vegetarian and low carb questions

speedy2007

Hi everyone

do you think its possible to do low-carb on a vegetarian diet? I mean, im sure it is but would it be very monotonous, which in turn would make it quite a struggle.

Im looking at a low carb food pyramid : http://danbrokamp.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/Low-Carb-Food-Pyramid.jpg

So if you're a veggie, you're probably going to be looking at eggs, dairy products and beans/chickpeas for a lot of your protein. But these are further up on the pyramid, so i guess you should be eating less of these than the meat/fish products which are down the end. The equivalent for a veggie would be tofu, and fake meat (which im not a huge fan of anyways) which isnt a lot of variation.

My other question, can a diet where you just cut out starchy carbs like bread, pasta, potatoes, rice be healthy enough. Is it necessary to do the phase one to get your body into fat burning mode?
I had initially just cut the starchy carbs, which had worked well for me...but now i find im not losing weight anymore, and i feel hungry a lot. I also used to eat chicken but i dont want to eat meat anymore.

Sorry for the long post - reading back over it, it seems a bit all over the place but im a bit confused at the moment. I want to start shedding the weight again and not feel hungry all the time

Sapsorrow

I tried low carb veggie for a while, it's pretty difficult and not ideal from a health perspective in my opinion. You're going to end up eating a lot of omega 6 and feck all omega 3 unless you make a big effort to supplement with fish oil. Also beans and chickpeas aren't low carb so you have to limit those too.How many eggs are you willing to eat in a day? Because they're going to be the best, most complete and healthiest form of protein you'll be able to eat. Why don't you want to eat meat anymore? Going low-carb pescatarian (eating fish) can be an easy and healthy alternative, I'd be very skeptical of the sustainability or long-term consequences of going low carb veggie or vegan for any length of time. I think if your weight is stalling the last thing you should be thinking is going veggie as you can only eat so much vegetarian protein and fats so by default you'll have to eat more carbs.

El_Dangeroso

Like sapsorrow says it is possible, but it takes a lot of planning and you'll end up eating a lot of eggs and cheese which is easy to get sick of very quickly.

If you're gung ho on the veggie thing then go moderate carb (like 80-150g a day) and get most of your carbs from vegetables (including starchy root veg). Stay away from wheat (the fatmaker) and soak beans and chickpeas in very warm water(60C) overnight to increase nutrient availability.

Try to not rely on soy for protein if you can. It has protease inhibitors which actually stop you utilising the protein. We can get away with less protein than you'd think but you'll miss out on some of it's hunger suppressing effects, which is one of the best things bout reducing carbs.

Best of luck!

speedy2007

Thanks for the replies

Actually, i should have said fish not chicken, sorry. I havent eaten chicken for a while, and it was fish that was next on my list to stop eating. Ive wanted to be a proper veggie for a long time - just really the whole eating animals thing i was never too comfortable with.
Perhaps, ill stick with the fish for a while longer, at least til i get where i want to be. I felt so much better and the weight fell off when i initially gave up the starchy carbs, so i'd like to give the proper low-carb diet a go, but i would never go back to eating meat and chicken at this stage.
Eggs i love, i make eggs everyday:D

@Temple - i usually buy canned beans and chickpeas, just for convenience (i rinse them to get rid of any salt). Are the dried ones more nutritious?

I heard some stuff about soy before and how it affects womens hormones, so i gont go too crazy on it. Tofu is really the only soy product i eat, and i prob dont have it more than 2/3 times a week.

Also, does anyone know of a good website that explains the low-carb thing properly. I know i can google, but id like a recommendation if poss so i know im following the right instructions and not some gimmicky version of a low carb

El_Dangeroso

Most websites will leave you confused as an awful lot are filled with made up info. I really think a good book will give you all the detail. A little out of date but protein power lifeplan by Dr. Eades is an excellent start. Has a section on how to do it veggie too.

Sapsorrow

I'm pretty sure Rose Elliot wrote a low car book for vegetarians!