Low carb vegetarian. Is there such a thing?

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  • liznotyet
    liznotyet Posts: 402 Member
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    Just in case you haven't heard of him, John McDougall is a northern CA doctor promoting plant based eating. https://www.drmcdougall.com/health/education/free-mcdougall-program/steps-to-recovery/foods-not-allowed/. The recipes have helped me to be more creative with vegetables.
  • charlenekapf
    charlenekapf Posts: 309 Member
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    This plan is exactly the opposite of her Dr recommendations. McDougall promotes a VERY low fat high carb style of eating. Check out the potato fanatics in his groups across the internet. If you want to subsist on potatoes give it a try. Many find the lack of fat difficult for satiety and no improvement in their glucose numbers. Fats help regulate hormones, provide satiety, slow digestion so you won't be as hungry between meals I would be very careful with this approach. however his recipes for vegetables may be helpful...I would not try his full plan if your doctor specifically is advising lower carb.
    liznotyet wrote: »
    Just in case you haven't heard of him, John McDougall is a northern CA doctor promoting plant based eating. https://www.drmcdougall.com/health/education/free-mcdougall-program/steps-to-recovery/foods-not-allowed/. The recipes have helped me to be more creative with vegetables.
  • Balaru
    Balaru Posts: 203 Member
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    I have heard of Dr McDougal. My Dad had a heart attack back in the 80's & followed McDougal. Within a year they couldn't even tell he'd had a heart attack. That was our first attempt at vegetarian and yes I love potatoes.
  • charlenekapf
    charlenekapf Posts: 309 Member
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    Well then if eating no fats doesn't seem like a deal breaker to you, give it a try. You won't be eating much protein so expect to see less muscle definition and retention...but if you think you can follow this long term then maybe let your dr. know you're doing it. at the very least your glucose numbers will be high in the short term until you've been extremely low fat for awhile as the influx of pure carbohydrates will cause your blood sugar to stay elevated.
    Balaru wrote: »
    I have heard of Dr McDougal. My Dad had a heart attack back in the 80's & followed McDougal. Within a year they couldn't even tell he'd had a heart attack. That was our first attempt at vegetarian and yes I love potatoes.
  • workfromhome84
    workfromhome84 Posts: 13 Member
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    There are many vegetarian options to get protein, my favorite being tempeh. Beans, lentils, quinoa or soy to name a few. Google is great for finding plenty of alternatives.
  • GottaBurnEmAll
    GottaBurnEmAll Posts: 7,722 Member
    edited November 2016
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    charlenekapf wrote: »
    Well then if eating no fats doesn't seem like a deal breaker to you, give it a try. You won't be eating much protein so expect to see less muscle definition and retention...but if you think you can follow this long term then maybe let your dr. know you're doing it. at the very least your glucose numbers will be high in the short term until you've been extremely low fat for awhile as the influx of pure carbohydrates will cause your blood sugar to stay elevated.
    Balaru wrote: »
    I have heard of Dr McDougal. My Dad had a heart attack back in the 80's & followed McDougal. Within a year they couldn't even tell he'd had a heart attack. That was our first attempt at vegetarian and yes I love potatoes.

    You can eat beans following McDougall, IIRC. There's plenty of protein in them.

    While I don't follow McDougall, I am not a person who is at all satiated by fat, and find that too much of it causes me digestive upset. I successfully dealt with my familial high cholesterol eating 50% carbohydrates, 20% (or less) fat and 30% protein. Starch and fiber along with protein fill me up, not fat. I'm not the only person like this. A lot of people aren't satiated by fat, and a huge amount isn't really needed for basic functioning.

