Vegetarians: do your carnivore instincts ever overpower you?

Question

... to the point when you feel you must act out impulsively and simply eat some meat to feel better? When you haven't eaten meat in a while, do you ever get pale and sluggish and the only way to cure that is to have some meat to get you going?

I'm asking this because I tried vegetarianism for a week and began to feel so physically exhausted towards the end, that my mother prepared a dinner with meat and I had some. Almost instantly after that, my colour returned to my face and I was full of energy again. I'm not saying that I support eating meat (I don't; I'd much rather be vegetarian). But it was weird because during my week of going veg I made careful decisions about my meals and made sure I was getting all the right nutrients. I planned everything right down to supplements and b12 sources. Don't know why I failed. But I was starting to feel weak and meat just made me feel so much better.

I'm not trying to offend anyone here, just curious as to whether this has happened to you too?

Answer 1

Giving up anything is hard, but apparently if you make it past the first 30 days, that is the hardest part over. If you are having cravings it means that you need a specific nutrient, if you are craving meat it may be fat or protein, maybe iron? You should try replacing it with something else and see if that helps. If you really want to, just keep at it past the first month then it will all be good.

Think about WHAT you are actually eating, organ, vein, blood, pus, animal. that may help as well - i don't mean to put you off though.

Iron supplements may be necessary as your body absorbs iron differently if you used to eat meat. Although you may get loads of iron from other food, you don't have the usual source of meat so iron supplements will teach your body to take it from other sources whilst cutting those cravings and staying healthy.

Eating meat is not an instinct, just an acquired habit, our bodies were not designed to eat meat, we don't have the same digestive systems as other animals that are meant to eat meat, we have a herbivore's digestive system - just a bit extra if you're interested.

Answer 2

No because I am not , nor are humans supposed to be, a carnivore.

When you become a vegetarian you also become healthy. You can;t just  stop eating meat and just eat side dishes and expect to still be healthy. It takes some effort to get the right food. I never visioned meat as something  we needed so I never thought "I am so tired, meat will pick me up!"

If you feel like meat is so important in your diet then why did you decide to be vegetarian? troll?

Answer 3

Ever tried some of those meat replacements?  The corn dogs are better than the real thing!  Maybe that would help with your meat cravings?  

Answer 4

Let me make this clear. WE HAVE NO CARNIVORE INSTINCTS! CArnivore instaincts is wanting to kill and animal and tear into raw flesh. I don't know what looks better to you. A rotting dear carcass or a bowl of fruit.  You obviously aren't getting enough balance in your diet.

Are you eating fruits,vegetables,whole grains,nuts,beans,and veggie meats? And do you take spirulina which is a algea rich in b12?

Answer 5

You know, a week's not very long and I'd be very skeptical of any diet, no matter how poor, whether it contained animal products or not, being the cause of your exhaustion.

You don't mention what else was going on in your life at the time that could have drained you such as stress from school, starting a new job, fights with friends or family, etc. It's also possible you picked up a low-level virus at the same time. Not to mention that making any changes in our lives is stressful and draining even if the changes are beneficial and healthy. It did sound as if you might have been over-thinking the semantics of the diet rather than how delicious the food can be letting the nutrition take care of itself.

Our minds play tricks on us too. If we believe we'll be depriving ourselves or will be tired and sluggish from a dietary change, we will fulfill that belief by living up (or down) to it. That's why they do double-blind studies with placebos (birthing the phenomena "Placebo Effect")

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Placebo#Pla...

Also, if you believed meat would make you feel better... but it's also possible that just eating was what you needed at that moment. I know getting a meal made for me is very nourishing.

Because the diet was constantly on your mind that's likely what you focused on as the probable cause even though it could have been dozens of other things. Maybe you would have felt even worse if you hadn't been eating vegetarian at that time.

But here's one thing to keep in mind as a veggie; if you are hungry, then eat. As long as you're not doing the junk-food veg*n diet then you can eat more because meat & dairy are very dense calorie-wise and take a long time to digest.

You should be able to get all nutrients you need from a vegetarian diet (though all diets should supplement with b12 and vitamin D regardless of meat consumption or not).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vitamin_D#D...

Usually veg*ns tend to feel better and have lower incidences of many ailments of affluence which include lower cholesterol, lower blood pressure, less heart disease, less strokes, less diabetes, less cancer, less obesity, and many others including stupid, little niggling ones such as healthier teeth and gums which taken together makes those 6 to 10 extra years we get that much more enjoyable.

