The Vegetarian Fitness Enthusiast Part 1: Types of Vegetarians

For the next month or so I am going to write some posts on the pros and cons of being vegetarian.  Part 1 is going to go over the definitions of different types of vegetarians as many people think you are either a vegetarian or non-vegetarian.  There are more than one type of vegetarian.  When I took Nutrition 101 in college we learned of four types.  According to this article found here there are eight listed below:

1. Pescatarian:  These people avoid all meet except fish[1].
2. Flexitarian/Semi-Vegetarian:  People who eat mostly vegetarian but occasionally have meat[1].
3. *Vegetarian (Lacto-Ovo):  People who don't eat meat, but do consume eggs and dairy products[1].
4. *Vegetarian (Lacto):  This person eats no meat or eggs but does consume dairy products[1].
5. *Vegetarian (Ovo):  People who don't consume meat or dairy products but do eat eggs[1]
6. *Vegan:  These are people who eat no meat, eggs, dairy products.  Also, they do not consume processed foods that have trace amounts of the foods listed or animal-derived ingredients like gelatin.  Some Vegans also avoid sugar, some wines and sometimes honey[1].
7. Raw Vegan/Raw Food Diet:  Same as #6 with the unprocessed food not being heated over 115 degrees Fahrenheit[1].
8. Macrobiotic:  This includes unprocessed vegan foods like whole grains, fruits and vegetables.  Fish is occasionally allowed but sugar and refined oils are avoided.  What is most unique about this plan is the consumption of Asian vegetables (Daikon and sea vegetables like seaweed)[1].

The definitions above with the asterisk are the ones I learned in college.  What I find funny is the overwhelming majority of people I have come across in the health club/gym settings think they Vegan but just don't eat Red Meat (I am surprised there is not a definition for this one above) or are Flexitarians/Semi-Vegetarians (#2).

The next post will talk about food quality with the above definitions. 


References:
1.  Retrieved from:  http://vegetarian.about.com/od/vegetarianvegan101/tp/TypesofVeg.htm