Plant Based Diet?

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Replies

  • MichelleSilverleaf
    MichelleSilverleaf Posts: 2,027 Member
    I eat too much fat. The fat you eat is the fat you wear!

    Fat doesn't make you fat though. Excess calories do.
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  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
    Really, if someone without strictly eliminating them tended to overeat cheese, nuts, red wine (which has no fat, of course), so on, that doesn't mean a diet that does not eliminating them is going to be a worse diet. It just means that YOU individually may have problems moderating those foods. That's very similar to someone claiming that because they tend to overeat pasta or bread or juice or potatoes that it's necessary to eliminate those (and carbs are the problem).

    I lost 95 lbs before I started experimenting with my diet (I did think eating healthfully was important and I cooked most of my own food from scratch, because that's what I was doing before too), and I lost all of that weight consuming olive oil and cheese (in moderation -- I cut back a lot because that was a food I'd eaten to excess) and nuts and so on. (I'm eating mostly plant-based now and actively try to include nuts daily, and also use some olive oil still, so I'd say this is a separate question from plant based.)

    Not sure how "the fat you eat is the fat you wear" makes sense when many people who eat moderate to higher fat diets lose weight just fine. Saying something that is obviously not accurate doesn't strike me as a good way to promote a way of eating, as it loses credibility (same with the movies we started out talking about). I realize that some people find that low fat diets work well for them, or help with specific health issues, and I think trying it for that is a smart thing if you want to, but that doesn't mean that fat is what causes weight gain and carbs cannot if you eat low fat (which is one thing McDougall claims).

    Another thing I've heard from plant-based evangelists, btw, including him, is that meat only tastes good if you put lots of stuff on it and mask the taste or some such, unlike potatoes and starches which taste good plain. I also think that's a ridiculous argument, since it's not my experience at all. If I end up giving up meat for good, it's not because it doesn't taste good -- as someone proud of her roasted chicken (and the roasted potatoes and other veg I eat with it are extra good if you let them roast a bit in the fat released from the chicken). And it's certainly not true that that chicken or a good steak or rack of lamb or whatever only tastes good covered with something. Salt and pepper is plenty (and it's not like I don't put salt and pepper on potatoes or veg).
  • ShannonDu777
    ShannonDu777 Posts: 17 Member

    Check out Okinawa Diet or blue zone diet. Okinawan's historically live the longest on their plant based diet
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
    I think by "plant-based diet" OP means 100% plant based. The traditional Okinawan diet is much lower in animal products than the diet most people in the US eat today, no question, but it's not 100% plant based.

    For alternative pyramids, these are great: https://oldwayspt.org/traditional-diets

    (One of them is vegan and vegetarian.)

    This is Harvard's Healthy Eating Plate in pyramid form: https://cdn1.sph.harvard.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2012/10/healthy-eating-pyramid-huds-handouts.pdf
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 34,598 Member
    Check out Okinawa Diet or blue zone diet. Okinawan's historically live the longest on their plant based diet

    In actual Okinawa, though plant foods are indeed very prominent, pork - among other meats - has a long-standing role.

    https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e7128.html

    http://okinawa-information.com/content/food-diet-okinawa-islands

    Plant-based eating can be very healthful. Most people, IMO, eat too few veggies and fruits. Many people also eat lots of low-nutrient-density plant-sourced carb-y, fatty foods. Nutrition is important. Balance is important. Plant-based eating per se is not magical.
  • Congrats on taking the step towards a more plant based lifestyle! I'm vegetarian but I'm trying to wean myself off cheese and eggs...which is so hard especially if you're trying to do low carb high fat as well. I eat a lot of leafy green vegetables and shop at asian super markets buying every variety of leafy green thing I can find. I eat a lot of garlic, ginger and coconut oil and consume chilli oil by the kilo every month. Tofu, mushrooms and Linda McCartney 'Sausages' are staples in my diet. As you can see it's pretty restrictive. However, this is not what I eat every meal of every day as I have a social life.

    When I go to restaurants with friends and colleagues I give myself permission to eat vegetarian high carb. The key is to keep portions small, be flexible and have variety. More importantly: don't beat yourself up, don't feel guilty. Just have fun! Life is for living and sometimes you just need a face full of stilton. Whenever possible I try to drag my friends to the local Ethiopian restaurant. Ethiopian cuisine has A LOT of vegan dishes and they're real tasty and good value.

