Vegging it for 40 days?
 

I'm not Catholic, so I never observe Lent. However, I'm considering giving up meat for 40 days. I haven't had any today, so I figure I have until lunch to consider it. I know I'm talking to a group of grillers in the BBQ capital, but maybe there are some vegetarians in the group? Any advice?

Why?

This should be good.
:popcorn:

Mostly to see if I can. However, I want to see how I feel. Most of the time, when I'm tempted to go to a fast food joint, it's because I want a burger. This will help me to avoid fast food, thus saving money and calories.

I guess I wouldn't mind finding out if there are other benefits? I just figure it doesn't hurt to try.

Why not wait until mid-summer when you might be able to get your hands on some fresher or home grown veggies?

There's other stuff that I can eat besides veggies. Vegetarians have to eat year round, right?

Unless you die. Do some research. You definitely need protein, particularly if you are doing your roller derby thing frequently.

Good question. ?!?!?!?!?!?!?!!?!?!?

True, but if you're new to it might be a better option. My wife and I have a meatless day each week. It's not too difficult but I will admit it took some getting used too.

There are plenty of other sources of protein out there.

I don't know. Maybe try just giving up red meat?

I don't think there is a day that goes by that I don't eat some type of meat.

I did this 3 years ago. It wasn't too bad honestly.

There are other benefits. There is plenty of info on that elsewhere (and there is counter-info & debate elsewhere too).

If you want to do it as a personal challenge - then go ahead. The longest stretch I went was around 6 months. If you're not so much concerned with going a certain # of days but instead health benefits I would instead recommend a lifestyle change rather than a # of days type diet. Cut back, but don't cut it out completely. Limit your consumption to maybe twice a week or once a week or once every two weeks.

thatswhatshesaid

I've given up meat for about 90% of my meals since last June. I'll still have bbq once a month, or salmon once a week or so. I've lost 20 lbs and feel great. I've gotten used to eating this way now, and actually don't crave the meat since I'm still letting myself have some once in a while. I had a killer burger last weekend for example.

Exactly - thus my recommendation to cut back instead of cutting out.

Stupid fad Bullcrap. Humans aren't herbivores...eat your proteins!

Sounds like a terrible idea. Meat isn't bad for you in normal quantities. In fact, it's an important part of a good diet. Don't let idiot Vegans convince you that it should be wrong...

red meat is the most nutrient dense food available...maybe only eggs are better

Not to worry, I'm still cutting down on carbs. :p

Yeah, I'll eat Quinoa with veggies, meatless chili, rattitoulli(sp) over brown rice, red beans and rice, whole wheat pasta with sauteed veggies and tomato sauce, etc. etc. I don't do cheese or milk either, but will do some eggs about once a month.

How's your strength? Honest question.

I don't think eating meat is wrong. I just want to see if there's a difference in how I feel.

Carbs will make you gain weight like a mother****er. Cutting out meat isn't gonna magically make you lose weight.

Humans also didn't eat meat 3x a day like a lot of overweight Americans do.

Cutting out meat doesn't equate to eating a crapton of carbs.

I do the same thing with pop and fast food. There have been times in the past where I complete cut them off for weeks or a month, but when that craving hits, I just go nuts and drink way too much pop or hit up all the fast food places I missed out on. Instead I will do one pop every day or two, mixing in the soda stream, and do fast food maybe once a week.

My office building recently got vending machines with credit card readers. I never carry cash so I avoided them prior but when those came in I was eating candy and pop every day. Now I leave my cards at home and just carry around $60-80 in cash in twenty dollar bills.

meat has nothing to do with obesity

processed carbs and sugar....and sitting on fat asses all day

No shit?

A lot of healthy sized Americans eat meat 3x+ a day. They just don't eat ice cream or cake to go along with the meat.

this guys a vegetarian and really seems to be lacking protein.

luv, I was just joking around with the fad comment. Just teasing you.

I support whatever you decide to do, but if you cut out meat, I recommend finding some other way to replace that protein.

It depends. Lean meat doesn't lead to obesity. Processed meats, fatty meats, greasy bacon, etc. - yes.

Wrong.

