Weight loss for a vegetarian

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halieb91
halieb91 Posts: 6 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hi,
I have been a vegetarian for the last 12 years of my life. I have mainly stayed pretty fit my whole life until I had my second child. It seems the weight doesn't come off as easily as it did the first time around. When I started this journey 28 days go I was at 181 pounds. Currently I am weighing at 172.5 pounds. My question is what type of foods do I really need to be worried about? What foods should I try to stay away from that might set me back?
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Replies

  • MeanderingMammal
    MeanderingMammal Posts: 7,866 Member
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    Nine pounds in a month is pretty good, so I wouldn't worry about rate.

    As far as anything else is concerned, you've got to focus on calorie intake. For me that's about identifying foods that don't leave me satisfied, so are they worth the calorie cost.
  • Petrolhead75
    Petrolhead75 Posts: 45 Member
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    I'm a fellow veggie, I would suggest limiting the amount of dairy intake if you can and I also try and limit carbs, particularly bread. But you're doing great, and calorie counting is really all about everything in moderation.
  • subakwa
    subakwa Posts: 347 Member
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    Veggie here too. I do actually think, oddly, that calorie counting is harder for veggies. It is tough to get the fill from protein so we are used to replacing with carbs and dairy - both killers in the calorie front.

    I am looking to replace carbs with beans etc, so instead of curry and rice, it is a bowl of curry with more legumes in it to give that filling effect. Another discovery for me is spiralising - so using veg to replace pasta, for example. I had a wonderful courgette spaghetti the other night.
  • melonaulait
    melonaulait Posts: 769 Member
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    Petrolhead75 wrote: »
    I'm a fellow veggie, I would suggest limiting the amount of dairy intake if you can and I also try and limit carbs, particularly bread.
    subakwa wrote: »
    It is tough to get the fill from protein so we are used to replacing with carbs and dairy - both killers in the calorie front.

    I am looking to replace carbs with beans etc, so instead of curry and rice, it is a bowl of curry with more legumes in it to give that filling effect. Another discovery for me is spiralising - so using veg to replace pasta, for example. I had a wonderful courgette spaghetti the other night.

    There's no reason to limit carbs (unless you want to go low carb/keto). I agree with the limiting dairy consumption part, but you don't really have to do that either.

    I'm a vegan. I say eat all the carbs you can fit in your daily calories. (I eat at least 60% of my calories from carbs) The only thing that matters for weight loss is how many calories you consume. You already have a calorie goal set on MFP, right? It's usually recommended that after you lose a bit of weight, you may want to cut down on the calorie goal a little bit to keep losing.

    Don't worry about any specific foods, but eat lots of veggies & fruit if you have the chance!
  • stephaniemg3
    stephaniemg3 Posts: 3 Member
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    try drinking Apple Cider Vinegar. it works like insulin in the body and actually helps your body flush out extra sugars and helps with weight loss. you can dilute it with water or mix it with juice to hid the taste. im so used to drinking it i just drink it straight but its awesome stuff
  • kensreboot
    kensreboot Posts: 17 Member
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    melonaulait wrote: »
    I'm a vegan. I say eat all the carbs you can fit in your daily calories. (I eat at least 60% of my calories from carbs) The only thing that matters for weight loss is how many calories you consume.

    Don't worry about any specific foods, but eat lots of veggies & fruit if you have the chance!

    AMEN!

  • vivmom2014
    vivmom2014 Posts: 1,647 Member
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    stephaniemg3 wrote: »
    try drinking Apple Cider Vinegar. it works like insulin in the body and actually helps your body flush out extra sugars and helps with weight loss. you can dilute it with water or mix it with juice to hid the taste. im so used to drinking it i just drink it straight but its awesome stuff

    No. What helps with weight loss is a calorie deficit.

  • MelaniaTrump
    MelaniaTrump Posts: 2,694 Member
    edited March 2016
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    I opened my diary to public and people really helped me.
    I was not getting enough protein and I was low on fiber.

