MEX - 30 Days Of Vegetarianism Conclusion

Well the results are in and I'm pleased. 

I had decided on November the 5th to try out 30 days of vegetarianism.

Some of my motives to try it at the time were:

- Curiosity. Why were so many people I knew vegetarian and/or becoming so?
- I wanted to reassess my diet and everything I was putting into my system.
- The acid/alkaline diet that I've been reading about really frowns on the consumption of meats.
- I always felt like a vegetarian but never really was conscious enough about my eating to second guess things.
- I wanted to research vegetarianism where I live here in China.

The results after 30 days are:

- I feel a new sense of personal empowerment. Like I am making a difference by not eating animals. That I am in control of what I put in my body.
- I am generally a lot healthier. A lot of unhealthy habits go along with eating meat. Ie: gravy, fast food, street vendor food.
- I now understand a lot more about how the meat industry "makes" meat and how most of the world has no idea when they are stuffing their faces full of KFC...
- I feel like part of an elite club.
- A lot of cooking was done at home during this time. That's a plus because it was all really healthy cooking, a lot of greens, tofu, tomatoes and TLC.
- I found a lot of really neat restaurants in my neighbourhood that I had never noticed before.
- I feel lighter somehow. On a spiritual level.
- My friends were quite understanding of my decision not to eat meat. Even my wife's parents who vehemently opposed it began to understand why and support me now.
- I made some terrible tofu. And then I made some bad tofu. And then it got better. Now it is finally edible. 
- I have saved a lot of money! Meat is expensive here... tofu and meat alternatives are cheap! 
- I have educated myself a lot on the pros of eating veg but haven't done similar research into any pros on eating meat. If any of you have any good reading materials it is only fair that I try to balance things out. 

In closing, I have decided to continue on eating veg for the foreseeable future. It feels good. I feel better than when I ate meat. My quality of life has improved thanks to this MEX.
 

Learning, growing and understanding myself and my surroundings. Now that is living!

(( The next MEX will be announced before the week is up! :) ))

Leia Mais…

The MEX - Vegetarianism Day 11

Today the Vegetarian gods showered me with me vegetarian research blessings. I found three veg restaurants, downloaded the "Vegetarian Curry Bible," bought my first surou or veg meat and just had dinner at one of the aforementioned veg restaurants. I also picked up several pamphlets (in Chinese) on vegetarianism to show curious Chinese friends.

Whoooo. What a day. It was a veggie-a-thon-extra-ordinaire.

Not to mention I have also come across interesting new material on "acid/alkaline dieting." Might have to look more into that.

But all excitement aside. I felt the urge. Colonel's constant advertising, at the bus stop, in the elevator, in fat kid's hands, taped to my door... they all had something to do with it. I had just finished work. My old habit would be after a long tiring day to stop by KFC to pick up a Mexican chicken wrap ($1.50 or so) and eat the day away. The fumes wafted out of the KFC smoke stack (another advertising ploy) and into my big shnoz.

I sniffed. And then sniffed again.

And I kept sniffing as I took the road back home. A tall glass of soy milk was the consolation prize. I thought to myself as I drank down my capuccino flavoured soy "I need to find better consolation prizes or this whole thing isn't going to work!"

But, it has been 11 days. I have done a fair bit of research. I cook more at home now. My diet and eating is more on schedule. People are getting curious.

Vegetarianism eh?

Ah yes. 19 more days to go. I will either be a well informed meat eater by that time or an even more avid vegetarian. It is to be seen.

Ou.yang.

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The MEX - Vegetarianism Day 5 1/2

As it is pushing midnight I am nearing day 6 of my 30 day vegetarian trial period. This marks the longest I have gone without eating flesh, blood and bones. I'm even starting to sound like a vegetarian.

Today we trekked out to the German supermarket on the outskirts of the island to stock up on soy milk. I've started a new soy milk kick for three reasons:

1. A scary PETA video that turned me off from dairy.
2. I like the taste and feel of soy.
3. Apparently dairy isn't good for my sinuses (I suffer from sinusitis).

The Switch

I haven't had any cravings. Even the hardcore KFC advertising brainwashing scheme here didn't manage to get me to pine for the Colonel's chicken. The switch from meat was also relatively easy as my diet in recent years has been low in meat, for a few reasons.

A. From my knowledge there are no "grades" of beef or meat in China.
B. The majority of Chinese restaurants have no hygiene standards.
C. I was tired of chomping away at horomone filled, dirty, fly ridden meat.
D. Meat is expensive.
E. Meat is bloody and messy and ever since studying foodborne illness under microscope I get queesy at the idea of all the bacteria swarming on it.
F. Meat is jam packed full of hormones.

Said, I would often enjoy meat if it was placed in front of me fully prepared (and not staring back) and from time to time I would cook with meat. But I have never been by any means a full fledged, rare, blood soaked steak eater - or meat eater. 

China is also a place that helps with the switch as there is such an array of veggies and tofu. The only complaint I have is that "faux meat" or "fake meat" or whatever the stuff is called I cannot find! I have a mission to track down the Buddhist monks from the nearby temple and inquire. 

Thoughts...

With trying out vegetarianism comes a shift in perspective. I now am starting to consider why people would not eat meat. It is starting to make more sense - the reasons behind all of it. I'm also beginning to become conscious of the decisions we have for our own consumerism.

