Vegetarians - what do you eat when trying to lose weight?

I recently decided to become a vegetarian and have been transitioning myself off of all red meat and chicken (I'm still undecided about abandoning fish though!). I used to do a South Beach/low-carb type diet that involved a lot of meat but those days are behind me.

I was wondering what I can eat now in order to continue my weight loss?

Can vegetarians do low-carb dieting? I've bought a bunch of veggie burgers, fake chicken nuggets, etc. but I wasn't clear on how healthy those were. The labels seem really good - low cal, high protein.

Thanks!

Re: Vegetarians - what do you eat when trying to lose weight?

I don't really have any ideas but I can tell you that my mother turned vegetarian and lost a ton of weight. She was not trying to loose weight at all. She just thinks a vegetarian diet is healthier. It came to the point where she was eating tons of peanut butter to maintain weight.

I say all this to say you can definitely loose weight on a vegetarian diet.

Re: Vegetarians - what do you eat when trying to lose weight?

As a vegan and carb lover, low carb would never work for me. I suppose you could do it, but I enjoy my pasta and sandwiches and cereal a lot. I prefer to eat tons of fruits and veggies and fill up on high fiber foods and try to watch my junk food intake, instead. The meat analogues are usually lower in fat than their meat counterparts, which is good, but very processed, so I try to keep my intake to a few times a week.

If you need meal ideas, feel free to FM me!

Re: Vegetarians - what do you eat when trying to lose weight?

A lot more fruits, vegetables and whole grains with beans. Less junk.

Re: Vegetarians - what do you eat when trying to lose weight?

I would take a look at the veggie burgers you got-- there are others available that have a lot less calories. I typically like to get Garden Burger Black Bean flavor-- they have 80 calories-- as opposed to others, that are like 150+.

Also, those veggie chicken nuggets-- well, I have never had them, but I have looked at the labels-- and the calories, fat, etc. are just not good-- there are much better things that you can eat.

Are you looking for dinner or lunch ideas??

For lunch- you can eat a PB&J-- with a piece of fruit and some carrots. Or, I eat the same sandwich every day-- lite bread with some hummus, some black beans, sun dried tomato (not in oil), and some arugula.

For dinners-- there are veggie meatballs out there-- I like the Whole Food brand the most. Veggie Patch also makes some good ones. Those with some lite tomato sauce and whole wheat, low carb high fiber pasta or brown rice.

Or you can make a big salad, with black beans, some almond slivers and some other veggies, etc.

I also make pita pizzas, using WW pitas (sliced down the middle to make two). They have 6 grams of protein-- with some tomato sauce and shredded mozz cheese.

Also, you can make egg white omlettes/frittas.

For a quick fix-- Amy's makes some great frozen dinners. The enchilada dinners and the Sante Fe "bowl" are my favorites.

For breakfast-- I eat Quaker Weigth Control oatmeal. It has a ton of fiber and protein. The n I sprinkle some Kashi Go Lean-- it has LOADS of protein and fiber-- its really filling.

Re: Vegetarians - what do you eat when trying to lose weight?

I am a vegan and NEVER eat pasta - I really am not crazy about it..

i live on quinoa - there are a ton of ways to make it delicious. I also eat steamed veggies, eda mame, and lots of salads... veggies and hummos...I also love nuts....

The thing is, I'm not a very exciting eater... I naturally eat very healthy for the most part, but there are lots of ways to eat low carb as a vegetarian, because I do

Re: Vegetarians - what do you eat when trying to lose weight?

Thanks for all the suggestions and tips. I really appreciate it since I'm new to all of this. I will definitely try to stay away from the overly-processed fake meats from now on. Of course, I did eat the chicken nuggets for dinner last night - I didn't have a chance to see if there were any responses to my post first

I think this is going to take some getting used to for me because there aren't a lot of vegetables I like and I'm not accustomed to eating pasta (because of all the low-carbing).

Please keep the ideas coming - breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks! Thanks!!

Re: Vegetarians - what do you eat when trying to lose weight?

Here's a bunch of stuff I eat regularly (some is healthier than others):

Lemon herb quinoa (FM me for the recipe)

Seitan (usually cooked in BBQ sauce) w/ potatoes and green veggies

Salad w/ nuts and/or tofu

PB&J

Bean salad

Homemade pizzas

Bean burritos

Pasta with tomato sauce or veggies

Punjab choley (from Trader Joe's) w/ cous cous

Falafel (we make it from a Fantastic Foods mix and bake it instead of frying, or we pick it up from a take out place)

Veggie burgers (we really like Fantastic Foods' Nature Burger)

For breakfast, usually cereal and fruit, sometimes soy yogurt.

Edited to add SNACKS:

Homemade trail mix (whatever dried fruits and nuts you want - I use cranberries, blueberries and almonds)

Lara Bars

Carrots & hummus

Pita & hummus

Crackers

Popcorn

Message edited 8/22/2007 1:32:41 PM.