Welcome to the Group

Welcome! We would love get to know you, so please tell us a little bit about yourself. You can choose any format you'd like, but most of us here share some or all of the following details:

1. History with veganism/vegetarianism:
2. History with Calorie Count:
3. Reason for joining this group:
4. Some interesting details about yourself, such as your job, your family, your pets and your interests:

And now just go ahead and make that first post!

Hey guys. :)

hi,

I'm steph(anie), 25 and been vegan for about 2 years now. pretty much made the switch after my mum died and a few things finally 'clicked' (long story, lets just say I have a few self-confidence issues)

I used calorie-count for the first time about 3 years ago, but as some point when I had already lost a lot of weight the wrong way. eventually I thought I didn't need it anymore and left. I'm back here because I was very wrong with thinking like that. I'm trying to go the healthy way now, and probably also to realise that learning to eat 'healthy' and 'normal' is a life-long deal.

though it wasn't my reason I realised that going vegan did make me see food in a different light. it's still a love/hate relationship, but I know that if I'm really keeping track of what I'm doing I can enjoy eating. my problem is more the fact that I often lack motivation and fall into depressive states or whatever you wanna call it (I've been diagnosed with BPD before and try to deal with it by eating stuff I shouldn't eat. eh)

apart from that I'm kinda 'geek-ish' but not really, love computer games (from mmos to horror stuff, would play first-person-shooter too if I didn't get motion sickness... my fave games being japano-rpgs though)

music is my life elixir, pretty much. I'm mostly into 'hardcore punk' and post-hardcore, but also find a strange liking in indi-alternative stuff. I love going to festivals and concerts, being in the 'pit' is all kinds of awesome ;)

I'm a business administrator, but not working in the job anymore. currently I'm going back to school and will eventually move to sweden (I'm from germany)

I think that's it for now :)

 Hi Everyone!! My name is Dyan & I'm a new vegetarian.

I hope to become a Vegan some time in the future. I saw the PETA video's they showed undercover at a slaughter house and it destroyed my meat loving taste buds. Now I can't even look at meat with out getting grossed out. That totally changed my view of any kind of meat with a head on it. It's so sad and disgusting. Ever since, I haven't consumed any meat what so ever. So now I'm learning new recipes, so if you have any easy recipes. Please let me know. If you have any kind of healthy eating advice, supplements, etc..Please give me the info. Right now I'm the only vegetarian in my family. But it's easy, cuz I live alone. I cook for myself all the time. It's not so bad eating with friends, cuz meat grosses me out. Every now and then when I smell something I used to like, I just think about the video & my appetite is ruined.

Original Post by msdyan:

 Hi Everyone!! My name is Dyan & I'm a new vegetarian.

I hope to become a Vegan some time in the future. I saw the PETA video's they showed undercover at a slaughter house and it destroyed my meat loving taste buds. Now I can't even look at meat with out getting grossed out. That totally changed my view of any kind of meat with a head on it. It's so sad and disgusting. Ever since, I haven't consumed any meat what so ever. So now I'm learning new recipes, so if you have any easy recipes. Please let me know. If you have any kind of healthy eating advice, supplements, etc..Please give me the info. Right now I'm the only vegetarian in my family. But it's easy, cuz I live alone. I cook for myself all the time. It's not so bad eating with friends, cuz meat grosses me out. Every now and then when I smell something I used to like, I just think about the video & my appetite is ruined.

Hi msdyan,

That's how I started and it's been about five years for me now, and wouldn't have it any other way. =) If you ever need any help just let me know!

Hello -

I'm K. I am in the process of transitioning to a vegan diet for every reason possible: health, animal cruelty, the planet, etc. I'm not a big meat eater, so that's the easy part. Seems like there is dairy in everything, that's been the hardest part for me. So I'm reading a lot of books and that's helping me keep my focus.  I'm joining this group for extra motivation. I've been with Calorie Count for three years. I love it, every time i get off track with my weight, I start logging again and get back in check. I've never reached my goal weight of 105, but i usually stay between 110 and 115 and I'm okay with that mostly.

I'm 43 and live in Denver with my meat-eating girlfriend!

Cheers to good health!

***ka-splash!***    That's me doing a cannonball, which is how I feel like I've jumped into being a vegetarian and into this site!  Not waiting until I have it all figured out, just taking the plunge!  A few months ago I decided it was time to go vegetarian.   Right now my biggest challenge is "coming out" (so to speak) as a vegetarian to family, friends, etc.  Part of what I find difficult is that my reasons are 'feelings' that are hard to articulate...it just feels like the right thing for me to do for many reasons (health, environmental, spiritual, etc) and this feels like the right time for me.  My husband has been totally supportive.  He knows I've been moving towards this for a long time.  Although when I told him I would eventually like to go vegan, he seemed a little defensive.  I decided to cross that bridge at some point in the future.  #2 son (19) is home from college for the summer and has been eating meatless about half the time.  #1 son (21) gave me a hard time, but he's always been sassy...so no surprise there!  My mom acted offended, which was weird to me since I turned 47 this week and thought I was well past needing parental approval.  I'm trying to figure out if there is a good way to let people know.  I wonder if other people have struggled with this or if I'm making this harder than it is!

