By Ernest Wolf, staff writer
When given the option of either doing a 7 day challenge or an editorial, I immediately knew which I would choose. Over the past couple of years, I’ve learned a lot about the problems the meat industry causes and the benefits a meatless diet can have on the human body from documentaries and the internet. I’ve wanted to try going vegetarian for a while but never found the motivation or time to do so. This was a perfect opportunity so of course I immediately chose the 7 day challenge with my meatless idea already in mind.
Since I am a huge fan of meat, and always have been, this challenge was much more difficult than I expected it to be. I didn’t really realize how much meat I really ate until I tried this challenge, since I eat meat pretty much everyday.
I found myself eating a lot less while doing this challenge because meat was such a huge part of my diet and I couldn’t really find anything to replace it. I didn’t really eat many meals and ended up just snacking on foods like carrots, apples and almonds throughout the day.
When it came to eating dinner with my family though, that was actually the easiest part. My mom always makes a salad and/or a vegetable dish to go with a meat course so it was easy for me to eat enough without eating any meat. My mom was a vegetarian for a few years herself so she knows the struggle!
I didn’t really expect any positive results from this challenge but was pleasantly surprised. For the first couple of days I didn’t really feel any different but when I went for a run I felt much lighter and energetic and didn’t get any cramps, which is something that happens to me sometimes when I do cardio. I also felt less tired throughout the day and slept a little bit better.
That being said, there were some trade offs. Eating food without any meat was just straight up less fun. I usually find meat to be the highlight of whatever meal I’m eating so when it’s missing the meal feels a little unsatisfying. Being vegetarian is also very inconvenient, you have to plan around every meal since meat is everywhere.
Despite there being so many benefits to being vegetarian, I don’t think I will continue doing this. It’s just too inconvenient and meat tastes too good. However, I will now try to eat less meat, specifically red meat since it is the heaviest/fattiest. I’m glad I participated in this challenge as it opened my eyes to something I’ve been curious about for a while.
