If you’ve made the decision to stop eating meat, congratulations!
Eating less meat has many benefits, but putting it into practice consistently can be challenging. Here are 7 valuable tips to help you see better results and be on your way to being a happy no-meat eater.
1 – Don’t rush
You may want to do this yesterday, but if it’s going to be a lasting change, you might want to take it easy. Many people have tried a vegetarian diet only to go back to their old way of doing things because they were in a rush to do it.
Start by replacing some of the animal-based staples in your diet with vegetarian versions. A good example would be replacing a serving of meat with beans. If that’s too easy, schedule full meat-free days and then keep adding extra days until you’ve got all seven covered.
2 – Look at your reasons for doing it
If you can determine why you like to eat meat, you will be much closer to eliminating it for good. A common myth is that you need it to get enough protein in your diet, but that’s not true. Dive deep and determine what emotions you’ve associated with eating meat, and then work to reduce its power. Then you can create new positive emotions around eating fruits and vegetables, seeds, nuts and beans and you will be on your way.
3 – Learn all you can
Learn what you can about the animal agriculture industry, the health benefits of consuming. a plant-based diet, the risks of also eating animal products, the environmental impact of eating meat, and whatever else you can learn to help you get on the right track.
4 – Find the Umami
If you have never heard of umami, you have experienced it because it is that flavorful element or flavor that is commonly associated with eating meat. The source is glutamate, which is an amino acid. Many people miss this aspect of eating meat so much without even realizing it, but it’s the reason they end up coming back. Fortunately, there are vegetarian sources of umami that include:
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Mushrooms
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Soy sauce
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Green Tea
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roasted nuts and seeds
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Nutritional yeast
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Fermented foods
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Some sea vegetables
5 – Expand your culinary horizons
I hope the taste is not one of your reasons for not being able to stop eating meat. Because when you think about it, meat really doesn’t have much flavor until it’s seasoned, gravy, and seasoned. And guess what? You can do the same with vegetarian foods! This is easy when you explore cuisines from around the world, such as Chinese, Japanese, Mexican, Indian, Moroccan, and more.
6 – Light your bean
If you want to stop eating meat, it’s a great idea to start eating beans. Beans are loaded with protein, resistant starch, and fiber, and they fill you up, which can help you eat less. Most cultures have their own bean dishes, so it shouldn’t be difficult to start incorporating chickpeas, lentils, black beans, kidney beans, edamame, and more into your diet.
7 – Prepare for success
When you want to achieve something, it is always wise to give yourself the best chances for success. When it comes to eating less meat, that could mean having access to a wide range of vegetarian recipes, joining a social media support group, stocking your shelves and pantry with the right foods, or finding a responsible partner.
Whatever your reasons for wanting to stop eating meat, it will take a concerted effort and consistency to make this a new normal for you. But it’s possible … many have done it before you and living a vegetarian lifestyle can be a joy, if you let it.