Becoming vegetarian.... little help?

Get_Me_Fit1

So, im becoming a vegetarian starting tomorrow. Im not exactly sure about some things, like what types of supplements i should be taking, what kinds of food i espeically need to make sure is in my diet, etc. But i have a pretty good idea. So, my question is, is there any specific food or supplement i should make sure i eat? Any tips? Anything i should watch out for? Thanks in advance!

cocoshiny

I am an ex-vegitarian (I became lactose intolerant so I had to vegan or start eating meat). The biggest thing that you have to watch out for is cheese! Almost EVERYTHING vegetarian is loaded with lots of unnecessary cheese, which adds a lot more fat to your diet and can cause you to gain weight (that's what happened with me). Depending on where you live, you might be able to find a lot of "meat substitutes" in your local grocery store, such as veggie patties, fake sausage, faken, etc. Also, be careful not to overload on carbs as well! That's another common mistake vegetarians make

AngelUpSideDownCake

Congrats on the lifestyle choice! I'm a very, very happy vegetarian, myself.

I don't usually take a supplement (I forget them). If I do, it's a simple multi-vitamin. I find that iron is the thing I miss out most on. I've been lacto-ovo vegetarian since August 2008. I don't really eat all that much cheese. I do eat SOME cheese, mind you. Especially since I began restricting my calories (1200 a day for me) I really don't eat cheese that much. I try to eat a lot of color! So if my food looks a little "blah" I try to throw some different veggies in there. I make lentil loafs, veggie pot pies, many different kinds of bean burgers (because I'm too cheap to buy Boca or Morningstar or whatever (and mine taste better, I think)), vegetarian shepherd's pies, pastas, salads, chilis, soups, etc. When I first started out, I would miss meat, but I find that I'm entirely ecstatic with what I eat now. The biggest thing is when I first started I ate a lot of breads and pasta. Now, I make a lot of my own food and rely very little on pre-made or vegetarian-targeted foods. Also, I hate tofu, so I never eat that either. If you want any recipes or have questions or just want to talk feel free to send me a message.

sarah1334

When I became vegetarian, my doctor told me to make sure I was getting enough B-12. You might want to check into that... they make supplements for it. Enjoy being vegetarian!

bokodasu

If you're already tracking on MFP you've got pretty much everything you need. The two big pitfalls people tend to run into are either eating all carbs (pasta with a baked potato on the side! Yum!) or all salads. Eat a variety of things and keep your macros straight. You probably won't need any supplements unless you're going full-on vegan, and then you should get a good sublingual B12 tablet. (Go ahead, ask me what happened when I went vegan! No wait, I'll tell you anyway! Six months in, I ran out of energy and got horribly depressed and then I was reminded to take B12 and I was fine again in a couple of weeks. Derp.)

Also, tempeh is delicious; it is tofu's much tastier yet sadly neglected sibling.

elizak87

I'm a vegetarian. I get my doctor to do a blood test on me every six months. The only thing I lack is iron at the moment. It is possible to not need any vitamins or tablets if you eat right. You need to make sure your vegetable intake increases and not the carbs. Get a variation of vegies in and you should be right

zoeluiisa

I'm not a vegetarian but it's mainly what I eat (apart from fish every now and then, and the odd roast chicken ).

ANYWAY. I'd say if you eat eggs and dairy you won't struggle too much for protein, calcium etc which can be more of a challenge for vegans. Just don't fall into the trap of eating pasta and white rice all the time - which I went through a phase of and is pretty much why I'm here! :grumble:

Instead of pasta/rice I now eat lentils, beans and quinoa. Less calories and much more nutrients - I feel so much better on it.

ETA - just found out yesterday that lentils are a good source of B vitamins too.

charlottelouise12345

I've been vegetarian for about 5 years now and I don't pay particularly attention to what I eat (except now that I'm tracking calories!).

You could take a multivitamin if you wanted to but you won’t necessarily need to. I take a multi and a Vitamin B every day when I'm particularly stressed, if I have exams or I'm doing lots of late nights. Otherwise I usually don't bother!

The only thing I'd really suggest is to look into getting some flax seed oil tablets for Omega 3 and 6 (the ones you usually get from fish!). But I suggest this to everyone, not just vegetarians

Someone already said to make sure you eat lots of colour! And try things even if you think you won’t like them, I love chickpeas and tofu when I was sure i hated them. Good luck!!

