Give me your vegetarian ideas and opinions!

[missmetal]

2 years ago, I became a vegetarian, mainly because at the time I was diagnosed with T2 Diabetes, and I wanted to start eating healthier to maintain my weight and blood sugars. During this time, I always was freaked out by meat, I would have thoughts like:
"gross, I can't believe I was eating muscle fibres.... this looks like it could be flesh from my own body" or just the fact I hated looking at it, it would make me feel sick, or the smell of it cooking... ugh.

Anyway, I went to the doctors for a general check up and they told me my B12 levels were so low, I needed weekly injections.
I stupidly and gradually started introducing meat back into my diet and was eating meat again for about a year.

Now comes a few days after xmas 2016, my body and mind was telling me I need to stop eating meat again, but this time it was for different reasons.
I felt like a hypocrite being such a "huge animal lover" with 3 cats of my own, or leaving water and food out for stray animals who have no home, and yet there I was being a hypocrite with meat on my fork.
I now can't look at meat without thinking "when I look at my cats and then look at a burger, I see no difference, it's still an animal".

Anyway, thats just a bit of back history for my storytime...
I am here to ask advice on making sure I get all of the correct vitamins and minerals this time round, I did purchase 1000 mcg B12 supplements and take 1 every fortnight to help my B12 levels so it won't get as low as last time. Is there anything else I should take into consideration? Any foods I should try or awesome recipes?
I do still eat cheese (cheddar, halloumi, camembert, parmesan...ect), I don't eat eggs as that freaks me out now too, and I drink soy milk in tea or coffee once or twice a week.

[Tobi]

Hi missmetal,
Will any of this info. help you?

Vegan sources of vitamin B12:
https://www.healthaliciousness.com/a...tamin-b-12.php

Cheeses high in vitamin B12:
https://www.healthaliciousness.com/a...itamin-b12.php

Also, vitamin B complex (including B12) taken every day may help you.

I am mostly vegan (but sometimes lapse and eat local free-range eggs occasionally, and ate cheese a couple of times) but when I had a blood test, there was no B12 deficiency at all. I take a B complex daily and have done for years.

However, sometimes there are deeper issues with a B12 deficiency. Do make sure your doctor checks you for those.

[missmetal]

Thank you so much for the reply Tobi, I will definitely look at the links :)

[Baile]

Hi missmetal. I've been on a whole foods only diet for five years now, just vegetables and fruit, in as raw a form as possible. Example, I put spinach and an apple in the blender, add 100% fruit juice, and that's my breakfast, lasts me til noon. I don't take supplements, but I understand why people might need to. I've been thinking about B vitamins lately so I may do that.

[Baile]

Something else I do: I make up a pot of vegetable soup to last 2-3 days. I blend it into liquid and put a couple of containers of it in the freezer. I leave out one container for that day. When I'm hungry, I pour a cup into a pot, then add raw broccoli, mushrooms, etc. with a few spices. Heat and eat. I used to add brown rice, black beans, different grains as well but I'm only doing vegetables now.

[missmetal]

Originally Posted by Baile

Something else I do: I make up a pot of vegetable soup to last 2-3 days. I blend it into liquid and put a couple of containers of it in the freezer. I leave out one container for that day. When I'm hungry, I pour a cup into a pot, then add raw broccoli, mushrooms, etc. with a few spices. Heat and eat. I used to add brown rice, black beans, different grains as well but I'm only doing vegetables now.

This sounds wonderful, thanks so much for your ideas :)

[Baile]

Originally Posted by missmetal

I drink soy milk in tea or coffee once or twice a week.

My last vice: every morning, one cup of strong dark-roasted coffee with molasses and soy. At least it's not M&Ms!

[mogenblue]

I switched to vegetarian for health reasons. My digestion improved, but I could not lose weight.
Once I dumped cheese from my diet losing weight started with no further effort at all. It was like magic.

I am so glad I switched to vegan.

The only thing to take care of is B12. Jack Norris recommends 2 1000 mcg tablets a week, if I am correct.
I mix 1 tablet through my bread dough. I do 5 days with one bread so on average I take 200 mcg of B12 a day.
Before that I also put it in the cake batter for cakes. But with a blood test my B12 level turned out to be too high from that. So now I only put it in my bread dough.

Vegans need more proteins then omnivores. About 15 % more.
I had some difficulties in finding the right food with enough plant based proteins.
Nowadays I make bean burgers, seitan, hummus and cakes. I make it all myself because it just taste better. My taste has changed overtime. Plus you have complete control over what goes in to it.
In the beginning I used vegan burgers and so from the supermarket.
I took me a few years to find my way.

Here is a thread with vegan recipes:
Vegan Recipes

I feel so much better on this diet. Hope you will too.

[missmetal]

Originally Posted by mogenblue

I switched to vegetarian for health reasons. My digestion improved, but I could not lose weight.
Once I dumped cheese from my diet losing weight started with no further effort at all. It was like magic.

I am so glad I switched to vegan.

The only thing to take care of is B12. Jack Norris recommends 2 1000 mcg tablets a week, if I am correct.
I mix 1 tablet through my bread dough. I do 5 days with one bread so on average I take 200 mcg of B12 a day.
Before that I also put it in the cake batter for cakes. But with a blood test my B12 level turned out to be too high from that. So now I only put it in my bread dough.

Vegans need more proteins then omnivores. About 15 % more.
I had some difficulties in finding the right food with enough plant based proteins.
Nowadays I make bean burgers, seitan, hummus and cakes. I make it all myself because it just taste better. My taste has changed overtime. Plus you have complete control over what goes in to it.
In the beginning I used vegan burgers and so from the supermarket.
I took me a few years to find my way.


I feel so much better on this diet. Hope you will too.

Thank you so much for the info and the link to the website... I will have to maybe look at getting rid of cheese sometime soon! (or at least try the vegetarian / vegan cheese you can buy at a supermarket?)

Thank you for the tips on B12, at this stage I just take 1 tablet every fortnight until I get my bloods taken and see if I need to change my actions :)

[mogenblue]

Originally Posted by missmetal

I will have to maybe look at getting rid of cheese sometime soon! (or at least try the vegetarian / vegan cheese you can buy at a supermarket?)

Cheese can really be a kind of addiction. It took me a long time to get rid of that. But with my weight spiralling out of control I was forced to make a decision.

Cheese provides a lot of proteins but also a lot of saturated fats and salt.
So if you dump cheese, where do you get your proteins from. It took me some time to figure that out.

You get them from grains and legumes. But the thing is how to make them tasty, how to prepare them in such a way that you really like to eat it.
I solved that with bean burgers, seitan, hummus and cake. And I make my own plant based milk.
And I also bake my own bread, which is so much better then what you buy in the supermarket.

As a result I spend a lot more time in the kitchen. A freezer is also a must have to store the food for later use. But I am ok with that. I am willing to spend all that time preparing my food. Because I feel so much better. And I also have the time to do that.

We don't have that many vegan cheese options in my country. And what I have read from it it's either not so tasty or it's completely made of coconut oil, so no proteins anymore.

Tahin is also a great source of nutritions. And a very good flavor enhancer.