Would I do better if I stopped being vegetarian??

I "flirt" with eating meat all the time and can never go through with it. I just wonder if I'd feel more full if I ate more protein and less carbs. DH seems to be filled up much more easily on meat.

The answer is probably yes. Many people find protein keeps them feeling full longer. But there are plenty of non-meat protein sources that are just satiating as meat.

When you say "carbs" are you referring to sugar and processed grain products (breads/pastas/flour)? Because vegetables and fruits are also loaded with carbs and are a necessary part of a healthy diet for most everyone.

Yes! Remember, Humans are not herbervous. We are meant to eat meat. I bet you will feel better if you got your protein from lean meats and not beans.

Human beings are hunter gatherers. We're built to eat a LOT of plants, and relatively small amounts of meat, if meat at all.

I have been an ethical vegetarian since 1973. I've been up and down the scale many times, but the one thing that I keep coming back to is a (mostly) wholefood vegan diet, emphasizing veggies, fruits, beans and legumes, whole grains, and small quantities of nuts.

Our whole culture right now is designed around refined carbs, fat and salt in cheap, plentiful quantities. You need to start thinking of those foods as occasional recreational treats, and put your emphasis on the good stuff.

This is controversial within the veg*n community, but I also enjoy some processed faux foods--I like tofu, Gardein, Boca, Field Roast, and Yves products, specifically, but everyone's different, so explore them on your own, and see what you like. If eggs are okay with you, there's Quorn that has no soy in it whatsoever.

This CAN be done, but avoid the foods which make you act like an addict. For me, I need to really minimize foods with sugar-flour-fat, since once I start eating them, it's hard to stop.

Hi!

I am vegan and am doing great. I have never been obese or anything. I have been veg for 9 years now.

Any diet could be unhealthy... I could be a vegan and eat Oreos and chips all day.

There are plenty of veg foods which would decrease your carb load and increase protein: tofu, seitan, tempeh, TVP. I am not sure how you eat but if you are a vegetarian, you should be consuming lots of fruits and vegetables, whole grains, legumes, low fat dairy, and sensible fats.

This should give you results. I don't believe that meat is necessary to losing weight.

Ha! My friend went veggie and ate nothing but mac and cheese and didn't understand why she felt crappy and gained weight! I'm glad someone else brought this point up.

I'm a buddhist, so I'm a veggie. I can say that stacking my diary up to my best friend (who eats meat), it seems easier for me to stay under my calorie goal- since I'm eating salads where she's eating a burger.

I'd like to point out where I went awry when I started dieting as a veggie. I would eat chocolate because it was possible calorie wise. I'd think "AWESOME! I can diet and still have chocolate!" But the scale wouldn't budge I cut out super refined carbs like beer and chocolate and lost 3 lbs the next week. Perhaps this could help you.

*disclaimer: I am a omnivore*

Is it a question of meat or more protein? if is just needing more protein than you have had several good ideas on vegetarian way to accomplish that. Non-fat milk and non-fat cottage cheese are great sourced of protein. A member of my family eat very little meat (doesn't like the taste) but works out a fair amount. By drinking about 6 glasses of non-fat milk at that person gets 90% of their protein needs. Combine that with other dairy and legumes and you have more then enough protein.

The main question you have to ask is why are you a veterinarian and do you want to stay one. (I am guess the answer is yes)

:huh: Thanks everyone. I know it is a personal decision and I shouldn't look at eating meat as a magic bullet, but I feel like I'll need to replace all the carbs and sugar I eat with something. The "irony" I guess is I did go veg a LONG time ago for ethical reasons...I guess I'm obviously struggling with whether that is still as important to me.

I "flirt" with eating meat all the time and can never go through with it. I just wonder if I'd feel more full if I ate more protein and less carbs. DH seems to be filled up much more easily on meat.

