Too Much Fruit?? (Fruit,Vegan,&Weight loss)

HealthFreak1967

Hey everyone I'm new here, and I have a question concerning fruit.. I tried to google it but nothing really came up.

I really love fruits and I like to try to stay as natural, whole, and raw as possible so fruits and veggies take up a big part of my diet. I'm also a vegan if that matters. Anyways, I'm wondering if eating a lot of fruit will matter in my weight loss goals as long as, of course, I stay within my calorie limit?? People go on about ow fruit has a lot of sugar, and that it will get converted to fat if you eat too much carbohydrates...

I have noticed, since I've been tracking all my food, my carb intake is quite high - from eating things like fruit, beans, quinoa/brown rice, ezekiel sprouted bread, and vegetables. Usually my intake is around 190-220g.

My protein intake is always good, in the 35-45g area, and I try to limit my fat so it ranges from 20g to a higher 35g if i have something like avocado, almonds, or flax and chia seeds. And lastly, I run 5x a week for at least 30min-40min, plus brisk walking.

Anyways, SORRY THIS IS LONG here's an example of the fruit I would typically incorporate into breakfast & snacks (please tell me if you think its too much or will hinder my weight loss)

breakfast:
-ALWAYS a banana (my favorite food). I have at least one a day, sometimes two.
-apple
-4 or 5 strawberries

snack #1:
-black seedless grapes

snack #2:
-dried plums!!! (prunes)
-any other handy fruit we have such as watermelon or cantaloupe

thanks for reading :-)

Pink_Chocolate

I am not Vegan. But I was wondering the same thing about too much fruit. Especially because every time I track my food on here my sugar intake is too high because of the amount of fruit I eat. I hope someone can answer these questions. :-)

HealthFreak1967

Yeah, same here! I'm not sure but I do research a lot about raw food diets, made up of 80% fruit and none of them are fat, in fact most are pretty thin. But I guess I'd just like to know everyone's take on it : )

joy31021

bump

HealthFreak1967

Sorry but being vegan sucks, of course you are helping animals but you are f** yourself.
also, 25g protein? Hahaha damm, a baby can eat more than that just drinking milk lol.

No I said 35-45 grams of protein :-) And actually milk only has ~8g protein per cup, which I can get from nutritious veggies, grains, beans, and nuts. All without the added unnatural hormones and pesticides

UponThisRock

You'd have to eat way more than 220g for carbs to start converting to fat in any meaningful amount.

If you don't lose weight, it's because you're eating too many calories, and/or not doing enough activity.

_GlaDOS_

I don't think it's a problem to eat that much fruit. But, if you are exercising, it is important to get enough protein. I don't think 35-45g is really enough for someone who exercises. Aim for at least .75g-1g of protein per pound of lean body mass, and 0.3-0.5g of fat per pound of total body weight. Then fill in the rest with carbs, and if you go over carbs, as long as you hit your protein and fat goals, I don’t think there is a problem with that.

secretlobster

I don't think that's too much fruit. But if you want the best nutritional benefits from fruit, eat more berries than anything else. They are lower in calories/sugars too. I agree that if you don't lose weight, it's because you're consuming too many calories, not because you eat too much fruit.

Also a note: Please recognize that since you have decided to be a vegan, you need to accept that your nutrition ratios are going to look different. You are going to consume more carbs and fewer protein than people with omnivorous diets. Don't cut back on vegetables because of carb content... But I think it is a bad idea to limit your fat intake if it inhibits your protein consumption as well. Protein is really important and you should get all you can.

HealthFreak1967

I don't think it's a problem to eat that much fruit. But, if you are exercising, it is important to get enough protein. I don't think 35-45g is really enough for someone who exercises. Aim for at least .75g-1g of protein per pound of lean body mass, and 0.3-0.5g of fat per pound of total body weight. Then fill in the rest with carbs, and if you go over carbs, as long as you hit your protein and fat goals, I don’t think there is a problem with that.

Okay, thanks for the advice! I'll try to up my protein intake that way my muscles will be safe. And yeah, lot's of people have a distaste for vegans, I'm not too badly offended anymore.

