Yuri SYSOEV, film director:
– In my opinion, the transition to conscious eating is inevitable if a person develops along the path of goodness.
When an understanding is formed in the mind and soul that animals are not food, the transition to vegetarianism turns out to be natural and painless. That is what happened to me. And in order to take the first step, you must first collect all the information about nutrition, understand the impact of animal husbandry on our Earth and get acquainted with the realities of the production of meat products. A comprehensive study of the issue will allow you to approach vegetarianism not only from the side of an emotional outburst, but also rationally. Be happy!
Nikita DEMIDOV, yoga teacher:
– The transition to vegetarianism was for me at first due more to ethical and moral considerations. One fine day, I felt the insincerity of the compromise that existed in my head: I love nature, animals, but I eat pieces of their bodies. It all started with this, later I began to engage in various health practices and yoga, and at some point I felt that the body no longer wants to receive animal products. Unpleasant and heavy sensations after such food, reduced energy, drowsiness – I didn’t really like such symptoms in the middle of a working day. That’s when I decided to try changing my diet.
The results were interesting and inspiring – there was more energy, these afternoon dips went into the “low battery” mode. The transition in my case was easy, I did not experience any negative physiological moments, only lightness. I led, as now, a rather active lifestyle: I went in for sports, loved long rides on a bicycle and roller skates, and noticed that it became easier for my body, like my head, to be in these processes. I didn’t feel any protein shortages, which all beginners are so afraid of, I even got the feeling as if I had never eaten meat.
Sooner or later, any person thinks about his health, and at some point he understands that medicine cannot provide answers to all questions. And therefore, a person begins to look for something and try it himself, chooses the path of self-knowledge and takes responsibility for what is happening in life into his own hands. This is a real internal revolution, turning into evolution, this should be approached naturally and organically, so you can’t say to a person who loves meat dishes of traditional cuisine: “You should become a vegetarian.” After all, this is an internal impulse, a person, perhaps, will soon come to this himself! Everyone chooses their own path, their own shades of life, so I see no reason to aggressively reformat someone’s views. I am sure that the transition to a plant-based diet, at least for some period, is a very serious reason for your own recovery!
Alexander DOMBROVSKY, lifeguard:
– Curiosity and a kind of experiment prompted me to switch to plant-based nutrition. Within the framework of the yoga system that I took up, this was implied. I tried it, noticed how my body got better, and in principle I realized that meat is not food. And that has never been a reason for me to regret! Sincerely realizing what animal food is, it is almost impossible to want it again.
For many who are interested in such a system of nutrition, the thought of unimaginable changes that need to be made becomes a stumbling block. What is now, how to live? Many expect a decline in strength and deterioration in health. But this is an exaggerated picture of some global changes, but in reality only a couple of habits are changing! And only then, gradually developing in this direction, you yourself feel the changes and can make a choice based on personal experience.
In general, think about it, if we all switch to vegetarianism, then there will simply be less pain, violence and suffering on the planet. Why not motivation?
Evgenia DRAGUNSKAYA, dermatologist:
– I came to vegetarianism from the opposition: I was so against such nutrition that I had to find and study literature on the topic. I hoped to find facts in it that would prove that eating a plant-based diet is bad. Of course, I did not read some Internet opuses, but the works of scientists, professionals in their field, because, as a doctor, I am primarily interested in biochemical processes. I wanted to understand what happens to proteins, amino acids, fats, microflora when switching to plant-based nutrition. I was really surprised when I came across the almost unanimous opinion of researchers, both modern and working in the last century. And the works of Professor Ugolev, published back in the 60s, finally inspired me. It turned out that animal products are triggers for many diseases, and people who adhere to strict vegetarianism have 7 times higher immunity than adherents of a traditional diet!
