Tuesday, May 10, 2011

transitioning to pescetarianism

Pescetarian's are basically lacto-ovo vegetarians who also eat fish, but do not eat chicken, beef, pork, or red meat of any sort. (Lacto-ovo vegetarians are vegetarians who eat dairy and eggs, but do not eat meat or fish of any sort.) So I guess, I'll be an ovo-pescetarian, if we're getting all technical here. :)

Although I still won't be eating dairy, because it causes me to sneeze and get wheezy, I have been having eggs for breakfast and find that I am much more sustained throughout the morning if I have a couple boiled eggs. 2 eggs at 140 calories does more for me than two waffles of similar nutrient density. It's pretty amazing to me how much of a difference it makes for one person to eat animal protein than another person. Each individual is uniquely different, biologically, physically and physiologically.

In the past I've found that I drop weight easily when I am following a strict low-starch, high protein diet. (Not low-carb; I stay away from that term as much as possible, because I love carbs, and I will never give them up!) To me, it's not just about calories in, calories out when it comes to weight loss, or health for that matter. It's about eating whole foods; foods without chemicals, additives, fillers, gums, or any other un-natural, man made substances. My skin clears up, my eyes look whiter, and I don't have as many aches and pains.

My experience with a vegan diet has taught me a lot about how animals are treated, and how to eat ethically. Most people don't think twice about what they have for breakfast or for lunch; most people that I know just grab and go, because they are too busy to think about it, and the options are everywhere. And I am definitely guilty of it myself. But paying attention to food labels is the first step to being your own nutritionist.

I plan on seeing a nutritionist regarding my decision to stay mainly vegetarian. I don't see why I couldn't remain mainly vegetarian, which I've grown so accustomed to already. I rarely crave meat or even think about it, but at the same time, I can feel that my body flourishes on protein and dimishes on carbohydrates. Being gluten, dairy, and probably corn intolerant takes a huge portion of vegan options away, making the entire diet extremely hard to stick to.