A question to the Vegetarians

I've been a vegetarian for two months now.  The first month was really really hard.  I was going thru some serious withdrawals.  Should have taken an easier approach.  Now, I'm much better, full of energy and feeling good.  Also, I notice I can't stand the taste of meat of any kind and even milk...  Is this normal?  

Oh yeah definitely.  I'm a little bit of a masochist.  :)  I like challenges I guess.  There are lots of reasons why I became a vegetarian.  One reason is because I can.  Vegetarians can live a healthier life in the same life span as a meat eater.  Even if you are a meat eater or a vegetarian you will be deficit in something.  From the people I know and met in my life, vegetarians are hands down more healthier and more knowledgeable about nutrition.  You kind of have to be I think.  Second reason is that humanity doesn't stop at humans but to all living beings on this planet.  The ways animals are treated and killed in large slaughterhouses are heart wrenching.  This is not the slaughterhouse fault alone. The demanding for meat is really unbelievable.  In order to meet demand, some of their methods are very cruel.  Broken bones in chicken you eat are not from the cooking process but from cruelty they experienced in their cages.  Third is the health risk in the future.  Meat from the land and sea will be more tainted and/or genetically altered to meet the demands and counter act the infertility epidemic that is spreading thru live stocks.  Eating fish now and in the future will be like eating a piece of fish and sipping toxins and mercury.  Fourth is from my hippie side, I want to get back in touch with nature.  When you growing your own food and working with dirt really adds a different perceptive in life.  Those were probably my main reasons for the change.  :)  

I think it is more psychotical than anything.  The more I learn about meat handling, slaughtering and processing, the more disgusted I got about it.  

I used to drink 4-6 glasses of milk everyday when I was in high school.  Now if I drink one glass, I get an upset stomach.  Go figure!  

 I heard yeah...giving up sushi was extra hard for me....  Especially when you grew up eating it couple of times a week.  I would definitely consult your doctor before going vegan first.  Here is a great website for you and others that I've been using to complete my daily amounts of amino acids, vitamins, minerals and other helpful compounds.

http://www.nutritiondata.com/

You can look up detailed nutrition facts on about any raw, cooked, or processed foods.  There's a great search function to find the type of nutrient found most in fruits, vegetables, or beans.  Best of all, you can create a log-in to save foods, save recipes, track foods and add your own custom foods.  Good luck!

Definitely, not sure yet if we can go 100% raw.  But, our goal is to be at least 80% raw by end of this year.  We both love cheese with a passion, so not sure if we will or can let that go.  I was hoping to find Kaia at Whole Foods but no luck.  I'll definitely order some soon.

On a little tangent, we went to Trader Joe's last night and was amazed at their vegan selections.  :)  Everything looked and tasted great!  Especially the Vegan trail cookies....Can't believe there was no eggs or milk in it.  Delicious!  I had a Trader Joe's soy chorizo burrito this morning.  It blew away my expectations.  If there's a Trader Joe's in your neighborhood you should pay them a visit.