Vegetarian Low-Carb diet feasible?

[Jericho]

Hi, I just discovered this site and this forum and have just joined. I need to lose some weight and am not having much luck. I'm considering the low-carb diet. Trouble is, I'm a vegetarian (not a vegan, I do eat dairy), and I fear that maybe I won't be able to find enough vegetarian foods to support such a diet. Anybody have any opinions or advice on this? Any vegetarians here? Thanks in advance, I appreciate it. :)

[Glenda]

Hi Jericho!! If you go to the top and find all the forums, there IS a vegetarian forum that shoudl give you some information. It's under daily low-carb support/general low carb support.
Hope this helps.

Glenda

[YogaBuff]

Jericho, check out Dr. Diana Schwarzbein's book-- The Schwarzbein Principle. It has a great section in the back of the book, almost step by step, how to do a great veg. lo-carb. She includes eggs and dairy, and soy. Looks nfairly easy to follow and should be effective. She's the only author I've seen w/ such an in-depth program for vegetarians.

YB :daze:

[allisonm]

Hi Jericho and welcome! :wave:

I've been reading Schwarzbein and she does have a plan for vegetarians to reduce insulin levels, but she is emphatically against very low-carb programs like most of us here follow. Still, I think it might be a good option for you if you have tremendous patience. You should know, though, that her goal is not weight loss but improved health. She is against quick weight loss and says there is no healthy way to do it. Off the top of my head, one of her weight loss success stories was losing a pound a week and had another 1 1/2 years to go to lose 90 pounds. Another of her weight loss success stories started at (+-) 293 pounds and went down to (+-) 243 pounds. I don't remember any more successful examples in her book than those two. It's a good read anyway.

Another program that is designed to reduce insulin levels and is very compatible with vegetarian goals is Dr. Bob Arnot's Revolutionary Weight Loss Plan (or something like that). Again, like Schwarzbein, this is not a very low-carb plan. He focuses on the glycemic index of foods to reduce insulin levels and emphasizes high-fiber, lean protein sources like beans, lentils, and oatmeal. Most of us around here consider those foods high-carb rather than high-protein. But his plan works. I tried it for a week and lost 8 pounds. I just couldn't stand to face another bean.

Lastly, to answer your actual question, yes, I think you could do a very low-carb plan (like Atkins or PP) that is also vegetarian. ("Vegetarian" means many things to many people -- I know "vegetarians" who eat chicken but just not beef). Do you eat eggs? There are lots of things you can do with eggs. Cheese? That will diversify things (but watch out, don't go overboard on cheese). Nuts and peanut butter in small to moderate quantities are acceptable.

And there are LOTS of vegetarian products with a new consciousness of protein out there. The original Gardenburgers would be unacceptable but the new Gardenburgers (hambuger-style and flamegrilled-style) are very low-carb after subtracting the fiber. (We all subtract the fiber from total carb count). Morningstar brand Okara patties likewise are very low-carb after subtracting the fiber. (They taste like a cross between fish sticks and chicken patties). There are scores of similar products. Soy tempeh (but not other kinds of tempeh) is another good choice. You can make drinks from whey protein powder (or soy protein powder if you can stand it). It turns out that yogurt and kefir have much less carbohydrate than the labels say (use the search feature for more info).

Please let us know what you decide. We carnivores are not against you! ;) Don't confine yourself to the vegetarian forum. We'd love to know what you decide and how it's going.

If you do decide to try it, let me know and I'll help you find more of those high-protein, low-carb products and give you ideas of what to do with them. I do some vegetarian meals myself.

Allison :)

[Karen]

My sister recently began to follow a LC vegetarian WOE. She put a plan together for herself from basic LC principles and the Soya Zone by Barry Sears.

She eats eggs, a bit of cheese, a bean here and there and tofu products including soy milk. She is amazed that she is losing weight. She was not "fat" and is very fit. She does not overeat.

What she worked on first was eliminating all refined carbs, high fat dairy products and grains from her diet.

The energy she has now keeps her continuing. Even though she does intensive workouts, she has no problem with keeping up the pace.