It's not that big of a deal. There are plenty of sources of protein.

I try to completely avoid complete avoidance.

A little of everything, and everything in moderation.

I am not a dietitian, nor did I stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night.

Ok, just because Buck says so. :rolleyes:

My wife is a vegetarian, and I was one for years. As such, we eat a lot of meat free dishes at our house (my goto cookbook is Mark Bittman's How to Eat Everything Vegetarian). Even now, I usually eat meat only a couple of times a week (not counting eggs).

Beans, greens, eggs, nuts, complex grains (like quinoa) are your friends.

Cheese and grains are fine in small portions, but a lot of vegetarians go crazy on the cheese, grains, and bread, which isn't all that healthy.

Also, I'll put my and my wife's general fitness and strength up against 98% of this board (including Buck).

Obviously. I'm not an idiot. There are plenty of other sources of protein. I have a protein shake with almond milk every morning. I will still eat eggs. Legumes and nuts are also sources.

The biggest misunderstanding in the country is people thinking that eating dietary fat makes you fat or eating dietary cholesterol raises your bad cholesterol levels.

better than ever. I work out 5 days a week and do alot of core work with medicine balls. I'm 45 years old, 5'10, and 185 lbs. I've not felt this good since college. I was a "meat, meat, meat" guy for the last 30 years and really bulked up, but didn't have any real usable strength difference from now. I don't know what I bench anymore, if that is what you are asking. I'm sure it's not what it was twenty years ago, but I don't care about that. I'm sure it's not for everyone, but you are wrong that people are not herbivores. People are omnivores, and have been since the beginning of mankind. Some of the earliest diets consisted of fruits, nuts, seeds, and tubers. Most other primates are the same way. We started eating meat when we started being able to catch it/kill it. Again, I'm an avid hunter, and I still enjoy meat once in a while, but I think I'm healthier than I was when I ate meat every day.

I think you'd be better off cutting out sweets (pop, candy, ice cream, etc.) for forty days.

Assuming you eat all of that stuff.

they say that your sweat is different when you aren't eating meat.

You can get protein through beans and nuts fairly easily i would think.



limiting processed sugars/carbs are still the key imo

This. I almost always cut out sweets for my Lenten discipline.

Definitely.

Bingo. Meat has nothing to do with obesity. It does however, have strong links to cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and cancer.

I honestly think that cutting out (or limiting) my meat intake will help in these areas too. I think that trying this will help make me more aware of what I'm eating as a whole.

not really...

processed food is bad for you, in a myriad of ways...but fat doesn't make you fat...processed carbs and sugar make you fat

obesity has sky rocketed in exact relationship to the anti-fat craze...everything is low fat and yet our society is fatter and sicker than ever

it's bunk nutritional science that is literally killing us

animal fat is important and healthy...not so much when comes in processed, rancid forms...

anyways, I don't really want to hash out this terrible received wisdom...but a lot of work has been done to de-bunk the myths about fat and cholesterol

I respectfully disagree.

?

Foods with incredible amounts of fat = incredibly calorically dense = greater probability exceeding daily caloric needs = fat gain

I eat all the stuff you say makes you fat every single day and I've lost 135+ lbs.

Ask Tony Gonzalez, he's a vegetarian. He's a vegan. I'd like to see anyone on CP that is in better shape than him.

I've really cut back on the amount of meat I eat; I'm not a strict vegetarian by any stretch of the imagination, but I simply don't eat meat the way I used to. There are a lot of creative vegetable recipes out there, and to be quite honest, I was really surprised at how good a lot of them taste.

As long as you get your proteins through your veggies, you will feel just fine. I'll eat meat every once in a while, but given the choice, I'd just as soon have fruits and veggies on my plate. You have a greater variety of flavors and textures making your meal more enjoyable IMO.

No thanks

Meth head!

Question. Where would seafood fall into this mix?

all the sugar loaded in modern day drinks is just terrible

See...

When you cut out sugar, you maintain a low insulin level, which in turn leads to lower hunger levels. It's not magic. It's science.

