Any vegans?

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lanerachel3968
lanerachel3968 Posts: 5 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I'm vegan and counting macros. I'm having a hard time getting all of my protein in though. Does anyone else have this issue? Any suggestions for food choices? Happy hoildays!

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  • Gotchocolate
    Gotchocolate Posts: 18 Member
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    I had to add some protein bars, I always have one for breakfast and sometimes another one later in the day. I've tried a few and the best is this brand called Raw Rev Glow, I get them on amazon subscribe and save. The creamy peanut butter and dark chocolate sea salt peanut butter are the best I've tried. Don't get the mint, ick! But anyway they are organic, vegan and raw and don't have much sugar or and chemicals. They also have a lot of iron, which we veggies need. For example the. Rwamy peanut butter has 180 calories, 15 grams protein and only like 3 grams of sugar. Anyway, I hope that is helpful, I have to eat really perfect to get my protein without a bar thrown in the mix. Good for you for losing meat and dairy! I'm imperfect with the dairy but I try:)
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
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    I get most of my protein from beans, grains, tempeh, tofu, and seitan, rounding it out with vegetables and nuts/seeds. Once or twice a week I will probably have a protein bar or shake. One thing that I found helped me when I was struggling to get enough was to build each meal around a higher protein food and then rounding it out with fats and carbohydrates.
  • kyliempressnell1229
    kyliempressnell1229 Posts: 21 Member
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    Meeeee and I'm set at 75% carbs and 15%protein and 10% fat and hitting protein is a breeze with Whole Foods :)
    I eat Whole Foods all week and my "cheat" includes the processed vegan cheese or Oreos haha
  • asltiffm
    asltiffm Posts: 521 Member
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    Greens! Eat them all day long.
  • asltiffm
    asltiffm Posts: 521 Member
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    Also, your body stores amino acids for 2 weeks, I think it is, and combines them to make proteins. So if you are eating a wide range of fruits and veggies, you should be getting al the amino acids you need.
  • litoria
    litoria Posts: 239 Member
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    Yep, vegan here and I have no problems meeting my protein goal - chia seeds every morning. Pulses at least once a day, and quinoa with salad quite often. PLUS large quantities of veg.
  • Zinka61
    Zinka61 Posts: 563 Member
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    Add some nutritional yeast to your diet, and don't forget leafy greens like spinach for protein, soy milk, tofu, tempeh, seitan, and of course, beans.
  • lynn_glenmont
    lynn_glenmont Posts: 10,020 Member
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    asltiffm wrote: »
    Also, your body stores amino acids for 2 weeks, I think it is, and combines them to make proteins. So if you are eating a wide range of fruits and veggies, you should be getting al the amino acids you need.

    I don't know about the two weeks, but setting that aside, the point that you're missing is that if you're in a perpetual dietary protein deficit, even being able to store amino acids for two weeks won't be any help, because you won't have any extra to store.

    Yes on being able to get all the amino acids you need from a wide range of plant foods, if you're including legumes, nuts, seeds, and grains, but probably not if you're only eating what most people think of when they say "fruits and veggies" (I don't think most people think of legumes, nuts, and seeds, and I doubt anyone thinks of grains, when they say fruits and veggies).

    Almost all foods (including animal flesh) are relatively low in one essential amino acid or another ("essential" = your body can't construct it itself), so restricting yourself to just what is typically meant by "fruits and veggies" would likely mean eating huge amounts (probably even above maintenance calorie levels) to be able to get all your essential amino acids.

    Green veggies like broccoli have a good amount of protein per calorie, but they are naturally so low in calories, that you have to consume massive amounts to hit your overall protein needs, let alone get a sufficient amount of all essential amino acids. For example, someone weighing about 70 kilos (about 155 lbs) would have to eat 2 kilos (4 and a half pounds) of broccoli a day to get needed amounts of methoinine and cysteine (and that's based on WHO recommendations, which probably are not aimed at muscle-sparing levels in individuals eating at a deficit).

    So, best to eat a wide variety of vegan-friendly foods, including beans and other legumes (peas, lentils) and legume-based foods (tofu, soymilk, tempeh, hummus, falafel), nuts and nut-butters, seeds, and grains (quinoa, wheat, seitan, oats, barley, corn, etc.), as well as "fruits and veggies."
  • veganfaceholex
    veganfaceholex Posts: 5 Member
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    I get my protein from beans, tofu and soymilk. I dont like other legumes..
    -You can make scrambled tofu with taco seasoning and make tacos!
    -I also like fried tofu with veggies (stir fry)
    -Or beans, I make a at home chipotle salad with beans, rice and pico!
    -Also bean soup. Or bean tostadas!

    And I get fats from avocados & nut butter
    The majority of my calories are from Carbs so i eat a lot of fruit & rice.

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