    I have to say I eat this way for ethical and environmental reasons so it doesn't matter to me too much if it's not the healthiest diet option. The point isn't to lose weight, it's to give the planet a break and help the little critters. Weight loss and better health is a bonus, but you can easily just end up eating nothing but fried potatoes and put on 20 kg of fat. This can happen. Don't do this please. Save the critters, but not at the expense of your health!
  • happyfitr2d2
    happyfitr2d2 Posts: 53 Member
    I have more energy; from complex carbs, I am sure and the weight is coming off. Also feel full snd like what I am eating... so many people on youtube and facebook groups with recipes and meal ideas. I want to invest in an Insta-pot. I use the crock pot, the rice cooker, but when I want great vegetable soup quick, I would like to have an insta-pot.
  • blackcatfitness
    blackcatfitness Posts: 57 Member
    I made the switch back in January!! I am so happy I did it!! Add me!!!
  • remoore23
    remoore23 Posts: 63 Member
    This is just my own experience but I was a vegetarian for four years in my late teens and early twenties and it didn't really work well for me. I like to cook and I ate a lot of fresh food, and a lot of tofu, beans, and grains, but I just never really felt satisfied by my diet and I never stopped craving meat. Also, my fingernails got very, very soft for some reason. Once I started eating meat again, after about six months my fingernails were hard again. Since then I've tried to go vegetarian a few times but each time I stop because I feel desperate for meat after a few days. I'm an intelligent person and I have enjoyed researching vegetarian nutrition and I don't feel that a lack of knowledge was my problem, especially given that many people go vegetarian with only a moderate amount of research. I would really like to be vegetarian or even vegan for ethical reasons but I can't do it and feel healthy. I think some people just can't do it and I'm one of them. However, if you can do it, I agree that it has LOTS of health benefits. I applaud your efforts and I hope it goes well for you :smile:
  • DaddieCat
    DaddieCat Posts: 3,643 Member
    remoore23 wrote: »
    This is just my own experience but I was a vegetarian for four years in my late teens and early twenties and it didn't really work well for me. I like to cook and I ate a lot of fresh food, and a lot of tofu, beans, and grains, but I just never really felt satisfied by my diet and I never stopped craving meat. Also, my fingernails got very, very soft for some reason. Once I started eating meat again, after about six months my fingernails were hard again. Since then I've tried to go vegetarian a few times but each time I stop because I feel desperate for meat after a few days. I'm an intelligent person and I have enjoyed researching vegetarian nutrition and I don't feel that a lack of knowledge was my problem, especially given that many people go vegetarian with only a moderate amount of research. I would really like to be vegetarian or even vegan for ethical reasons but I can't do it and feel healthy. I think some people just can't do it and I'm one of them. However, if you can do it, I agree that it has LOTS of health benefits. I applaud your efforts and I hope it goes well for you :smile:

    That really sounds like an iron deficiency, to be honest. How are your iron levels normally? Is this something that you have to pay attention to?
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    remoore23 wrote: »
    This is just my own experience but I was a vegetarian for four years in my late teens and early twenties and it didn't really work well for me. I like to cook and I ate a lot of fresh food, and a lot of tofu, beans, and grains, but I just never really felt satisfied by my diet and I never stopped craving meat. Also, my fingernails got very, very soft for some reason. Once I started eating meat again, after about six months my fingernails were hard again. Since then I've tried to go vegetarian a few times but each time I stop because I feel desperate for meat after a few days. I'm an intelligent person and I have enjoyed researching vegetarian nutrition and I don't feel that a lack of knowledge was my problem, especially given that many people go vegetarian with only a moderate amount of research. I would really like to be vegetarian or even vegan for ethical reasons but I can't do it and feel healthy. I think some people just can't do it and I'm one of them. However, if you can do it, I agree that it has LOTS of health benefits. I applaud your efforts and I hope it goes well for you :smile:

    Many people who report feeling unsatisfied on a vegetarian diet are actually responding to a low fat diet. I personally feel much more satisfied when I'm getting plenty of fat, including some saturated fat.

    No idea if that was a factor for you, but it's something I've seen when helping newer vegans/vegetarians.
  • Wheelhouse15
    Wheelhouse15 Posts: 5,575 Member
    I've been on plant based diets, including fully vegetarian but never vegan, from time-to-time and I've been on more animal based diets. Right now I would probably be around half-and-half. I really don't see any particular benefits to being plant based nor too many cons. If you are going to cut out all animal products then you have to be careful in planning your meals for certain nutrients but nothing that people aren't able to do without too much of a stretch.

