Guest guest Posted February 9, 2008 Report Share Posted February 9, 2008 Hi all, I¹ve been struggling to lose weight, even since going vegan nearly a year ago. I have seen posts on this and other lists from those who say simply going vegan helped them lose the extra pounds, but that just hasn¹t been my experience. Those of you who did manage to lose weight on a vegan diet, would you mind posting some menu ideas of what you ate during this time? I¹ve been eating primarily fat-free vegan for some time now, and yet I still battle with my weight. Any helpful suggestions would be appreciated. Anna Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted February 9, 2008 Report Share Posted February 9, 2008 On 2/8/08, Coop <rodstruelove wrote: > > I¹ve been struggling to lose weight, even since going vegan nearly a year > ago. I have seen posts on this and other lists from those who say simply > going vegan helped them lose the extra pounds, but that just hasn¹t been my > experience. Vegan didn't help me lose weight until I fine-tuned it to low-fat (between 20g and 30g fat per day), low-to-medium glycemic index (http://www.glycemicindex.com) and high fiber (at least 40g per day.) > Those of you who did manage to lose weight on a vegan diet, would you mind > posting some menu ideas of what you ate during this time? I¹ve been eating > primarily fat-free vegan for some time now, and yet I still battle with my > weight. Any helpful suggestions would be appreciated. I lost about ten pounds in January. Here are a couple of random days of what I ate: (small differences of about 30 calories not included in meals are due to taking flaxseed oil on order of my doctor) Breakfast: multi-grain hot cereal with raisins (I've since started adding soy isolate powder on days I have hot cereal for breakfast so I can start the day with a better amount of protein.) 309 calories Lunch: sushi salad 526 calories Dinner: Mayan black bean soup with sides of corn and Brussels sprouts 586 calories Day's total: 1461 calories, 11.1 g fat, 46.9 g fiber Breakfast: pinto beans and brown rice with colorful corn salsa 534 calories Lunch: Morningstar Farm veggie dog on rye bread with peas and an apple 466 calories Dinner: veggie tamale pie with carrot and onion soup 725 calories Day's total: 1713 calories, 18.8 g fat, 60.8 g fiber Breakfast: frozen banana and strawberries with soymilk and soy isolate in the food processor 199 calories Snack: veggie dog in a spinach tortilla with colorful corn salsa 241 calories Lunch: tamale pie 380 calories Snack: low-fat (3.5g) hummus on rye toast 224 calories Snack: carrot and onion soup 166 calories Dinner: Homemade bean burrito 354 calories Snack: Edamame (green soybeans in the pod) 110 calories Day's total: 1674 calories, 26.4 g fat, 54.7 g fiber To finish off with some averages: During that time, my average daily calorie intake was about 1800 so there are plenty of 2000+ calorie days in there, too. But I have been doing a lot of exercising, so subtract an average daily burn of 280 calories for an average net intake of 1520 calories per day. I counted the calories but I did not restrict them. I allowed the high fiber of my food to restrict the calories for me because fiber reduces hunger. I always ate when I was hungry (as you can see, some days that was three times while other days it was seven times!) and never talked myself out of eating when I was hungry. In other words, my diet was all about food choices and not at all about will power over hunger. My average daily fat intake was about 29 grams and my average daily fiber was about 58.5 grams. I did count the fat and made sure to choose naturally low fat foods and not add oils (other than the flax oil for my doctor) and only chose processed foods with 3g fat per serving or less (the veggie dogs have 1.5g fat each!) I started out counting fiber, but once I had switched my diet to high fiber foods I didn't really need to count any more. However, if I was hungry in the evening, I'd check my day's fiber count and if it was lower than I wanted, I'd be sure to have something high fiber like beans. I hope this is helpful to you. I'm happy to answer any questions (or give any recipes to what's listed above.) Sparrow Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted February 9, 2008 Report Share Posted February 9, 2008 Thanks Sparrow, that is helpful! I would love your recipes for: * veggie tamale pie * carrot and onion soup * Homemade bean burrito You mentioned frozen banana and strawberries with soymilk and soy isolate in the food processor -- what is soy isolate? There are far less options in Australia for me*t substitutes. I eat very little tofu (I do have a chili recipe where you use thawed tofu crumbled up and it¹s great in the chili recipe ‹ but to just eat it or grill it I don¹t much care for it. Tempeh is nasty (at least the one