living in a meat-eaters world, part deux

If you missed it, the other day I began telling my vegetarian story.  Not because you really care, but so many people ask questions about it.  I figured, why not?

I know you all were on the edge of your seats waiting in sweaty anxiety for the remainder of these questions to be answered.  Again, inquiring minds wanna know.  *giggle*

Go here for the previous post.

5. When did you become a vegetarian?
I really don't know the exact age. But very early. My mother had the philosophy of "this is what's for dinner, eat it and you won't go hungry." No special meals were made for me. (This is how all children should eat, people!!) But I was given the option of not eating the meat items. I ate rice with milk on nights we had gumbo. I ate pasta with butter & parmesan (still my ultimate comfort food!!!) instead of sauce with meat in it.  I picked chicken out of tetrazzini.  (I seriously hate it when people tell me to do that.)  At some point I just didn't like meat.  Even cold hot dogs.  (See #4.) 

I really think it all began when I was 5.  My family backpacked through Europe for almost a month.  Traveling by train, staying in quaint little bed-&-breakfasts.  We ate mostly what we could purchase at the open markets and eat on the train:  bread, cheese, and raw fruits and veggies.  Truth be told, I think this is where my obsession love of raw foods came to be.  It was a fun time.  Experiencing new foods, new cultures.  (I remember staying at this one place in Interlaken, Switzerland.  We had a huge room with a little side room.  It had once been a child's nursery and the nanny's bedroom.  The side room was mine and my brother's.  My parents made us pasta and we dined by candelight all alone that night while my parents ate in the kitchen with the other travellers from all across the world.  Fun!!)

6.  What do you eat?
Just about anything you eat that has meat in it I can make vegetarian.  I use beans as meat substitutes in a ton of different ways.  Tonight we ate tacos.  I used black beans.  Same spices and all.  For me, side items and condiments are king.  The other night I made ham, potatoes & onions, peas, and rolls.  I ate everything but the ham.  Side items and condiments are king to me.  I make a great veggie sandwich on toasted pita bread loaded with good pickles or banana peppers and either feta or melted cheddar, any kind of good cheese.

7.  Why don't your kids know?
It's not a secret.  But I don't want them having the same issues with meat as I do.  If they realize I don't like something they might not try it.  I believe you should try everything.  Then make up your mind for yourself.  Simple as that.  We eat a ton of raw foods, but all my kids are meat eaters.  (Unfortunately, Bubba could easily go without it.  Come to think of it, Bruiser could too.  Cuz ya know, there's no meat in peanut butter.)

8.  What about protein? (this one is important to me, so read!)
Ok, here's the bottom line:  I struggle with getting enough protein.  It wasn't until my late 20s that I started noticing my metabolism wasn't quite like it had been before.  I assumed it was age, blah, blah, blah.  After Bruiser was born I kicked it into high gear and began running again, doing yoga, biking, etc.  I wasn't losing any weight.  In fact, most weeks I'd gain.  I went to my doctor.  Here's what was going on:  my body was in starvation mode and clinging to every pound.  I then went to see a nutritionist.  (Bad idea, by the way.  She recommended every type of man-made, non-natural food I've ever heard of.  Egg beaters instead of eggs, which we get from my friend who has chickens on her farm.)  She fed me the same line I've heard a vegan author quote:  the average American gets more than the recommended amount of protein.  Yes, I believe that.  IF they are meat-eaters. 

I began counting my daily grams of protein.  I was scoring in the low teens.  My goal was a minimum of 60.  Many days I didn't even get to the double digits.  Scary.  (Side note:  the nutrionist didn't believe this either and asked for proof of my numbers.  I showed proof on the website I use.)  After Doh Doh was born, and during my pregnancy as well, I began to look for ways to up my protein intake.  I now make all-natural protein shakes.  No artificial sweetners, etc.  I eat a ton of Greek yogurt (12 g of protein, only 120 calories!!!) and incorporate beans, nuts, seeds, etc. into snacks and meals.

If you are considering becoming a vegetarian, or at least a partial lifestyle change, please remember 2 things:  watch your carb and protein intakes!  As a life-long lover of all carbs, I warn you about using a carbohydrate to fill your gut instead of a good protein.  Also, on days I don't get enough protein I struggle to make it through the day.  Again, I never had that problem when I was younger!  (Sheesh, getting older bites.)


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And that's it.  Did that help?  Any questions?  Ready to go back to seriously cute pics of my kids?  Yeah, me too.