Would I do better if I stopped being vegetarian??

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20carrots
20carrots Posts: 279 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I know it's probably an excuse but I feel like all the magazines show chicken wraps, rice w/fish etc as great, filling meals and I'm basically a carb-atarian. Would I do better if I started eating meat again? Or is this totally an excuse??
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  • tigersword
    tigersword Posts: 8,059 Member
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    Honest answer? Probably. It's possible to eat healthy with any diet, but it's also possible to eat unhealthily with any diet.

    Why did you become vegetarian? Did you assume that vegetarian automatically means healthy? If that's the case, than you'd probably be better off adding meat back into your diet, and balancing what you eat.

    Arbitrarily cutting out one food source doesn't help anything out. If you have a specific reason to cut out meat, it's one thing, but if you just do it because you think it will automatically make you healthy, well it won't.
  • LessJos
    LessJos Posts: 113 Member
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    From my experience (I was a vegetarian for 20 years): YES!!! It is tough to lose weight without meat in my opinion. I was class 2 obese even during my vegetarian years and did eat healthy. Just too much and especially too many carbs. It is way easier to eat a full meal with a good level of calories when you eat and reduced the carbs.
    I also had a lot of issues (mostly with my stomach) that disappeared within only a few months after eating meat again.

    And meat is sooooo good!!! I can't believe I was a vegetarian and for that long. I love meat now!
  • FireTigerSoul
    FireTigerSoul Posts: 274 Member
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    I know it's probably an excuse but I feel like all the magazines show chicken wraps, rice w/fish etc as great, filling meals and I'm basically a carb-atarian. Would I do better if I started eating meat again? Or is this totally an excuse??

    There are many filling meals that are vegetarian. I've found that substituting veggie products for meat products has really opened up a lot of variety in my diet. I can have a veggie BLT, veggie sloppy joe, veggie chicken stir fry, veggie beef tips...it just takes a little creativity in the kitchen. However, I'm a vegetarian for ethical reasons. I'll never go back to eating meat. If you choose to remain a vegetarian, you can find many meat-alternatives to use in those filling meal recipes in magazines. :)

    Whatever you choose, make sure it's right for you.
  • BAMFMeredith
    BAMFMeredith Posts: 2,829 Member
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    Honest answer? Probably. It's possible to eat healthy with any diet, but it's also possible to eat unhealthily with any diet.

    Why did you become vegetarian? Did you assume that vegetarian automatically means healthy? If that's the case, than you'd probably be better off adding meat back into your diet, and balancing what you eat.

    Arbitrarily cutting out one food source doesn't help anything out. If you have a specific reason to cut out meat, it's one thing, but if you just do it because you think it will automatically make you healthy, well it won't.

    All of this. Any diet can be unhealthy, whether it be lactose free, meat free, dairy free, etc.

    When I found out I was gluten intolerant, I thought "I'm not eating wheat and gluten products anymore, I'm gonna lose a ton of weight!" Not the case. I discovered gluten free bread and pasta products and pretty much ate just as crappy, just sans gluten.

    If you are a vegetarian for moral reasons and really do not want to incorporate meat back into your diet, examine ways to make your meat-free diet healthier. Otherwise, meat isn't the enemy :)
  • Zichu
    Zichu Posts: 542 Member
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    I actually considered becoming a vegetarian because I thought it would of been healthier. Meat's are really high in protein, even just adding a bit of meat to an already medium to high protein meal will do wonders.

    Just 20 minutes ago I had 3 eggs scrambled with 100g of chicken breast. Only as a snack to keep me going till dinner which I will only be having a stir fry and salmon fillet which really the veggies aren't that filling on it's own. The salmon is just another protein source and it tastes great :D

    From that snack or small meal for some people gave me 49g of protein alone. It was quick and easy to make and it tasted really good.


    EDIT: I know some people will disagree, but I also use Quorn products. It's still quite high in protein and it's meat free. I enjoy the best of both worlds.
  • garbanzalo
    garbanzalo Posts: 61 Member
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    You would do better if you ate more protein and less carbs and sugar.

    If you are vegetarian, that means much more beans, especially moth beans, tofu and milk.
  • jcpmoore
    jcpmoore Posts: 796 Member
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    That depends on why you're a carb-etarian. I know a lot of vegetarians that eat a lot of noodles, pasta, rice and such. But you don't have to. When I was veggie I ate a lot of beans, tofu, stir fry without rice, chilis, etc. You can have plenty of vegetarian dishes without depending on massive amounts of carbs. They should just be a side dish like in any other meal, IMO. If you want a tofu stir fry and you don't want the rice to be center stage, add more veggies. Same with noodle dishes. If you like wraps, then make them. But use more vegetables and beans and don't eat extra wraps. Just fill them up with more filling beans.

    HTH
  • kanmuri
    kanmuri Posts: 112
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    I thought being a vegetarian had something to do with your beliefs regarding the food industry. Wouldn't you betray everything you believe in if your stopped being a vegetarian?

