RE: vegetarian

[Guest guest]

I eat many veggie foods. I do not eat any red meat , and eat fish and chicken

on occasion. I am not a true vegetarian , I would say maybe eat that way 50%

off the time.

Di

[Guest guest]

> I know that has been working on reducing meat

> consumption, are there

> any other vegetarian south beachers on the list?

> I am going to be moving in that direction very soon.

>

> Suggestions for getting started?

Make soup.

Lots of it.

:-)

Also, stock up on lots of frozen veggies.

As for reducing meat consumption, I'm beyond that -- it is no longer a main

aspect of my diet and has not been for a week and a half. I've probably had

8oz of meat in 2 weeks, IF that. I'm toying with giving up fish altogether

as well. I do not eat it often, so it's not THAT big a thing to give up but

I don't know if I can give up my sushi.

#1 quick meal (after leftovers and frozen bowls of soup) ==> vegetable stir

fry or something with pasta.

[Guest guest]

> Do you use beans as your primary source of protein, or tofu products?

I eat beans, whole grains, dairy, and eggs; all offer sources of protein.

> I am starting to like beans more and more, especially since

> I've started baking cakes with it.

LOL I haven't tried the bean cake recipes yet; I don't do the artificial

sweetener thing and I haven't quite figured out how to use stevia.

> Any pointers for avoiding gas with increased bean consumption?

About the only thing I can suggest is to cook them well and to ease into it.

Beans do not really give me issues, fortunately.

> I really like the healthy aspects of south beach, but since I

> have been on this diet I have been eating more meat than ever

> before, and I don't like that very much. I think I'll move

> to Tuna and eggs more, and of course beans. Meat is just so

> convenient.

Nothing says you have to eat so much meat though -- you can always move

towards fish and increased veggies. I've found that it's really all a

matter of preparation. If you have stuff already made up, you'll find it

more convenient. THEN you won't need to go with the meat option so easily.

[Guest guest]

> Nothing says you have to eat so much meat though -- you can always move

> towards fish and increased veggies.

Do you eat a protein with each meal or snack, or do you sometimes just eat

vegetables? Does it satiate?

I've found that it's really all a

> matter of preparation. If you have stuff already made up, you'll find it

> more convenient. THEN you won't need to go with the meat option so

> easily.

It's true, and I do a lot pf prep already, I guess it's the main course

dishes that I'll have the biggest challenge getting my head around.

The family will be wanting to eat meat regularly, Ok really just my husband.

(He's thin as a pin, and a marathon runner) The kids: not so much-- in fact

the 6 year old doesn't particularly like meat in the first place, and the 2

year old couldn't care less what I give him, he eats everything. I'll just

have to make sure that they get a good balance of nutrition.

Thanks for the encouragement,

[Guest guest]

Di, I would love to hear more about how you incorporate SBD with mostly

veggies - I am stalling in P2, and really love to cut back on red meat.

Do you do a lot of dairy and nuts to replace the meat, or replace

mainly with veggies? How about soy products?

Thanks so much!

Teddyberen@... wrote:

> I eat many veggie foods. I do not eat any red meat , and eat fish and

> chicken

> on occasion. I am not a true vegetarian , I would say maybe eat that

> way 50%

> off the time.

> Di

[Guest guest]

...

I do soy products. I eat tofu and tempeh and beans when not eating fish or

chicken. I buy the lite tofu, in firm .I drink soy milk. I drink the Soy

Slender.

I make soups with beans and tofu. The bean soups I freeze, the tofu I do not.

I take to work many times.

This morning, I had scrambled tofu with veggies, and one soy sausage.

For lunch, I had a bean burger from leftover chickpeas or garbanzos. I took

beans, put into food processor with some leftover oatmeal for binding,

leftover veggies,and some fresh herbs and seasonings, and made it flat like a

hamburger patty, and fried in small amt. of olive oil and had that with a large

salad. When I heated up the bean patty at work, I put a slice of soy cheese on

top

of it.

When in stall, I watch my carbs. You see I had no bread with lunch or

breakfast, as I am trying to lose the 10 pounds I put on.

I also eat veggie burgers on occasion that I purchase.

I do eat nuts as a snack at times, but I need to watch this,as I have a hard

time staying with the limit.

Hope this helps you.

Di

[Guest guest]

> Do you eat a protein with each meal or snack, or do you

> sometimes just eat vegetables? Does it satiate?

I think MOST meals contain SOME kind of protein, although not necessarily a

complete protein.

It's important to remember that we get WAY more protein than we need in the

first place. According to the USDA, we should take in 44-63 grams of

protein a day. There are two types of proteins; complete and incomplete

(complete are the ones listed on the labels, BTW, so there could be more

protein in a product than is listed on the label). A complete protein

contains both essential and non-essential amino acids whereas incomplete

proteins do not have the essential amino acids. The body can synthesize

non-essential amino acids and even stores the " parts " it needs for a few

days. Where you run into problems is when you do not get the essential

amino acids.

If you get a good, solid mix of foods on your diet, then you'll most likely

be fine. Nuts, seeds, legumes (including soy), and unrefined grains are all

good sources of protein.

> It's true, and I do a lot pf prep already, I guess it's the

> main course dishes that I'll have the biggest challenge

> getting my head around. The family will be wanting to eat

> meat regularly, Ok really just my husband. (He's thin as a

> pin, and a marathon runner) The kids: not so much-- in fact

> the 6 year old doesn't particularly like meat in the first

> place, and the 2 year old couldn't care less what I give

> him, he eats everything. I'll just

> have to make sure that they get a good balance of nutrition.

As with other meal suggestions for the SBD, nothing says you can't make a

meat for them and simply not partake. You can bake chicken, make a stir fry

and add chopped chicken later, cook steaks in a separate skillet, and so

forth. There are also plenty of dishes you can make that are in fact

vegetarian but palatable by all (consider pasta, for example).

Something I tell folks seeking to move to a vegetarian diet -- go slowly.

This is especially useful in a mixed-diet household. Start off by

eliminating all red meat, then drop chicken and other poultry. Reduce

consumption of fish. You'll need to decide what " kind " of vegetarian you

want to be. Pesco (fish), pollo(poultry), lacto (dairy), ovo (egg), or

strict. If you're doing it for animal rights reasons (vegans) then you have

an even tougher road to run because there are issues with even non-meat

products (such as refined sugar which uses the bones of steer in the

filtering process) and of course, home items such as personal hygiene

(animal testing), leather and so forth. Once you've made that decision,

it's much easier to plot a course to the veg*n diet of choice.

At the moment, I'm lacto-ovo, myself. My wife won't go vegetarian -- ain't

happenin'. (For that matter, she's not SBD either.) SO, like you, we

have a mix. It can be challenging at times.

[Guest guest]

Some info on protein for vegetarians:

http://www.vegsoc.org/info/protein.html