My Vegetarian Diet

[blue_grapefruit]

Hello

I've finally decided to follow the wonderful world of vegetarian dining, but throwing in some fish so really it is described as Pesco-vegetarianism (Thanks Bimjob). I hope to lose weight and cleanse my body of bad saturated fats that are found in red meats, as well as helping in the fight against animal cruelty.

You don't need to share my opinions on animal welfare or even agree with any forms of vegetarianism to post here, i just want to write some meal plans, keep a relatively strict food diary, and write about my struggles with adapting to vegetarianism.

I'm not a big meat eater anyway. I rarely eat meat apart from free range chicken, and if i do then it's usually at a friends house and i'm too polite to say no

I still intend on eating eggs, dairy, fish gelatines (oh god, thats gunna be SUCH a struggle) and all types of fish, fruit and veg. I will exclude fish eggs as I believe it's wrong to farm fish for their eggs, and will try my best to be as creative as possible with menus.

This thread will not show any pictures of animal cruelty or discuss hot animal welfare related topics, nor will I attempt to turn you lot into hippies This, I promise.

There is growing evidence on the effects of red meat on the body, and this along with the food that animals are reared on alarms me greatly, so tomorrow will be my first day as a trainee veggie. I will be doing some research on the right vitamins to take until i learn where i can get my vits from natural food sources, and attempt to include them in my healthy meals.

Wish me luck - this is going to be the biggest change for me ever, yet i'm so happy just to have come to this decision.

ooooh, Oli is going to KILL me xxx

 

[blue_grapefruit]

OH. MY. GOD.

Firstly, why am I up at 4am researching vegetarianism?

Secondly, Apologies in advance to any veggies out there who believe as strongly as a forum i just read that eating fish is still eating flesh. It seems that some people REALLY hate fish-eating-veggies to call themselves vegetarians so I will label myself a pescetarian. Who knows, i may cut out the fish when i can learn to cook healthy veggie meals and source my Omega 3s elsewhere.....

I tell you what though, it's startling how much mercury and waste can be found in sea-caught fish I know this is a serious topic, but I've just come across this:

"If it had a head, then don't eat it. In fact, forget that, some lettuces have heads as do flowers...Ok, don't eat anything that has had an anus. Oh, but some sea creatures only have one opening which serves as both.....Ok, just don't eat the obvious and don't eat seafood...I'm confusing myself....erm, don't eat anything with a central nervous system? That will do"

What am i getting myself into?

EDIT: http://www.fishinghurts.com/healthConcerns.asp

 

[Shazpaz]

Good luck hun. I wish I had the will power to be a veggie. I love the reasons behind it, but am not in the right place to do it yet. I'm interested to find out how you get on though.

Good luck.xx

 

[blue_grapefruit]

good luck.... just want to mention that i managed to put on loads of weight while being vege. So keep an eye on the portion sizes and make sure you are prepared with healthy snacks ... I kept relying on bread for a quick snack.

Good luck
x

Thanks Dancing, I think I'm quite lucky that I've never really eaten bread. I have toast on very special occasions and If i ever have sandwiches it's at other peoples houses so it's easy to avoid Actually rely heavily on frozen fruit for snacks. Grapes are amazing frozen, as are peach cubes and apples

Good luck hun. I wish I had the will power to be a veggie. I love the reasons behind it, but am not in the right place to do it yet. I'm interested to find out how you get on though.

Good luck.xx

Well I'll tell you the good and bad I promise xxx

 

[blue_grapefruit]

Kitteh just asked me why i'm eating fish...

It's purely cos i need to learn to be a vegetarian the proper way. I don't want to use "pretend meats" for every meal. I want to use seeds, pulses, ryes, wheats and proper substitues for meat. I'm in no way knocking tofu and quorn as i plan to use them a lot, I just need to transition into vegetarianism with no regrets.

I know I can get my omega 3 supply from other sources, I will just have to take it easy until i learn to cook properly

 

[Kitteh]

kitteh is a bad bad girl

x

 

[Shazpaz]

owwwwww I'm loving the sound of frozen fruits. I'll buy some grapes today.

 

[blue_grapefruit]

So far today I've eaten:

Warm shreddies with skimmed milk (YUM!)

