Need help from fellow Vegetarians!!!
VeggieLyfe
Posts: 12 Member
I'm just starting my journey w/ not eating meat. I will eventually add back in chicken and fish after a few months, but right now I want to learn to eat and incorporate fruits/veggies/whole grains into my diet.
I need some help!
I need some snack ideas
I need to make sure im not going over on carbs
I need filling food ideas
helpppppppppppppp!
I need some help!
I need some snack ideas
I need to make sure im not going over on carbs
I need filling food ideas
helpppppppppppppp!
0
Replies
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A healthy vegetarian diet should be robust in whole-food carbohydrates (fruits, legumes and whole grains). I'm not sure how you consume enough nurtrient-dense calories on a vegetarian diet while being low-carb.
Snack ideas...granola, fruit or fruit salad, veggies & hummus, tortillas-pico-guac, bean salads, whole grain bread or bagel with hummus or guac, handful of nuts or seeds.0 -
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.
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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.0 -
Eggs, seeds, beans, pulses and pea protein powder but I'm not a vegetarian so you might not want my opinion
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I enjoy curries and stir-fries, but those do not have to be vegetarian. I don't know if you eat eggs, but omelettes are an easy way to add veggies. If I eat fruit, it is usually just a piece of fruit or an apple with peanut butter.0
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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!0 -
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.0 -
A vegetarian diet includes carbs because vegetables have carbs.
One low carb food that is high in protein is Seitan -- made from wheat gluten.0 -
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.
Just something I want to do. No reason, but I am loving it. I have more energy and sleep better since giving up meat, just having issues staying under my carbs and eating less sugar
I'm eating a lot more veggies though!
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JustWant2Run 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.
Not about weight loss, something I chose to do to help with my digestion. Thanks tho!!
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VeggieLyfe 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.
Just something I want to do. No reason, but I am loving it. I have more energy and sleep better since giving up meat, just having issues staying under my carbs and eating less sugar I'm eating a lot more veggies though!
A vegetarian diet is inherently high carb/high sugar. I don't eat meat-so feel free to peak at my diary. I get about 100g of protein. But I am by no means low carb.0 -
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 eggs0 -
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.
I'm just not sure why you all are posting against a decision I made rathergreenrhino6 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!
Thank you!!!! This is super great!0 -
There is doing a vegetarian diet well, and there is doing it badly. Just as someone can have a bad diet while eating meat. The meat or lack of does not make the diet healthy or unhealthy. Proper balance of macro and micro nutrients is the key.
A few years ago I woke up one day and had no desire to eat meat, no reason I can point to I just stopped craving it. I still eat dairy, eggs and fish. I can't fully call myself a Lacto-Ovo Vegetarian, because I do occasionally still have meat. That tends to be limited to special occasions like an anniversary dinner at a high end restaurant or eating at someones house that may not know I prefer vegetarian and prepares something with meat.
Finding good recipes is simple as typing "Vegetarian Food Blog" into google. My favorites are:
http://ohmyveggies.com/
http://www.manjulaskitchen.com/
http://cookieandkate.com/
http://naturallyella.com/
Once you get going, you start to learn more about alternative protein sources and how to take a recipe with meat, and replacing the chicken, beef, etc with something else.
My favorite proteins are: lentils, chickpeas, tofu, and tempeh.
I am not at a place where I pay close attention to carbs, my focus is still at getting my calories under control. Pop a few recipes into the recipe calculator and take a peek if they meet your dietary goals.0 -
Hello! I'm working on becoming vegetarian then vegan. I am looking for friends for support. Add me???0
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ZyheeMoongazer wrote: »There is doing a vegetarian diet well, and there is doing it badly. Just as someone can have a bad diet while eating meat. The meat or lack of does not make the diet healthy or unhealthy. Proper balance of macro and micro nutrients is the key.
A few years ago I woke up one day and had no desire to eat meat, no reason I can point to I just stopped craving it. I still eat dairy, eggs and fish. I can't fully call myself a Lacto-Ovo Vegetarian, because I do occasionally still have meat. That tends to be limited to special occasions like an anniversary dinner at a high end restaurant or eating at someones house that may not know I prefer vegetarian and prepares something with meat.