    Also, his blood sugar will only spike in response to meal times, as is normal. There's nothing wrong with this. It won't stay elevated unless he's insulin resistant.
  • Balaru
    Balaru Posts: 203 Member
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    I did a little more research today and yes the numbers are slightly elevated. They came down from last time I was checked and I really blew it last month. Started a new job 2 months ago and have been trying to get routines established. I talked to the Nurse today and told them I'm not taking the statins and will continue to address it with diet and exercise because the numbers did come down. She laughed when I fessed up and said I was REALLY bad in October so that may have had something to do with the numbers. If they can come down after all that chocolate and soft drinks I had in Oct. then there is hope. I also have a Health Coach through our Wellness plan at work so with all that going for me I'm pretty sure I can conquer this. They were perfectly fine with me trying to handle it with diet. One of my numbers was only off by literally 1. I will try to limit the potatoes to once a week (cuz Lord knows I could eat them for breakfast, lunch and dinner and maybe a snack too - I do love me some potatoes - Lol) and I'm getting off the Dr. Peppers. Had my last one at work today. Gonna make this work. Thanks everyone for your input! Onward to the treadmill!
  • azulvioleta6
    azulvioleta6 Posts: 4,195 Member
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    N0--the macros just don't add up. Even a moderate carb diet (75-100G carbs/day) is very difficult to achieve without eating some animal products.

    Try putting together some sample meals plans with the foods that you can eat and see how that adds up. Perhaps you can work out something that is just a bit lower than what you are used to.

    Wait...SOFT DRINKS? With sugar? Seriously? If you have pre-diabetes, insulin resistance, etc. you shouldn't even be thinking about consuming such things.
  • lodro
    lodro Posts: 982 Member
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    azulvioleta6 wrote: »
    N0--the macros just don't add up. Even a moderate carb diet (75-100G carbs/day) is very difficult to achieve without eating some animal products.

    Try putting together some sample meals plans with the foods that you can eat and see how that adds up. Perhaps you can work out something that is just a bit lower than what you are used to.

    Wait...SOFT DRINKS? With sugar? Seriously? If you have pre-diabetes, insulin resistance, etc. you shouldn't even be thinking about consuming such things.

    I'm a vegetarian and I eat to a low carb - high fat pattern. I bought a protein powder I liked, so my protein needs are spoken for. The rest is eating low carb vegetables and sufficient fats, in my case mct oil. There's a medical reason I eat to this pattern, so I'm motivated to continue. It's for health reasons, not weight, although I've been at my goal weight for 2 years now, and have started to do endurance sports in a rather big way, compared to my level of exercise before.
  • savithny
    savithny Posts: 1,200 Member
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    Still no mention of whether eggs work. With the other restrictions mentioned, eggs would be about the only thing to crank up the healthy fats and proteins in that diet.
  • bostonma1776
    bostonma1776 Posts: 10 Member
    edited November 2016
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  • bostonma1776
    bostonma1776 Posts: 10 Member
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  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,950 Member
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    courtneyfabulous wrote: »
    Make sure you get enough protein. For weight loss and exercise I find that's the MOST important thing- and just have carbs and fats in a good balance.

    I feel like when doctors suggest a low carb diet what they really mean is just stop eating excessive carbs. If you just take it down to a reasonable amount that's fine, you really don't need to swing the pendulum so far and go low/no carb.

    Check out your daily nutrition stats in myfitnesspal- do you tend to go over on carbs and under on protein or fats? If so try to adjust your eating so that you are within your macronutrient ratios. And within your calories of course.

    Agreed, and also that doctors suggest low carb as a way to create a calorie deficit.

    OP - you can have plenty of potatoes and even more butternut squash if you cut out the Dr. Pepper.

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  • Balaru
    Balaru Posts: 203 Member
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    I'm allergic to eggs. I can eat them maybe once a week.
  • charlenekapf
    charlenekapf Posts: 309 Member
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    Ok so this sounds like maybe intolerant? Sensitivity? You're saying allergy meaning you produce IgE antibodies when having meat and eggs. Please clarify if you are truly allergic or more that you feel something like maybe these things don't agree with your digestive system? If you are truly allergic, you would be making yourself very sick by eating eggs even once a week and no doctor would advise you to expose yourself to something your body is clearly producing an immune response to. I am not discrediting intolerances or sensitivities--I avoid dairy most of the time because it makes my stomach bloated and crampy...but I am lactose intolerant, not allergic.
  • antdelsa
    antdelsa Posts: 174 Member
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    Doctors will tell you to cut carbs but what they truly mean is cut simple carbs, i.e. sugars and overly starchy foods...

