Analyse my diary (Vegetarian)!

hellosofie
hellosofie Posts: 8 Member
edited November 2024 in Food and Nutrition
Hi!
At the start of the year, me and my partner decided to adopt a vegetarian lifestyle. We were never big carnivores but we did eat a lot chicken and fish. We are still learning and experimenting at the moment! Trying lots of new recipes.
I am worried however that I am not hitting my protein targets, which may impact my fitness goals. I try to include a lot of eggs, legumes and pulses in my recipes - but it's still not enough! Any advice on now I can incorporate high-protein vegetarian food into my diet? I do occasionally have protein shakes if I do a big work out but not every day.
My diary is open so feel free to have a look! Any advice would be much appreciated. :)

Replies

  • Melmo1988
    Melmo1988 Posts: 293 Member
    I don't have a problem being e vegan and getting protein, you can check out my diary for the last few days. You don't need as much protein as people say you do. 60-70g works for me
  • TrickyDisco
    TrickyDisco Posts: 2,869 Member
    Hiya, i'm in the UK, vegan now but went veggie about 15 years ago and am trying to stick to 1200 cals a day. I've also read here several times that you don't need large amounts of protein, maybe more so if you're petite, but it should be easy enough to meet your protein needs on a veggie diet as you can eat eggs and dairy too. If you're finding cooking from scratch all the time a drag there's lots of frozen veggie/vegan options at Tescos you can add fresh veg, grains and pulses too for a healthy meal. Some days I cook from scratch, e.g. stir-fries, veg/pulse/sausage casserole, spag bol or shepherd's pie, other days it's something quicker like a spicy bean burger or sausage roll with baked potato, carrots, broccoli and peas, simple tasty stuff. Some foods which offer lots of protein are easy to add to your meal, e.g. half a can of Foresight pease pudding has 12g. Friend me if you like, diary's open to friends.
  • EvgeniZyntx
    EvgeniZyntx Posts: 24,208 Member
    Your calorie goals are too low.
  • hellosofie
    hellosofie Posts: 8 Member
    EvgeniZyntx wrote: »
    Your calorie goals are too low.

    I am only 5' 1.5" so I'm very short. I also work at a desk 5 days of the week!
  • EvgeniZyntx
    EvgeniZyntx Posts: 24,208 Member
    hellosofie wrote: »
    EvgeniZyntx wrote: »
    Your calorie goals are too low.

    I am only 5' 1.5" so I'm very short. I also work at a desk 5 days of the week!

    Your BMR is also weight dependant and somewhere 1300-1500 which gives you a TDEE of 1500 to 1800, assuming you are sedentary.

    Trying to lose by eating 1000 cals might seem to make sense but it's too little. You are likely eating sub optimally, especially protein and variety. So - you should either accept to lose more slowly with a smaller deficit or try to be less sedentary. But again - 1000 cals is a long term nutrition issue.
  • hellosofie
    hellosofie Posts: 8 Member
    EvgeniZyntx wrote: »
    hellosofie wrote: »
    EvgeniZyntx wrote: »
    Your calorie goals are too low.

    I am only 5' 1.5" so I'm very short. I also work at a desk 5 days of the week!

    Your BMR is also weight dependant and somewhere 1300-1500 which gives you a TDEE of 1500 to 1800, assuming you are sedentary.

    Trying to lose by eating 1000 cals might seem to make sense but it's too little. You are likely eating sub optimally, especially protein and variety. So - you should either accept to lose more slowly with a smaller deficit or try to be less sedentary. But again - 1000 cals is a long term nutrition issue.

    I'm not actually eating 1000cals a day, I know that would be unrealistic and unsustainable! I set my goal to 1000 on MFP so that I'd know when I was nearing my goal (by turning red) which is actually more 1200-1300cals a day. I can see why my diary is misleading though!
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    Switching out your almond milk for soy milk will give you extra protein each day (a cup of soy milk has 7-8 grams of protein, almond milk doesn't have any). Falafel is amazing, but rather low in protein for the calories it has. You might consider switching it out for lentils sometimes. Tofu, tempeh, and seitan are all great sources of protein for vegetarians -- tofu and seitan are especially easy to fit into a low calorie diet.
  • Gorilla_31
    Gorilla_31 Posts: 1 Member
    TrickyDisco wrote: »
    Some foods which offer lots of protein are easy to add to your meal, e.g. half a can of Foresight pease pudding has 12g. Friend me if you like, diary's open to friends.
    I know this is an old thread and I don't know if anyone will see this but I found this post via Google and I had to let people know. Foresight pease pudding isn't vegan because they soak it in ham stock before cooking. They don't need to mention this on the packaging. Gross!

  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
    Gorilla_31 wrote: »
    TrickyDisco wrote: »
    Some foods which offer lots of protein are easy to add to your meal, e.g. half a can of Foresight pease pudding has 12g. Friend me if you like, diary's open to friends.
    I know this is an old thread and I don't know if anyone will see this but I found this post via Google and I had to let people know. Foresight pease pudding isn't vegan because they soak it in ham stock before cooking. They don't need to mention this on the packaging. Gross!

    OP hasn't been around since September 16
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