Skinny Vegetarians?

[Guest guest]

Hi Barb - and welcome to the group as well as to other new members (Forgive

me, guys - I'm a bit behind this week or two!!! Long story . . . )

 

I just wanted to comment on Barb's recent post: " People tell me that since I am

vegetarian I should be skinny and not

have a weight problem. "

 

Are those people vegetarian, Barb??? I doubt it! If that were true, that

vegetarians were all skinny and never have a problem with gaining unwanted

pounds, this group would not exist! (It was originally set up for _vegetarians_

who had put on weight that they needed to lose! LOL Of course, all manner of

vegetarians, semi-vegetarians and others interested in our lifestyle join now

and are most welcome.)

 

So what makes vegetarians gain weight? OK we all know this, but let's just run

through a few:

 

1. Eating as if you were an omnivore but replacing all animal flesh with cheese,

other dairy, eggs. The calories in cheese really really add up quickly, and some

ways of doing eggs (Eggs Benedict anyone?) are murder on the waistline.

 

2. Eating more bread, muffins, cake, pie, cookies, etc., as a quick way of

satisfying a hunger that would otherwise have been filled with something from

one of the burger places. Bread isn't all bad, but all the stuff that goes on it

is loaded with sweets and fats - likewise the rest of the bakery products.

 

3. Cooking those veggies with a lot of oil (yes, even the so-called 'good' oil)

- at 120 calories a Tbsp. it matches all other fats. (Even vegans who don't

touch dairy or eggs can fall into problems here.)

 

4. Not eating enough fresh vegetables - especially big salads - so that there's

no feeling of satisfaction at the end of a meal.

 

5. Not eating enough fresh fruit - very satisfying.

 

6. Not eating a balanced diet (see 4 and 5 above) so that when feeling depleted

we eat more and more rich food 'because my body is crying out for it and I

listen to my body' to satisfy what we think of as hunger. (Yeah, we do have

cravings, but it's an old wives' tale to think that what we crave is what we

need.)

 

7. Relying too heavily on faux me*ts, faux cheezes, faux creme, etc., and

continuing to eat, in effect, as if we were still omnivores, simply substituting

these analogues for the 'real thing'. They can be higher in calories than we

think, and really add up if we add to them the rich gravies and sauces that we

used on our me*ts before.

 

There are all kinds of other traps of course.

 

So if anyone came here as an omnivore thinking that turning vegetarian will

miraculously help them to lose weight, they might be disappointed. Certainly

some do lose lots and lots of pounds, but then they aren't falling into the

traps listed above

 

So this group is a low-fat group and we counsel whole grains, beans and lentils,

lots of fresh produce and minimal sugar - to put it at its baldest.

 

Good luck to everyone - and I'd just love to have some feedback on this post!!!

 

Love and hugs, Pat (who eats only vegan and STILL has to watch what she eats all

the time!)

 

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The world is a stage, but the play is badly cast.(Oscar Wilde)