Plant based - how do you get enough calories?

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  • French_Peasant
    French_Peasant Posts: 1,639 Member
    The 1300s called. They want their wacky self-flagellating ascetic diet back.
  • cirrusdesign
    cirrusdesign Posts: 1 Member
    that can be a challenging switch, it took me a few trys and a few years to finally get it most of the time. for me i try to keep it really simple and focus on fresh organic veggies and fruit, i rarely buy processed foods and snacks. I eat some kind of grain/legume most every day for one of my meals and it is always mixed with fresh raw veggies. Most mornings i have a fruit and almond milk shake with some king of protein/super food powder depending on what my day is looking like...if i am just commuting to work then I usually make a RawMeal shake with fruit when i get to work, if I am doing a long mountain bike ride then i use a Hammer Nutrition product depending on length of ride...i also keep clif or probars on my bike as i commute daily and often need a little bit of food for the ride home in the evening. Basically, just try to buy fresh fruit or Veggies, frozen on occasion and or bulk dried. And eat what grains/legume make you feel and mix the two and you'll always have more than enough protein. good luck
  • leosmith66
    leosmith66 Posts: 69 Member
    cirrusdesign wrote: »
    And eat what grains/legume make you feel and mix the two and you'll always have more than enough protein. good luck
    Right on. I used to be a gear-head too, and performance was everything to me back then. I just loved my power bars, gu, etc. I still ride every other day, with hiking and strength work on my off days. Performance is nice, but secondary to overall good health. As you say, it's a tough switch. Thanks for the encouragement!

  • Christine_72
    Christine_72 Posts: 16,049 Member
    In my honest opinion, being vegan is restrictive enough without placing more restrictions on top of it.
  • KatzeDerNacht22
    KatzeDerNacht22 Posts: 200 Member
    Hi, vegan here, was vegetarian for over a decade, with that little fat I can't advise to pack on them nuts and the like but whole grain cereals, tofu and legumes should get you going, I do drink a protein shake with a tbsp. of chia seeds after my weight lifting sessions.
  • littlechiaseed
    littlechiaseed Posts: 489 Member
    leosmith66 wrote: »
    sprepej wrote: »
    Do your research on vegan diets before you attempt this, because the diet you describe is not balanced vegan nutrition. That's why those of us who eat plant based probably don't run into the problems you did before. Check out the Vegetarian Resource Group website for reliable nutrition guidelines for a vegan diet so you can do this right: http://www.vrg.org/nutshell/vegan.htm
    Thanks for the link, I'll check it out. I'm curious to see how they define "balanced". Do you consume shakes at all?

    No shakes that boring. I make smoothies sometimes but that is because I can get a lot of delicious nutrient dense food quickly. :)
  • Troutrouter1968
    Troutrouter1968 Posts: 122 Member
    Volume eat the veggies or supplement them with a delicious steak or other meat :smiley:
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    May I ask why you're adding so many additional restrictions to your diet? Grains and potatoes are a great source of calories and nutrition, so eliminating them when you're trying to eat enough sounds counter-intuitive. If you're truly committed to avoiding these foods and maintaining a limit on nuts and beans, I guess you could try eating more coconut or avocado.
  • esjones12
    esjones12 Posts: 1,363 Member
    I'd highly recommend you give this a listen. It is about plant based diets (you will get the title when you listen to it) - https://bengreenfieldfitness.com/2016/09/how-to-lose-131-pounds-by-eating-meat-the-rick-rubin-podcast/
  • jacdog88
    jacdog88 Posts: 24 Member
    goldthistime wrote: »
    Are the meat substitutes (tofu, tofurkey, veggie ground round etc) acceptable for this diet?

    These aren't considered plant based but they are vegetarian/vegan.

    Someone following a plant based diet avoids processed foods, oils, most mock meats - tofu, tempeh and seitan are less processed and acceptable.

    I've been vegetarian for over 18 years, vegan for 3 and have never had an issue with protein. In fact, I get more as a vegan than I ever did eating meat.

    Plenty of plant based foods are packed with protein such as lentils, beans, tofu, tempeh, etc.
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