Vegetarian Nutrition Advice: Protein

mrfritz
mrfritz Posts: 9
edited October 30 in Food and Nutrition
Hello,

I have been a vegetarian since I was 13 years old (12 years).
Most of the information I have gotten about nutrition has been from online sources,
I am wondering 1) if there is a reputable source for vegetarian nutrition in book/online form
2) strategies for weight loss for vegetarians

I have been following MFP and counting calories, and have lost 15 lbs--what would nutritionists say about eating nuts, tofu, and large amounts of protein (I usually eat about 100 grams a day). I find that I feel best when I have a lot of protein, is this good for my body--or is there harm in consuming this amount?

I also wonder about carbohydrates--I have been carb adverse for some time (I gained weight when I started eating them)--what is a healthy level of carbs? I usually eat whole grains and I am very conscious of the food I put into my body.

Lastly, I love dark chocolate, and have been ending my days (if I have extra calories) with some dark chocolate--if I stay within my calorie count, is this a bad thing?

Feel free to add me as a friend!

Best,
Michelle

Replies

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  • JodyDawkins
    JodyDawkins Posts: 12
    The rules for weight loss are the same for vegetarian and non-vegetarian alike.

    Regarding carbs, I'd recommend concentrating on carbs from fruits and veggies rather than from grains.

    I love dark chocolate too. Watch your fat intake on this. Last thing you want to push over your fat limit.

    Nice to meet another vegetarian on here!
  • tekgeeks
    tekgeeks Posts: 3 Member
    I have been a vegetarian all my life. I did not even have eggs. My diet was (and still is carb heavy). This is because I have grown up have 3 or 4 course meals of rice. Each course approximates to 1 CUP of cooked rice. I am sure you are getting the idea of how carb heavy!!!

    I have been searching far and wide for a good source for dieting for Vegetarians. I have not found much. However, talking to various doctors from my hometown (India), here is what I have so far. These changes have been helping me.

    1: Rice is very heavy on Sugar as well as carb - Minimize to avoid Diabetes, Blood Pressure and of course Weight Gain. I have personally reduced to having rice only for dinner and at most 1 cup and adding a little bit of wheat into the mix. If you can avoid it altogether that is great.

    2: Vegetarians always end up way under for Proteins. I do too. Soy, Milk (Milk Products) as well as Beans (Kidney Beans etc) are good sources. I have now started including Whey Protein into my diet.

    3: We eat a lot of fruits and add to it the rice and other cereals, the sugar content invariable goes through the roof. Avoid processed sugar (rice etc) and add Good Sugar (Fruits)

    4: As for the Chocolate milk - if I may make a suggestion... Kellogg's Special K has protein shakes. I have started having them (mine is Strawberry) and they are tasty and awesome. They do add 130 calories, but pack 10g of protein and 4g of fiber. They do have a chocolate variety - you might wanna try to see if it substitutes for a fresh creamy hot chocolate!!! It also keeps you full for a while. Again - you will have to evaluate if it works for you.

    Hope this Helps - It is from a very reliable source (ME!!!)...

    Vivek
  • Leela30
    Leela30 Posts: 177 Member
    dark chocolate is perfectly fine if you count for it!

    I'm currently reading a book about weight training for women and they advice a 40/30/30 split that seems to over the years has been effective for people. 40% carbs, 30% protein and 30% fats.

    But that's just a general guess. Everyones body is different so you have to eat the proportions that are best for you.

    (I'm a vegetarian too.. well.. pescetarian)

    I'd avoid huge amounts of tofu. Soy is not that great for your body. It acts like estrogen in your body and is known to increase the rate of breast cancer and makes it harder to lose fat since estrogen makes your body want to hold on to fat for potential baby support.
  • Cosmic_Unicorn
    Cosmic_Unicorn Posts: 150 Member
    I eat mostly vegetarian. My regular diet is vegetarian (but with eggs and dairy), but I'll eat meat a few times a year on special occasions.

    I don't really have a good answer for protein, and have been working on this myself! I've found some great cook books in used bookstores. It's still really hard though. Today I've had eggs, homemade bean burgers, and other assorted foods with a higher protein content, and I'm still only 2/3 to my goal of 63g. And this is a good day for me too. No good!