Karen

[YogaBuff]

Yes, I guess I should have included that Schwarzbein does not put you in ketosis and doeds not promise super-fast weight loss. She stresses healing a metabolism ruined by yo-yo lo-fat type dieting and over-exercising, getting off all stimulants, and taking all artificial sweeteners and 'bad' or damaged fats out of your system FOR SOME TIME , maybe, before you even begin to see results, in terms of weight loss.
However, if you read the journals of LisaF and some others, you'll see that weight loss WILL happen if you are not as resistant to loss (because of a damaged metabolism- like me).
And as Karen says her sister is doing-- Diana Schwarzbein includes cheese, other dairy, soy(liketofu and miso) and eggs.
I've been tempted to try it myself-- it looks that healthy!

YB :daze:

[pamlose130]

I just purchased the Insulin Resistant Diet and it seems to be the best of both worlds. It is low carb BUT not excessively so. You can very easily be a vegetarian on this program and it seems to make sense. There is a little in the book about vegetarian choices. But I have also been in contact with the Wellness Clinic in Spokane Washington, where Dr. Hart is (who wrote the book) and they have been very encouraging about doing this program as a vegetarian. Boca products were a good choice I'm told, along with beans, cheese, eggs, fatfree, sugarfree yogurt. Many of the soy products are good choices, just limit your carbs to 30 grams at a time along with at least 14 grams of protein. Any way, blessings to all.

[alto]

Thin For Good (Fred Pescatore, a former Atkins staffer) has a chapter with a very structured vegetarian diet. It strictly limits bread and pasta and fruit; the protein is from eggs, cheese and legumes.

[SimplyMe]

Yes! It is possible to do a low carb diet and be a vegetarian :D
I am living proof. I started the CALP WOE since January 12th. I have actually lost 25 lbs as of today.
I think I really am a carb addict and have always easily gained weight if I ate more than one meal a day. I have been a vegetarian since age 9 and have relied on my friend "bread" as the extra in my meals.
I know that people say to lose only 1-2 lbs a week but I am here to say I am eating BETTER than I did before much healthier and I am not hungry.
I have been "thinner" twice in my life and that was when I ate about 1 1/2 meals a day. I didn't know that if I added protein or low carb veggies I would keep the weight off and have 3 meals. After reading CALP, I thought this plan is for me!
No more cravings or being hungry after I had eaten. The only time I notice if I "overcarb" in my reward meal. I could never do Atkins because of my eating style but CALP has been GREAT for me. I also found carb solution bars and I use them for breakfast. This has helped incredibly as eggs aren't always what I would want. Unfortunately, there is glycerin or gelatin (can't remember which one) in the bar. It is the first thing that I have continued to use even knowing that. I try so hard in my life but feel that until I can find an non animal based alternative I will just use the bars.
If I can be of any assistance - PLEASE let me know! ;)

[pamlose130]

I"m sorry but I don't know what CALP WOE is. Sounds like a good program but I don't know it. Please educate us SIMPLYME. I'm new around here and don't know all the programs. But am vegetarian seeking low carb options. :wave: :wave:

[SimplyMe]

Grrrr.... I responded yesterday and somehow it didn't make it up here! SOoooo sorry for the delay.

CALP stands for Carbohydrate Addicts Lifespan Plan. You can check out more about the diet at www.carbohydrateaddicts.com

There is a quiz on there to determine if you are a carb addict. Guess what? I am! :daze:

WOE = Way of Eating
WOL = Way of Life

The Hellers address vegetarians in the book in have recipes in their cookbook. Of course I have made my own modifications to my own diet instead of really starting with whole new taste buds.

As I mentioned, the low carb bars have helped me tremendously!
The reward meal keeps me going knowing that I truly can eat anything I want just one time a day.

Please let me know if you have any questions or if I can help in anyway.

LOW CARB VEGGIES UNITE!

[pamlose130]

you can actually have a reward meal, once a day. And you are losing weight? Thanks for the info, can't wait to check it out.