    As for great vegetarian recipes, try to look at Chinese and Indian recipes. They have been vegetarians for much longer than people in the West and their recipes usually are amazing.
  • Flixie00
    Flixie00 Posts: 1,195 Member
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    I don't eat meat or poultry, but I do eat fish, and manage to eat moderate levels of carbs. I have had no problems losing weight. Depends why you gave up eating meat in the 1st place I suppose.
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
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    I'm not sure anyone but you can answer that question. I usually lose more weight the less meat I eat, especially non-fish meat. But I am quite happy eating vegetables and brown rice just about every day. And I love tofu, beans, almonds and peanut butter so protein is not a problem.

    Eating meat or not eating meat - neither of these is a magic bullet to weight loss or health. A chicken wrap has no advantage over a wrap made with tofu, hummus or other non-meat protein.

    The things that usually ruin a diet have nothing to do with meat. They are usually (but not always) sugar or processed carbs.
  • HotBodUnderConstruction
    HotBodUnderConstruction Posts: 420
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    I'm assuming you became vegetarian for the heck of it and not because you are concerned about the welfare of farm animals...I don't think you would be posing the question if it were the latter. Anyways, yeah you would probably have an easier time getting your protein in with fewer calories when you are able to eat chicken, shrimp, etc.
  • nahralynn
    nahralynn Posts: 125 Member
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    I thought being a vegetarian had something to do with your beliefs regarding the food industry. Wouldn't you betray everything you believe in if your stopped being a vegetarian?

    People can become vegetarian for more reasons than just that. We went vegetarian to save money and boost eating healthier.

    @OP We added meat back into our diet on weekends only and still try to do vegetarian through the week, I lost some weight when we went vegetarian .. I just wasn't eating as many calories as normal and taking out a whole food group (we took out meat, dairy, and oils) will let you lose weight for a little while, but I am still losing weight even while eating meat. I think it really falls down to what fits your lifestyle. If you aren't happy or are really curious .. give it a try for a month and see how you feel.
  • UponThisRock
    UponThisRock Posts: 4,522 Member
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    A higher protein diet when you're trying to lose weight is a big plus, no doubt about that.
  • ariant23
    ariant23 Posts: 161 Member
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    I think yes, it opens up a whole new arena of variety for you. If you are getting bored with what you're eating, especially if it's not keeping you full, you're much more likely to overeat. I have heard from a few (precisely 2, I dont know many) former veggies. they say starting to incorporate meat back into your diet can be rough on your GI tract. from what i understand, don't just jump right to a steak. Start out with an ounce or two of fish (smoked salmon, shrimp, scallops, clams, squid are easy to obtain and cook in small amounts) in a day, slowly working your way up to more and more complex poultry and then finally red meat. or feel free to continue to exclude red meat. it's supposed to be the least healthy option (though we just had lovely steak last night for dinner).
    Just make sure that whatever you do, watch your total calorie intake. as far as weight gain/loss is concerned it's in vs. out, so make sure you don't end up putting on weight or stopping your loss by adding animal protein.
  • Vendetta2300
    Vendetta2300 Posts: 41
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    I am vegetarian and does not eat rice, pasta, bread, and basically nothing that contains flour due to intestinal problems, and I lose weight easily. I fill up on beans, lentils, quinoa, that sort of thing.

    Of course you need to be creative to fulfill all your dietary needs, like protein, iron, vitamins and stuff, but once you've gotten over not being able to eat what you used to, there is no problem.

    That being said, you should do what you think will work best for you. If you drool whenever you see a chicken wing, you should probably go back to being a meat-eater =)
  • tigersword
    tigersword Posts: 8,059 Member
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    I thought being a vegetarian had something to do with your beliefs regarding the food industry. Wouldn't you betray everything you believe in if your stopped being a vegetarian?

    As for great vegetarian recipes, try to look at Chinese and Indian recipes. They have been vegetarians for much longer than people in the West and their recipes usually are amazing.
    You're confusing vegetarian with vegan.
  • haaaleyx
    haaaleyx Posts: 83 Member
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    For awhile I used to be a Pescatarian, where the only kind of meat I ate was seafood. So if you try that it may help, since seafood is generally good for you.
  • JLJ5882
    JLJ5882 Posts: 6 Member
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    Well I can tell you I would do better! Don't know how anybody lives without all that yummy protien in their lives. haha Not sure about the diet thing, but I do know when I am trying to veggie my way through the day I am hungry all day...good luck!
  • phatty4dayz
    phatty4dayz Posts: 125 Member
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    Why did you become vegetarian? Did you assume that vegetarian automatically means healthy? If that's the case, than you'd probably be better off adding meat back into your diet, and balancing what you eat.

    That's that big question!!! I'm a vegetarian. It will be 2 years in July. I didn't make the change for weight loss, or even health reasons, but I can tell you that I am just now learning to make healthy vegetarian meal choices. It was not easy. It still is not easy sometimes, but it is a lifestyle that I am now dedicated to, so it is worth it for me.

    Feel free to add me as a friend and take a look at my food diary. Please note, that I am NOT a perfectly healthy eater. I am on a journey just like many others, but I do try to make good choices. Some days I succeed. Others... not so much.
  • minkakross
    minkakross Posts: 687 Member
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    I got fat being a vegetarian. seriously no joke, I was a thin person who decided to become a vegetarian after a decade of it I was officially a fat person so I gave it up and started to eat meat again, stabalized (aka stopped gaining) have yoyo dieted for years since all of which I might have been able to avoid if I had just known that my body doesn't respond well to carbs.

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