You need proteins otherwise all the sport you do wont be as beneficial as it should be. And some fat is good, like using olive/nut oil to cook;
Yeah, I have tried "harder" diets before and failed miserably, but this one is pretty tolerable (lots of meat and fish ). Exercising a lot is the way to go, though I do notice the effect of my 3k yesterday, so I guess it's only a little weight lifting for me today... Kamisma, the noon meal includes pretty much everything, for example today I'll have a Calamari Risotto, yesterday it was pizza with bacon (yay!). Dinner is usually a combination of meat and some vegetables, I put the focus on the meat
I could never become a vegan, I just love my meat and fish too much Though I try to buy less but better meat, because everytime I buy cheap meat I get mayorly pissed off when it shrinks to half the size in the pan Off to finish my risotto now!
Humans are Omnivores. We eat a little of everything. And that is good, since we need a little of everything. I can understand the philosophy of vegetarians, but the philosophy does not change what your body requires. I have spoken to people who claimed to have never eaten meat or animal products. But I royally pissed them off in no more than three questions once I managed to get them to bother to answer. (They often are taught to be that way, and are taught to be in full-blown denial of what they are and what they have done.) I advise them to not look at meats and cheeses and such as "vile animal byproducts" but rather to look at them as things to avoid if possible, but not to worry about if they get hungry for it or there is nothing else available. But denial is a potent thing. So I doubt that helped them in any way.
I have never eaten meat (to my knowledge) though my family aren't vegan, just vegetarian (no meat but still products like eggs) though none of us judge anybody for eating animals. I'm sure the cult-like scene is real but I've yet to meet any vegetarian or vegan who is that way. My parents had stopped eating meat (they were big meat eaters when they were young) about 15 years before I was born and just continued after that. I've never had any health problems, but I reckon it's not something anybody can do and you need a diverse diet. I will also not hesitate to eat meat should I be starving and there's nothing else around or if times become hard that you can't afford the rest.
Eggs are just chickens that were murdered before they hatched! (And they are great if you cook them right.) So long as your diet is diverse enough, it need not include meats and animal guts. And in re-reading this I realize there are other egg laying animals out there we could victimize for nutritional value. I just presume eggs means chicken eggs anywhere I see it. I could go into Cartman mode and call you a dirty hippy or something stupid, but I have no hatred for you for not eating something. But I do wonder what sources of protein you do consume? Whey? Soybeans? Tofu? All of the above and many more? There are times that I start feeling worn out and tired. Some of those times I realize it has been a while since I had some meat. That sometimes actually makes me feel better. (Meaning I guessed right about what was missing from my diet.)
Let us leave that little bit out to die lest we get to the "are human fetuses beings with sentience and sapience, or are 'moral right guardians' just idiots on heavy drugs" issue. That is pretty much correct. Though I feel that never trying animal guts would be a waste. He likely is. But that's cool, soybeans are good too (they are a great addition to meat and groat, taste-wise and form-wise), and tofu is good if you know how to prepare it, but if you don't know how to make it taste well then you might as well eat some Styrofoam and your taste buds won't feel the difference. Iron, I would guess.
I had never heard of whey before and that looks... gross, not sure I could eat it either as I was born with an allergy to dairy products (and not just a lactose intolerance, a life-threatening allergy if I eat anything from a cow). But yes, soybean and tofu (same thing really since tofu is made with soybean) are amongst the list. Personally, I think that for a body that has had meat all its life, switching to a vegetarian diet would probably be a bad idea. If it's never had any? who knows. And to be clear, not eating meat isn't a "eating meat is a crime" kind of thing for us, and for me I don't feel particularly attracted to it to try it, and seeing as I have no health problems I don't see why I should start either.
I have eaten kilograms of whey protein powder. It is good really. Other forms may not be, but the type I used to buy was lightly tan in color and mixed in well with Coffee. (Long story why I was doing that, but it was good.) *Edit* See the post later in this thread to see that I was using Soy Lecithin. My mistake.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/"Weird_Al"_Yankovic *checks fridge for ribs* *settles for grilled chicken* ... ~_~
Wow. Just... Wow. And it was mentioned that Coper toxicity causes a certain problem that sounds right inline with this ^^: I wonder if you guys would mind a slightly more in depth experiment? Daynab, and any other vegetarians/vegans out there, have you had any blood work done in the past while on your diet of choice? I ask because of this quote. I just want to ensure you are right that your bodies are adjusted and able to thrive. This is nothing to make a Doctors appointment about. But if you have already had the work done in the past, I would love to hear some results. And lacking actual documentation, I would like more details on what exactly a standard days food and drink is for you. I have nothing to offer but the very slim chance I will adopt some of your practices and see how they suit me. I could tell you in depth what things I eat and drink, and even how I prepare them if anyone actually cares to hear it. *Edit* Please understand that I am not implying that you are suffering copper toxicity and feeling superior to the world. But if you have never eaten meat, I have to ask how you would know that you are feeling fine with your diet? I feel that any bloodwork performed while you were in the middle of a strongly meat-free period of your lives would be evidence enough to prove that you are not just feeling superior, but actually are feeling fine. Lacking that all we can do is talk about diet and hope to understand one-another.