I tried). So my vegan me*t substitutes are limited here. The only one I¹ve found that I really like is a Veggie Roast that I love in stir fries or jambalaya. But it¹s about 26% fat, so I try not to use it often. Then again, if the REST of my day is pretty much fat free, maybe one meal with some of that in it shouldn¹t make a difference? You say you counted calories but didn¹t restrict them ... I have not been counting calories, but Dr. McDougall says you shouldn¹t have to if you¹re eating the right foods. Maybe that is my problem. I have always been a big eater. I may eat fat free vegan foods, but I eat a lot of them. But if I don¹t, I get very hungry. McDougall says (and you seem to agree) that you shouldn¹t go hungry. I just feel like I¹ve battled weight my whole life, and if it¹s something I¹m never going to get under control, then I should just give up ‹ I mean why spend the rest of my life battling this? I might as well enjoy the rest of my life and resign myself to being fat. Ah well ‹ thanks so much for your reply, and I would love those recipes! Anna On 9/2/08 4:41 PM, " Sparrow R Jones " <sparrowrose wrote: > > > > > On 2/8/08, Coop <rodstruelove <rodstruelove%40dodo.com.au> > > wrote: >> > >> > I¹ve been struggling to lose weight, even since going vegan nearly a year >> > ago. I have seen posts on this and other lists from those who say simply >> > going vegan helped them lose the extra pounds, but that just hasn¹t been my >> > experience. > > Vegan didn't help me lose weight until I fine-tuned it to low-fat > (between 20g and 30g fat per day), low-to-medium glycemic index > (http://www.glycemicindex.com) and high fiber (at least 40g per day.) > >> > Those of you who did manage to lose weight on a vegan diet, would you mind >> > posting some menu ideas of what you ate during this time? I¹ve been eating >> > primarily fat-free vegan for some time now, and yet I still battle with my >> > weight. Any helpful suggestions would be appreciated. > > I lost about ten pounds in January. Here are a couple of random days > of what I ate: > (small differences of about 30 calories not included in meals are due > to taking flaxseed oil on order of my doctor) > > Breakfast: > multi-grain hot cereal with raisins (I've since started adding soy > isolate powder on days I have hot cereal for breakfast so I can start > the day with a better amount of protein.) > 309 calories > Lunch: > sushi salad > 526 calories > Dinner: > Mayan black bean soup with sides of corn and Brussels sprouts > 586 calories > Day's total: 1461 calories, 11.1 g fat, 46.9 g fiber > > Breakfast: > pinto beans and brown rice with colorful corn salsa > 534 calories > Lunch: > Morningstar Farm veggie dog on rye bread with peas and an apple > 466 calories > Dinner: > veggie tamale pie with carrot and onion soup > 725 calories > Day's total: 1713 calories, 18.8 g fat, 60.8 g fiber > > Breakfast: > frozen banana and strawberries with soymilk and soy isolate in the > food processor > 199 calories > Snack: > veggie dog in a spinach tortilla with colorful corn salsa > 241 calories > Lunch: > tamale pie > 380 calories > Snack: > low-fat (3.5g) hummus on rye toast > 224 calories > Snack: > carrot and onion soup > 166 calories > Dinner: > Homemade bean burrito > 354 calories > Snack: > Edamame (green soybeans in the pod) > 110 calories > Day's total: 1674 calories, 26.4 g fat, 54.7 g fiber > > To finish off with some averages: > During that time, my average daily calorie intake was about 1800 so > there are plenty of 2000+ calorie days in there, too. But I have been > doing a lot of exercising, so subtract an average daily burn of 280 > calories for an average net intake of 1520 calories per day. > > I counted the calories but I did not restrict them. I allowed the high > fiber of my food to restrict the calories for me because fiber reduces > hunger. I always ate when I was hungry (as you can see, some days that > was three times while other days it was seven times!) and never talked > myself out of eating when I was hungry. In other words, my diet was > all about food choices and not at all about will power over hunger. > > My average daily fat intake was about 29 grams and my average daily > fiber was about 58.5 grams. I did count the fat and made sure to > choose naturally low fat foods and not add oils (other than the flax > oil for my doctor) and only chose processed foods with 3g fat per > serving or less (the veggie dogs have 1.5g fat each!) I started out > counting fiber, but once I had switched my diet to high fiber foods I > didn't really need to count any more. However, if I was hungry in the > evening, I'd check my day's fiber count and if it was lower than I > wanted, I'd be sure to have something high fiber like beans. > > I hope this is helpful to you. I'm happy to answer any questions (or > give any recipes to what's