Here's an online Vegetarian Starter Kit (you can also order hard copies) that explains nutrition and gives tips and ideas for making the transition easier.

http://www.pcrm.org/health/veginfo/vsk/

My transition wasn't a conscious choice other than I wanted to add more fruits, vegetables and whole grains and those displaced meat until I wasn't buying it anymore and then realized I hadn't had any at a restaurant for months either. So, if that's a way you are considering to approach then you can actually start today. :)

Answer 6

If you were feeling ill after only a week, you obviously were eating very poorly or hardly eating at all.  I never get pale or sluggish.  I find this hard to believe because there is nothing in meat that would "cure" you instantly as you claim if you were eating a balanced vegetarian diet.

Answer 7

I stopped eating red meat June two years ago, and I told myself I'd stop eating everything else on Thanksgiving. Once last time to eat some turkey corpse and then I was a vegetarian. So I knew this, got myself prepared, and the day came. I gulped down a hunk of that flesh, and the next morning I was vegetarian. It was odd,I got cravins for it but even that first day it disgusted me. It was really easy to be a vegetarian for me. I have never looked back or eaten meat since then.

Answer 8

I can honestly say I have not experienced that in three-going-on-four years of vegetarianism. (No cheating, either.) Although to be picky, none of us has carnivore instincts, only perhaps carnivorous ones. We're all onmivores.  :P

To me, it really does sound like you were going through a dietary deficiency, which would definitely explain why you were feeling so tired and meat suddenly perked you up. The key to a healthy vegetarian diet is not simply to cut meat out, but to actually replace its role in the diet with equivalent vegetable sources. Of course, you say you planned everything out, but without knowing what you were eating, I can really only speculate.

Another thought is that maybe you were so used to eating meat, you started feeling poorly because your body was just adjusting to something new? Maybe if you tried it longer, you'd find it was only a temporary craving or fatigue.

The third thing that comes to mind is that maybe you should make sure you're not anemic or suffering from some sort of iron deficiency.

Answer 9

well me and my mom went veg at the same time but she had that problem now she's fine she's a vegan and so am I she cut out beef and pork then months later she cut out chicken then months later she cut out fish and evey thing else so you're right take it slow =^..^= good luck http://www.peta.com/  

Answer 10

No, I don't ever crave dead animal flesh.  The sight of meat makes me want to barf.

Answer 11

If not eating meat makes you feel slugglish, you should not become a vegetarian. Think about your own health first, before thinking about animal welfare, which of course is also important. You might have felt weak for lack of iron...did you make sure to eat vegetables rich in iron? You could also go veg for a couple of days and get a test to see what vitamin or supplements you lack when not eating meat. You can try a few things and maybe also consult a doctor to get some advice on going veg, but go slow and if, after taking all precautions, you still feel bad when not eating meat, then you can eat organic meat. I am not sure you have that available where you live, but you can find out.  

Answer 12

carnivore instincts -- don't have any, sorry.

Also, you cannot just totally change your diet and expect miracles.  You have been teaching your body something for a very long time, and if you suddenly quit, you likely won't feel well.

Just imagine quitting cigarettes.  Talk to anyone who has?  You will start coughing up black gunk, feeling like c**p, sick, have horrible cravings etc...   I know people that have had a tough time giving up their very high sugar diets and having sever reactions.

It took my digestive system a long time to finally switch over to a better diet, for one thing.  I'd been eating crappy foods all my life and when I started eating veggies, rice, beans, legumes, garlic, fruits, ... my body just did not really know what to do about it... it was waiting for the normally very highly cooked acidic food to come in, but it didn't.  My food didn't digest well for quite some time and also I just could not fill up on rice etc. because of this.  But I know people who eat lots of rice without a problem, so I kept at it.  Eventually my digestive system cleaned itself out and got used to the different foods, and also I learnt to cook better, to eat more organic foods, learnt about proper food combinations for good digestion, and so many other things over time.

Everyone is different, so you can never predict what a total change in diet will do to you.

Answer 13

um do u no wat carnivorous instincts are? lol we dont see a cow walking around and our mouths water with hunger wtf thats for lions and stuff.....and technically we are actually herbivore bt were raised to eat meat cuz well....thers a lack of personalities in the world!

its probably just in ure head or maybe u ate too much meat(unhealthy) in the past so wen u eat a proper diet u cant handle it well. my parnts wer raised in the poorest of the poor of ecuador and raised eating very unnutritionaly so wen they eat some good food they get so wiped out.  mayb u shud be vegan cuz of the eggs alot of ppl dont tolerate milk products and eggs well.

dont think about eating meat hav some willpower or watch some PETA videos. sorry about being so harsh but u no.......