Plant based / vegan diet

Hey congrats my dude. Glad to see other conscientious people around here.

 

Thanks bro. Going vegan and practicing nofap are two of the best life choices I made. Being plant based on nofap is amazing, it's like the nofap superpowers are boosted.

When I researched about the meat and dairy industry it blew my mind, it's evil. People want to hide their heads in the sand, they don't want to know what's going on. For many ignorance is bliss.
The information is clearly out there, but so many refuse to look.

It was easy for me going vegan. I was someone who used to eat a lot of dairy and quiet abit of meat before I became aware of what I was actually doing. I just stopped and never looked back. After giving up porn and masturbation, for me giving up meat and dairy was simple.

It's really good to know your a fellow vegan mate.

 

Thanks, and you're right - the decision should be very easy if you have an honest and well-designed moral system. My favorite food growing up was probably steak. But all it took was a brief moment of exposure to the idea that killing unnecessarily is wrong, and I instantly forsook all of my old views on the subject. A lot of people don't have a good moral system, however, and just aren't able to extend compassion beyond things that look similar to them. Same reason things like racism exist. These are the "I don't care, fuck animals" people, and you just have to ignore them because they don't want to have an honest conversation. On the other hand, some people actually do have good morals, but just don't like radical changes. Those are the easiest people to sway.

It's funny, no one ever told me that eating meat was wrong. Not a single person I ever met, until maybe age 16 when I heard the idea in a song. It's such a rare thing to confront ideas that are so firmly established that we don't even consider whether they are good or not. I know people will get mad if I compare veganism to abolition, or suffrage, gay marriage, etc. But I am in the hopeful camp of people who believe that given enough time, the banner of veganism will eventually see the light of mainstream consideration, and share the same fate as the things I mentioned above. At least in some societies.

Change comes in three steps: ridicule, violent opposition, and acceptance. Veganism right now is being ridiculed more than any other controversial agenda I've seen. That's because people don't have an answer to it. It catches people off guard. This is a very good thing, because eventually they will have to come to terms with, and hopefully re-assess their beliefs.

 

Ok the best foods that are cheap and vegan are:
chickpeas, beans (black beans are the bomb), rice, pasta, lentils etc. onions are slept on.
Red Lentil Curry with chickpeas and potatoes is really good

tofu/tempeh can be good but require some effort (as the other ones can basically be eaten in any state, these cannot)

Make sure you are supplementing B12. Fortified milk/food wont cut it. Oat milk IMO is the best but soy milk is good too. They are cheap and sold in bulk not needing to be refrigerated at costco.

Also in the long term I highly recommend buying ground flaxseed in bulk if you can for the OMEgas. Daily if you can with breakfast. If you can't try to find some algae based supplements.

Hemp seed is pretty good if u can get it. Don't buy chia seeds/flax seeds unless they are milled otherwise you will not digest them.


Important: If something does not become manageable or you need something small that isnt vegan try to just include that thing rather than not trying to be vegan at all.

 

I think this is beginning to happen in the uk, a lot of the mainstream pubs and restaurants have a decent vegan menu and the supermarkets are selling more vegan products. We still have a long way to go though.
Those fear chemicals and adrenalin hormones that the animals release while in the mega farms or slaughter houses is going into us when we eat the meat. Saying that the dairy industry is probably worse isn't it.
Here in the uk at some farms the pigs are so cramped up with awful living conditions they go stir crazy, it's like their brains break. They begin eating each other, not because they are hungry just because they are mad, then we eat the pig?! That can't be good...
Not to meantion the levels of animal feces that gets into the meat as well.
The way they put all the male baby chicks on a conveyor belt and send them of to a huge mincing blade where they get minced alive, like disposable rubbish...
I'm vegan for life @FellatiousD

 

Before going plant based I could run up to 5 miles, I would feel wheasy, sick, I would be heaving and I would ache for a day or two. I was practicing nofap, I was getting good sleep, hardly any junk food. Now I am almost a year into a strict plant based diet I am running 20 miles non stop and I recover very very quickly, I don't get that breathless or sick feeling anymore, I am running a full marathon in May. The only thing that changed in my life was my diet. Meat and dairy puts stress on the body, making recovery from exercise longer.
I had to comment on your comment because I know that I am living proof that it works.

