Becoming Vegetarian, heatlhiest lifestyle or not?

I just saw an episode of 'Oprah' and she and 368 employees took the vegetarian 7 day challenge. Michael Pollan and Kathy Freston were the experts helping along the way. Kathy is a self proclaimed "Vegetarist" and has sold countless books. Michael Pollan is a pure food expert. AND off they employees went to take the challenge along with Oprah. yes they were cranky, unhappy and hated the foods but also felt better and saw some great results. thumbs up to people feeling better! although this one woman was sneaking in a couple of fast food meals which was sure to happen. Oprah kept mentioning the over use of the office bathrooms and how people were loosing weight...but... many also gained weight.

why would anyone gain weight on a vegetarian diet? Oh the reasons are endless! veggie pizza, vegetarian burgers, vegetarian pasta, vegetarian meat substitutes (filled with crap), vegetarian cookies etc. you have to eat healthy to be healthy and not fill your belly with crapola.

after the episode i was even less impressed by the world of vegetarianism. i don't hate it or hate vegetarians. i respect them but wouldn't change to become one. ever!

so i shouldn't eat meat because its cruel to animals? depends on how you really REALLY think about it. i love fish and its seems that no one really screams about fish. i catch my own fish when i'm with my parents back home and it feels very natural and normal. I know of some vegetarians that think i'm cruel and barbaric. get over yourself. if i was on an island starving and fruit and veggies were not available and i needed complete proteins... should i just starve instead of catch a fish? on the other hand beef and pork is a bit different and i understand that. some slaughter houses are bad and yes--hard to imagine. now most are designed differently thanks to organizations like PETA and other animal friendly orgs. which is great team work on all parts. don't get me wrong i too eat veggies and lots of them but choose to eat organic, farm raised meats.

i think the majority of vegetarians are eating too many substitutes with chemicals, way too many grains, way too much gluten and fillers, and way too many sweets. no good and no me gusta! that my friends is not my cup o' tea. i'll stick to fresh foods! that's right FRESH. no frozen or canned foods. all fresh, natural and oh yeah i can pronounce what i eat (bam!)

what about poor villages around the world, they eat chicken, fish, eggs, pork and beef, is that wrong?! i say "NO!" argue all you want but that is as human as we get. hunt and gather and live.

i want to eat meat so should i buy better meats? i say okay but this is very debatable. while the average american could care less about where their meats come from either because of price or ignorance etc. i pay at least $3-5 more for my grass fed beef, lamb from new zealand and range free chicken. yes it is expensive but worth it in my eyes. i understand where it comes from and i'm ok with it. the semi-vegan expert on the show said "wait miss vegetarianist, the animals have great days and one bad day"...she said something like "i guess, but they suffer in my eyes and i can't look into the eyes of an animal and say your life is less important that my appetite".... okay lady! listen here! first of all your not killing it and if this was hundreds or thousands of years ago you still wouldn't have to kill an animal. the hunters would and you would probably prepare and eat it. the animal would feed a village....the whole cow would not just be for you. i'm totally behind your decisions and it's cool just settle down.

I understand and believe we should all make better food choices as a population. i completely changed my diet 14 months ago. just do what you can and then keep improving your diet. don't go to the extreme of a totally transformation if you can't or don't want to. try introducing "healthy dinner nights" instead of "pizza night".  isn't that a start? don't eat out as much. buy fresher ingredients and think before you eat!

animal protein vs. plant protein

Protein from animal sources (meat, fish, dairy products, egg white) is considered high biological value protein or a "complete" protein because all nine essential amino acids are present in these proteins. An exception to this rule is collagen-derived gelatin which is lacking in tryptophan.

Plant sources of protein (grains, legumes, nuts, and seeds) generally do not contain sufficient amounts of one or more of the essential amino acids. Thus protein synthesis can occur only to the extent that the limiting amino acids are available. These proteins are considered to have intermediate biological value or to be partially complete because, although consumed alone they do not meet the requirements for essential amino acids, they can be combined to provide amounts and proportions of essential amino acids equivalent to high biological proteins from animal sources.

Plants that are entirely lacking in essential amino acids are considered incomplete proteins or sources of low biological value protein. These sources include most fruits and vegetables. A low biological value means that it is difficult or impossible to compensate for insufficient amounts of essential amino acids by combining different sources as with partially complete proteins.

(article via northwestern website)