Veggie check-in!

phoenix130

phoenix130

Cathlete
Hi everyone,

This is a check-in thread for anyone who is vegan or vegetarian or if you are just transitioning or just plain old interested in what it is and what is involved.

I have never been a big meat-eater (the food and other considerations). I started eating ground beef and chicken (basically the only things I would eat) because I thought I had to eat something to get my iron and protein requirements. But I never really liked it that much. I always was a kind of vegetarian even though I didn't know it and really had no idea how to eat either.

My turning point became when I hit my highest weight ever and knew it was time to take control of my health again. I'm at risk for diabetes (it's all over my family) and I picked up this book by Dr. Neal Barnard about reversing diabetes that convinced me to finally just make the switch and become vegetarian. So five weeks ago, that's what I did.

I'm still learning...still VERY new at all this! But I have to say that I have never felt better and have started to lose weight again. I'm trying to find good recipes and learn more so that I am meeting all my nutritional requirements and trying to find all these new foods that I didn't know anything about before.

So feel free to join me here on this check-in and we can share information!
 
Hi Nancy, thanks for starting this!

Way back in the day I was the unhealthiest.vegetarian.ever. I mean, maybe technically a pound of white pasta swimming in butter and buried in cheese is "vegetarian" but I was really missing the boat.

No surprise I was exhausted, bloated, fat, and crabby. A practitioner said I really needed to get some animal protein in me. So I did.

Fast forward 20 years later to current day. My diet has evolved - whole foods mostly, some actual vegetables appear, but still having meat, dairy, eggs.

Lately I feel like the dairy is causing trouble - digestion, skin, so I'm eliminating conventional dairy. At the same time I'm making all the meals I have that aren't shared with the family vegan. Just because.

I've requested a couple of vegan cookbooks for Mother's Day.

Today, for the first time I tried using nutritional yeast on my (white - DD cooked - I eat whatever she makes in support of her cooking efforts :D) pasta. Yummy! Who knew?

A little Earth Balance spread too - that stuff is great as well.

There's another thread or two detailing my coffee creamer conundrum. Coconut milk works. And the MimiCreme ice cream is a really lovely surprise. That something entirely vegan could taste so good.

I'm enjoying that there are so many perfectly edible substitutions that aren't just artificial petrochemical yuk.
 
Hi ladies. This is a great idea. I'm slowly transitioning. I just started yesterday:) I also just ordered the book "Flexitarian" which eases one into vegetarianism but isn't super strict. So for me, i'm really just trying to cut out red meat and chicken. I still would like to eat dairy (for now), eggs, and fish. Since my diet relies heavily on chicken and turkey I have decided to first just cut it out of my lunch but still have it for dinners. Once I start learning new recepies I will transition. I actually just tried a low carb diet for about 2 weeks and I felt sooooooo terrible. Moody, tired, no energy whatsoever, constipated, etc. I think that the amount of protein we need to be healthy is way overrated. I'm hoping that overall, i have more energy on this type of diet. I love veggies so I don't think that will be the problem. I also love beans and plan on going to the store later to load up. Is this checkin thread staying here or going over to the checkin message board?
 
Suzanne:
I had no concept of it either when I was growing up and just didn't like meat. I had no idea what kind of foods were out there or what it really meant. It was basically pasta and junk.

Sorry to hear about the dairy issue. I haven't had a lot of dairy in years. A few years back, I developed some allergies (still not sure the trigger). I never had them before and then I would break out in hives constantly for days and months at a time. It would go away and then reappear. I started to think it was milk or some dairy because it seemed to be the only constant. Ever since I switched to soy milk and started to have less dairy products, it hasn't been a problem. It might flare up here and there for a day (but not 6-9 months like before) and there is usually some kind of milk ingredient in what I have eaten (especially processed foods). My whey protein powder is OK and sour cream seems to be OK. But cow milk and cheese seem to be bothersome.

What cookbooks did you ask for?

I tried nutritional yeast the other day for the first time too! It was good! The book I have recommended using it and said that it has a cheese-like flavour. Definitely keeping it around - sort of get a cheese-like taste without the digestive issues. And a lot more nutritious!

Kariev:
Thanks for joining us! I wasn't sure where to create the check-in. I thought the other forum was more for fitness discussions so I created it here since it seemed to fit best.

