Where are all the vegans/vegetarians?

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  • LynnElliott41
    LynnElliott41 Posts: 1
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    Hi,
    I am a vegan off an on but I really believe it is the healthiest way to eat.
    The weird thing is I feel so much better when I eat that way and yet I go off it.
    I am joining MFP to lose 60 pound and I hope at the same time to get back to being a vegan.
    Sigh it is a long haul! Lynn
  • keem88
    keem88 Posts: 1,689 Member
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    vegetarian here for about 11 years.
    eating muscle/flesh creeps me out and the conditioners and how the farmers are treated as well makes me sad. was never big on meat anyway.
    went vegan for a while in college, although the dining hall was limited on vegetarian options to begin with, so i got pretty sick from not having any nutrients.
    i don't do a lot of dairy anymore, i drink coconut milk now instead (so tasty!!), and don't nearly use as much cheese as a i used to. will prolly be going vegan again within the next year.
    nice to meet everyone!
  • Freeicetea
    Freeicetea Posts: 9
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    HI,

    I'm in Ireland and a vegetarian. Trying to loose weight I've put on over 3 years. So far I have lost 3 stone and I have looked to MFP to loose the last 1-2 stone. I'd love to be added by any irish or veges or vege irish :) Thanks
  • keem88
    keem88 Posts: 1,689 Member
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    i need to admit, i really get jealous of meat eaters being able to go anywhere and eat anything whereas we have to be super flexible and just realize we probably won't be eating something enjoyable (in public...like at restaurants or in workplace meetings etc). And still meat eaters complain when the food is not perfect for them, and yet I'm happy if there is something I can actually eat on the menu (or buffet line). and I often feel that this isn't fair (I mean, its fair, but I still raise my fist to the heavens in anger)....like yesterday we had a team lunch....and there was a lott of veggie stuff, but most of it was in the same tray as the meet....for ex:

    (1) salad (mostly what I ate)
    (2) steamed spinach (again, it was this and the salad)
    (3) they gave me a side morningstar griller (happy about that...it made the meal servicable).
    (4) roast beef, w/ a side of fries and mushrooms/onions, all in the same huge tray
    (5) grilled lemon salmon w/ gorgeous garlic kale, again all in the same tray
    (6) some sort of chicken w/ asparagus and brown rice, all in the same tray
    (7) there was a starch which I don't remember..maybe roasted potatoes (I'm not eating much these days)
    (8) fancy breads w/ butter (mostly what I would hv filled up on in years past, but don't eat this calorie dense garbage anymore)
    (9) huge tray of fancy fruits (ok, this is good, but I'm trying low sugar...no complaints here)
    (10) huge tray of fancy cookies, and a platter of cakes (red velevet and carrot I think)....no complaints, but since I can't eat most of the above, I woulda filled up here too to make up for my hunger and envy...and yadda yadda yadda, I'm fat!!

    and this was for just 10 people, so I don't understand why they get 3 main dishes w/ sides and they can't just keep the sides seperate (I guess our company chef just has his way of doing it) and all I get is the salad, spinach and a morningstar. So, no one's fault, but it just seems so unfair in the scheme of it.

    this is such a pet peeve of mine! how is it that a menu will have mass amounts of options, yet i can only choose 2 or 3? and then they will cook stuff on the same grill or in the fat or something which defeats the purpose, and is a turn off.
    mostly why i don't go out to eat. usually i can make do, but a lot of times people won't take into consideration if you are going out.
    for instance, we went to this brew house resturant when we were living in cincinnati. they served a lot of beer obviously, but also had a full lunch/dinner menu.
    they were nice enough to stick a v next to the vegetarian items on the menu so it made scanning it easier.
    appetizers - 4 of 12 were vegetarian (soft pretzel, fried pickles, onion rings or parmesan garlic fries).
    entrees - 20 options, 2 were vegetarian (squash wellington and crispy balsamic tofu) - both of these were not on the menu when we went a year ago, so it's nice to see that they actually ADDED a couple veg options
    sandwiches - all meat or fish based (7 to choose from)
    burgers - 5 options, 1 is a veggie burger which they did not offer a year ago either
    flatbreads - 6 options, 2 are vegetarian (caprese and mediterranean, the 2nd options was not offered a year ago)

    out of 50 menu items, 9 are vegetarian (and half of those really aren't healthyish either). when we went, since they didn't have the vegetarian entrees at the time i ennded up getting garlic fries. and people i were with (who all knew i was veg) were like why are you only eating fries? why do you think. it's just like really, everyone else has 50 items to choose from, and i can pick up to 9. thank you, thank you so much for your consideration. at the time when we went, there were only 5 vegetarian options on the whole menu which were soft pretzel. fried pickles. onion rings, garlic fries, and caprese flat bread. WOW...

