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If you’re thinking of changing to a vegetarian diet, how do
you start? Do you just start shopping in the produce aisle of the grocery
store? You might have some anxiety attached to this change as well, and this is
understandable.
Try to think of this as adding to your dietary habits,
rather than a drastic change. If your diet has consistently included red meat,
perhaps you can start substituting other foods for the red meat. Or eliminate
the most processed and high-fat meats first, such as bacon and hamburgers.
Certainly try to eliminate fast food burgers, which have such a high fat and
sodium content. If you think you’ll miss the taste of bacon in the morning, try
substituting a turkey or vegetable-based bacon substitute. It won’t be the
same, but you won’t be giving up the foods you’re used to all at once.
If you’ve had a health scare and feel the need to change
everything at once, make sure you include a lot of variety in the foods you buy
as you begin to discover new flavors and textures that you’ll like to replace
the ones you’re used to eating. If you don’t need to make a dramatic change all
at once, you’ll have a much greater chance of long-term success if you take it
slow. Reduce the amount of red meat that you eat on a weekly basis, even if it
means substituting pasta with marinara sauce for meat just one night a week.
Increase the amounts of fruits and vegetables you eat. Start with raw
vegetables at night before dinner so you’re not so hungry when you get to the
main meal. Start reversing the proportions of meat and vegetables and make meat
a side dish, with vegetables and grains your main course.
We’re creatures of habit and resistant to change. This is
why so many diets fail, because we make drastic changes to facilitate dramatic
results, quickly. This is a decision and a change you want to make for a
lifetime. Make it a natural and gradual change and you can look forward to many
more years of healthy living.
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