BeautyFromPain

Why?
If it's cos you think it will automatically lose weight... it doesn't work that way.

DinahCakes

Try visiting PCRM.org. Click on the health and nutrition drop-down, and choose your topic. They offer all kinds of information and meal plans. Congratulations on choosing to be a vegetarian!

volamena

HI,
I've been a vegetarian for more than 20 years and I've never taken any supplements...and I'm fine according to my last blood test ;-).
when you eat lentils/beans eat rice/potatoes as well it's makes a really good combination to replace animal proteins.Your iron might get a bit low, but if you regularly eat soy products (tofu; soy yoghurt,...) you won't get this problem.
Congrats on this new lifestyle

Get_Me_Fit1

Why?
If it's cos you think it will automatically lose weight... it doesn't work that way.

Its actually not because i think itll help me lose weight. I absolutely HATE how they treat the animals, and ive never been a big fan of meat.

Thanks everyone!

_TastySnoBalls_

Why?
If it's cos you think it will automatically lose weight... it doesn't work that way.

Its actually not because i think itll help me lose weight. I absolutely HATE how they treat the animals, and ive never been a big fan of meat.

Thanks everyone!

If you're just eliminating flesh products, then you don't need to take any supplements because you would still be obtaining them from the other animal products (milk, cheese, eggs, etc.). If you are eliminating ALL animal-derived foods from your diet (vegan), then you will most definitely, at the least take a vitamin b-12 supplement.

IbiH

I've been a vegi for 24 years, first I gave up red meat, then gradually cut out fish (probably due to my mum serving fish for tea and little Fred the goldfish was on his side :C. Then I gave up chicken/turkey, it was hard but a concious decision to eliminate all animal products from my diet and lifestyle (no leather products)
I have never taken any supplements just made smart choices in my diet. Since I'm getting older I can't eat what I used to.
I've now lost 31 pounds since January purely by portion control and calorie counting, I wish this app was around then.......
Good luck.

hollyNhollywood

I stopped eating red meat Nov 2000 and stopped all animal/meat Feb 2001.
I do love my carbs and cheese, so that is something to be careful of. And it can be quite hard when you go to a restaurant that doesn't cater to vegetarians. Your options are usually a cheese quesadilla or a house salad. :grumble:
Since you're tracking calories, and I assume your macros, on here you should hopefully be ok to make sure you get all your nutrients.
One more thing to add is-- depending on how strict you want to be, read ingredients! You'd be surprised how many animal by-products are in food. Biggest one I come across-- is in cheese! If it says enzymes or rennet, it usually means animal by-product (ie, cow stomach lining). Look for the words macrobial or vegetable with that. Whole food stores and Trader Joes have a good selection of vegetarian cheese (not sure where you're located but Publix brand cheese is vegetarian too, surprisingly)
You also have to look out for many more things, such as gelatin (which is in your pill capsules, junior mints, etc)

Its looong overdue, but I think I need to look for a book that tells you all these 'little secrets'. As I recently also found out that Baked Lays bbq chips weren't vegetarian ("natural flavors")

georgiemcc

firstly, congrats. once you get used to it you will hopefully love it. i've been vego for about a year now, and i was very conscious of things like, eating more , and and variety of vegies, to make up for the lack of iron.... was quite tired for a while, but once i made sure i was getting iron and protein from different sources, i evened out. just make sure you get as much variety as possible. i dont take any supplements , maybe vitamin b or iron every couple months if im tired... have fun with itxx

Gurinderkhabra

I'll miss b12 but if you drink soy milk with b12 ull be good

tcunbeliever

Just watch your protein, calcium, and B vitamins...those are the hardest ones to hit with an animal free life...I don't think supplements are necessary if you eat deliberately.

samntha14

I was vegetarian for 6 years and because I was a carb-a-holic, I destroyed my metabolism. Make sure you're getting adequate protein from a variety of sources, take a B-complex supplement, and invest in some good cookbooks to keep things interesting. Like any good diet, variety is the spice of life. I failed there, so please don't make my mistakes.

