Weight loss for vegetarians

[LargeInCharge]

Hello!
I’ve been a vegetarian nearly all my life and I want to lose weight to be healthier (and to look better in my clothes) so I thought I’d create a space where fellow veggies (and vegans too) can share their weight loss journeys, food ideas, recipes and how they are feeling.

I started my journey on Tuesday so this is day 4 for me. My daily calorie limit is 1200.

Weight - 15st 4 (weighed on day 1)
Height - 5’ 9
Goal weight - 10st 7

How I gained weight - not exercising, eating crisps, cake, too many carbs and booze.
Positive changes - trying to be more active, ditched the crisps, cake and booze. Limiting my carbs as much as I can.

No pressure to reveal weight or anything that’s personal to you.

Good luck. 🥗🌽🥦🥬🥕🥒🫑🥑🥭🍅🍑🍓🍌🥥🫐

Had a very naughty weekend where I totally over did it with food and drink. I could barely manage my meals today I think I’m still carb full from the weekend. Not good! Scales have upped 2/3lbs but I’m guessing a bit of that is water and bloats from bingeing too.

B: fasted
L: scrambled tofu with tomatoes and spinach - 305kcal
D: huge plate of vegetables with violife cheese and gravy - 325kcal

Snacks: watermelon, almond butter. 4 nuggets to boost my calories as was dangerously low again. - 376kcal

Total 1006, would have been 750ish without the late night nugget binge so was needed!

I have never tried using the Fitbit app without a Fitbit but if you can download it and make an account then it should work because you don’t need to be connected to the watch with Bluetooth to update your food.

B - trek bar
L - bbq tempeh, sweet potato wedges, veg
D - soup and part baked roll
940 total
0.7kg loss this morning! Only 2.5 kg to go until I’ve lost the lockdown weight, which is my first target. Can’t believe how much I put on without really noticing.

Hello to you all, I'd love to join up and try and lose a stone. 5ft 10 and 12.4lbs with two toddlers I find myself snacking throughout the day to keep me going and struggle to find quick healthy options and reach for the easy stuff like carbs and sweet stuff

Had a couple of days of not being great at avoiding the snacks but have been doing longer runs and that has been enough to stop my weight shooting back up.

Yesterday I had a mini mushroom & spinach omelette for breakfast, (150 cal) hone made soup and a 42g slice of bread for lunch (250 cal) and probably should have had a bit more lunch at that point tbh as then maybe I wouldn't have pigged out on about 500 cals worth of snacks mid afternoon. I had a healthy supper (buckwheat bake which I posted about upthread) 400cals then went to a pub (!!!!) and had about 700 cals worth of drinks plus 200 cals worth of bar snacks so that was not a good day I think that totals to about 2200 cals. Ah well.

Today I am going to try to do better.

Welcome @mummybear2104!

I’ve only been on this thread two weeks but found it very supportive and helpful so far. I hope you find it the same!

Welcome @mummybear2104

Well done on the weight loss @PattyPan

Everyone has a wobble now and then during a diet/healthy eating plan and that’s fine. It takes determination and willpower to carry on so onwards and upwards.

Today is my weigh day.

SW - 215lbs
Week 1 - 209.8
Week 2 - 206.8
Week 3 - 205.6
Week 4 - 204.4

Just over a pound. Slow and steady.

Catching up now..

@Themadcatparade I share your pain on the overdoing this weekend (I continued into yesterday)

@PattyPan you're so close to hitting your first target. In terms of weight gain, it's so easily done. When I (eventually) get to target weight, I plan on weighing weekly - when I do that I always maintain, or don't gain more that a few lbs.

welcome@mummybear2104 protein, protein and more protein will hopefully stop you reaching for the carb/sugar snacks. Can you boil up a few eggs to keep in the fridge? what about cucumber/carrots sticks with houmous? If budget allows, even buying the little pre-prepared pots can help if you don't have time. Greek yogurt is another option.

@KihoBebiluPute I've also gone overboard with the snacks (but without the exercise to balance it out!)

@LargeInCharge well done on the loss. You know the lbs all add up.

I'm starting afresh today. I've gone off-track, not calorie counted the last 2 days. Very freeing but also caused a f**k it mentality so I'm resetting. No crisps, chocolate, ice cream, bread for 3 days. I weigh in on Friday. Hoping to maintain - won't expect a loss given I expect to start my period over the weekend.

