This has totally shocked me over the past few months, and I wanted to explain how this came about.

For most of my life, I was consumed with protein. I was constantly worried that my blood sugar would drop (though I had no medical conditions), and I made it a point to eat lots of protein. I wasn’t into vegetables all that much. Carbohydrates were my downfall. Not sugar, but unhealthy grains.

As I began to eat healthier, I noticed that I enjoyed vegetables and healthy carbs over the past few years, but most of the time, meat was no big deal. I enjoyed being to cook vegetarian dishes when I could. When a restaurant offered a vegetarian option, I jumped at the chance to order it!

In the middle of taking the online course with Paul Greene and Kate Austin in 2020, my body seemed to reach a plateau. I had already cut out sugar. I was eating more whole foods. I was exercising like crazy. But for a solid month, nothing happened! I wasn’t even losing inches.

One day, my weekly meal plan allowed me to do a vegetarian plan for the week. And I decided, “Why not?” I made sure that everyone else in the household had meat options, but I decided cutting out meat for a week sounded pretty great to me.

After that week, I felt so good! And guess what happened. I lost weight! Yes, my body so enjoyed this that I decided I would continue. And that is exactly what I am doing.

Now, let me explain. I am not a die-hard vegetarian. I will use chicken broth in cooking. I will eat fish. During the holidays and when it makes sense, I will eat meat. I don’t feel like I’m doing anything wrong or cheating. I had turkey and ham during the holidays. If I feel like eating meat, I will.

But here’s the crazy thing. I no longer crave meat! In fact, I no longer crave low-quality carbs (that is what I have noticed in the past month). I want vegetables, fruit (I eat more fruit than I ever have), vegetarian protein, and just an occasional dairy product here and there. I don’t even crave cheese like I once did.

Making the transition with my family was a bit of a stretch, but they see that I have stuck to it, and I continue to cook them dishes with meat. Actually, my mom eats low-carb. I eat vegetarian. My dad and daughter eat everything.

Here’s how I feel. I am at my goal weight. I have loads of energy. I am not bloated. And my body seems very happy!! So I am sticking with it. I would never have dreamed I’d become some kind of vegetarian, but I’m so glad I did! It works for me!!