[SimplyMe]

YEP! I eat carbs everyday and are losing quite a bit of weight. I just eat them only once a day within that 60 minutes balancing them with protein and low carb veggie. I enjoy them too much to never have them again but it does make me think about I REALLY want to eat and use my meal wisely. The best thing is no more cravings. I am not someone who ate large portions ever but I would eat through out the day because I was never full for long. As well even if I ate very small portions but each meal was carb I would GAIN so easily. It is amazing how just keeping it to one time a day keeps my buddy w/o cravings and losing weight.

I will say if I totally overcarb during reward meal and 2 hours later I get hungry I eat straight cheese and the craving goes away.
I purposely keep the reward meal at dinner because I know that when I am most tired that I can just have what I want vs. the stress of figuring a meal out. (I do that better earlier in the day) On weekends sometimes I will change it to a late lunch if it works with our plans. Eating is very social in our family and so feeling that I can enjoy 1 meal a day with them or with friends and family is worth 2 meals of not caring and just eating what I need to, to fuel my body.
Looking forward to hear what you think of the plan!
S

[pamlose130]

SimplyMe! you have really motivated me, I ordered the book (program) and the Low Carb cook book yesterday. I'm going to start right away. I don't find out til next week some time if I am diabetic but need to eat this way anyway because I KNOW I"m carb addicted. I hope to do really well so my insulin resistant daughter will join me. Thanks for your help and blessings on your new eating way of life!! :wave:

[SimplyMe]

YEAH!!!! Let me know how it goes : )
I hope it works for you and your daughter. Please let me know if I can help you with any questions. I definetely recomend those bars too.
I know it is a lot of info right now but just keep asking!

HAPPY FRIDAY! I lost another pound yesterday. :D -28.

[LilDaisy]

I just wanted to add a thanks to SimplyMe! I have been struggling with this whole "low carb" thing for a month and a half now and I kept feeling as though I was hitting my head against a brick wall!! But thanks to this particular thread...I have renewed confidence that I will find a way to succeed!! My hubby took me book shopping today and believe it or not I found the Hellers book at Half-Price Books in the clearance section for ONE DOLLAR !!! :hyper: I hope it helps me like it has helped you!!! THANKS AGAIN!!

[yeshe]

Hi .. I'm a newbie here -- been veggie for thirty years or more and shocked to discover I have very high cholesterol and deposits in my heart arteries -- shocking ! But you are inspirational to me ... I just took the quiz, and oh, yes, I am such a carbo addict !!

Anyone here working on high blood prssure or cholesterol ? I'm concerned because I think I need to do no-cheese and dairy, and few eggs -- very limiting !! Any ideas much appreciated.

Today, inspired by you all, I have bought the Heller's heart-health version of the locarb WOE, but it still has a bunch of cheese and eggs, What do you all think ??

I am SO HAPPY to have found this board ! :roll: :roll: :roll:

Thanks -- looking forward to this adventure ! ( And I'm in New Zealand so some foodstuffs may have different names ..... )

[SimplyMe]

I hope that you guys find the information helpful! I do believe in this WOE (Way of Eating/Living) for me. I do have to tell you all that I bought a new scale because I just DIDN'T trust the old one. <sigh>
It says I have a LOT more to lose then I first expected. It is hard for me to figure out how much I have really lost now but I believe it is somewhere around 25 lbs. I know that is really good and I will take whatever I can get! Much better than gaining it!
In regards to the question of cheese and eggs. You can also try tofu as a part of your protein sources. I use low carb bars for breakfast just so that I don't have qute as many eggs. Some people say the low carb bars aren't really low carb but my best friend, myself and my mom are all using them with success so... I say HORRAY! The only ones I like as I mentioned before are Carb Solution - Toffee Hazlenut. I don't think they taste very toffee like but they are pretty darn good.
I also have found that by not eating carbs twice a day that I eat far more veggies than I ever have.
I hope this helps!
Thanks for the notes! : )

[NoiseGirl]

wow, I am so psyched after reading this thread. I posted a few months ago about low carbing as a vegetarian and I got some wonderfully supportive replies. I did it for about 3 months, and felt good and lost over 10 pounds, but eventually I lost track of things and went back to my old "bread ways".

now after reading all this new info, I can't wait to go check out these new resources and websites!!! thanks!!!