    In the end I would say try it but don't gauge success or failure on whether or not you "feel better" or "have more energy" because that's pretty subjective. My suggestion is to see how sustainable you find it for you and your lifestyle. If it fits well and works for you then run with it. If not, then tweak it till it works for you.
  • DaddieCat
    DaddieCat Posts: 3,643 Member
    I've been on plant based diets, including fully vegetarian but never vegan, from time-to-time and I've been on more animal based diets. Right now I would probably be around half-and-half. I really don't see any particular benefits to being plant based nor too many cons. If you are going to cut out all animal products then you have to be careful in planning your meals for certain nutrients but nothing that people aren't able to do without too much of a stretch.

    In the end I would say try it but don't gauge success or failure on whether or not you "feel better" or "have more energy" because that's pretty subjective. My suggestion is to see how sustainable you find it for you and your lifestyle. If it fits well and works for you then run with it. If not, then tweak it till it works for you.

    You're right, in many cases there is no intrinsic benefit. The only time I ever advocate someone become vegan is when that is what falls in line with their efforts. In most every instance, barring sicknesses that impact this, it's about dietary balance, adding in more nutritious food no matter the source, and meeting macro and micro requirements.

    One can be healthy on most if not all logically constructed ways of eating, but not all ways of eating are equal and plant based can easily be among that group if one isn't careful.
  • blackcatfitness
    blackcatfitness Posts: 57 Member
    I have seen significant changes in my health since becoming whole food plant based. I have lost 16lbs in 7 weeks and my energy levels are up. I still manage about 60-80 grams of protein a day.
  • remoore23
    remoore23 Posts: 63 Member
    That really sounds like an iron deficiency, to be honest. How are your iron levels normally? Is this something that you have to pay attention to?

    No, that is not something I've ever really had to worry about that I know of. Who knows, it could very well have been an iron deficiency. I think my dr suggested it might have been a calcium deficiency, but who knows. I never stopped using dairy products, so maybe an iron deficiency makes more sense. A time previous to that, when I was fifteen or sixteen, I was vegetarian for several months and my period stopped and didn't start again until I had been eating meat for a couple of months.

  • Wheelhouse15
    Wheelhouse15 Posts: 5,575 Member
    remoore23 wrote: »
    That really sounds like an iron deficiency, to be honest. How are your iron levels normally? Is this something that you have to pay attention to?

    No, that is not something I've ever really had to worry about that I know of. Who knows, it could very well have been an iron deficiency. I think my dr suggested it might have been a calcium deficiency, but who knows. I never stopped using dairy products, so maybe an iron deficiency makes more sense. A time previous to that, when I was fifteen or sixteen, I was vegetarian for several months and my period stopped and didn't start again until I had been eating meat for a couple of months.

    Have you had a blood screen yet? Deficiencies like that will show up pretty quickly.
  • DaddieCat
    DaddieCat Posts: 3,643 Member
    remoore23 wrote: »
    That really sounds like an iron deficiency, to be honest. How are your iron levels normally? Is this something that you have to pay attention to?

    No, that is not something I've ever really had to worry about that I know of. Who knows, it could very well have been an iron deficiency. I think my dr suggested it might have been a calcium deficiency, but who knows. I never stopped using dairy products, so maybe an iron deficiency makes more sense. A time previous to that, when I was fifteen or sixteen, I was vegetarian for several months and my period stopped and didn't start again until I had been eating meat for a couple of months.

    Have you had a blood screen yet? Deficiencies like that will show up pretty quickly.

    This would be my suggestion as a long time vegan. I do this twice a year unless I have some issue (I no longer ever really do) and see how everything stacks up. It lets me know how much and what to supplement, and whether or not I'm planning my diet well, etc. This is one of the most effective ways that I've found to do this and most of the blood work is covered under insurance as part of the twice annual physical.
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    remoore23 wrote: »
    That really sounds like an iron deficiency, to be honest. How are your iron levels normally? Is this something that you have to pay attention to?

    No, that is not something I've ever really had to worry about that I know of. Who knows, it could very well have been an iron deficiency. I think my dr suggested it might have been a calcium deficiency, but who knows. I never stopped using dairy products, so maybe an iron deficiency makes more sense. A time previous to that, when I was fifteen or sixteen, I was vegetarian for several months and my period stopped and didn't start again until I had been eating meat for a couple of months.

    Have you had a blood screen yet? Deficiencies like that will show up pretty quickly.

