One of the biggest misconception about vegetarian or vegan diets is, that there is ONE vegan/vegetarian diet. Like one way of eating vegan.
Another misconception is that all vegetarian or vegan diets are healthy and include lots of salad and vegetables. Like vegetarians sit there, constantly chewing on their salad leaves.
I’ve managed to be a vegetarian for years and hardly ate any vegetables at all, I basically lived on processed foods, instant noodles and chocolate were my favourites. For me it was ‘5 a Month’, not ‘5 a Day’. And anyways chocolate is basically a fruit, right?!
It wasn’t that I gained weight either, because I didn’t eat a whole lot.
Veggies!!
I’ve heard a lot of people say, that changing their diet to vegetarian, vegan or raw food made them feel like they had so much energy and that they felt so much better. I changed from a vegetarian to a vegan, more whole foods, more organic diet and cutting sugar and table salt. I didn’t feel very different for the first three months. Actually, in the beginning I lost a pound or two and it took me a couple of weeks to adjust, with like, what to eat, which was frustrating. But I felt cleaner and better. Now, after three months, I’m starting to feel like I got more energy. But I don’t want to just attribute that to my diet, I’m pretty sure it’s about lifestyle changes too, like de-cluttering, and bringing some new, exciting things into your life, but more on that in another post.
Eating meat or vegetarian, both can be unhealthy. Obviously eating lots of meat and conventional processed food is more unhealthy.
I’ve heard some ex vegans blame their health conditions on THE vegan diet. What would be more correct they should blame it on THEIR vegan diet, if at all. Coz obviously not every person who eats vegan eats the same. Funny also, that sometimes when you find out more about these “ex vegans”, they will actually tell you, they used to eat diary and fish and chicken every now and then. Now that is just stupid, you can’t have it both ways! You can’t blame being vegan for your health problems if you’re not even vegan at all. Simple logic fail! I think some people just need a straw argument, seems easy to pick on something that is unpopular with the majority of people and goes against the mainstream ideas of nutrition and how to live your life.
In the same way, I could blame any condition a meat eater developes on them eating meat. Now for some reason, most people and mainstream medicine hardly ever do that, while at the same time telling vegans and vegetarian how they must be lacking nutrients, which will cause them to get sick.
How many times have I heard “Where do you get your iron from? Where do you get your protein from?” But never do I hear people ask meat eaters questions like, “Where do you get your vitamins from? Where do you get your minerals and antioxidants from?”
I’ve hardly ever gotten sick since I’ve been on a vegetarian diet, thirteen years now. I used to have low blood pressure and low iron when I was eating meat, which are now all balanced out. Not sure if that is just related to my diet, I think it would be to some degree.
Apart from eating meat not being great, I believe vegetarians and vegans have the better diets because they most likely eat more fruit and vegetables, are less likely to eat processed food, because they have to cook from scratch. They read product labels, which makes them also informed about what nasty food additives and preservatives and other scary stuff is in food. And while lots of meat eaters just assume they get a balanced diet, throw in a couple of veggies here and there, but not too many, most vegetarians actually research nutrition and a balanced diet.
Another great reason for being vegetarian is obviously caring about the environment and caring about animals.
Just to show you there are lots and lots of professional vegetarian/vegan athletes. If these people can win tournaments and gold medals on a plant based diet, I’m sure we will be just fine doing our day to day activities on a plant based diet.
So yeah, I want to eat more fresh, raw vegetables and fruit. I hardly ever eat leafy greens at all at the moment. I mean what are leafy greens anyways? Spinach, silver beet, dandelion.. What else?
Do people start annoying you when you make changes for the better, be it diet or lifestyle? Have you made any changes lately?
The Forage 
I’m vegan and I love it when people ask me if I take supplements and when I say no, they ask where I get my iron/protein from and I say, “my food?”
Lol..:) Hilarious!
Great post! Yep, been vegetarian and vegan (on and off between the two) for 17 years now and I am indeed perfectly healthy and hardly ever get sick. My brain just wants to explode when meat eaters act as if it’s unhealthy or won’t be able to sustain a person to reject meat. Hello, there are millions of people living whole lives out as vegans and vegetarians! And its nothing new! Even the gladiators were vegan. Sometimes I just have to ask myself just how dumb people can get, like what’s the critical mass of stupidity people reach before it clicks to the next level notch and they start actually thinking? lol. I think despite our advances, people are still very, very primitive and that is why concepts that are outside of what they have been indoctrinated into are very difficult for them to grasp.
Exactly! It’s nothing new at all! Heaps of people live on (mostly) vegetarian diets. Just look at parts of Asia, India. Very often people from those countries look healthier then most Westerners too..Humans are definitely primitive, you are right there, spot on description! It’s only going downhill with all the msg and aspartame and stupid tv rotting their brains. Sheep policing the sheep, as I always say, if someone does something different with their lives or is trying to change it for the better, and stepping out of line while doing it, they are coming down on you hard! But Fuck Them!:D
Another GREAT post, I have just stated to eat more fuit and veg and less meat we are eating vegerarian three days a week at least this is a start. The only thing that i may have troubles with is the kids, I have two kids one is 7 and the other 5.To try to change there diet may be a little harder so we will see.
Thanks Damian. Lol, no excuses!:) I dunno about kids, try buying or making veggie burgers, maybe soups with croutons, veggie cakes/pies, smoked tofu. Get creative. And tell them to suck it up!;)
A doctor told me once that a vegan patient of his had the worst cholesterol of anybody he’d ever treated…so no we’re not all the same…as you said you can eat unhealthily whether you’re vegan or not…but the thought of eating a dead creature makes me feel ill…and i too get soooo sick of people blaming my health condition (one i was born with) on me not eating meat etc.
Stupid when people are so judgemental! As i said, people often look for easy answers and like to just rattle down mainstream media bullshit.. I don’t want to eat animals either, there seems to be quite a disconnection for most people, between the cute animals you see and the food on the table.
I think your post here is far better than the one that was featuring as freshly pressed on WP about ‘vegetarian dilemma’ or some such crap, and then launched into the slating of ‘fake meat products.’ No consolation that neither of us is ‘freshly pressed’ – just thought I’d tell you it was a good post.
Thanks!:)
Chocolate is definitely a vegetable, duh!!
I love that caveman video. ^ ^
Its great, isn’t it?!