So, I figured out that I needed to look for some good supportive communities where I could ask questions, see how it works for others, and keep growing in this new direction.  I read through some of the posts and felt really comfortable with this site.  I'm really looking for ideas on how to move towards vegan...right now I'm still both egg and dairy, but feel like that's just to help me transition.

Looking forward to getting to know the site and this group!

Shari

Hi slewison. I know it is going to be an even more difficult journey for you having an omni husband. My ex-husband was also an omni, and although that is not the reason we divorced, it certainly didn't help. It was very hard for me to stay vegetarian with him, much less go vegan. The only advice I can give is, if you cook the meals, refuse to cook meat meals (or buy meat) - cook only vegetarian ones! If he wants to eat meat, he can do it somewhere else, right? =) You don't even have to say, "This is vegetarian food we are eating." Just serve him a normal dish. Spaghetti, some tossed veggies, a salad, black bean burgers, etc. He may not even notice! (And it'd be good for his health too.)

Anyway if you have any questions ask away. This group is pretty quiet but I'm talkative, haha.

Hi Group - i was wondering if anyone has seen Food, Inc. I've heard it's quite good and maybe that's a way to help explain a vegetarian lifestyle to (as viraloracle says) omni's. I think i'll try to see it here sooner than later. Anyone have a review?

Hi, I'm Suzi and I live on the south coast in England.

I've been vegan for the last 18 months and jumped straight into it with no problems.  I've always been into animal welfare and used to work in an animal rescue centre (only left because the pay was poor, but I LOVED that job so much).  I believe everyone should know the source of their food and the processes used before it arrives on your plate.  After having watched some very detailed programmes on TV about the meat/dairy trade I decided I couldn't support it any longer, so here I am.

I haven't used this site before and stumbled across it when searching 'fat vegans' on Google!!!  I have always struggled with my weight and decided I wanted to investigate why on earth I carry so much extra weight (need to lose 50lbs), so thought I'd track just how many calories I consume.  I still don't see that my intake is high so this will be interesting to use....

Anyway, I am not happy with my weight/appearance and am desperate to do something about it.

I currently work for a gov dept, which I hate and also have a pub job in the evenings.  The pay in both is appalling so I am on the lookout for one job which pays well enough that I am not knackered all the time and actually have some free time.

I'm really into music - metal is my passion.  Love going to gigs and festivals, but mainly I love to follow Metallica around. Or at least I did when I could afford to. Oh and I also watch football, so not a very girly girl.

Anyway there's a quite a bit of info for you to digest! Hello everyone.

:)

Hello everybody!  I'm Kat, I'm seventeen and I've been vegan for about three years now - vegetarian for four.  I love animals, and the minute I discovered what animals go through to end up on our plates, I decided to stop eating them.  This diet just makes so much sense to me!

I lost about 10-20lbs as soon as I went vegetarian, and another 5-10 as soon as I went vegan.  But I'm still battling with weight loss - as I have been most of my life - and I've recently decided that being vegan isn't going to be enough; I'm going to have to monitor EVERY thing I eat.  So that's why I joined Calorie Count!  I've also discovered that it's a GREAT tool for someone like me to be able to see when I haven't eaten enough good fats or protein for the day.  (I've lost 30lbs already this year just by walking intensively - up to three hours on some days - but I've recently hit a "plateau" because I wasn't paying attention to my eating habits.  Hence my new devotion to Calorie Count.)

I joined this group because, at times, and even though I've become an experienced vegan, I get stumped and don't know what to do next, or I just don't know how to get enough protein in my day without eating more carbs.  I'm sure that it'll help to have the support of other people who know what they're doing!

hi everyone! oh veganism... i started back in april '09 (i think) but have been what i called a "somewhat" vegetarian since i was 15 (just had my 29th... so old :).  by "somewhat" i didn't eat anything but fish and sometimes chicken.  i think it's a personal choice but mine comes from the fact that i'm just not a carnivore.  i don't have claws or fangs and know that I couldn't kill something if i tried.  so it's vegetation, cereal, amy's, & beans for me... for now.  i do struggle with a seafood craving every now and then.  and it's not your typical craving... sushi mostly but other than that it seems to be kind of fun.  it's almost a game to me.  i joined calorie count two or three days ago now and came across this group today.  it's great to know there are others out there who're going through the same challenges and experiences that i am.  i know that support and accountability are my weaknesses so that's partly why i'm here.  i love the encouragement and we all know how calorie count can hold us personally accountable.  oh, and my pet.. she's the love of my life... a chihuahua named Mirabella. 

smiles,

liluma

Hi guise:)

I have been vegan(ish) for all of about 3 months. It began when I started noticing chest pain when I ran.

