If you’ve made decision to stop eating meat, congratulations!
There are many benefits to eating less meat, but putting it into practice on a consistent basis can be a challenge. Here are 7 valuable tips that will help you see better results and be well on your way to being a happy non-meat eater.
1 – Don’t Rush It
You may want to get this done yesterday, but if it’s going to be a lasting change, you may want to take it slow. Many people have attempted a vegetarian diet only to revert back to their old way of doing things because they rushed into it.
Start off by replacing a few of the animal product staples in your diet with vegetarian versions. A good example would be replacing a serving of meat with beans. If that’s too easy, schedule full days where you go meat-free and then keep adding extra days until you’ve got all seven covered.
2 – Look At Your Reasons for Doing It
If you can determine why you like to eat meat, you’ll be that much closer to cutting it out for good. One common myth is that you need it to get enough protein in your diet, but that is just not true. Take a deep dive and determine which emotions you’ve attached to eating meat, and then work at reducing their power. Then, you can create new positive emotions around eating fruits and vegetables, seeds, nuts and beans and you’ll be on your way.
3 – Learn All You Can
Learn what you can about the animal agriculture industry, the health benefits of consuming. a plant-based diet, the risks of eating too any animal products, the environmental impact of eating meat and anything else you can learn to help get you on the right track.
4 – Find the Umami
If you’ve never heard of umami, you have experienced it because it’s that savory element or taste that’s commonly associated with eating meat. The source is glutamate, which is an amino acid. Many people miss this aspect of meat eating so much without even realizing it, but it’s the reason they end up going back. Luckily, there are vegetarian sources of umami that include:
- Mushrooms
- Soya sauce
- Green tea
- Toasted nuts and seeds
- Nutritional yeast
- Fermented foods
- Some sea vegetables
I hope that taste isn’t one of your reasons for not being able to stop eating meat. Because when you think about it, meat really doesn’t have much taste at all until it’s seasoned and sauced and spiced. And guess what? You can do the same thing with vegetarian foods! This is easy when you explore cuisines from around the world such as Chinese, Japanese, Mexican, Indian, Moroccan and more.
6 – Get Your Bean On
If you want to stop eating meat, it is a great idea to start eating beans. Beans are loaded with protein, resistant starch and fiber, and they are filling which can help you eat less. Most cultures have their own bean dishes, so it shouldn’t be hard at all to begin incorporating chickpeas, lentils, black beans, kidney beans, edamame and more into your diet.
7 – Set Yourself Up for Success
When you want to accomplish anything, it’s always wise to give yourself the best chances of succeeding. When it comes to eating less meat, that could mean having access to a wide range of vegetarian recipes, joining a support group on social media, stocking your shelves and pantry with the right foods or finding an accountability buddy.
Whatever your reasons for wanting to stop eating meat, it’s going to take a concerted effort and consistency to make this a new normal for you. But it is possible… many have done it before you and living a vegetarian lifestyle can be a joy, if you let it.
