Hi! I was following Self Magazine on Twitter, and found this link called “3 Ways to Munch Meatlessly” It details the menus you can follow if you are interested in leading a meat-free lifestyle. Whether you are Vegan, Vegetarian, Flexitarian etc. your options are very broad. Here is the link to the menus varying by the food lifestyle you might lead:
Self Magazine
Speaking for myself, I eat meat all the time, but what I wanted to share was the breakdown of the different types of food lifestyles out there these days. We often only hear about vegetarianism or veganism. But there are many variations available for your particular needs and preferences. Just because you hear about few eating lifestyles lately doesn’t mean those are the only available, or that they are perfect. Everything is created for a reason, mostly because there are enough people out there who agree. It can get confusing… so here is your vocab list of the week 😉 If you are going to make a decision about the things you put into your body, make it an INFORMED decision. Read up on all the options, know what you are actually agreeing to. It is YOUR lifestyle after all. Even if you do want to eat meat, find a environmentally and body-friendly way to do so…. Here is what I found in about 5 minutes of research. Imagine what you could find in an hour. Just one hour devoted to the rest of your life as a conscious eater…. Think about it:
Vegan is a philosophy and lifestyle that seeks to exclude the use of animals for food, clothing, or any other purpose. Vegans endeavor not to use or consume animal products of any kind. Products include meat, poultry, seafood, eggs, dairy products, honey, fur,leather, wool, and silk. Common animal products also include gelatin, lanolin, rennet, whey, casein, beeswax, isinglass, and shellac.
Vegetarian does not eat meat, including: red meat,game, poultry, fish, crustacea, shellfish, and products of animal slaughter such as animal-derived gelatin and rennet.
Pescetarian a diet that includes seafood and excludes mammals and birds. In addition to fish or shellfish, a pescetarian diet typically includes some or all of vegetables, fruit, nuts, grains, beans, eggs, and dairy.
Pollotarian is a semi-vegetarian diet in which a person only eats vegetables, fruits, and poultry meat (particularly chicken), but does not consume meat from fish or mammals. Pollotarians tend to include non-flesh animal products such as dairy and eggs in their diet, as well.
Lacto-Ovo-Vegetarian is a vegetarian who does not eat beef, lamb, pork, poultry, fish, shellfish or animal flesh of any kind, but is willing to consume dairy and egg products.
**A Lacto Vegetarian will add only dairy, an Ovo Vegetarian will add only eggs.
Flexitarian is a semi-vegetarian diet focusing on vegetarian food with occasional meat consumption. A self-described flexitarian seeks to decrease meat consumption without eliminating it entirely from his or her diet. There are no guidelines for how much or how little meat one must eat before being classified a flexitarian.
Paleolithic a way of eating in the modern age that best mimics diets of our hunter-gatherer ancestors – combinations of lean meats, seafood, vegetables, fruits, and nuts.
I’m sure there are a million others I haven’t even heard of or thought of yet. If you know some you’d like to share, please do! And one final tip…. be cautious of substitutes. Just because it isn’t meat, and it isn’t terrible for the environment, doesn’t mean it is good for your body! Be mindful of processed goods! SERIOUSLY….. If you want to give up cheese, give up cheese. Don’t sub in that fake shit, whether it ‘tastes’ like it, ‘looks’ like it or even ‘smells’ like it…. Fake is Fake in my book. Go organic or go home.
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