Vegetarian eating too much Carbs!!!

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SweetSiJ
SweetSiJ Posts: 8 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I love everything carbs! Noodles, breads you name it. The problem is carbs break down into sugar and diabetes runs in my family. I'm trying to avoid this. I will say carbs is where most of my calories come from being a vegetarian. Help!!! I don't know what I should do.
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Replies

  • princessputz
    princessputz Posts: 283 Member
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    Have a look at my diary I'm not a vegetarian - but I could be if you substituted my 1 or 2 servings of meat for legumes or possibly tofu :).

    I eat pretty low carb and have lost 20 lbs doing so. I do NET carbs (carbs - fiber = net carbs)
  • princessputz
    princessputz Posts: 283 Member
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    Also If you open you diary we might be able to make suggestions on what to eat.
  • emberin
    emberin Posts: 56 Member
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    There is a low carb cookbook out there (somewhere in my collection is a copy) that has some good recipes and tips. One of my favorites is substituting spaghetti squash instead of noodles.
  • RobynJoy76
    RobynJoy76 Posts: 13 Member
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    I have been vegetarian for about a month and a half and am not great at digesting gluten and am finding this all to be a real challenge. My fiance has been vegetarian for most of his life but subsists on pizza, bagels and veggie burgers. I'm not awesome at cooking and my dinners used to consist of a nice healthy chunk of meat and a ton of vegetables and I haven't been able to figure out easy ways to replicate this. I'm not into soy because it's so processed and generally not the best thing for you. What do other vegetarians eat?
  • xraychick77
    xraychick77 Posts: 1,775 Member
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    you dont get diabetes from carbs or sugar..you get it by being obese

    ps...soy is widely accepted as healthy. and as far as being processed..there is nothing really inherently wrong with processed foods, as most foods are processed in some way. you just need to choose the healthier processed foods...vegetable soup over candy bars. etc
  • pdworkman
    pdworkman Posts: 1,342 Member
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    I do eat soy - tofu, mostly - but am vegetarian, grain-free, dairy-free. Lots of fruits, veggies, beans and lentils, nuts/seeds, pseudocereals (quinoa and buckwheat), etc. Unprocessed, mostly from scratch, I have other allergies as well. My diary is open to friends.
    I have been vegetarian for about a month and a half and am not great at digesting gluten and am finding this all to be a real challenge. My fiance has been vegetarian for most of his life but subsists on pizza, bagels and veggie burgers. I'm not awesome at cooking and my dinners used to consist of a nice healthy chunk of meat and a ton of vegetables and I haven't been able to figure out easy ways to replicate this. I'm not into soy because it's so processed and generally not the best thing for you. What do other vegetarians eat?
  • inkredibleshrinkingwoman
    inkredibleshrinkingwoman Posts: 206
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    I am a vegetarian 30 years and have done it wrong. I now no longer eat wheat (or sugar). I make veggie chilli, lentil soups, tofu stir fry, lite cheeses... Tons of recipes out there if u google.
  • Lydiabee_4
    Lydiabee_4 Posts: 13 Member
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    When I first became a vegetarian I had a similar problem. I even GAINED weight in the first couple of months of the switch...ALL I ate was bread and pasta! Now, going on 4 years of being a vegetarian, I've learned to just eat more fruits and vegetables when I'm hungry and try to stay away from extra servings of bread...and when I go out to eat I almost always get a salad now as opposed to the Fettuccine Alfredo I would have gotten before. =)
  • n8na
    n8na Posts: 76 Member
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    I've been a vegetarian for almost 10 years now and I love carbs. What helps me is tofu (a lot), peanuts, lentils and eggs (unfortunately - I don't want to eat so many animals products). Using different spices for each meal prevent the feeling of ravenousness.
  • queenpushycat
    queenpushycat Posts: 761 Member
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    Same here, I am a vegetarian and love carbs too! But now, I'm trying to cut down on noodles and white rice. I am changing those to healthy good carbs like wholemeal bread and brown rice. :)
  • MissYogapants
    MissYogapants Posts: 106 Member
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    I'm not a vegetarian, but I eat vegetarian food 99% of the times I eat. I would only try and exclude carbs from my diet if I felt my body didn't feel well from eating it. I like to eat pasta and rice quite often and I'm still losing weight quite rapidly.

    If you're worried about diabetes (unlike what many think, even skinny people get diabetes) then I think you should make a doctor's appointment. They could perhaps run some tests on you, and they could definitely tell you more about what you should be thinking about.
  • unicornassassin
    unicornassassin Posts: 141 Member
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    I'm vegan. I'm also a lazy cook when I'm cooking for just myself. My dinner every night is a massive pile of stir fried vegetables and some beans on the side. Breakfast is generally fresh fruit. I don't really eat lunch, but I do snack throughout the day, and I usually eat more fresh fruit and some nuts.

    Once in awhile I'll eat some rice or quinoa, but I'm trying to stay away from carbs because I'm a massive carb addict, and once I start it's hard to stop.

    I eat A LOT. I like to eat a lot, and eating mostly produce lets me do that and still lose weight.
  • angevee
    angevee Posts: 55 Member
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    I've not eaten any meat or fish for 25 years now and was a huge carb junkie. I couldn't fit enough bread of cake in my tummy. Anyways, since joining I have changed the kinds of carbs that I eat. More whole grains, no white bread that kind of thing and smaller portions. I've upped the veges. Where as the bulk of my old dinner would have been the carbs it's now the veg. My plate towers and I struggle to eat it all, and I am not hungry :happy:

    If I really need a carb fix I'll have a water biscuit. It does the job and isn't too calorific
  • porffor
    porffor Posts: 1,212 Member
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    I am a veggie who is intolerant to beans - only in the last 12 months - I keep hoping it'll pass but sadly it isn't seeming to.

