Should i turn Vegetarian???

no, there are overweight vegetarians. It mostly comes down to calories in vs calories out regardless if it is meat or not. If not eating meat is what you need to do to hit your calorie goal then it may help, but that is the only reason it will help.

if you like eating meat, then stick with it you can lose weight anyway as long as you follow calories in < calories out

just try and eat a balanced diet, with lots of fruit and veg, and enjoy it

I agree its doesnt matter what you eat as long as your calorie intake is less than your output. Set a goal for calories and just try to stay away from rice and pasta etc. Your body needs protein and while you can get it from certain grains you need meat. LOL Good starch substitutes are Quinoa, brown rice, whole wheat pasta etc. I like to slice cabbage very thin and use that as noodles. If you need noodles you can also try miracle or shiritaki noodles. They are basically a free food.

I have been a vegetarian for 18 years and have struggled with my weight. I can easily gain weight because there are a lot of really bad foods that are vegetarian. It takes a lifestyle change to eat healthy that matters. Not giving up meat. I think your vegetarian friends just want you to become vegetarian to be like them, not to lose weight.

not a good reason to turn Veg - this from an overweight vegetarian. That alone will not guarantee weight loss. sorry, only hard work will.

When I was a vegetarian, I relied mostly on carbs and cheese. Needless to sy, I lost weight when I started to eat meat again!

Like juicy tasting Beef, Pork, Chicken, Turkey....ANIMAL? Then no.

I have been a vegetarian for 18 years and have struggled with my weight. I can easily gain weight because there are a lot of really bad foods that are vegetarian. It takes a lifestyle change to eat healthy that matters. Not giving up meat. I think your vegetarian friends just want you to become vegetarian to be like them, not to lose weight.

^^ This. My aunt has been a vegetarian for 20 something years, she ended up having Lap Band surgery 3 years ago, only lost 12lbs with the lap band. She is now exercising regularly and making small healthier changes and the weight is slowly starting to come off. Vegetarian doesn't always = skinny/healthy.

***NOTE: This post is NOT bashing vegetarians.***

I went Vegan for a month after reading the Kind Diet and expected to feel all cleansed and wonderful as apparently experts say will happen. NONE of that happened!

Going vegan was easy since I don't like cheese, eggs I can go without easily and switching to soy milk was no big deal. Of course I avoided honey, gluten etc so I was in fact being true to vegan lifestyle (other than tossing out my leather furniture, running shoes, silk and wool clothing) but even though I still got about 70g of protein a day, I felt lethargic and keeping carbs down was very hard since "high-protein" vegetarian items like beans and nuts are high in carbs too.

I felt so much better once I started eating chicken again (I eat low-fat burgers maybe 5x a year so I'm pretty much 99% chicken-only).

There are a lot of unhealthy heavy vegetarians out there eating mostly potatoes. Eating vegetarian to lose weight is like going to Atkins, you cut out an entire food group and when you eventually come back to the real world weight gain often happens. Coming back to chicken actually has made me more successful but I'm just letting you know, feel free to give it a shot but I don't endorse vegan/vegetarianism for weight-loss reasons.

Only go vegetarian if you really want to. Don't let anyone pressure you into eating or not eating something.

I went vegan around the same time that I started Weight Watchers, so it's tough for me to know whether or not the veganism had anything to do with my weight loss, or if it was all portion control.

Do what's right for YOU.

no, there are overweight vegetarians. It mostly comes down to calories in vs calories out regardless if it is meat or not. If not eating meat is what you need to do to hit your calorie goal then it may help, but that is the only reason it will help.

^^ This.

I'm not saying that being a vegetarian is a bad idea, or the wrong choice to make. But, it's not the only way to eat a healthy diet and lose weight, either. And "going vegetarian" is a lot more complicated than a lot of people realize. It's not just about cutting out meat, it's altering your entire diet to be sure you are getting the protein you need from other sources.