Lunch was homemade tomato and herb sauce with a lil bit of pasta and some fresh spinach leaves

Dinner was homemade sweet and sour sauce, with stir fryed red & yellow peppers, onions, mushrooms, and half a cup full of brown rice. Oli added chicken to his, and loved the sauce so all good

Snacks: Had a plum, nectarine, some natural yoghurt with blackberries and a handful of nuts.

I would work out the calories but i can't be bothered

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

 

[blue_grapefruit]

As a new veggie I was worried about protein intake, however I've found FitDay - Free Weight Loss and Diet Journal and filled a few days in with some obvious meal choices and found that i'm over the recommended protein intake every day, even double some days. It's startling how much protein is in vegetables.

Asparagus 3g
Aubergine 1g
Beans 9g
Beetroot 2g
Broccoli 3g
Brussels Sprouts 3g
Cabbage average 1g
Carrot 0.5g
Cauliflower 3g
Celery 0.5g
Chicory 0.6g
Courgette 2g
Cucumber 0.5g
Fennel 1g
Gherkins 1g
Leek 1.6g
Lettuce 0.7g
Marrow 0.5g
Mushroom 2g
Okra 2.4g
Onion 0.7g
Onion (Spring) 2g
Parsnip 1.5g
Peas 7g
Peppers 1g
Potato 1.6g
Pumpkin 0.5g
Radish 0.7g
Spinach 2g
Swede 0.5g
Sweetcorn 2.5g
Tomatoes 2g
Turnip 0.8g
Watercress 3g
Yam 2g

The above is based on 100g servings and vary depending on how they are cooked. This puts my mind at ease a lot, also helps me decide to limit my egg intake as the cholesterol may become an issue.....

Other news, bought some Omega mix from Justin Graves which contains Linseed, Sunflower seeds, Sesame seeds, and a few others which are packed with omega 3 and 6, thus helping me cut down on fish a LOT. Also got some seaweed crackers which are delicious after the lovely Dancing brought snacking to my attention...

OH OH OH, bought Goji berries too which are utterly delicious and will be added to some yoghurt for brekkie

 

[Kitteh]

how much protein is reccomended per day leah? just for someone stupid like me i have no clue.. lol.

good post doll.. good post..

<3 Seaweed

x x

 

[blue_grapefruit]

Well, according to most places i've looked it's 15-20% of total intake a day...

It can also be worked out as 0.75g of protein per Kg of body weight although this is a variable figure and MOST people will go over their protein intake every single day.

This was shocking, the amount of protein in nuts per 100g:
Almond 21g
Brazils nuts 14g
Cashew nuts 20g
Chestnuts 2g
Coconut 6g
Hazelnut 14g
Peanuts 25g
Peanut Butter 22g
Pecan nuts 9g
Pine nuts 14g
Pistachio nuts 10g
Walnuts 6g

BUT the fat content in vegetables rarely goes over 1g per 100g where as in nuts all apart from chestnuts (3g of fat per 100g) are 50g of fat per 100g up to 70g fat in pecan and pine nuts!

Note to self, seriously need to watch nut intake!

 

[jhooker]

Proud of you there Welshy!

Another thing to avoid is: Cheese!

Another thing: Fruit juice. Fruit is healthy, but bundling a week's worth of fruit into a bottle isnt.

If people give you hell and say "why why why" just say say: "animals are my friends, and I don't eat my friends"

check this out: (apart from the carbon neutral ramblings) this guy makes sense when talking about how much meat we consume Mark Bittman on what's wrong with what we eat | Video on TED.com

Welcome to the Veggie World!

 

[blue_grapefruit]

Thanks for dropping by hippy - hehehe. Awww, James, I lurve fruit juice but i get your point.

Thanks hun xxx

 

[blue_grapefruit]

It can also be worked out as 0.75g of protein per Kg of body weight although this is a variable figure and MOST people will go over their protein intake every single day.

Just going back to this....

