I'm totally new to this thing and I was wanting to know if there are any tips, trick, or advice to becoming a vegetarian? The reason for the change is that I want to improve my overall health. :hump:

:) Eat a variety of foods including leafy vegetables -- don't forget your dark greens -- and beans and whole grains. These come in the form of curries, burritos, pasta dishes, Asian foods.... Mostly remember that variety is the key and if you don't like something, try something else!

Here are some of the things I’ve learned, in no particular order:
1. Eat mostly whole grains. They’re a good source of nutrients like zinc that are hard to get otherwise.
2. Call ahead to restaurants. Find out what items they have that have no animal products (if you’re vegan anyway), ask what they fry their French fries in (I’ve been to at least one diner that used animal fat), etc. Rather than telling them you’re a veg*n, ask them to read the ingredients to you. If they think it is a food allergy problem they are less likely to lie to you (not that I’ve caught anyone doing that to me).
3. Don’t talk to omnis about veg*nism at the table. It is almost never pleasant. Also, if they’re the ones to bring the subject up you’re less likely to seem like a rabid PETA member.
4. Get in the habit of bringing something to eat to questionable events. Don’t expect omnis to be accommodating to your eating habits.
5. Don’t assume a veg*n diet is inherently healthy. You need your veggies too. And just like omnis you should exercise, not drink to excess or smoke.
6. Don’t take crap from people. If they start with the, “Mmm… meat” don’t be afraid to whip out, “Mmm… colon, rectal, pancreas, breast, prostate cancer, high blood pressure and cholesterol, myocardial infarction, stroke, kidney failure, diabetes and obesity.”
7. Try veg*n specialty food. If you’ve never tried tofu, go to your local Chinese place and order a dish (may appear as bean curd, just make sure there is no chicken juice). Check out veggie burgers, soy milk, ice cream and other goodies, legumes, tempeh, seitan.
8. Check out your health food store. Check out farmer’s markets.
9. By some veg*n cook books (How It All Vegan is a start) and/or find recipes on the internet. Learn to cook.
10. You can buy fairly expensive veg*n items but still have a smaller grocery bill by basing your diet on beans, lentils, rice, and other grains.
11. Research veg*nism. Know 10X more about the subject than the random omni heckler. Be aware of the iron, zinc, selenium, B vitamins, calcium, etc. issues. Learn why it is not necessary to eat complementary proteins at every meal.
12. Don’t be too hard on yourself if you make a few mistakes.
13. Consider going organic.

:up: to hummusisyummus!!

Don't forget to get your omega-3. Ground-up flax seeds (easy to add to smoothies and the like) are an easy source; as is flax seed oil. 1-2 tablespoons a day of either should do it. (... an alternative is to eat 4 walnuts a day, or get it through hemp seed oil. Dark green lefy veggies also contain small amounts of this essential fatty acid.) :)

I just wanted to say thanks to froggythefrog, Hummusisyummus and Azalea for the info. That was very informative and impressive.

This contridicts with an above post, but I've learned that, well, in a way you should just take crap from people. If someone says "mmm... meat" and tries to be a jerk about things, I ignore them. I don't try to think of some witty anti-meat response... it'll only get me all worked up. And people more often than seems reasonable, people want to argue about eating meat or not. I don't try to argue with them at all and don't give them useful info. I only bring up the facts if someone actually asks for my opinion or info in a respectful way.

Never be afraid to ask what's in something at restaurants. If a restaurant seems at all liberal, I'll walk in and say: What's vegan?

My advice is to take it slow! It can take awhile to fully become vegetarian and discover things that you want to eat. After being vegan for years, I'm still finding new ideas. The longer you're vegetarian, the easier it will be.

I have problems with events like BBQ's, but some of my other friends are vegan and vegetarian so we usually have a space and utensils set aside for our food. We also bring our own food to BBQ's to save other people worrying about it.

