Going Veggie

The ads below convinced me to check out PETA’s site. As u can see in my mindmap below PETA focus on four main areas: laboratories, factories, farms, and clothing trade/entertainment. of course all these are specifically dealing with animals and their “rights.”

i think the stand off btwn PETA protesters and those who wear fur is interesting. I automatically associate fur with upper class and money maken people (particularly celebrities). on the other hand there are countless celebs that are vegetarians and spokes people for PETA. Check the ads below. A lot of PETA members are kind of disgusted with some of these female celebs posing nude for the PETA campaign (check this article here). but i know there are also a lot people who dont mind it at all. . . .

along with the ads below check these sites out for more PETA naked and protester stuff.

- http://images.google.com/images?num=100&hl=en&safe=off

- http://blog.peta.org/archives/naked/

YOU GOTTA CHECK THESE NEXT TWO OUT

– http://firebombpeta.blogspot.com/2005/01/peta-and-terrorists.html

- http://petakillsanimals.com/

heres an interesting view on PETA . . .

along with my research i have compiled a lot of websites with some very good information about vegetarianism and related subjects. take some time and look through them. you can find them on my veggie page at delicious (http://del.icio.us/peterhunner/veggie).

heres a nice little article (here) with a good pic all for PETA.

so iv been doing a lot of research on vegetarianism from the different kinds to why meat is bad and the PETA organization. i started a mindmap (i will add on to it soon). check it out (click on it) below.

http://www.vegsoc.org/nvw/2004/game/veggieinvade.html

so click the link and try this game. when u get the potato ull get facts about vegetarians. the 1st one i got went something like this “vegetarians have reduced risk of getting bowel cancer” . . . haha thats always good eh

i have yet to find a good meatless form of sausage. the last meatless sausage thing i bought was made from soy and i made a veggie sausage mcmuffin with it and it ruined the whole thing and yes it ruined my day too. if anyone has found a decent breakfast veggie sausage please let me know. (i did not like the boca ones but these bakers choice meatless sausage rolls look very appetizing)

so its been a few days since iv written but here i am. funny story though i was at the olive garden the other night and i love all the bread sticks and that spicy sausage soup. but my girlfriend, who is for the most part is the reason i havent given in yet, stood her ground and would not let me get the soup. it hurt and i was very agitated but i settled for some other veggie soup. however, my friend who admitted to not really liking the sausage soup looks at me and then orders it. yeah he had to taunt me. but w/e i stuffed myself with cheese ravioli too so i was happy in the end.

i think i have been losing weight though. a lot of my daily calorie intake before this was meat . . . but i think i have kinda replaced it with bread and shit. i guess its working haha.

i got some info from a friend of my girlfriends . . . shes a vegetarian and she knows some good stuff, check it:

A lot of the meals that have meat in them, can be made with “meat alternatives”. Think soy; which tofu is usually the most popular (and can taste amazing if prepared correctly. There is also tempeh, sigton (spelling) and the fake meat (Morning Star and Boca products, found in the feezer section of grocery stores). My boyfriend makes sweat and sour tofu instead of chicken (same recepie, but with tofu. The tofu does have to be prepared differently), penut-sauce tempeh, pamasian encrusted tufo, use tempeh with eggs or on a sandwhich. There are so many recepies out there, just be creative!!!

My favorite way to prepare tofu is in the oven. You can buy tofu either already cut up or in a big square (I think extra firm is the best, and don’t forget to drain the extra juice, and press it for awhile too if you prefer). If you buy the block of tufo, just cut it up into little squares and put them in the oven (with olive oil) and bake it. You can then either add parmassan and red peppers, take the baked tufo and season it (can be marinated before baked too) and add it to a dish, or get creative with it!

About being healthy, active, etc. The best way to loose weight is to gain muscle. When you build muscle, your body is burning a ton of calories to make the muscles… so you are esentially loosing weight after your work out IF you have the proper eating habbits. The best muscles to build… abs… core abs at that! Not to say cardio isn’t good (I try to do an hour a day of cardio in addition to weights and ab work), because it has its time and place. Get into shape slowly. Also, make sure you give your muscles some time to recoop after a workout. And don’t think that you have to go and do 100 sit ups, because it really isn’t effective after 25ish. So do one kind of abs (set of around 25), switch to a few different, then come back to it again.

Now, back to eating. It is best to have six small meals a day rather than 3 meals and dinner is the largest. It is also best to eat breakfast within an hour of getting out of bed. Schedule should be breakfast, snack 1, lunch, snack 2, dinner, snack 3. Have a couple hourse in between meals/snacks. A good snack to have is smoothies, and these are siple and taste AMAZIGN! 1 cup of milk, a tablespoon of yogurt, fruite, natural juice to taste, whey protein, etc. You can be creative and add different flavors of fruite, whey protein, and even add penut butter. It should make enough for two snacks. Simple, easy, and ready to go in minutes!