    eta: they also had 7 salads, NONE which had a v next to them. i spose you could ask them made without chicken or bacon, then it would just be lettuce and croutons. none of the soups were vegetarian either, they were made with a chicken stock or other animal base.

    i really think resturants and fast food (dont even get me started on mcdonalds, at least bk has a veggie burger) should have meatless items to choose from as well. i know most people go to mcdonalds wanting a huge greasy burger, but if you are out on the road or need a fast lunch at work (that is what they are there for, right), they should offer more than a ****ty excuse for a salad, fries, apple pies and a few desserts as options. although a bun with lettuce ketchup pickles and cheese does sound like a fabulous meal as well.
  • keem88
    keem88 Posts: 1,689 Member
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    I'm still in the transition stage. Very new to me. Would love the support if anyone wants to add me. I'm currently more pescatarian. Still have eggs and fish in my diet. Am currently working on transitioning out the dairy. This is HUGE for me. I am an absolute lover of Greek yogurt and cottage cheese. Any good vegan substitutes? Also trying to limit my wheat, rye and barley, so it's all a balancing act. :)

    My one big drawback to trying this was that I was afraid that I wouldn't get enough protein and wouldn't have energy to do my workouts. I found when going very very low-carb and high fat (meat), it took my energy. I got "meated out" and starte thinking about where the slab of red meat came from! However, I have much more energy eating this way and am able to rock my workouts.

    look for recipes to make a "cheese" sauce out of cashews. so good! nutritional yeast is good to sprinkle on foods for a "cheesy" taste as well. notice the quotations though lol
  • keem88
    keem88 Posts: 1,689 Member
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    I am a transitioning vegetarian. I eat very little fish and I do eat dairy and cheese but nothing else. I am having the same hard time as everyone else trying to lose weight and get enough protein without meat. Does anyone have any tips on how to get more protein without protein shakes?

    beans, tofu, seitan, quinoa, eggs (if you eat them), greek yogurt used in recipes (i made these protein pancakes that had like 30something grams of protein in the serving, holy smokes!)
    i do purchase a vegetarian protein powder and use it in my oatmeal to make chocolate oatmeal, so tasty. not big on shakes bc i hate cleaning the blender.
  • phytogurl
    phytogurl Posts: 671 Member
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    I've been vegetarian the last couple months, but was vegan for about 3 yrs prior. I at first went vegan for my health and was influenced by a precision nutrition coach, and learned a lot about food and health. As time went by and I became educated about the practices of factory farming and treatment of animals, I knew that as much as I loved the taste of meat (raised omnivore) that I could no longer justify my wants for another beings miseries. The fact that I love animals, and actually crave and want to eat veggies, helps keep me in check.
  • j_ortiz2
    j_ortiz2 Posts: 2
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    Hi I'm Johana and I became a vegan on 7/16/2012. It was the BEST decision I have ever made. Since becoming a vegan I have lost 20+ lbs and have never felt better.
  • stefi2107
    stefi2107 Posts: 52 Member
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    I'm a vegetarian, it's what I feel was the turning point to losing all my weight. I love new friends feel free to add me!
  • AleciaG724
    AleciaG724 Posts: 705 Member
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    Join a group! We are here, we are here, we are HERE!

    Happy Herbivores
    Secret Vegan
    Team Vegan
    MFP Vegetarians
    Vegans on MFP
    Veg*ns & Raw Foodists

    Friend request coming!
  • iWillGetCrowSomeday
    iWillGetCrowSomeday Posts: 311 Member
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    I'm still in the transition stage. Very new to me. Would love the support if anyone wants to add me. I'm currently more pescatarian. Still have eggs and fish in my diet. Am currently working on transitioning out the dairy. This is HUGE for me. I am an absolute lover of Greek yogurt and cottage cheese. Any good vegan substitutes? Also trying to limit my wheat, rye and barley, so it's all a balancing act. :)

    My one big drawback to trying this was that I was afraid that I wouldn't get enough protein and wouldn't have energy to do my workouts. I found when going very very low-carb and high fat (meat), it took my energy. I got "meated out" and starte thinking about where the slab of red meat came from! However, I have much more energy eating this way and am able to rock my workouts.

