mmmm, Meat

mmmm, not meat

That's my usual take on meat. It's been a dietary staple since I can remember. This last week though I have decided to take on the bold experiment of NOT eating meat. I'm not really sure why I'm doing this. I have no agenda such as in "What the Health" or the older "Supersize me" and I don't believe that meat is "murder". I'm sure there is a lot of lobbying, but I don't think there's some big conspiracy by "big meat" (tee-hee). Although, I do think I need to pay more attention to what I'm putting in my body.

More than anything I just wanted to try something different and see what effects there might be. A little science in the name of knowing myself a little better. So far I've noticed a couple of small changes; however it is hard to rule on things one way or another after a week.

The first thing is I've been rather tired. Again, I'm not sure if that's just me or the lessened protein/meat intake. I did splurge on Sunday and had a couple of eggs (I have my non-meat limits). I did feel more energized after an over-easy on some toast. If the tiredness is a thing, I'll need to find more protein from other sources, or just eat a lot of eggs, or just scrap the experiment.

The second thing I noticed, and this may be the rub in the whole vegetarian, gluten-free, etc. diet, were the choices I made grocery shopping on Saturday. I found an emphasis on fruits and veggies and frozen veggies and...well maybe a few carbs. That is, in deciding to cut something perceived as unhealthy out of shopping it pushed me to making some healthier choices. I also went hunting for alternative protein sources. I picked up some extra cans of beans and found some frozen high protein vegetable medleys.

The third thing is: I got sick. Again, I have no clue if this is just my body adjusting to the new diet or if there are residual germs that I came into contact with while cleaning the house. I spent most of the last few days with a cold and then things escalated to a stomach bug. I'm certain the bug was residual from my kids being sick a couple of weeks ago, but I thought I was in the clear.

The fourth thing: compared to other eating and diet plans, this is pretty easy. The thought process is: I'm hungry, but I can't eat meat; I should eat something a little better than Oreos (healthy better, we all know Oreos are double stuft crack as far as taste goes), "Hey, I'll have a salad with some black beans on it". It's also very cut and dry as to what is okay, even if I can't muster giving up eggs.

I'm not sure how long this experiment will last. It could be 20 minutes or it could be 20 years. Essentially, I'd like to do this long enough to see if it's getting me what I need and is indeed healthier. I do recall in a fitness program, it can be hard to sustain and build strength without extra protein. But that may not be my long term goal versus trying to live as realistically healthy as possible. Frankly though, I like meat. Ultimately, I may try to make it a "sometimes food".