I’ve bean a good egg – my personal journey to becoming a vegetarian

“Thank you, but I am vegetarian.”

“Do you eat fish?”

“No, I am vegetarian.”

“But do you eat fish?”

“No, I am a vegetarian.”

“Hunh. That’s weird. Well, bring your own food then!”

Thankfully, this isn’t the way most dinner invitations go for vegetarians anymore. Plant-based lifestyles are not only gaining in popularity but also in respect.

I’ve been living a mostly vegetarian lifestyle for about two years now. I’ve have been asked what, in my mid-50’s, possessed me to make such a change? I mean, after all, I am a former omnivore who did not have a lot of tolerance for those freaks and now I am one of ‘em.

There are many statistics to support the benefits of a plant-based lifestyle but here’s the one that is forever ingrained (see what I did there?) in me: a global shift to plant-based diet now could reduce mortality by 10% and greenhouse gas emissions by 70% by 2050 compared to a business-as-usual approach . Let that sink into your chickpea stew for a minute. I may not have you convinced, but I hope I at least have your attention with that sobering statistic. My familiar suffers from generations of heart disease and our planet is dying. Those two facts along with the statistic above, were enough for me to make some adjustments in my life. And so, I too am now a diehard tofu-di.

What started out as a fad diet (I began experimenting with Meatless Mondays), transitioned to support for my then-teenaged daughter (who was experimenting with soft vegetarianism with the occasional side of ribs), finally evolved into my own choice and preference through education and experimentation.

I read a lot as the mother of a vegetarian. I wanted to make sure my daughter was getting enough protein, vitamin D, iron, Omega-3, and all the other good stuff found in counter-vegetarianism arguments (for the record, she didn’t have trouble keeping up with the others on her hockey team or ski team). I slowly started to have more Meatless Mondays (even though we all hate Mondays).

Not everyone in my family was on board with this transition. One of my boys once raved about my portobello mushroom dips by adding, “You know what this dish needs? Some meat!”. And apparently you can’t call it Caesar salad unless it’s served with bacon – a carnivore-inspired rule, I am sure. And the ultimate in compliments: “Not bad … for vegetarian.”

Has my conversion to a more plant-based direct had a direct effect on greenhouse gas emissions? Maybe not. Has my life span been extended? Only time will tell. I will say though that I look fabulous. Hehe. In all seriousness, it did not take five years for me so see noticeable improvement in my sleep but instead maybe two or three weeks. That uncomfortably full feeling after a burger that prevents you from doing anything else all evening but take ten steps to the couch? No more! And after years of trying to repair my damaged hair, my hair stylist said to me last time I saw him, “Whatever you’re doing, keep doing it, because your hair is really healthy!” I can also now say that I am far more tolerant of dietary restrictions and lifestyle choices in others, which is also very important.

If you are thinking of transitioning to a plant-based lifestyle or even just learning more about it, there is no shortage of advice and literature on the internet on how to do make this transition (like, a 30-day plant-based challenge!). The vegetarian and vegan cookbook aisles at your local bookstore have expanded far more than any other genre. Have a gander (no, no goose allowed) next time you’re there. What worked for me, beyond meatless Mondays. was to cut meat out slowly.

Year one, I eliminated beef and pork. Au revoir, my juicy red steak with Bearnaise sauce. Year two, I nixed chicken and poultry. Bye-bye, chicken wings. Then in year three – all fish and shellfish. Ciao, scampi. I also attended a few community-based workshops and cooking classes that helped inspire me along this journey because I needed it. I’m a laggard, slow-to-adapt, change-hater. I am here now though and feel proud of myself for exploring a new cuisine, looking after my health, and doing a small thing for our planet.

I have heard people say, it’s not real food unless it has real meat. Really? Here’s what was really said at the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in 2019, “becoming vegan is the single most important and direct change we can make to save the planet and its species.”

I really think you should give it a real try! How about we try this slogan on for size: “it’s not real food if it’s not plant-based food.”

Eat, drink, and be berry happy.

~Astra