You Eat No Meat?! That's Okay, I Make Lamb

Hi my name is Jillian and I am a carnivore.

Yeah, so what? Well, for years I cheered for team vegetarian and after thinking long and hard about my diet, I decided to cross over to the dark side and start eating meat again. 

In college I had the privilege of being an intern for one of the Prime Minster of Ireland's cabinet members and during my free time at the office (nerd alert), I learned a lot about EU food policies and the more I learned the more I became disgusted with how the FDA and the US government turn a blind eye to things such as GMOs, pesticides and the overall health and wellbeing of the average American. I was especially outraged about factory farms and how the meat that no one thinks twice about putting on their dinner table and feeding to their kids are pumped with growth hormones and antibiotics that are, to be very blunt, fucking up our health as a nation, as well as the environment. Armed with this information, I decided that when I came back to the States I was going to cut out all meat in my diet as a way to become a healthier person, as well as only buy bath, body, hair and makeup products that do not contain harsh chemicals, preservatives, detergents and other harmful ingredients. To learn if the products you use everyday to get fresh, clean and pretty contain shady ingredients, click here.

So after so many years of being a passionate (and educated) vegetarian what made me go back? First off, I still have the same beliefs that I did as that wide-eyed, naive American college student living in Dublin, but after years of feeling crappy a couple times a week, being hungry all the time, having trouble gaining muscle and talking to my smartest friend, who also happens to know a hell of a lot about health and the human body, I decided to give eating organic, free-range, grass fed meat a try. Not going to lie, I was scared that I was going to spend my first few weeks as a born-again carnivore in the bathroom, but surprisingly, that wasn't the case (sorry, TMI). 

This is me and my smartest friend when he came to visit me in Ireland back in college.  He has given me lots of great advice over the course of our 13 year friendship.

My smartest friend also turned me onto the paleo "diet" - which mimics the diets of our caveman ancestors and includes meats, seafood, vegetables, fruits, and nuts. I already had the veggies, fruits and nuts thing down, so adding a little animal protein into the mix wasn't too hard, but giving up all grains was and still is the hardest thing about the "diet." I used the word "diet" very loosely because I don't believe in diets. There is no one pill, tea, shake, exercise, surgery, whatever that will help you sustain a healthy weight. You have to put a conscious effort into what you put into your body and the energy you put out. I am the first to admit that I don't always make wise food decisions (i.e. eating peanut butter M&Ms for breakfast) and that I have been known a time or two to stay in bed instead of go to the gym or do whatever is on my training schedule for that day, but hey, no one is perfect. But I am also proud of myself for working my ass off ever since I can remember to be healthy. Whether it be at swimming, running, triathlon or conditioning, working out is not just a fad for me, it's always been a way of life, so by incorporating aspects of the paleo "diet" into my lifestyle has helped me feel better during my workouts and after. Also, I do include some dairy in my diet, which is not paleo, but I only incorporate organic, hormone-free cheese, yogurt, milk, etc... because I don't want to be all hunched over with osteoporosis when I'm a mean old lady.

That's it for my rant. If you're all the way down to this part of the post, thanks for listening to me!

**stepping down from soapbox**