listed above.) > > Sparrow > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted February 9, 2008 Report Share Posted February 9, 2008 Hi Anna, I agree with Sparrow on the counting of calories. If I don't, I have a tendency to forget something and eat too much. Each " plan " has it's own set of advice and rules but the one thing that I think is USUALLY a common thread in each is that, you need to burn-off more calories than you take it, to lose weight. I find that this free site: fitdays.com , is a great way to keep track for me. I just log in everything I eat each day. It's easy and the price is right (FREE)! This is my days worth of foods for yesterday. BTW, I am a grazer. I do best when I eat smaller meals several times a day, and lunch is my big meal (usually) breakfast (5am) - homemade bran muffin - approx. 119 cals a couple cups of coffee with a total of 1/2 cup chocolate soymilk - cals 80 snack (7:25am) - 3 dried unsweetend apricot halves 25 cals lunch (11am) - leftover tofu with garlic sauce (recipe from Fat Free Vegan Blog) 167cals 1/3 cup cook brown rice 72 cals. 1 small slice homemade banana bread (100 cals) snack - 1:30pm- 1 small apple cals.63 snack - 4pm - 1 serving ww pretzles (170 cals) dinner - 5:30 - veggie burger 127cals mustard - cals. 6 whole wheat bun - cals. 125 mixed greens - cals.9 slice onion - cals.6 slice tomato - cals.6 slice banana bread - cals 100 snack - 8:00 - 1/2 Tbsp reduced fat peanutbutter (cals 45) on 1/2 med banana cals. 55 I know that it looks like alot of food written out like this but I believe that it comes in just under 1300 cals total. However, I am able to judge my calorie intake better because I make most of my food, like banana bread and my bran muffins and most of my main meals myself. And, you have to be careful when eating store bought food that you measure out the serving size on the package. Also, I may not have had soup yesterday, but every week, I make at least 3 pots of homemade soup and almost always have a cup with my lunch. I work to keep the serving under 150 cals. Many dinners consist of big salads that always have a protein source in them. And I make at least 2 big bowls of fresh salsa every week to eat as a snack with my pretzels or to use as a dressing in my salad. Sorry that was so long. Stef Holding onto anger is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else; you are the one who gets burned. -Buddha Be smarter than spam. See how smart SpamGuard is at giving junk email the boot with the All-new Mail Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted February 9, 2008 Report Share Posted February 9, 2008 Thanks for the input, Steph ‹ actually it doesn¹t look like a lot of food to me ‹ 1300 calories isn¹t much. The sites that calculate how many calories you should be eating to lose weight all put me at about 1800 calories a day, some even higher because I work out a lot. Are you finding you lose weight at this level? My biggest problem is self control -- if I made banana bread or muffins, I would never be able to just have a little here or there. I can¹t make things like that because I would eat them all warm from the oven when they¹re at their best. It¹s the same reason I can¹t even have peanut butter in the house. I won¹t eat a half a tablespoon, I¹ll eat half a jar. So if I just don¹t have foods like this around, then I can¹t be tempted. I wish I had your self control! LOL Thanks so much for sharing this ... I will check out that tofu with garlic sauce recipe, it sounds yum! And I also love using fitday.com, it¹s a great site! Anna On 10/2/08 1:02 AM, " steff davidson " <steffdav46 wrote: > > Hi Anna, > I agree with Sparrow on the counting of calories. If I don't, I have a > tendency to forget something and eat too much. Each " plan " has it's own set of > advice and rules but the one thing that I think is USUALLY a common thread in > each is that, you need to burn-off more calories than you take it, to lose > weight. > I find that this free site: fitdays.com , is a great way to keep track for > me. I just log in everything I eat each day. It's easy and the price is right > (FREE)! > This is my days worth of foods for yesterday. BTW, I am a grazer. I do best > when I eat smaller meals several times a day, and lunch is my big meal > (usually) > breakfast (5am) - homemade bran muffin - approx. 