Vegetarians, post your menus plse

[helene1]

Hi,

I need ideas for menus from women, like me, that trained and lift weights.

I find that on a vegetarian diet I eat lot's of veggies, fruits, but also cheeses for protein.

I would like to know any success stories in eating vegetarian and have enough protein in your diet.

When you read about people that lift and eat clean, they have protein everytime they eat, about 6 mini-meals a day.

I find it hard, on a vegetarian diet, to eat 6 times during the day proteins.

So waiting to get ideas.

 

[darine]

I am vegetarian and not vegan. here is high protein recepie I love

I shred uncooked tofu (whole pack)
mix in whole pack of Sour Cream (yes some fat, but I rarely eat fat)
mix also some shredded carrots and celeries

finally add vinigar, salt, peppers and sugar

mix all together (the quantities... I am not good at knowing, just with the eye)

And put on brown toast. and you can add on your sandwich black salt, which gives it an eggy taste and it's soooooooo good...

you are eating tofu, but it taste good too!

Black salt is actually pink and could be found in indian stores. you can mix it with the whole thing, but I like to just add as much as I want on my sandwich each time... don't know why!

 

[Liann]

This isn't a menu, but it shows you how much protein is in many veggie foods. Just a handfull of nuts during the day will give you a good serving.

1 cup cooked soybeans - 28 grams
3/4 c of Hummus - 14.8 grams
1/2 cup peanuts - 17 grams
1 cup lentils - 17.9 grams
1 cup black beans - 15.2 grams
1 cup pinto beans - 14.0 grams
1/4 cup Textured Veggie Protein (a meat replacer) - 12 grams
1 1/2 cup whole wheat spaghetti - 11.2 grams
2 T Natural Peanut Butter - 9 grams
1 cup green peas - 8 grams
Pita bread, whole wheat - 6.3 grams
Oat bran muffin - 4 grams Protein
2 1/2 cups mixed greens with kale - 4.7 grams
1 T. almond butter - 2.4 grams Protein
Milk 1/2 cup (if you are eating dairy) - 4 grams
1 slice whole wheat bread - 2.7 grams
1/2 cup Chick Peas - 7 grams
4 oz. Dannon Yogurt - 5 grams

It all adds up. You'll find that veggie sources actually tend to have more than even the dairy sources. And there is always protein powder that you could add to a shake after a weight routine if needed. I've read that we as a nation are too protein obsessed and that if anything we get too much. Who knows...

 

[swayzepetsitting]

After a short relapse, I have just returned to veganism. I have been feeling rather sluggish for the past week or so and my skin is really oily and breaks out a lot. The only changes I have made concern my diet.

I just stumbled upon a website, veganbodybuilding.com, and they have some good meal plans on the forum. You could always add cheese or milk if desired, since you are not vegan.

 

[Jacque1038]

There are plenty of people that do well on Vegetarian/Vegans diets and train. I agree that Veganbodybuilding is a good site to find information. The guy who runs the site also is good at promoting other athletes so it is a good place to go to look for some inspiration. Some of the people that go on the site have even been featured in mainstream bodybuilding publications.

Another protein source that I do not believe was mentioned is Sietan. It has the texture of chicken so it can replace chicken in recipes. It is also high protein low fat like many lean cuts of chicken. However unlike chicken you can make your own at home dirt cheap. It is made from wheat though so it is not great for everyone since I know some people have allergies. I like to use it though because I like to go light on soy products.

Hemp is another great source of lesser known vegetarian protein. I sometimes buy it in the seed form and eat it with carrots sticks for a snack. I also buy it in a protein powder and mix it in smoothies. It is pricey if you buy it in health food stores but you can find great deals on amazon.com.

There are also a number of protein powders that has over 20 g per a serving that are made from either pea protein, rice protein or a combination of the two. It is really not hard to get plenty of protein on a Vegetarian/Vegan diet you just have to research new ideas.

 

[kathryn]

Here are some ideas if you are concerned about getting protein at each meal (though don't go overboard. Look at Mike Mahler, vegan strength coach--www.mikemahler.com . He recommends about 1 gram of protein per kilo (2.2 pounds) of body weight (a bit less than .5 gram per pound of body weight, and that works quite well for putting on muscle).

Breakfast: oatmeal with a dab of p.b., soymilk, scrambled tofu, soy sausage (though I'm personally not into meat analogs much, especially those that contain isolated/concentrated soy protein),tempeh 'bacon,' a smoothie with protein powder (I prefer hemp or yellow pea), whole grain toast with nut butter.

Snacks: nuts and seeds (I particularly like almonds and pine nuts), nut butters (though both are higher in fat than in protein), soy jerkey, protein smoothie, soy milk, nut milk (it's easy to make your own), a healthy hemp bagel (20 gms. protein).

Lunch/dinner: beans (with grains, as dips, in/as salads), lentils (lentil soup, yum!), seitan, tempeh, Tofurkey luncheon 'meat' (make with tofu--rather than isolated/concentrated soy protein--and gluten/seitan) sandwich, hummus, a sandwish made with Food for Life sprouted burger buns (9 gm/protein per bun).

 

[jrossi]

Great ideas! I would just love a good recipe for lentil soup. I've tried many different recipes from the internet and I just haven't found the "right one". Any recipe suggestions would be greatly appreciated! I would be so happy to have an awesome lentil soup recipe........

Jennifer