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MyFitnessPal Community

Vegetarian and Protein / Bodybuilding

jadu1536

Hello Everyone,

My goal is to lose weight/gain muscle and have less body fat. However, I don't eat a lot of meat. I will eat eggs and sometimes fish or chicken, but I'm not fond of it. Are there any vegetarians on the board who have had success and can you share any suggestions on how to increase protein/ lower body fat?

Thank You!

Replies

AnnPT77

Define success? I'm a long-time vegetarian, lost weight, didn't lose athletic performance while doing it (in a strength-y cardiovascular sport, on-water and machine rowing), don't seem to have trouble maintaining/building muscle as would be feasible for my demographic, but am not a bodybuilder. I mention the demographic because I'm old (69 now, 59-60 when I lost around 50 pounds) and female, both of which may make muscle maintenance/gain slower or more challenging.

People will give you a food list for non-meat protein, so here's a short one of main recommendations: Tofu, tempeh, cooked soybeans, seitan. If you eat dairy, plain non-fat Greek yogurt, cottage cheese, and some of the better-tasting 2% milk cheeses. Since you eat eggs, eggs. Obviously, whatever meat or fish you do eat is a plus.

Some beans other than soy aren't bad. If you don't object to it, consider protein powder or bars.

In reality, though, the answer isn't a food list, if you really want to get adequate non-meat protein on lower calories. The answer is a process, and it will take quite a few words to explain it.

I'm ovo-lacto vegetarian, have been for 50+ years now. I technically eat eggs, but I don't eat many of them. I do eat a lot of dairy, but I'd take the same route even if fully plant-based.

Somewhere along the line, figure out your your protein goal. For most people the MFP default goal is a reasonable starting point, unless they're trying to lose weight too aggressively fast. It's an OK-ish starting point for a vegetarian or near-vegetarian, but might not be enough for reasons that may become clear later.

As context, I'm 5'5", female, like I said 69 y/o, in maintenance in the lower 130s pounds right now. My current protein goal is 100g minimum daily, and I usually exceed that. It was a little less during weight loss on lower calories, once I got a good routine wired in usually in the 90s grams, maybe occasionally dipping into the 80s. If you're shooting for muscle gains, you want to be on the high side.

If you want to reasonableness-check your protein goal, there's a research-based calculator here:

https://examine.com/guides/protein-intake/

If still quite overweight, use a lower weight, such as healthy goal weight, in the calculator.

As an aside, the guide at that link has a very good section about protein intake for vegans/vegetarians, and to the extent that you prefer to eat plant protein, those guidelines apply. Some fully-committed omnivores here will tell you that a person will need more protein as a vegetarian than an omnivore. That's true at the 50000 foot level, but the real issue is protein quality in terms of essential amino acid (EAA) completeness and bioavailability. Many plant sources are incomplete or less bioavailable. The guide has a more nuanced way of looking at that question. Loosely, plant-centric eaters probably need somewhat more protein than those full-bore omnivores, but the specific plant protein choices influence how much more.

Second step is to reasonableness-check your intended weight loss rate, if loss is your goal. There's no way to get adequate nutrition, protein or otherwise, when trying to lose weight too aggressively fast for a person's current size. I'd suggest losing no more than 0.5-1% of current weight per week, with a bias toward the lower end of that range unless severely obese and under close medical supervision for deficiencies or complications.

If you have much fat to lose, it's good to lose it, of course. If it's enough weight to threaten health, losing on the faster side of that range might be necessary. Here's the thing, though: Gaining muscle mass while losing weight is slower and more difficult than when at maintenance, and eating in a calorie surplus may be better. When losing, it might not even happen. If losing weight, the slower the loss rate, the better the odds of muscle gain, but think more in terms of preserving existing muscle if eating in a calorie deficit. That's a very worthwhile goal in itself, and you might fall on the very lucky side and gain some mass slowly if you're following the right routine.

A good progressive strength training routine is of course an essential element in any case, as is good overall nutrition especially but not exclusively ample protein.

I suggested a short list of some solid protein source foods, and many people will give you food lists. I'm going to link the mother of all protein/calorie efficiency food lists here:

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

Most of the things near the top of the linked spreadsheet there are meaty/fishy, but if you scroll down, you'll find plant and dairy sources, and there's a column that has a rough indication of protein quality. (You'd need to look further, such as with web searches, for more details.)

Beyond the food lists, what I'd suggest is a process to improve protein intake on reduced calories. I'm going to assume you're logging your food here.

