GIVE ME MEAT!! That's what I thought I would be begging for when I embarked upon my month-long journey of not eating anything that at one time had a face (or a shell). I don't think I had ever gone two straight days... let alone one without eating meat of some kind. It's just ingrained into who I am - which is why I thought last month would be so challenging.
After a month as a full-blown vegetarian, I learned a few interesting things:
1. Being a vegetarian is actually much easier than I thought. This was the most surprising to me because I thought it would be a daily struggle to eat 1,000 veggies to fill me up. But, pretty much every restaurant has vegetarian options and if you focus on it, it's pretty easy. Heck, I even had an amazing veggie burger at Red Robin. I thought it was illegal to eat a veggie burger at Red Robin. But, if you like pasta or are willing to substitute chicken for tofu, the world is your vegetarian oyster.
2. I was much more open minded than I thought I would be. Anyone who has ever eaten out with me knows that I'm pretty one-dimensional when it comes to what I eat. I like burgers. I like sandwiches. I'll eat salads. I like pizza... you get the drift. But, last month forced me out of my comfort zone - and I liked it. We even vacationed for a weekend in Santa Barbara and found that it did not spoil the vacation - and I had some great food. The final test was on September 30 when I went to lunch at a vegan restaurant in Downtown San Jose called "Good Karma". I have avoided this place since before I could remember. But, I figured on my last day I would try it out. And, to raise the stakes, I even told the girl behind the counter to pick three items for me - I was at her mercy. The result -- food was amazing (see photo attached). Not just good. I couldn't believe it. I never would have gone their otherwise. Now, a whole new world has opened up. Pretty exciting!
3. I established new connections and bonds. It's weird but there were times when I felt a special bond with other vegetarians. Once at the Garrett I ordered a veggie burger and the girl behind the counter asked if I was a vegetarian. I told her "yes I am this month". She was too and we had a very interested (albeit brief) conversation about being a vegetarian, raising children vegetarian, etc. I also walked into Good Karma and felt that the people eating there were my 'peeps'. Don't know why, but an unspoken bond was created.
4. Not everything is easy for a vegetarian. There were a few instances where there were no options for me. One example, I was invited to a lunch hosted by the Chamber of Commerce honoring local sports teams. The lunch choices were: pork sliders, ribs and corn dogs. So... I had cole slaw, potatoes and macaroni salad. That kind of sucked. I also had to turn down an offer of free Outback Steakhouse dinner b/c there were no vegetarian options. One or two other instances but not too bad.
5. Health implications. A question a lot of people asked me was "how did I feel"? Basically, I felt the same. I actually was less motivated to workout last month than most months (could be purely coincidental). I never got the feeling of being sickeningly full, which is a good thing. I should have done some health tests before and after (like Supersize Me) to see if there were any changes. I did lose 4.5 pounds but I attribute that to eating smaller portions over the course of the month and things like no fast food, etc.
All in all - it was a really fun and interesting challenge for me. This month begins a 40-day, daily sanskrit mantra for abundance and prosperity.
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