Healthy Vegetarian Eating For Novice

[Beam]

Hello Actualized ,  A recent awakening out of a deep sleep has set me on a journey of self improvement of all three mind body spirit.

After much thought and consideration I have decided to try a vegetarian Diet with bodybuilding /  weightlifting and riding.

Last year I dieted and lost 40lbs of fat ,  currently at 12% body fat. I'm lean and want to eat a high protein diet with high carbs to put on the muscle I'm after.

By chance would any of our members have any tasty healthy recipes and tips to recommend a beginner ?
 

 

[egoeimai]

Hello!!!! Im happy for you!! Its a great decision becoming a vegeterian!

Im vegan since the 31st of March now,and Im pretty happy for this acheivement of mine.

Vegeterianism is still a nice thing to do for the animals and planet.

I daily eat a salad mostly kale and tomatoes,but you can try spinach (raw) salad too. I will try it too because spinach has more protein.

One thing that has protein is nutrional yeast. You can make vegan mac & cheese, I havent tried it yet because I bought it today. I put it in my beans today foe extra protein. It says in the package,that is low in sodium,low in saturated fat,and high in protein. I m excited for this.

You can eat mushrooms too , I eat them 2 to 3 times a week. They re tasty with olive oil and oregano,ofc roasted. But If you can think about it,most of the green veggies have protein so you take the amounts you need If you eat veggies.

I like mushroom soup...its tasty. You can make it with real milk if you go vegeterian. I use soy or coconut or almond. I havent tried tofu yet,it has a lot of protein too. Try this if you want.

Almonds have a lot of protein too. Its nice to have them as snacks.

As you see,many alternatives instead of meat!

[Beam]

Thanks for the ideas popi and hey great to hear you switched to a vegetarian diet as well and for 5 months now , that's great !
We are going to live a lot longer for it

Cancer , heart Disease and diabetes is a  meat eaters disease 
copy
Cancer is the second leading cause of death in the United States. Dietary factors account for at least 30% of all cancers in Western countries. http://cebp.aacrjournals.org/content/22/2/286.full

Edited August 9, 2016 by Beam

[Beam]

[Pelin]

Try to eat as much nuts and seeds as possible. Lentils are the easiest to cook, as you don't have to soak them.  Chickpeas are the most nutritious. Oh sweet houmous! 

Two good sources I refer to for food and recipe advice are, #1: Peta's website and charts, #2, the book The Flexitarian Diet. It includes vegetarian(and lots of vegan)meal plans and recipes. 

And youtube channels of course. Some youtubers' opinions differ hugely but "what I eat in a day" videos give a lot of ideas.

Good luck! I can't say I've been quite successful as a vegetarian. After years of no meat I recently decided to go more flexible. I sort of gave in to my culture, but still try not to eat meat more than once a week. 

Edited August 9, 2016 by Pelin

[egoeimai]

@Beam Vegan,actually.

[mystic]

Being a vegan for a year now I have some very important advises for you. Firstly please visit a nutritionist to help you understand what you have to eat to benefit from a veganism diet. Secondly have in every 4 months blood tests and check your B12 and iron levels.

[egoeimai]

14 minutes ago, mystic said:

Being a vegan for a year now I have some very important advises for you. Firstly please visit a nutritionist to help you understand what you have to eat to benefit from a veganism diet. Secondly have in every 4 months blood tests and check your B12 and iron levels.

Im only a few months. 31st of march-to today  

But my tests are super fine untill now. Although I eat what I desire.

I dont think its out there a program which you have to follow. Because also in a s.a.d. people eat whatever they desire and rarely have dificiencies.

So what do you think as you are 1 year on this diet?

[Pelin]

@mystic I agree blood test are necessary, and not just for those who follow plant-based diets.

 B12 deficiency is a very long term thing, you could turn vegan and not have the deficiency for years. And an avid meat-eater might have it too.

Iron is very similar. It's your body's absorbance of iron that matters. Again people who follow different types of diets may experience iron deficiency.

[egoeimai]

Legumes & spinach=you cant have iron dificiency. 

My poor opinion. You can learn only experimenting.

[Beam]

@Pelin Thank you for tips and link suggestions I'll hit them in a few minutes ,  hemp seed , chickpeas and homemade houmous on my next shopping day , nice. I have been eating lentils ,  very hearty and filling.

Who knows if I'll end up vegan , probably would if I looked into it deeply at some point.

Thanks for the replies guys !

 Someone suggested to look for vegetarian cooking shows on youtube

 

 

[Beam]

I like the sounds of this , simple easy  and can use water instead of milk
 

I'm going to watch fork vs Knives again , its been years.

Edited August 10, 2016 by Beam

[mystic]

@popi Well after a year I feel amazing right now, but I had problems with the B12 vitamin a few months ago and this is why I wrote the above. Of course it may take years for the deficiency to evolve but that was not the case for me. Last September my B12 was about 700pg/mL and 6 months later was about 200pg/mL. The difference is huge. I cannot describe how I felt. My doctor (who is a vegan too and suggested me to become one) said that it was not because of the diet but because of alcohol and stress which may reduce your B12 levels as well. My iron levels have increased though!

So just in case, make blood tests periodically and exercise!

[egoeimai]

@mystic  i do exercise 3 times a week.

Recommend to me your doctor if you want.

Vegan doctor. Pretty rare here.

[Blind Observer]

For the best best health eat cereals/rice/pasta for carbohydrates, pulses/nuts/seeds/ fermented soy for proteins, vegetables and fruits for all nutrients, mix them up as you like in a varied died and you're all set.

That's good that you switched to a vegetarian diet, if you'll consider to progress to a vegan nutrition I would suggest the book Vegan for life, you can find it on amazon. I'm been vegetarian for one month, then switched to a vegan lifestyle and it's 4 months that I'm following it,  because even for milk and eggs still animals gets killed after a miserable life and still you can't have the best health as a vegan nutrition. Just saying 

Edited August 13, 2016 by Blind Observer

[egoeimai]

@Blind Observer  well done. Im also vegan 4 months now

31st of march

31st of april

31st of may 

31st june

31st july

And august coming up...

.........  

[Blind Observer]

@popi that's good!