I agree with the first few posters here, but let it be said that going without meat is easier on your digestive system and is wonderful for your long term cardiovascular health. In addition, there's the fact that the vegetables, grains, and legumes from which you would get your protein, should you cut meat out, are much better for your health than the meat they would be replacing. All of this is on top of the fact that meat is more calorie dense- 400 calories worth of steak fills about half of your stomach, but 400 calories of beans and rice will fill your stomach easily (not to mention that they're much cheaper than the steak). There's a reason vegetarians, in the aggregate and with their food choices taken as an isolated factor, live about 6 years longer than the average non- vegetarian. If you're talking weight loss, you're right, you can eat meat and still lose weight, but if you're talking health, vegetarianism is a better choice.

no, there are overweight vegetarians. It mostly comes down to calories in vs calories out regardless if it is meat or not. If not eating meat is what you need to do to hit your calorie goal then it may help, but that is the only reason it will help.

I am a perfect example of one of those overweight vegetarians. I am actually obese :embarassed:

Like many others have already stated, being vegetarian/vegan does not = skinny. It really does come down to calories in/out and quality of foods you are eating. Before I was vegetarian I ate only chicken or turkey (plus veggies and grains of course) and worked out every day. In 4 months I went from a size 14 to a size 4/6. Years after becoming vegetarian I sky rocketed up to a size "OMG I am HUGE!". This is because I didn't watch my portion sizes, ate cheese all the time and ate a lot of junk food. Years of bad choices have gotten me to where I am today. It's nobody's fault but my own. :ohwell: I am the one who decided what I was putting in my mouth. I am still a veggie and would never go back to eating meat, but I am working on becoming a healthy veggie. (I am a veggie for ethical reasons and my personal beliefs.)

My point being that you can be thin if you eat a well balanced healthy diet, regardless if you eat meat or not. You have to do what is best for you and not what anyone else is trying to tell you.

I have been a vegetarian for approx 15 years now. I do not believe in forcing my beliefs on others. I get really upset when I hear that other vegetarians do this. I could be wrong, but it sounds like this is what your friends are doing to you. If you want to become a vegetarian do your research then do it for the right reasons, because YOU want to do it. NOT because a few of your "skinny" friends are trying to convince you that being vegetarian = being skinny.

Hope this helps you with your decision a bit. Best of luck to you! :flowerforyou:

No, if that's the only rsn u wanna do it, u shouldn't. U should find a way that u actualy can live with every day!
A vegetarian diet needs extra proteins and types of fat that is not gained from meat/fish through f.ex. nuts, so u will 'need' those cals anyways.
I think u should find a line that u can be happy with every day, if not, the risk of failing will be higher- and then again failing is a biiig downer and demotives u.

But ofcourse, if u think u CAN do it as a lifestyle, then go ahead, just be sure u get all the nutrience that u need

I have been a vegetarian for 18 years and have struggled with my weight. I can easily gain weight because there are a lot of really bad foods that are vegetarian. It takes a lifestyle change to eat healthy that matters. Not giving up meat. I think your vegetarian friends just want you to become vegetarian to be like them, not to lose weight.

I agree with this 100%

I've become a weekday vegetarian (mostly). Since Saturday is my "cheat" day, and I love to barbecue and smoke meat, I save my "meat calories" for the weekend. I have noticed a change in my waist as well as in my wallet.

There is actually a term for this. You are a flexitarian! :flowerforyou:

A great diet includes lots of vegetables and a protein source with very little in the way of starches and refined carbs. That diet can include meat, or some other source of protein. A healthful vegetarian diet includes a little extra work, especially avoiding overreliance on high-fat dairy as a protein source. Lots of vegetarians are picky eaters to begin with, and actually eat a terrible diet, with too much bread and processed meat substitutes and other soy products.

That said, the human body will run on just about everything.

I disagree with your statement "Lots of vegetarians are picky eaters to begin with". I actually know quite a few of vegetarians who are far from picky. I, for one, was not a picky eater before I turned veggie. I turned because of ethical reasons, not because I was picky. I only know 1 "vegetarian" who is a picky eater. She is a vegetarian because she thinks eating meat is gross and eats nothing but bread, mac and cheese and baked ziti. But I agree with you 100%, when you say a healthful vegetarian diet takes extra work, avoiding overreliance on high-fat dairy as a protein source. That is exactly what I did that got me to where I am today. :frown: