Al Churchill

I have never really taken too much notice of the things I eat.  I have been blessed with a metabolism that is conducive to a lean physique.  I have never had what one could term as weight issues, or any illnesses related to diet.

On Day 19 of this project (November 3rd) I gave up Beef for a year.  I was unsure as to whether this would be possible, more so if I could get through a trip to England without enjoying a Sunday Roast?!  Well I did, and even better than that, I seemed to cut down on meat in general.

I don’t class myself as a vegetarian yet, but I am certainly on the way.  I didn’t give up Beef for health reasons, but I certainly do feel better for less meat in my diet.  Over the last few weeks whenever I was presented with a choice of meat or vegetarian, I always opted for the meatless and although I haven’t made a definitive choice to label myself as a vegetarian, or to give myself a specific date to ‘make the change’, it just seems that my subconscious is making the choices for me.  It seems as though my body has less digesting to do and therefore more energy for all the other requirements of the system.

Other Benefits

Aside from the health benefits, I have found that removing the meat from the diet forces you to discover more interesting recipe choices.  I have tried many dishes that I never even knew existed, I have become a better chef and have a better knowledge of food. I have been finding 101cookbooks an excellent source of recipes.

The first snippet of information I received that made me reconsider my meat eating, came maybe a year ago.  It was in regards to the sustainability of eating animals. It is this reason that has built the foundations of my move to meatless.  This particular post was inspired by a blog, ‘Freakonomics’, in an article entitled, “Agnostic Carnivores and Global Warming: Why Enviros Go After Coal and Not Cows“.  An article I suggest you read, as it makes my point a little clearer.
This has since been compounded by the information made available to me in two movie documentaries, Food inc. and Forks over Knives.  The health benefits are huge, not just for you, but for the entire planet.

I may not have given up meat entirely, but I have reduced it to a trickle and any move in this direction is in my opinion a positive change.