How to get enough proteins without maxing out calories and carbs on a vegan diet?
maytefrias1982
Posts: 3 Member
This has always been my problem. I've been a vegan for several years and have no intentions on changing this aspect of my diet. However, when I watch my calories and carbs I never get enough proteins, according to myfitnesspal. Tofu, quinoa, beans, all seem to bring high quality proteins at the stake of my waist. Any ideas?
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Replies
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for the most part i don't have this problem, but when i'm low on protein i'll just drink some protein powder with water. vegasport is my favourite!0
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I suggest you lower your protein goal. If you keep under on calories you will still lose weight.0
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In my opinion, trying to go vegan and low/no carb and get a high amount of protein is too restrictive and not sustainable. A vegan diet cuts out half of most sources of protein and by going low carb as well, you effectively cut out all the rest. You're going to have to get some to a moderate amount of carbohydrates if you want to get enough protein too.
Why are you trying to go low carb? Unless you have an insulin deficiency or a digestive disorder like Celiac's, there is no reason to cut out carbohydrates. They are just another macro-nutrient and all the fear mongering surrounding them is just playing on people's disposition of needing a single point of failure to blame.
In addition, How much protein are you trying to get? You may be attemting too much. If you're not trying to gain muscle mass, 0.5-0.75 grams per body weight is more than enough. You can even go lower to about a third of your body weight.
All of this said, have you looked into plant based protein powders? That's the only way I can think of for you to get a high amount of protein despite the restrictions on your diet.
All in all, as long as you're getting the bare minimum of protein at 1/3 of body weight and your caloric intake is at or under your daily goal then eat all the carbs and fats you can have. Otherwise, you don't have much else to eat.0 -
I am a vegetarian and have had this issue. I bought a high quality whey protein powder. It is 100 calorie per scoopful, and has 20 grams of protein. I use it as needed. I also use greek yogurt, egg whites, boca burgers, tofu etc. My goal is 20 gms of protein with every meal (3 meals), and one protein snack in between.0
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Former vegan (pescatarian now), yes, this is a very difficult issue that will resort to using supplement protein powders or un-stomachable amounts of tofu etc. Even more difficult if you can't consume dairy or eggs. My go-to were legumes/nuts in the form of peanut butter, almond butter/almonds, etc...these can all cause GI upset too though (intestinal cramping, bloating, dyspepsia, etc.). It's up to you whether supplements are ok...to me whole food >>> supplements.0
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In my opinion, trying to go vegan and low/no carb and get a high amount of protein is too restrictive and not sustainable. A vegan diet cuts out half of most sources of protein and by going low carb as well, you effectively cut out all the rest. You're going to have to get some to a moderate amount of carbohydrates if you want to get enough protein too.
Why are you trying to go low carb? Unless you have an insulin deficiency or a digestive disorder like Celiac's, there is no reason to cut out carbohydrates. They are just another macro-nutrient and all the fear mongering surrounding them is just playing on people's disposition of needing a single point of failure to blame.
In addition, How much protein are you trying to get? You may be attemting too much. If you're not trying to gain muscle mass, 0.5-0.75 grams per body weight is more than enough. You can even go lower to about a third of your body weight.
All of this said, have you looked into plant based protein powders? That's the only way I can think of for you to get a high amount of protein despite the restrictions on your diet.
All in all, as long as you're getting the bare minimum of protein at 1/3 of body weight and your caloric intake is at or under your daily goal then eat all the carbs and fats you can have. Otherwise, you don't have much else to eat.
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My goal is 66 grams of protein. I'm trying to go low carb for a short period of time just because I want to lose 6 to 7 pounds. I LOVE beans and nuts and I plan on keeping them in my diet at moderate amounts once I get to my desired weight.0
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I just bought vegan protein powder today, as well.0
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maytefrias1982 wrote: »My goal is 66 grams of protein. I'm trying to go low carb for a short period of time just because I want to lose 6 to 7 pounds. I LOVE beans and nuts and I plan on keeping them in my diet at moderate amounts once I get to my desired weight.
Going low carb won't in and of itself make you lose weight faster. Some people find it easier to create the necessary calorie deficit for weight loss by reducing carbs but at the end of the day it's the deficit that is key. Eat fewer calories than you burn and you will lose weight. You may lose some water weight by going low carb but it's not fat and will just come back once you reintroduce the carbs.0 -
maytefrias1982 wrote: »This has always been my problem. I've been a vegan for several years and have no intentions on changing this aspect of my diet. However, when I watch my calories and carbs I never get enough proteins, according to myfitnesspal. Tofu, quinoa, beans, all seem to bring high quality proteins at the stake of my waist. Any ideas?
they are not going to be at stake of your waist. your waist wont get bigger if you are in a deficit0 -
What is your carbohydrate goal? Many vegans find that they lose weight, have a controlled appetite, and have high energy on a higher level of carbohydrates than many non-vegans eat (example: I lost weight eating about 60% of my diet in carbohydrates). Not saying your automatically in this category, but are you experiencing negative impacts from the amount of carbohydrates you're eating?