Review your food diary. Identify foods you're eating that have relatively many calories, relatively little protein, and that you can eliminate or reduce (frequency or portion size) to free up calories, without shorting other nutrition or torpedoing your happiness.

Using the spreadsheet in the linked thread, or any other source, find foods you like that have more protein for those calories, and work those foods into your routine habits. Repeat that process, and over time your routine protein intake will creep up. I like doing it that way so I don't need to micromanage protein every single day: Once the habits are in place, it's more automatic.

For sure, try to include at least one major protein source in each meal, ideally an EAA complete and bioavailable source. But beyond that, try to find sides, snacks, flavoring ingredients and more that have a little bit of protein. That will add up through the day. There are veggies with more protein, grains with more protein, even fruits with some protein. Those sources tend to be less EAA complete or bioavailable, but varying the types may compensate somewhat for the completeness issue.

At the store, read labels. Find breads with more protein, maybe protein pasta, etc. I have rules of thumb for roughly evaluating protein in foods in the store. Your specific numbers may differ, but I think having rules of thumb is helpful. For myself, I figure that something that has no more than around 10 calories (from all macros) per gram of protein is a good individual protein ingredient. For prepared foods, like a frozen meal, say, I look for ideally around 20 calories per gram of protein, up to maybe 30 calories per gram if the food is desirable in other respects.

I'll say a little more about flavoring ingredients, because that's one thing some people aren't as attuned to. Vegans tend to use nutritional yeast to add a cheesy flavor to foods, and that has a reasonable amount of protein. Miso is another flavoring with protein. I also use peanut butter powder (a.k.a. defatted peanut flour) to add peanut flavor and a little protein to dressings, sauces, my oatmeal, etc. Those are some examples. We eat them in quite small amounts, but there's at least some protein.

Don't let people tell you whole nuts, nut butters or seeds are a good plant protein source. IMO, they aren't. They're nutritious foods, absolutely, but are better sources of good fats than protein. The calorie to protein ratio is quite high. For example, almonds are one of the higher protein nuts. 72% of their calories are from fats, only 14% from protein. It's like 164 calories for 6g of protein. That's not great, and they're not EAA-complete (particularly low in lysine and methionine), and not extremely bioavailable, either.

As mentioned above, protein powder can be a reasonable thing to use, especially at first while trying to get more protein from food. There are mixed-source vegan types that are reasonably complete/bioavailable, but if you eat dairy, whey protein would be better, or soy. I don't use protein powder or protein bars, etc., not because there's anything wrong with them in the abstract, but because I don't personally find them tasty or satisfying. Many people seem to enjoy them.

If you want to see what I eat - not that I think I'm a stellar example - my diary is open to MFP friends. If you send me a friend request, I'll accept, and you can look at my diary. MFP friends can also DM each other, and I do answer questions about how I combine the foods in my diary or similar.

The closer you are to actually fully plant-based in your eating, the more you may need to also pay attention to some nutrients other than simply protein. I think protein is pretty easy, TBH. I'm talking about things like vitamins D, B12, iron, calcium, etc. If you eat dairy or and since you do eat eggs, some of those would potentially be well-covered. Details about food choices matter.

For the other nutritional issues, I'll link another source I think is pretty good, also aimed at vegans but with useful info for anyone eating mostly plant-based, too:

https://veganhealth.org/

They have better than average info about the micronutrient side of things, including - if you use the search on the site - some specifics for weight lifters/body builders. The site's content is from registered dietitians who are themselves vegan, and it's much more science-based than some of the silly advocacy sites out in the blogosphere.

I hope something in there helps. If you have follow-up questions, please ask.

Best wishes!

cmamado183

Howdy —

i supplement my protein intake with pea protein powder. I use BIRDMAN Falcon Performance Vegan Protein Powder, 31g Protein, 5g Creatine, 5g BCAA, Probiotics, Electrolytes, Pre Workout, Low Carb, Sugar Free & Dairy Free, Plant Based Vanilla Protein -19 ServingsBIRDMAN Falcon Performance Vegan Protein Powder, 31g Protein, 5g Creatine, 5g BCAA, Probiotics, Electrolytes, Pre Workout, Low Carb, Sugar Free & Dairy Free, Plant Based Vanilla Protein -19 Servings which you can get from Amazon. it comes in either Vanilla or Chocolate. Their line also has cheaper options as well as other boosters like collagen, inositol, and hyaluronic acid, etc. I am in a cutting phase so i just add cold water and shake. But you could add fruits, peanut butter and milk alternatives for more calories/flavor. You can also use the powder and add it to one of your favorite baked goods — if you bake, like

