Low carb vegan options

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lorihs1981
lorihs1981 Posts: 6 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I have been vegan for awhile so I’m pretty well versed in ingredients, recipes, etc. My challenge I’m discovering is that I’m eating way too many carbs.

Would love suggestions for low carb vegan options, preferably not processed but I will take what I can. Thank you so much in advance!
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Replies

  • amyjtuttle
    amyjtuttle Posts: 1 Member
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    My sister-in-law just made this for me for NYD. It was fantastic. https://www.washingtonpost.com/recipes/beet-and-macadamia-poke/15948/?utm_term=.16d44b18387f
  • carolinapassos
    carolinapassos Posts: 2 Member
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    Mock meats, tofu, tempeh (soy byproducts in general) are very low carb. Nuts and seeds as well. Maybe eat more of those? If you search for Taira on youtube, she has some vegan keto videos. You don't have to eat like her, but it's extremely low carb and can give some good ideas.
  • Elesia07
    Elesia07 Posts: 1 Member
    edited January 2018
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    What are your macros? I have tons of ideas, our family only eats meat probably 3x per week and I've been LC just about forever. :) A day might be a bulletproof coffee for breakfast, miso soup with tofu and shirataki noodles for lunch, and a stir fry for dinner.
  • lorihs1981
    lorihs1981 Posts: 6 Member
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    @livingleanlivingclean that’s a great question! According to my breakdown everyday I go over my carbs. So yesterday I had 200 for example. It seems to be the only section I go over and I’m wondering if that’s a big problem
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
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    A vegan diet is likely to be higher in carbs (and fiber, however) than non vegan diets, and I think so long as you are getting a reasonable amount of protein and fat and feel satisfied on your calories, that's fine and not something to worry about.
  • RodaRose
    RodaRose Posts: 9,562 Member
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    Vegans get their protein from carbs: beans, lentils, chickpeas, tofu, soy milk,
    Also broccoli, romaine, kale, squash,
    Rice, oatmeal, bread, chia seeds, hemp seeds,
  • Gregory_Horton
    Gregory_Horton Posts: 25 Member
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    Sounds like a dangerous diet to me.
  • Rocbola
    Rocbola Posts: 1,998 Member
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    The best foods for you are high carbohydrate foods, such as fruits, vegetables, whole grains and legumes.

    Are you trying to reduce refined carbs, such as sugar or flour? Or total carbs, such as reducing whole foods that are high in carbs?

    If the former, i'd would try substituting what you are eating now, for a whole food version. Such as, if you drink OJ in the morning, switch to eating oranges. If you sweeten your oatmeal with sugar, try cutting up a banana and using that to sweeten.

    If the latter, i'd suggest rethinking your diet plan to include the whole foods. You can also pay attention to the glycemic index of a food, if you feel your carbs are causing spikes or crashes.
  • lorihs1981
    lorihs1981 Posts: 6 Member
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    @Rocbola I eat a Whole Foods diet which makes my stomach feel good and keeps my mind clear. I think I should probably pay more attention to my sugar. I don’t add sugar to my food but I certainly enjoy sweets once in awhile
  • lorihs1981
    lorihs1981 Posts: 6 Member
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    @Gregory_Horton which part of being vegan sounds dangerous to you?
  • Gregory_Horton
    Gregory_Horton Posts: 25 Member
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    lorihs1981 wrote: »
    @Gregory_Horton which part of being vegan sounds dangerous to you?

    The low carb part.
  • TeaBea
    TeaBea Posts: 14,517 Member
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    lorihs1981 wrote: »
    @Gregory_Horton which part of being vegan sounds dangerous to you?

    Vegan is fine. Low carb is fine. Trying to combine the two is going to give you very limited options though. Is there is a medical issue forcing you to lower carbs.....ask your doctor to refer you to a registered dietician.

    Weight loss (if that's the goal) is about lowering calories.
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    edited January 2018
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    Gregory_Horton wrote: »
    lorihs1981 wrote: »
    @Gregory_Horton which part of being vegan sounds dangerous to you?

