Eco-Chic Lifestyle Change Week 5: Final Weekly Review & Overall Project Reflection

My SMART goal is I will eat 4 servings (serving= 3 oz.) of hormone-free, grass-fed meat, per week. The new goal of 4 servings worked out great. I say this because this past weekend I had a second Thanksgiving so I ended up eating more meat than I usually do but I did not go over my SMART goal!

The strategies that helped me be most effective was letting my friends and family know what I was doing. Many of my friends and family did not understand that their are differences in meat so they had never really looked until I said something. Also, since I have told my family about this they either buy hormone-free deli meat or soy burgers if I am going to be home. The challenge I faced the entire time was when I went out to eat. I did cut out going out to eat a lot but of course there were times when I either did not have food or did not have time to make something.

I was very happy with myself this past week. I stuck to my new goal and let others know this option is out there. I felt most happy when I could explain to others what we have learned and why I chose this as my SMART goal. Many people have no idea what I am talking about which does not surprise me because I just learned a lot of it this semester! I learned I can easily do things I put my mind to and if you feel passionately about something try to influence or educate others to do the same.

Original SMART goal: I will eat 3 servings (serving= 3 oz.) of hormone-free, grass-fed meat, per week.

Updated SMART goal: I will eat 4 servings (serving= 3 oz.) of hormone-free, grass-fed meat, per week.

My goal changed because I felt I accomplished what I wanted to. I found hormone-free meat at a reasonable price so I felt I could increase my intake a little. It was nice having a variety in my meals. It also worked out perfect with the holidays approaching.

As I stated above what helped me most successful was letting others know what I was doing. Because they knew, they understood when I would search for the hormone-free option or wanted to stay in and make dinner. The one thing that complicated my goal was restaurants. It would be nice if they could state where they get their meat from. Not only would this make people feel comfortable knowing their meat was not injected with antibiotics or hormones, but it could increase their sales.

My SMART goal led me to new things. Never before did I think to look over my meat packages to see if they were hormone-free. I never thought about this before because I really did not know much about it. Accomplishing my goal made me realize I can do anything I set my mind to. I also learned I am able to influence others by my decisions. Many people do not know what really goes into their meat because they do not question it. I hope I can keep spreading the information I have learned to others. Behavior change is not hard when you really want to change. It takes time, will power, and confidence to really see a behavior change.

Making this change benefited the companies that sold this product and farms that chose to raise their animals the natural way. Hopefully by educating friends and family what I am doing they will do the same. Farms that choose to raise their animals the natural way should be rewarded and receive the most business.

I will continue this behavior because it is easy and rewarding. Taking the extra couple of minutes to look over the package is worth it. If I can somehow help farms who raise their animals without hormones I will do it.

Recommendations for others: Stick to your goal, modify if you want/have to, if you have questions....ask, and know you can do whatever you set your mind to!

"Blogged for the Eco-Chic Lifestyle Change Week 5 hosted by Amy@Amy in the Rain."

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Eco-Chic Lifestyle Change Week 4: Weekly Update

My SMART goal is I will only eat 3 servings (serving= 3 oz) of hormone-free, grass-fed meat, per week. I did a good job at achieving my SMART goal.

My successes were once again being able to find hormone-free meat, eating out less, having more of a variety of foods, and influencing others. Since I started to look over the meat I eat I do not feel as bad when I do eat it. By having more meat in my meals it has added variety because I was getting bored with, my usual veggie sandwich. Over Thanksgiving break I talked to my family about what we have been learning and my SMART goal. My mom and sister were very interested in what I had to say. My sister is already a bit of a "freak" about her meat so I think it is safe to say I have her on "my side". :) It was also a great experience being able to see first hand a farm that raises animals the natural way. Shepard's Homestead raises grass-fed cattle and hormone-free chickens.

My challenges have still been when I do go out to eat or when I go home. Going out to eat has not been as big of a challenge since I cut back on that but with the holidays approaching I have been going home a lot. When I go home, meat is definitely one of the items on the menu for every meal. When I asked my dad if the deli meat was hormone-free he gave me the funniest look. Looks like I still have some rubbing off to do on some of my family members.

I feel I am doing very good on being consistent with my SMART goal. A couple of times I have slipped up but I got right back on track. I am happy with the outcome so far. I learned this past week that with accurate information you can really make an impact on others' lives. I took everything we have learned from Environmental Health and told it to my family in a nutshell. We ended up having about a 30 minute conversation about how some animals are butchered and how unethical it is (We didn't have this chat at the most ideal time either...after stuffing ourselves with Turkey).

I think for next week I am going to change my goal to: I will eat 4 servings (serving= 3 oz.) of hormone-free meat, per week. Since I have started to eat more meat I realized how many of my meals before were blah. I plan to keep up with this goal while influencing others to do the same.


"Blogged for the Eco-Chic Lifestyle Change Week 4 hosted by Amy@Amy in the Rain."

Eco-Chic Lifestyle Change Week 3: Weekly Update

My SMART goal is, I will only eat 3 servings (serving= 3 oz) of hormone-free, grass-fed meat, per week. I did a great job at achieving my goal this past week. I am actually very happy with myself.