    Carbs from vegetables is totally fine, eat plenty of leafy greens!! And pretty much all the veggies you want, and if you are working out then carbs are ok, your body uses them as energy. You just need GOOD carbs, no sugars and overly starchy food, cut out any juices and sodas and stick to water only, try to drink AT LEAST a gallon a day.

    Cutting carbs completely is absolutely ridiculous unless you are trying to go ketogenic, the problem with keto is adherence, unless you plan on being super strict and eating high fat moderate protein then thats probably not the way to go. Instead eat a big breakfast, some oats and fruits and an egg white omelet maybe, so you stay satiated, then try to eat small meals and healthy snacks every 3- 4 hours so you can curb any unnecessary cravings, make sure you're eating enough as well, eating less causes you to hold on to weight, getting a sufficient amount of calories daily and hitting your macro goals will ensure your body is getting the energy it needs!

    Stick with a balanced nutrition plan, drink lots of water and stay active!
  • Balaru
    Balaru Posts: 203 Member
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    charlenekapf wrote: »
    Ok so this sounds like maybe intolerant? Sensitivity? You're saying allergy meaning you produce IgE antibodies when having meat and eggs. Please clarify if you are truly allergic or more that you feel something like maybe these things don't agree with your digestive system? If you are truly allergic, you would be making yourself very sick by eating eggs even once a week and no doctor would advise you to expose yourself to something your body is clearly producing an immune response to. I am not discrediting intolerances or sensitivities--I avoid dairy most of the time because it makes my stomach bloated and crampy...but I am lactose intolerant, not allergic.


    I have been through the whole round of allergy testing more than 5 times in my 54 years and eggs is at the top of the list each time. Can't get the flu shot because of it. When we make scrambled eggs I might have two spoonfuls and very rarely. And yes I do not feel well when I eat what I'm not supposed. I've had too much this week and am feeling it. It's not as bad as it was. I spent alot of time at the ER when I was a kid. I know my limits. I had 1 boiled egg mixed with Miracle whip and relish this morning only because we didn't have anything else for breakfast. Poor planning on my part. Too busy last weekend. Hopefully I'll have more time to prep this weekend.

    I tend to stay away from doctors because I am always the "unusual" case which means they like to run every test known to mankind on you just to come back with "allergies".

    There were two times I felt great physically. #1 was when I did a allergy rotation diet but it was so intense and restrictive. Not something you can maintain long term. #2 was when we went vegetarian. Allergies seemed to disappear. I even tested a few things....

    It'll all work out some how.
  • lodro
    lodro Posts: 982 Member
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    savithny wrote: »
    Still no mention of whether eggs work. With the other restrictions mentioned, eggs would be about the only thing to crank up the healthy fats and proteins in that diet.

    I don't eat eggs, so I don't agree with the "only thing" comment.
  • jgnatca
    jgnatca Posts: 14,464 Member
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    I get the "only thing" comment. We have a person intolerant of animal source proteins. Dairy is also out. They get medical advice to go low carb in order to get their blood sugars under control.

    If meats, fish, dairy, and eggs are out, the only other source for protein is plant based. Which naturally comes with carbs.

    As described this would be a highly restrictive diet with few options. It sure would solve a lot of difficulties if eggs were OK.

    This is why I suggested a moderate carb diet. The diet could be rich in plant based foods higher in protein. Like oatmeal at breakfast, bean based burritos at lunch and maybe a tofu stir fry for dinner.
  • Docbanana2002
    Docbanana2002 Posts: 357 Member
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    I'm a vegan now, but did Atkins version of low carb for about a year in my omnivore days and had some short term success (lost lots of weight but then struggled to maintain because I couldn't stick with it. That was my fault for going off track but I also think it wasn't a good fit for my eating preferences which contributed to the problem).

    There is a veg version of low carb called "eco Atkins". Google that and see if you like what you see. But honestly, I wouldn't try to combine the two diets together, it will leave you very limited and sounds like you have enough limitations already due to allergies. Vegetarian is a healthy diet by itself, if you plan properly, so just work on doing that well. Here's an article that might get you started...

    https://secure.jbs.elsevierhealth.com/action/getSharedSiteSession?redirect=http://www.andjrnl.org/article/S2212-2672(16)31192-3/fulltext&rc=0&code=jand-site

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