanks for the comment! Yeah, it definitely isn't easy. It's funny though.. you only realize how bad everyone else eats when you go out to restaurants. It's not just bad.. it's really bad lol.

There was a baby on the table next to us at brunch just smashing bacon into his mouth! Unbelievable.

Poor pig. Poor baby. lol

seeking out protein is not even a necessity.

"Whoa bro, how do I make my gains?"

A human baby doubles in weight in 6 months and human breast milk is only 5% protein in terms of caloric composition. I can get more calories from protein eating fruit. I'll say that again. Fruit can have more calories from protein than human breastmilk.

Good point. Didn't know that math but it makes a great argument! Thanks :D

Fruitarian here. Plan to live to 120 at least

That's an expensive lifestyle but Steem should help you pay for it :P