Vegan & Struggling to Lose Weight

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vegandroppingpounds
vegandroppingpounds Posts: 6 Member
edited March 2017 in Food and Nutrition
Hi everyone,
Right now I'm at the highest weight I've ever been (200 lbs) and I'm struggling so hard to lose weight. I've been a vegan for about a year now (for ethical reasons, not health- please don't tell me not to be vegan!) and despite the claims, I have not lost any weight- in fact, I've gained.

I know part of my problem is my crazy cravings for processed carbs (particularly bread). Especially first thing in the morning. I can control my cravings other times of day, but despite how much I try (meal prepping ahead of time etc) I cannot stop craving pumpernickel bagels with vegan butter in the morning. And I have no willpower around them, so the "eat half" idea is good in theory, but I can never accomplish it! Lol.

Any processed-carb-oholics have any advice? I get plenty of protein (average in my food diary is almost 150g a day). Other than my bread obsession, I eat mostly whole grains like oatmeal, beans & lentils, fruit and vegetables so my other meals are probably not the problem. My calorie intake isn't as low as I want it to be, but it's not terribly high (about 2000/day) and I workout 3-4x/week. About 45 mins of cardio and 30 minutes of strength training each session I really need advice!!

Replies

  • dehlirium
    dehlirium Posts: 6 Member
    edited March 2017
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    I used to be really addicted to bread, and bagels are my absolute favorite food. I just don't buy them anymore because I know I can't handle having them around

    Also - oatmeal, beans, and lentils are very healthy, but can be quite calorific if you over-do the portions. Do you weigh or measure your meals?
  • sammyliftsandeats
    sammyliftsandeats Posts: 2,421 Member
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    Regardless of what way you eat, if you are not weighing your food, then you are most likely overeating.
  • kimny72
    kimny72 Posts: 16,013 Member
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    Put your stats into MFP and get a calorie goal. Start logging your food, accurately and consistently.

    You say 2000 calories isn't that high, but that really depends on your stats. I'm 5'4" 130 lbs and I maintain my weight at @ 1800 cals, I would gain on 2000.

    Whether you are vegan, paleo, low carb, high carb, and everything in between, you have to eat less calories than you burn to lose weight. Plenty of vegan friendly foods are calorie dense, and can be overeaten.

    I don't keep bagels in the house because I would eat one every day and they don't fill me up. Some foods as soon as I get them home from the store, I divide them into single servings n containers or ziplocks. I never eat anything out of the container, it's a recipe for disaster for me. I try to plan most of my meals ahead of time and prelog. If I have a day where I just couldn't stop the munchies, I look at what I ate that day and see what was different fro other days where I was fine. You kind of have to play around with it a little to figure it out, and an accurate food log can really help with that. Good luck!
  • mayafit405
    mayafit405 Posts: 61 Member
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    dehlirium wrote: »
    I used to be really addicted to bread, and bagels are my absolute favorite food. I just don't buy them anymore because I know I can't handle having them around

    Also - oatmeal, beans, and lentils are very healthy, but can be quite calorific if you over-do the portions. Do you weigh or measure your meals?

    Agreed ^ You might want to think about getting rid of your trigger foods for the time being. Your calorie intake must be higher than you think. Start tracking your foods intake on MFP , you might be surprised how many calories sweet potatoes , certain breads , avocados etc. have. It's totally possible to lose weight being vegan.

    Best of luck!
  • littlebabekitty
    littlebabekitty Posts: 385 Member
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    Hey vegan here. I used to be a carb addict also. I couldnt lose weight no matter how hard i tried. I started eating alkaline vegan dr sebi diet. It changed my life. Add me if youd like i have open diary.
  • vegandroppingpounds
    vegandroppingpounds Posts: 6 Member
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    dehlirium wrote: »
    I used to be really addicted to bread, and bagels are my absolute favorite food. I just don't buy them anymore because I know I can't handle having them around

    Also - oatmeal, beans, and lentils are very healthy, but can be quite calorific if you over-do the portions. Do you weigh or measure your meals?

    I don't weigh but I do measure. Maybe it's not accurate.. I had an eating disorder earlier in life so I've always been scared to become too obsessed with measurements, but maybe I can try! I'm at a different point in my life now. Thanks!

  • vegandroppingpounds
    vegandroppingpounds Posts: 6 Member
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    rodsteph777 wrote: »
    Hey vegan here. I used to be a carb addict also. I couldnt lose weight no matter how hard i tried. I started eating alkaline vegan dr sebi diet. It changed my life. Add me if youd like i have open diary.

