Vegetarian meal plan calories

dmmarie21 · April 2011

Hello.
Tomorrow, I am going to try to start eating less meat and dairy, and start working toward cutting it out completely. I started to enter the food that I have planned out- and am already way over my target calories. What I am wondering, is, if this is okay, since essentially, it is mostly vegetables? I am still getting protein and all of that (tofu, almonds, almond butter..etc.) But, in order to lose weight, should I just continue sticking to counting only calories? Or does the plant based diet move through your body more quickly, causing you to perhaps burn through calories quicker? Thanks!

VialOfDreams · April 2011

I am vegetarian, and haven't changed anything really. As you said, you will still have protein (and may I suggest quinoa, beans and lentils, as they are excellent sources of protein as well), so you should stick with your plan. Still count calories and all the otehr good stuff.

shelleyphant · April 2011

Hi there,

I've been veggie for a long time and ended up putting a lot of weight on eating what various magazines told me I needed to stay healthy. Now I stick by my calories not what I "should" be eating. Check out the blog post below it has some good basic advice on what to eat as your building blocks without adding too many calories or costing you too much money.

http://food-rehab.blogspot.com/2011/04/take-one-twice-day.html

Leela30 · April 2011

You can still overeat broccoli, spinach, carrots, potatoes.. whatever. I'm a vegetarian, but that doesn't mean we can still eat however much we want. I know weight watchers says vegetables are free and you can eat however much of it as you want, but they still have calories. The more honest you are with yourself and the counting, the quicker the results.. at least I think. I definitely cheat and don't always account for the lettuce I put on sandwiches. But the only perk is that you can eat a lot more veggies than other things for their calories. So still count them.

beelouise5 · April 2011

Hi there! I'm a dietitian and vegetarian as well. In general, a healthy, produce-based vegetarian lifestyle is naturally lower in calories than a meat and dairy-rich lifestyle. The traps lie in the processed foods- many processed vegetarian foods have higher calories than the lean protein you'd be eating in meats or dairy products. The trick, then, is to stick to whole, clean vegetarian foods: rices, beans, quinoa, lentils, corn, oatmeal, fruits, and lots of vegetables (5-9 servings per day, or half of every meal)! Nuts and nut butters are also great sources of protein and healthy fats, but only about one serving per day of those will fit within most people's calorie goals for weight loss. I've found that if I am eating the amount of veggies I should be, my calories naturally stay in check.

I'm so excited for your decision to switch to a veggie-based diet! I'm reading The China Study right now, and it has made me absolutely adore the vegetarian lifestyle. So healthy, so awesome

Good luck, girl! You're an inspiration!

dmmarie21 · April 2011

Thanks so much everyone!
Obviously, I have some "tweaking" to do. But, one of my favorite websites thus far is: www.peasandthankyou.com
She has meal plans basically planned out, and I decided to start by following those, but, they are over my calories, so I will try it for a week maybe and if I gain weight, I will cut down. lol. Some of the recipes look phenomenal though! Are there any other websites that you use on a daily basis? Thanks!

pretentiouskate · April 2011

One thing I'd say is that you shouldn't, for example, start making oatmeal with almond or soy milk instead of water because you've gone vegetarian. (Not that you would, just glanced at the peas site and noticed that she suggests making oatmeal with a milk)

You're still cutting calories - so stay away from breads and other big carbs more than once a day, and watch the dairy replacements - they could be a big source of calories. Meat subs/replacements are also generally much higher in calories than meat itself, and because of their processed nature will be higher in sodium as well.

I'd also recommend avoiding a lot of added oils - remember that a vegan or vegetarian recipe can still be unhealthy!

Also look into tofu scrambles, they're a great scrambled egg replacement!

HighRearGisele · April 2011

Hey,

I've been a veggie for about 7 yrs now, and just wanted to offer some info. I was thinking, if you are way over your calories, you might analyze the other stuff than the veggies to see what might have excessive calories. B/c the veggie diet is usually pretty easy to slash calories, as opposed to a regular diet. So yes, for sure count the calories, b/c that's telling you something about the food you are planning to eat. Maybe it's too large portions of the other stuff, maybe too much cheese or dairy, maybe too many almonds, or too much high-cal sauces, butters, etc? You can replace a lot of sauces w/the powder spices. Also, wanted to make sure you know to try to take a B vitamin when you go veggie, but that's the only real issue veggies need to pay attention to in this endeavor. You don't want to be a miserable, grumpy veggie! Good luck! You can check out goveg.com for a starter kit, too.

dwallace27 · April 2011

I have been a vegetarian my entire life and I have found that even most healthy foods can be calorically dense. A calorie is a calorie no matter if it comes from an apple or a candy bar. The key is to eat lots of high-fiber and high-protein plant based foods like beans, nuts and whole grains. I also supplement with protein bars and protein powder sometimes. There are tons of great veggie books out there to give you some ideas. Its always a good idea to check out other vegetarian members' food diaries for ideas. I had a hard time at first sticking to my 1200 calorie a day limit but over time it gets easier. Being vegetarian on a low cal diet takes a lot of discipline since meat is both filling and can be relatively low in calories for the amout of protein it provides. Good luck!!! You will be sooo much better off in the long run!! Its one of the best decisions you can make for your health!!

Vegetarian meal plan calories

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