But it is important to understand that not always an active healthy lifestyle is synonymous with true health. Here it is worth acting without distortions and fanaticism. After all, we all see when a person seems to be actively advocating a healthy lifestyle, and then overeats with the same “right” foods, compensating for the abolition of animal food, for example, bread, or, in the case of fruitarians, mealy fruits. As a result, there is no balance in the diet, but starch, gluten and sugar are present in abundance.
I believe that it is important for everyone to have clear thinking, a pure mind and control their emotions in order to somehow help nature preserve our bodies, despite age (I, for example, sixty). And I want to live my period of 25 years to old age with high quality. All I can do is take care of my nutrition without killing my genome with pure sugar, gluten and animal products.
Temur Sharipov, chef:
Everyone knows the phrase: “You are what you eat”, right? And to change on the outside, you have to change on the inside. Vegetable food turned out to be a good helper for me in this, it became a tool for internal cleansing. I clearly understand the simple truth – there is no experience outside of me, this is a fact. After all, if you touch some object, hear some sounds, look at something, then you live it inside yourself. Do you want to change your vision outside? There is nothing easier – change your vision from within.
When I ate traditionally and ate meat, I got sick. Only now I understand that boiled and thermally processed food, animal products make me feel grounded. It’s like concrete for the stomach! If you process the usual dinner of a meat-eater in a blender and leave it for a while at a temperature of +37 degrees, then after 4 hours it will be impossible to even come close to this mass. The processes of decay are irreversible, so it is important to understand that the same thing happens with animal products in the human body.
I am sure that everyone should try the raw food diet for themselves. Of course, it is difficult to immediately change the diet abruptly, so you can start with vegetarianism, and it is better to give up meat, of course, not for one day, but at least for six months. Just give yourself the opportunity to compare and make your own choice, focusing on the true needs of the body!
Alexey FURSENKO, actor of the Moscow Academic Theatre. Vl. Mayakovsky:
– Leo Tolstoy said: “Animals are my friends. And I don’t eat my friends.” I always liked this phrase very much, but I did not immediately become aware of it.
A friend began to open the world of vegetarianism for me, and at first I was extremely skeptical about this. But the information got into my memory, and I myself began to study this issue more and more. And the film “Earthlings” had an incredible influence on me – it became the so-called point of no return, and after watching the transition was very easy!
In my opinion, a plant-based diet, combined with sports and positive thoughts, leads to a direct path to a healthy lifestyle. I had quite unpleasant health problems, but with a change in diet, everything went away, and without pharmaceuticals. I think that switching attention to plant foods changes a person’s life – it starts to go in a completely different positive way!
Kira SERGEEVA, vocalist of the musical group Shakti Loka:
“For the first time I thought about the life of vegetarians many years ago, when I met an amazing young person who looked at the world rapidly, improving in every corner of her vision. It is noteworthy that my young friend did not know the taste of meat at all, because her parents were vegetarians and the baby never rested with these dishes. The baby, it is worth noting, has grown into a very strong creature with a very lively mind and an elegant perception of the world. In addition to this elf, I also had another friend who for several years by that time had been engaged in a vigilant selection of clothes from natural and ethical fabrics, cooked vegetable and fruit delicacies for himself, from which the soul became calm and joyful. After his lunches and dinners, the sheep were intact, but he fed the wolves from his hands. He led a very active lifestyle and had an incredible mental alertness.
It is worth noting that all my life I did not particularly suffer from attachment to entrecote and hazel grouse, and marine life did not attract me with its sea smells. However, it was quite possible to stuff a small rabbit or shrimp into my mouth, offered to me, without hesitation, by inertia, to be honest. She could and did.
But one day I began to keep my first Easter Fast. I had little understanding of what I was doing and what it was leading to, but my Ego wanted rigor. Yes, such severity that it would rebuild all the severity of the world. So I rebuilt it – it was my first conscious-unconscious refusal of deadly food.
I learned the beauty of asceticism and tastes returned anew, I saw the nature of the Ego, its truth and lies, managed to control myself and lose again. Then there was a lot, but Love woke up inside, for the sake of which we all exist. That’s why it’s worth trying!