If you're eating in a deficit, going over the default limit for carbohydrates on MFP shouldn't matter (assuming you don't have a secondary medical condition that requires you to limit carbohydrates). Going low carbohydrate isn't required for weight loss -- going low carbohydrate is just a tool that some people use to get into the calorie deficit that will actually create weight loss.
Many vegan sources of protein like quinoa and beans do come with carbohydrates and they can be calorie dense. When I was losing weight, I made sure that I was measuring these properly (with a scale) so that I was losing weight. I actually found tofu to be a pretty low calorie food for the calories it has and I ate it a few times a week. Tempeh is another good source of protein. Don't forget that you will be getting some protein from vegetables as well -- I made sure to eat vegetables abundantly each day to help round out my more traditional sources of protein. A vegan protein powerhouse is seitan. 100 grams of seitan has about 370 calories, but it has a whopping 75 grams of protein (and only 14 grams of carbohydrates). It can be pricey if you buy it pre-made, but it's pretty easy to make (and if you make it, you can control the flavor, fat content, and sodium).
TLDR: Don't assume you need to limit carbohydrates to lose weight; Weight loss is created by a deficit -- carbohydrates won't cause weight gain if you are eating at a deficit; Are you sure tofu won't fit in your plans?; Eat lots of vegetables; Check out seitan.0 -
High protein vegan foods that are lowish in carbs / fat: some soya milks (check the labels, unsweetened is good - in particular, alpro wholebean has decent macros), likewise plain soya yoghurt, spirulina (also good for iron and B12), beans are good (though aren't low carb), tofu is great... and I hear that vegan quorn is now a thing (for a few products, at any rate)? The macros in regular quorn are generally really good, so I would assume the vegan version isn't too different? Also spinach - surprisingly high protein.
While it's definitely possible to get enough protein as a vegan, I agree that there's a lack of foods that are high in protein while being really low in fat & carbs (such as egg whites, greek yoghurt). I tried vegan for a while, but am back as a vegetarian because I found it took too much work to pay attention to macros as a vegan. (I wish I could do it..!)
If you're not opposed to the idea of protein powders, then as others have said, there are are a lot of vegan / plant based powders around, which might take the pressure off getting the right macros from food.
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High protein vegan foods that are lowish in carbs / fat: some soya milks (check the labels, unsweetened is good - in particular, alpro wholebean has decent macros), likewise plain soya yoghurt, spirulina (also good for iron and B12), beans are good (though aren't low carb), tofu is great... and I hear that vegan quorn is now a thing (for a few products, at any rate)? The macros in regular quorn are generally really good, so I would assume the vegan version isn't too different? Also spinach - surprisingly high protein.
While it's definitely possible to get enough protein as a vegan, I agree that there's a lack of foods that are high in protein while being really low in fat & carbs (such as egg whites, greek yoghurt). I tried vegan for a while, but am back as a vegetarian because I found it took too much work to pay attention to macros as a vegan. (I wish I could do it..!)
If you're not opposed to the idea of protein powders, then as others have said, there are are a lot of vegan / plant based powders around, which might take the pressure off getting the right macros from food.
greek yogurt and egg whites would not matter because vegans dont eat animal products or anything containing animal products such as the eggs and the yogurt.0 -
It is going to be very difficult to go low carb by eating plant based.maytefrias1982 wrote: »My goal is 66 grams of protein. I'm trying to go low carb for a short period of time just because I want to lose 6 to 7 pounds. I LOVE beans and nuts and I plan on keeping them in my diet at moderate amounts once I get to my desired weight.
Eat the carbs or don't eat the carbs. It is up to you. Keep in mind that lowering carbs has
nothing to do with weight loss.0 -
CharlieBeansmomTracey wrote: »High protein vegan foods that are lowish in carbs / fat: some soya milks (check the labels, unsweetened is good - in particular, alpro wholebean has decent macros), likewise plain soya yoghurt, spirulina (also good for iron and B12), beans are good (though aren't low carb), tofu is great... and I hear that vegan quorn is now a thing (for a few products, at any rate)? The macros in regular quorn are generally really good, so I would assume the vegan version isn't too different? Also spinach - surprisingly high protein.
While it's definitely possible to get enough protein as a vegan, I agree that there's a lack of foods that are high in protein while being really low in fat & carbs (such as egg whites, greek yoghurt). I tried vegan for a while, but am back as a vegetarian because I found it took too much work to pay attention to macros as a vegan. (I wish I could do it..!)
If you're not opposed to the idea of protein powders, then as others have said, there are are a lot of vegan / plant based powders around, which might take the pressure off getting the right macros from food.
greek yogurt and egg whites would not matter because vegans dont eat animal products or anything containing animal products such as the eggs and the yogurt.