I haven't gone to the hospital since I was a baby, so unfortunately no. Something that I'm a little bit curious about myself, though. Eventually... I have no proof to offer (nor do I claim anything else than not feeling weak or tired, lacking energy or having weak muscles or anything.) As for copper toxicity, that's interesting enough. Looking at the wikipedia definition and its symptoms though I have none of those. Nor my parents, as far as I know. (And I certainly don't feel superior to anyone ) As for what I eat and drink... it's not a strict diet and changes nearly every day, but a lot of grains (including whole wheat/multigrain bread, I never really eat any white bread), lot of beans (soybeans in particular with soy milk and tofu), eggs, veggies and fruit obviously.
hmm, I might have a couple of things to add; most people where I live are largely vegetarians (none being vegan unless they're in for the purposes of a fad, people change diets here like they change their clothes.) and not many folks in the lower income brackets can be anything else. We get the chance to observe those with both kinds of diet, vegetarian and mixed, and barring a slightly lower normal hemoglobin value and a few changes in the lipid profiles to reflect the lower intake of animal protein and fats, you tend to see no changes. Just throwing it out there since you wanted to know.
White bread. Yuck. That stuff is not even edible. When you apply that much chlorine to wheat, you manage to strip it of all real nutritional value. If I cared what color my bread was, I would favor rice bread over that bleached garbage. Good food sadly costs good money. So I tend to eat lots of Lentils and Rice. That and good whole wheat bread with good peanut butter is a great and very quick to make meal. On that note, I use "Naturally More" brand peanut butter. It is the best I have ever had by far, and not much of a premium either. It probably cost twice what that brown garbage costs. But it is real. You have to stir it up before each use. Otherwise it will have the oils separated from the rest. No BS texturizers in this stuff. If you have never tried it, I strongly advise you to do so. It is great. Be warned however that the oil floats at the top. And the first time you open a jar of it you are almost certain to make a mess. So open it with it fully level of a table sitting on a few paper towels. Do not tilt it to the side to get a better grip while you remove the seal. Just use a butter knife to pry the edge up and work your way around or right across. Even if you do all this perfectly, there is not enough room in a new jar to mix it, and it is thick, so you are still pretty much bound to spill some of it. But take your time and mix slowly, starting at the top and working deeper slowly. If you rush, you may as well turn it upside down. It will sure look like you did. I do not even know what soybeans look like. But I absolutely love my soy sauce. It is what I use in place of salt for cooking. And I have had good tofu many times. Like others have said, it is really good if you make it right. Otherwise it may as well be the Styrofoam that was mentioned above. Tofu when prepared properly will go with damned nearly anything and basically adopt the flavor of everything else in the recipe. If you know it, you can taste it by itself even when mixed, but in most cases you will not even know it is there if you did not see it being put in the meal.
Ah yes, my parents used to buy tahini when I was younger. I didn't really like it (though I tried it again after and it's not bad at all). I'm familiar with the oil thing.
Soybean plant: Actual soybeans: (appearance may vary.) I'm neutral about most soy products per se but stinky tofu, in my opinion at least, should be labeled as a crime against humanity. I've tasted blue cheese which was less horrible.
The amount of protein you actually need is incredibly minimal in actuality. Even vegetarians should have no trouble meeting their protein needs. The main thing they have to worry about is getting 'complete' proteins (in other words: most non-animal based proteins have only a portion of the essential amino acid groupings in them, so they need to eat different foods that, together, have all of the 9 essential amino acids between them). (As a side note, there are a few 'complete protein' plants out there, the most common of course being soy. In addition due to certain conditions or diseases one might have a normally non-essential amino acid become essential, which basically means your body won't produce enough of it to sustain it's needs). Also a common misconception is that more protein means more muscle building (sometimes people even thing it happens if you just sit on your couch but eat more protein!) The reality is that there is a limit based on muscle mass to how much protein your body can actually make use of each day. The average american consumes WAAAAAY more protein than they actually need. Protein deficient people are those living in poverty in third world countries who have little to no choice in their diets and who almost never if ever at all eat meat. Or the very rare vegetarian who eats a diet that is very routine - in other words the same exact foods day in and day out for an extended period of time where their diet does not include overall complete sources of protein. I don't really want to get too much into this conversation though because I don't want to step on anyone's toes. =P BTW Omni, while I totally agree with you on bleached vs unbleached flour, the beta-carotene in the unbleached flour is basically lost in terms of nutritional value when the bread is baked. It just makes it taste better, gives it a more appealing aroma and (in my opinion) makes it look more attractive than bleached white bread. Whole wheat is definitely the way to go from a nutritional standpoint though. Fiber is very important. Just make sure it says '100% whole wheat' somewhere on the packaging instead of just 'whole wheat' or it might not actually be what you're thinking off. After all, most breads are made from all wheat, just not 'whole wheat kernels.' I've typed way too much.
Stinky Tofu. That stuff is an abomination. It is right up there with "Fish Sauce" that is sold at most Asian Markets. If you doubt how awful this stuff can be, waste a few dollars and buy a bottle of it from any Asian grocery store. Put a half-full shotglass of it on your table and just *TRY* to eat anything without gagging. The smell will permeate your reality with pervasive agony. After you are done purging and washing the vomit off yourself, throw it away in a dumpster far from you. You cannot get rid of the stink once it get in a surface though. Arson has it's merits in such a case.
I live in the south-east side of Asia, I know about *that* stuff. Why people decided to invent that is beyond me, when soy sauce does a better job and doesn't smell like the residue at the bottom of an old dumpster. You probably don't want to know about how they make it either. I just stared when I found that out. Comparatively speaking, shrimp paste is less bad.