:huh:

That is exactly the situation I was in about 2 years ago. I say try it. If you are already flirting with the thought. Why not? I started out ages ago for ethical reasons too but realized that I can choose what meat I buy i.e. where it comes from and how it was treated.
I figured I try and see how I like it and how I feel and if I just can't deal with eating meat again than I go back to being a vegetarian. I had a home cooked chicken and never looked back. I eased back into it with mostly poultry and then added pork and later beef.

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!

And meat loves you, darling...don't ever leave it again! American Ranchers working hard to produce a tastier, healthier and clean food...:happy:

.

Vegetarian diets are notoriously low on whole sources of protein. Protein is needed to repair the damage to muscles from activity. If you do not have the protein, then you lose muscle mass. Muscle burns more calories than fat so I would say "yes" adding meat to your diet would make it easier to lose weight.

Where, exactly, are you getting your information? I go over my protein every day and I'm a vegetarian. Please don't generalize. It's possible to eat healthy, lose weight, and get plenty of protein as a vegetarian. Meat is not a necessary part of a balanced diet.

I'm a flexitarian and maintain a vegetarian diet all but maybe 3-4 times a month when I consume fish. I've felt much more energetic and healthy, and I've lost weight since I started to eliminate meat from diet. Personally, I think it's much easier to lose weight when you're eating foods that your body is actually made to digest (e.g. not meat.)

If you're questioning whether or not increasing your protein intake will help, you could simply incorporate more beans/legumes into your diet and see how that's affecting you and your goals. I make *so* many dishes that are normally made with meat, but I replace the meat with beans, and multiple varieties if possible. I've yet to make something that wasn't delicious, and it's filling and so much leaner. I would say the easiest dishes to do this with are soups, stir-fry, and anything "mexican."

You can also incorporate more protein through powder mixes, and they make loads of them that are organic (they taste better, in my opinion) and with soy protein rather than whey (if you're concerned with dairy.) My boyfriend's diet is very similar to mine, and he drinks the mixes after long bike rides. So far, it's been great way for him to replenish his body. He has also incorporated other protein dense foods like greek yogurt into his diet, as well as certain high-protein granola bars, etc.

Where your carbs are concerned, it might help to modify the forms in which you're consuming them. Aiming for more whole grain, high-hiber choices is always beneficial. I'm a sucker for carbs, but I think one of the biggest aspects of maintaining my weight has been eliminating, or eating only in moderation, all of the refined foods like donuts and white bread.

So in conclusion, I think you can maintain your ethical vegetarianism and still lose weight, too! There are plenty of options for expanding your diet that don't have to include meat!

:huh: Thanks everyone. I know it is a personal decision and I shouldn't look at eating meat as a magic bullet, but I feel like I'll need to replace all the carbs and sugar I eat with something. The "irony" I guess is I did go veg a LONG time ago for ethical reasons...I guess I'm obviously struggling with whether that is still as important to me.

I "flirt" with eating meat all the time and can never go through with it. I just wonder if I'd feel more full if I ate more protein and less carbs. DH seems to be filled up much more easily on meat.

:huh:

All it means is that you aren't eating the right foods. Why are you eating so many carbs and so much sugar? I don't eat a TON of carbs and I crave and eat fresh vegetables with almost every single meal. If you re-focus your habits to a plant-based vegetarian diet, you'll be fine. Just think outside the box and experiment with new things. You can easily get enough protein and lose weight by eating vegetarian.

So no, adding meat back in is not some magic answer that makes carbs suddently disappear and I don't really understand why so many people are saying things like that....

No one said it was a magic bullet. An increase of protein in her diet will mean she preserves more muscle mass. Muscle mass is known to consume a larger quantity of calories metabolically than fat. Adding meat will make a difference.

However, if what she considers vegetarianism does not actually involve a variety of vegetables, she is probably completely undernourished at any rate, which would ultimately interfere with weight loss as a whole.

To the OP: If your reason for being vegetarian is a moral one, then I agree with this poster that you should eat more fresh fruits and veggies. If that doesn't help, then I would suggest considering meat. If nothing else, try eating meat for like 2 weeks and see how you feel about it after 2 weeks.