Excess anything makes you fat

sugars that spike insulin will tend to make you store more as fat, but they dont automatically cause fat, just as eating fat doesn't automatically cause fat

Ethics wise? Health wise? Calorie wise? Not sure what you're asking.

Completely up to you. Lots of vegetarians are actually pescatarians. There's also lacto/ovo. Then there's hard core vegan.

Hell, my wife is a vegetarian except for bacon, which she'll eat occasionally.

not really...the China Study is pure bunkum

everything in moderation of course, but read meat from ruminant animals is pretty much the healthiest thing you can eat...

the links between cholesterol and heart disease are being destroyed...i feel sorry for anyone taking statins before they're 70...

right, but the sugar isn't makign you fat, it's the excess food you will consume

for what it's worth, i like all foods and i think diets where you completely cut something out are ridiculous (IE cutting out all carbohydrates, cutting out all meat, etc - i don't mean getting rid of sugar becuase of course that is a good thing)

depends on the preparation but i would think that seafood is generally healthier than red meat.

although i'm sure that many people around here will not not agree

It's meat. In moderation, some fish is very good for your blood cholersterol and triglyceride levels due to the ratio of Omega 3 to omega 6 oils in fish like salmon. It's also a good source of protein.

If she didn't eat bacon every once in awhile I am pretty sure she'd be the anti-Christ.

why .. why must this stupid shit be said every time?


Sugar doesn't actually make you fat it just leads to you being fat :spock:



**** off

Yeah but for a lot of people, it will.

It's easy to binge on carbs. It's ****ing easy to sit there and eat a whole bag of potato chips.

Meat is a lot more filling and satisfying in smaller amounts.

Main concern with fish these days is mercury levels.

watch for fish at the top of the food chain - lots of mercury in the bigger fish like tuna

quiet fatty, the adults are talking

i acknowledge what buck said and it's correct.

and yeah, sugar is bad

but don't think you can eat lard and not get fat

And fat is making you fat? Do you see how what you're arguing is flawed?

I think this is what I'll do. And treat myself to a good steak once per month.

I'm going to make this change. The 40 days gives me a goal. I think that, by the time the 40 days is up, I won't even realize it's been 40 days. Giving myself that time will help keep me on track while I make the adjustment.

If I were going to pick between an entire bag of chips which I guess is vegetarian by definition, or a 24 oz top sirloin? I'd chow down that sirloin! Having said that, neither is a very good choice.

jumping off a cliff doesn't kill you, it's just the suddenly stop at the bottom



derp,derp,derp ....

it can make you fat

just like sugar

its not just one or the other

its a combo.

I'M NOT DISAGREEING WITH YOU - i love meat and it gets a really bad reputatioon

but excess consumption of grease IS NOT A GOOD THING

Good luck Luv. google some vegetarian recipes. Use lots of Quinoa instead of processed flour carbs like regular pasta and bread. you will be surprised how you can make a meal taste delicious and filling and not use meat at all. Then, as you said, treat yourself once in a while.

if you have a cushion or parachute mechanism then you dont die

just like if you dont keep chowing down you dont get fat

True. I guess the point is many of these individuals don't just eat meat - they eat processed meat and top it with processed cheese and put it on processed, high sugar bread with tons of mayo and sugary ketchup, eat it with greasy sodium-overdosed french fries and wash it all down with a tub of soda.

Maybe fat isn't the best description - and as above it matters how and what you eat it with. Also, cutting excess weight can be done by consuming less calories than what you burn - no matter what you are eating.

A 24 oz sirloin has about 1400 calories.

You eat that and you're gonna be full for a good part of the day. I'd EASILY skip a meal.

Down a bag of chips and see what happens in 3 hours.

thank you for being reasonable

Here's another thing I'll say about vegetarianism:

Eating out can be a real challenge if you're trying to keep weight off. A lot of people fall into the "sides" trap.

That is: they just order a bunch of sides as their meal. That can be fine (beans, greens, complex grains, raw veggies) unless you fall into the mac and cheese, cheesy potato bake, and awesome blossom trap of "Oh, these don't have meat. Healthy!" Sounds ridiculous, I know, but I have some friends who are hard core vegetarian and eat like that, then wonder why they don't lose weight or feel good.