Vegetarian protein

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A few months ago I made the decision to go ovo-lacto vegetarian for ethical reasons. I've had no problems in the sense of sticking with it, but prior to the change my diet was quite high protein focused, which has since been hard to replicate without the use of supplements, which I find are generally fairly expensive. If any has any advice about Vege-friendly (and preferably low fat) protein sources, I'd appreciate it a lot.

(also, feel free to add, I could use the support :) )

Replies

  • arl1286
    arl1286 Posts: 276 Member
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    High protein, low fat will be beans or quinoa (which isn't SUPER high in protein). Other than that, most protein sources that aren't meat are going to be pretty high fat (nuts, eggs, cheese).
  • kkveggie
    kkveggie Posts: 56 Member
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    Beans, beans, beans. I've been a vegetarian for almost 9 years now, and beans are a life saver. They are so easy to cook up with vegetables, add to salads, throw in soups, combine with rice, etc. They are a great source of protein. My personal favorites are black and kidney.

    Eggs, tofu, protein shakes, and greek yogurt are all good too. Also, make sure you are eating a variety of vegetables and pay attention to dark greens to get some iron in your diet.

    You might want to try searching the forums because I've seen some great responses in regards to this topic. Good luck!
  • vjkoski
    vjkoski Posts: 1 Member
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    Get yourself a copy of Dr.Joel Fuhrman's book Eat to Live. It will answer a lot of your questions and support your choice of low fat vegan. :smile:
  • Flissbo
    Flissbo Posts: 302 Member
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    cottage cheese is low fat but high protein
  • kristen2713
    kristen2713 Posts: 253 Member
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    I agree with everyone here so far. I've been an ovo lacto vegetarian for 20 years, beginning as a bet and turning into so much more. I keep hardboiled eggs around for snacks, make egg whites for breakfast. Other ideas are oatmeal, low fat string cheese, 2% cottage cheese, greek yogurt, black beans, refried beans, almonds and soy nuts. They really add up. I'm doing 40/30/30 and although I'm still getting it under control after day 1 of tracking this way, I'm confident that I will be able to achieve the ratio, even without meat! Of course I love my morningstar products, but they are expensive and I only add them in moderation. You'll also find a surprising amount of protein in certain low calorie breads. I also do add 1 organic hemp protein drink to my day after workouts that gets me another 15 grams. Feel free to add me and look at my food diary (although I've just started tracking). Maybe the numbers will help you see where you can get decent proteins from. Good luck!!
  • emilydavid7
    emilydavid7 Posts: 15 Member
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    Sweet! Alas I've never been a fan of cottage cheese but I'm goo with beans, eggs, some tofus etc. Thanks very much all! :)
  • SJVZEE
    SJVZEE Posts: 451 Member
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    Beans, beans, beans. I've been a vegetarian for almost 9 years now, and beans are a life saver. They are so easy to cook up with vegetables, add to salads, throw in soups, combine with rice, etc. They are a great source of protein. My personal favorites are black and kidney.

    Eggs, tofu, protein shakes, and greek yogurt are all good too. Also, make sure you are eating a variety of vegetables and pay attention to dark greens to get some iron in your diet.

    You might want to try searching the forums because I've seen some great responses in regards to this topic. Good luck!

    How do you do salads with beans? I just bought a can of kidney beans and was thinking of doing some sort of salad with them-do I just drain/rinse and then add cold to my greens?
  • grimendale
    grimendale Posts: 2,154 Member
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    Gardein has a lot of good high protein, low fat and low carb options. Boca vegan burgers and morningstar sausage patties and chicken strips are good sources as well.