Woo!
Here are some things that I love about not eating meat:
1. Believe it or not, I'm not as hungry and I get full faster. Therefore, I don't eat as much. Go figure.
2. I'm not ingesting all kinds of nasty, gross things that I don't wanna think about. But I don't eat them, so I don't have to think about them.
3. No animals were harmed in the making of this meal. Or any meal.
4. I feel like I'm conquering world hunger, one vegetarian meal at a time. I should get a cape or something.
5. The support I have received from my family and friends. Seriously, I love you guys.
Here are some things I don't love about not eating meat:
1. People asking me, "What do you eat?" Answer: Everything that doesn't contain anything that came from an animal. If I have to list every item, we could be here awhile. (Sidenote: I do understand that some people genuinely don't know what it means to follow a vegan diet, but PLEASE, for the love of GOD, rephrase the question. It makes me wanna punch you. A simple, "What does it mean to be vegan?" or "What things have you given up eating?" would be completely sufficient, thank you.
2. People assuming that I went into this blind. I did a lot of research. I read 2 books before even making a decision about doing this, and I've read several articles since then.
3. Since I did do research, I do understand the concept of protein. I appreciate the concern for my health, I really do, but I am not an idiot. And it's actually a myth that vegetarians lack protein, just to clear that up. Think about every animal you've ever seen that is an herbivore. Have you ever, in your entire life, seen a giraffe, for example, with a protein deficiency? No? Oh yeah, that doesn't happen.
On another note, I weighed in at Curves yesterday as well. Here's what happened:
I was 100% optimistic about this weigh-in. I feel lighter. My clothes fit differently. I like it. I got on the scale, and I was down three pounds. In my head, I was like:
Disclaimer: If strong language offends you, you should skip this part of the story. Jump to the next bolded line.
klsdjfklsjdfFUCK. THREE fucking pounds? That's ALL? Jesus, I've been doing this for a month. WHAT IS THE POINT? GOD DAMMIT. Damn it all to Hell.
Ok, you're safe now. Sorry, mom. Trying to keep it real.
It wasn't pretty. But then I got over it for 3 reasons.
1. I got measured. I lost a full inch off of my waist, abs, and arms. Score. Plus all 3 pounds were pure body fat, not muscle mass.
2. I realized that I hadn't weighed in since before Christmas, so it's completely plausible that I first gained weight, then lost more weight than the scale was showing.
3. I didn't cause the death of any animals today. Or any day for the last month. So, ha.
So, anyway, one last thing. I mentioned before that my family and friends have been so supportive. I just wanted to say thanks again.
- Thank you to Mom for buying me every vegan-related book you could find and working diligently to not cross-contaminate when cooking meat and non-meat items.
- Thank you TuTu for subtracting meat from your diet with me.
- Thank you Juls for texting me with recipe ideas.
- Thank you Tuna for posting delicious dessert recipes on my wall on a regular basis. I know you were concerned that my dessert intake would be unacceptably low, but I assure you, non-dairy ice cream is equally as delicious as the regular kind. =)
- Thank you Court for telling me that you look to me for inspiration. That really keeps me on track.
- Thank you Liz for eating vegetarian Tuesday night dinners, even though you have no interest in being a vegetarian.
- Thank you Shannon and Debbie for your comments on my last post. They really did make me feel better.
- Thank you Tracy and Kimmie for sharing awesome vegan websites, which I continue to browse on a regular basis.
And Thank you, whoever else is reading this, for embarking on this journey with me. One month down, a lifetime to go. Looking forward to it.