On another note, and I know there is controversy around this, but i do eat tofu. I press them to get the water out for a few hours, chop them up into cubes, toss them in olive oil, add zero sugar teriyaki sauce, and air fry them for 10 -15 mins (i like them crispy), and make a "poke" bowl … jasmine rice base, chopped cucumbers and carrots in rice vinegar/apple cider vinegar+ Bragg's amino acids (as a soy sauce substitute), add tofu ontop and then sprinkle sesame seeds. since the tofu is more well cooked, the texture is more like "meat" consistency. I usually do 2-3 tofu blocks at a time and it helps with meal prepping since rice is also cooked "in abundance". I do chop my greens fresh bc I want the fresh crisp.

Last one that i would recommend, is seitan. the brand and flavor I enjoy is Nasoya Plantspired® Plant-Based Korean BBQ Flavored Steak. it comes in a bag of roughly 2.5 servings. Each serving is about 14g of protein. I just eat half the bag in one sitting. Its already precooked so you could microwave it but I prefer warming it up on the frying pan with some light olive oil spray (mostly so the pan doesn't burn). I add this to some Yakisoba noodles and steamed green beans + edamame, mix it all together and add some Braggs amino acids. you can cook it all so you can save the second portion for another meal — great for meal prepping.

Hope this was helpful and you find these options to be flavorful.

DeserveVictory

As a vegetarian that leans more towards veganism, this is how I've been getting my protein:
- Tofu, I like to freeze it and then it absorbs sauces and flavorings like a sponge! My latest favorite has been marinating the tofu with pesto and lightly frying it. It's good on salads, wraps and sandwiches.

-Soya Chunks, in a stir fry these are deceptively meat like. They're defatted tofu powder that is processed into bite size chunks. These also soak up flavorings like a sponge.

-Edamame, I keep them frozen for a quick addition to most dishes. I also keep a bag of frozen in-the-pod edamame for snacking. Microwave them for a couple minutes and top with a light sprinkle of salt.

-Seitan, which is essentially a meat replacement made from gluten and seasonings. Because it's almost straight gluten, it's low in carbs. There are many recipes you can try - donair meat, chicken nuggets, roasts, etc. There are a few commercially produced seitan products. If you can find Gusta products, I quite like them.

-Beans of course! Chickpeas are extremely versatile. Roast them as a crunchy topping for soups, salads, and veggies bowls. Or throw them in soup and curries. Black beans are also very easy - salads, soups, and anything mexican inspired.

-Lentils - Lots of protein and iron! One of my go-to's is dahl or curried red lentils. Unlike beans, they don't need the prep and if you cook them until really soft you can sneak them into pureed soups and sauces.

-Seeds. I love pumpkin seeds and throw them into most salads or will snack on them if I get the munchies.

-Nuts, of course these can be quite calorie dense but they're good for munching and soaked raw cashews make a great creamy sauce.

-Sneaky protein products - protein is being added to lots things now: plant milks, pastas, wraps, etc

-Chickpea flour is also a good protein source. A chickpea flour batter can be used for vegan omlettes and quiches, pancakes, Italian socca (flatbread)

-Grains - use quinoa, farrow, black bean or chickpea pasta, or coucous instead of rice

-Veggies - don't forget about broccoli, peas, brussel sprouts, spinach etc.

-Protein supplements - there are lots of options for protein bars and protein powders that are whey or pea based

Maaniac

Watch a Docu-movie called The Game Changers, it reveals a lot more than any of these huge conversations in one go. Its about doing plant based lifestyle, and its really inspiring. You can go for just the vitality factor or for a full body recomp. DOnt let anyone tell you plant based means weak and unhealthy. This is me when I turned 40 naturally. After babies and now menopause, its the best thing i ever did. The pose is me trying a few things so i look a little more lean here, but just walking around in my relaxed state looked good and felt great. Im doing a new training challenge to level up at 50 and wouldnt change my plant based diet for anything. Let me know what you think of the Movie and good luck!💪

maryjay52

My son went vegetarian then pescatarian. He eats eggs, cheese, seafood and milk products. however I often cook various bean dishes for him and high protein breads , pastas and tortillas.he also likes peanut butter on bread,protein bars and nuts for snacks . He also likes his shakes. He is athletic and does not have any issues in that respect. Trust me he does not lack for something that lines up with his dietary preferences. he loves cowboy cavier with quinoa and chia tortilla chips