Going Vegetarian, pls vegetarians need your help!

runjennarun

Hi everyone!

I'm Jenna, and I run. I currently am a meat eater (and dont like the taste of meat, i eat it mainly because of the protein source), but I want to be a vegetarian. I think ever since I was around 13 i wanted to do it, just never really got the effort to do it. I really have no idea how to do it. I mean, how does a vegetarian plate looks like? How am I going to replace the protein, how much dairy will it be allow, ( i really dont like eggs...). how many carbs are allowed? fat? nuts? I had heard that when you go vegetarian you need every year to take some kind of vitamin shots, how true how false is it? If you are a runner and vegetarian how do you do it? Books that can you recommend will also be highly appreciated!

lhanks89

I think the easiest way to transistion to vegetarianism is to start replacing your regular burgers with veggie burgers. The world of soy has become amazing - much more than just tofu. At Target they have products by MorningStar (morningstarfarms.com) which are great. I mean vegetarian BBQ ribs?! What's better than that, especially since they're like 1/3 of the fat of regular ribs!

I've been a vegetarian for 6 years and I've never had to take any vitamin shots, although I do take a multi-vitamin sometimes because I'm an athlete.

30in11

I've been a vegetarian for 13 years and have never had a "yearly" vitamin shot.... I occasionally take a multivitamin, but not really regularly. One thing I do, when I'm working out hard (I run and weight train), is take a protein supplement. I don't like to eat too much dairy, so I usually choose Nutri Biotic Vegan Rice protein powder, vanilla flavour, which is decent when mixed with other stuff. I also sometimes drink Vega smoothies.

As far as diet goes, I would suggest checking out a bunch of vegetarian cookbooks or magazines from the library and seeing what you like and don't like. Vegetarian Times magazine has great recipes with nutritional breakdowns for each. For health reasons, I tend to try to be light on the cheese and include more beans, legumes and nuts in my diet. My plate rarely looks like a meat-eater's might, with a separate portion of "meat", vegetables and grain... usually it's all mixed together, sometimes grains served on a bed of greens. I try to eat as much vegetables (especially dark green ones) as I can.

tlynnweb

I'd love to know the answers too! I toy with the idea myself.

shopgirl192

The Morning-star Mozzarella and Basil Burgers are AMAZING on top of a toasted english muffin! Who needs greasy burgers!!!

lhanks89

Vegweb.com is a great website for vegan recipies, and with all of the meat substitutes out there, you can mostly have the same foods. Like I love tacos, but instead of ground beef I use Veggie Protein Crumbles.

rlmiller73190

i've been a vegetarian for two years-- i've never gotten a vitamin shot. i love to get creative in the kitchen. tip: get a GOOD vegetarian cookbook. I eat pasta, rice, and tons of fresh produce. do you have a farmers market near you? they usually have cheaper produce and it lasts longer. I eat dairy (drink soymilk) and just started eating egg whites (regular eggs make my tummy hurt) :P feel free to ad me if you wanna look at my food diary. i OCCASIONALLY eat fish (if yu like it, yu might try that...)

SoCalSwimmerDude

If you'd like, you can add me as a friend and check out my diary. I'm not a veg but my wife is for the past 22 yrs (since she was 7). I'm the cook and always make meals that are either completely vegetarian, or a meal that has a meat, tofu, or fake meat option. Like tonight, I'll be making vegetarian chili. Bottom line is that our dinners typically have everything a vegetarian needs, its just that I will add organic chicken to mine 50% of the time.

But a few staples in my wifes diet: quinoa, quorn products, tofu, cous cous, pasta (lots of protein!), salads, seeds/nuts, dried fruit, black beans (and other beans), fruits/veggies, raisins, soy/almond milk, and chocolate... actually REAL chocolate is a good source of iron, etc, etc, etc. Just my 2 cents.

crystalinda

I think first off you need to decide what kind of vegetarian you want to be. Many people define vegetarian differently. do you want to be lacto-ovo vegetarian (dairy & eggs - I know you said you don't like eggs but you'd be surprised the amount of foods that contain these products)? Vegan (no animal by products whatsoever)? If you want to go vegan maybe the best way is to easy your way into by going lacto-ovo first then phase out animal products. One of the biggest challenges new vegetarians have is figuring out how to create a well rounded diet so kudos to you for doing research first. I've heard terrible stories of people who went vegetarian by simply cutting out meat in their diets without supplement it with alternatives then ended up becoming anemic and losing hair!