119 cals > a couple cups of coffee with a total of 1/2 cup chocolate soymilk - cals 80 > snack (7:25am) - 3 dried unsweetend apricot halves 25 cals > lunch (11am) - leftover tofu with garlic sauce (recipe from Fat Free > Vegan Blog) 167cals > 1/3 cup cook brown rice 72 cals. > 1 small slice homemade banana bread (100 cals) > snack - 1:30pm- 1 small apple cals.63 > snack - 4pm - 1 serving ww pretzles (170 cals) > dinner - 5:30 - veggie burger 127cals > mustard - cals. 6 > whole wheat bun - cals. 125 > mixed greens - cals.9 > slice onion - cals.6 > slice tomato - cals.6 > slice banana bread - cals 100 > snack - 8:00 - 1/2 Tbsp reduced fat peanutbutter (cals 45) on > 1/2 med banana cals. 55 > > I know that it looks like alot of food written out like this but I believe > that it comes in just under 1300 cals total. However, I am able to judge my > calorie intake better because I make most of my food, like banana bread and my > bran muffins and most of my main meals myself. And, you have to be careful > when eating store bought food that you measure out the serving size on the > package. > Also, I may not have had soup yesterday, but every week, I make at least 3 > pots of homemade soup and almost always have a cup with my lunch. I work to > keep the serving under 150 cals. Many dinners consist of big salads that > always have a protein source in them. And I make at least 2 big bowls of fresh > salsa every week to eat as a snack with my pretzels or to use as a dressing in > my salad. > Sorry that was so long. > Stef > > > Holding onto anger is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it > at someone else; you are the one who gets burned. > -Buddha > > > Be smarter than spam. See how smart SpamGuard is at giving junk email the boot > with the All-new Mail > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted February 9, 2008 Report Share Posted February 9, 2008 On 2/9/08, Coop <rodstruelove wrote: > > Thanks Sparrow, that is helpful! I would love your recipes for: > > * veggie tamale pie > * carrot and onion soup > * Homemade bean burrito No problem! I'll send them as separate e-mails to make it easier for the list owners to spot them to add to the archives. (Though I might not get a chance to send them for a few hours because I'm leaving in about an hour to volunteer with a local math competition for kids. I'll send the recipes when I get home.) > You mentioned frozen banana and strawberries with soymilk and soy isolate in > the food processor -- what is soy isolate? Soy isolate is a powder that can be flavored or plain. (The one I use is plain. I found it in the bulk food bins at my grocery.) Protein powders are made by removing the fat, fiber, and carbohydrates from soybeans. What remains is mostly protein, with some residual minerals and a trace of fat. The powder is bland, highly digestible, and easy to add to shakes and other recipes. It can act as an emulsifier, giving a creamier texture to food while boosting the protein. I started using it when my diet software warned me that I wasn't getting very much protein for breakfast on some days. One tablespoon has 20 calories and 5 grams of protein. > There are far less options in Australia for me*t substitutes. I eat very > little tofu (I do have a chili recipe where you use thawed tofu crumbled up > and it¹s great in the chili recipe ‹ but to just eat it or grill it I don¹t > much care for it. Tempeh is nasty (at least the one I tried). So my vegan > me*t substitutes are limited here. The best, cheapest, most accessible, lowest fat, most minimally processed me*t substitute I've found is beans. Beans are your friends. Eat 'em up! :-) > The only one I¹ve found that I really > like is a Veggie Roast that I love in stir fries or jambalaya. But it¹s > about 26% fat, so I try not to use it often. Then again, if the REST of my > day is pretty much fat free, maybe one meal with some of that in it > shouldn¹t make a difference? Maybe yes, maybe no. One problem that appears linked to weight gain, insulin resistance, and eventual development of diabetes is intramyocellular lipids. These are tiny bits of fat that accumulate in the muscle cells, even of people of healthy body weight. They accumulate based on the amount of fat in the diet and a Yale study found that three days of a fatty diet increased the lipids by 80% or more. So they jump in there quickly and, what's more, the body is designed such that once these lipids get into the cells, they start " turning off " the coding for producing more mitochondria, which are the microscopic organisms within your cells that " eat " those intramyocellular fats and convert them to energy. This was a very good design for earlier humans who didn't have McDonald's and 7-11 stores with lots of fatty foods in them. It was a design geared toward survival in lean times. But today, with more food than we know what to do with, it's a design that leads to obesity and disease. Because those lipids accumulate so very quickly, I would be cautious about having a high-fat meal and balancing it out with low-fat meals for the rest of the day. It's probably better to save the high-fat treats for the special food holidays like Thanksgiving (American and Canadian holidays of family feasting) or your birthday. Having fattier foods on a daily or even weekly basis is likely to slow your progress. > You say you counted calories