Living on a vegetarian diet has many benefits including environmental, health, and economic benefits.  The meat industry has a large impact on global warming.  According to the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization, meat production accounts for nearly one-fifth of global greenhouse gas emissions. Most of this can be attributed to animal feeds, and when you consider that it takes 7 pounds of grain to produce just 1 pound of beef it makes perfect sense. There's also the issue of the methane emitted by cows, 23 times more effective as a global warming agent than carbon dioxide.

Eating less meat is slimming and better for your heart.  A person eating a plant-based diet on average weighs 15% less than meat eaters.  For a woman this is about 25 pounds, not an insubstantial amount.  A more vegetarian diet lowers your risk of hypertension because you're eating lots of the blood pressure-lowering mineral potassium, found mainly in produce. Low in saturated fat and high in soluble fiber (which soaks up cholesterol and shuttles it out of your body), this type of diet also cuts cholesterol.

It is cheaper to buy alternative sources of protein like legumes, eggs and low-fat dairy than buying meats.  So with all of these perks to being vegetarian, why not live it?

It's understandable that sometimes you are craving a steak or a hamburger, and being vegetarian can be inconvenient while eating out.  A great way to get some of the benefits of a more plant-based diet is to be a part-time vegetarian.  Eating a mostly vegetarian diet but sometimes allowing yourself meat is starting to be known as flexitarianism.  There are many ways to go about living this lifestyle.  Some people have days of the week where they eat vegetarian meals, like Meatless Mondays or Soy Saturday.  Others choose to eat vegetarian or vegan for two meals out of the day and allow themselves only a small portion of meat with one of their meals.

An average American will eat about 225 pounds of meat, poultry and fish a year.  This is twice as much as the global average.   Going veggie just once a week will reduce meat consumption by 35 pounds annually.  Cutting back on your meat eating habits can greatly affect the greenhouse gas emissions produced by meat production.

There are so many great vegetarian recipes now too, that making this change in your diet doesn't have to be a hassle.  Indian, Chinese, and Middle Eastern cuisines are especially vegetarian friendly and offer a wide variety of plant-based meals.  These places should be high on your list for eating out if you plan on being vegetarian for that meal.  There is also a huge selection of vegetarian cook-books out there with tasty recipes like 500 Ways to Cook Vegetarian: The Ultimate Vegetarian Cookbook, Packed With Easy Ideas for All Tastes and Occasions, Vegetarian Meals on the Go: 101 Quick and Easy-Recipes, and World Vegetarian Classics.

For a lot of people hamburgers are just too hard to give up, so here's a black bean burger recipe from Sandra Lee that will have you craving this veggie burger over a beef burger.

Ingredients

• 1/2 medium yellow onion, roughly chopped
• 1 tablespoon chopped garlic
• 2 (15-ounce) cans black beans, rinsed and drained, divided
• 2 tablespoons freshly chopped cilantro leaves
• 2 teaspoons freshly chopped parsley leaves
• 1 egg
• 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1/2 cup bread crumbs
• Salt and fresh ground black pepper
• 6 hamburger rolls

Optional Toppings:

• 1 tomato, sliced
• 6 small Romaine lettuce leaves, or any other type you have on hand
• 1/3 cup ketchup

Directions

Heat a grill or grill pan over medium-low heat.

In a food processor, pulse onion and garlic until finely chopped. Add 1 can black beans, cilantro, parsley, egg, and red pepper flakes and pulse to combine.

Transfer mixture to a large mixing bowl, add the remaining can of black beans and the bread crumbs. Season with salt and pepper, to taste, and mix until well combined.

Divide mixture into 4 portions and form into patties. Place on hot oiled grill over medium-low heat and cook about 6 minutes a side or until heated through. Toast hamburger buns on a grill. Place a burger on the bottom of each bun. Top with lettuce, tomato and ketchup. Cover the burgers with the top of the bun and serve.