New to the vegetarian diet needing input and riends

angelmeanttofly

Hi all, I recently read the book "The Skinny Rules" . Although it did not state being a vegetarian is the way to go, it did say that no carbs after lunch was the way to go. So I started looking for vegetarian recipes and came across a slew of information on the health benefits of a vegetarian lifestyle. So after reading, talking to my doctor and trainer and some serious hours of thought I have decided to try it for at least 6 months and hopefully make this a permanent life change. I go to see a nutritionist tomorrow to set up some meal plans and talk about supplements. What I am hoping to ind here on mfp is more new friends that follow a vegetarian diet. I would like to be able to look at diaries and get advice from others about how you cook, favorite recipes and foods. What you eat when you go out or travel. The best tasting brands. Any kind of advice you could offer on making the transition. What type of supplements you take. I also use whey protein shakes after working out. Is that ok? Or is there a vegetarian version of protein shakes. So thank you in advance and please add me as a friend if you like.

cersela

Hey there, I eat mostly vegan (but I'm also fairly new to being a vegan, but I was a vegetarian for a long time, then went back to eating meat (and junk) I started keeping a food journal http://consumingdepression.blogspot.com/, but I'm moving over to MFP instead because it's much easier. I haven't been tracking for long, so I don't have much to share but feel free to take a look. Years ago I was vegetarian for a long time, so I can help with dining out advice (also I still eat out about twice a week so there's a few examples of what I eat when I go out.) First off, if you like Asian food (Thai, Vietnamese, Japanese ect) life will be much easier, if you don't care for that you can always 'make your own' meal by ordering a few sides or two appetizers (or one and a salad). Also, most places you can just ask for them to leave the meat off and they will. I never used protein shakes but I likely should since I haven't been getting enough protein. I haven't tried any brands so I can't recommend one, but they do have vegetarian/vegan protein mixes. A good thing to do is visit a health food store and buy some nutritional yeast and flax seeds, those will really help cover some of the nutrition gaps. As far as food, I really love mushrooms, they are great as a meat substitute in meals. Also, it's helpful to eat more beans.

inkandsheep

Feel free to add me. I've been vegetarian for years and am now transitioning to fully vegan eating. If you go back in my diary you'll see a lot of veggie foods, though.

I mostly cook everything myself using fresh ingredients. Some of the vegetarian/vegan meat substitutes are quite highly processed so I would never want to rely on them, but if you're a new veggie, you might want to use some while you make the transition.

I take a vegan/vegetarian multivitamin tablet that covers most things, and some extra B12. I also use a lot of shelled hemp seed and hemp protein powder as a vegan, natural protein source.

Some whey is not vegetarian friendly but some is, so you'll have to check the specific one you're using.

peachyxoxoxo

I am vegan... I don't log my food on here but feel free to ask me any questions you have

There is a link to my blog on my profile, and on the FAQ page, I have a sample meal plan and a list of brand name foods I like.

wowser5

Welcome to the veggie world! It is a great place to be. I have been a vegetarian since 1996, and love it. Feel free to add me.

Kacey

DivaSophia

My diet is about 90% vegetarian but for the time being you'd have to call me pescetarian because I occasionally eat fish outside my home (1-2 times a month). In the long run the the plan is to become as vegan as possible. Feel free to add me. I have vegetarian and vegan recipes I can share and I can tell you about what it's been like to try to change my diet. I've only been doing this for about 2.5 years so I remember pretty well the changes.

I would encourage you to go ahead and take a multi-vitamin, D vitamins(which most people these days are deficient of) and load up on B vitamins. Even though we can try to get our vitamins from food in today's busy world we don't always manage to stay balanced. Many times even if a person eats meat they can already be vitamin deficient it's better it can help you be sure you are getting you RDA and help you stay energetic as your body adjusts to the changes.