Vegan or gluten free help

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kori0424
kori0424 Posts: 25 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Hi my name is a Kori and I've been tracking my food periodically and am looking to get any friends I can get. I'm also looking if anyone is personally on a vegan or gluten free (or both :)) life style. I've been trying to be Vegan for almost 2 months now but have fallen off the tract since being put on progesterone. I kinda discouraged cause since being on this medication for 10 days I've gained almost all the 15 pounds I've worked so hard the last 2 months getting off . And as I was eating a rib for dinner tonight I feel disgusted with myself. Do vegans usually do this? Go off track for a week or so? I don't want to eat meat or dairy cause I've just felt so gross since eating it again. I also found out I was gluten intolerant about a month ago and have had such a hard time trying to convert to that with while taking care of a family I cook for every night that isn't. It's really hard to find recipes that are gluten and vegan free. I also am attending culinary school for bakery and pasties which I can't even eat anything I made all day, and my teachers are all about butter, eggs and heavy cream, so I'm not sure if that it self is making it even harder. I think I just need some a advise from someone who is gluten and vegan free and can give me some tips. Any help is greatly appreciated.

Replies

  • DatGurlNyaa
    DatGurlNyaa Posts: 14
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    Hi, Im Shania, im pescetarian and when i do take a bit out of chicken or anything i tend to feel disgusted with myself too. Pescetarianism is a branch of veganism, our only source of meat is seafood. It will help you out alot in your goal to become a full vegan. You should really do research on it. It will seem hard adjusting to a vegan lifestyle but it is pretty easy after awhile tough there is alot of trial and error in cooking. Trust me ive been there. As for gluten free the most i can say is avoid wheat as much as possible try buckwheat instead.
  • arathena720
    arathena720 Posts: 449 Member
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    My step son is vegan and gluten free and you'd be amazed at the range of products out there to try. Couscous, vegan italian sausage, sprouted tofu, all sorts of gluten free breads and cereals. I can get a lot of it from my local Safeway in their natural food market, and then anything I can't get there I can get at Whole Foods. Qorn burgers are great, all sorts of rice cakes and bars, Earth Balance dairy free butter for baking and cooking, Last night we had a vegan/gluten free butternut squash stew over couscous that was delicious. You can search for vegan recipes and then replace anything that has gluten with rice or corn product equivalents.
  • MakePeasNotWar
    MakePeasNotWar Posts: 1,329 Member
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    I have been trying a lot of recipes from ohsheglows.com lately and they are amazing. All recipes are vegan and many are gluten free. The enchilada casserole is so good I make it every week, sometimes twice.

    If you are craving meat, check your food diaries and make sure you are getting enough iron and vitamin B12. And don't feel you have to go 100% vegan on day one. A slower transition will Increase your chances of success. I cut out meat 14 years ago and I am still not completely off dairy yet. Doing 50% better for the rest of your life will make a much bigger difference than being perfect for a few months or a year and then giving up because it is too difficult to maintain.

    Good luck
  • WakkoW
    WakkoW Posts: 567 Member
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    Couscous is not gluten free.
  • Crohns2013
    Crohns2013 Posts: 57 Member
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    I don't have much vegan advice, but I'm 18 months post celiac diagnosis, so I can help there. And I cook for 3 kids and my husband, 1 can't have any gluten, 1 can have a bit and 2 can have all they want. It's do-able. Stick to naturally gluten free foods, like rice, quinoa, oats (make sure they are certified gluten free) beans, fruits, veggies, tofu, seeds, nuts etc.

    If you make pasta, just make 2 types of noodles - 1 gluten free, 1 wheat. There are lots of gf cereals, pretzels, crackers etc out there if you decide to buy re-made items.

