We’re over halfway through the challenge! Congratulations to everyone who has stuck through!
The further I make it through this challenge, the more I think I should stick to it past the finishing date – even for a few days a week. It’s not that difficult and I have found it quite fun at times experimenting with meals and different sources of protein.
I had a bit of a slip-up this week. On Tuesday I forgot to bring my pre-made lunch to work, so I went to the shops to buy a sandwich, and of course: no vegetarian options. Every single sandwich I saw had chicken or bacon or pork or beef or ham. Annoyed, I left the shop and went to a different one. Same situation there. I was already running late, so I just grabbed some chicken & pesto pasta and left. I did feel guilty afterward, but at the same time, it was quite eye-opening. The one slip-up I have wasn’t even because I WANTED meat, it was because of the lack of vegetarian options made available. This brings me to the systems we have in place. Almost everywhere caters to meat-inclusive diets, and vegetarian options, if available, are usually quite plain (in my opinion).
I think it should be made more socially acceptable to eat plant based meals. If the vegetarian diet was practiced more commonly it would be so much easier to make that shift, however i feel that society is quite restrictive at the moment.
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Darren Clarke commented on Day 16: My Vegetarian Challenge 3 4 years agoHi Fiona. Great reading your blog today and chatting to you about it in class on Friday. It's such an interesting point you raise about the difficulties with finding (tasty) vegetarian options, especially when on-the-go. I find the same. One of the things I try to do when I leave the house is to take a few crackers and hummus or nuts with me as a back-up in case I don't get fed somewhere. That way, if the shops don't cater for me, I won't go hungry! It takes a little planning and remembering but it soon becomes one of those habits you develop, like you are experiencing during this experiment! You raise an interesting point about better options for vegetarians when you are in shops or restaurants and yet billions of people around the world can't afford or choose not to meat every day. Think of certain cultures/countries (e.g. Indian) where meat intake is limited for poorer households and is instead based heavily on eating a vegetarian diet. Have you thought about how your own actions might influence change in the the systems you want to change (e.g. restaurants, shops) so that vegetarian options available in other countries are available to you and others around you? Have you ever stood up for something you believe in? Did anyone join you? How did it make you feel? Looking forward to continue reading your blog over the last two weeks. Darren Respond
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