    I'm going to check it out- thank you! I've heard of it but I've been worried to become too restricted since I'm already a bit restricted being vegan
  • Luckadea
    Luckadea Posts: 19 Member
    edited March 2017
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    It sounds like you are overeating. I'm very tall for a woman (5'10) and to consistently lose 1-2 pounds a week I'm on a calorie intake of 1350 per day and I work out 5-7 times a week for an hour (3 times a week with a personal trainer and 2-3 times a week cardio). If you are a woman, you definitely need to lower your calorie intake.
  • CharlieBeansmomTracey
    CharlieBeansmomTracey Posts: 7,682 Member
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    rodsteph777 wrote: »
    Hey vegan here. I used to be a carb addict also. I couldnt lose weight no matter how hard i tried. I started eating alkaline vegan dr sebi diet. It changed my life. Add me if youd like i have open diary.

    did you know that eating an alkaline "diet" means nothing? you cannot change the pH balance in your body.your body already does that.if you are losing its because you are in a deficit.
  • kimny72
    kimny72 Posts: 16,013 Member
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    vegandroppingpounds wrote: »
    dehlirium wrote: »
    I used to be really addicted to bread, and bagels are my absolute favorite food. I just don't buy them anymore because I know I can't handle having them around

    Also - oatmeal, beans, and lentils are very healthy, but can be quite calorific if you over-do the portions. Do you weigh or measure your meals?

    I don't weigh but I do measure. Maybe it's not accurate.. I had an eating disorder earlier in life so I've always been scared to become too obsessed with measurements, but maybe I can try! I'm at a different point in my life now. Thanks!

    If a food scale may be triggering for you it isn't necessary. Just start out getting a calorie goal and logging everything. If you aren't losing weight, you need to eat less cals one way or another. If you think you are eating 2000 and aren't losing, aim for a little lower. You don't need to restrict your food choices anymore than you already are. :)
  • vegandroppingpounds
    vegandroppingpounds Posts: 6 Member
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    Luckadea wrote: »
    It sounds like you are overeating. I'm very tall for a woman (5'10) and to consistently lose 1-2 pounds a week I'm on a calorie intake of 1350 per day and I work out 5-7 times a week for an hour (3 times a week with a personal trainer and 2-3 times a week cardio). If you are a woman, you definitely need to lower your calorie intake.

    Thanks! MFP gives me 1900 to lose 2 lbs a week. I walks 17,000 steps a day on top of my workouts since I live in NYC and I have a very active job. Maybe this is why it gives me so much????
  • Luckadea
    Luckadea Posts: 19 Member
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    vegandroppingpounds wrote: »
    Thanks! MFP gives me 1900 to lose 2 lbs a week. I walks 17,000 steps a day on top of my workouts since I live in NYC and I have a very active job. Maybe this is why it gives me so much????

    Yes, if you have an active job I believe that makes a big difference. I work a desk job 8 hours a day, so have mine set at sedentary. I would recommend doing 1900 calories a day for a week and see if it makes a difference, if not, you can adjust it slightly lower. I'm not to concerned about what I eat, but of course healthier choices are lower in calories and you'll be able to eat more :smiley: Good luck with your journey! :smile:
  • msiamjan
    msiamjan Posts: 326 Member
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    Some thoughts: Increase veggies (a lot) and decrease breads and fruits. Avoid the bagels. You know they are dangerous for you. Some people do great with moderation. I, on the other hand, do much better if I just completely avoid the things I find hard to control. Figure out if you're better off just eliminating certain trigger type foods. Given that you have the discipline to do vegan, you can do what you need to do. It's a matter of figuring out what works for YOU. Good luck!!!
  • vegandroppingpounds
    vegandroppingpounds Posts: 6 Member
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    msiamjan wrote: »
    Some thoughts: Increase veggies (a lot) and decrease breads and fruits. Avoid the bagels. You know they are dangerous for you. Some people do great with moderation. I, on the other hand, do much better if I just completely avoid the things I find hard to control. Figure out if you're better off just eliminating certain trigger type foods. Given that you have the discipline to do vegan, you can do what you need to do. It's a matter of figuring out what works for YOU. Good luck!!!

    Thank you!! I'm ok with moderation, usually, but with bread and bagels, moderation escapes me! lol. Thank you for the advice.
  • snickerscharlie
    snickerscharlie Posts: 8,578 Member
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    CharlieBeansmomTracey wrote: »
    rodsteph777 wrote: »
    Hey vegan here. I used to be a carb addict also. I couldnt lose weight no matter how hard i tried. I started eating alkaline vegan dr sebi diet. It changed my life. Add me if youd like i have open diary.

    did you know that eating an alkaline "diet" means nothing? you cannot change the pH balance in your body.your body already does that.if you are losing its because you are in a deficit.

    ^^This. Agree that it was (and always is!) eating less calories than you burn in a day that steers weight loss. :)

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