    You will have a hard hard time baking or finding vegan gf breads, since gf baking really relies on eggs to hold things together. Good luck!!
  • coccodrillo72
    coccodrillo72 Posts: 94 Member
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    Hello Kori, I've been a vegetarian for 20 years now, and vegan for quite some time. I've met a lot of people who made the same choice and many struggled in the beginning, so no worries In my experience this is NOT something that you have to force upon yourself: when you are ready it comes natural and you feel calm and sure about it. Also, you have to educate yourself about nutrition to be sure to get all the nutrients you need (B12 and omega 3 are harder to get on a vegan diet; iron is not, but you have to associate foods rich in vitamin C to maximize iron absorption...)
    I kinda discouraged cause since being on this medication for 10 days I've gained almost all the 15 pounds I've worked so hard the last 2 months getting off

    Unless you ate an insane amount of food, 15 pounds in 10 days cannot be fat. To gain a pound of fat you have to eat a surplus of 3500 Cals (roughly). I don't know enough about progesterone medication but I've seen that it causes water retention and that could easily explain your gain:
    It's really hard to find recipes that are gluten and vegan free. I also am attending culinary school for bakery and pasties which I can't even eat anything I made all day, and my teachers are all about butter, eggs and heavy cream, so I'm not sure if that it self is making it even harder. I think I just need some a advise from someone who is gluten and vegan free and can give me some tips. Any help is greatly appreciated.

    I agree with MakePeasNotWar: Oh she glows have good recipes, but you can easily find many websites with vegan and gluten free recipies. And maybe you should switch to a vegan culinary school :)
  • pleekwilliams
    pleekwilliams Posts: 6
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    I'm vegetarian and I avoid dairy and I'm gluten free. I'm not strict about any of it except the vegetarian part, because sometimes some dairy will sneak in. I'm not sensitive to gluten but I think I might have Hashimoto's and have read that it's best to stay away. I've been vegetarian for a few years and went gluten free some months ago. I'm not vegan b/c I still eat eggs.

    Honestly, you can find a lot of recipes if you go raw. Most all raw recipes (I don't want to say all b/c I'm not sure) are vegan and gluten free. Friend me if you want and I can give you some websites.

    I'm new to MFP and I don't know how they feel about "advertising" other sites.
  • tanyatho
    tanyatho Posts: 1
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    You might want to check out "Eat to Live" by Joel Furhman for vegan living info, and Isa Chandra Moskowitz's Appetite For Reduction as a great cookbook (really, all of her books are great, but that one focuses on lower cal foods with decent nutritional info). Our house has been vegan for 2.5 years, vegetarian for over a dozen, and now my partner is having some gluten intolerance issues, so we are headed that way.

    I agree with an earlier poster that there are a lot of gluten free recipes that are also vegan, but if you're trying to buy prepared foods, you're going to have a tougher time of things.
  • _silverr21
    _silverr21 Posts: 5
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    I am vegan and gluten free and have been for 2+ years.
    Feel free to message me!
  • Ravissante1997
    Ravissante1997 Posts: 8
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    I have been vegetarian for about fifteen years and trying to go completely vegan for the past year. My entire journey started due to my love for animals and my disgust at the inhumane ways of factory farming and slaughter. I realized a year ago, what a hypocrite I was to think that dairy and eggs were any less cruel than meat. I have no problem eating eggs from "happy chickens" and am fortunate enough to be in an area where I have access to them. I have the occasional bite of cheese but that is disgusting me more and more, that I continue to contribute, so it is finally getting easier to say no.

    About two years ago, I decided to cut out gluten and never felt better in my entire life. I also cut way down on my dairy at the same time. I no longer pay as much attention to the gluten so believe that the dairy was the issue in my case.

    I never have the desire to eat meat of any kind and pretty sure if I did I would be extremely sick. I have an abundance of energy and have never enjoyed eating so much. There are so many new foods, spices and herbs I have experimented with and the tastes are truly amazing. I never eat processed,(which I believe was another big problem regarding my poor health), everything I eat is fresh and clean. I don't eat strictly raw but do incorporate some raw in my diet.

    I think the key is to experiment with many of the fantastic recipes out there and stay focused on what the end result is that you are looking for.

    coccodrillo72 said it well, when you are completely ready, it is very easy. Good luck!!

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