Verity1111

it is true that too much sugar is bad for you, but I study nutrition and plan to go that career path..& carbs are the most necessary part of our diet. Forget what people try to say about protein because although it is important we NEED carbs and lots of them or our system is negatively affected. That said, 100 is a lot..and you are doing a lot more than that..but low carb diets are not healthy either, no matter how they're advertised because it is not natural for us to eat low carbs. We naturally crave sugar when it is low and blood sugar is very important. Our body usually knows best..I would say you will lose weight because it is predominantly calories in - calories out and the only issue is your insulin levels because the more sugar and carbs you take risk of becoming insulin resistant. Just be careful and balance it out with lots of healthy vegetables and protein substances too.

HealthFreak1967

I don't think that's too much fruit. But if you want the best nutritional benefits from fruit, eat more berries than anything else. They are lower in calories/sugars too. I agree that if you don't lose weight, it's because you're consuming too many calories, not because you eat too much fruit.

Thanks for the tip, I hadn't been consuming too many berries lately as I was waiting for them to be in season. But I did get some today so I'll try to eat 'em more often, especially since summer is around the corner. And plus berries do keep ya full and energized ;P

maggie16sweetxoxo

Just watch how much fruit, also you would be suprised how much sugar is in fresh fruit maybe watch your sugar too good luck!

secretlobster

Thanks for the tip, I hadn't been consuming too many berries lately as I was waiting for them to be in season. But I did get some today so I'll try to eat 'em more often, especially since summer is around the corner. And plus berries do keep ya full and energized ;P

Freeze-dried berries are some of my favorite snacks! I'm drooling

HealthFreak1967

it is true that too much sugar is bad for you, but I study nutrition and plan to go that career path..& carbs are the most necessary part of our diet. Forget what people try to say about protein because although it is important we NEED carbs and lots of them or our system is negatively affected. That said, 100 is a lot..and you are doing a lot more than that..but low carb diets are not healthy either, no matter how they're advertised because it is not natural for us to eat low carbs. We naturally crave sugar when it is low and blood sugar is very important. Our body usually knows best..I would say you will lose weight because it is predominantly calories in - calories out and the only issue is your insulin levels because the more sugar and carbs you take risk of becoming insulin resistant. Just be careful and balance it out with lots of healthy vegetables and protein substances too.

that's awesome I would love to be a nutrition major, but I can't do chemistry Anyways, that makes sense. I'll try to do that for sure

asllady717

Keep an eye on your sugar intake or you might as well be eating snickers for lunch. That being said, have you tried replacing some of that fruit with veggies? That could be a way to lower your sugar while still eating fresh, healthy food without meat. And although it's good you are getting some protein, your body really needs protein to keep going. Here's what I found about protein intake:

"The standard method used by nutritionists to estimate our minimum daily protein requirement is to multiply the body weight in kilograms by .8, or weight in pounds by .37. This is the number of grams of protein that should be the daily minimum. According to this method, a person weighing 150 lbs. should eat 55 grams of protein per day, a 200-pound person should get 74 grams, and a 250-pound person should eat 92 grams." -http://lowcarbdiets.about.com/od/nutrition/a/protein.htm

It's hard to find truly organic, healthy food that is affordable. It's a challenge that not everyone can do!

karenwill2

Rock on with your vegan self!

simplyeater

Meh, everything stores as fat if you don't use it. Even the holy protein.

HealthFreak1967

Thanks for the tip, I hadn't been consuming too many berries lately as I was waiting for them to be in season. But I did get some today so I'll try to eat 'em more often, especially since summer is around the corner. And plus berries do keep ya full and energized ;P

Freeze-dried berries are some of my favorite snacks! I'm drooling

ooo that sounds deelish!! My favorite frozen fruits are grapes (they take forever to eat and you get really full and refreshed and energetic when you're done!) and also frozen, then blended bananas + unsweetened chocolate almond milk for 'ice cream'

Llorraine11

i have been a vegan vegetarian for a long time.. i do eat lots fruit and vegg.. but i do eat protein bars and shakes.. my skin is flawless.. i get told almost everyday i have a natural glow.. i was so over weight and i lost a lot of weight cause of my diet and i go to the gym 6 days a week for min of 2hrs even 3 sometimes.. i still am not where i want to be but i have had children and i am 40 and i look better than ever.. plus i am happy.. i am no expert on this but being a vegan or vegetarian works for me..

lorraine

jolarocknrolla

I have insulin issues so take my advice w/ a grain of salt ... of the fruits/berries you mentioned i'd cut back on the grapes because those are REALLY sugary. No reason to cut a bannana or apple from your diet, that's great fiber and potassioum in there - you have to eat SOMETHING after all. Make sure to get plenty of veggies and beans though and you can enjoy your fruits.

