Protein in a vegetarian diet

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  • WendyTerry420
    WendyTerry420 Posts: 13,274 Member
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    Hey everyone!

    I'm a vegetarian and have been for a few years now. I want to up my protein because I've read that it is a good way to lose weight, however, I am having a hard time trying to find ways to incorporate it into my diet. I've started to eat egg whites every morning, add beans to salads, etc. I also eat cheese because that has a decent amount of protein, but it is also high in fat so I'm trying to find a good balance of it.

    Does anyone have any ideas or recipes they like that have protein and are vegetarian friendly?

    Any ideas would be awesome :)

    -Emily

    Hemp seeds are great for bumping up protein. They also contain your essential fatty acids in greater quantity than any other plant-based protein source.
  • haley255
    haley255 Posts: 117 Member
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    I'm vegan, I don't add protein to my diet (..it's in regular food), I'm a healthy weight, and I get my blood tested once a year with only positive results.

    Yippee!

    Dont' focus so much on protein... it's not necessary. Unless you're a body builder. :)
  • Fit_And_Heathy_Goalie
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    How about protein powder/shakes. I added Garden of Life brown rice protein shakes to my diet to help up my protein (I'm not a vegetarian, but was looking for alternatives to soy and whey). It's a great source of vegan friendly protein. A friend recommended pea protein powder which I haven't tried yet.
  • Sarauk2sf
    Sarauk2sf Posts: 28,072 Member
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    I'm vegan, I don't add protein to my diet (..it's in regular food), I'm a healthy weight, and I get my blood tested once a year with only positive results.

    Yippee!

    Dont' focus so much on protein... it's not necessary. Unless you're a body builder. :)

    You do not have to be a body builder for adequate protein to be important for body composition.
  • elishazf
    elishazf Posts: 332 Member
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    bump
  • Rocbola
    Rocbola Posts: 1,998 Member
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    I'm vegan, I don't add protein to my diet (..it's in regular food), I'm a healthy weight, and I get my blood tested once a year with only positive results.

    Yippee!

    Dont' focus so much on protein... it's not necessary. Unless you're a body builder. :)

    You do not have to be a body builder for adequate protein to be important for body composition.
    I think she meant that it is not necessary to focus on protein, because adequate protein for body composition exists in whole natural foods. Yes you need it, but you don't need to go out of your way to get it, as long as you are eating whole, unprocessed plants.
  • Sarauk2sf
    Sarauk2sf Posts: 28,072 Member
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    I'm vegan, I don't add protein to my diet (..it's in regular food), I'm a healthy weight, and I get my blood tested once a year with only positive results.

    Yippee!

    Dont' focus so much on protein... it's not necessary. Unless you're a body builder. :)

    You do not have to be a body builder for adequate protein to be important for body composition.
    I think she meant that it is not necessary to focus on protein, because adequate protein for body composition exists in whole natural foods. Yes you need it, but you don't need to go out of your way to get it, as long as you are eating whole, unprocessed plants.

    I would disagree that you would necessarily get enough protein from a plant based diet without paying attention. I am not saying you cannot, as I know you can, but to say it is not necessary to pay attention to it is not good advice imo.
  • ironanimal
    ironanimal Posts: 5,922 Member
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    It perturbs me that the first line of defense when someone asks how to get more protein in a vegetarian diet is that you don't need very much.