Vegetarian - consuming more carbs

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steph123kc9086
steph123kc9086 Posts: 9 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Evening. I have recently become vegetarian (not for weight / health issues but animals) but im finding im consuming alot more carbs than usual and im getting myself all worked up that its going to mess my weight loss up. Ive lost 2 stone and have another 1/1.5 to go. Has anyone gone vegetarian and noticed that its hindered their weight loss? Thanks

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  • windra06
    windra06 Posts: 50 Member
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    No not at all, looking back at my macros for the last 22lb lost I'm averaging <60g protein and between 130 and 180g carbs with 30-49g fiber.
    My weight loss on 1200 calories has been pretty consistent and I eat majority vegan diet, no meats mostly legumes with a bit of tofu here and there. Yes protein is low but I feel fine and am not worried in the short term.

    5 yes ago when I ate meat and had a much higher protein intake I lost weight too by counting calories.
    Personally I think as long as calories in < calories out the weight will reduce
  • steph123kc9086
    steph123kc9086 Posts: 9 Member
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    windra06 wrote: »
    No not at all, looking back at my macros for the last 22lb lost I'm averaging <60g protein and between 130 and 180g carbs with 30-49g fiber.
    My weight loss on 1200 calories has been pretty consistent and I eat majority vegan diet, no meats mostly legumes with a bit of tofu here and there. Yes protein is low but I feel fine and am not worried in the short term.

    5 yes ago when I ate meat and had a much higher protein intake I lost weight too by counting calories.
    Personally I think as long as calories in < calories out the weight will reduce

    Thank you for the reply. Thats made me feel better. I just get myself worked up 🤣
  • steph123kc9086
    steph123kc9086 Posts: 9 Member
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    deannalfisher wrote: »
    ultimelely it comes down to calories - you can eat as many carbs as you want as long as your caloric intake is less than what you burn - personally i eat 3-400g carbs a day

    Thanks for the reply. I actually dont eat alot of carbs even though im eating more now if that makes sense. Around 200g a day but thats a mixture of all carbs not just pasta etc
  • gremloBBPT
    gremloBBPT Posts: 51 Member
    edited January 2020
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    I was a pescetarian for about three years, went back to eating meat for a year, and then went back to being a pescetarian for another three years. During the year that I was eating meat, I gained some weight--senior year of college and way too much drinking & eating out that year. Probably even worse, senior year I'd gone from working close to full-time at a very active job (server) to a sedentary job. Anyway, when I went back to being a pescetarian and had that weight to lose, I was primarily a vegetarian. I only ate fish maybe twice a month. I mostly ate lots of lentil dishes, especially lentil soup, and pasta, usually with tomato sauce and ricotta cheese. I didn't count calories but I was probably averaging around 1300/day. (I'm short.) I dropped all the weight I'd gained pretty easily. I don't know what my carbs were, but they were probably similar to yours.

    So, my experience lines up with the others. It's a CICO thing. Satiety might be an issue if high protein helps you with that; it does for me. Eating carbs that were high-fiber or pairing them with fat compensated for the reduced protein and kept me full. I also felt much fuller when I ate a high-protein breakfast, like eggs or cottage cheese. I've unfortunately never been the sort who could eat mostly carbs for breakfast without having an increased appetite the rest of the day.
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,811 Member
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    On the day I ate 650g of carbs but was still in a calorie deficit I would still have lost weight. :smiley:
  • Luke_rabbit
    Luke_rabbit Posts: 1,031 Member
    edited January 2020
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    apullum wrote: »
    You could eat literally nothing but white rice and you would still lose weight if you were in a calorie deficit. You might not get proper nutrition, and you’d probably feel hungry, but you would lose weight. Weight loss is 100% about consistently being in a calorie deficit, not about how many carbs you eat.

    I know from personal experience that this is true. I did a full elimination diet to determine my GERD triggers. All I ate at first was brown rice. I lost weight. I am totally NOT recommending this. It was brutal.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 32,070 Member
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    steph123kc9086 wrote: »
    deannalfisher wrote: »
    ultimelely it comes down to calories - you can eat as many carbs as you want as long as your caloric intake is less than what you burn - personally i eat 3-400g carbs a day

    Thanks for the reply. I actually dont eat alot of carbs even though im eating more now if that makes sense. Around 200g a day but thats a mixture of all carbs not just pasta etc

    I'm a vegetarian (for 45 years ;) ), previously obese, now at a healthy weight for 4+ years. I ate around 150g carbs while losing, and around 200g or so most days now. I didn't actually try to limit carbs; they just end up where they end up, for me.

    Personally, I'm more focused on putting things I need into my eating (protein, healthy fats, plenty of varied, colorful veggies/fruits), not on taking things out.

    Weight loss is all about calories, especially in the short run. As long as your carb intake isn't driving out any substantial amount of needed protein or fats or veggies/fruits, in order to stay at your calorie goal, you should be fine, on the nutrition front (for long-term health).

    If you happen to be undereating any of the needed nutrients by a material amount, it would be good to gradually work at tweaking your diet to improve those. Unless you already have been diagnosed with a nutrient deficiency by your doctor, that's not a crisis, so you can work at it gradually. (Undernutrition from an OK-ish but suboptimal diet is primarily about patterns over longer time periods, if starting at a healthy point.) No need to get worked up about that, or about the carb level.

    Best wishes!
  • lynn_glenmont
    lynn_glenmont Posts: 9,964 Member
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    apullum wrote: »
    You could eat literally nothing but white rice and you would still lose weight if you were in a calorie deficit. You might not get proper nutrition, and you’d probably feel hungry, but you would lose weight. Weight loss is 100% about consistently being in a calorie deficit, not about how many carbs you eat.

    You could literally eat nothing but white sugar (the devil incarnate!!) and lose weight If you were in a calorie deficit.

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