It sounds like you have a good approach. I can say I have had more energy in the last five weeks than I have in years. I actually have enough energy to do Cathe's workouts (even if they are still tough). Before when I would try the workouts (even shorter ones), I just had nothing even if I could do the moves.
 
Hi ladies! Great to see the check-in! I'm going to need it! It has been a crazy weekend. I have stuck to eating vegetarian, but I have also eaten cookies and other not-so-healthy stuff! I live in Tennessee and the whole mid-state is under water from flooding. We've luckily not had any flooding in our yard, but the kids are out of school tomorrow and my middle child has a stomach virus. When it rains it pours (pun intended :p). So I've not been keeping up with my workouts or fine tuning my eats like I should for the past few days. Hoping this next week I get back to being healthier!

I'll be leaning on you guys for answers and recipes and general newbie vegetarian questions! :)

Hope you all had a great weekend!!
 
I'm still eating vegetarian but I haven't really been planning meals lately so I'm kind of getting stuck for meals at the moment. Good incentive to stop procrastinating and plan!

Stephanie:
That's good that you haven't had any flooding - hope it stays that way. I haven't been fine tuning either but I had a bunch of Amy's frozen stuff on hand so that has helped me the past few days.
 
Hi guys! Been sticking with a plan and slowly easing my way into it. I've been reading this book called "Flexitarian" and it basically teaches you about vegetarianism (especially pescatarian) and slowy eliminates meat products. Its got some good recipes in it so if your interested check it out.
 
kariev:
Thanks - I'm definitely adding it to my list of cookbooks to check out.

I'm getting to that point that I really need to start collecting some good recipes and making my own meals instead of relying on packaged or frozen meals. I stuck with some frozen stuff at first to make the transition easier but now I'm ready to prepare my own stuff. :)
 
Hi guys! I have a confession, for the past 2 days I have tried a low carb diet which means lots of meat, poultry and cheese. That being said I have never felt so terrible. I feel lethargic, cranky, tired, moody, heavy, etc. Doing this made me realize that all this animal protein isn't all its cracked up to be. Plus, I don't do well on low carbs. Anyways, I'm going to the store for food shopping today. I'm going to load up on tofu, beans, veggies, and fruit. I'm actually going to subscribe to vegetarian times magazine which is a veggie recipe magazine. I think the hardest part of this is learning what to eat since i'm so used to grabbing animal protein. Anyways, hope all is well:)
 
Nancy - I asked for Veganomicon and the Flexitarian book. (I think!) That was a few days ago and things are hectic.......

Kariev - I think I'd feel a bit ill on what you're describing too.

I was surprised to get that response from the actual manufacturer of MimicCreme in that thread! :) I didn't know if it was ok for her to post like that but the sticky in the OD just limits commercial threads about other DVD's. It may be close to the line...maybe...but I was glad to get the info anyway.

While I wait on ordering some of the coffee creamer I've gotten the French Vanilla flavor of the So Delicious coconut milk coffee creamer. It's fine but I find it wicked sweet. Overly so. Today I picked up just the unflavored one. I hope it's less sweet.
 
Hi ladies!
Kariev-Eww. That would make me feel funky too. In fact, I did a low-carb diet several years ago after baby #1 and lost some weight but packed it on again when I decided I couldn't live without grains.

Suzanne-Good luck in your coffee creamer endeavors! I have given up coffee for the most part. I will pick it back up when the weather gets colder. I'm loving tea right now. I used to be a big coffee drinker and loved my flavored creamer. Nothing compares to the pumpkin spice creamer that they sell in the fall. mmmmm...

Nancy-Thanks again for starting this check-in! Have you found any good recipes?

Well, I am GOING to cook dinner tonight. I had all my ingredients ready to make a cool recipe a friend gave me for quinoa with black beans, but my onion was rotten when I cut into it last night. Go figure. A rotten onion! That was a first. Tonight I am making a zucchini/summer squash/brown rice casserole that I love. It has sour cream and cheese in it, so it's not vegan, but it is oh so yummy. My biggest problem is that my husband doesn't eat vegetables. He eats salad and green beans. That's it. My kids don't eat a variety of veggies. So I wind up making four meals each night. That's right. I cater to my picky eaters. So when that's done, I have no energy to make myself a healthy meal, so I usually just fix myself a salad. But tonight that changes. I'm making mine FIRST in a few minutes and will heat it up later. I'm going to MAKE the boys try it.

