Vegetarian: Getting Protein w/out Carbs?

Glucocorticoid · April 2012

Keep in mind that eating too much protein is very unhealthy.

This is incorrect.

Can I ask how much you weigh? Because honestly, that protein level seems insanely and dangerously high. Even if you were an elite professional athlete and were in intense training 8-10 hours a day, the MAXIMUM safe amount of protein should not exceed 0.9 grams per pound of body weight. The average person who works out 5-6 days a week for 1-2 hours should be consuming about 0.6 grams per pound of body weight. Otherwise, you can be setting yourself up for some major kidney issues.

This is also incorrect.

alexandria412 · April 2012

bump. thanks guys!

lissymae11 · April 2012

This is so helpful! I've also been a vegetarian since I was 10 years old, but at first, I was so unhealthy about it. Just now, almost 10 years later I'm finally paying attention to getting enough protein and nutrients from my diet.

I've also heard that soy mimics estrogen, and can therefore increase risk of breast cancer in women. Does anyone know anything about the validity of this claim?

sullymanjohn · April 2012

You guys can look at my diary, its public. I do fairly well.

I am 200lbs even (swing around 3lbs in either direction day to day) and 6' .5" tall. If you think about, when growing muscles they say to use .8-1.2g per lb of body mass and I am 200lbs then 260g IS a little high, I agree. But, like I said in an older post, I am aiming at 260g/day because i know it's impossible to obtain on my diet, but I know if I shoot for it I can always average at least 150-200g/day.

chrisdavey · April 2012

WTF at salad and avocado as protein sources?!?!

I whole avocado: 3P/17C/29F for 322 cals. I'm pretty sure that he will blow his cal limit WAY OUT if this were to be a main source of protein.

Low fat dairy, whey/casein, egg whites, tofu.

Or as suggested just eat fish. Hell of a lot easier!

I'm pretty sure that avocados will NOT blow his cal limit "WAY OUT" as he has his calorie goal set very high! And if you recall, he stated that he was tired of eating egg whites! No one is suggesting that avocados should be his main protein source. He asked for suggestion on to how to get more protein in his diet. And you're telling him to "eat more fish"?! HELLO....HE'S A VEGETARIAN!!! Try looking that big word up in the dictionary.

Let's assume he can eat 3000 cals a day, just as an arbritary number. If he were to consume all of his calorie allotment in Avacados, so about 9/10 of them, he'd still only have about 30g of protein that day - if you look at it that way, it is a VERY inefficient source of protein, where a tin of tuna for about the same calorie intake as ONE avacado would net about 70g of protein.

exactly this. Thanks mate

And :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: at 1450 cals being HIGH!

raevynn · April 2012

Eat meat dude

Not a helpful posting. Just sayin'

sullymanjohn · April 2012

Eat meat dude

Not a helpful posting. Just sayin'

It does get old. I hear it a lot, especially at work. It's not helping and it's not gonna happen, so...

SpazzyMal · April 2012

The RD I saw suggested I aim for 80g of protein a day. Even though I eat beans, rice, quiona, nuts, etc. I still have trouble reaching it every day without going over my calorie or carb intake.

Um thing is, with getting protein from lentil sources and such they are incomplete protein. It doesnt have all the 10 essential amino acids and stuff. If you are a vegetarian then your best option is dairy products and SOY!!! Soy is pretty much the best thing a vegetarian has to a protein source from food unless you would like to go grab some protein powders.

Thing that bothers me about lots of soy though is the estrogen rumors that are rampid. I have no idea if its true or false, but i try to avoid as much soy as possible until proven otherwise. Being a vegetarian, this can be a challenge in itself.

Pretty sure it's bunk, considering how long many Asian cultures have been eating it without horrible side effects.

Anyway, to the OP, I suggest lots of greens, seitan, tempeh, tvp, tofu, beans and lentils. Most vegetarian things that have protein are also going to have some carbs, it kind of just comes with the territory of eating mostly plants! But if you're getting your carbs from this instead of grains, then I wouldn't think you should worry too much.

On another note, though, why are you trying to get so much? Are you sure that's the right amount you need and you're not overshooting it a bit? Too little protein is bad, but too much is just as bad in a different way. Perhaps talk to a nutritionist just to see if you're not going over or under with your goal? A lot of people say that you're supposed to get 1g protein per pound of bodyweight, but I actually believe the recommended is for per KILO of bodyweight, which is a significant difference.

seanwebster · April 2012

FYI, the argument about lentils, beans, etc. being "incomplete" is... well... incomplete. Most legumes have all the essential amino acids, though some are a bit low in one or another relative to nutritional needs. Lentils fall a bit short on methionine and cysteine. But at 25% or more protein versus under 20% for other legumes it can be a good trade-off. Your mileage may vary.

http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/legumes-and-legume-products/4338/2

weighlossforbaby · April 2012

Beans, kale, boca/morning star is great too!

SpazzyMal · April 2012

FYI, the argument about lentils, beans, etc. being "incomplete" is... well... incomplete. Most legumes have all the essential amino acids, though some are a bit low in one or another relative to nutritional needs. Lentils fall a bit short on methionine and cysteine. But at 25% or more protein versus under 20% for other legumes it can be a good trade-off. Your mileage may vary.

http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/legumes-and-legume-products/4338/2

Likewise, it's been studied that you don't even need to eat complete proteins every single meal. Assuming you get the missing amino acids that were missing in your earlier meal sometime later in the day, that's good enough. Basically, eating a varied diet is the only thing you need to worry about on that front.

ashleyregan8 · April 2012

Living fuel has an amazing vegetarian protien powder- u should check it out

kalynn06 · April 2012

For those that are advising caution on soy if you are a male: more caution is warranted if you are a female as opposed to a male. Soy can potentially cause problems for individuals with pre-existing thyroid problems. Females are more likely to have thyroid problems than male.
But thyroid problems or not, as long as the bulk of your protein is not coming from soy, it is nothing to worry about (be sure to keep sodium intake high).

This, except it's iodine you need to watch not sodium. Regular table salt is iodized, so they can go hand in hand, but many natural salts, sodium added to foods and sea salt products are not iodized, so they won't help with thyroid issues.