Vegetarian dieting

sunshinestate

It is such a struggle losing weight as a vegetarian! In the past, when I dieted, I could eat loads of protein and stay full forever. It is so much harder without meat. I miss my turkey and chicken breasts!

Any tips?

m0dizzle

Vegetarian here!
Quinoa is full of protein! Also, for breakfast I like to make a smoothie with Silken Tofu in it to pack in protein. Legumes and beans are your best friend! Get some Lentils and chick peas- they go well with a lot of things.

sunshinestate

Thanks! Quinoa for breakfast? I never would have thought of that. I've been too scared to try tofu in smoothies. It just seems so weird. I guess you can't knock it until you try it.

m0dizzle

I was too, silken tofu is made for smoothies, its basically the consistancy of greek yogurt once blended. Throw some berries in and maybe almond milk and its delicious!

gingerb85

You do need to be careful of carbs and high fat dairy. Many vegetarian recipes will have one or the other - or both.

Beans and lentils are good for you, full of fiber and protein, and they are filling. If you chose a grain, go for a whole grain. Brown rice instead of white. Try other grains, too. Bulghur. Millet. Quinoa. Whole grain pastas instead of white.

I love hummus and veggies for a snack. I'll make a sandwich with whole grain sandwich rounds that are lower in calories and I'll fill it with a few spoons of hummus, baby spinach, thinly slice cucumber, grated carrot, thinly sliced red bell pepper, whatever is in the veggie bin that sounds good.

Stay away for processed foods as much as possible, including veggie burgers. You can make your own with beans and grains and control the calories and sodium that go into it.

Nutrient dense soups will fill you up without a huge calorie load.

whencynstops

I use vegan cookbooks but make them vegetarian. I have found cookbooks aimed at vegetarians rely heavily on cheese and high fat foods.

fuzzimama

I'm not vegetarian but I probably only eat meat/fish/poultry about two times a week total. On the days that I don't have meat/fish/poultry I am no more hungry than usual eating cereal +/- fruit/yoghurt/milk for breakfast. Usually a few prunes for morning tea. A sandwich, baked potato or similar for lunch, then an egg or bean based main with plenty of veges, and a piece of baking for supper and fruit for snacking between meals. I find eating slightly smaller meals and eating at least three snacks per day, plus hot drinks between meals works well to keep the hunger away.

rinalyn

I wouldn't actually say that it's harder. I lost 77 lbs when I went from vegetarian to vegan. I've kept most of that at bay (though part of it I have gained back due to a streak of laziness and working midnights). As long as you are giving your body what it needs, it will love you. Also, vegetables are much easier for the stomach to process than meat. What does your diet look like?

MrsODriscoll

I find that having porridge for breakfast really fills me up. Then for lunches and dinners I make a lot of pulse-heavy stews and curries, or have stir fried veggies with rice, or lots of filling veggie soups. If it's protein you want, then try smoked or flavoured tofu added to your meal, or veggie burgers or sausages.

tiggersstar

Most protein alternatives such as quorn are lower in fat than meat. i eat a lot of quorn in stir frys.


:flowerforyou:

bethberg12

I'm not vegetarian, but we keep Kosher. Meat is really $$$$, so we eat it about 1x/week. I get a lot of recipe ideas from the Eating Well magazine website b/c they do a ton of veggie options. Ditto to everyone that talked about lentils, beans, etc. I've done quinoa breakfast before over Passover, and it was okay. You have to like the flavor of quinoa and I just don't. Even doctored up w/milk and cinnamon, I still wasn't a fan.

fteale

Quorn light bites are a god send.

Also greek yoghurt.

fuzzimama

In respect to Quorn, as far as I know its not available in NZ, so my meals never contain processed meat substitutes and I am always over on my protein. It makes me laugh to think I was one of the people thinking "But what about your protein?" about a vegetarian diet before. I don't even think about making my protein target and it happens (although of course that is slightly different from having a protein focused diet).

m0dizzle

http://www.poorgirleatswell.com/category/recipes-3/vegetarian-recipes

There's some great ones here.

sunshinestate

I can't wait to check out the recipe site. In reading your posts, I think it may be the cheese and vegennaise is my downfall. That and sweets (although I have given up sweets since the holidays have passed).

A typical day might be a fried egg and coffee, a clementine for a snack, tuna made with vegenaisse on romaine with avocado, tomato, chickpeas and oil and vinegar for dressing for lunch, and for dinner whole wheat spaghetti with tomato sauce and fake meat and mushrooms...

Just typing that out, I think vegennaise and good fats might be my problem. Avocado is definitely good fat, but when I eat it, I usually eat the whole thing!

I've never heard of quorn. Will have to look for that!

fuzzimama

Avocado is definitely good fat, but when I eat it, I usually eat the whole thing!

Teehee, yes. My *new* portion size of avocado is 1/4 of one (but I could easily eat the whole thing!) Mmmm, we're in avocado season atm, so always have some on hand. Will be making avocado and cucumber sushi for dinner tonight (and lunch tomorrow - that's one benefit of MFP, leftovers LOL).

sunshinestate

Avocado is nature's butter. I could eat a whole avocado every day.

fuzzimama

I'm sure eating a whole avocado is absolutely fine if it works in with your calories. Back to your OP, are you sticking carefully to your calorie limit for a couple of weeks and seeing absolutely no change?

sweet_lotus

I can't wait to check out the recipe site. In reading your posts, I think it may be the cheese and vegennaise is my downfall. That and sweets (although I have given up sweets since the holidays have passed).

If you have a sweet tooth, eating a fruit as a "dessert" with every meal can help. The fiber will help fill you up and the fruit sugar will satisfy a craving. When I was losing, I had a little ritual of chopping up a raw fruit and vegetable with lunch and dinner and it really helped me feel full. I even bought cute little tapas plates to put them on to encourage myself!

People have some good ideas about vegetarian protein too. I agree with the person who said to eat whole grains to fill out a meal - they will had some protein and fill you up too. Greek yogurt and soy nuts are my protein go-tos - they make awesome snacks. Looking at your meal plan I would add a protein to your morning snack to help keep you feeling full.

jjsolgat

I dont want to sound like Im marketing but I know a friend who is vegan who is stoked for our new tropical berry shakeology. We have two other ones that contain weigh protein that works for me as a part of my diet, but I didnt know if you dont do weigh protein either?! My fitness pal also helps me out especially when you log a day and it says in 5 weeks you will weight this much

sunshinestate

To be honest, I just started counting calories. I wanted to just be able to eat healthy and work out and have my weight stay the same or at least go down a little - evidently it's not that easy. Despite my best efforts, I was gaining weight. Quitting smoking didn't help. Also, I used to teach, but now I have a desk job and I guess being sedentary means a LOT less calories.