On the other hand I've been Pescatarian (fish yes, no red meat, chicken, pork, etc.) for 17 years as I was adjusting in the early years I would grapple with mild anemia but nothing too major. Fish is a great source of protein which is why I decided to stick with it and not go full board veggie. But if you do make the jump you will need to eat plant based sources of protein in place of meat. Examples; nuts, peanut butter, beans. One thing meat is a good source of that is harder to get when you don't eat meat is Iron and vitamin B12. I will get B12 shots on occasion because its harder to consume in a meatless diet.

Read up on alternative protein sources such as tempeh, tofu, soy.

I have fish maybe 2 to 3xs a week, not only is it good source of protein while being low in fat its also a good source of omeg 3 fatty acids. But other than having fish, my protein is usually way above my MFP goals and I like to keep it there. Ways that I make that happen is by eating soy products, protein shakes, dry unbleached nuts, edamame, protein heavy breads (perfect 10 bagels, ezekiel bread, etc.)

crystalinda

Also, if you're really going to go vegan there are a lot of foods that contain animal products that you might be aware of. For example, gelatin is an animal based product that is found in a lot of processed foods like jello, most yogurts, and many candies. So you may have to read food labels and do some research in the beginning.

One of the simplest ways to simplify this confusion is to cut back on processed foods. If you don't know what's in it or if you don't recognize the ingredients - don't eat it.

runjennarun

I had in fact tried the morning star products, which in fact I like; however, i do not want to eat to much process food (as I do not do right now). So then all I might need is ideas on how to balance this diet (I'm so exited right now!). I want to begin with a lacto-ovo vegetarian diet. I don't like eggs so those might not be seen to often ( i mainly use them for when I bake) and my main problem will be giving up dairy ( i just have a sick relationship with cheese) and milk I don't like the taste of it so I only drink almond milk (used to drink soy then I stop due to all the concern regarding soy). This is going to be hard, that's why I want to begin just giving up meat, gelatin and stuff like this. I hope that within a year I can be vegan. I love vegetables, fruits, nuts and of course bread. So this might not be hard, but I also don't want to have a bad experience and get scare, like someone mention losing hair could happen if I don't do it right. Well Thank you all so much! Your information is greatly appreciated! I will check out your suggestions! and thanks for letting me add you to find inspiration! Thank you, thank you! And if you can add more information still will be appreciated!

30in11

If your ultimate goal is to be vegan, you should definitely check out Isa Chandra Moskowitz's cookbooks... the Veganomicon, Vegan with a Vengeance, etc. They're great... pretty much everything coming out of those books tastes great. She also has a weight loss one Appetite for Reduction that I haven't checked out yet, but I've heard it's great.

perceptualobfuscator

There's a lot of misinformation and scare tactics out there regarding vegetarianism/veganism. Don't listen to it. The 'vitamin shot' thing is one of them. As well, many doctors are not dietary specialists. If you want advice on eating, try to see a dietician. I would recommend doing this a month or so after becoming vegetarian, just so someone with appropriate expertise can make sure you're doing it right. A word of caution - in many countries, the term 'nutritionist' is unregulated, so nearly anyone can claim to be qualified as one. This is why I recommend seeing a dietician instead.

I've found that most people who 'get sick' after going veggie have not done very much research on the subject. So to avoid getting sick and having false starts, make sure you know your stuff!!

I don't know where you're from, so I can't speak for your region, but I know that since I started being vegetarian ten years ago, the world has become a lot more accepting of vegetarianism. I mean, then I could hardly find a veggie burger at a grocery store, and now I can find them at restaurants. It's gotten a lot easier over the years, but (again, depending on where you live) you may still face ignorant and volatile reactions simply for choosing not to consume meat.

Most veggies don't have much of a problem having a balanced diet, though it is a little bit trickier for vegans. Make sure you have vegetarian nutrition down first, and again, research is your friend.

I first started out being vegetarian when I was quite young, and relied upon store-bought veggie meats to replace actual meat in my diet. Over time, I was able to prepare more food myself and now don't have that sort of reliance. Maybe this is something you could do, while you are researching better options?

For cookbooks, I love the Veganomicon, How it All Vegan (and other books by these authors), and the Vegan Lunch Box. But a really good resource is www.vegweb.com. I've found it incredibly useful.

One thing to watch out for when researching food and nutrition is your resource's reason for being vegetarian/vegan. If it's health concerns when you care about animal welfare, you may be surprised to find people consuming caesar salad (often containing anchovy paste), marshmallows and other candy (gelatin), yogurts (often gelatin) and other items that contain animal parts. I religiously check the ingredient list of every item I purchase. Eventually, it's easy to spot what doesn't belong; however, it's more difficult for vegans. Dairy is in many unexpected items - even some soy cheese (casein). Again, many people who are veggie for the health are unconcerned about this, so it depends on your mileage.

