Today it dawned on me that I've been a vegetarian for about a year now! I gave up meat around this time last year for a number of reasons, including my health and my love of animals.
Giving up meat hasn't been exactly easy. I'm met with a lot of criticism for it from people whom it doesn't concern. Mostly because they have different opinions. A lot of the time my friends will make fun of me for it, but they more or less accept it! (Thank heavens!)
In celebration of having gone a year without meat I thought I'd share my list of vegetarian tips for anyone considering giving up meat, or if you're struggling with it.
• Don't enforce your beliefs on anyone. Nobody likes to be pressured or guilted! There's a decent chance your friends will either find you annoying or avoid you because you're always trying to shove your ideals down their throat. (Oh man, food pun! ＾ω＾) Instead, speak your opinion when asked about it, but otherwise keep your thoughts to yourself.
• Deal with your cravings. If you find yourself craving a meaty snack, substitute it with something else that's cruelty free like cheese (If you're not a vegan) or juice. It'll be tough to quit at first but after a while the cravings aren't as bad. (I've actually forgotten what chicken tastes like ._.')
• Don't quit if you slip up. Sometimes it's not always possible to be 100% meat free, especially if you're around non-vegetarians a lot. If you have a moment of weakness or you accidentally didn't see that one piece of pepperoni on your pizza, it doesn't mean you can't be a vegetarian anymore. Some of my friends have told me that they tried being vegetarian but they couldn't because they ate meat one time and quit, that seems a little silly to me!
• Remember your cause. Weather it be reading your peta info booklet or taking your doggy for a walk, it's important to remember why you've given up meat and how it's made you happier (As I hope it has!) Write a list of why you're a vegetarian and all the positive attributes if it helps!
• Learn to cook. You can't expect everyone around you to be 100% supportive of your lifestyle choice, and sometimes that means you're going to have to cook a meal for yourself. Learning how to prepare easy, vegetarian meals for those nights of relying on yourself. There are tons of websites and cookbooks that can help you along the way, or if you're feeling ambitious you can experiment. (Just be prepared to clean up after wards, and try not to set anything on fire!・_・)
• Don't give up! If you can't give up eating meat for health reasons, you can still do your part! If we all cut more meat out of our diet we could create so much change for our world! Whatever your cause is – saving the environment, saving the animals, saving yourself – we could all help if we pitched in.
I hope these tips have helped! I know they've helped me this past year!
If you have any comments or questions about your experiences with vegetarianism I'd love to hear them!
No comments:
Post a Comment