Veg Diet Experiment

4894 Views 31 Replies 17 Participants Last post by Lumi, Jan 6, 2013

Thalassa

Discussion Starter · Oct 13, 2012

Okay, so I decided that I will be vegan and sugar/alcohol free for a week to "cleanse" and then probably do vegetarian, supplemented with occasional fish, which would technically pescetarian.

~ No animal protein for 48 hours. My face already looks thinner (not in a bad way) and my eyes look unusually bright (not sure what that's about.) I seem to be constantly eating but am eating "healthy" foods and apparently losing visible body fat.

~ Wondering about cutting out dairy, even if I still ate eggs and fish. Guacamole is a great alternative to sour cream on Mexican food, almond rice and coconut milk are great milk replacements, and apparently nut cheeses have a much better flavor than soy cheese. I do like soy in the form of tofu and edamame, but the "faux dairy" soy products are totally yucky. That got me last time I tried to be vegan: I LOVE CHEESE. However, even if I was pescetarian cutting out dairy could potentially decrease my chances of getting sick, I think, as it creates mucus in the body among other things. I could at least keep cheese to a minimum, and skip milk altogether.

~ Doing this mostly for health and environmental reasons.

Will update thread again in a few days, and as I go along with this experiment. I've found some really satisfying forms of protein, and I love beans so I'm not concerned at all about iron.

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Spades

· #21 · Dec 8, 2012

Wow, are we like, the same person? =P I've been vegetarian(ish) for several months now, and I would be full vegan if it wasn't for: cheese (yummy!), greek yogurt (protein and probiotics), sushi (only occasionally, fave food!), fish oils (improve neural and heart health). I don't feel bad about it though, it's about reducing harm, not all-or-nothing.

Make sure you get your B12's! I've heard you can get some strange psychological symptoms if you don't, though it looks like you are =) Keep it up!

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Boolean11

· #22 · Dec 8, 2012

fourtines said:
I HAD FOOD POISONING LAST WEEK.

So I've been eating vegetarian for the past week, and over the weekend I was on a yoga retreat so I ate totally vegan for like 72 hours (the vegan food was catered and included in the price of the retreat, so was really nutritionally well-balanced and borderline gourmet)...and I think, AGAIN, that eating too much dairy might be bad for me.

When I was eating vegan I noticed that I felt lighter, no matter what actual volume of food I ate, did not have the same heaviness in the digestive tract or indigestion.

However, after 72 hours, by lunchtime of the day after the retreat ended (today) I ate some cheese because I began to have the pervasive feeling that "something was missing."

When I say "something was missing" I mean missing in my body, like I needed more protein or something.

I think it's healthy for me to do vegan 2-3 days at a time, but not full-time. This feeling that something is missing is weird. Because I wasn't experiencing it at all in terms of flavor or quantity or satisfaction of meals. In fact, the vegan meals I had on the retreat were absolutely superb (things like green salads with massive amounts of veggies, fruit and/or nuts; portobello mushroom steaks with grilled onions and cashew butter v-"cheez"; potato and tofu moussaka with marinara; fresh made breads with Earth Balance spread and/or natural jams; homemade baked oatmeal and breakfast muffins with pumpkin nuts and raisins or bananas and chocolate; homemade granola; spicy vegan chili; chickpea and rice "soup for the soul"; green tea and raspberry birthday cake...you get the idea...)

So I think maybe I should cut out dairy but throw in protein like eggs and fish on some days? Because I just ate cheese and damn I feel heavy.

Trying a host of ethnic foods fruits and vegs as well as the stuff that is barely "processed" for cheapness will make you feel different.

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milti

· #23 · Dec 15, 2012

I'm a complete vegetarian but then again I'm Indian and Hindu. Seems to be much easier being vegetarian in this part of the world than in the West. :dry: We don't have fancy stuff like tofu. We just have lentils and pulses and grains and vegetables and LOTS of dairy. :tongue:

I am 27 (almost) and 5'5" and about 50 kgs.

If you're interested...

^ This is what my everyday homecooked lunch and dinner look like, apart from the onion thingy, lol.

So basically I have a bunch of white rice with dal (lentil soup), 2-3 rotis (flatbread, aka chapattis), some sort of vegetable dry curry (like the potato curry here, or ladies' finger, or tomato chutney, etc) and I top it off with a bowl of curd/yogurt with a pinch of salt in it cause I like it like that. It's pretty filling. If you're prone to diabetes like my parents, you can leave out the rice or use brown (red?) rice instead.

Super easy to make and yummy to eat.

I do eat breakfast but not much. Just a glass of plain milk and maybe a hardboiled egg.

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murderegina

· #24 · Dec 16, 2012

CONGRATS! I hope you are pleased with the way you feel and look.

I've been a strict vegetarian about 4 years, and I go off and on vegan. And this is one of the best decisions I've ever made. I am always full of energy, my skin never breaks out, my hair and nails are healthy, my immunity is high, and moods are regulated. But most importantly, it's made my mind and body a cohesive experience.

When first transitioning my diet, I also wanted a cleanse, (although I am a veggie for political reasons, the health of it is my second motivation) and I found at first my hair and skin actually looked worse. I began breaking out, and noticed more hair falling out in the shower. But what's important to note is this is just apart of the cleansing process. I've also found that cleansing shouldn't be an "every so often" thing; it should be ongoing. Cleanse everyday through eating lots of green and natural fresh vegetable fiber, and eating from quick to digest to long aka fruit, veggies, starch, then protein.

