What Are Meatless Mondays?

Like many Americans, I partake in Meatless Mondays (I am also meatless on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursday and every other day of the week). Though I am a vegetarian and advocate that others eat a plant-based diet, I understand that taking the plunge can be a lot to take on for some people. Partaking in Meatless Mondays is a good place to start. Why would you want to do this? Watch the video below and learn more - it's pretty compelling. Happy Wednesday!

Some Tips on Becoming a Vegetarian

If you would like to become a vegetarian, or even if you don't want to become a vegetarian but would like to reduce your meat intake, here are some suggestions:

1. Find good recipes. You don't need to go out and buy a bunch of cookbooks. There are so many great websites with a plethora of delicious and easy vegetarian recipes. My favorites are here, here and here. Here are some of my favorite recipes: Curried Corn and Coconut Soup, Bright Green Soup, Quinoa Tabbouleh and Coconut Chocolate Crunch Mix.

2. Try one recipe a week. If you like it, add it to your collection of staple recipes that you eat on a regular basis. You don't need to turn into a vegetarian overnight, so just gradually start adding some vegetable-based meals to your week.

3. Substitutions. Try your regular recipes that you love but with a meatless substitute. So, if you love spaghetti with meat sauce, try using a ground beef alternative from Boca or Morningstar and cook it just the way you would normally. There are alternatives for just about any kind of meat, and some of them are quite good. You can go on eating what you normally eat, but meatless.

4. Start with red meat. Usually, gradually transitioning into vegetarianism is the best approach as opposed to doing it all at once. Red meat is on the more expensive side and is usually also the unhealthiest, so try cutting it out first.

5. Junk food. You can be a vegetarian and be very unhealthy if you eat junk food. Being a vegetarian is not a license to eat junk food (although you can probably indulge yourself a little more occasionally now that you're not eating meat). Try to stick with fruits and veggies, whole grains, beans, nuts, soy protein, low-fat dairy and other nutritious foods for the most part.

6. Ethnic food. One of the greatest things about becoming a vegetarian is that often it spurs people to try new and interesting ethnic foods (or reminds them of foods they love but don't eat often). Great vegetarian dishes can be found in all types of cuisines: Italian, Indian, Thai, Chinese, Ethiopian, Moroccan, Mexican, South American, and more.

7. Tell friends and family. These are the people you'll be eating out with, whose homes you'll be having dinner at, etc. So, it's important that they know about your new lifestyle and that they be supportive. There's no need to try and convert them to being vegetarians, just explain your choices and leave it at that. You might want to start bringing a vegetarian dish when going to other people's houses for dinner, especially for occasions like Thanksgiving and Christmas.

8. Vegetarian Restaurants. If you live in the San Francisco Bay Area, there are tons of vegetarian restaurants as well as regular restaurants with vegetarian menus. Here are some of my favorite spots: The Plant Cafe Organic, Greens, The Loving Hut, Cafe Gratitude, and Gracias Madre. This website is a great tool for finding vegetarian restaurants in your area.

9. Have fun! Notice how good you feel. Many people experience a significant increase in energy, feel lighter, and healthier.

Good luck! :)

On Being a Vegetarian

I have been a vegetarian for about 7 years now. I am a pesco-vegetarian which is just a fancy way of saying that I don't eat any meat except for fish. I have never liked meat and would get in the biggest fights with my parents even when I was a little girl over not wanting to eat their lovingly prepared meals because they had meat in them. My mom and dad told me different stories to get me to eat meat: The chicken was grown on the supermarket shelf! Chickens shed their breasts! I didn't buy it. Not only did I not like the taste of meat  (it seemed overly chewy and I would be horrified to see a vein or tendon), I just couldn't separate the cute fluffy animals I loved from the food in front of me.

So, as soon as it was up to me, I stopped eating meat. At first I didn't even eat fish but after a while realized that I actually do like seafood and fish (yay, sushi!) so incorporated that into my diet. I don't miss meat one bit. People ask me often if it's hard to be a vegetarian. To me, it is the easiest thing in the world.

If you're not interested in becoming a vegetarian, then skip the rest of this post. But, if you're even just a bit curious, here are some reasons to consider vegetarianism:

1. Cut the fat. While meat provides a lot of protein, it often also provides a lot of fat - especially saturated fat. This means that by cutting out meat, you'll be cutting out a lot of bad fat and replacing it with things that are probably not only lower in fat, but contain some good fats. (Hello, avocado!) This greatly reduces your risk of heart disease, and in fact numerous studies have shown that vegetarians tend to have a lower risk of heart disease, as well as hypertension, diabetes, cancer, and other diseases. Read more here.

2. Less food poisoning. Food poisoning gets millions of people sick each year - and many of them from meat, which is a good breeding ground for harmful bacteria, especially if not stored, prepared, or cooked exactly right. Cut out meat and lower  your risk of food poisoning.

3. Reduce the suffering. You probably don't want to hear about the horrific treatment of animals that are raised for food even before they are slaughtered. But suffice it to say, there are great amounts of suffering involved, and by cutting out meat, you are reducing your involvement in that. Read more here.

4. Help the environment. There are actually numerous ways the meat industry harms the environment: from a waste of our resources (animals raised for food eat enough grain to feed the world!), to waste of fuel, to the pollution caused by their waste matter, and much more. Read more about that here.

5. Help your weight loss. It's possible to be a vegetarian and eat very unhealthy foods including soda, fried foods, pizza, and chips. But it's much more difficult. Studies repeatedly show that vegetarians are slimmer and are less likely to be obese than meat eaters. If you're trying to lose weight, being a vegetarian can be a good part of your program.

6. Get better nutrition. In general (though not necessarily), vegetarians replace meat with more nutritious foods, such as vegetables, beans, whole grains, and so on. When your body gets the nutrients it needs, it shows in your skin and hair, your energy levels, and your mood.

Tomorrow, I will be sharing some tips for becoming a vegetarian and how just a few changes can make a big difference :). XO