Low Carb Vegetarians

ArtLover26207
ArtLover26207 Posts: 17
in Food and Nutrition
Hey all,
Just wondering if there are any low carb vegetarians and what your meals look like within a day. I have slowly progressed into barely eating any meats and am interested in taking meat out of my diet completely due to health reasons, and recently I have found I feel much more sluggish and "blah" after a meal containing meat. But I also know that when I reduce my intake on carbs (Breads, sugars, starchy items) that I am able to lose weight. I am not looking at lowering the carb intake from fruits and vegetables, looking more at lowering the intake from the processed and refined grains.
Any tips?

Replies

  • SirBonerFart
    SirBonerFart Posts: 1,185 Member
    Hmm

    So you goals are to
    a) Eat no meat
    b) Eat low carb foods (most fruits and vegetables are carbs)
    c) Eat reduced number of processed foods and grains

    That does not leave you much choice, I guess you should focus your diet around milk and eggs
  • ZyheeMoongazer
    ZyheeMoongazer Posts: 343 Member
    Here are a few sites I find some great recipes on:

    http://www.vegetariantimes.com/recipe/
    http://www.eatingwell.com/recipes_menus/vegetarian_recipes
    http://www.vegangela.com/tag/low-carb/
    http://allrecipes.com/recipes/healthy-recipes/special-diets/low-carb/main-dishes/vegetarian/

    I love having quinoa as a side dish, its not low-carb but its an unprocessed whole grain.
  • Amberlynnek
    Amberlynnek Posts: 405 Member
    Use whole grains - whole wheat pasta, whole wheat bread, rolled oats, quinoa, barley, etc, etc, etc.

    Replace refined starches with natural like sweet potatoes and other veggies

    Just focus on kicking anything refined and process, not carbs. You'll find it to be a lot less stressful.
  • daffodilsoup
    daffodilsoup Posts: 1,972 Member
    Turn to foods like tofu, tempeh, seitan and textured vegetable protein, as well as nuts, seeds and low-carb fruits and veggies such as avocadoes, berries and cauliflower. Also eat plenty of oils (coconut is my favorite) for fats.

    This may be doable for awhile, but if I were to follow these guidelines personally, I would get bored and find it difficult to stick to. What's wrong with fruits and veggies?
  • intothepavement
    intothepavement Posts: 40 Member
    If you're lowering your carbs, make sure your meals pretty much look like, high fat, high protein, and lots of greens.

    e.g. avocados and nuts on salads
    full fat dairy
    eggs
    tofu

    And I do low carb as well, I'm vegetarian, and it's the fats that keep me from going mental without bread and stuff.

    On the upside, you can do full fat salad dressings! Hello Blue cheese!
  • kaleena1983
    kaleena1983 Posts: 64 Member
    I guess you could classify me as a low-carb vegetarian. I don't eat many grains/rice. My carbs are primarily from fruit. You'll just need to increase your veggies quite a bit! My breakfast is usually two eggs, a piece of whole grain bread, and a piece of fruit (usually banana/grapefruit). My lunch is normally a salad with fruit and nuts. My dinner is normally a veggie burger, vegetables, and fruit. I snack a lot during the day, which includes nuts, fruit, vegetables (I frequently get the frozen bags and just throw them in the microwave), and greek yogurt. Feel free to add me and you can take a look at my diary.
  • Kaymegan90
    Kaymegan90 Posts: 35
    Psssht. Whatever. You can totally rock low carb vegetarian. Don't listen to anyone who says you can't.

    And for others - I think she's saying she is not concerned about lowing her carb intake from fruit and veggies. Meaning she will eat those carbs and not worry about it. She's talking about restricting her carbs from grains.

    Pinterest is always my go to when it comes to getting meal ideas.

    http://pinterest.com/alyricaldiva/low-carb-vegetarian/
    http://pinterest.com/websitedesigner/low-carb-vegetarian-recipes/
    http://pinterest.com/veghead60/low-carb-vegetarian-recipes/
    http://pinterest.com/amajoyce/low-carbvegetarian/

    Just search 'low carb vegetarian' and select boards instead of pins, and you should come up with plenty of options to get your mind churning! It's definitely doable - people will tell you that you can't for the rest of your life, but it's been done, and it's fine. Rock it!
  • Zaniejane
    Zaniejane Posts: 329 Member
    I really don't know what that would look like, but I'll think of some lower carb meals I may have.

