Vegan Friends?

I have also decided to go vegan! Friend request inc!

I have been vegan for about 7 years. I lost a bunch of weight when I began to take my health seriously, exercise, and track my food intake, but I have been snacking A LOT since starting my job a couple years ago and some of the weight (25 lbs!!!) has come back. Looking for friends here. TIme to get back in track.

I went vegan at the end of 2013. 36 pounds lost so far!

I had read several times that it was hard to be a fat vegan. I saw how great Bill Clinton looked and decided to try it.

After about 4 weeks my wife and I went on vacation, and I discovered it isn't hard to be a fat vegan! I gained about 4 pounds eating guacamole, cashews, and vegan desserts. So having learned that I started being careful about high-fat and high-sugar foods. Back on track losing weight without counting anything except making sure I got enough protein each day - I was scared I would not get enough protein and start losing muscle mass. Then in April the weight loss really stalled. I got MFP and started tracking my calories and it has been very steady weight loss since. I am on 1750 calories per day and losing about 1.5 pounds per week. It is way easier than any weight loss plan I have been on before - I think the high fiber helps me feel more full even though I am losing weight.

A few things to watch out for: 1) Getting enough protein is not hard but requires planning - it does not happen without thinking like it did when I was eating meat. It takes a considerable quantity of beans to get to 65 grams of protein, even with the protein in other foods. Once I am able to eat more calories it will be easier to get the protein without planning around it. 2) Vitamin B12 - this is the one nutrient that you absolutely need to supplement when on a vegan diet.

I've been vegan for about 7 years. I don't think vegetarian to vegan is that hard of a switch. Protein can be difficult if you don't understand what protein is. A single food as a "complete protein" is very hard to come by but if you go by what makes up protein, the vegetable world is filled with all the essential amino acids and keeping a good mix of vegetables makes going gives you plenty.

The things I've had to watch out for the most are B-12, Calcium and Iron. There are a lot of websites that talk about calcium and iron for vegans (just google search those). B-12 on the other hand doesn't exist. I typically get it from nutritional yeast.

I was originally Vegetarian, then became vegan(although I do occasionally eat cage free organic eggs. Sometimes it's tough being vegan, as I used to consume lots of milk products, but I've gotten through it. Oreos have helped! Lol! But I'm trying to cut them out!! They are my downfall, along with cereal!

Vegan here with an open diary... feel free to add me for support.

mostly vegan here... haha. Would love some more compassionately minded MFP friends, please add!

I have been vegan for 2 years. A lot of processed food geared towards vegans have loads of dietary supplements in them, which is very helpful. I am talking about vegan 'meats' and non-dairy milk. Especially when dieting, it is important to be mindful of choosing protein-rich foods like whole grains, nuts, beans, 'meats', etc. I gained weight the past 2 years because I did not do this. For example, I would order a pizza with veggies and no cheese. No major protein source. Big mistake. I would eat the whole pizza because it was not satisfying enough. Cliff and Vega make great protein bars & snacks. I cannot stand Vega protein powder, however. So to avoid gaining weight on a vegan diet like I did, it is very important to be cognizant of pairing proteins with carbs.

I'm vegan. I'll be happy to share experiences and tips, but just so you know, a vegan diet alone doesn't make a person a vegan. By definition, a vegan commits to buying no animal products for any purpose, including leather, fur and wool, or products tested on animals (except medicines in many cases, because the law at least in some countries forces all medicines to be tested on animals before approval, so boycotting them while such laws are in place would do nothing except cause us to die :P ). If what you mean is you want to speak to ANYONE, vegan or not, on a diet free of meat, eggs or dairy, then adherents are properly called "strict vegetarians", but as with the term "plant-based diet", which is taking off somewhat, it still does suggest you don't eat honey or insect-derived food dyes when in reality many who use the term and are motivated by health only, will eat those things. Probably saying "friends who don't eat meat, dairy or eggs" as opposed to "vegan friends" is the most accurate option.

Vegan here. Been eating too much junk recently, so trying to be healthier!