 

Yeah it's unacceptable. And you're right - it is slowly entering the mainstream spectacle. Places like burger king are now selling impossible burgers, and my local Costco just started stocking Beyond burgers.

Wow congratulations. A lot of people unfortunately believe that veganism "just can't be healthy" and they fail to do any sort of research. It's like separation anxiety, they are so disturbed by the idea of removing meat and dairy from their diet and confronting their ethical framework, that they will look for excuses not to do so.

 

Thanks bro.
We have a chain of pubs here in the uk called weatherspoons, they are very popular, they have just put "beyond bugers" on the menu lol. Are you from Virginia usa?
Yes so many people think it's unhealthy I agree. All it is is "ewhh what about the prrootiennn?" Your right, they cannot bear to face the truth. "ohhh but I can't give up cheese" lol.
I'm surprised more people who practice nofap aren't vegan, it increases the benefits, more attraction, energy, confidence.. Plus it makes nofap easier in a way... But at the same time it increases labidio, but it's easier to control

 

I’m basically starting that the last few days. All I’ve felt so far is hungry . Not trying to go vegan really though. Trying to completely stop as much cholesterol as possible for a bit. And then maybe something once and awhile (like holidays). So we will see how it makes me feel! Btw I’m not going “vegan” so I won’t eat anything that’s fake meat or whatever. Just pure vegetables, fruits, nuts, and stuff like beans and oats and rice. Nothing cooked in oil, either steamed or raw. Also I’ve always taken B12 and other vitamins so not worried about any of that stuff. Only time will tell!

 

Fuck man, didn't know I'm a racist. I don't know what's the fuss over killing animals. We are the best of the best, humans, the greatest survival machine. Those pigs and cows would surely kill us if it benefited them. Then them vegans do be for abortion. Surely a cow is a lot more important than a human being. Idgaf if you're vegan, good for you, but don't bash us meat eaters. Have a nice day, I will go eat that tasty meat and bench 300kg and squat a fucking neighborhood.

 

I didn't call anyone a racist, but the meat industry is literal slavery, you can't deny that. Also it's hard to know what you mean by "we are the best" - in what way? And how does that justify killing other sentient animals? I'm not bashing meat eaters, I'm saying why veganism is more ethical, environmental, and healthy. You can choose to take personal offense to that if you want, I can't control your clearly fragile emotions. I think your last sentence was trying to trigger me by saying that meat is tasty. Well, I actually like the taste of meat myself, but I chose to sacrifice that flavor in order to not be a murderer. And congrats on the 300kg bench, that's impressive.

 

Yeah let's kill those guys. No need for murderers.

We are almost type 1 civilization. No other animal has done that. Don't you think that makes us the best? Still a cow wouldn't give a fuck about you or me.

 

I'm a vegetarian (not vegan, I consume milk, eggs etc.). I became vegetarian not because of animal cruelty but because I generally didn't like meat. At the time I quit meat, I really didn't know about the animal cruelty surrounding the seemingly innocent source of food.

I really wouldn't call all of it murder. Many animals are killed for vanity and I'm strongly against that but for food, killing isn't murder. The ways of rearing animals for meat can certainly be inhumane (and that really should be addressed) but I don't think that we should cut out meat completely. Early hominids were of two types: the meat-eating type and the plant-eating type (at least that's what I've read). The reason why there are so many non-vegetarians around is because evolution favored the meat-eating hominids. We've evolved from beings that survived primarily on meat. Many find meat tasty and the right kind of meat, in the right amount is good for you.

I agree with this. We humans in a way reached where we are know by eating meat. In nature, any other carnivorous animal wouldn't care about how it's feels, it just wants it's meat. The cows that many of us eat are alive in the first place because of their meat and milk. If we didn't use animal products, cows wouldn't be 400 times more populous than say zebra. It is our progress as a civilization that allows us to raise and eat animals. Those animals wouldn't exist if we didn't want to eat them.