Trip to the doc showed an obscenely high cholesterol, and a subsequent stress test showed an "abnormality". This led to a heart catheterization, which showed some severe blockage. Not even really a good candidate for a bypass, although they said they could.

Well, when all this started, I started researching, read books by Dr. Esselstyn, "The China Study" by Cambell, and John Robbins. I looked at the site by Dr. McDougall http://www.drmcdougall.com/ and I am convinced that heart disease can be reversed, to some degree. And our diet is what causes it.

Basically, the deal is no meat, cheese or dairy, and no cooking oil.

I do not really miss it; feeling the finger on your "off switch" kinda puts it in perspective. My wife is reasonably supportive, she worries about me not getting enough protein. Doesn't quite believe me when I say it's not a problem.

I am 49, by the way. Pretty young for this. And this was when I was "playing by the rules". We essentially followed a Mediterranean style of eating.

So, I am here to get, share recipes, and offer support.

Hi  I am new to Calorie count, I have been vegetarian for 16 years and am trying to go completely vegan, I am trying to eat healthier, I have an excessive amount of weight to lose. I work For Wal*Mart and am the produce manager at out store.I am looking forward to being in this group. Take care, Michelle

I became a vegetarian at 12 and a vegan on my 15th birthday. Now at 16 I'm trying to go raw vegan. My mother is a vegan now, but she tends to cheat -_-. Meat and wheat, blah. I've been using calorie count a lot, but I keep forgetting I'm on here so I never keep count. My weight goes up and down, and now I'm annoyed, I just want to be skinny....again, without eating disorders.

Hi lyes,

The best way to do that is to count calories and exercise. Keep your caloric intake realistic and vary it - for example, you should eat at *least* 1500 calories at your age, I believe. CC should give you a good estimate. You can vary it up and down, but not below 1300 I would say for you.

If you do that you will be losing weight in no time. Raw vegan is tough and you will have to eat a lot throughout the day to get your nutrition, but you CAN do it!

New to group!

Hello, I've been a lactose-intolerant vegetarian (but, not quite Vegan) for about two years. I chose this lifestyle because my digestive system does not tolerate meat or dairy very well at all. i come from a family of weak stomachs :). Anyway, I'm not overweight, but I come from a family of very obese people (mother had gastric-bypass) and I don't want to go down that same path. I do have a great amount of fat to lose around my stomach are (I'm an apple shape), and i know that weight around the middle is bad for the heart (history of heart problems in the family, as well). I have started doing yoga and bellydancing 6 days a week.  I would love to lose about 10 pounds and tone up. I'm 5'3 and 126lbs (today). My problems with food are: drinking too much alcohol and consuming way too many calories from fat. Any tips to reduce fat for vegetarians? It's so hard when olive oil goes into almost everything!!

Original Post by eraserheadgirl:

New to group!

 Any tips to reduce fat for vegetarians? It's so hard when olive oil goes into almost everything!!

 Simply leave the oil out. You don't need oil to sweat down onions and whatnot. I eat no meat, dairy or cooking oil. I also eat nothing with oil in it. Have to read labels, sometimes it can be a challenge, but it is certainly doable.

Whole foods, plant based. I don't care so much for faux meats either. So soy is limited. I do eat tofu on occasion. Plants have all the fats you need. Feel free to PM if you have any specific questions

Hi I'm Kelly!  I'm new to the group as well.  I'm 18, I live in Milwaukee and am a vegeterian, but I don't eat much dairy or eggs at all.  Being in college it's too difficult to be a vegan in my opinion, because I don't have access to a kitchen, I just have a mini fridge and a microwave...  But yeah I've been a veg for about 3 years now, and I'm just looking to lose around 15 lbs.  Suggestions? :)

Being in college makes it very tough. One suggestion would be to get your hands on a rice cooker.

There are people trying to get the word out, tho.

http://www.technicianonline.com/features/stud ents-speak-out-for-vegan-ideals-1.2057382

Hey all,

My name is Jenna I have been meat free for 9 years! I have been vegan for the last 4 years.

I have been using calorie count as a source for a few years and just recently got an actual account.

I am joining this group to meet some more vegans and get updates.

I love to travel and meet new friends as I pass through.

I am currently taking fine arts. I have struggled with an eating disorder for most of my life and I really think there is nothing more beautiful then the human body. I want a simple life as a tatoo artist so I can travel and make people feel proud of their body by using self expression and art.