Vegetarians

[karsun]

I have noticed that many more women than men are vegetarians are in one of the subgroups.

I was wondering if there are any on here and if someone could reflect on the benefits they have found-other than personal convictions(which is actually and slowly becoming my motivation).

Thanks

 

[VeggieLifterChick]

Mainly convictions, plus I was never much of a meat eater to begin with. My beef with the meat industry is factory farming, hormones, and general mistreatment of animals. Ever seen the videos? That's what did it to me. Really horrendous. Still, on a moral level, I have no problem with killing as long as its done as quickly and painlessly as possible. I do like knowing that I don't have a part in the killing since I don't need to. If I cared for the taste, I would eat meat that is free range and has been treated humanely (no cages, fed a normal diet without additives/hormones, allowed to create social bonds with other animals and to see the sun and live on the fields and then killed humanely). I haven't eaten meat for three whole years this past August, unless you count fish, which I quit this May. I can't say much about health benefits because I don't know what my cholesterol is now or was before.

 

[grlpwrd]

I have 3 kids whom are vegetarians though I eat chicken I think a vegetarian diet does have advantages. The biggest advantage is that vegetable-based protein is nutritionally superior to animal-based protein. It's easier to digest and doesn't adversely affect your body like how meat does.

There are other advantages, too..sorry I dont have time right now to list them all since I am leaving in a moment, but take a look at www.vegsource.com for more info.

 

[karsun]

Thanks for your responses.

 

[grlpwrd]

I agree with spatts about the amino acids angle because vegetarians need to combine a lot of their foods in order to make a complete protein. Anyway, that's why it's not for me, but vegetarianism is argued to be the supreme way of eating due to our physiology. Check out that vegsource.com site and you will see comparisons made with a meat-eating diet and popular eating plans like Atkins.

I don't think I could ever go vegan. That's no meat or animal-derived products, like honey. Too strict for me.

 

[Haz]

Spatts is right, women are more compassionate. Humans also used to be hunter/gatherers, so guys are still hardwired to go after meat. Thats why so many of us actually ENJOY killing and destroying things.

Sometimes I visit the vegan boards just for the hell of it. I like the women to men ratio, but those chicks are plain WEIRD. They are totally repulsed by meat, and always refer to it as decaying animal flesh (as if what they eat isn't decaying plant matter). Alot of them wont even KISS a meat eater. One gal wouldn't accept her dead grandfather's personal journal because it was covered in leather. They also won't eat honey because they think its unfair to steal the honey from the bees. Same goes for wearing silk.

I really do think some of them care more for animals, then they do for their fellow humans.

 

[starfish]

I do a lot with animal rights... It's wierd because I bump heads with people who are extreme in my line of work . They can be so extreme that they end up hurting animals themselves.


That honey stealing from bees comment was funny.. I've never been that bad.

 

[MS]

It seems to me that personal convictions (ie religious) are what drive the VAST majority of mainly females to a vego diet. From my perspective as a bodybuilder this is positively the WORST reason to adopt this diet. It explains why vegetarians have a bad reputation as being skinny, sick, weakly, pale etc.....all pretty much true on average.

On the other hand, if you are interested in good health and building a better body to last for a lifetime, then a well thought out-PLANNED-vego diet is very beneficial for men and women in my experience. You don't see many good quality vegetarian bodybuilders though because 1)The religious reasons that most vegeos have for becoming vegetarian are at odds with the sport of bodybuilding and 2) most vegos are frighteningly ignorant of proper nutrition. They tend to read (and believe) popular books and websites devoted to their cause (can you say 'agenda to sell') rather than taking an unbiased nutritional/scientific approach to designing their diets. The few vegetarian bodybuilders I have worked with (including myself) all have an uncanny ability to gain more muscle and to get leaner for competitions than their omnivorous counterparts. But that's all anecdotal, and may just be because they follow meticulously drawn out, very high quality diets.

The non emotional benefits I have found are that it's hard to overeat to the point of obesity; it's easier to get lean and retain LBM; it can be cheaper (especially during growth phases); you do not put yourself at as high a risk of diseases such as BSE, E.coli, salmonella etc..., food doesn't smell so bad when it goes off in your fridge; your poos don't stink to high-heaven (instead they merely stink to mid-heaven); heart disease and diabetes are pretty rare amongst even ill-educated vegetarians; large, moist; regular bowel movements......

The disadvantages include social difficulties when eating out or entertaining people; a majority of people who think (even if they don't say it to your face) that you're a nut; saying no to good smelling foods like chicken soup, bacon or a supreme pizza, which often leads to wasting money on fake meat products that are even worse for you than they meat they are replacing, spending large amounts of time chopping veggies, boiling beans, chickpeas, brown rice and other slow cooking grains; flatulence; bloated stomach........

That's just the short list.

 

[MS]

Oh yeah, that stuff about eggs and honey is related to some people's belief that we have no right to exploit animals AT ALL. Not for any reason. Therefore even using them in seemingly benign ways to obtain eggs, milk or honey is considered exploitation.

There are certainly many good ecological, environmental and political reasons (in other words non-religious reasons that have nothing to do with animal exploitations per se) to avoid or reduce consumption of animal products. But again these have nothing to do with being a better bodybuilder and healthy individual, and have more to do with the long term consequences of our personal choices as they may or may not affect things on a larger scale.

 

[KISAWA]

Marla Duncan has been a vegetarian for years and in my opininon she looks great.
BUT you gotta be awre of what vegetable you must eat thatare good for you.
Lentils, peas beans etc ......;all high in protein.
Of course you won't get any benefits by eating lettuce all day!