Also, don’t forget about a few other improtant protein sources: eggs and nuts. Both can have bad reps, but really, they are good for you (I promise!). I’m not talkign about going out and eating nuts covered in salt and what-not, I’m talking about just plain almonds, etc. Also, don’t be aftaid of penut butter (if it is the natural kind, with the oil on top… follow directions). Oh another improtant thing, try to stay away from high fructose corn syrup and the hydronated oils and off that fake stuff. It isn’t natural, and our bodies just don’t like it! (That means sodas and high-sugard juices, etc)

If we eat the right foods, and work out the right way, our bodies will naturally start to loose weight “on its own”. We just need to give it the right tools. Another important reminder, give yourself one “free meal” a week (though, for your boyfriend, don’t let him eat meat!!!!) to keep yourself sane! It wont hurt you! This diet (lifestyle really) may seem really stickt, out of the ordianary, etc, but it works and its bassed on research. Just remember, natural is always better. Exercise. Not eating meat doesn’t mean you can’t eat yummy foods, just think of it as a way to be creative, and soon you’ll find that not all meals are better with meat! Also, have your boyfriend think about what kind of vegetrain he wants to be. I don’t eat any meat (that means fish too!!!), but I will eat eggs and dairy. Some people will eat fish, dairy, and eggs, etc. “True vegetrains” don’t eat fish. Vegans don’t eat anything that comes from an amainal (no dairy, eggs, etc).

I am sure I’ve forgotten some things, but hopefully this is a start. If you have questions, just ask. There is also lots of resources in bookstores or online. I really like the abs diet (http://www.absdiet.com/uof/absdiet/about.html) and that is where a lot of the eating/workingout tiips came from.

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i found this lil blurb on the veg diets web site (its on my delicious)

Are vegetarian diets healthful?

Most vegetarian diets are low in or devoid of animal products. They’re also usually lower than nonvegetarian diets in total fat, saturated fat and cholesterol. Many studies have shown that vegetarians seem to have a lower risk of obesity, coronary heart disease (which causes heart attack), high blood pressure, diabetes mellitus and some forms of cancer.

. . . yeh its the heart stuff that im worried about . . . and cancer?? thats news to me.

buy it. drink it. love it.

so Boca is saving me. when i want a burger or a chicken paddy i turn to these little reg boxes of soy joy. Boca burgers and products aint that bad. they are made of soy and they dont taste quite like actual meat but with some cheese or other sauce they can be good. you can check them out here http://www.bocaburger.com/. they are low calorie and have a lot of protein and good fats. so thank you boca for soothing some of my meat cravings.

i have to admit though i have not eaten any meat for the last 3 days i have at times forgotten about this whole vegetarian thing. My girlfriend had to remind me this morning at breakfast after i ordered bacon with my eggs . . . kinda ruined my breakfast but what ever. so i need to pay more attention to this stuff and really get it in my head. im starting to check labels and such to make sure meat isnt in anything im gunna eat. thank god their is not animal product in beer and deep dish cheese pizza because after my breakfast bacon let down this is making me feel better.

i think its kinda sad how important food is to me . . . how i get in a bad mood when i dont get to eat what i want. haha. i think i may have a problem and should join O.A. check it out http://www.oa.org/index.htm

well its not as bad as i thought it would be. i got rid of all the meat in my frig and have bought a lot a fruit, some veggies, and found the Boca veggie meat products to be quite good. At least i can still eat eggs which are another corner stone of my daily food intake . . . all is not lost. I took my professor’s advice and i have set some goals and have laid out more reasons for doing this than just for class. hopefully this well keep me motivated and dedicated. here are my goals and reasons for trying this vegetarian thing out.

1. Get back down to 165-170 lbs

2. Broaden my food sources (tofu, soy, etc.)

3. Educate myself about a healthier way of living

4. Put myself out of my comfort zone and try something new

- hopefully more will come to mind.

about this time last year i realized how out of shape i was in. after a solid 2 years of eating like shit, drinking too much beer and not exercising i felt like a fat sack. so i started to lift and do some cardio. by summer i had lost about 25-30 lbs of fat and gained a good 10-15 of muscle. it was sweet. but once school started again this year i went back to pizza, beer, redbulls, and no sleep. its time to change.

now in high school my life was running. during my junior year i was averaging 80 miles a week, had a 2 year cd (2 years not missing a day of running) and weighed 140 lbs (when i went to college i gained the frosh 50! crazy shit huh). now this all came to a halting stop towards the end of my jr. year and throughout my senior year when i became anemic, got a hypothyroid, and some heart issues (i still believe this was all due to over training). long story short without running i fell into things that i shouldn’t have and to this day still struggle with. I think its time for a change and over haul myself. i need to get into that mindset and rhythm of eating right, exercising and getting sleep. iv been there before . . . it was my life for a long time and i was pretty damn anal about it. so i know i can do it, i just need to get back in that groove.

this blog will be about my vegetarian experience but i will be making an adjacent blog about myself getting back into shape and hope fully fit enough to be competitive again.

so no meat aint killing me yet. im discovering some decent meat replacements (such as soy products) that surprisingly taste pretty good with a little salsa. ha.

now i wouldn’t probably become a vegetarian because of the whole cruelty to animals thing. i would do it more for the health reasons and cleaner way of life stuff. i do feel bad for the animals and how they are raised in dark confined areas then sent to the slaughter houses. i found this video and though i feel terrible for them (and think their screaming is pretty damn disturbing) i just know know if i can give up bacon or a nice chicago stadium hot dog/brat. all i know is i don’t think i could ever work in a place like that because of the noise . . . and the smell that would never come off you.

hmmmmm,

I dont want to do this. I dont know why i am doing this. There are going to many crying fits and temper tantrums but this is an idea for my ideation and process class so i am going to try my best to educate myself and live like a vegetarian. many of my friends may not believe this but yes i am  going to refrain from eating any meat for the next how long (soon to be determined). yes i am known for inhaling a pound burger faster than you can reach for the ketchup and i cant begin to describe the feelings i have for a thick juicy steak. somehow i will manage to do this . . . i may need your help . . . MEA (meat eaters anonymous) and if any of you have any good recipes or ideas bout this shit let me know. Now I must go and eat my rice cakes.