    I am also guilty of being a carb junkie in bread, pasta, rice, fries etc... so I'm cutting back on these and have managed fine. Getting my husband to see that thai curry without a pile of noodles or rice is actually still a meal is a bit hard but putting in a small handful of noddles is working at giving me noodles without all the calories / carbs. I am no less full either with a stack of veg and quorn in there.

    I am also guilty of processed foods - life is busy sometimes and I do give into things like meat free products for ease and low fat protein. One step at a time for me.
  • alexandria412
    alexandria412 Posts: 177 Member
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    It can be tricky as a veg, since some of our best proteins are often carby as well (beans, I'm looking at you).

    What I'm attempting to try (with varying success) is to forget about carbs during the day, but eliminate refined carbs (rice, bread, etc) from my last meal, filling the empty space with veggies.
  • Ghlt4
    Ghlt4 Posts: 241 Member
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    Eating too many processed carbs are the problem. If your carbs are coming from veg, beans, oats, rice etc you will not have a problem.

    I eat a solely plant based diet. Carbs being 60-70%. Before starting this 8 months ago my blood sugar was borderline and my cholesterol was high. I have just had blood work done and both were well within the normal range!! So high carbs are not a problem as long as they are coming from the right source.
  • SueInAz
    SueInAz Posts: 6,592 Member
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    you dont get diabetes from carbs or sugar..you get it by being obese
    Not entirely true. People also get diabetes through genetic predisposition. If someone in your family has it, you are more likely to develop it, too. I've known quite a few people who have diabetes who have never been obese or even more than slightly overweight.
  • lipglossjunky73
    lipglossjunky73 Posts: 497 Member
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    I am now a vegetarian - I was vegan for 15 years before that. While I eat carbs, I never eat pasta or bread. If I do - it's a rare occasion. Usually a weekend treat for me (and an occasional one at that) would be a bagel, or going out for pancakes or waffles - which is maybe once every 3 months or so. Pasta I will order in a restaurant if there is nothing else available, and even then I order a pasta primavera and really eat the veggies out of it.

    If you want to add me as a friend, I will try to be better about logging my food (I am not treying to lose weight so I don't always stay on top of it)

    I am a very active person. I workout regularly, and am currently training for a marathon. That being said, I don't make it a free for all to eat tons of carbs.

    My usual eating consists of one of the following:

    Cereal and rice milk for breakfast. The cereal is either Autumn Wheat by Kashi, or a packet of oatmeal. I have a tablespoon of Omega 3 Swirl as well
    Protein Smoothie - Sun Warrior vegan protein powder with a handful of frozen berries, rice milk, and Omega 3 Swirl

    Snacks are:
    a piece of fruit - an apple or a banana usually since I work and need to eat on the run
    A handful of nuts - I love tamari almonds
    A clif builder bar (high carb but also high protein - I ONLY recommend this though if you are extremely active - I do some form of exercise daily - a run, spin class, weights, etc)

    Lunch - one of the following:

    Tofurkey slices - no bread
    Black bean soup
    Cottage cheese
    Fage yogurt - 2% plain - nothing in it, except maybe a drop of agave nectar or honey

    Dinner - one of the following

    A vegetable - broccoli, brussel sprouts, edamame, etc - with one of the following:

    Quinoa
    veggie burger - sometimes with a bun, but usually not - I have ketchup or BBQ sauce, onion and tomato and avocado with it
    Soy nuggets - vegetarian chicken nuggets
    soup

    Dessert - A grapefruit

    I also have a coffee with soy milk, and/or a cup of matcha green powder with rice milk


    As you can see, I would not ever say I was eating "low carb" - in fact, it may even be high carb with the fruit and clif bar and other things i consume, but I have lost a lot of weight on it since I am fueling my body for my workouts
  • Munque
    Munque Posts: 123
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    I have this problem too, but try to stay within the guidlines mfp has set up for me, so if I have a lot of carbs at lunch (which happens often because I eat lean cuisines and ww for lunch) then I have to take out some of my carbs at dinner. I don't eat tofu. I didn't become a vegetarian because I love animals, I just don't like meat, the taste, the texture, nothing. And my body doesn't digest animal protiens very well anyways.

    You get used to not eating breads, lowering your dose of potatoes and pasta. When I have spaghetti, most of my plate is salad, so it doesn't seem like less pasta, I eat my salad first, so the fiber fills me up, and no more garlic bread, or if I can afford it, I'll eat half a piece. I would love to try spaghetti squash but can't talk my family into it (I have a family of 8) so it'd be an extra step after work and I just haven't brought myself to do it yet.

    What I don't get is how non-vegetarians stay within their protien levels, I sometimes get close without having any meat at all. And sometimes I go over, but I let myself because I always worry that I don't get enough protien.
  • nukie19
    nukie19 Posts: 16
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    You can also substitute shirataki noodles (sometimes called yam noodles) for pasta and cut out tons of carbs and calories. I think they are best when stir fried with veggies or in a soup, but you can use them with any other dish you would for pasta. I have to get them at the Asian markets in the fridge section, but if you are in a bigger city you might have more look finding them.

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