    I am now a high carber.
    Lentils and farro grains for dinner.
    Also love quick oats, brown rice, barley, fiber cereal.
    You can choose any diet you want, just stay within your calories
    I could do this high carb and plant based diet for life.
    Open diary.
  • elphie754
    elphie754 Posts: 7,574 Member
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    stephaniemg3 wrote: »
    try drinking Apple Cider Vinegar. it works like insulin in the body and actually helps your body flush out extra sugars and helps with weight loss. you can dilute it with water or mix it with juice to hid the taste. im so used to drinking it i just drink it straight but its awesome stuff

    No, 100x no. It does not act as insulin. It does not help with weight loss.
  • rainbowbow
    rainbowbow Posts: 7,490 Member
    edited March 2016
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    it all comes down to a calorie deficit, period.

    I personally cut out the obvious things when losing weight (like fast food which is inherently high in calories, vending machine food, baked goods like honeybuns and donuts i was eating as a "snack", take-out and order-in pizza/chinese, route 44 cherry vanilla coke from sonic, etc.)

    I think you can continue to eat some of these things which are taking up huge amounts of calories in your diet, but you need to bring down the frequency and quantity of really high calorie foods. Just simply tracking my calories i was able to make smarter choices (like a 600 calorie honey bun vs. a snack pack of apple slices/berries/carrot sticks). i was also able to see what areas i DIDN'T want to skimp on like eating less throughout the day so i could eat cheese pizza for dinner.

    i personally don't recommend cutting down on 1 particular macronutrient (carbs, protein, fat) and just suggest you eat the foods you know you love in moderation. Find replacements if need be. otherwise just being aware of the amount of food you eat should put you in the right direction. :)
  • charlieandcarol
    charlieandcarol Posts: 302 Member
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    I am vegetarian and actually find that dairy, like full fat natural yoghurt helps to keep me full and doesn't involve stacks of calories so I am interested that others recommend cutting dairy, I can't see the problem calorie wise. It took a while to enjoy the taste but a bit of fruit like banana or berries chopped up and put in it helps with that.

    I am considering going vegan for ethical reasons, not for weight loss reasons but that's a whole other discussion.
  • augustremulous
    augustremulous Posts: 378 Member
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    Personally I don't think cutting dairy helps, unless your source of dairy is cheese or something.

    I grew up in a vegetarian family, and though plant based protein sources are ideal, I think dairy can deliver quite a bit in terms of satiety and protein. Even now, my go-to healthy snack is cottage cheese, which is chock full of protein for a 90 calorie serving.
  • melonaulait
    melonaulait Posts: 769 Member
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    charlieandcarol wrote: »
    I am vegetarian and actually find that dairy, like full fat natural yoghurt helps to keep me full and doesn't involve stacks of calories so I am interested that others recommend cutting dairy, I can't see the problem calorie wise. It took a while to enjoy the taste but a bit of fruit like banana or berries chopped up and put in it helps with that.

    I am considering going vegan for ethical reasons, not for weight loss reasons but that's a whole other discussion.

    It is possible to consume dairy within reasonable calories, for sure. There might also be better options than dairy.

    I also didn't go vegan for weight loss reasons, and having dieted for well over half a year I already knew the vegan diet wouldn't help me with weight loss anyway, because I'd still be eating my usual calories... I eat quite a bit of calories. o:)
  • rainbowbow
    rainbowbow Posts: 7,490 Member
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    augustremulous wrote: »
    Personally I don't think cutting dairy helps, unless your source of dairy is cheese or something.

    I grew up in a vegetarian family, and though plant based protein sources are ideal, I think dairy can deliver quite a bit in terms of satiety and protein. Even now, my go-to healthy snack is cottage cheese, which is chock full of protein for a 90 calorie serving.