    Ratatouille.
    Curried quinoa and lentils.
    Butter chicken sauce made with almond butter and substitute chick peas for chicken.
    Scrambled tofu with veggies.
    Veggie burgers substituting lettuce leaves for a bun?
    Lettuce wraps.
    Greek yogurt or cottage cheese mixed with veggies and salsa
    Greek yogurt mixed with 1 tbs oatmeal and 1 tsp honey.
    Brocolli and cheese sauce.
    Kale and quinoa salad with chopped almonds.
    Kale sautéed in olive oil, lemon juice and cashews.
  • fishgutzy
    fishgutzy Posts: 2,807 Member
    Hmm

    So you goals are to
    a) Eat no meat
    b) Eat low carb foods (most fruits and vegetables are carbs)
    c) Eat reduced number of processed foods and grains

    That does not leave you much choice, I guess you should focus your diet around milk and eggs

    That is my reaction when I see the diametrically opposed "low carb vegetarian."
    Every "vegetable" protein source I have looked at has more carb grams than protein.
    My wife had to reduce meat due to Chron's. The best she can do is reducing carbs but not close to what is considered low carb.

    And vegetable protein powder is ridiculously expensive.
  • Raclex
    Raclex Posts: 238
    Also forcus on legumes such as lentils, chick peas, beans, etc. I make a wonderful vegetarian chili that I got off Alicia Silverstone's The Kind Life site. Nuts too. Add some eggs, dairy (I can't consume dairy due to an intolerence).

    Just be careful because often people stop eating meat and turn to refined carbs. So educate yourself as far as macros and you'll be OK. There's lots of vegetarians/vegans on this site that have a lot of great information!
  • ArtLover26207
    ArtLover26207 Posts: 17
    What's wrong with fruits and veggies?

    I didn't say there was. I said I was looking at lowering the processed and refined carbs.
  • AprilMae1975
    AprilMae1975 Posts: 726
    Psssht. Whatever. You can totally rock low carb vegetarian. Don't listen to anyone who says you can't.

    And for others - I think she's saying she is not concerned about lowing her carb intake from fruit and veggies. Meaning she will eat those carbs and not worry about it. She's talking about restricting her carbs from grains.

    Pinterest is always my go to when it comes to getting meal ideas.

    http://pinterest.com/alyricaldiva/low-carb-vegetarian/
    http://pinterest.com/websitedesigner/low-carb-vegetarian-recipes/
    http://pinterest.com/veghead60/low-carb-vegetarian-recipes/
    http://pinterest.com/amajoyce/low-carbvegetarian/


    Just search 'low carb vegetarian' and select boards instead of pins, and you should come up with plenty of options to get your mind churning! It's definitely doable - people will tell you that you can't for the rest of your life, but it's been done, and it's fine. Rock it!

    Great Pinterest boards.....thanks!!!
  • ArtLover26207
    ArtLover26207 Posts: 17
    Psssht. Whatever. You can totally rock low carb vegetarian. Don't listen to anyone who says you can't.

    And for others - I think she's saying she is not concerned about lowing her carb intake from fruit and veggies. Meaning she will eat those carbs and not worry about it. She's talking about restricting her carbs from grains.

    Pinterest is always my go to when it comes to getting meal ideas.

    http://pinterest.com/alyricaldiva/low-carb-vegetarian/
    http://pinterest.com/websitedesigner/low-carb-vegetarian-recipes/
    http://pinterest.com/veghead60/low-carb-vegetarian-recipes/
    http://pinterest.com/amajoyce/low-carbvegetarian/

    Just search 'low carb vegetarian' and select boards instead of pins, and you should come up with plenty of options to get your mind churning! It's definitely doable - people will tell you that you can't for the rest of your life, but it's been done, and it's fine. Rock it!

    Thanks! I will definitely look at pinterest! Great encouraging post :D
  • ArtLover26207
    ArtLover26207 Posts: 17
    Use whole grains - whole wheat pasta, whole wheat bread, rolled oats, quinoa, barley, etc, etc, etc.

    Replace refined starches with natural like sweet potatoes and other veggies

    Just focus on kicking anything refined and process, not carbs. You'll find it to be a lot less stressful.

    Kicking out the refined is the goal! Thanks for the input! :)
  • SJVZEE
    SJVZEE Posts: 451 Member
    Hey all,
    Just wondering if there are any low carb vegetarians and what your meals look like within a day. I have slowly progressed into barely eating any meats and am interested in taking meat out of my diet completely due to health reasons, and recently I have found I feel much more sluggish and "blah" after a meal containing meat. But I also know that when I reduce my intake on carbs (Breads, sugars, starchy items) that I am able to lose weight. I am not looking at lowering the carb intake from fruits and vegetables, looking more at lowering the intake from the processed and refined grains.
    Any tips?

