About six months ago I cut out red meat. I now know I am ready to cut out all meat. (I would like to keep dairy in my diet though.) Most people I read about become vegatarian in their teens. Well I am 31. I am wondering if anyone has any tips. Teaching an old dog new tricks! Especially if the rest of your family is still eating meat!
Thanks!
Abby

i am there too. i'm 24, but ever since i grabbed a free brochere on the street about being veggie, i seriously can't go back. i guess for me i kind of grossed my self out into becoming veggie. i know that's probably not the best way, but it's working so far. my bf is a serious meat eater, as is the rest of my family. i live with my bf and just cooking meat grosses me out, but i still do it for him. i do eat fish, so we definitely are eating a lot more fish now!

i can't really give you advice, but i think what's helped me the most is just continuing to learn about being veggie.

My dad became a vegetarian at 65 due to being diagnosed with heart disease.He lost 45lbs while following the Dean Ornish plan and taking daily walks. He is 73 now My mum hates vegetables and will only eat about 5 different things

My suggestion is to start out slowly by replacing one food item at a time. Maybe buy one vegetarian product a week to try it out to see if you like it or not. Companies like Morningstar Farms and Yves Veggie Cuisine offer things like veggie ground round, veggie burges, veggie deli slices, veggie cheese and veggie hot dogs that you could start with. The ground round is really good in vegetarian chili or spaghetti sauce.

Also try looking for some simple vegetarian meals for some ideas.

Here is a link to some family friendly recipes:
http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/showthread.php?t=44712

and a link for some helpful tips by 3fc member TobeyToe
http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/showthread.php?t=67589

Thank you for the tips! Replacing one food at a time sounds like a really good idea.

also, i just got back from trader joes and made two discoveries.
meatless meatballs and meatless corndogs taste just like the real thing. they were sooo good.

i heard boca taste the most like meat, morningstar beats boca, amy's is good, and dr. p......... brand found at trader joe's is good too. hth.

I've kind of become vegetarian at 27. I say kind of because I'm not 100% sure that I will stick to it permanently, but I haven't eaten meat in over 2 months, including a couple of occasions where I thought I would but got there and found myself not even fancying it, so I think I'm well on the road to being fully vegetarian!

I did it very much by replacing one thing at a time, and I did that mainly as part of my weight loss because I was trying to introduce new vegetables and found that they were pushing meat out. In February I realised that I was almost vegetarian by default so decided to experiment and see whether I could do it properly. So far so good!

You see, I became a vegetarian around 16 for about a solid straight two years while eating foods like BOca and whatnot, but I didn't see the point for me. If I ate foods like even mimic the taste of meat I would feel like I was still a meat eater even if it was fake meat. After the two solid years I decided NOT to keep up with the vegetarianism. I'm currently eating regular food" but I get around 1 serving of real meat once every two weeks or almost never. I just don't think cutting myself from real meat would ever work- I was never "grossed out" by meat, nor could I ever look at that dumb Peta things and convince myself all humanitarians cared for being a vegetarian , yadayada

And since I eat very little meat its not like I'm unhealthy. I felt going back to occasional meat eater was just fine, even after 2 years of vegetarianism in my teens. (Doing it during your teen years doesn't necessarily make it easier!) I'm starting to wonder how I did it at 16 (I'm 20 now) !!!

i value your opinions, but i don't eat meatless items to mimic the taste of meat. while i understand you say you would feel like a meat eater by eating those products, i don't. i love that they offer the protein, but without the worry of what bacteria was coming from animals in caged, cruel conditions. i don't eat that stuff trying to get the meat taste because i definitely don't try to trick myself, i know what i'm eating. i know i'm eating soy products, and i feel like my body is already thanking me for it.

i will admit i'm newly vegetarian, but i did it for the animals, for the environment, and most importantly for myself. i just feel better. that being said, i live with a meat loving guy and i do the cooking, so what meat products we already have in the fridge, i cook for him. i'm not about to preach to him or my family about why they should become a vegetarian. it's a personal decision that i decided to make. yes, that brochere did give me the kick, but it hasn't been a huge transition for me at all. i have considered still eating fish, but i haven't done it yet. we'll see....

I was 21. (Now 46). I had left home for good so it seemed a good time to start. I never really liked fish or meat and have never looked back. Can't really advise on the eating with family thing as I live alone. Most lone veggies in a family situation manange to still cook meat for their family. Unless they are totally committed carnivores you could up the amount of veggie things you cook or do a family meat lasagne say and a separate veggie one for you so it doesn't look too different.