All in all, I have mixed feelings on the subject itself. Meat is good but killing animals is bad. But right now, cows are raised just like crops, basically for food. One might argue that we could use plant protein alternatives instead of meat. But the problem is that plant proteins often lack some of the amino acids in animal protein. By evolution from meat-eating ancestors, our stomachs are better equipped to digest animal protein than plant protein. That's just how it is.

Eating in the right amounts could prevent that. Meat is a great source of protein, better than plant protein actually. The only downfall is that meat contains fat, in beef and pork, a lot. Eater leaner meat can prove healthy. As for dairy products, I'm not really sure. Cheese and butter aren't really healthy but milk (skimmed milk at least) is good for you (at least I'm pretty sure it is). The good thing about a vegan diet is that it is light. The problem, it's not as efficient a protein source as meat is, you're gonna have to eat (a bit) more for the same stuff.

I think being vegan is noble. I feel happy that people have a concern for animals. It's part of being human. But killing animals so that we can eat them shouldn't be considered cruel. Even if it is considered cruel, we shouldn't sacrifice a good source of food for the sake of sympathy. In a way, eating meat is a necessary evil, something that gave us an edge in evolution. It's sad that a millions of animals exist just so that we can eat them but that's just how it is. It's been part of humanity's formula for success and it probably isn't going to be taken away from that formula. We exist today because a bunch of hominids a long time ago decided to eat meat for food. Eating meat isn't wrong but being vegan isn't either.

True, you have to eat the right stuff or you're going down. But the same goes with meat. Too many Big Mac's and you'll end up obese.

At the end of the day being vegan is a choice and it should never be forced on someone else. Likewise, vegans shouldn't be ridiculed over the world because of their ideals. Meat is good for you but people shouldn't be attacked because they don't eat meat.

 

There is no need to kill animals for food because we can survive on a 100% plant based diet, and still be healthy. And all the stuff you said about evolution and what our ancestors ate doesn't matter, because it still doesn't justify that we slaughter animals for the pleasure of taste today. We don't have to, which makes it unnecessary killing. And unnecessary killing is murder.

 

There are two main differences between animals killing other animas for food, and humans killing animals for food.

1. Animals are not moral agents - they do not have a sense of right and wrong like humans do. They operate mainly on instinct.
2. Carnivorous animals do not have a choice - they need to eat meat in order to live, and even omnivores need to hunt in order to survive sometimes. Humans DO have a choice. We can survive and be very healthy on a plant-based diet, so meat is completely optional. That makes it wrong to take a life that does not need to be taken. It is even worse to create sentient life for the sole purpose of taking it later on.

Veganism is overwhelmingly more environmental, and you don't even need to do much research to find that out.
Quote I pulled from google:
"The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) estimates that livestock production is responsible for 14.5 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions, while other organizations like the Worldwatch Institute have estimated it could be as much as 51 percent."

 

Yeah that is a big problem. Now that I think of it what you said is right. Since we could do without meat, the killing is unnecessary. Now apart from our discussion, it bothers me that these animals exist because we want to eat them. I don't know how well an animal can think but if I were an animal, I would have a huge existential crisis. And that's what disturbs me the most. What's funny is that I'm neither a meat eater nor a vegan. I'm in a grey area here so I probably should leave. Thank you for replying. Got a little food for thought.

 

Thanks for at least considering what I'm talking about. Seriously, do the research for yourself. The reason these animals exist is because we have bred them over thousands of generations to look the way they are. Female hens gain weight so fast now that they can't even stand up on their own. They would never exist in the wild. That's just one example. If I were these animals, I would prefer to never have been born. And I'm sure most people would feel the same.

 

I've seen a video of such a hen and it was disturbing. We've changed nature so much that people think things like this are meant to be. And to be honest, until reading about what you mentioned, I thought so too. This just changed my perspective about these things. To think that we've manufactured animals so that they can grow fat so that we can eat them. Development in civilization? Yes. Should we be proud of it? No. I'm starting to understand veganism a lot more now. Thank you FellatiousD for the information. (I'm not being sarcastic, seriously).

 

Well I appreciate your honesty and willingness to look at things from a different perspective. I am constantly correcting myself and discovering areas where I am wrong, even about veganism itself. Some of us are preachy and do not represent the ideological principles of veganism very well, but when you look at the main arguments in favor of it, they are very hard to dispute.