I say to people I don't eat meat, for a number of reasons which we will get into later. To most people this means I'm vegetarian, this is not pescatarian (who don't eat fish); which many confuse vegetarianism with also. There is a specific reason I start with this point and this being the label of being vegetarian puts on you! Sometimes I fancy a sweet and I get the "there not vegetarian you can't have them"; where I appreciate their looking out for me I am capable of enquiring about this fact if I so desire. My reason for this apparent hostility is that people often state I can't have things as I am vegetarian! I am aware of this! In fact most of the time I am vegan. At home I rarely have dairy and when I do it's a bit of cheese. When out in the wider world I do eat dairy mainly due to the hassle of finding vegan option, your choice becomes very limited. This is change thankfully and Vegan restaurants and cafes are showing up. Another reason is I get free meals of work and they don't proved Vegan options, ok so I'm lazy!
Ok so my point being is I deviate from the label!
Why should this matter? To me it does not but some people get a right jib on; telling me i'm vegetarian and can't eat the things i'm eating. Funnily they then offer me fish "that's pescatarian love" is often the reply. A touch sarcastic one might say but come on you can't dictate and judge then get it wrong, plus I am a Brit sarcasm is in our blood. Occasionally i do eat fish like last week on holiday the offer of local muscles could not be turned down. My main reason for not eating fish is the pollution in the ocean and radiation from Fukushima that has leaked into the sea and undoubtedly is in the majority of the worlds fish!
My decision goes on what I feel at the time and I follow my gut instinct, yes the majority of the time this leans towards as vegetarian diet. Although mainly at home it leans towards a vega diet. For example at a recent party there was some great looking smoked trout I had some, or when at a friends for dinner and they cooked a paella with fish as they thought I aye fish, I had some. In an ideal world I would not eat any meat, I rarely eat dairy; but on occasion I do. As for the reducing dairy in my diet my health has improved no end and I have lost a lot of weight and have more energy. Is this just coincidence maybe but if I don't need these foods when why eat them. Ultimately we only want to put in our body what we need and how much we need. In a society where we are told we need to consume and constantly had stuff throw us we all over consume.
Don't conform
In this day and age we are set on our defining labels. People I know have tried to become vegetarian but stop because they crave sausage for example! Ok just eat the sausage at that time, it doesn't mean you have failed. You body is telling you that you need something, maybe it is just pressure but go with it. If when you eat it it feels wrong don't finish it or eat more. Why do we need to label everything and put it in classes this only divide and enforces the them and us culture we live in.
I guess the message here is our bodies tell us what we need and not a perceived label. This can fluctuate with the seasons and our health and mental state. The important thing is to listen and observe how we feel when we are eating something, if it feels wrong or we feel like it's something we should not be doing; then listen to this. As with everything in life we know ourselves better than anyone and only we can decide what our body needs. Our body will often crave something when we are missing a mineral or aspect of our diet; this is our way of telling ourself we are missing something from our body which we need, ignoring this will only effect our health in a detrimental way. We can accept advice and recommendations but the reality is our instincts will tell us what to do. The sooner people start to do this the sooner they begin to wake up. Eating should be enjoyable and not a constant battle with our desires, this only makes you depressed and in need of something to fill the gap of what you are not giving yourself. Yes it's important not to over indulge and to listen for when you are full. Sometimes if I eat a lot the next day I get more exercise and eat less as my body feels lethargic and heavy.
The media will pump adverts at you which counter act your instincts! The importance of learning what is you body and the advertising is a key skill. As I have said before cutting out the media allows you to see the fictitious thoughts we all have. Once these are identified, then we can focus on the real thoughts and instincts in turn improving our life and those around us. When you are resonating on your bodies correct level then those around you pick up on this and you can being to explain to them. You also attract more positives in life and walk along the correct path attracting more positive energy.
Check these out, they work well for me:
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