Being a vegetarian also means a whole world of colorful new foods and recipes you would've never thought to try are now your options. I think being experimental with soups is a great way to transition.

Also you can save a lot of money by making your own almond milk- google the recipe!

Best of luck.

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dottywine

· #25 · Dec 18, 2012

I highly recommend you remove all dairy from your diet and marvel at how awesome your skin will look.

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Aqualung

· #26 · Dec 21, 2012

I'm going vegan starting tomorrow, when I get a chance to grocery shop. This was on my doctor's recommendation. No matter what I ate I couldn't get my triglycerides & lipids count right & no amount of starving & working out would burn off those pounds that crept up over the last couple of years. My Dr. was excited about this & said he's just learning about vegan diets & gave me some reference material & from that I learned how cultures with high animal consumption have more diseases, mainly cancer & heart disease. There is so much encouraging information in what I'm reading. Looking forward to the change.

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Lumi

· #27 · Dec 22, 2012

I've been on a vegetarian diet a year now, and I've accidentally brought it so far that I'm becoming full vegan (environmental and ethical reasons), so I've been studying more and more all the time.

Getting enough protein was bit of a problem to me because normally I don't eat much food and I get real bored eating similar styled foods too often. Plus on cultural reasons tofu, lenses and beans were not part of my normal diet before I began with this diet, it takes time to adapt. I eat very small meals, several times a day and doing lots of sports, I was bit of worried how to get enough protein.

Normally I eat rye, peas, tofu, beans, broccoli, seeds, nuts and lenses, and just now added hemp seeds (protein 30g per 100g) to the list. I also got protein powder (protein 50g per 100g) made from hemp seeds, so I can easily add up protein source to meals that doesn't normally have sufficient amount of protein for my daily needs.

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Thalassa

Discussion Starter · #28 · Dec 23, 2012

dottywine said:
I highly recommend you remove all dairy from your diet and marvel at how awesome your skin will look.

The odds of this happening are quite low. Low.

Also, I have a co-worker and friend who is lactose intolerant and doesn't consume very much dairy at all (occasionally if its in something) and she has adult acne...

She doesn't drink alcohol and isn't big on sweets, either.

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Cher Zee

· #29 · Dec 24, 2012

Also, I have a co-worker and friend who is lactose intolerant and doesn't consume very much dairy at all (occasionally if its in something) and she has adult acne...

Yeah, diets are not a one-size-fits-all kind of thing. Milk generally makes my skin happy.

roud:

Back to the experiment. My Grandma ate meat up until the very end (she lived to be 97) and was healthy enough that she lived alone, walked everyday etc. I think genetics and a lack of processed foods (she always cooked her own and had a very Mediterranean diet) play a part.

I tried to go vegetarian once but I hated it - my body didn't like it. I have quite a few vegetarian friends who love it though. So whatever works. Keep us posted on how this is turning out for you. Would love to hear how you feel in the long run. Sounds like you're being smart about it.

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Thalassa

Discussion Starter · #30 · Dec 26, 2012

Cher_to_the_Z said:
Yeah, diets are not a one-size-fits-all kind of thing. Milk generally makes my skin happy. roud:

Back to the experiment. My Grandma ate meat up until the very end (she lived to be 97) and was healthy enough that she lived alone, walked everyday etc. I think genetics and a lack of processed foods (she always cooked her own and had a very Mediterranean diet) play a part.

I tried to go vegetarian once but I hated it - my body didn't like it. I have quite a few vegetarian friends who love it though. So whatever works. Keep us posted on how this is turning out for you. Would love to hear how you feel in the long run. Sounds like you're being smart about it.

I'm a big fan of listening to my body and I believe you can eat meat - but especially fish and white meat poutry - and live to be 97. My mom's aunt (her mom's side) lived to be into her 90s and my mom said she never stopped walking and always worked in her garden.

I think eating a variety of fruit and vegetables with lean meats is fine; if bread was really as bad as some people try to make it out to be, also, then pray tell why is the life span so long in so many countries which have bread or rice as a primary staple? It isn't bread that's the problem, but refined sugar and not eating enough fiber. Trans-fat, processed sugar, and junk foods are what I believe are killing people.

My grandfather lived to be 80 and ate fried chicken until he died. But he also ate whole wheat bread starting around age 60, religiously took vitamins and fish oil supplements, ate a lot of fish actually (my whole family seems to have the "we like fish" gene), and ate a lot of fresh fruit and raw or cooked vegetables, being a Southerner, and having grown his own food at some points. He did not have an exemplary diet, he enjoyed eggs and sausage as well, but he also was always physically active, walking, gardening, and even working part-time until his 70s.

Probably if he had been even more rigorous about his diet he may have lived a bit longer, but he outlived several of his older siblings, who died around age 70 or 72. His younger brother, though, has lived past 80 now I think.

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WilsonCharles

· #31 · Dec 29, 2012

So buddy how's your diet program going, we all are very excited to know what difference comes in you.

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Lumi

· #32 · Jan 6, 2013

Yeah, I'm curious too. How is it going @fourtines?

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