Protein

ff5bhcqftp

I’m a vegetarian. I eat very little because I’m recovering from a serious car crash.
How do I increase my protein intake?
I do drink protein shakes and bars, and only hard boiled eggs.

AnnPT77

I'm a vegetarian, and have been for over 50 years (ovo lacto). While I don't think there's anything wrong with protein/bars or shakes in theory, I don't personally find them tasty or satisfying, so I don't routinely eat them. I also don't like faux meats (impossible burgers, the various kinds of faux chicken, etc.), so don't eat those. Nonetheless, I target a minimum of 100g protein and normally exceed it, often reaching around 120g as a 5'5" woman. That's in maintenance. While losing, it was probably more in the 80s grams (utter minimum) to 90s grams (more common).

I admit I do eat a lot of dairy foods, because I love them. If you don't/can't eat dairy, or don't love it, I think high protein is still possible. I think it's important to focus on high quality sources (complete/balanced in essential amino acids, EAAs; and highly bioavailable.) If you don't know about PDCAAS scores, that would be a good thing to learn about.

Outside of dairy/eggs, the highest quality proteins are likely to be traditional soy foods like tofu, tempeh, natto, etc. Some newer options. like edamame pasta and dry-roasted soy nuts, can also be helpful. Quinoa is a complete protein, but lower PDCAAS, variously estimated at 67-89 out of 100.

I'm assuming you also know about protein complementarity, loosely the idea that we can eat a mix of protein sources, some lower in particular EAAs but others higher in those EAAs, to get a better overall protein quality. Back in the 1970s (when I became veg), we thought we needed to consume the complements all in a single meal; now we know it's a bit more time-flexible. Learning more about that is also a help.

To me, that's where pretty good sources like legumes (beans, peas, etc.) mostly fit in: Decent protein but not stellar in calorie efficiency, not EAA complete/balanced, but a useful contributor in an overall dietary context where the missing EAAS are complemented within a reasonable time horizon. Some people will tell you that nuts or peanut butter are good protein sources. I think they're not. They're generally good sources of mono- and polyunsaturated fats so useful, but the amount of protein for their calories is pretty unimpressive.

To me, the best strategy when starting to lose weight (so eating less) was to review my diary frequently, find foods that I was eating that had relatively many calories but not much protein (and that were less important to me for other nutrition or general happiness). Those were things I could eliminate or reduce (portions/frequency) and replace the calories with other foods I enjoyed eating that had at least some protein. By repeating that process, I gradually evolved my routine eating patterns toward getting adequate protein.

Of course, it's good to plan one "big protein" per meal, much as omnivores do. In addition to that, though, consider sides, snacks, beverages, etc. that you enjoy that have at least a little protein. Those smaller bits through the day can add up.

Don't forget even flavoring ingredients that have some protein for their calories. Some I use often are miso, nutritional yeast, and peanut butter powder (or almond butter powder).

Remember that there are breads with more protein than others, grains with more protein, pastas with more protein (lentil and chickpea pastas and "rice" (really orzo), for example) that have more protein. Read labels in the store. Some of these will be less EAA complete or less bioavailable, but still worth eating.

As an aside, I believe (as do some nutritional experts) that vegetarians should strive to get more protein grams than omnivores, because of EAA completeness and bioavailability issues. (Some vegan/vegetarian advocacy sites will claim otherwise.)

When evaluating new protein sources at the store, I have quick rules of thumb I use. I think that concept is helpful, but you might choose other numeric values depending on your calorie goal and specific nutritional needs. For myself, I figure that a food that has around 10 or fewer calories (from all sources) per gram of protein is a good protein source; and that a prepared food (whole meal/dish) with 20-30 calories (from all sources) per gram of protein is a reasonable prepared dish. I recommend having a rough evaluation rule, no matter the numeric values. It makes evaluating new foods easier.

There's a thread here that links a spreadsheet listing many, many foods in order by protein/calorie efficiency, most protein for fewest calories. (It also includes some quality indicators, but more as a trigger to look deeper IMO.) You'll find the top of the spreadsheet mostly meaty/fishy, but there are plant foods if you scroll down. That can be helpful in identifying veggies, grains and whatnot that have at least some protein. It's here:

https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10247171/carbs-and-fats-are-cheap-heres-a-guide-to-getting-your-proteins-worth-fiber-also

Also, in case you haven't stumbled over this site before, this is a good source for reasonably science-based information about vegan nutrition (also helpful for vegetarians). The content is primarily from registered dietitians who are themselves vegan:

https://veganhealth.org/

IMO, while it's not necessarily perfect, that's more solid than some sites (advocacy sites) that distort the nutritional science, basically to encourage people toward a vegan diet. Don't get me wrong, fully plant-based eating can be good nutritionally . . . but in a context of evidence-based recommendations, not wishful thinking. I've even seen advocacy sites essential claim that plants are just so good for us that we don't need to worry about macro/micro-nutrient factors. I think that's nonsense, personally.

Best wishes!

yirara

ff5bhcqftp wrote: »

I’m a vegetarian. I eat very little because I’m recovering from a serious car crash.
How do I increase my protein intake?
I do drink protein shakes and bars, and only hard boiled eggs.

It's good to eat more protein. When you write though that you eat very little, are you referring to little protein or little in general? Unless your doctor told you to eat little due to damage to your digestive system you really should eat enough because your body needs sufficient energy for healing. Hey, when I broke just one bone I ate 500 calories over maintenance, and was still losing weight. Thus I ate more.

rekhamorar04

What are google dairy options for protein which are healthy?