Vegetarian?

coliegirl531

I'm semi-new to my fitness pal and I've already lost 20 pounds. I want to lose 40 more by my birthday which is a little over 4 months away. I work at a grocery store called Whole Foods and about a month ago, I went to a vegetarian info meeting and since decided to switch over into a vegetarian lifestyle. So, I was just wondering if any of you are also vegetarians and if you have any advise for someone who's just starting out?
Thanks,
Colie

coliegirl531

I'm semi-new to my fitness pal and I've already lost 20 pounds. I want to lose 40 more by my birthday which is a little over 4 months away. I work at a grocery store called Whole Foods and about a month ago, I went to a vegetarian info meeting and since decided to switch over into a vegetarian lifestyle. So, I was just wondering if any of you are also vegetarians and if you have any advise for someone who's just starting out?
Thanks,
Colie

rhondababy

HI! Welcome!
I'm not a vegetarian right now (but just eat fish, and chicken a few times per week). My big tip for anybody who is becoming a vegetarian, especially with a weight issue) is to be careful not to overdo the carbs. I gained a lot of weight when I was veg. because I wasn't getting enough protein,and was constantly battling my blood sugar. Unfortunately I ate way too much whole wheat pasta, bagels, brown rice with veggies...all good, healthy stuff, but the calories add up FAST! I don't think I could actually be completely vegetarian, and be physically comfortable. For me the balance is some chicken or fish two-three times per week. I eat tofu, eggs, beans, yogurt for a lot of my protein. Mmmmmm!

zenmama

YES read the gradual vegetarian. It tells you how to become a veg head the right way.

FYI I had been a veg head for 20 years 2 of them Vegan. Watch out for carb overload!

dd

beanyspoon

I used to be a vegetarian. I had to stop once I started travelling when I was younger as I just couldn't eat. I was a vegetarian until I was 14, for about two years.

I love my veggies so eating them wasn't a problem. You need to make sure you take in plenty of iron and eat enough protien though.

I used to love having a vegetable burger with my veggies with loads of gravy on! But to keep up my protiens I ate Quorn and things like that. Quorn now do a "family roast" which is a bit like a chicken roast but a lot lower in fat and high in protien and fibre. And you can cook it for family or friends too and you can all eat it.

One of my favourite things was, and still is, meat free meat balls (if that makes sense) fry them a little bit of olive oil and serve with veggies and potatoes it's low in fat and really delicious!

Try and mix up having veggies every night by having a salad every now and again - try low fat dressings on them to spice it up a little.

You can buy vitamins that are designed specifically for vegetarian diets - give them a whirl.

Good luck and well done on making a healthy desicion

erkuhns79

I switched over to a vegetarian lifestyle 1/2/08 (I ate a small portion of pork on New Year's day). So far so good...although, I do miss some of the chicken dishes I used to eat. My best advice is to substitute beans or chicken where you would normally use meat. One of my favorite things to make is spinach and cheese tortilla wraps, bean burritos or bean chili (use the same recipe as meat chili, just use a bit more beans to make up for not using meat). If I'm really craving something meaty, I buy boca products - "chick'n" patties are my favorite. And suprisingly enough, they are cheaper then buying real chicken patties.

Eating out can sometimes be difficult. My favorite restaurants offer non-meat selections (subway, moe's & isaac's). Or ask for pasta dishes without the meat.

Being a vegetarian doesn't have to cost a lot either. Beans and veggies are definitely cheaper then buying meats. Try going to farmer's markets for fruits and veggies. Tofu kind of freaks me out but that's cheap too. Where a vegetarian lifestyle can get expensive is if you try to buy all organic.

The only pitfall: I found that I'm eating a lot more cheesey dishes then I did before...but you can make them healthy too...like homemade pita pizza with lowfat cheese or mac-n-cheese with whole wheat noodles and lowfat cheese. Try some cookbooks out...eventually you won't need them & you'll get crafty on your own. Good luck!!! :flowerforyou:

erkuhns79

My best advice is to substitute beans or chicken where you would normally use meat.

I meant to say substiute "beans or veggies" - haha!:laugh:

may_marie

Hi there, Welcome to the vegetarian world !

I have been a vegetarian for over 2 years now and it is one of the most rewarding thing I have done. It was real easy !! And so good for soooo many reasons.

The hardest part is for other people around to understand, I dunno how many times i have been given soup with chicken or beef broth when i was told it was vegetarian. A lot of people just dont understand what it means to be vegetarian. The best tip for that is to be clear about what you DON'T want on your plate.

Also when I started to be a vegetarian I was surpise how much meat byproducts there was in unsuspected foods, for exemple you have to watch out for rennet in cheese ( witch are bits of the calf stomach). Rennet in present in most american cheese, read the ingredients if its says microbian enzymes your fine, (try tillamooch or organic cheese they tend not to have any, if you live in the uk, the vast majority of cheese are fine). As well watch out for wine (and beer in the uk) as most of it is filtered with the swim bladder from fish (there are good websites that helps to know what brands are ok). Dont forget to look out for gelatins as well (made of animal bones, like jell-o). With time you get to know the products that you buy most often and then it becomes easier, at first you do a lot of label reading. But don't be put out by it, even if you dont look for all of that you are still making a difference everytime you avoid meat or fish.

Being vegetarian is a healthy way of life ( its been proven that vegetarians live longer in general ) but dont expect to just loose tons of weight because of it, most chocolate, ice cream and tons of other goodies are vegetarian and they are not good for you.

some websites:
http://www.vegsoc.org
http://www.goveg.com

any question just ask me, im always happy to help.
may