There are plenty of easy-to-google beginner vegetarian guides online, but make sure it's made by a reliable source of information. If you can find references to research papers, all the better. Beware of fad-dieters who think that vegan is the new Atkins. These people often want a quick fix for the health problem a la mode and are unreliable. Try a vegetarian society for beginner guidance, like https://www.vegsoc.org/ or others.

Lastly, being vegetarian really isn't all that complicated. Don't eat meat, make sure you get enough calories/nutrients, and you should be fine.

runjennarun

You know it didn't cross my mind to talk to a dietitian until you mentioned. Obviously I will get the best resources from one of them. And yes part of my concern about going vegetarian and hopefully in the future vegan has to do with the cruelty to animals, environmental reasons are also dragging me to do this. And of course I want to do it right. Right now I am trying to find information on which animal products to look for in yogurts, and so on. So thank you for the information! Means a lot to me to have so much support towards this!!!!

milaxx

You don't need shots, but you do need to take care that you are eating a balanced diet. I eat eggs, but if you don't care for them there's no need to eat them. I am also a cancer survivor so I limit my processed soy products and tofu. There are tons of grains, beans and legumes you can get protein I limit the fake meats like morning star/boca/quorn products. They can be just as bad for you as any other processed food and should not make up the bulk of your diet.

Feel free to peek at my diary. It's not perfect, but I put forth a lot of effort to eat as clean as possible.

PirateJenny

Feel free to add me, I have been a vegetarian most of my life (29 years this August) and I eat a pretty clean diet. I am also knowledgeable about vegetarianism and good food choices.

Milaxx had a great point. Vegetarians have almost as many poor food choices available to them as people who eat meat.

The subtraction of meat and animal additives does not insure a healthy diet, just like the inclusion of meat doesn't insure an unhealthy one. I love being a vegetarian and it is absolutely the right choice for me, but I have many fit and healthy friends who include meat in their diets and that is the right choice for them.

Good luck and welcome!

LaSirena29

Vegetarian Times magazine has a great Vegetarian Starter Kit brochure. They've got a digital copy online. I think it would be worth checking out for anyone interested in going vegetarian.
http://www.vegetariantimes.com/2007/pdf/vegetarian_starter_kit.pdf
When I decided to become vegetarian (at age 15), and it looked like it was not just a stage I was going through, my mom got me a subscription to Vegetarian Times for my birthday. I found it really helpful.

Oh, and about that shot....I've been a vegetarian for 25 years now. This is the first I've ever heard of a yearly vitamin shot. I don't even take a daily vitamin (mostly because I can never remember to take it), but I work really hard to get my vitamins & nutrients from the foods I'm eating. Feel free to add me as a friend if you like.

mabug01

for free medical and practical information, with lots of recipes, try dr. john mcdougall's website.

monkeysmum

ive been veggie for 16years now never needed a vitamin jab and the only time i got anemic is with my 5kids cute little troubles nick my iron lol but iron tablets worked for me

i gave up meat for 2 reasons how it was kept prier to slaughter (not as much with the oraganic stuff when i was young) and i really dont like taste love the smell hate the taste same for fish i can stomach prawns and scampi hate all other fish taste smell texture

alternative protein sources quorn, quinoa whole grains, beans lentils legumes etc heres a site you might find helpful
http://vegetarian.about.com/od/healthnutrition/tp/protein.htm
meat free products have come along way they have better taste and texture but have a try see what you like. get a good veggie cook book and just experiment with meals
best of luck

mabug01

If you stick with the 'three sisters' (corn, beans and squash) you can't go wrong nutritionally. Also, potatos (any kind) are also a nutritionally perfect food.

missusjess

I've been lacto-ovo vegetarian for just over a year now. I'm starting to give up dairy though. I think one of the biggest misconceptions about vegetarians is that we don't get enough protein. Without trying, I regularly meet the "recommended" protein levels... I just think Americans are obsessed with protein.

Personally, I don't care for all the faux meats. If I wanted to eat meat, I'd eat meat, you know? I do enjoy black bean burgers because they're delicious (I make homemade ones now) and what's not to love about something you can put on bread?

I've found that my biggest problem with vegetarianism is that I've begun to rely TOO much on pasta/bread/etc to fill me up and it's really not necessary. Right now, I'm trying to cut back on some of those things and up the veggies, legumes, etc.