Any one changing to a mostly vegetarian diet?

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  • daffodilsoup
    daffodilsoup Posts: 1,972 Member
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    Vegan here, but for ethical reasons. You can be a healthy vegan or an unhealthy vegan, just like you can be a healthy omnivore or an unhealthy omnivore.
  • ClubSilencio
    ClubSilencio Posts: 2,983 Member
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    peter56765 wrote: »
    Nope. Meats are the most nutritionally dense foods out there

    ?????????

  • Monketo2002
    Monketo2002 Posts: 26 Member
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    bbgun714 wrote: »
    Yup, I'm 100% vegan, and it's the best feeling in the world. I have no problem getting protein, even when I'm lazy and have a day where I only eat fruit and baked potatoes my protein still reaches the limit. My skin is way clearer, I have a ton of energy without drinking coffee or tea, and my asthma has actually gotten better. Choosing not to eat meat is great, but eliminating dairy and eggs is even better for you. If you have any questions, please reply!

    Same, except I eat, beans and nuts a lot for my protein. Also I follow an 80/10/10 rule and eat fresh fruit and veggies everyday. Sometimes I don't eat beans or nuts, mostly bread,fruit and veggies and I still get enough protein because I am fairly small
  • suzan06
    suzan06 Posts: 218 Member
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    Obviously this isn't for everyone, but we absolutely love raising laying hens. Great eggs, the hens live a happy life (totally free range) and we know they are treated well. We are vegetarians and do eat eggs and dairy, and I find that I cannot eat grocery store eggs for ethical reasons- the thought of those poor hens in a cages makes me gag just thinking about it. But my happy girls cost about 20$ a month in feed for 6 hens, and we get 5 eggs a day. (Coop costs are an up front cost, and throw off the economics, but we had lots of fun building it and sort of consider it a separate hobby).
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
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    suzan06 wrote: »
    Obviously this isn't for everyone, but we absolutely love raising laying hens. Great eggs, the hens live a happy life (totally free range) and we know they are treated well. We are vegetarians and do eat eggs and dairy, and I find that I cannot eat grocery store eggs for ethical reasons- the thought of those poor hens in a cages makes me gag just thinking about it. But my happy girls cost about 20$ a month in feed for 6 hens, and we get 5 eggs a day. (Coop costs are an up front cost, and throw off the economics, but we had lots of fun building it and sort of consider it a separate hobby).

    Unfortunately, there are few sources for hens that don't involve supporting commercial hatchery operations -- which routinely kill male chicks. For those opposed to eggs for ethical reasons, supporting hatcheries is still not an good option (not to say your chickens come from these sources, it's just difficult to buy chickens and not support hatcheries).
  • chelsea7162
    chelsea7162 Posts: 97 Member
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    I'm a vegan and I have been for a few months, I used to be an ovo-lacto vegetarian and I've never liked red meat. I find my body does not react well to dairy products so I've decided to avoid them as a whole as I don't really support the dairy industry anyways. I've never liked eggs and going vegan was an easy step after realizing that personally I couldn't support the animal agricultural industry and eggs just make me extremely gassy. It's easy for me to hit 60-80g protein a day from soy milk, vega protein shakes (for breakfast and after a workout, mixed with soy milk or almond milk), tofu (which I love), black bean pasta, and occasional Gardien vegan meats if they're on sale.
  • youngmomtaz
    youngmomtaz Posts: 1,075 Member
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    suzan06 wrote: »
    Obviously this isn't for everyone, but we absolutely love raising laying hens. Great eggs, the hens live a happy life (totally free range) and we know they are treated well. We are vegetarians and do eat eggs and dairy, and I find that I cannot eat grocery store eggs for ethical reasons- the thought of those poor hens in a cages makes me gag just thinking about it. But my happy girls cost about 20$ a month in feed for 6 hens, and we get 5 eggs a day. (Coop costs are an up front cost, and throw off the economics, but we had lots of fun building it and sort of consider it a separate hobby).

    Unfortunately, there are few sources for hens that don't involve supporting commercial hatchery operations -- which routinely kill male chicks. For those opposed to eggs for ethical reasons, supporting hatcheries is still not an good option (not to say your chickens come from these sources, it's just difficult to buy chickens and not support hatcheries).

    Initially I would agree. But if you add a roster to your coop you can eventually hatch eggs. Sell any that turn out to be roosters once mature, and always have young hens in the coop. I have about 20 layers and 3 roosters right now. Only getting about 4 eggs a day. Most are old and we did not have any good hatches this year. But we keep them all happy and healthy. And don't have to buy layers or eggs.
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
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    suzan06 wrote: »
    Obviously this isn't for everyone, but we absolutely love raising laying hens. Great eggs, the hens live a happy life (totally free range) and we know they are treated well. We are vegetarians and do eat eggs and dairy, and I find that I cannot eat grocery store eggs for ethical reasons- the thought of those poor hens in a cages makes me gag just thinking about it. But my happy girls cost about 20$ a month in feed for 6 hens, and we get 5 eggs a day. (Coop costs are an up front cost, and throw off the economics, but we had lots of fun building it and sort of consider it a separate hobby).

    Unfortunately, there are few sources for hens that don't involve supporting commercial hatchery operations -- which routinely kill male chicks. For those opposed to eggs for ethical reasons, supporting hatcheries is still not an good option (not to say your chickens come from these sources, it's just difficult to buy chickens and not support hatcheries).

