The One-Month Vegetarian Experiment

I've been thinking about going vegetarian for a long time, a couple of years really. I've never really been into meat in a big way, and I only started eating fish again last year after ten years. I was always reluctant though because I never thought Brendan would agree - he screamed untelligible things about steak every time I suggested giving up meat.

Recently, though, one of the side effects of polyphasic sleep has been our smaller meals and many more snacks. Combining this with drinking protein shakes again and getting back into the gym means Brendan's now very willing to give it a go for a month, as he doesn't feel he "just need[s] something else".

I've started on it slowly - for the past two weeks we've eaten mostly vegetarian, and had meat once a week. I love it. I feel so much more healthier and energetic, and I have a suspicion that eating healthy in this way and cutting down on peanut butter cups made us both lose a bit of weight. I don't miss meat right now - ask me at the end of the month and I'll let you know.

We'll still eat cheese and other dairy products, and most likely eggs, though we almost never eat those anyway. And Brendan insists on keeping fish, because, as he says, "apart from the danger of Mercury contamination, it's the one thing that nutritionists always recommend". Which really makes us pesco-vegetarians. So this experiment should be called the One-Month Pesco-vegetarian Experiment. Twice the confusion and half the shock value, somehow...

I think I have sufficient practice now in what to cook that we're ready to go the full hog, to excuse the pun. After all, as with the polyphasic experiments, if we don't like it as much, it's only for a month. The month started last Sunday, so today is day 3.

The one rule that we have set is if we go out, we're allowed to order meat if we want, mostly because it's so hard to get decent vegetarian takeaways at your standard American fast food outlet. (I'd still rather eat vege - that way I know there are less yucky things in my hamburger. Duncan and Anita, I know you both don't go to McD's etc but what do you order when you go out? Have you been to Pita Pit in SJ on 2nd St? It's like Subway, but with much healthier pita bread and fillings.)