    Re: dark chocolate. Go for it! Have you considered carob though? It's lower in calories and way lower in sugars since it is naturally sweeter than cocoa. And no caffeine crash or anything either. I like to make little treats like freezer cookies made from just mashed banana and carob. I think you can buy bars of it too. At the very least you can get the chips.
  • Grokette
    Grokette Posts: 3,330 Member
    Hello,

    I have been a vegetarian since I was 13 years old (12 years).
    Most of the information I have gotten about nutrition has been from online sources,
    I am wondering 1) if there is a reputable source for vegetarian nutrition in book/online form
    2) strategies for weight loss for vegetarians

    I have been following MFP and counting calories, and have lost 15 lbs--what would nutritionists say about eating nuts, tofu, and large amounts of protein (I usually eat about 100 grams a day). I find that I feel best when I have a lot of protein, is this good for my body--or is there harm in consuming this amount?

    I also wonder about carbohydrates--I have been carb adverse for some time (I gained weight when I started eating them)--what is a healthy level of carbs? I usually eat whole grains and I am very conscious of the food I put into my body.

    Lastly, I love dark chocolate, and have been ending my days (if I have extra calories) with some dark chocolate--if I stay within my calorie count, is this a bad thing?

    Feel free to add me as a friend!

    Best,
    Michelle

    Hi there.

    I am not vegetarian, but I can answer some of your questions........

    The protein question. Protein is great for the body. It helps to maintain and build muscle. You want to have beautiful, curvy muscles.

    Carbs - This is extremely individual................Personally, I can only handle small amounts of carbs at one time, but others are able to handle many more........you will have to play around with different settings and seeing where you find your most comfortable at.

    Dark Chocolate - At least 60% cacao is great for you. Lots of antioxidants, etc. Dark chocolate is great and the darker the better.

    I have a book at home called How to cook everything vegetarian by Mark Bittman. There is also a facebook page. I won both of his books through a Facebook contest. The first one being How to cook Everything..........and the second book, How to cook everything Vegetarian.

    Both are fantastic books!!
  • chelseaalicia
    chelseaalicia Posts: 164 Member
    I've lost quite a bit of weight over the last couple of years, some of it while vegetarian, some while not a vegetarian...

    -With regard to protein: When I was a beginner vegetarian, I lost 6lbs of muscle within the first month or so of making than change, so keeping your protein levels nice and high will really help you to build/maintain rather than losing muscle. If you don't have enough protein in your diet, you just can't retain your muscle tone.

    As for carbs, it's really what works for you, but you could try combining a carb like rice (in moderation) with something like a bean or lentil to make a complete protein. I found that when I brought my carbs down to around 40%, I started taking in more protein by default and felt fuller longer.

    Dark chocolate is definitely better than a lot of other options, but consider cocoa... 12 cals/tbsp, I add it to my protein powder to make it more palatable, to yogurt as a fruit dip, and when I make protein pancakes.
  • Riley4ever
    Riley4ever Posts: 225 Member
    Hi,

    Can recommend the UK Vegetarian Society website for all things veggie including health & nutrition advice -> www.vegsoc.org

    I've been veggie for over 25 yrs, it is sometimes a challenge to get enough protein into your diet without cranking up the calories (cheese, nuts). I eat a lot of tofu, chick peas and eggs which are lower fat protein options (and tofu and eggs have added advantage of being fairly iron rich which is essential for vegetarians especially female ones as this group very predisposed to becoming anaemic. I've had chronic anaemia repeatedly (in part due to heavy periods) and really have to focus on getting iron into my diet (cereals fortified with iron plus dark green leafy veg such as spinach also very good).

    I don't think there's any problem with a diet that is more protein than carb rich as long as you are not cutting out a food group all together. I've seen claims that protein makes you feel fuller for longer and helps with building muscle but carbs are also essential to burn fat into energy. I have quite a carb heavy diet but as long as you weigh & track then you can still lose weight with pasta, potatoes and rice still in your diet. White rice is pretty calorific though especially the packet stuff (Uncle Ben's) which really surprised me so I've cut back on that.

    Dark chocolate is a great thing to enjoy in terms of treats (the higher the % of cocoa the better) as it is usually less calorific (& some studies show is better for you) than milk chocolate. A few squares should not be an issue and again just track the calories.

    Good Luck :D
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