    The low carb part.

    Low carbohydrate veganism isn't dangerous, it is just more limited than many people would prefer. That said, I don't think OP is interested specifically in a low carbohydrate diet, just asking if she needs to *lower* the amount of carbohydrates she's eating and, if so, suggestions for how to do that. Lowering carbohydrates can be done without doing actual low carbohydrate.
  • Gregory_Horton
    Gregory_Horton Posts: 25 Member
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    Correct me if I'm wrong but the vegan macro ratio is 80/10/10. The dangerous part of lowering the carb here is while lowering those carbs, you'll also lower protein levels. And in my view to a dangerous/unhealthy level.
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    edited January 2018
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    Gregory_Horton wrote: »
    Correct me if I'm wrong but the vegan macro ratio is 80/10/10. The dangerous part of lowering the carb here is while lowering those carbs, you'll also lower protein levels. And in my view to a dangerous/unhealthy level.

    That is not the vegan macro ratio, it's simply a macro ratio that some vegans happen to choose. I don't know of any studies, but based on my personal observations it's not even the macro ratio that *most* vegans choose. Many of us eat fewer carbohydrates and more fat and protein than 80/10/10.

    Just like non-vegans, we can choose the macro ratio that best fits our preferences, fitness goals, and lifestyle. Some of us are high carbohydrate, others (like myself) are moderate carbohydrate, some are even low carbohydrate. Same for protein and fat -- we can go high, low, or moderate depending on our preferences. Veganism doesn't eradicate or compromise the well-documented human ability to thrive on a relatively wide variety of macronutrient ranges.

    Like all humans, we have to meet our need for protein. But, like non-vegans, we can do that without eating high carbohydrate.

    If you don't know much about veganism, it's okay to refrain from offering advice to vegans.

  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    edited January 2018
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    Gregory_Horton wrote: »
    So you are saying there are absolutely no dangers in doing a low carb vegan diet? Nothing you would warn them of? I call bs.
    .

    There is no inherent danger to a vegan wanting to consume fewer carbohydrates (what OP is asking about) or even doing a low carbohydrate diet. Your perception of danger was based in your belief that there was a standard vegan macro ratio of 80/10/10 and I can understand how your mistaken impression about standard macros for all vegans led you to conclude that OP was asking about something dangerous. There is a lot of misinformation about veganism floating around out there and you're not the first person to see danger in a situation where none inherently exists.

    Keep in mind that this isn't the same thing has saying there are absolutely no dangers to it. There are possible dangers to just about everything in life, including crossing the street, doing regular low carbohydrate diets, or even eating a completely normal, standard, and unremarkable diet.

    [edited by MFP Mods]
  • HowLovelyAmI
    HowLovelyAmI Posts: 1 Member
    edited January 2018
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    Hi OP, I am vegan and also trying to reduce my carbs.

    I have just rejoined MFP and have adjusted my macro to allow for 100-150g of carbs a day. As I am trying to stick to whole foods, not processed vegan food (like fake meats, that are food fragments). I honestly feel it would be very hard to maintain a very low carb diet (i.e less than 100g a day) as a vegan. My understanding is that vegan whole foods are naturally mostly carbohydrate. Sure you can eat nuts, but these would raise your calorie intake significantly. So beans, and other high protein vegan foods would also have carbs in them. This is hard to avoid. Unless you really want to eat tofu/tempeh and salad every day.

    Last time I was on MFP I actually did just that for a while, and whilst I did lose weight, I felt very deprived, weak, bad tempered and demoralised. It was unsustainable (for me) and I put all the 28lbs weight loss back on, with a few extra pounds for good measure! So this time, I want to do something that is more sustainable

    So initially, I am going to cut out/cut down on obvious higher carb foods, such as bread, potatoes, starchy vegetables, rice, wine, fruit juice, some fruits, sugar and sugary food and focus instead on eating a whole food plant based diet. I'll monitor my macros on MFP, then see how it goes from there. I am not an expert and this is something I am doing as my personal choice.

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