Today:
B - nothing (sipping on green tea now)
L - scrambled eggs, veggie sausages, kimchi (weird mix but finishing up stuff before grocery delivery due tomorrow)
D - rice and dal
Drinks - glass of wine this eve

Today:
B - nothing (sipping on green tea now)
L - scrambled eggs, veggie sausages, kimchi (weird mix but finishing up stuff before grocery delivery due tomorrow)
D - rice and dal
Drinks - glass of wine this eve

Ok, change of plans. I had veg to use up so have made soup with broccoli, half a courgette, and a stray sweet potato. A pet peeve of mine is food waste, so I'm pleased to use these bits up. Have added tumeric, ginger for an anti-inflammatory boost

Thanks @purplegirl13

I also don’t like food waste. I tend to use up fresh veggies ASAP and ones I think I can’t use up in time get washed, prepped and frozen.

Don’t beat yourself up about going off track. Be positive about carrying on.

@LargeInCharge one portion of soup going in the freezer, and one will go to my mum. She's not one for eating much, I try to make sure she has soup in the freezer so she's getting the nutrients.

Thankfully not feeling guilty, but very aware that I need to rein it in now before I find it difficult to get back on track. I think losing 7lbs (my first target) went to my head! My second target is to lose 1.6lbs to get me to the next stone bracket

@purplegirl13 my mums the same. It’s also very hard to get her to try anything new and when she does try something new she usually won’t like it. I have to be careful about what I say about my weight loss in case she starts reducing her carbs or cutting out things she eats. She’s underweight.

You’ll be back on track before you know it.

I’m expecting a food order later. I added some Philadelphia Milka to try as a treat.
It’s weird how my first port of call is now the fresh veg section whereas before it was usually crisps, cakes, frozen potato shapes and biscuits.

It’s a big turnaround for me because up until a year ago I hadn’t even tried most vegetables.

Has anyone tried Bare Naked Protein noodles? I was supposed to add them to a stir fry for dinner but when I opened them they smelled of fish....I even got dh to smell them to double check. Revolting, they went in the bin.

B - coffee - 26
L - pea, coconut and turmeric soup with a boiled egg - 163
D - quorn, sugar snap peas, spring onion, half tsp olive oil and a tbsp of sriracha....minus smelly noodles - 187
S - 2 protein ryvitas with a laughing cow, 40g dates, 2 Pepsi max cherry cans - 217

Lame total 593 calories.

I’ll eat some more when my order comes to bump it up.

I haven't tried those noodles, as had read reviews about the smell. I'm perfectly happy with rice noodles or egg noodles as I don't have them often and do make sure its a reasonable portion rather than double the amount.

I've stayed on track today. Kind of. Late afternoon snack of flatbread with some of those Ikea vegetable balls I like. Better than me reaching for the crisps.

I didn't calorie count the soup but guesstimate about 200 cals, so I'm ending the day at nearly 1100 cals. Am going to brush my teeth to signal no more food today.

Today:
B: banana.
No snacks all morning as I was wearing a mask so couldn't- yay.
L: half a pack of waitrose Levantine Slaw - with 50 cal of babaganoush, baby spinach leaves and cherry tomatoes, some raw mushrooms and a ryvita with mushroom pate. Plus an apple and a delicious cookie that pushed it all up to about 450 cals.

Mid afternoon was a bit snacktastic again though. I was really resolved not to snack today but I had some upsetting news and didn't have the resilience to be strong and resist the call of the larder. I added an extra 2km onto my evening run as penance so maybe that will make it ok.

Tonight's dinner is chilli again and I will try to keep post-dinner sweetness to just a satsuma hopefully.

I’ve been looking in to trying bare naked noodles, as long as they don’t taste of fish I think I could tolerate it!

Tried to eat quite a bit more yesterday, even added chips and a bit of chocolate in the end to the mix as my total was under 800 before I added them.

Breakfast: garlic seasoned mushrooms with spinach and cheese - 150 guesstimate
Lunch: Aldi no meat meatballs with tenderstem and garlic and herb soft ‘cheese’ to taste - 310
D: bolognaise with a very small portion of chips - 437

S: frozen blended strawberries, two Brazil nuts, a square of 85% chocolate - 149

Just over 1000kcal in total.

I swam for 30 mins yesterday for exercise too.