If I don't want to support a particular company, service, product or industry - I don't have to. 

Common sense right? But do most people actually act on it? I know I haven't. Until now?

Memories...

I remember as a kid the big, scary, hairy neighbours would be spraying ants with aerosol cans and I would run out and tell them off. They'd laugh and keep spraying. I felt terrible for the ants.

I was also taught at a young age that I could save worms on rainy days by taking them off of the roads and placing them back onto the soil. Every time I did that (and I did it a lot - maybe 5000 saved worms to date) I felt great.

I remember last Saturday walking in the supermarket and seeing the fish, half of them dead - the other half soon to be. Crabs scurrying about as people poked and prodded them laughing. Seeing bloody bits and bobs of animals on ice. 

More thoughts...

It has never felt right when I've thought about eating meat - but then I never thought about it twice.

And certainly not thrice.

It wasn't until I actually took the plunge into the unknown world of vegetarianism that I felt I had some power over the situation. And it feels good to have power, doesn't it?

Some of what we've been eating...

Questions? Comments? Recipes? Drop a comment below!

Ou.yang.

Leia Mais…

The MEX - Vegetarianism

Thirty (30) days of vegetarianism is the MEX or the Monthly Experiment X. No meat of any kind. Animal products such as dairy products, eggs, oils and whatnot I'll still consume and I'll still wear my leather shoes. I also intend to still slap mosquitoes that wish to feed on me and spray for cockroaches as they give me the heebee jeebees.

For those of you at that missed the last post I am doing a monthly experiment or MEX (a cool acronym that I created).


What I Am Not Doing

I'm not leaping into vegetarianism fervently claiming to want to stand up for animal rights, to save the planet or to become more healthy. Honestly I know little about any of those in areas in relation to vegetarianism.

What I Am Doing

I'm doing it to try it out. My 30 days will also include 30 days of research and reading, discussion with vegetarians, posting on forums and watching the occasional scary PETA video. By the end of the 30 days I will look at my findings, see how I feel and make a decision whether to continue or not.

So Why Vegetarianism?  

I've always been interested in what it meant to be vegetarian and what went along with that title. It seems more like a way of life than a change in diet. Also:

• I have a love for animals and life. 
• I don't like seeing things killed and/or tortured.
• I wanted to see why so many great people I knew were becoming vegetarians.
• It seemed like a change that would be challenging on many different levels.
  

Fears

Some of my fears of vegetarianism include:

• Becoming a PETA protester. They're pretty full on now aren't they?
• Losing bacon. I really do like bacon. 
• Getting bored with food choices.
• Losing weight and/or becoming malnourished.
• Being in awkward social situations. ie: Being in the middle of a group of blood thirsty meat eating cattle farmers and them asking me why I don't eat meat with snarly looks on their faces.
• I'm afraid I'll like the change so much and never eat meat again.  
• Being the blunt of vegetarian jokes, ie:

Vegetarianism in China

"Great to jian fei" say most of my female students. "Jian fei" meaning to lose weight. Very few Chinese are vegetarian and usually the associations with vegetarianism include Buddhist monks, losing weight and or some kind of mental abnormality. China however does host what appears to be a veggie friendly platter of options. There is tofu galore and enough variety of veggies to keep me occupied for at least, emm... 3 or 4 days? (Please see my fear or boredom with food choices)

Surely there must be some kind of vegetarian underground society here - I just haven't found them yet. 

Numbers


According to Google Answers there are 250 000 "proper" Canadian vegetarians and 100 000 "proper" Canadian vegans. When I say "proper" they shaved off a million or so other vegetarian groups who partake in other varieties of vegetarianism. The country with the most vegetarians is India, with roughly 30 to 40 percent of the population being vegetarian.

Final Jibber Jabber

So next month you could very well hear me going on about my vegetarian lifestyle or going on about how I love the smell of bacon in the morning. It's to be seen.

Do you have any experience in vegetarianism? Any interest in trying out a vegetarian diet? Are you a die hard meat eater? 

As always, any comments or questions please leave a comment below. 

Ou.yang. 

Leia Mais…

The Monthly Experiment

I am planning to try something new and challenging for 30 days every 30 days. I will post progress, photos and notes on here.  

Every month there will be an experiment. Lets refer to it as Monthly Experiment X or MEX for short (jingle yet to come).

• MEX will challenge, educate and inspire. 
• MEX may leave people shaking their heads saying "Now why would he do THAT?" 
• MEX does not bite but may shed.

Last month's MEX was to get up at 6AM and go for a run every morning. After a hugely successful completion of that project it was time to push the bill further.

So I thought to myself.

And then I got up and grabbed a coffee.

And I thought again.

What was something else that I was afraid of, something that I had never consciously thought about and something I knew little about? The answer, not slowly but rather surely came.

Vegetarianism. 

The single word that strikes fear into the heart of meat eaters and grade three spelling bee contestants.

Please stay posted for the next post on my Vegetarian MEX. It will answer such itchy questions as:

• Why vegetarianism?
  
• But what about bacon?
• Is China a vegetarian friendly place to live?
• What have the reactions been like to this new MEX?
• But I want to hear about the wedding?!

For now I leave with you with a quote, a sampler of sorts. In the wise words of George Bernard Shaw:

Animals are my friends... and I don't eat my friends.

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