Laura

[musicmam]

Since the low-carb diet contains so much cheese etc., are there any other suggestions to what I can compliment my diet with? I did the low-carb very closely and lost 17 lbs., but plateau-ed and have gained a few back again. I found that I had to take Lactaid constantly to be able to digest the cheese and even with that I had problems. Please, does any one have any suggestions to what we can really eat on the diet, and how am I able to cut out so much meat? It seems my options for food are very limited on the low-carb diet. Please does anyone have any suggestions?
Thanks and God bless you

[mctrish]

Jericho,
Good for you wanting to try the low carb diets. I am also vegetarian and was dismayed to read in Atkin's book to "reconsider" my beliefs. I have been on Atkin's for 2 1/2 years and although it is not as easy as meat eaters, it is possible. I live off the protien bars and cheese. I am funny about eating eggs so I only eat them when I feel I can stomach them. Good luck to you!

[mctrish]

Jericho, Musicman and the rest of the veggie people,
There are some very good meat substitutes. My two daughters are also vegetarians and they were the ones who started to buy meat-like products. I've been a vegetarian for over 10 years and have never missed eating meat so I wasn't interested in trying them but I finally took a taste and was amazed. My entire family now eats only the vegetarian products and loves them.
Morning Star is the tastiest of all the burgers and we have tried them all. Some of them my dog wouldn't even eat! They also have a bacon and breakfast sausage that would trick the pickiest meat eaters, my family.
LightLife is something that we have recently discovered. They have a chub of Italian sausage that is delicious. They also have chik'n strips, which is easy to cook up and make a luncheon salad or stir fried for dinner. They have meat strips, and ground beef-like stuff but we have narrowed ours to the sausage and chick'n strips. But please try them all. They are relatively low in carbo's so they are conducive to this diet.
Most regular food stores are now carrying both brands although I buy mine at Trader Joe's because they have the cheapest prices on them. Good luck on finding them and enjoy!
:)

[musicmam]

Thank you, McTrish. I will look for those products and try them.
God bless you

[rhubarb]

Trish --

A word about the protein bars -- on many other forums on this site, people have been warning about "hidden carbs" in them. apparently, the label information is not always to be believed. Some have gone so far as to say there are NO true low carb protein bars.

Your mileage may vary, but I gave them up last week in favor of more tofu and nuts, and I feel a lot better.

--Rhu

[captxray]

I can't help it! I love the stuff!! You know, my very own daughter...my flesh and blood, can't stand the thought of meat! I've met others like that. Now, me, that's another thing! I just love meat. I also love veggies...I think my main problem is that I just love FOOOOOD! If it even resembles food, I love the stuff. Now, if you have moral feelings, I can understand that, even if I don't agree with them...it's a free world, although you vegetarians are responsible for the reduction of most of the species of the world because of your nasty agriculture...HA! HA! Only kidding! Even if there is a grain (get it GRAIN) of truth in what I said. HA! HA! What the heck! If it isn't one thing, it's another that will eventually kill us all! After all, Life's a terminal illness, and nobody, to my knowledge has made it past much more than 100 or so years! Then, we all assume room temperature and rot. I love Emily Dickinson's poem about "Dust." I tried that vegetarian lifestyle once... made it a whole day and a half. I was so full of morality and health! Then, I smelled a burger cooking and it was all over. Call me a sellout. I couldn't resist. I COULDN'T! I think I'm just a product of my genetics over the last 3 million years. Yeah, I'm a throwback!

[mctrish]

Thanks for that tidbit on the protein bars. I did read about that on this site. Unfortunately, vegetarians are extremely limited. I limit myself to one or two a day. They are so convenient! I also think that if they are that far off, why hasn't some gov't agency demand they alter their content listing? I dunno!