Last week I didn’t lose anything, in fact by the end of the week (before the weekend binge!) it said I’d put 2/3lbs back on and I can’t understand why. I didn’t have a great good week I was between 1000 and 800kcal all week, super low carbs and I was wondering if I wasn’t eating enough and my body was clinging on to everything it could?

This week is similar, I’ve eaten a bit more and tried to boost it but still pretty much under 1000 most days. I’m not losing anything... can anyone shed some light?!

I’ve added my weight chart for a visual.

Don’t get me wrong I am grateful for how healthy I feel and I do see quite a dramatic change to my body shape as well, I just look much more lean and my clothes feel and look so much better. But I think I’m expecting to keep declining and I’m not sure why I have stalled. I am wavering between 10st 11 and 12 at the moment and I’m just so fixated on seeing that 10st 7! I was just under 10st two and a half year ago and I want to be back to that. Then I settled and lockdown and I ballooned to pushing 11 and a half st. Hence the fasting, the low carb and the no alcohol (we was drinking pretty much nightly in lockdown absolutely terrible), my body has had a huge shock from it all.

Saying this, my skin looks and feel amazing it’s so fresh and clear I feel like a teenager again rather than someone in her 30s!

@KihoBebiluPute I hope everything is ok

@Themadcatparade I do wonder if you are eating enough? Would you feel comfortable upping the carbs to a higher amount? more avocado, nuts and seeds?

Today's plan:
B - nothing (waiting on grocery delivery)
L - flatbread with salad and ikea veggie balls (I am loving these - they can be heated in the microwave for 2 mins)
D - rice and dal
Snack options - cucumber/houmous, boiled egg, peach

As your weight has gone down have you re-checked your tdee?

I know some people who get frustrated with the scales measure their waist, hips, arms etc.

It’s great you’re feeling the benefits of your weight loss and it’s impressive indeed.

@purplegirl13 thank you - I am fine. The teen daughter of a friend of mine has died suddenly and it's desperately awful for her, I am just powerless to do anything about it - we don't live nearby so I can't do anything practical.

Today so far:

B: Banana
L: Some more of the soup I made on Monday, with 40g bread, plus the 2nd half of the Slaw I had yesterday and some Squeekybean pastrami with lettuce, followed by an apple and then 2 chocolate rice cakes. Think that's about 450-500ish calories.

Off into the garden to do some digging. If my hands are covered with earthy dirt maybe that will stop me reaching for the snacks.

So sorry about your friend’s daughter @KihoBebiluPute

@KihoBebiluPute I am sorry to hear that, very tragic.

Slight hop off the wagon today with a spontaneous meet up with a friend in the pub - had half a bottle of prosecco and bar snacks. All fine, as I had 700 cals to spare when I met them. I'll have gone over but I'm ok with that. Hoping for a maintain rather than a loss on Friday

The pub sounds good @purplegirl13 hope you enjoyed.

Yesterday’s total was 965 and mfp wouldn’t let me tap the complete diary button. I was over my protein and fibre goals though.

Today
B - coffee
L - Thai chilli kale/edamame/peas/quinoa soup with 154g quorn pieces and philly Milka with 2 protein ryvitas - 495
D - spinach & spring onion omelette with roasted cauliflower and olive oil and a Fanta zero raspberry - 255
S - strawberries with philly milka on 2 ryvitas and Fanta zero - 215
I’m over my protein and fibre goals again.

991 calories with 209 remaining which I’ll use while watching the sewing bee.

@KihoBebiluPute so sorry to hear that. How awful. Your poor friend.

@LargeInCharge I’ve not had the bare naked noodles but I have had similar konjac noodles. They smell awful until they are rinsed and heated. I don’t know what the bare ones are like but I’ve always found them a bit rubbery. They sort of work but they are unsatisfying and for me a bit of a digestive nightmare as they are so high fibre.

Food wise a boring day today. Oats and protein powder for breakfast (post exercise), quorn ham sandwich and veg for lunch. Tofu, rice and stir fry veg this evening with yoghurt for pudding. I’ll have a bagel later! Found the last few days very tricky, I definitely just want to snack in the evenings. I think because I’m generally tired and in pain by then. Sewing bee will be a good distraction tonight!

My challenge now (even though I'm tucked up in bed) is to resist any more food. I don't need it but the prosecco will be trying to convince me otherwise

notquite what protein powder do you use? If you need to snack this evening, can you reach for popcorn or grapes on the off- chance you have any in? Or cheese and crackers?