Need help from fellow Vegetarians!!!

JustWant2Run wrote: »

slaite1 wrote: »

Why are you going vegetarian for a few months and then adding meat back in? If you just want to incorporate more fruits and vegetables-do that. It'll make your life easier.

Have some rice with dinner, cook it with garlic and onions. Add some diced veggies on top when it's done. Or make whole wheat pasta. Put it in a marinara sauce, then load it with mushroom, extra tomatoes, garlic, whatever you like. Or just make a sandwich with some grain bread, add some spinach and tomatoes, and top with an avocado spread.

All of these options can have meat added-or a meat alternative such as dairy, soy, etc. Simple.

This. Going vegetarian won't make you lose weight faster.

AliceDark wrote: »

This is a bad idea. It's not particularly difficult to get adequate protein as a vegetarian (especially if you continue to eat eggs and dairy products), but it takes a LOT more planning ahead, you have a lot less flexibility (especially when it comes to eating out), and because your options are more limited it can get boring. This is what typically happens...

"Yay, I'm going to be a vegetarian and lose tons of weight!"
The person cuts out meat but doesn't replace the protein/iron/vitamins (for example: people swap out burgers for portobellos. Yes, it functions like a burger in that you can eat it with ketchup and a bun, but it's a horrible substitute from a nutritional perspective, because you're not getting any of the nutrients that you're now missing because you're not eating the burger)
After a few months, the person feels like hell, is tired, maybe a little anemic, or has possibly gained weight because cheese tastes good and has tons of calories
"Boo, being a vegetarian made me unhealthy! I'm going to complain about that every time I meet another vegetarian!"

If you do this, research vegetarian protein options and map out a few typical days. Make sure you're willing to eat those things, in those quantities, before you cut out meat.

greenrhino6 wrote: »

I have been vegetarian my entire life (being born into a fairly religious Hindu family). As above posters have said, going veggie won't necessarily make you lose weight faster. I have many overweight family and friends both veggie and non veggie alike. What is more important is a clean diet.
Stay away from the processed fake-meats and fried foods. Low carb vegetarian diets are not the easiest thing to keep up. I would suggest not worrying about the amount of carbs (possibly a contentious point) but ensuring that the majority comes from healthy sources like whole grains/sweet potatoes/beans/pulses and not pastries/white flour products.

I've always done well when I do the following for keeping a clean diet:

Breakfast meals: (generally only one of these)
- Porridge oats or Muesli
- Scrambled eggs with veggies (or veggie loaded omelette)
- Wholegrain Toast with avacado / egg and baked beans
- Wholegrain Toast and fruit

Lunches and Dinners:
- Vegetable curries with brown rice or chappatis/wholewheat wraps
- Bean and veggie chilli with Jacket potato or rice and salad
- Veggie stir-frys (vegetables, bean sprouts, tofu, chillies and soya sauce)
- Falafel sandwiches/wraps (falafels not fried but baked or cooked on a hot pan)
- Falafel and roasted Veg and salads
- Roasted veg and rice/couscous
- Pasta with a vegetable loaded tomato sauce
- Baked/boiled/mash potatoes with veggies, salsas/gravies and salads
- Veggie soups and bread (in the winter)

Snacks:
- Fruits
- Nuts and seeds (make sure you don't eat too much of these as it's very easy to underestimate how many calories are in them)
- Veggies with salsa or hummus
- Large salads (go easy with oily dressings - I prefer just balsamic vinegar or lemon juice or none at all) add nuts/olives/feta cheese/ a little couscous to make it more filling.
- Small portions of the previous days leftovers

By consuming more bean and pulses and green/colourful veggies you can ensure that the carbs you eat will be nutritious and be coupled with healthy proteins. Learning to use different spices and herbs with the different dishes will give you a big variety in meals you can create with a relatively simple set of ingredients.

Making batches of bean & veggie chilli, veggie loaded pasta sauces, veggie curries and keeping them in the fridge/freezer can give you quick meals throughout the week where only wraps/rice/pasta/salads need to be made on the day.

My personal pitfalls are chocs, potato crisps(chips for you Americans) the more than occasional veggie pizza with a bit too much cheese and ready made vegetarian sandwiches/lunches when I am too lazy to make healthier choices. Also sometimes enjoying a beer or wine more often than I should. When I have too much of these coupled with large portions of the above, I find my weight creeping up. But when I eat sensible portions of the meal suggestions above I tend to do a lot better and have plenty of energy for running/exercise.

That was a longer post than I was intending but hopefully a useful view from a life long vegetarian!

Katzedernacht wrote: »

Hmm I still don't get why going vegetarian if it's gonna be a short while thing, in that case just add a lot of veggies,nuts and stuff, I was a vegetarian for 13 years,now vegan for 2, it has little to do with weight and stuff, you gotta work that butt to get in shape,also mind what you eat.


low carb xD not gonna happen unless you eat only eggs