[musicmam]

I'd bought a whole bunch before hearing a lot of negative about the low-carb bars too, and , only to wonder whether I should be eating any or not..... I am not a vegetarian, and have a lactose intolerance which I treat with Lactaid. It is just a little hard to fill up if you don't use cheese etc. I hope I can find some information on how to balance the cheese intake as a protein and other tasty filling things.
God bless you

[musicmam]

Does anyone have any insight to the protein powders? It lists 230 calories, 2 g fat and 3 g carbs. ProM3 is one among others. It seems to be food for those lactose intolerant, but I was wondering if anyone had used them or found them to have hidden carbs or to contribute to the plateaus or stalls?
Thanks

[Kristine]

[QUOTE]Originally posted by captxray
...it's a free world, although you vegetarians are responsible for the reduction of most of the species of the world because of your nasty agriculture...HA! HA! Only kidding!

I hope you were just kidding: cattle, pigs and chickens don't grow on trees; they have to be fed massive amounts of grain. ;)

I was about to go into a big veg/*an schpiel here, but forget it: http://www.veganoutreach.org/whyvegan/ sums it up nicely. :read2:

[LilDaisy]

DITTO FOR ME....I love the site you mention too....Maybe we can convert some folks!!

GOOD JOB! :cheer:

[Kristine]

Li'l Daisy - I agree. :) I'd never force my beliefs on someone else, but I *firmly* believe that whatever you believe in, you should put your money where your mouth is. If you don't like something, don't just complain about it - withdraw your financial support. Money talks in our society. I think if people knew the conditions of factory farms, they'd think twice about what they're supporting. Instead, everyone thinks farms are like they are in the movie "Babe."

Personally, I'm not necessarily against meat consumption - we are carnivores by nature - but I choose not to support an industry that a) treats animals as if they're already dead and doesn't care how they suffer before they're slaughtered, and b) overmedicates them with disregard for the fact that *we* then consume it.

...but I guess I'm preaching to the choir here. :D

[captxray]

Hello, Kristine.

You are very right-on about cattle, chickens and pigs (and lambs, and...) being fed a lot of grain...at fattening time on feedlots...yuk! My wife's family owns a meat packing plant and feedlots. They are awful places...the feedlots, I mean. And the conditions of chickens and pigs being kept in "factories" in pens no bigger than about three animals in size is despicable! We should have some respect for the food we eat and choose to put into our own bodies. I don't like the idea of eating an animal who suffered through its entire life, living in conditions that made it sick, mentally and physically. However, I grew up on a farm and still eat range fed animals...that are not fed grains. Grains are very bad for the animals (and us) who weren't designed to eat them...full of nasty phytates and lectins, etc...Not only are grains bad for all of us (humans and ruminants and dogs and cats by causing most of the autoimmune diseases[such as arthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, diabetes, lupus, MS, cancer, obesity, etc.] we and our animals get) but they are very bad for the native animals who are living in the fields where the crops are being raised. Actually, they don't live very long...they are disked, poisoned, shot, and otherwise "eliminated" because they are considered "pests." Ruminants, on the other hand, don't kill many animals in the fields where they eat and poop. And, contrary to popular belief, most ruminants in the world eat their grass on land that won't support anything but grass and sagebrush. If you don't believe me, take a drive through Nevada, or Montana, or Eastern Oregon, or Eastern California, or Arizona, or New Mexico, or Utah, Idaho, North and South Dakota...where most of the ruminants are raised... in the summer time and see what grows on those huge 100,000 acre ranches. Although, most of them are put on feedlots during the last two weeks of their lives and fed (yukkky poo poo) grains and kept in disgusting overpopulated captivity, they do not eat nearly enough grain to cause the utter destruction to most of the species that have been destroyed by the farming industry, worldwide, that is supported by HUMAN consumption. So, I was kidding, but only a little. I get really tired of being accused of supporting a lifestyle that is destroying our world by a lifestyle that is supporting the destruction our world through the destruction of most of the many species of plants and animals who have grown and lived in the areas overtaken by agriculture in the past 10,000 years. Not all vegans or vegetarians say this about my lifestyle, so I surely don't put all people of that persuasion in that category, but I have a lot of liberal friends who think that I'm the bad guy, and I get really tired of the hypocracy and dishonesty in the ranks of certain people.