I was 22 but I did it when I was 18 for 2 years.

Congrats PicklesPotter and welcome to the veggie lifestyle! I turned veggie when I was 14, so that's 12 years ago. Sounds like you've gotten some good advice here, I don’t know how difficult it will be for you with a family that still eats meat but I hope you find an arrangement that work for everyone. I do all the cooking at my house and my omni boyfriend eats whatever I make and seems pretty happy with it. I don’t really want meat in my kitchen, it just really grosses me out and he’s been sensitive to that. Plus he gets to eat meat when he eats out, and I’m a damn good cook if I do say so myself so he really has no reason to complain.

Good luck, let us know how it’s going!

well If it makes you feel better I'm 34 and been veggy for 4 mounths now and I won't go back just the thought of meat makes me feel icky. I do eat eggs and dairy though not a lot but I eat them.

I've been a vegetarian since I was about 17, so I don't qualify for the first portion of your post.

However, I do have a 9 year old son that eats meat. I've never tried to make him a vegetarian because I feel that is a personal choice. He will make that choice when he is old enough if that's what he wants to do. He's been eating meat all his life. He likes vegetarian dishes and he also likes "fake" meat made by Boca or Morningstar Farms. He loves the corn dogs, the hot dogs, chick patties, and the "ground beef" from Morningstar Farms. He also likes the new "chicken strips" and "beef strips" made by them. I make fajitas out of them. He doesn't really go for the burgers though.

I rarely serve him meat at home, but we do dine out once or twice a week. He usually orders chicken strips or things like fish or shrimp. He is not a big fan of beef, but that just comes naturally to him. He also eats meat at his grandmother's house.

I would suggest serving your meat eaters things like chicken breasts with the vegetarian dishes you eat. Eating veggie is healthier. Also, try the "fake" meats. They're so versatile. The "ground beef" can be made into tacos with a packet of taco mix. It can also be made into meatloaf. Just cook it on the stovetop and let it cool off a little. Mix with an egg or two and italian bread crumbs. Press into a loaf pan (the kind used for bread) and top with a mixture of ketchup and brown sugar. It's yummy. You can also add some sauteed onion to change it up a bit.

The new "chicken strips" by Morningstar Farms are great in the Taco Bell Gordita kit you get from the store. Just cook them in a pan and then add the packet and water per the directions on the box. You don't have to put the creamy sauce on your gordita. Just add salsa, lettuce, light sour cream and tomato. It's a quick dinner.

Here's another recipe your family might like. You take the fake ground beef and cook it. Mix in one regular sized can of mushroom soup without the water (can be lower fat/lower sodium version) and one can of sliced mushrooms. Make about 6 servings of instant mashed potatoes. When those are done, stir in a small container of light sour cream. Put the meat mixture along the bottom of a baking dish. Spread the potatoes on top of the "meat". Sprinkle with shredded cheddar cheese (if you are on a diet go lightly with the cheese). Pop in the oven at 350 and bake for about 15 minutes. All the ingredients are already cooked so you are really just heating it through and melting the cheese. I call it "Shepherd's Pie" even though it is not the traditional way of preparing it. That's my son's favorite recipe. I've developed lots of crafty recipes over the years.

A couple of things I do since my DH turns his nose up a vegetarian things is to make pasta with vegetables and toss in some chicken in his portion. We also make pizza using pita bread and I cut up vegetables into small bowls and one separate one of cured Italian sausage. Everyone gets to pick their own toppings and I skip the sausage and make mine a veggie pizza.

When having a bbq party we serve mostly burgers and dogs as all our friends are meat eaters but I will have a veggie burger and salad and I aserve platter of fresh fruit with dip as a healthy dessert. I usually bring a veggie burger and salad or veggie platter with dip to other people's places when they hold a bbq so I know I will definitely have a choice as to what I eat. A guy my DH works with is a vegetarian so we keep each other company at the staff bbq's

I'm not a full vegetarian but I am working to cut back on meat consumption and am hoping to cut it out entirely in the future.

I didn't go veggie until two years ago at the age of 31. My whole family (husband, two young sons) went veg at the same time.

When we deal with meat-eating family and friends we do our best to make things easy on people. I always find out in advance what will be served and most times I bring our own "main" dish and then something nummy and veggie to share with everyone. My husband actually won 2nd prize at his office's chili cookoff. Guess no one guessed it was my veggie chili!