I would think any diet changes need to be slow. Behavior works that way too.

I would like to be a vegetarian but I’m not. One step I’ve taken is not having meat at breakfast or lunch. I try to keep meat dinners down to three or four a week but that doesn’t always happen.

No need for all or nothing. I walk mostly everywhere but I am totally cool if someone drives me.

90% is a hell of a lot better than 0%.

@johnpowell GA!

Hi Aster, very few people make an abrupt change from omnivorism to complete veganism. Some things need to be progressions. When someone makes a sweeping dietary conversion, it’s seldom a transformation that occurs at 2:00 pm on a Tuesday.

If you have a weakness for hamburgers, there are some excellent, vegetarian alternatives. Maybe that could be your next step? If you have a veggie-burger while your husband’s eating his own meal, you might not be tempted.

I’d be happy to have a veggie burger but only if I knew it was a great recipe. I hate the frozen ones in the stores. I have enjoyed one of those huge mushrooms on the burger bun with no meat at all. Kinda weird, though.

Next step, give all your burgers to me.
Find a vegan treat you like very much. Cut your burger eating in half, and the other times have that treat instead.

I remember my daughter losing weight by throwing out half her hamburger. That’s what I call willpower!

If I tell myself “never” it doesn’t work but as @Patty_Melt suggests, maybe have a real one every other time. (Man, Ihad the best burger last nught!)

I’m almost completely vegan, but a lot of that is because I’m allergic to so many foods. The food that is left isn’t all that tasty to me so I have lost over 50 pounds.

I was vegan for a couple years and stuck by it. Went from brawny to scrawny real quick. All my vitals were perfect but I never felt “energetic.” I’m with @johnpowell, even 75% is wonderful. Hell, it’s probably better to be truthfull.

You might want to take steps to being a vegetarian before even attempting being a vegan.

It might be easier to go in steps, rather than trying to go vegan all at once. Also, just going vegetarian might be an easier route to take, but that choice is yours.

You’ll probably want to do lots of research while you are making this transition (if you choose to make this transition). Read as much information as you can find about nutrition, recipes, animal welfare, and living in our society as a vegetarian. It can be easy or hard to become a vegetarian/vegan depending upon how important it is to you, how supportive your friends, family, and community are, how expensive it might be depending upon where you live, and how inconvenient it might be depending upon where you live (and who you will be sharing meals with).

I’m lucky. I live in California in a good sized city so there are lots of options, and vegetarianism is not considered too “out there” by most people here. Also, I love to cook and look for new foods and recipes. It can be a lot of work, but for me, it’s just part of my life. My best friend and her boyfriend are also vegetarians, so that makes it easier for me. My family is not, but they are very supportive (although some of them forget and it always seems to come as a mild shock to them when it gets brought up, even though I’ve been a vegetarian since 1990).

Go easy on yourself. Go easy on other people who have a negative view of vegetarians (try to avoid getting into debates with these people). You will probably have setbacks, and “oops” moments (like when you find out the soup you just ate was made with chicken or beef stock).

When you go out to eat, ask lots of questions, but be very polite about it. A lot of servers really don’t understand what “vegetarian/vegan” actually means, so you may have to ask a lot of (silly to them) questions such as: Is this dish made with meat/fish/fowl/eggs/cheese/dairy/milk/cream/gelatin. And even then, they might not know, and they might not tell you the exact truth. Example: One time I went to a Thai restaurant with a group of friends. I was the only vegetarian. I asked if the soup or the dish was made with fish sauce. The server said no. When my other friend (who had an allergy to fish) asked the same question, but let them know that she could die if there was fish sauce in the soup or dish, the answer was quickly changed to yes. Most people don’t care if you have dietary concerns unless they could kill you and your survivors could sue them.

When eating out, if you are not sure, the easiest thing is to specifically ask the servers what you could order that would be vegetarian/vegan (after asking all those other questions from above). If the server is not sure, have them ask the chef. The chef, because they are the ones actually making the food, know much more than the servers, in general.

When you go to someone’s home for a meal, try to have the discussion about your new dietary needs beforehand so they are not caught off guard, and always ask if you can bring a vegetarian/vegan dish to share. Most hosts are happy for you to do that. Be aware that a lot of folks simply don’t know what being vegetarian/vegan entails, and although they might be happy for you and tell you that they will serve something that you can eat, it often turns out that there is actually nothing for you to eat, because the host did’t plan to make a dish that fits the description. I always eat a little something before I go to a food related event, or carry energy bars in my purse for afterwards. Never make a scene.

So here are some resources for you to peruse.

25 Tips for Vegetarian Newbies

The Vegetarian Resource Group

Vegetarian Times

Veganism Blog and some Resources

List of Animal Ingredients and What They are Called

Animal Products Hidden in Foods You Wouldn’t Think Of

There are lots of veggie burgers to choose from. None of them taste alike. It could be fun to try a new one each week, or each month. However you want to do it. Go to a good store like Whole Foods to get lots of options. Most regular grocery stores only have 1 or 2 kinds.

Now for some veggie burger recipes (don’t expect them to taste like meat, just find some that taste delicious that you like) Some are vegetarian, some are vegan:

Vegan Chickpea Burgers

Vegetarian (this has eggs) Tofu Burger

Vegan Tofu Burgers

Vegan Mushroom and Black Bean Burgers

Vegan Texturized Vegetable Protein and Nutritional Yeast Burgers

Vegetarian (this has eggs) White Bean Burgers

Vegan Quinoa and White Bean Burgers

Vegan 35 Different Vegan Veggie Burgers

Happy eating : )

Veganism or vegetarianism? The two terms are often used interchangeably, but the differences are profound. But to directly answer the question, yes, it would not hurt to cut down on meat intake to whatever degree. I have and I’m about as carnivorous as it gets (but I’m also fine with a lot of the packaged soy and quorn based meat alternatives).

Thanks so much, @Kardamom !!!

@Aster My pleasure. I know it’s a lot of info to take in, but I thought you could bookmark some of it and go at it one step at a time : )

Yes. Any little step saves lives, grains that can be fed to starving people, water, pollution, and did I mention innocent, sentient, suffering creatures.

If people have problems with the diet I always tell them to look at their household and hygiene products. These are easy to change and can alleviate so much suffering.

I will say that once I went vegan I never looked back. I look at meat, dairy and eggs and all I see is death and suffering. I never want to go back to being a part of that.

I learned a new word 2 days ago, akrasia: the state of mind in which someone acts against their better judgment through weakness of will. Don’s let your habits or cognitive dissonance define your choices.

@Aster Come on over to This Question we’re all talking about vegan and vegetarian foods we like : )

If you become a Vegan, you really must study what foods contain which vitamins and minerals. It’s really important to take a Vitamin B12 supplement. Also, give your body time to adjust to you new diet.

There are delicious vegan burgers and other types of food sold in supermarkets. There is fuax leather, fur, clothing that is just as good as the real thing. There is no reason to wear leather or any clothing made from animals

This Q just popped up again, after 2 years.

@Aster, did you end up becoming a vegetarian?