5 Reasons Why I Became Vegetarian: A Beginner’s Guide

I turned vegetarian in 2011 during a long vacation to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil after I contracted severe food poisoning.

Ever since then, I've done my best to avoid eating red meat and seafood. Being a vegetarian creates plenty of problems and disagreements when it comes time to order food with another person.

Reasons to Go Vegetarian

Here are the reasons why I became a vegetarian:

1. Avoid Food Poisoning Easier

Getting sick in Brazil was not fun! I remember the story like it was just yesterday when I was throwing up all over my hostel room in Copacabana, Rio de Janeiro. I ordered a seafood salad from a local restaurant near my hostel.

I ate the seafood salad then began to feel extremely sick about 15 minutes afterwards. I began vomitting in my hostel room and couldn't even drink water without heaving it up!

My digestive system shut down. I thought I was going to need hospital assistance because I felt so tired, weak, an dehydrated!

That was the day I decided to just gave up meat and seafood altogether. It wasn't worth the pain of feeling sick again.

Since 2011, I haven't experienced food poisoning to that degree. Don't get me wrong: I get an upset stomach from time to time but nowhere as severe as that day in Rio de Janeiro.

2. Save Money on Grocery Bills and Eating Out

Meat and seafood is expensive! When eating out at restaurants, I notice vegetarian dishes are usually 20 to 30% cheaper than dishes with meat or seafood.

The same goes for grocery shopping. Skipping out on meat and seafood saves a lot of money over the long run.

I replace meat and seafood with healthy plant based protein sources such as:

• Black beans
• Red beans
• Peanuts
• Black rice

These plant based protein foods are much cheaper yet provide adequate protein to sustain muscle repair and other bodily functions.

I sometimes supplement my diet with vegan based Collagen to give myself the extra boost. Collagen is the most abundant protein in the human body and makes your joints feel great!

3. Avoid the smell of low quality meats

I'll admit that I love the smell of a high quality ribeye steak. Unfortunately, I live overseas as a digital nomad and become exposed to low quality meats in most of the countries I live in.

Low quality crap meat smells just awful. You really do get what you pay for.

4. Weight Loss Became Easier

I went back to my old high school weight of 155 lbs (70 kg) when I first went vegetarian. It helped a lot of my excess fat go away.

5. Feeling Less Tired After Meals

Growing as a kid in the South, my mom made u a name of the feelng you get after eating a juicy piece of meat. She called it “N*ggeritis” and boy was she rght!

I always got the ‘Itis after eating a hamburger or piece of Salmon. When I turned vegetarian, I never experienced the feeling like that again. I didn't feel so sleepy after my meals.

Tips on Becoming a Vegetarian

It's not easy to quit eating meat or seafood if you grew up on a carnivore diet. Your friends and family are a massive influence on you. I got used to being the “lone vegetarian” because I believe the benefits of becomng vegetarian outweigh the negatives”.

Supplements for Vegetarians

I believe in supplementation for vegetarians to boost your overall health and help fill in the gaps of a vegetarian diet.

• Daily Multi-vitamin: Centrum is a good, affordable multi-vitamin for most vegetarians.
• Zinc: Zinc is found in meat and seafood so vegetarians should consider zinc supplementation to avoid becoming deficient.
• Collagen:

I purchase supplements on Amazon or any local health food store when I'm traveling abroad.