Finding good recipes is simple as typing "Vegetarian Food Blog" into google. My favorites are:
http://ohmyveggies.com/
http://www.manjulaskitchen.com/
http://cookieandkate.com/
http://naturallyella.com/
Once you get going, you start to learn more about alternative protein sources and how to take a recipe with meat, and replacing the chicken, beef, etc with something else.
My favorite proteins are: lentils, chickpeas, tofu, and tempeh.
I am not at a place where I pay close attention to carbs, my focus is still at getting my calories under control. Pop a few recipes into the recipe calculator and take a peek if they meet your dietary goals.
Great advice here.
It is possible to do a lower-carb vegetarian diet, but maybe think of swapping in fats as well as proteins for processed carbs. Nuts and seeds, as well as avocado have lots of healthy fats and help you feel full. I personally like chickpeas, beans, lentils and tempeh as protein sources.
And I agree about avoiding faux-meats, sausages etc. They have very little protein in and are basically full of processed carbs.
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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
I never said low carb. I just want to go over my daily carbs that mfp gives me the way I've been doing. I love the decision I've made and I feel better already. I'm excited to try new things and if it works out, great for me! Thanks for the support
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Thank you for all the helpful replies that answered my original question 0
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I am vegan myself- it's the healthiest way in my experience. Protein is not the problem people say it is, take a walk into your local hospital and ask for the protein deficiency wing... you won't find one.
Here are some samples of what I eat:
Breakfast Options:
Oatmeal swirled with almond butter and some hemp milk
Cornflakes with walnuts topped with almond milk
Fresh fruit blended with chia seeds, almond butter, and cashew milk
Lunches:
Peanut Butter and Banana sandwich
Lentil tacos
Sofritas bowl from Chipotle
Spinach salad topped with strawberries, orange slices, pecans, pepitas and vinaigrette
Dinner:
Veggie burgers topped with sauteed mushrooms and onions
Grilled tofu served over quinoa with roasted kale
Black Bean burritos
For great recipes look here: www.theppk.com
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Thank you for the meal ideas!!!!!! I'm going to look at the site also too. I'm up for trying g new things!0
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VeggieLyfe wrote: »Thank you for the meal ideas!!!!!! I'm going to look at the site also too. I'm up for trying g new things!
Hope you like it! That website is really awesome. The same chef also authored my favorite cookbook ever, "Isa Does It."
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My go to snack is a 100 cal bag of Pop Secret. Bruschettas are great too. Mushroom, tomato and cannellini beans are good choices on toasted baguette slices or thin bagel chips. Homemade chocolate chunk bars (mine are 140 cals each) are filling. I use them on long bike rides instead of gels.0
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I was vegan for 11 years. Now I'm a lacto-ovo vegetarian. I have been a vegetarian since 1995. To me, asking what to eat that is vegetarian seems such an odd thing because humans eat only a handful of animals (cows, chickens, turkey, fish, pigs, shellfish, muscles, and I suppose the occasional rabbit, frog, monkey, grasshopper) but the vegetarian foods we eat are an almost infinite list (everything else, basically).
I think even on a vegan diet, enough protein isn't hard to get. I think it does get more complicated if you are weightlifting and trying to build LBM (1g of protein per lb of LBM), but even then it's doable.
anyways, I like things like pad thai, rad na, broccoli and tofu in garlic sauce, bean soft tacos, nachos, fried rice, veggie burgers, soy yogurts, egg sammiches, smoothies (lots and lots of smoothies with protein powder!), burritos, indian food (saag! saag! channa masala! Bombay curry!), corn on the cob, steamed veggies, salads (lots and lots of salads!)....
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I eat about 90% vegetarian, so feel free to look at my diary. You will end up higher in carbs, there's no way around that. I use protein shakes/bars, eggs, string cheese, greek yogurt, etc. for my protein needs!
