10 reasons to be Vegetarian/Vegan!
Ever since I stopped eating dairy & animal products I can honestly say I feel like a new person. I lost weight in all the right places, toned up; I eat better, feel healthier, and do a LOT more to make the world a better place. You can accomplish these goals by making a switch too.
I call myself a ‘practicing vegan.’ While I do not ingest virtually any animal products, I still have some leather boots & a down comforter. You can practice veganism too!
Gradual lifestyle changes at a time!
You’ll enjoy delicious, satisfying meals as you practice this lifestyle. For over 5 years I have practiced Veganism/Vegetarianism/Pescatarianism , (sometimes seafood), and the last couple years I have been trying to practice full veganism: avoiding fish, butter, and eggs. If I eat fish I try to find fresh fish with sustainable fishing practices in place. I am totally guilty of eating eggs or fish sometimes. When I do I choose free range organic eggs and I make sure to find FRESH caught fish. I love to say I ‘PRACTICE’ Veganism. Nobody is perfect. I feel great about trying to be “as Vegan as possible,”.
Here are 10 good reasons to adopt a vegetarian/vegan lifestyle this year:
1. Save animals. Why pet one & eat another? I really love this billboard put out by Mercy For Animals; have a look – Why Love One But Eat The Other? Every vegan saves more than 100 animals a year from horrible abuse. There is simply no easier way to help so many animals and prevent so much suffering of these souls than by choosing vegan foods over meat and dairy products. You still get ALL nutrition by incorporating a healthy shake into your diet and supplementing with vitamins and minerals.
I take Canadian Made Natera Hemp Protein in my shake which has NO additives, no weird things I can’t pronounce, no gluten, no milk products. Hemp is a complete source of amino acids and essential fatty acids. It contains all 21 amino acids including 9 essential amino acids. Sometimes, green pastures and idyllic barnyard scenes are now distant memories. On factory farms, animals are crammed by the thousands into filthy windowless sheds, wire cages, gestation crates, and other confinement systems. These animals will never raise families, root in the soil, build nests, or do anything else that is natural and important to them. They won’t even get to feel the warmth of the sun on their backs or breathe fresh air until the day they die. People argue, “What can one person do?” – yet we are taught our entire lives to focus first and foremost on the actions of one’s self in order to impact the world around us. It is true – a single person is very powerful in their own resolve to make a difference. One person can do a lot. Same goes for vegans – Once you start upon this path, let go of what the next person is doing. Forget about the guy eating the triple baconator beside you. Remember as a vegetarian, or not, focus on your own path.
Ultimately, make no mistake – One person saving hundreds of lives makes an incredible difference in nature, and in life energy.
2. Sustainability. Eating Vegetarian/vegan is good for the Environment. A recent United Nations report entitled “Livestock’s Long Shadow” concludes that eating meat is “one of the … most significant contributors to the most serious environmental problems, at every scale from local to global.” In just one example, eating meat causes almost 40 percent more greenhouse-gas emissions than all the cars, trucks, and planes in the world combined. The report concludes that the meat industry “should be a major policy focus when dealing with problems of land degradation, climate change and air pollution, water shortage and water pollution, and loss of biodiversity.” Peta also supports these facts.
3. Your health. Lower cholesterol, boost your immune system and increase your endurance. When you give up meat and dairy, you avoid toxic food contaminants. Flesh foods are loaded with poisons and contaminants such as hormones, herbicides and pesticides, and antibiotics. As these toxins are all fat-soluble, they concentrate in the fatty flesh of the animals. If you are looking to lose serious pounds, drop weight & get cut! Vegans, Vegetarians & Pescatarians are, on average, up to 20 pounds lighter than meat-eaters. And unlike unhealthy fad diets, which leave you feeling tired (and usually result in gaining weight back eventually), going vegan is the healthy way to keep the excess fat off for good while feeling full of energy.
4. Show compassion. Vegetarianism is moral and ethical: give the devastating consequences of meat eating on an individual, social and ecological level, as thinking, caring beings we should choose vegetarianism. Many great philosophers such as Plato, Socrates, Leo Tolstoy, and George Bernard Shaw have taught the morality of vegetarianism.
5. Gain longevity! How much enhanced longevity can you expect as a vegetarian? The study of vegetarian Seventh Day Adventists found them to have significantly lower death rates than the general population. Men had lower death rates from coronary heart disease, stroke, diabetes, all cancers combined, and cancer of the colon, rectum and prostate in particular. Women had lower death rates from stroke, diabetes, all cancers combined, and cancer of the colon, rectum, breast and ovaries in particular. The study concluded that the more meat and dairy an individual ate, the more likely they were to die of those diseases. Dr. William Castelli found that vegetarians outlive meat-eaters by about 6 years. Populations that consume high amounts of animal flesh, such as the Greenlanders and Russian Kurgi have life expectancies of only 30 years. Populations such as the East Indian Todas and the Russian Caucasians, who consume little or no meat, have life expectancies of 90-100 years.
6. Energy Boost! As these vegetarian athletes know, a vegetarian diet is the perfect source of nutrition for the human body. A vegetarian diet based on whole grains, fruits and vegetables is low in fat, a great source of fiber, and rich in energy boosting vitamins and minerals. The primary component of a balanced vegetarian diet is complex carbohydrates, which are the perfect source for maximum energy and endurance. Supplementing is highly important. Consult with a naturopath to find out what vitamins to take. A handful of my own daily mix of vitamins includes Vitamin C, B12, B2, D, A, a multivitamin for women, Magnesium, & Zinc.
7. If you aren’t sure what to cook … Click here to open up a board dedicated to making the tastiest, healthiest, vegan recipes.
You have variety. Here is a link to more fantastic dishes. Just googling the words “Vegan recipes” brings up a myriad of results.
http://nourishedkitchen.com/recipes-2/ http://www.theppk.com/recipes/
8. Drop Dairy to see Real Results. This site is interesting & talks about what Milk & Dairy Products do in our digestive system. Definitely check out the 7-day dairy detox… www.notmilk.com . Almond milk and coconut milk are great alternatives. Chewable strawberry probiotics can be found with vitamins at the pharmacy; probiotics make your skin nice, your immune system strong, and your digestive system healthy.
9. Water Conservation. It takes 3 to 15 times as much water to produce animal protein as it does plant protein. As a vegetarian I contribute to water conservation. Sustainability is definitely up to us.
10. Live by Example. To live this way is to protect the underlying values of those around me.
FAQ’s about Eating Vegetables and Grains:
1. Will I get enough nutrients? Protein?
Yes! With proper planning you can end up eating more nutritiously than you were raised to eat. Make new things familiar to you.
2.If everyone only ate vegetables and grains, would there be enough for the whole world to eat?
If everyone was a vegetarian, we would actually have more food to feed hungry people across the world. Most of the grain we produce is fed to animals, and if we stopped doing that, no one would be starving. The cattle population across the world eats enough calories to feed 8.7 billion people.
Take a look at some of the amazing exercises I do on a regular basis to stay fit!
You can check out my Guide to Fitness & Wellness Here. <- Find out exactly how to get super fit starting solely with your diet!
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