Calling all vegetarian/vegans!

I've been vegan for about twelve years. I eat beans just about every day and I have tofu, tempeh, and seitan regularly too. That, combined with the protein in grains and vegetables, pretty much takes care of my protein needs. I have protein powder 1-2 times a week. I prefer an unflavored one that I can put into coffee or baked goods, right now I'm using Bob's Red Mill hemp protein powder, but I've also liked brown rice and pea protein powders (not really brand-loyal, I just grab whatever is cheapest generally).

Mostly my protein comes from black beans, chickpeas, lentils (red+green), tofu and seitan. Seitan is ridiculously high protein and super cheap & easy to make. I'm always over my protein goal when I have that but it is quite hard to digest IMO so don't have it all the time. The rest should be enough to hit goals if you're eating enough in general, but if not there are vegan protein powders out there too, my favourite so far has been the Vega brand (vanilla flavour) - I blend it with oat milk. If you're ok with mock meats too a lot of them have decent protein content - I love the "Fry's" range, but I'm in the UK. If it's not available where you are I'm sure there'll be similar alternatives.

janejellyroll wrote: »

HeidiMightyRawr wrote: »

Mostly my protein comes from black beans, chickpeas, lentils (red+green), tofu and seitan. Seitan is ridiculously high protein and super cheap & easy to make. I'm always over my protein goal when I have that but it is quite hard to digest IMO so don't have it all the time. The rest should be enough to hit goals if you're eating enough in general, but if not there are vegan protein powders out there too, my favourite so far has been the Vega brand (vanilla flavour) - I blend it with oat milk. If you're ok with mock meats too a lot of them have decent protein content - I love the "Fry's" range, but I'm in the UK. If it's not available where you are I'm sure there'll be similar alternatives.

I think the digestability of seitan can vary for individuals. There are periods when I have it 1-2 times a day for several days in a row and I've never had any issues with it.

Yes that’s true, my partner has it frequently (and not in small portions either!) with no issues, compared to myself and everyone else I’ve spoken to at least having a little bit of a harder time digesting it than other foods - it does have little to no fiber so I can see why, but by all means if you can have no issues go for it! 😊

Since you're a new vegetarian, I have a couple of suggestions, from a perspective of being a little more experienced.

I've been ovo-lacto veg for nearly 45 years, including about a year of weight loss (2015) and several of maintenance since. At 5'5", weight mid 130s, and quite active (rowing and spin, mostly), I eat a minimum of 100g protein daily. I don't normally eat fake meat, protein powder, or protein bars (nothing against them in theory, I just don't find them tasty/filling personally). I eat very few eggs (again, just taste/preference).

I think what I'm about to say would apply to strict vegetarians (no dairy/eggs), and I think I could hit my protein goal eating that way. (I don't choose to: I love dairy too much, and my Northern European genes mean I digest it just fine.)

I always suggest that new vegetarians re-orient their thinking about meals. Ominvores often think of meals focused on one big protein. ("What's for dinner?" "Chicken" "Burgers" etc.). The big protein sources (plant-based ones) are still important for vegetarians, but it's very helpful to think more broadly: How can you add increments of protein in most things you eat, throughout the day? Those small numbers of grams can really add up, when added to your main-dish-y sources.

So, a few suggestions, with #1 most relevant if you're logging foods (whether you're trying to lose/maintain):

1. Review your food log. Find foods with relatively many calories that bring you relatively few protein grams. Reduce or eliminate those foods, substituting others you enjoy that have a better protein-to-calorie ratio. (If you're trying to gain weight, you can of course simply add protein foods: Your weight goal, if any, wasn't obvious in your OP.)

2. As I mentioned, try to get at least a few grams of protein in nearly every food you eat. Prefer snacks with protein, veggies with protein, grains with protein, even fruits with protein (they exist). Because plant-based proteins tend to be incomplete (in amino acid profile), vary them across the day and week to get a more complete mix. You can look into more formal ways of combining plant proteins to get complete amino acids ("protein complementarity"), but I don't personally structure my eating that formally anymore (I did moreso when I was newly veg, as a learning exercise.)

(Just as an example: For another thread, I tallied one routine day in which I logged 28 distinct foods, if I counted correctly. Only 6 had zero protein (coffee, cinnamon, blackstrap molasses, mustard, sauerkraut and olive oil). Only 2 of those had >10 calories: Olive oil at 27 calories, and molasses at
67. Only 4 food servings had >10g protein: Greek yogurt, smoked tofu, black beans, cheese. At that point, I was at 99g protein, with several hundred calories left to get that last gram; that was with a net calorie goal these days of about 1850 in maintenance. I don't recall how much exercise I did that day, but it's typically 250-350 calories worth, all of which I eat.)

3. Take a look at the thread linked below. It links to a spreadsheet that lists many, many foods by protein efficiency, most protein for fewest calories. You'll need to scroll past the mostly meaty/fishy stuff near the top of the list, but the plant sources are there, further down. Find some foods you enjoy, and eat more of them. I'll bet there are some you wouldn't otherwise have thought of.

http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10247171/carbs-and-fats-are-cheap-heres-a-guide-to-getting-your-proteins-worth-fiber-also

Best wishes!

zeejane03 wrote: »

nicolasandrea wrote: »

I’ve been vegan for a year and a half. I usually add my protein powder to my coffee and or teas haha sounds weird but I think it tastes pretty great! I make matcha tea with almond milk and add it there which is nice and warm for the colder months. During summer months I’m obsessed with smoothie bowls and I add my protein powder in them for breakfast. I would definitely recommend smoothie bowls because you can also top them with hemp seeds, chia seeds other nuts which can give you a great source of protein to deliciously start off your day.

What's a smoothie bowl?

I make these sometimes -- for me it is just smoothie ingredients blended up and then placed in a bowl with some oats mixed in, topped with chopped fruit or seeds. It's like a smoothie you eat with a spoon.

Here is a recipe I tried recently: https://www.runnersworld.com/nutrition-weight-loss/a22350411/rad-raspberry-beet-smoothie-bowl/

I substituted coconut milk yogurt for the diary yogurt.

anetkastefaniak wrote: »

@jacalynrose11 I eat a lot of string cheese, cottage cheese, feta cheese and eggs for protein but am too thinking about cutting out dairy slowly. I've been bloated randomly so I may have to do an elimination diet to see what's causing it, maybe it's the dairy.

@janejellyroll @zeejane03 Which beans do you recommend? I use a lot of black beans but wanted to try something new.

I love black beans, but I also enjoy garbanzos, pinto beans (had some for breakfast this morning), kidney beans, and cannellini beans. Black-eyed peas and lentils are also favorites.