    So Delicious makes coconut and almond milk dairy free yogurts. I've never tried them, but I compared them last time I went shopping, They have less protein, but I don't really have a hard time meeting my protein requirement (even if it's a fish-free day, and I stay far away from protein powders). I've tried the brand's coconut milk and almond milk and love them, and I've tried the coconut vegan ice cream and it is amazeballs!
  • ChristineLoves
    ChristineLoves Posts: 4 Member
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    I'm a pescatarian. Glad to see all those who don't eat meat. :smile:
  • AleciaG724
    AleciaG724 Posts: 705 Member
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    Check out Eating Well they have a vegetarian weight loss plan:

    http://www.eatingwell.com/nutrition_health/weight_loss_diet_plans/diet_meal_plans/vegetarian_meal_plan

    Good recipes too!
  • frizbeemom
    frizbeemom Posts: 101 Member
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    Frisbee Mom:
    Are you familiar with Nutritional Yeast? It's a great substitue for cheese in recipes that call for sprinkled, shredded cheese (Eg: pizza, lasagna, ect) check it out! It's a little strange at first, but tastes great, and it's good for you!

    I recently just heard of nutritional yeast on some vegan podcasts I was listening to. Thanks! I think I will try it. :)
  • frizbeemom
    frizbeemom Posts: 101 Member
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    I'm still in the transition stage. Very new to me. Would love the support if anyone wants to add me. I'm currently more pescatarian. Still have eggs and fish in my diet. Am currently working on transitioning out the dairy. This is HUGE for me. I am an absolute lover of Greek yogurt and cottage cheese. Any good vegan substitutes? Also trying to limit my wheat, rye and barley, so it's all a balancing act. :)

    My one big drawback to trying this was that I was afraid that I wouldn't get enough protein and wouldn't have energy to do my workouts. I found when going very very low-carb and high fat (meat), it took my energy. I got "meated out" and starte thinking about where the slab of red meat came from! However, I have much more energy eating this way and am able to rock my workouts.

    So Delicious makes coconut and almond milk dairy free yogurts. I've never tried them, but I compared them last time I went shopping, They have less protein, but I don't really have a hard time meeting my protein requirement (even if it's a fish-free day, and I stay far away from protein powders). I've tried the brand's coconut milk and almond milk and love them, and I've tried the coconut vegan ice cream and it is amazeballs!

    I will need to try the coconut milk yogurts. I've switched over to coconut milk for smoothies and love it but I'm just so attached to what I am used to for Greek yogurts and cottage cheese. I shouldn't have such a hard time giving it up - it's just food. :-p I haven't tried the vegan ice cream yet... I'll put that on my list next time I get myself a treat. :) Thanks!
  • sozisraw
    sozisraw Posts: 418 Member
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    Hi , Im mostly vegan, used to be mainly vegie past 10 years or so :)
    reasons are ethics and health
  • Ophidion
    Ophidion Posts: 2,065 Member
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    Vegan here for quite some time, feel free to add me...but a heads up I don't exclude people with different eating habits on my friends list...that includes meat eaters, please read my profile for further info.

    Also as previously mentioned the groups are definitely a great place to look as sometimes the topic of vegan/vegetarian can start an all out flame war on the main forums especially if ethics or scientific data is discussed...personal preference and beliefs are always a subject of debate on all sides.
  • Psalm17v22
    Psalm17v22 Posts: 168 Member
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    I'm vegan because of my cholesterol. Feel free to add me.

    God bless,
    Karen
  • rsaree
    rsaree Posts: 10 Member
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    Adreanna:
    You can get an abundance of calcium and iron from dark, leafy greens like Kale, Spinach, and Collard greens. Try adding Green Juice as breakfast into your regime. You'll be full of all the nutrients you need! :) Dr. Oz has a nice starter green juice, and you can find a ton of additional options online.
  • Healthybodyhealthynind
    Healthybodyhealthynind Posts: 13 Member
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    I'm vegetarian too,
    Have been since I was 14yrs ..wow that's 21 years ago..that makes me feel old!
    I became vege after seeing an awful programme that involved slaughtering animals. My mum agreed to it saying 'its just a phase'... Oh well, proved her wrong!!
    Wondering why all the vege options in restaurants include cheese +++ , not good for the waistline!
    Feel free to add me

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