Next time you are at the doctor's have them measure your fasting blood sugar ... if your doc says it's in an acceptable range i wouldn't worry about it. If it's getting a bit high i'd cut back on some of the more sugary fruits.

LordBezoar

Green leafy veggies are your friend here. Do a green shake in the AM, that helps a ton with getting you to feel full and satisfied. The first objection I get when I say green shakes is disbelief that I put Spinach, Kale or Romaine lettuce in my shakes. People don't believe that it can taste good, but it can. If you haven't already, get a good blender. I recommend either a Vitamix or BlendTec--yes they are expensive, BUT DW and I burned through enough blenders that we could have bought multiple Vitamixes.

Here is a recipe that we used the other day:

adamcrisis

Youre going to be fine. Fruits are great and what we're ment to eat. Trust how your body feels and go accordingly. Im pretty sure if you ate the equivilant amount of sugar in lets say a bunch of strawberries mangos and kiwis and then compared it to getting the samount of "sugar" (used loosely for that processed garbage) in a bunch of cola...youd probably feel great with one and ****ty with the other.

No one ever had their doctor say "Youre really going to have to stop eating all those fruits"

StarkLark

I think I eat more fruit than you and it seems to work fine for me. You might want to consider upping your protein though, especially if you are exercising.

HealthFreak1967

I have insulin issues so take my advice w/ a grain of salt ... of the fruits/berries you mentioned i'd cut back on the grapes because those are REALLY sugary. No reason to cut a bannana or apple from your diet, that's great fiber and potassioum in there - you have to eat SOMETHING after all. Make sure to get plenty of veggies and beans though and you can enjoy your fruits.

Next time you are at the doctor's have them measure your fasting blood sugar ... if your doc says it's in an acceptable range i wouldn't worry about it. If it's getting a bit high i'd cut back on some of the more sugary fruits.

alright thanks.. they are pretty sweet huh. and that's a good idea about the fasting blood sugar, I need to get tested soon for iron so I'll do that too. So, the more fiber you eat, the less the sugar in fruit affects you?? Cause I eat at least 40g of fiber a day
oh, p.s., love your hair!!

HealthFreak1967

I think I eat more fruit than you and it seems to work fine for me. You might want to consider upping your protein though, especially if you are exercising.

Lol
And alrightie, I will definitely be having more tofu and soybeans! And that's good fruit's amazin

Llorraine11

i think everyon got ur mess.. why must u be so rude.. if that works for him ok.. If your way works for great... Lets not put people down we are all here for the same reason...geee

bestbassist

I'm new here too and from what I can tell, the standards on this website for sugar are pretty hard to maintain for just about everyone, vegan or not. I'm having similar issues as you although I am not a vegan. I feel that if the sugar is coming from a natural source and not refined or otherwise processed, it isn't as detrimental to your weight loss goal. Time will tell I suppose. Good luck!

bktibbetts

bump

BmoreGinger

Good advice and thank you for the kind words... As a vegan myself I'm disturbed by such harsh comments.

HealthFreak1967

Green leafy veggies are your friend here. Do a green shake in the AM, that helps a ton with getting you to feel full and satisfied. The first objection I get when I say green shakes is disbelief that I put Spinach, Kale or Romaine lettuce in my shakes. People don't believe that it can taste good, but it can. If you haven't already, get a good blender. I recommend either a Vitamix or BlendTec--yes they are expensive, BUT DW and I burned through enough blenders that we could have bought multiple Vitamixes.

Here is a recipe that we used the other day:

Ugh!! I always really really want to try making green smoothies or juices, but I don't have a vitamix and i want one so bad!!! So i mostly just make fruit smoothies with seeds for a bit of protein in there, since my blender isn't that great. And thanks for the advice about leafy greens, I eat them ALOT, kale and spinach especially, in salads or steamed

torygirl79

Be careful of stomach ulcers when eating too much fruit (particularly citrus fruits). They really aren't pleasant - however you do need to eat an awful lot to run that risk (unless you have other health / diet issues as well).