Start slowly at first. You can't go from 0-vegetarian overnight. It took me nearly a year to completely convert to being a vegetarian, even though I've never really eaten meat my whole life. The last thing to go was some types of cheese (veggie rennet cheese is OK) and jelly sweets (but there are fantastic alternatives made with pectin and veggie gelatine!).. everything else was pretty easy!

Don't be too hard on yourself if you do slip up, you'll get the hang of it! :)

My tips:

* Whole foods, whole foods, whole foods. Beans/legumes, veggies/fruits, nuts/seeds, whole grains... these should be the base of your diet with maybe the odd bit of junkfood thrown in (if you want - some people like junkfood and some do not) which leads me on to the next tip, which is....

* Learn to cook and learn to use spices. If you try to be a "box veg*n" (someone who relies on convenience and pre-packaged foods for their meals), you'll go broke in no time at all. Learning to cook those whole foods anyway they can be cooked will make your diet varied and exciting. Explore different cuisines, too, and don't be afraid to mix and match things you like (says the person who thinks nothing of having veggie curry soft tacos with fried green tomatoes and hummus :hungry: )

* Be prepared to get flack about your eating ways. That could range from the light teasings to the downright obnoxious arses having their go. Read everything you can about vegan (vegetarian) health so if someone whips out with "where do you get your calcium?", you can counter with something a little more than "same place I'm getting my anti-oxydants, why do you ask?". Most of the time, people will shut up when you say "I'm doing this to feel better" or "I'm doing this for my health" but every now and again, you will get that odd arse that just *has* to give a wind-up about "eating leaves and twigs all the time".

* Read lables. Sure those words are hard to understand but after a while, you'll know them like you know your own morning routine. And give yourself time to learn those words but don't beat yourself up if you miss anything at one point in time or another. Believe me, it's happened to all of us (ALL of us :yes: ).

* Don't be afraid to ask about ingredients in restaurants. No, they might not know if there's whey in the bread, but they should at least know if the beans are cooked with lard or not, or if the fries are cooked in the same oil as the fish. Depending on how strict you want to be will determine what kind of questions you might ask when you're out to eat. OH! and don't be afraid to leave a NIIIICE tip if someone goes out of their way for you like putting in a special request order to chef or going in the back to ask what a vegetarian with your requirements can have.

* If your eating at someone's house, don't be afraid to ask them what they're going to have and don't be afraid to ask if you can bring something that everyone can share. 20 years ago, that would have been a major faux paus, but today with "everyone" on one diet or another, it's quite welcome in a lot of situations (but still rude in others so ask first). But NEVER assume that other people will know your limits and requirements like you do so don't be shy about speaking up for yourself. Depending on the social situation, you might also have to think about relaxing your expectations a bit when they do try to make something you can eat but only you can decide if you want to draw those lines and where you want to draw them. But no matter what, be gracious about everything. :)

* Ask questions. Especially here (at this board). There are lots of people here that can answer questions on anything you want to know stuff about. Don't be afraid to tap their knowlege on things. IME, people here are only too happy to share what they know and believe me, you will get tons to think about because of all the different inputs. :)

And finally....

* Take it as slow or as fast as you want. There's no set time limit to when you have to be full-on vegetarian so take it at your own pace ONLY. Some people here went full-on in the span of a day and some took years getting there (a years taker, here :hi: ) so do it at the speed that's right for you and don't let anyone make you go slower or faster than what you're comfortable with going.

Hope that helps a bit. :)

Don't limit your tofu experience to only Chinese restaurants. You can find tofu at Japanese and Thai, and well, most Asian ethnic restaurants.

Get rid of your preconceived notion of what is appropriate to eat at certain times of day. If you suddenly want breakfast cereal at 8 pm, go right ahead. If you want to put peanut butter on your morning bagel or pastry, or hummus and tabbouleh in a pita pocket for breakfast, go right ahead.

*agrees fully with Amy SF's post* :yes:

Another thing to know about being vegetarian: snacking is back! :bobo:

Nuts, fruit, even something with whole grains or beans make good snacks. That will help keep the "GOTTA EAT NOW!" feelings at bay so you're less likely to binge like mad later on.