Protein is protein is protein. So long as you get complete proteins throughout the day, the source doesn't matter. It all breaks down into the same amino acids in the end, whether its from a plant based or animal based source. Simply switching to animal based protein is not going to change her situation - if anything it may make it more difficult as meat tends to be higher in fat, cholesterol, hormones (if you buy from large stores), and most importantly calories.

I am a mess when it comes to this. I went vegan and noticed how much better I felt. Than I went back to eating meat even though I did not want to because I stopped eating meat for ethical reasons. Now I am transitioning to a lacto ovo vegetarian diet. I feel really good. For me, stopping almost all dairy except for some cheese and greek yogurt has made all my stomach issues disappear. You have to do what is comfortable to you. I use a lot of tvp (textured veggie protein) in my cooking along with beans, tofu, etc... You can eat a healthy vegetarian diet, the key is balance. I try not to eat too many prepackaged vegetarian foods or refined carbs. i try to eat whole foods as much as I can. I eat a lot of fruit and veggies. I also try to indulge a little each day.

Protein is protein is protein. So long as you get complete proteins throughout the day, the source doesn't matter. It all breaks down into the same amino acids in the end, whether its from a plant based or animal based source. Simply switching to animal based protein is not going to change her situation - if anything it may make it more difficult as meat tends to be higher in fat, cholesterol, hormones (if you buy from large stores), and most importantly calories.

^^This.

There is this meat-industry myth that we NEED meat protein. That's simply not true, and you also don't need the crazy amounts that these meat industries and "health experts" pound into our heads. It really is all about $$$ in these situations.

:huh: Thanks everyone. I know it is a personal decision and I shouldn't look at eating meat as a magic bullet, but I feel like I'll need to replace all the carbs and sugar I eat with something. The "irony" I guess is I did go veg a LONG time ago for ethical reasons...I guess I'm obviously struggling with whether that is still as important to me.

I "flirt" with eating meat all the time and can never go through with it. I just wonder if I'd feel more full if I ate more protein and less carbs. DH seems to be filled up much more easily on meat.

:huh:

All it means is that you aren't eating the right foods. Why are you eating so many carbs and so much sugar? I don't eat a TON of carbs and I crave and eat fresh vegetables with almost every single meal. If you re-focus your habits to a plant-based vegetarian diet, you'll be fine. Just think outside the box and experiment with new things. You can easily get enough protein and lose weight by eating vegetarian.

So no, adding meat back in is not some magic answer that makes carbs suddently disappear and I don't really understand why so many people are saying things like that....

No one said it was a magic bullet. An increase of protein in her diet will mean she preserves more muscle mass. Muscle mass is known to consume a larger quantity of calories metabolically than fat. Adding meat will make a difference.

However, if what she considers vegetarianism does not actually involve a variety of vegetables, she is probably completely undernourished at any rate, which would ultimately interfere with weight loss as a whole.

To the OP: If your reason for being vegetarian is a moral one, then I agree with this poster that you should eat more fresh fruits and veggies. If that doesn't help, then I would suggest considering meat. If nothing else, try eating meat for like 2 weeks and see how you feel about it after 2 weeks.

Protein is protein is protein. So long as you get complete proteins throughout the day, the source doesn't matter. It all breaks down into the same amino acids in the end, whether its from a plant based or animal based source. Simply switching to animal based protein is not going to change her situation - if anything it may make it more difficult as meat tends to be higher in fat, cholesterol, hormones (if you buy from large stores), and most importantly calories.

I never said that meat was the only option for protein. I said that the OP should try it and decide for herself. As tigersword said, meat is not a requirement for the diet, but it is easier to get complete nutrition from a wide range of foods, and meat is a readily available source or protein. I am not trying to debate the benefits of a meat diet to a vegetarian one. The OP asked a question and I answered. Will meat help her lose more weight? Yes... most likely.