You don’t have to become a vegan or vegetarian to benefit from eating less meat. You can have a meatless Monday or go meatless a couple of times a week. It’s even healthier, particularly if the meat you’re skipping is red meat. It’s also far cheaper. A serving of sirloin steak runs about $8-9 per pound, so one serving of 3-ounces with 25 grams of protein is approximately $1.50-1.68. You can get approximately 24 grams of protein from an entire can of black beans, which only costs about $1.00, plus you’ll have more fiber and other nutrients. Just think of how much you’d save by using reconstituted dried beans.
Going meatless has some benefits for your health.
The plant based protein comes with extra benefits, like fiber. There are two types of fiber, soluble and insoluble. The insoluble adds bulk to your stool to make it easier to go. The soluble fiber feeds your beneficial microbes in your digestive tract, and they help keep you healthier. Meat, particularly beef, is also harder to digest than plant protein, since it’s entirely protein and fat.
Going meatless does provide some health benefits.
Soluble fiber not only keeps your microbiome healthy, providing food for the beneficial ones, it also helps slow the absorption of carbohydrates. By slowing that absorption, it helps keep your blood glucose level. That means you won’t face a rush of insulin, which can increase the risk of developing insulin resistance that leads to diabetes. You don’t have to be a vegetarian to get the benefits of meatless days. It lowers the risk of colon cancer, type 2 diabetes and may even help you live longer than people who eat meat daily.
You’ll benefit from meatless days, especially if you want to lose weight.
While there are economic reasons for going meatless and even a few of convenience. Quinoa, a plant protein source that’s complete, lasts 2 to 3 years past the use by date. Studies also show that a vegetarian lifestyle may actually help you lose weight. Meals are often lower in calories. A sampling of the population shows that vegetarians tend to have lower BMI—body mass index—and a lower waist-to-hip ratio. That means less belly fat.
- You can buy up bags of dried beans and other vegetarian sources on sale and keep them on hand for 3-4 years. Brown rice also stores well for up to a year and a half when stored properly.
- One reason that reducing the red meat in your diet can help reduce the risk of colorectal cancer is that it takes as long as four days to pass through the intestines. That means it’s sitting in your intestines for days. It also has a higher cholesterol and saturated fat content.
- You don’t have buy special frozen vegetarian meals. Not only are they often more expensive, they’re often not as nutritious. Red beans and rice is one easy to make example of a combination that makes a complete protein.
- Adding beans, rice, quinoa and other plant protein options to a salad can make a great main dish you can make ahead, so it’s ready to eat when you get home. We offer nutritious meal plans that are easy and delicious that you also may enjoy.
For more information, contact us today at BioFit Performance