    My personal favorite fage 0% plain yogurt is 100 calories and 18g protein. ;) and it doesn't taste as rank as cottage cheese haha

    In any case, I found that it's pretty darn hard to get my protein in without dairy. I stand by my recommendation to not cut out foods completely because deprivation leads to set backs which leads to rebounds.
  • cristalball
    cristalball Posts: 14 Member
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    I'm vegan for the animals and have been for 15+ years. Just losing a few extra pounds here. I am obsessed with baked/roasted sweet potatoes - they fill me up like nothing else and somehow I never get tired of them. I was eating them for lunch and one day realized they'd make a good breakfast too. Sometimes I put hemp seeds or nuts or nutritional yeast or some fresh squeezed orange juice on them. I also eat a lot of quinoa and tofu is my friend. A giant salad with an arugula or spinach base, a favorite low cal salad dressing (I like miso or tahini based homemade concoctions) with some quinoa and seeds and veggies is pretty satisfying for lunch. I love talking about food, but, really, as other people said, it doesn't matter what you eat if you are in a deficit. I have found that drinking two 12-16oz glasses of water before every meal helps me feel fuller so my portion control is better.
  • halieb91
    halieb91 Posts: 6 Member
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    My food diary is open to public. If anyone has any suggestions I would love to hear it. I have a issue when it comes to getting close to the recommended daily calories it suggests I'm almost always inder if by a couple 100 calories. Would love any suggestions
  • SwimmyD
    SwimmyD Posts: 96 Member
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    OP, you are already doing well in your diet if you've already lost 9lbs this month. I can't see your diary, but just keep on going with a caloric deficit and eat things that make you full, so you aren't ravenous and snacking when you shouldn't be later. If you eat eggs and dairy you should be okay in meeting protein macros which will also help keep you full. I don't eat meat, dairy, or eggs so I really depend on lentils and beans to fill me up. My protein hovers around 12 to 15% on average, but I'm only eating 1300 to 1400 cal a day. Once I get to maintainance and am able to eat more, I should be able to fix that.

    I don't buy or eat much processed food except for tofu, canned tomatoes and salad dressings. I like to make food myself, and I do giant crockpots of different beans and bean soups for quick lunches during the week. I find that bread, potatoes and white rice don't fill me up for the calories, so I tend to opt for quinoa, brown rice, and lots of raw vegetables, hummus, giant salads, hemp seeds and avocado. I eat a big bowl of large flake oatmeal every day with flax seed too. That holds me a good four to five hours.

    Really it's about finding what works best for you and sticking with it. I've been losing weight steadily with this, along with exercise. You can too!
  • subakwa
    subakwa Posts: 347 Member
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    melonaulait wrote: »

    There's no reason to limit carbs (unless you want to go low carb/keto). I agree with the limiting dairy consumption part, but you don't really have to do that either.

    I'm a vegan. I say eat all the carbs you can fit in your daily calories. (I eat at least 60% of my calories from carbs) The only thing that matters for weight loss is how many calories you consume. You already have a calorie goal set on MFP, right? It's usually recommended that after you lose a bit of weight, you may want to cut down on the calorie goal a little bit to keep losing.

    Don't worry about any specific foods, but eat lots of veggies & fruit if you have the chance!

    I think you missed the point, or maybe I wasn't as clear as I should have been. You are right that there is no reason to avoid carbs or dairy entirely, and nowhere did I say that there was. The issue with both is that they are pretty calorie dense, and also a bit of a veggie diet staple. This calorie density can make a low-ish calorie target (1200 for me) tough to achieve whilst still feeling like you've eaten a meal. A cheese sandwich, for lunch, for example, would take half the daily calorie allowance, not leaving much for breakfast, drinks or evening meal. Hence switching out those go-to carb and dairy options for more veg and filling legumes makes the calorie target less of a trial and more of a habit change.


  • BoxerBrawler
    BoxerBrawler Posts: 2,032 Member
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    I am a newly born vegan and I don't eat dairy. I consume almost all of my carbs through veggies and make sure I'm eating the veggies with the most protein - spinach, kale, broccoli, cauliflower, mushrooms, parsley, cukes, green pepper, cabbage and tomato. I also supplement with a vegan protein shake daily so I'm getting an additional 20g just from that. The bottom line is the calorie deficit and not the type of foods you're eating. Rather than the carb, or what used to be the meat, being the centerpiece of the meal, I make the veggie the centerpiece and everything else is a side. If you're eating a lot of greens they're going to fill you up and keep you full for a long time. Aside from that I like lentils, buckwheat (which is actually a fruit) and wheat berry for protein / slow-burning carbs. I don't eat much of a variety of fruit either... apples and berries. Hope some of this helps :smile:

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