Yeah, you can be a vegetarian and still be healthy; actually, the four-time Western States 100-miler winner is a vegan, and he's insanely fit and healthy. He says his health improved tenfold once he went vegan. However, to stay healthy while avoiding meat is hard; you have to eat a lot of nuts and soy and other stuff that I generally don't care for. So, I'm not saying that vegans are unhealthy; just that I generally prefer meat to the alternatives. I like meat quite a bit, and while sometimes I think about trying being vegetarian for a while, I'd rather stay with meat.
And red meat is very good for runners, but yes, it does have risks as well. Medium-rare steak is a great source of protein and other stuff that I forget, but it also has a high percentage of carcinogens, I believe. Or maybe the more well-done it is, the more carcinogens... I forget. Fish is also very good, protein, Omega 3 fatty acids, etc, but I can't stand the taste of fish (save tuna and sardines). From runnersworld.com:
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Meat/poultry
28. Lean roast beef: With an abundance of vitamin B, iron, and zinc (which aids in healing and sexual function), lean roast beef is the most nutrient-dense red meat, says Clark. As with bread and lettuce, the darker the meat, the more nutrients it contains.
29. Top-round ground beef: The top cuts of beef and sirloin are the leanest and provide needed protein. Try using this as an accompaniment--not the main dish--so your portion is smaller. Or put it in a stir fry or burrito, suggests Applegate.
30. Chicken: For good lean protein--though with not as much iron as red meat--eat chicken baked, grilled, or broiled, but not fried (too fatty).
31. Lamb: There's plenty of protein, iron, and zinc in a lamb roast. Just make sure you trim away the fat after cooking.
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Maybe it is easier on my conscience to think that only some animals are treated unfairly. And I don't know why it sometimes seems pointless to me to treat them well; I am something of an animal lover (not to PETA extremes by any means, but when you grow up with 40+ pets, you learn to appreciate them.) To tell you the truth, upon further reflection, I don't think that's really what I meant to say in the first place. It's not right to keep animals cooped up under horrible conditions; I think I wanted to reply to people who say it's wrong for us to kill animals for food. A human killing a cow to make hamburgers is no different than a cheetah killing a gazelle. It bothers me when people say that's wrong to kill a cow or a chicken for food, because that's how animals survive, and guess what? We're animals.
And red meat is very good for runners, but yes, it does have risks as well. Medium-rare steak is a great source of protein and other stuff that I forget, but it also has a high percentage of carcinogens, I believe. Or maybe the more well-done it is, the more carcinogens... I forget. Fish is also very good, protein, Omega 3 fatty acids, etc, but I can't stand the taste of fish (save tuna and sardines). From runnersworld.com:
----------------------------------------------------------------
Meat/poultry
28. Lean roast beef: With an abundance of vitamin B, iron, and zinc (which aids in healing and sexual function), lean roast beef is the most nutrient-dense red meat, says Clark. As with bread and lettuce, the darker the meat, the more nutrients it contains.
29. Top-round ground beef: The top cuts of beef and sirloin are the leanest and provide needed protein. Try using this as an accompaniment--not the main dish--so your portion is smaller. Or put it in a stir fry or burrito, suggests Applegate.
30. Chicken: For good lean protein--though with not as much iron as red meat--eat chicken baked, grilled, or broiled, but not fried (too fatty).
31. Lamb: There's plenty of protein, iron, and zinc in a lamb roast. Just make sure you trim away the fat after cooking.
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Maybe it is easier on my conscience to think that only some animals are treated unfairly. And I don't know why it sometimes seems pointless to me to treat them well; I am something of an animal lover (not to PETA extremes by any means, but when you grow up with 40+ pets, you learn to appreciate them.) To tell you the truth, upon further reflection, I don't think that's really what I meant to say in the first place. It's not right to keep animals cooped up under horrible conditions; I think I wanted to reply to people who say it's wrong for us to kill animals for food. A human killing a cow to make hamburgers is no different than a cheetah killing a gazelle. It bothers me when people say that's wrong to kill a cow or a chicken for food, because that's how animals survive, and guess what? We're animals.
