new vegan in desperate need of guidance, please :)

KickingButt

ok, so I have been vegetarian for 12 years... 3 weeks vegan.
started when I found freelee the banana girl... was trying to follow her life style... needless to say im totally lost. have questions I cant get answered.
few things... I am underweight, so I don't do cardio crazy like her and a lot of ppl iv noticed that do the high fruit diet..
I do weight train though. all at home because a gym does not fit the budget right now. so iv been kind of shying away from her but still kind of on the 80/10/10 guidelines, except I eat cooked foods at night ( tofu, steam veg, etc)
I guess what im asking for here is good healthy ways to gain weight(muscle) yet still follow close to this... I don't eat pastas, breads, etc... all whole foods...except the tofu of course...
I know of a vegan protein powder I could add if that's a good idea? honestly I just really need some support and advice for all these things I don't understand!!! please help
you can friend request/msg me/respond here... anything... just feel like im walking around in the dark and I just don't want to give up on this just because I couldn't figure it out
thank you guys in advance!!!!!!

myveganp

Hey there! I'm a vegan 97% of the time (sometimes eating cheese or fish when I'm starving on a deserted island somewhere ) and also find myself protein deficient most days. Lately I've been using Perfect Fit Vanilla Protein by Tone it Up and I really like it. It tastes pretty good and keeps me full without adding lots of carbs, calories, or sugar. Since you mention being underweight, that may not be a "Perfect Fit" for you since it won't add much in the calorie area, but it is a great protein boost. Do you eat tempeh or seitan? I'm trying to build muscle too and it's definitely tricky being vegan (though at the same time, it makes it easy to not overindulge on unhealthy fats and other scary crap that's in dairy and meat). Nutritional yeast has a good amount of protein in it and is great to throw on salads and veggies. Chia and hemp seeds are also amazing sources of protein.

JessiGoodwin

Do you eat many nuts? I often find that a couple of TBS of raw almond butter or a handful of nuts helps to increase my energy level and gives me some healthy fats to boot Sometimes I'll make a raw cashew 'cream' to drizzle over fruit (to boost fat and protein) or a garlic aioli sauce (also made from raw cashews) to dollop on dishes in place of sour cream (taco salad, baked potatoes, greens, raw or cooked chili, etc).

Quinoa is another great source of protein and healthy carbs (if you aren't completely raw).

danikanoodles

You don't need protein powder to build muscles. Protein powders just add to the toxic load to the body and are un-natural and hard on the body. I've been following 80/10/10 with the exception of times here and there when I am low on fruit for the past 2.5-3 years and have had no issue gaining muscle. You can find a lot of people on the 30bananasaday site who are building muscle. Many people go to that lifestyle for the athletic benefits hence the large amounts of runners/cyclists but muscle building is certainly possible.

Hydration is also very important. Drink extra on the days you eat cooked since even the cleanest cooked options are very dehydrating. Ditch the salt if adding any. Body weight training for functional strength and if you're using weights, low reps high weight.