    Initially I would agree. But if you add a roster to your coop you can eventually hatch eggs. Sell any that turn out to be roosters once mature, and always have young hens in the coop. I have about 20 layers and 3 roosters right now. Only getting about 4 eggs a day. Most are old and we did not have any good hatches this year. But we keep them all happy and healthy. And don't have to buy layers or eggs.

    I'm glad you found something that works for you. I haven't kept chickens since I was a young girl (I guess technically my parents kept them and I helped!) but my friends who keep them make it sound as if the market for roosters (except for meat) is rather limited. Probably not true for every area though.
  • Nutbutt24
    Nutbutt24 Posts: 34 Member
    edited December 2015
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    bbgun714 wrote: »
    bbgun714 wrote: »
    Yup, I'm 100% vegan, and it's the best feeling in the world. I have no problem getting protein, even when I'm lazy and have a day where I only eat fruit and baked potatoes my protein still reaches the limit. My skin is way clearer, I have a ton of energy without drinking coffee or tea, and my asthma has actually gotten better. Choosing not to eat meat is great, but eliminating dairy and eggs is even better for you. If you have any questions, please reply!

    Are you hitting MFP's default protein goal on fruit and baked potatoes or did you custom set your goal? I have been vegan for 9 years and I do believe it's totally possible to meet protein needs without animal products. But I'm not sure how you're hitting the default goal on fruit and baked potatoes.

    You'd be surprised, everything has protein.

    Yes..trace amounts. But certainly not enough to meet any sort of minimum required amount by eating only fruits and baked potatoes...unless you're eating a massive quantity of them as I said

    Not to mention the fact that vegetable sources of protein are less bioavailable than animal sources.

    And what's so bad about dairy and eggs?

    the fact that babies are torn away from their mothers so that you can drink their milk instead of their babies causing enormous stress for the calf and the mother. Most time the calves are put into a structure they can't move in so that people can have nice veal that doesn't taste gamy. The fact that millions of male chicks are crushed to death or put in a blender because they cannot produce eggs. That's whats wrong with eating milk and eggs.

    And there are plenty of ways vegans can get protein. I am eating 30 g of protein for lunch that's from a cup of beans.
  • Nutbutt24
    Nutbutt24 Posts: 34 Member
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    DocStar127 wrote: »
    I get at least 40 g per day but not the 85 MFP sets for me. I ignore that.

    You could change your protein goal by going to goals and playing around with the percentage. With that said, more protein is not a bad thing, especially for someone who is trying to lose weight. The more muscle mass you manage to preserve the better your results will look, and for that protein is key. It's not that protein is hard to hit for vegetarian, it's just that it's much easier to do on a diet that includes meat. For vegetarians struggling to hit their protein goal I have one word. Lupins! They make a perfect snack and they have more than 20 grams of protein in a 200 calorie cup.

    Edit: after checking it's actually 26 grams of protein per cup, and 193 calories.

    Haha I eat them everyday. Great source of protein!
  • Celestina_Loving
    Celestina_Loving Posts: 15 Member
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    I'm a strength athlete and haven't had any issues switching to a vegan lifestyle, except the first week when my system cleaned itself out lol. I get plenty of protein from a variety of fruit, veggies, grains, legumes, nuts and seeds. As a huge plus I have absolutely no trouble getting enough iron, fiber, and other vitamins / minerals that I was having trouble getting through a high protein animal based diet i.e chicken/rice steak/sweet potato bro diet. This morning for second breakfast I made a vegan sandwich with 46 grams of protein and 4 hours later I'm just now feeling a little snackish.
  • FunkyTobias
    FunkyTobias Posts: 1,776 Member
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    bbgun714 wrote: »
    bbgun714 wrote: »
    Yup, I'm 100% vegan, and it's the best feeling in the world. I have no problem getting protein, even when I'm lazy and have a day where I only eat fruit and baked potatoes my protein still reaches the limit. My skin is way clearer, I have a ton of energy without drinking coffee or tea, and my asthma has actually gotten better. Choosing not to eat meat is great, but eliminating dairy and eggs is even better for you. If you have any questions, please reply!

    Are you hitting MFP's default protein goal on fruit and baked potatoes or did you custom set your goal? I have been vegan for 9 years and I do believe it's totally possible to meet protein needs without animal products. But I'm not sure how you're hitting the default goal on fruit and baked potatoes.

    You'd be surprised, everything has protein.

    Yes..trace amounts. But certainly not enough to meet any sort of minimum required amount by eating only fruits and baked potatoes...unless you're eating a massive quantity of them as I said

    Not to mention the fact that vegetable sources of protein are less bioavailable than animal sources.

    And what's so bad about dairy and eggs?

    the fact that babies are torn away from their mothers so that you can drink their milk instead of their babies causing enormous stress for the calf and the mother. Most time the calves are put into a structure they can't move in so that people can have nice veal that doesn't taste gamy. The fact that millions of male chicks are crushed to death or put in a blender because they cannot produce eggs. That's whats wrong with eating milk and eggs.

    Which has nothing to do with the claim that eliminating dairy and eggs is "better for you"

    In fact, it has nothing to do with eggs and dairy per se but rather factory farming practices.
    And there are plenty of ways vegans can get protein. I am eating 30 g of protein for lunch that's from a cup of beans.


    Again you ignore the context of the conversation. Nobody claimed that you couldn't get sufficient protein as a vegan, but it takes more than some fruit and potatoes.