but didn¹t restrict them ... I have not been > counting calories, but Dr. McDougall says you shouldn¹t have to if you¹re > eating the right foods. Maybe that is my problem. I have always been a big > eater. I may eat fat free vegan foods, but I eat a lot of them. But if I > don¹t, I get very hungry. McDougall says (and you seem to agree) that you > shouldn¹t go hungry. And that's what Dr. Neal Barnard (who has done research with and teaches a diet very similar to McDougall's) says as well. And I've found it's true. I'm only hungry right before I eat. And I'm losing weight. When I say I count calories but I don't restrict them, what that means is that I'm keeping track of everything I eat in a diet software program (DietPower.com) so I can report to my doctor. She wants to know things about my diet, including how many calories I'm eating. But I'm not using that number myself as a gauge of anything - I just report it to you (and I report calories in my recipes) because some people like to use calories as their guide. I'm using fat and fiber as my guide and improved health as my check whether it's working. Remember, there are times when your body is working on other things and might hold on to the weight a little bit more than you expect. Look at it as a whole package of health, not just weight loss alone and be patient through " plateaus " of little or no weight loss because your body might be marshalling its forces for the next dash downward on the scale. (But if a plateau keeps stretching on for weeks, start looking for what changes you might need to make.) For example, the month before the ten pound leap on my scale, I was " stalled " but I still saw improvements: my blood pressure went from 140/94 to 112/73 and my resting heart rate - which has not been under 100 beats per minute in the last five years, regardless of amount of exercise - went from 114 bpm to 89 bpm. These changes are just as important and significant for my long term health as a drop in numbers. Keep track of your health stats, including measurements of your upper arms, thighs, abdomen, hips, neck, chest. There will be times when the scale isn't budging but the centimeters are. > I just feel like I¹ve battled weight my whole life, > and if it¹s something I¹m never going to get under control, then I should > just give up ‹ I mean why spend the rest of my life battling this? I might > as well enjoy the rest of my life and resign myself to being fat. I've gone through plenty of times when I've felt that way. Often, ironically, right after visiting with doctors! Some doctors have the worst bedside manner and are far more discouraging than encouraging! Hang in there! Eat healthy vegan foods. Watch your fats. Get lots of fiber. Get plenty of rest (I know my body hangs on to pounds when I'm not sleeping properly.) Don't eat too much sodium. Get enough food (too little food will stall weight loss as the body thinks it's starving) but don't binge. Learn the glycemic index and choose foods lower on it - substitute dark rye or pumpernickel for any other yeast breads (yes, even whole wheat yeast bread has a higher glycemic index which will contribute to making you hungry sooner and more likely to binge) and choose non-yeast breads when possible (tortillas, pita, chapati, corn bread, etc.) If it seems overwhelming, just pick one things and focus on it until you've gotten control of it and then move on to the next one. It sounds like you've got the vegan part down - work on trimming the fats. When you are satisfied that you've done what you can there, move on to glycemic index or sodium and fight that battle. One step at a time and " keep your eyes on the prize " . . . which is, of course, abundant health! One thing I have found very motivating that you might want to look at is Dr. Barnard's videos. He is promoting the same sort of diet as Dr. McDougall, so it's right in line with what you are already trying to do. There are a collection of 30 minute videos that are archives of live broadcasts from Dr. Barnard and the dieticians and cooks on his staff. They are designed for people with diabetes, but the principles taught in them will lead weight loss as well. In the shows, there is a lecture from Dr. Barnard on things like fighting food cravings or getting enough calcium on a vegan diet and the staff will show different kinds of food that are good purchases and each show ends with a cooking segment where they show you how to make a healthy recipe. I find the videos very educational and motivating and you can find them here: http://www.pcrm.org/health/diabetes/support_group.html > Ah well thanks so much for your reply, and I would love > those recipes! No problem! I'll have them out in about four hours from now! Be well! Sparrow Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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