I am vegan since Feb 2011, and since beginning MFP, i HAVE become more conscious of my fats. currently, the only fats in my diet are from 1-2 T of healthy oils a day (coconut, olive, etc) and usually 1 serving of raw nuts.

I do not eat vegan junk food, but more because of sugar than fats. sugar triggers me to overeat, so when i first went vegan and was eating vegan ice cream, i'd end up binging on it. for me, one key to recovering from my overeating disease is to abstain completely from sugar (other than fruits, etc). even fruit juices i have drastically limited--i used to drink overly large servings of fresh juice. but that's a bit of a tangent here....

right before joining MFP, i had lost some weight (about 20 lbs) but then plateau'd for a long while. could not understand why (vegan, lots of raw, no sugar--how can this be???) Now, since starting MFP, I KNOW a large part of why i stopped losing:

Nuts and Oils!

Before MFP, I'd eat 6 or 7 servings of nuts a day, (1/4 c serving), 4 or 5 T of oils, etc.
Now that I am on MFP, i see so clearly what i need to do. nuts are lasting so long in my cupboard now, they are going stale!!! they used to last no more than a couple days.

i cook with olive oil spray instead of always adding oil. I've lost abotu 10 lbs on MFP, in addition to the weight i already lost.
some people eliminate added oils entirely--that's cool for them, but for me, having some added oil keeps me satisfied and happy. i will continue to do what i do unless i stop losing weight--then i may reduce oils again--not sure.

look thru my diarys to get a sense of what i do. works for me. each person finds their own way.

ezekiel bread certainly has a different texture--it is much more fibery, rough, and hearty. i like it a lot, since it can be so hard to find vegan breads, and most bread is processed too much to be worth any nutrients. i say, try it!

chia seeds are awesome. another example of how MFP has made the difference for me: before MFP, i was using about 4-5 T of chia seeds a day, which really adds up. now, i keep it to 1 or 2 T.
sounds strange, but i can overeat even the healthiest foods when i am not aware of portions. that's why MFP is great for me---it can be so confusing to be a "healthy" vegan and yet still not lose...now i see that quantity is just as important as quality.

as far as sugar, just see how it goes. like i said, fruit is fine for me. i even eat pure maple syrup sometimes on bread, oatmeal, etc.
my main downfall is my "trigger foods"--foods that trigger me to overeat by making me want more and more. ice cream, cakes, cookies...for better or worse, there are tons of vegan versions of these now, and i stay away from all of it. i am glad it is there for other vegans, but i am much happier without it. a year ago, i was eating a small container of soy ice cream every night--it was almost impossible to stop myself.

now that it is not in my system and i have clear boundaries about it, i never even want it. for me, sugar is like that. like booze to an alcoholic.

I'm always trying to increase fat (within reason) and protein while lowering carbs. I find a hell of a lot more success that way... but that's just me

What do you eat that is so low in fat? I eat salads and smoothies like every other vegan, but I'm allergic to nuts so I don't eat those anyway. I'm REALLY struggling getting a low-fat, vegan diet. Suggestions?

Most, though not all, unprocessed vegan foods are naturally low in fat. As long as you avoid packaged and prepared food (still a problem for me) you'll avoid a lot of fat.

I generally eat low fat and actually struggle to make sure I'm getting enough fats. So I've started adding more avocado and nuts to my diet. I eat a lot of beans, fruits and veggies.

Hi, I would actually consider myself a high-fat vegan :-/ (actually I recently started eating grass fed butter so I am not strictly vegan, but I don't eat other animal products). Fat is my favorite macro. I get about 45-50% of calories from it, mainly because I am trying to limit protein to reasonable levels and feel better on lower carbs.

For the low fat crew, what is your macro breakdown? Mine is about 10/45/45 (protein/carbs/fat).

I eat a fair amount of nuts, peanut butter, and avocado, salad dressing with oil, and a little bit of coconut oil (and butter) (and baking chocolate). These are all considered "good fats", except the butter and coconut oil, but I think those are up for debate. I'm curious why you would try to limit fat -- from what I have read, carbs are stored as body fat more readily than fat is, and the "good fats" in general are considered healthy. I should add that I am at maintenance at the moment, so am pretty much eating what I am expending.

My breakdown is about 60% carbs and 20% each of fat and protein. I've had 10% fat days but i work to keep it higher. It actually takes the body a lot of work to store carbs as fat and the body prefers carbs as energy, not sure why someone would say otherwise. In a calorie deficit though your body shouldn't be storing fat anyway.

I prefer to eat beans, lentils and fruit which are all low fat. I did add chia seeds in when I realized my fat levels were pretty low and I try to add avocado when I can. Other than whatever processed foods I eat that may have higher amounts of fat, chia seeds are really the only fats I add regularly.

Yeah -- I guess I thought it had to do with carbs being more insulinogenic and insulin being lipogenic (ie it promotes fat storage). It's true that the actual conversion of dietary fat to stored fat would take less energy than the conversion of carbs to stored fat. But I agree, most people here are at a negative energy balance so it shouldn't be an issue.

I just don't like to see fat vilified because I don't think there's any evidence that a moderate fat diet (ie 20-35%), especially if from non-animal fats, is unhealthy, but to each their own.