Tips on going meatless

* Start gradually, "going meatless" two or three times a week. * Start by excluding animal flesh before eliminating milk and eggs from your diet. * Eat lots of fresh vegetables, fruit and beans. Drink a lot of water. * Stop smoking and drinking alcohol. * Smile if anyone mocks your new lifestyle; being a vegetarian should not affect your sense of humor. Adopting a vegetarian lifestyle should also mean controlling your anger and being able to show compassion to fellow human beings and other living creatures. * If someone asks why you became a vegetarian, you may respond by citing health or ecological reasons. If you are confident enough you could also explain about spiritual or religious arguments for vegetarianism. * Read books or search the Internet to get information on a healthy vegetarian diet. Eliminating meat for a diet of high-fat cheeses, for instance, will not be good for your body. * Being a vegetarian can make you healthier, but it does not mean that you are immune to disease. You are still likely to come down with a case of the sniffles or other common ailments. * Don't isolate yourself from nonvegetarian people. Ask them to try your vegetarian food or eat out at a vegetarian restaurant, but also be sensitive not to "impose" your choice on them. * Don't stop exercising. A combination of exercising and a vegetarian lifestyle is great for your health. * Get enough rest

Sources: The Indonesian Maitreya Vegetarian Society and other sources.