l to r: homemade southwest rolls with cream of broccoli; rice and beans with a side of plantains; a spinach salad with egg, craisins, clementines, croutons and Italian dressing
Ya’ll, I made it a whole month without eating chicken, beef or pork.
Exactly a month ago today, I started my meatless challenge. It was of course supposed to be only a week, but I liked it so much, I extended it.
I didn’t always know how I was going to pull it off especially after spending very late nights in Philly and driving home starving with very little options because the only thing that was open was fast food restaurants.
One time, we decided to go to one for a fish filet and the freaking location was out of them. Huh? That night we ate our first veggie burger and we were sold on them ever since knocking off boxes like it was no tomorrow.
A year ago, eh, a couple of months ago, I would have never thought that I would stop eating meat. My former co-worker did it for about 7 months and I just couldn’t comprehend how she was surviving. When I asked her what she was eating, she would always say soup, which didn’t sound very appetizing to me.
I did try it once though. I was in elementary school and I told my aunt that I wanted to be a vegetarian. I must have just learned about it and you know how it is when you learn something new, you want to let everyone know that you know what it is like “yeah, I’m smart.” I don’t remember my aunt’s reaction. She probably knew it wasn’t going to last long especially when she made fried chicken the next night. I gave in.
Although I lacked disciplined then, I have been holding strong since I started this challenge. I went to two barbeques recently and managed to not touch a grilled hot dog, which is the main reason I go to barbeques.
The most recent one I went to was last Saturday for my family’s monthly gathering. I not only ate my veggies, I turned some of my relatives into believers by making my famous vegetable lasagna. My brother was devouring it so quick that he didn’t even notice it didn’t have meat in it until the boyfriend told him. I even got some relatives who said they didn’t like mushrooms to eat them. Yup, it was that good.
A couple days ago, the boyfriend asked me what I was going to do after today. I didn’t know what to tell him. All I knew is that since I changed my diet, I feel more energized. I no longer feel lethargic after eating. I have definitely gotten better with my portion sizes except the additional bowl of ice cream here and there. LOL.
Plus, I feel like my body is changing. I can’t really see it in the numbers, but my stomach definitely looks similar to how it looked in college and that is a good thing. I don’t know where this journey will lead me, but so far, I really like it.
So, the challenge continues. Wish me luck!