KLo924

Weekday vegan, weekend vegetarian (and vegetarian for 17 years) here ...though only a healthy one for a portion of that lol I find this helpful: http://www.nomeatathlete.com/vegetarian-diet/

Depending on why you're going veg you'll want to look out for different places meat hides (e.g. parmesan, cheddar, and some other cheeses are made with rennet, which is from animals; some food colorings contain animal products; etc.). Watch your B vitamins, as well as iron. And then, there's so much conflicting information about how much protein and calcium you need, I figure as long as I'm eating a balanced diet I won't worry too much about those (though I make sure to have a bit of extra protein when I work out hard - I use Vega protein powder or hemp protein in shakes for those cases). In general, if you eat a wide range of foods your'e probably fine (beans, legumes, whole grains, veggies, fruits, tempeh, tofu, etc.).

Also, watch out for meat substitutes. Often they're loaded with questionable chemicals, sugars, sodium, etc. to make them delicious.

Find foods you love--check out cookbooks for inspiration--and have fun!

PS: There are lots of vegetarian vitamins out there if you need - talk with your doctor.

Lipstickcherry

It's a process to eat an all based plant diet. It's okay to eat things that are easy then start cooking. I like making a tofu scramble.

(tiny bit of miso paste/curry spice/frozen spinach/tofu/tahini/tomato/garlic/onions/Wesson oil/nutritional yeast for the one I made myself today...yum!)

Many vegan soups are available now...Campbell's makes a good tomato one with no milk to add (they put wheat in it). I take a B12 vitamin. It's a chewy one I found online. I take it each day, plus a multivitamin, a flax oil, vitamin C and a chromium supplement.

Weight loss honestly has been a challenge for me. But eating plant-based has made me honestly feel much, much better. I don't have the really bad digestion problems I used to have so often. I feel more alert. My skin glows. I feel more alive. I don't feel hungry as much. I eat fruit/veggies/nuts whenever I am starving. If I can't sleep from hunger, I get up and have 2 slices of veggie slice cheese (40 calories each) or in some cases, a spoonful of peanut butter. I sleep usually like a baby afterwards.

There are so many recipes out there. It's not so hard to omit meat and dairy. When I eat out, I can usually get a veggie burger with avocado or some other choice.

I do tend to eat veggie burgers, veggie hot dogs, beans, drink soy milk, so I don't lack for iron or protein. I usually go way over my iron and protein each day (spinach is pretty full of iron for one, I got 35.7% of my daily iron http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=43 when I used 1 cup in my tofu scramble today). Tofu has iron too (got 33.8% of my daily iron eating 4 oz. today http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=150). I have both parents struggle with getting iron and so I take that very seriously. Since I see a doctor and get blood tests, I can assure you I don't have a problem with iron.

So, you will read a lot of different views, that is mine. Good luck to you and congratulations on making that healthy choice!

edited to add my tofu scramble recipe today.

karenwill2

my issue is all the whet they put in everything! I am severely gluten intolerant. I am down to about 4 oz of meat a day as I cannot seem to get anywhere near 1000 cals a day with just veggies and fruits. I have eliminated dairy from my diet as cheese is a trigger food. I refuse to eat processed foods because I want the REAL stuff. I have gone mostly vegan before but then I ate wheat soooo..it did not make me feel well. In all fairness, I did not know it was gluten at the time.

You can do it pretty easily actually. Just make sure you get food to eat not overly processed junk. If you eat the right foods you should only need B12 and Omega 3 supplements according to my research.

redraidergirl2009

You won't need any supplements aside from maybe b12. But you can get b12 from nut milks and other fortified sources. I follow a vegan diet and I take a daily multivitamin. I always have anyway. But I agree with the others, watch out for loads of cheese in vegetarian dishes if you go anywhere and are looking to lose weight. You can even suggest they go light on the cheese on dishes. Cheese is basically fat.

RaeLB

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/45-happy-herbivores

I don't take any supplements.
I track my protein, iron, and calcium on here so I can make sure I get enough of everything.

shinjite

Being a vegetarian or vegan does not automatically mean you need supplements. If you are concerned get a blood panel done and it will tell you what you are lacking. I am a vegan and the only thing I lack is iron and that is totally unrelated to veganism. The only supplement I take is Vitamineral Green and Vitamineral earth and that is because some days I do not feel like eating but want to make sure I get my nutrients.
If protein is a concern try one of the brown rice or pea protein powders. Some of them taste great in smoothies. Try to focus on eating fresh fruits and veggies and stay away from processed foods even the ones that say they are meant for vegetarians.
Other than that you should be just fine.