    I'm also transitioning right now as well. I've found that without the grains I can't hit my calories and even then, I struggle to get in enough (calorie goal is around 1,900 + exercise calories and I have problems even hitting 1,400). If you are trying to keep the carbs down, just limit yourself to one or two servings of grains/beans a day. But, you may have a hard time with calories then.
  • kkveggie
    kkveggie Posts: 56 Member
    I am a vegetarian and have recently been reducing my intake of processed foods and carbs (other than fruits and veggies). I am absolutely loving it so far! I feel like I have so much more energy now that I have started eating more fruits and vegetables instead of replacing meat meals with yet another pasta dish.

    You can totally do it, you just have to be open to trying new foods and experimenting with flavor!!

    I find recipies by googling anything that pops into my mind.

    Some of my favorite things to eat are:
    - stir fry (tofu and lots of veggies, served over quinoa instead of rice)
    - lettuce wraps (with quinoa, hummus, tomatoes, avocado, mushrooms, whatever you're feeling!)
    - taco salad (with black beans)
    - minestrone soup (no noodles and extra kidney beans)
    - muffins made from cauliflower
    - cheesy spinach lasagna (sliced zuchini in place of noodles)

    I also make a lot of things to jazz up salads and veggies. Homemade hummus and homemade salsa are life-savers!

    I also like to make a smoothie in the morning with some protein powder, frozen berries, and a hanful of greens.

    The internet is your friend. Look around and you will find lots of delicious recipies to try out!!

    Good luck, I know you can do it :bigsmile:
  • ArtLover26207
    ArtLover26207 Posts: 17
    I am a vegetarian and have recently been reducing my intake of processed foods and carbs (other than fruits and veggies). I am absolutely loving it so far! I feel like I have so much more energy now that I have started eating more fruits and vegetables instead of replacing meat meals with yet another pasta dish.

    You can totally do it, you just have to be open to trying new foods and experimenting with flavor!!

    I find recipies by googling anything that pops into my mind.

    Some of my favorite things to eat are:
    - stir fry (tofu and lots of veggies, served over quinoa instead of rice)
    - lettuce wraps (with quinoa, hummus, tomatoes, avocado, mushrooms, whatever you're feeling!)
    - taco salad (with black beans)
    - minestrone soup (no noodles and extra kidney beans)
    - muffins made from cauliflower
    - cheesy spinach lasagna (sliced zuchini in place of noodles)

    I also make a lot of things to jazz up salads and veggies. Homemade hummus and homemade salsa are life-savers!

    I also like to make a smoothie in the morning with some protein powder, frozen berries, and a hanful of greens.

    The internet is your friend. Look around and you will find lots of delicious recipies to try out!!

    Good luck, I know you can do it :bigsmile:

    That spinach lasagne sounds amazing!!!! Very interesting with the muffins made from cauliflower...how is the texture? I love to bake so anything that I can replace the processed flours with I am willing to try. (I love substituting applesauce for oil and eggs in some of my baking...and it still would come out just as good! if not better!)
  • Kaymegan90
    Kaymegan90 Posts: 35
    I am a vegetarian and have recently been reducing my intake of processed foods and carbs (other than fruits and veggies). I am absolutely loving it so far! I feel like I have so much more energy now that I have started eating more fruits and vegetables instead of replacing meat meals with yet another pasta dish.

    You can totally do it, you just have to be open to trying new foods and experimenting with flavor!!

    I find recipies by googling anything that pops into my mind.

    Some of my favorite things to eat are:
    - stir fry (tofu and lots of veggies, served over quinoa instead of rice)
    - lettuce wraps (with quinoa, hummus, tomatoes, avocado, mushrooms, whatever you're feeling!)
    - taco salad (with black beans)
    - minestrone soup (no noodles and extra kidney beans)
    - muffins made from cauliflower
    - cheesy spinach lasagna (sliced zuchini in place of noodles)

    I also make a lot of things to jazz up salads and veggies. Homemade hummus and homemade salsa are life-savers!

    I also like to make a smoothie in the morning with some protein powder, frozen berries, and a hanful of greens.

    The internet is your friend. Look around and you will find lots of delicious recipies to try out!!

    Good luck, I know you can do it :bigsmile:
    Smoothies are a GREAT option, too!
  • lesliev523
    lesliev523 Posts: 366 Member
    Thank you for posting this! I have celiac disease, but have also found that I am suddenly not feeling well after I eat a lot of meat. I am slowly taking meat out of my diet... we will see what happens. I am finding that I am drinking at least one protein drink a day and eating lots of greek yogurt. That way I feel like I am still getting my protein without feeling like I am going to vomit after a meal! (Because yes.... that is how I feel after I eat meat containing meals)
  • daffodilsoup
    daffodilsoup Posts: 1,972 Member
    What's wrong with fruits and veggies?

    I didn't say there was. I said I was looking at lowering the processed and refined carbs.

    I completely misunderstood and thought you were looking to take out fruits and veggies as well - I may have mixed this up with one of the responses. My bad!

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