Artem SPIRO, pilot:
– Let’s start with the fact that I do not like to put labels and stamps on the word “vegetarian” or “vegan”. Still, being an adherent of such a diet does not mean being a healthy person. I use a term like “whole plant food” which I stick to. I’m sure that’s what it’s good for health.
From an early age I loved to cook and had a love for cooking, cuisine, food. With age, I delved into theory and practice, tried various recipes, whether it was my cadet years at the flight academy or already working and living in Moscow, Helsinki, London, Dubai. I always liked to cook for my relatives, they were the first to notice my culinary successes. While living in Dubai, I began to travel a lot, arranged food tours for myself, tried food from different countries and cultures. I’ve been to Michelin-starred restaurants and simple street restaurants. The more time I devoted to hobbies, the further I delved into the world of cooking and food, the more I wanted to know what our food consists of. And then I entered the Los Angeles Academy of Culinary Arts, where I completed a course in nutrition. I understood how food interacts with a person at the biochemical level, what happens afterwards. At the same time, interest in Chinese medicine, Ayurveda was added, I began to study the interaction of nutrition and health more. This path led me to switch to a whole, plant-based diet, which is divided into 5 groups: fruits/vegetables, seeds/nuts, grains, legumes, superfoods. And only all together – diverse and whole – gives a person advantages, preserves health, heals, relieving various ailments.
Such nutrition makes life more efficient, gives a cheerful state of health, therefore goals are achieved, and life becomes more conscious. I think everyone wants to live like this, so he should think about what he eats. The best medicine is not a magic pill, but what is on your plate. If a person wants to live to the fullest, be healthy, he should think about switching to plant foods!
Julia SELYUTINA, stylist, designer of eco-fur coats:
– From the age of 15, I began to understand that eating animals with an abundance of other tasty and healthy food is simply strange. Then I began to study the issue, but I decided to change the diet only at the age of 19, contrary to the opinion of my mother, that without meat I would die in 2 years. 10 years later, mom doesn’t eat meat either! The transition was easy, but gradual. At first she did without meat, then without fish, eggs and milk. But there have been setbacks. Now sometimes I can eat cheese if it is not made with the help of renin, but is made from non-animal sourdough.
I would advise beginners to switch to a plant-based diet like this: remove meat immediately, but add a lot of greens and vegetable juices to replenish trace elements, and gradually refuse seafood. You should at least try the correct veganism for comparison.
My husband sees the difference very well when he eats something fishy. Immediately mucus from the nose, lack of energy, phlegm, bad dream. His excretory system works great, everyone would like that! And from plant food, the face is cleaner, and the soul is full of drive, positive emotions, enthusiasm and lightness.
By eating an animal, we eat all the pain that it experienced during the growth and killing. Without meat, we are cleaner both in body and emotionally.
Sergey KIT, video maker:
– As a child, I remembered one expression: if a person is sick, then the first thing to change in life is nutrition, the second is lifestyle, and if this does not help, then you can resort to medicine. In 2011, the then-future wife refused meat for ethical reasons. Understanding that food is delicious without animal products was the first step in changing the diet. And after a few years, together we confidently set foot on this path.
A year later, and to this day, on plant-based nutrition, we feel only positive results: lightness, a surge of energy, good mood, excellent immunity. The main thing in switching to a different diet is support, we motivated each other, fed with information, and the first positive results in terms of health were inspiring! Eating habits change easily because my wife is a magical cook and there are so many substitute foods. So, the discovery was: green beans, tofu, green buckwheat, seaweed, oh, yes, a lot of things! Freshly squeezed juices and seasonal fruits appeared in the diet every day. Plant-based nutrition is not a panacea for all diseases, but it will open you a new sense of your body, teach you to hear and understand it, cleanse it and keep it clean. With the choice of this food, your mind, body and soul will come into harmony! This, in my opinion, is the most sensible choice of modern society. As they say, if you want to change the world for the better, start with yourself!