One of my favorite simple vegetarian dinners is lentils with veggies! You can get brown lentils that are about 80 calories per serving (I typically do two servings) and they have a lot of protein. I boil the lentils and then add in sauteed squash and onions - or even easier, frozen broccoli prepared in the microwave. Top with a little butter and seasonings and it's amazing.0 -
VeggieLyfe wrote: »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
I never said low carb. I just want to go over my daily carbs that mfp gives me the way I've been doing. I love the decision I've made and I feel better already. I'm excited to try new things and if it works out, great for me! Thanks for the support
Oh ok,I'm sorry if i misunderstood, well if you feel awesome then by all means continue with it.
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What about for potassium? I'm running low even though I'm eating sweet potatoes, drinking orange juice, and massive amounts of beans!0
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VeggieLyfe wrote: »What about for potassium? I'm running low even though I'm eating sweet potatoes, drinking orange juice, and massive amounts of beans!
Look up some of the quantities yourself. Potassium usually is not in the nutritional info-you are most likely getting plenty, it's just not listed in the database0 -
Okay thank you!0
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UGG all you people whining that Vegetarians don't get enough protein/vitamins/etc, and are all carb loaders? Where the hell do you get this bullcrap info? Also, VEGAN's are the ones who don't consume any animal products (honey, dairy, eggs, etc) 'lacto-ovo vegetarian' is such an old term for just a plain-old vegetarian (before they had a word for vegans). Vegetarians (without a prefix) are just plant-based diets and have restrictions on meat itself, not on animal byproducts. Honestly, unless you have a deficiency or illness that restricts your body from getting vitamins from foods, (Anemia, calcium deficiency, etc) you can get every vitamin you need from a plant based diet. No need for supplements or meats. I wont get on the rant about how eggs and dairy are horrible for you. That's a whole other can of worms.
Eating Vegetarian is SIMPLE. DONT EAT MEAT.
I eat 99% vegetarian. (Technically I'm Pescatarian due to low iron levels that require me to eat some fish occasionally).
Feel free to look at my Food Diary. You don't need to carb load to be full. You don't need to eat Salad all the time. (but they are delicious)
There are Billions of recipes out there to work with. Yummly.com is very helpful for people with restricted diets and can show results catered to your diet choices.
Cassey Ho (Blogilates) has awesome recipes on her youtube channel. Go check her out.
I've been a veg-head for years and can tell you it is all about being creative and open to new flavors and cooking methods.
If there is something you cant live without (pizza, mac and cheese, tacos, chinese food?) I GUARENTEE you that you can find a low-calorie/low carb option that is not only meat free but MUCH healthier for you.
I recently discovered an AMAZING substitute for my pasta cravings.- Spaghetti Squash. 5 cups of this stuff from Half a squash is one HUGE plate of angel-hair like 'pasta'. throw a little organic marinara sauce on there, and WHALA! A massive, filling meal, only 397 calories. (5 cups of normal pasta noodles would be 1105 calories... that's without the sauce too). Did your jaw just hit the floor? Mine did.
Like Mac and cheese? Look up Miracle Noodle. a whole bag of that stuff, and a kick-butt recipe to make it ooy-gooey-cheesey, 88 Calories/serving. (it makes 2, but who are we kidding, I'd Eat the whole batch.) Regular Annie's Organic boxed mac n cheese, 700 Calories. (makes 1 bowl. and I know you'd eat the whole bowl. I do)
Look up how to make cauliflower pizza crust. LIFESAVER.
Gardein does amazing things with 'meat look-a-likes'. Mandarin Orange chik'n with some whole grain rice and steamed veggies. Boom. Chinese food. And if you like Spring rolls, I have a guilt-free recipe for those too.
Morningstar and Boca have delicious burgers. all less than 180 Cal.
Like Fries? grab a sweet potato or squash and roast em up!
Tofu tacos are a MUST in my dinner selection. Super filling and less than 600 cal.
Even my super picky meat-eating boyfriend likes these dishes. (So you know they're good!)
Come at me, veggie-skeptics. I got recipes for my recipes. And a kitchen full of delicious ideas.
I'm More than willing to help, just send me a message. (And friend me if you like.)
-Lisa0
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