species from erectus to modern humans.

so saying it's not "natural" to eat meat is just wrong, evolutionarily.

but two weeks of no meat, and man, I feel fantastic. Improved in every way.

I get it now. It's hard to argue with this feeling of so much energy and health. And my guts are so calm and happy. I've lost a couple of pounds. Nothing spectacular, but I feel like I want to eat this way

forever, so there's no rush there.

It's a lot of work. Preparing veggies takes a lot more effort than just popping a frozen meal in the microwave, but that is only downside I see so far.

I felt the same way doing paleo, it's amazing! I think that what's "natural" or not is really dependent on your own system, and what works for you. I'm glad you've found something amazing!

right. No doubt the biggest part of what's making me feel good is what those diets have in common... getting away from empty calories, processed foods, refined starches, sugary foods, etc

I was the SAME way, Renee...now I'm a convert but I'm not a nazi about it to other ppl

Yeah, I think that's a LOT of it. Also, are you going vegetarian, or vegan? I know that a lot of people, myself included, have strong, um, digestive reactions to dairy without actually being lactose intolerant.

this diet is called flexitarian, which means it's not really vegetarian, in that small amounts of fish are allowed on occasion. But aside from that, it's vegan, and I haven't been having the fish because I

don't want it. So basically vegan

Mileage may vary. I tried vegetarianism several years ago and about 2 months into it, became incredibly sick. I had rapid weight loss and chronic diarrhea. I had to rest while walking one block. I spent months

but yeah, I'm no nazi about any eating plan.

we are definitely not all the same and you have to do what makes you feel good and what you have the luxury (in terms of time and cost) to do

going to the doctor and getting tested and when in discussion it came up that I was doing vegetarian, the doc told me to add meat back. I was better in a week. However, I avoid processed

Part of it for you may be dairy as well, then. I know that cutting dairy out made my digestion and my skin SO much better. Too bad cheese is amazing.

that's wild that it was just avoiding meat that did that to you? I would have guessed you picked up a parasite or something. I'm very aware of that being the danger of eating so much raw food.

foods, then and now.

The best thing you can do is find what works for you, but giving up processed junk REALLY REALLY helps even if you're not dieting.

and I track my protein consumption on fitpal because I'm worried about getting enough.

I was tested for parasites. I was tested for lactose intolerance for everything.

meat or no meat, just getting rid of processed 'food' is going to be a huge difference in how you feel

I went for test 3 days a week for 7 months.

And yeah, parasites was the very first idea.

right about the dairy. I consumed an enormous amount of dairy before. Yogurt, milk in my coffee, multiple servings of cheese every day. That alone could very well be making a difference

that is a lot of dairy

i can't give up meat, sometimes i feel like im in a total haze til i get a nice steak

there's no way i could give it up either

well that's something to keep in mind if I stop feeling so good Cajsa, that's for sure. And fish is allowed on occasion, so I should probably work in a serving now and then. This guy seems to have put a lot

effort into working out the optimal balance for nutrition, so I should listen to him

I think people just have different systems. I think vegetarianism is great, but it's not for everyone.

I am pescatarian, which is vegetarian plus fish. I have removed almost all processed foods and feel great.

vegetarian is great if you like to cook/are a good cook, when i did it for a few months i lost weight cos i ate mostly salads, vegetables (boiled/steam) not complicated recipes like a veg lasagna

there are tons of fat vegans

gogolita: I agree, it is all in how you eat no matter what diet you are on.

if i grew up in a vegetarian family, i would prob love it, i just love good food in general, with or without meat lol

There are may great raw vegan recipes that I use for mid week when I have no time to cook.

one thing this doctor talks about is avoiding soy bases "substitutes". So I haven't had any soy cheese, which means no casseroles/lasagnas. I've been eating mostly salads and soups because without

breading/starch/cheese, other things don't seem very appealing

I grew up in a meat centric family and do not miss it now.

but I agree, the cooking/time to cook thing is huge. I can do this so far because I'm at home all the time

you can get plenty of protein from many vegetables other than soy.

the thing is.. without meat my food doesnt taste good at all

it seems like something is missing on the plate, y'know?

unless there's a side of tofu that's flavored LIKE meat.. that's okay

i just plain like meat, so it's not going away from my diet lol. i don't have to eat meat for every meal, or even every day

i think it depends on what meat you eat also. obviously, the cheapest ground beef is not going to be the best for you

honestly, I really don't miss it and how I feel and look is WAY worth it

nuts and beans are filling that "meat" place pretty well for now. You need them for the protein anyway, and they give that same kind of satisfying "extra" to salads and soups.

yes, i love to add beans to things when it's a no-meat meal

that is so true Rayvn. When this guy talks about eating meat, he talks about trying to only fish, and maybe very occasionally free range chicken, and I'm like, uh, 80% ground beef is what's cheap at my market

that's most of what we eat.