Another new quest of mine: I'm going to try to start working out in the mornings so I have more time in the evenings with my family. Do you guys workout in the mornings? If so, WHERE do you find the energy for cardio? Do you have a protein shake beforehand?
 
Kariev:
I don't do well on the low carb diets either. At first, it seems OK until I try to do any kind of intermediate to advanced workout and then I have no energy. And I end up feeling more tired and irritable throughout the day too. Figuring out what to eat is what I'm struggling with too - just because it is an adjustment from what you are used to and what you thought you had to do. We'll get the hang of it!

Suzanne:
Those are on my list to check out and buy one day. I'm going to try a few of the recipes from the Veganomicon book http://www.theppk.com/recipes/ first to see how I like the recipes. That's cool that the manufacturer responded in your thread - guess Cathe's fans are all over the everywhere. :)

Stephanie:
I'm going to try out some from the site above and a few from the Dr. Barnard books I have this week and see how they go. I'll let you know how they turn out. :)

I have enough trouble making a meal just for myself some days so I can't imagine making four separate meals...wow! The zucchini/summer squash/brown rice casserole sounds good - hope the boys try it and like it!

I work out in the evenings - I just can't do morning workouts. I get up pretty early to head into work so to get up an hour earlier would mean I would be more sleep deprived than I already am. I just have zero energy in the mornings so I just learned that afternoon and evenings work better for me. :)
 
I tried a new recipe for lunch today. It's from Dr. Neal Barnard's book Breaking the Food Seduction. It was a rice, zucchini and corn salad and it was good and very filling! It's just brown rice, zucchini, corn and green onions. The dressing is mustard, dillweed, olive oil, lemon juice and a bit of salt. It was pretty good warm - I'm betting it will also be good chilled too.
 
phoenix130 said:
I tried a new recipe for lunch today. It's from Dr. Neal Barnard's book Breaking the Food Seduction. It was a rice, zucchini and corn salad and it was good and very filling! It's just brown rice, zucchini, corn and green onions. The dressing is mustard, dillweed, olive oil, lemon juice and a bit of salt. It was pretty good warm - I'm betting it will also be good chilled too.
Click to expand...

That sounds delicious! I'll have to try it. You know, I think protein is important in our diets but I think we all get too much of it. I know the recommendation is 1g per lb of bodyweight but I really don't think we need that much and I find that when I eat that much protein I feel lethargic.

I had went food shopping the other day and got a variety of beans. I almost bought some tofu but its so darn expensive! Plus I keep reading that one shouldn't rely a lot on tofu for their protein sorce because of the soy being estrogen-like. What do you all think?
 
kariev:
I'm no expert but here's what I found on the PCRM site http://www.pcrm.org.

For protein, the average individual needs can be calculated as follows:
Body weight (in pounds) X 0.36 = recommended protein intake (in grams)

They indicate that this calculation has a large margin of safety and some people's needs may be lower but it is a good guideline.

As for soy, there is a lot of conflicting information as I don't think anyone has figured out what the phytoestrogens (isoflavones) in soy really do or what they affect. They do mention that if you have thyroid issues, you might have to be careful because it may take up some iodine used to make thyroid hormone. Probably like most things, everything in moderation. I do think they indicate you should watch your intake of soy products that are processed since they have more concentrated levels and/or isolated levels of soy.
 
phoenix130 said:
kariev:
I'm no expert but here's what I found on the PCRM site http://www.pcrm.org.

For protein, the average individual needs can be calculated as follows:
Body weight (in pounds) X 0.36 = recommended protein intake (in grams)

They indicate that this calculation has a large margin of safety and some people's needs may be lower but it is a good guideline.
Click to expand...
Thanks for this info! I track my nutrition (and calories burned) using a bodybugg, and my protein intake is usually around 0.40 grams per pound of body weight. When I have less I feel too carbed out, and when I have more I feel too lethargic, so I knew it felt right for me, but I still wondered if it was too little. Now I'm going to rest assured that I'm fine with protein intake.
 
Bobbi-B:
I think the key is finding out what is and feels right for you and it sounds like you have it figured out. Great!
 
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