I think you're misreading the sentence, which as I read it says that it's difficult to find foods that one can eat as a vegan that are high protein and really low fat and carbs, in the way that (= "such as") egg whites and (plain nonfat) greek yogurt are high protein and low fat/carbs (assuming the lactose in yogurt doesn't pass one's personal threshold for low carb).0 -
Chia seeds pack an enormous punch in the protein game! Id load up on those!0
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I'm not going to debate the wisdom of your decision to try to be both low carb and vegan, only that I think that will be very difficult. Simply meeting your protein goal with carbs could be challenging, I'm not sure how it will work if you limit them.
However I have read an article recently on that very thing, so it may be super hard but maybe possible.
This one is about being low carb and vegetarian http://www.ion.ac.uk/information/onarchives/lowcarbeating
This one is about lowish carb on a vegan diet http://www.theveganrd.com/2014/06/low-carb-but-not-paleo-diets-for-vegans.html
Good luck!0 -
sweetlittleloki wrote: »Chia seeds pack an enormous punch in the protein game! Id load up on those!
One ounce of chia seeds have about 5 grams of protein and 138 calories. While they can certainly help an individual meet their protein needs, I'm skeptical that this can be counted as an "enormous punch." An individual "loading up" on chia seeds may crowd out other foods they need, including better sources of protein.0 -
Why worry about protein? You only need max of 40g per day to meet your body's expectations. You WANT to get all the carbs in you can though.0
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lynn_glenmont wrote: »CharlieBeansmomTracey wrote: »High protein vegan foods that are lowish in carbs / fat: some soya milks (check the labels, unsweetened is good - in particular, alpro wholebean has decent macros), likewise plain soya yoghurt, spirulina (also good for iron and B12), beans are good (though aren't low carb), tofu is great... and I hear that vegan quorn is now a thing (for a few products, at any rate)? The macros in regular quorn are generally really good, so I would assume the vegan version isn't too different? Also spinach - surprisingly high protein.
While it's definitely possible to get enough protein as a vegan, I agree that there's a lack of foods that are high in protein while being really low in fat & carbs (such as egg whites, greek yoghurt). I tried vegan for a while, but am back as a vegetarian because I found it took too much work to pay attention to macros as a vegan. (I wish I could do it..!)
If you're not opposed to the idea of protein powders, then as others have said, there are are a lot of vegan / plant based powders around, which might take the pressure off getting the right macros from food.
greek yogurt and egg whites would not matter because vegans dont eat animal products or anything containing animal products such as the eggs and the yogurt.
I think you're misreading the sentence, which as I read it says that it's difficult to find foods that one can eat as a vegan that are high protein and really low fat and carbs, in the way that (= "such as") egg whites and (plain nonfat) greek yogurt are high protein and low fat/carbs (assuming the lactose in yogurt doesn't pass one's personal threshold for low carb).
its possible I did misread,but thats fine. some people who claim to be vegan still eat things like this. I have seen it and have heard them say they do. some people dont know what vegan truly means0 -
Why worry about protein? You only need max of 40g per day to meet your body's expectations. You WANT to get all the carbs in you can though.
where do you get you only need 40g max? some sites say 60+ grams but its recommended at the least 0.6g per lb of body weight up to 1g per lb. if someone is lifting weights 40 grams would not be enough. and telling someone to get all the carbs in? what are your sources for this? protein is important to retain lean muscle mass and I dont think most people would do that with only 40g of protein a day. especially extremely active people.0 -
janejellyroll wrote: »sweetlittleloki wrote: »Chia seeds pack an enormous punch in the protein game! Id load up on those!
One ounce of chia seeds have about 5 grams of protein and 138 calories. While they can certainly help an individual meet their protein needs, I'm skeptical that this can be counted as an "enormous punch." An individual "loading up" on chia seeds may crowd out other foods they need, including better sources of protein.
Ya, I look at chia seeds as a source of fiber rather than protein. I only eat 1/8 ounce at a time. One ounce would be an awful lot for me.0 -
maytefrias1982 wrote: »This has always been my problem. I've been a vegan for several years and have no intentions on changing this aspect of my diet. However, when I watch my calories and carbs I never get enough proteins, according to myfitnesspal. Tofu, quinoa, beans, all seem to bring high quality proteins at the stake of my waist. Any ideas?
Try changing your macros to reflect 60% carbs, 20% fat, and 20% protein and see how that goes.
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/account/change_goals_guided0 -
kshama2001 wrote: »janejellyroll wrote: »sweetlittleloki wrote: »Chia seeds pack an enormous punch in the protein game! Id load up on those!
One ounce of chia seeds have about 5 grams of protein and 138 calories. While they can certainly help an individual meet their protein needs, I'm skeptical that this can be counted as an "enormous punch." An individual "loading up" on chia seeds may crowd out other foods they need, including better sources of protein.
Ya, I look at chia seeds as a source of fiber rather than protein. I only eat 1/8 ounce at a time. One ounce would be an awful lot for me.
I put them in smoothies and overnight oats regularly, but I use about the same amount that you do. They are also a good source of omega-3 fatty acids.0
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