During this week I bought Hormel 100% Natural Turkey, Ham, and Roast Beef. This meat also has no added hormones, MSG, and is gluten-free. It surprised me because like most people, you think the "better" choice is going to be much more expensive when in reality it is not. For one package of meat it was only $3.98! This is even cheaper than some of your other choices of deli meat. My success at the store gave me a boost of confidence that I can do this. Some disadvantages I experienced were once again with the food I receive from a restaurant. How do I know where it came from? One strategy I used to overcome this was simple, do not go out to eat. When I do not go out to eat I do not have to worry about where my meat was processed and I save money. My other alternative to when I go out to eat is to do a meatless meal.

I experienced great feelings this week about my goal. It feels good to actually stick to something and be able to share your experience with others. I am now trying to pass the information I am learning about animal products to family and friends so they too can follow in my footsteps. At times I do get discouraged when I am out to eat because I think restaurants should have to state where they get their meat products from. This could even work to their advantage by giving them more customers who appreciate their honesty and ways of buying foods.

I learned this week that buying locally, buying organic, or buying hormone-free foods is a lot easier and cheaper than most people think. Like they say do not listen to everything you hear. Find out for youself! Now when I talk to people I am able to tell them the truth that these foods are reasonably priced and so much better for you!

I plan to stick to this same goal for next week, considering 3 servings of meat is plenty for me. Next week I am thinking about trying maybe steak or chicken because I have yet to do that and I am curious to see if the taste is different. Wish me luck!

"Blogged for the Eco-Chic Lifestyle Change Week 3 hosted by Amy@Amy in the Rain."

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Eco-Chic Lifestyle Change Week 2: Weekly Update

My SMART goal is I will only eat 3 servings (serving= 3 oz) of hormone-free, grass-fed meat, per week. In achieving my goal this week I did okay.

The strategies that helped me be successful were to look online at ways to find this kind of meat and to study the packages of meat, looking for hormones or other additives listed in the ingredients. Some challenges I faced are actually finding a good selection in the grocery store of these kind of meats. I think I would have better luck going through a local farmer but because I am not from this area it would be harder for me to do this. Also, when I go to a restaurant they do not usually list how they get their meat. The only restaurant I have went to recently that states their meat is hormone-free and their animals are grass fed is Chipotle. I know I could easily ask how they get their meat but many times I have young servers who mostly likely will not know the answer to this.

The feelings I experienced were confusion, nervousness, embarrassment, and excitement. I felt confused because many times it was not specifically listed on the front of the meat. Before when I have bought hormone-free meat there was a big orange sticker that said this on the front. Also, I felt nervous and embarrassed because I did not know how to ask the butcher or waiter where the meat came from. I know it is silly to feel embarrassed about an issue like this but when you have a table full of people or a line behind you at the local deli the last thing you want is to hold up the line or get a crazy look because they may have never been asked a question like this before.

I learned this week that my goal is a little more difficult than I thought it would be. For this week I plan to do a little more research on my favorite restaurants to see if their websites list where they obtain their meat. I also plan to ask my roommates, who work at a local restaurant, if they know where they get their meat from. I came to the realization that I should not be scared or nervous to ask a simple question like this especially from butchers in a deli because this is their job to know which meat is what and where they get it from. For right now I am going to keep my goal the way it is and see how this week goes.


"Blogged for the Eco-Chic Lifestyle Change Week 2 hosted by Amy@Amy in the Rain."

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Eco-Chic Lifestyle Change Week 1: My SMART Goal

For our Eco-Chic blog this week we need to create a SMART goal. A SMART goal is specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and timely. My SMART goal for the next 10 weeks is:

I will only eat 3 servings (serving= 3 oz) of hormone-free, grass-fed meat, per week.

This lifestyle change is Eco-Chic because eating hormone-free, grass fed meat is the best for you and the environment. Farmers that raise these kind of animals are doing it the natural way. Instead of injecting growth hormones and other additives into these animals to increase their production, they are producing the amount they were born to make. I also hope to buy my meat locally to help local farms make a profit.

I chose this particular behavior because I do not eat meat that often but when I do I want to make sure it is in its natural form. I think the goal of three servings of meat a week will be a good way for me to eat less meat while still choosing the more natural product. I chose to do this because I usually prefer soy-based meats to real meat but I have my cravings. Changing this actual behavior is important to me because I know I can do it. I do not like how some farms and industries are taking care of their animals. It sickens me to know that a lot of the meat I have ate in my lifetime has been pumped with hormones and other additives. I think this change will be easier to make because all of the meat-free or hormone-free options now given at restaurants and in grocery stores. The only problems I may encounter are how to find these hormone-free, grass fed products because I have never taken the time to look before. I also hope the cost is isn't too overwhelming!

I will start this change today, Wednesday November 10th. Wish me luck! :)


Blogged for the Eco-Chic Lifestyle Change Week 1 hosted by Amy@Amy in the Rain



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