My vegetarian confession: I ate meat. 

(^Thai chicken soup)

I’ve been a vegetarian since March 17th 2011-so a little over 6 months now. Vegetarianism slowly turned into almost veganism. Let me explain. I read a great book titled “The Kind Diet” (By Alicia Silverstone) and it prompted me to try vegetarianism again after some unsuccessful attempts in 6th and 9th grade. (Aka: getting sick because I wasn’t getting enough nutrients)

I started out by simply not eating meat. Somehow, over time, I developed a pretty severe intolerance to lactose. By having to cut lactose out of my diet I was cutting out a major food group that I enjoyed and I still really miss. (ICE CREAM, yogurt, cow’s milk)

Stupid lactose intolerance means that I can’t enjoy pumpkin ice cream this year without puking or having diarrhea for 2 days straight.

Being an athlete, I have been finding it hard to get enough nutrition- calorie and protein wise. I have been relying mostly on peanut butter and tofu for protein and vegetables just don’t keep me full. I know it is no excuse and plenty of athletes are vegetarian/vegan but I don’t think it was working for me. Since March I have suffered from head aches and fatigue. It has made me so sad to think about eating meat- I think about how so many animals have been tortured for me to just sit and eat them. Sometimes you have to put your health first though. I’m not out to lose weight and I’m sick of head aches/constant hunger.

Another thing that bothered me about being a vegetarian is being a “burden” at times. I’m fairly social and every time I go to a dinner party i’m “that person who needs a special meat and dairy free meal.” I don’t want to seem like a brat when I go places and make a host prepare a special meal for me when my current diet isn’t working well for me. Going out to eat is a whole other problem as well at times and I hate that- I love going out to eat and I dislike limitations.

Saturday Jimmy and I went to cafe and I wanted soup…. guess what… all of the soups offered had meat in them so I figured what the heck, i’m just going to eat it. I felt full and energized after-woo! Yes I felt guilty about the moral aspect of the poor chickens in the soup but again, I don’t feel as if vegetarianism is working well for my health.  

I’m not saying that I’m going to eat meat for every meal and every day, but I’m going to include it in my diet.

My mom made meatballs for dinner last night… I ate some. They were good.

Also enjoyed: salad, spaghetti, and bread.

So yeah, that is my announcement/confession. I ate meat and I didn’t die. I feel a little guilty about the moral aspect but I’m more concerned for my health.

Have you ever had to make a decision that you knew was good for you even though you didn’t want to do it?