Any Vegan's out there?

littlehope126
littlehope126 Posts: 3
in Food and Nutrition
Hi! I've recently become Vegan and have noticed its harder for me to lose weight, than when I was on my high protein diet. Any Vegans out there having success? I am losing weight, but I find if I eat the wrong thing, or too much, it comes right back on. I'm loving the energy level though and it sure is tasty. Plus I know it's better for my body. Anybody have any words of wisdom?

Replies

  • maddymama
    maddymama Posts: 1,183 Member
    Not a vegan, but I eat vegan a few days a week.

    I love, love, love Appetite for Reduction. It's a fantastic cookbook, and almost everything I've tried has been easy to make and yummy to eat.
  • carebearhere
    carebearhere Posts: 37 Member
    Am vegan, have just restarted my calorie counting, will see how it goes :)
  • firedragon064
    firedragon064 Posts: 1,082 Member
    I'm doing Rice diet solution for 3 weeks. I lose 8 lbs so far but I know the 1st 5 lbs is just water.
    Mcdougall max weight loss is good also (drmcdougall.com). his website has lots of yummy recipes.
    My focus is whole food and low sodium. I eat up to 6 cups of veggie a day.
  • redraidergirl2009
    redraidergirl2009 Posts: 2,560 Member
    watch for vegan junk food. It can really hamper weight loss. I'm seeing some results with watching fat intake. I normally get 50ish grams of protein daily and am having no issues building/maintaining muscle mass. I got around that much before becoming vegan and muscle building took longer, unless I'm just losing fat that sitting on it from becoming vegan. Anyway I hope that helps?
  • littlehope126
    littlehope126 Posts: 3
    Thanks! I'll check it out :-)
  • huuxue
    huuxue Posts: 23
    Currently vegan and I can say veganism really does work for weightloss if you eat the correct things. With veganism and weightloss (from my experience) it is best to focus using fruits and vegetables as your energy sources rather than grains. Ex. Whole wheat pasta is available but you might as well just skip the pasta and go for the salad (same applies for bread). I personally have always thought of "grains" as something eaten in moderation (especially since for thousands of years people lived off of raw fruits + veggies + meat). Be sure to combine your proteins ex. (black beans and tofu for dinner vs just beans) to maintain muscle mass. You can do it!!

    I also second the sodium thing! Try to get at most 1,000 mg!
  • Laineyvegan
    Laineyvegan Posts: 5 Member
    Hey ive been vegan for 6 months lost about a stone and a half on it then discovered vegan junk food and put a bit back on. But now im staying away from all that junk and going back to eating healthily.

    Lots of fruits, veggies, smoothies and soups are great cos they fill u up and u get a good amount of your daily vits and minerals etc in them. I eat beans/lentils too. I went through a phase of having vegan burgers (made from beans/veggies) but they are all processed, so im trying to steer clear of those too atm. Soy and tofu are good for protein too and low in fat :D

    Try to cut down on nut butters/ and bread/ white pasta etc as they will help put weight on.

    I love being vegan and I will never go back to being a meat eater or even vegetarian.

    Good luck and enjoy :)
  • mirandamayhem
    mirandamayhem Posts: 772
    I like Alicia Silverstone's The Kind Diet too, and she has a website of the same name.
    You do need to focus on fruit and veg and avoid the junk food. I'm not 100% vegan, but do try to eat vegan as much as possible. xx
  • amanda_ataraxia
    amanda_ataraxia Posts: 400 Member
    It is so possible to be a junk food vegan.
    My recommendation is to eat a diet that is low in processed foods. I think most of the faux meats are awful for you- high in sodium, GMOs, added fats, etc.
    I make all of my mock meats from scratch so I can control the ingredients.
  • MrsODriscoll
    MrsODriscoll Posts: 127 Member
    A4R and TKD are brilliant as mentioned above - also check out fatfreevegan.com and happyherbivore.com for loads of amazing low fat vegan recipes :-)
  • Colexlovely
    Colexlovely Posts: 133 Member
    95% Vegan here. Eat cheese every now and then, but I have been this way for over a year, the first time I went 100% Vegan i dropped 11 pounds instantly, then i started eating cheese again and i was eating out too much, fries and burritos and stuff like that, So I cut out all the bad "junk food Vegan" foods started counting my calories, and watching what I eat, been 4 weeks and I have lost 8 pounds.
  • urbansmamma
    urbansmamma Posts: 202 Member
    I think if you eliminate or drastically reduce:

    Oil
    Salt
    Processed sugar (fruit is fine)
    Processed food in general
    Limit carbs
    White flour

    I plateaued after eating a mostly vegan diet and when I looked at what I was consuming I realized it was an issue with all of the above. I read all my food labels and don't but any products with ingredients I don't recognize, I don't buy earth balance anymore because it was a major trigger food not to mention has a ton of junk ingredients. I don't add sugar to . If a recipe does call for sugar I replace with dates instead of using other sweeteners. I am more militant during the week with my eating, but on weekends I do give myself more room for a bit more freedom in eating out. I think the main thing is making your own food and staying away from convenience food will tie you lots of success.
  • amanda_ataraxia
    amanda_ataraxia Posts: 400 Member
    I think if you eliminate or drastically reduce:

    Oil
    Salt
    Processed sugar (fruit is fine)
    Processed food in general
    Limit carbs
    White flour

    I plateaued after eating a mostly vegan diet and when I looked at what I was consuming I realized it was an issue with all of the above. I read all my food labels and don't but any products with ingredients I don't recognize, I don't buy earth balance anymore because it was a major trigger food not to mention has a ton of junk ingredients. I don't add sugar to . If a recipe does call for sugar I replace with dates instead of using other sweeteners. I am more militant during the week with my eating, but on weekends I do give myself more room for a bit more freedom in eating out. I think the main thing is making your own food and staying away from convenience food will tie you lots of success.

    This is EXACTLY how I eat!

    It works, my ticker doesn't lie!
  • jamcakez
    jamcakez Posts: 5
    ***VEGAN HERE!!! Feel free to add me!! :)
  • curvyvegan
    curvyvegan Posts: 80 Member
    I'm vegan and I've lost 16 pounds this year while maintaining my vegan diet. (that's with on and off effort). I think the reason you seem to gain weight so quickly after "eating the wrong thing" is because vegan food is so high in fiber, it's bulky and it takes up more room in the digestive system. You're not gaining fat, it's just the weight off all that fibrous food when you've overeaten. After a day or two back to tracking, my weight always drops right back to where it was when I left off.

    Feel free to add me!
  • GiGi_FIERCE
    GiGi_FIERCE Posts: 65
    I like these resources:

    http://www.amazon.com/Forks-Over-Knives-Plant-Based-Health/dp/1615190457/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1343665076&sr=1-2&keywords=forks+over+knives+cookbook

    http://www.amazon.com/The-Raw-Food-Detox-Diet/dp/0060799919 (many vegan options)

    http://www.amazon.com/Eat-Clean-Diet-Vegetarian-Cookbook-Mouthwatering/dp/1552101061/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1343665033&sr=1-1&keywords=tosca+reno+vegetarian+cookbook (many vegan options)
  • GiGi_FIERCE
    GiGi_FIERCE Posts: 65
    I just put up many vegan and vegan-option recipes. Feel free to check them out :]

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/GiGi_FIERCE
  • happyvegan410
    happyvegan410 Posts: 24 Member
    If you're still looking you can feel free to add me!

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