    This would be my suggestion as a long time vegan. I do this twice a year unless I have some issue (I no longer ever really do) and see how everything stacks up. It lets me know how much and what to supplement, and whether or not I'm planning my diet well, etc. This is one of the most effective ways that I've found to do this and most of the blood work is covered under insurance as part of the twice annual physical.

    Yes, this is great advice. When I told my doctor I was vegan, she was able to "recommend" the blood tests I requested based on that and so insurance covers them twice a year (I don't know if everyone's insurance will, but it works for me).

    It's so much easier to get the blood tests than to try to wonder "what if" for various things. It also allowed me to catch a vitamin D deficiency before it caused any real problems for me.
  • frannieshack
    frannieshack Posts: 327 Member
    I made small changes over time, and now I am 90% vegan. I choose this because I truly enjoy the food I eat. But, it was a long process over years that got me to this point. You may want to start slowly by replacing one or two items in your diet with vegan options. And go from there. Upsides: health! energy! happy I am not harming animals and supporting an industry I do not believe in. Downsides: limited menus at restaurants

  • Wheelhouse15
    Wheelhouse15 Posts: 5,575 Member
    remoore23 wrote: »
    That really sounds like an iron deficiency, to be honest. How are your iron levels normally? Is this something that you have to pay attention to?

    No, that is not something I've ever really had to worry about that I know of. Who knows, it could very well have been an iron deficiency. I think my dr suggested it might have been a calcium deficiency, but who knows. I never stopped using dairy products, so maybe an iron deficiency makes more sense. A time previous to that, when I was fifteen or sixteen, I was vegetarian for several months and my period stopped and didn't start again until I had been eating meat for a couple of months.

    Have you had a blood screen yet? Deficiencies like that will show up pretty quickly.

    This would be my suggestion as a long time vegan. I do this twice a year unless I have some issue (I no longer ever really do) and see how everything stacks up. It lets me know how much and what to supplement, and whether or not I'm planning my diet well, etc. This is one of the most effective ways that I've found to do this and most of the blood work is covered under insurance as part of the twice annual physical.

    Do you find that you need much supplementation now that you are more experienced with the vegan diet?
  • DaddieCat
    DaddieCat Posts: 3,643 Member
    remoore23 wrote: »
    That really sounds like an iron deficiency, to be honest. How are your iron levels normally? Is this something that you have to pay attention to?

    No, that is not something I've ever really had to worry about that I know of. Who knows, it could very well have been an iron deficiency. I think my dr suggested it might have been a calcium deficiency, but who knows. I never stopped using dairy products, so maybe an iron deficiency makes more sense. A time previous to that, when I was fifteen or sixteen, I was vegetarian for several months and my period stopped and didn't start again until I had been eating meat for a couple of months.

    Have you had a blood screen yet? Deficiencies like that will show up pretty quickly.

    This would be my suggestion as a long time vegan. I do this twice a year unless I have some issue (I no longer ever really do) and see how everything stacks up. It lets me know how much and what to supplement, and whether or not I'm planning my diet well, etc. This is one of the most effective ways that I've found to do this and most of the blood work is covered under insurance as part of the twice annual physical.

    Do you find that you need much supplementation now that you are more experienced with the vegan diet?

    I supplement B12 because ya have to.

    I supplement D because I've always had a deficiency... I'm really really white.

    I take a multi because I get them for free.

    Other than that, not really, no.

  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
    Totally nitpicky and off topic, but being pale actually makes it easier to get Vitamin D from the sun, as pigment tends to block the effect. It's probably one reason why paler skin developed (especially once people moved to farming -- not an issue if you eat lots of natural sources of D as with some hunter and gather populations).

    In any case, I'm also pretty pale and take D when it's not summer (and do whether eating plant based or not). My doctor said in this climate she recommends it as a precaution.
  • kimny72
    kimny72 Posts: 16,011 Member
    lemurcat12 wrote: »
    Totally nitpicky and off topic, but being pale actually makes it easier to get Vitamin D from the sun, as pigment tends to block the effect. It's probably one reason why paler skin developed (especially once people moved to farming -- not an issue if you eat lots of natural sources of D as with some hunter and gather populations).

    In any case, I'm also pretty pale and take D when it's not summer (and do whether eating plant based or not). My doctor said in this climate she recommends it as a precaution.

    Assuming you are willing to get sunburn or freckles in order to get it :wink:. If I spend 15 minutes in the sun in the summer, I get pink.
  • inertiastrength
    inertiastrength Posts: 2,343 Member
    I eat meat but most people whose diets have more carbs than protein in them probably eat plant based too.
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