If you weigh 100Kgs you're about 15st 10.5lbs. At this weight you need 75g of protein....

a 12oz steak has approx 340g of protein

Also, an active person needs a lot more protein than a sedentary person xxx

 

[blue_grapefruit]

Found this on a veggie forum:


Top Five Non-Vegetarian Ingredients or "Hidden Meat"

1. Gelatin: made from the boiled skin, bones, and hooves of slaughtered animals, gelatin is found in gelatin desserts, marshmallows, many chewy candies (eg, Skittles, gummy bears) and hard-shell chewing gums (eg, Trident Splash), and in a surprising array of other products such as some guacamoles and sour creams, and many brands of yogurt. Also very common in vitamin pills and other capsule or coated medicines.

2. Anchovies: Anchovies are a small fish, found in most Worcestershire sauce, Caesar dressings, some barbecue sauces, and occasionally in seasoned croutons. Some store brands of Worcestershire sauce are anchovy-free.

3. Rennet: An enzyme traditionally taken from the stomach linings of slaughtered calves, rennet is used in making cheese. The good news is, many mainstream cheese makers now produce rennet microbiologically by fermenting yeast in vats. The bad news is, you can't really tell from cheese labels whether the rennet is animal or microbiological in origin-- it usually just says "enzymes."

4. Lard: In case you didn't know, lard is pig fat. Lard rears its ugly head in everything from seasoned beans to pie crusts to Emeril's show.

5. Chicken fat or chicken stock: Like lard, chicken fat/stock is widely used to flavor things like seasoned rice and stuffing mixes, vegetable soups, etc. It can even be found in some really crazy places like Doritos



Mental biscuits! Today has gone very smoothly. Bought a lot of the right foods and started learning how to cook.

For brekkie i had some fruit

Lunch was two grilled giant mushrooms with tomato risotto and salad, including a handful of seeds

Dinner was yesterdays leftovers - so sweet and sour veg stir fry!

2 gold stars for me so far xxx

 

[Kitteh]

Well done doll..!! All sounds like its going really well!!!

x x

 

[blue_grapefruit]

Aaaah, my housemate made some homemade bugers, added sour cream and lettuce and served them right in front of me..smelt gorgeous, but as oli pointed out i was just hungry and after the pitta bread

Sooooo, decided to make some veggie burgers which were lavely

 

[Kitteh]

what burgers? leah.. we need details.. im not gonna read this diary unless you start putting details in.. lol..

x x

 

[Shazpaz]

Aaaah, my housemate made some homemade bugers, added sour cream and lettuce and served them right in front of me..smelt gorgeous, but as oli pointed out i was just hungry and after the pitta bread

Sooooo, decided to make some veggie burgers which were lavely

You're doing fab hun. My mum has just been telling me what her health shop advisor has just said to her about meat. OMGoodness She went to a seminar and the guy had two patients who both had cancer. One had apricot Kernals (sp?) and cut out all meat from his diet the other had Chemo. They both got rid of their cancer. Basically the whole seminar was telling about our meat and what chemicals are now in it. I'm sure you can buy organic meat, but most of us guys just buy the stuff from the supermarkets.

I'm going to read this thread Leah....maybe you'll be my inspiration to quit meat. (I've just posted on the Lipobind thread that I'm having a BBQ tonight....I might be a tough cookie to crack!!).

 

[blue_grapefruit]

Ok kitteh, ok ok

Shaz - it's not about cracking you chick, you'll do whats right you eventually! Perhaps just looking into alternatives is the best place to start. I remember someone saying "you know the red liquid at the bottom of packs of meat? It's not blood it's colouring to keep the meat looking nice. When you see greeny silvery meats in packs, they have forgotten to put enough colouring in!" EWWW!!!

They were my own burgers cat, i made them from quorn mince that i light fryed with marigold boullion instead of oil. Then i added some diced onion, garlic, a huge dollop of mustard and some omega seed mix. I swear to god they were the most amazing thing i've ever made. Even chris, housemate, couldnt tell they were veggie and LOVED the addition of seeds. Added such a nice crunch.

I had my delicious Goji berries for brekkie with some yoghurt but unfortunately forgot to get greek yoghurt so i had two baby petit filous!! Was well tasty but perhaps not too good of me to eat my nieces yoghurt Also, decided not to have them too much as they are VERY sweet and hurt my head a little. Might substitue for some grapes tomorrow.

I'm looking into having sweet potato mash (made with only sweet potato, and milk) with some carrot strips, asparagus, shredded courgette and cauliflower with some onion gravy Think oliver will be adding some meat to his, but it's good that he supports me