I make great quinoa black bean burgers.

or did eat. Even my kids are eating a lot less meat now, because I don't fix it for them unless the meal is obviously lacking without it.

we were eating the worst possible forms of meat pretty often (hotdogs, bacon, fatty ground beef) because it's cheap and it tastes good. So yeah, getting away from that is good, even if you don't go totally

vegan

i eat a lot of chicken (that's even cheaper than ground beef), salmon, shrimp, eggs, tofu etc, easy to cook

I love meat too much to give it up. I have cravings for steak almost weekly. What I'm working on is getting us to give up the processed convenience foods, which isn't easy with a super picky eater.

red meat maybe once every 2 wks cos i dont wanna pay 10$/lb for it

my fav is steak too, not really ground beef unless it's going i spaghetti

I love seeing the change in people when they go to vegetarian. I'm not even vegetarian myself. I worry that my body wouldn't be able to handle it so well, and we need a lot of protein in this house

it helps too that I have two gardens, one at home and a plot in the community garden. We are getting a lot of free produce right now. I'm sure some meat and some starch is going to make it's way back into

our diet in the winter when produce is more expensive

yes, meat is ok, but get the lowest amount of processing you can.

But I did stop eating ANYthing processed and that includes not eating animals that ate anything bad.

And I feel way better

If you give up the convenience foods, there's more money in the budget for great cuts of meat. Plus around here, we can get 2 fabulous ribeyes for less than $20. Cheaper than when we go out to eat, that's

for sure! And I like it a lot better.

free range or organic meat is soooo expensive though, for 1-2 people it's okay but i dont see how people on a budget with a family can do it

i only shop for 2 and i still cringe at the prices

I figure unorganic food is the cause for a lot of our health problems. Therefore if I spend more money on better food, I will spend a lot less in healthcare.

I won't give up meat entirely because I love seafood and eat it frequently but I do like lots of veggies in my meals.

I go to different places when I shop, depending on what's on sale. Like, I know Sprouts always has all the veggies I need cheaper than Kroger, but Kroger has the meat we like on sale a lot, and Walmart has all

that's the beautiful thing about this diet treating meat as a condiment. I can stomach paying the idea of paying that much for better cuts/grades/sources of meat if one package of chicken breasts or a couple

the extra stuff we need cheaper than either of those places.

of fillets of salmon are going to flavor a bunch of meals

I do also eat LESS meat now so it's not too crazy

instead of being the main focus of just one

Right, it's like that! It's not hte main part of a meal

I'm so jealous of you guys who can make seafood at home. The picky eater over there will only eat canned tuna.

I do that too Alicia, expect it's Winco instead of Kroegers here. But Walmart and Sprouts fill in around the edges with things they are cheaper for. And then Costco too, for things we eat a lot of.

Really drinking water and not eating sugar snacks has kept my weight off

but again, I have the luxury of having the time to shop at four places a week

Thats like my shopping LOL

People on diets shouldn't drink soda or beer because those are some real weight gainers.

We usually just shop at luckys for big trips and sprouts for the odds and ends if we need some things.

I can't waiiiiittttt for our new Sprouts to open. It's midway between my gym and my house, so it'll be SUPER convenient to pop in to get more fruits and vegetables for meals.

I'd love to see more organic places here. We got our first WholeFoods recently. We have a local co op too and soon a Trader Joes. but they're ALL downtown which is forever away.

We have a little farmers market near the house that is open daily, but they'll lure you in with a good price on one thing, and then stick it to you with all the other stuff.

Whole Foods has limited organic items. 2/3 of their stuff is conventionally grown. They have also pulled out of the NON-GMO Project. I have not been back since I started shopping the Altadena Farmers market.

Whole Foods is the most expensive grocery store on the planet. I refuse to shop there.

I shopped there for things I could not get anywhere else. No I have options and I will never go in there again.

They are... so so expensive. I remember the eggs I like to get. Two dollars more at Whole foods. Eggs... Two dollars more...

I get eggs at 3 bucks a dozen. Not gonna pay $5 or $6 per when I'm watching the budget.

I get eggs from the farmers market once in a while at $1 per egg.