How do you get enough protein as a vegetarian? [Forum Archive]

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How do you get enough protein as a vegetarian?

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Posted by: GOtriSports

So I have recently started being a vegetarian and I really enjoy the life style. However I know it effect my protein intake. My main source of protein comes my Wheyabolic Protein shake (60grams) after I work out. I usually have all natural peanut butter in one of my meals but I don't want to have too much because of the amount of fat grams.
Do you think it would be ok to take two protein shakes a day? The only thing I am nervous about is that I am trying very hard to cut fat. I want my body fat percent to be around 7-8% and i am currently around 11.
I also just started taking VPX meltdown to see if that would help me cut.
Any advice on keeping my protein intake up while being vegetarian would be very very helpful!

Posted by: AusieG

cottage cheese, tofu, and quinoa r really good protein sources.

Posted by: Biggly

Lentils.

B.

Posted by: VanessaNicole

Egg whites are as close to biologically perfect as a source of dietary protein can be for human consumption.

Tofu and dairy products have complete protein.

Beans and lentils have incomplete protein and have to be combined with whole grains.

I typically eat very small amounts of meat because I don't really care for meat that much. I meet my protein requirements with scrambled egg whites, yogurt, cottage cheese and up to two protein shakes per day.

Although, a 60 gram shake is a lot of protein for a single sitting. I would not recommend 60 grams of protein in one shake. Split it up.

Posted by: Biggly

Lentils are not complete but time after time they turn out to be ideal for making other stuff complete, containing methionine (the M of ZMA), threoine and isoleucine.

There's a lot to be said for the humble lentil.

B.

Posted by: jasmine9

Milk is the best way to take proteins if you are vegetarian, and also quinoa is a nice source of protein...

Posted by: Biggly

Can vegans drink milk?

*shows his ignorance of veganism*

B.

Posted by: tucker01

Vegans.... I don't think so....

Vegetarians yes.

Posted by: DaMayor

Quote:

Originally Posted by IainDaniel

Vegans.... I don't think so....

Vegetarians yes.

lacto-vegitarianism....the only way I could survive the lifestyle.

Vegans consume and/or use nothing from animals.

Posted by: VanessaNicole

Milk has too many carbohydrates to be considered a good protein source if you are trying to limit caloric intake.

If you wanted to get 16 grams of protein from low fat or non fat milk, you would also have to consume 24 grams of the disaccharide lactose. That's not a good thing if you are trying to control your weight.

Lentils are best considered a (nutritious and recommended) starch source. Lentils have more than twice as much starch as they have protein. Even if the protein was complete, to get 18 grams of incomplete protein from lentils you would have to consume 231 calories (including 40 grams of carbohydrate). If you wanted 25 grams of complete protein by adding a grain you'd have to consume at least 400 calories.

Further more, when most people say vegetarian, they technically mean lacto-ovo vegetarian. This is what I assume is the case of the OP.

A good protein source provides complete protein with minimal excess calories.

Egg whites are more complete and better retained in the body as protein sources than beef or chicken. I cup of egg whites contains 26 grams of complete, high quality protein and just 121 calories.

Protein powders often contain 20 grams of high quality protein per 120 calories.

Lowfat cottage cheese is a great source of protein, providing 28 grams of complete protein per 164 calories.

If you got all your protein from lentils and milk you'd have a really hard time controlling caloric intake.

Posted by: Jodi

Lentils are as close as you are going to get as a complete protein on their own. They only lack 1 essential amino acid - methionine. Add a few nuts and you have a complete protein. For a vegetarian you are more than likely going to have a higher carb count so essentially I wouldn't worry about the additional 40g of carbs or so that you get from the lentils. Protein should be your main concern and this is one of the great ways to get.

Tofu, soy, beans and whole grains etc.. all other great ways.

Posted by: VanessaNicole

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jodi

Lentils are as close as you are going to get as a complete protein on their own. They only lack 1 essential amino acid - methionine. Add a few nuts and you have a complete protein. For a vegetarian you are more than likely going to have a higher carb count so essentially I wouldn't worry about the additional 40g of carbs or so that you get from the lentils. Protein should be your main concern and this is one of the great ways to get.

Tofu, soy, beans and whole grains etc.. all other great ways.

Simply incorrect. Protein quality is not simply measured by Amino Acid Scoring.

Biological Value and NPU are more accurate and more applicable measures of a protein's value.

You cannot simply "add a few nuts" to lentils to make complete protein. You'd have to add a lot more than that of a complimentary protein.

And for some of us women, 40 grams of carbohydrates is a third of our carbohydrates for the day.

Hell no would I waste 40 carbohydrate grams for a measly 18 grams of incomplete protein.

And if you added rice to create complete protein that would mean you had to consume 65 grams of carbohydrate for a little over 20 grams of complete protein. Thats more than 350 calories.

Posted by: Jodi

Okay there text book nutritionist!

Yes BV and NPA are more accurate and applicable, but a vegan is very strict eating and they aren't going to eat what we feel is essential for a bodybuilding so they have to make due. So, simply put, if you eat something that is missing 1 AA and you eat another item that is missing that AA you essentially now have a complete protein because you are eating all essential amino acids. Granted it's BV is not as great as eating a piece of chicken but it will suffice!

If you only eat 120G of carbs per day thats fine but not everyone does and if a vegan is trying to get the most protein out of items more than likely their carb count will be higher.

Posted by: Jodi

I know that was cruel but you and I have been down this road a few years ago. I just see from your posts that you are still taking things from your 20 year old textbooks that they give you and school. Wish you would start thinking out of the box.............

Posted by: Witchblade

Vanessa isn't a nerd. Look at that booty.

Posted by: VanessaNicole

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jodi

Okay there text book nutritionist!

Well, as I posted earlier I was under the impression that we were talking about a lacto-ovo vegetarian diet (commonly called a "vegetarian" diet).

Correct me if we are supposed to be talking about a vegan diet.

And anyway, that's simply not correct. If you have 18 grams of a given amino acid group profile and you add 2.5 grams (say from half a cup of rice) that does not complete all of the 18 grams of protein from your first group. You need more of that complementary protein source.

And that information simply doesn't change.

That's kind of like saying, "Yeah, well I know you said that the largest blood vessel in the heart was the aorta, but you read that in a text book written 20 years ago".

Well, yes I did, but the vessels of the heart haven't changed. And neither has what we knew about complimentary proteins.

Why are you so enraged by the fact that I went to school, as well as availed myself of the information available in the "bodybuilding world"? It seems to bother you quite a bit.

Posted by: Built

We were certainly talking about lacto, at the very least - the OP is consuming whey. Biggly was the one who was talking about a vegan diet.

I moderate Steve Holt's vegetarian board. Steven's a Grand Master natural bodybuilder (and a lovely man) who also happens to be a vegetarian. Steve's lacto-ovo, but we have members who don't eat eggs, and some who are vegan.

If I might make a suggestion to the OP - 2-5g creatine daily might serve you well: a vegetarian diet won't provide dietary creatine. Supplementing may be prudent.

Posted by: Merkaba

I was vegetarian for about three years. I NEVER got enough protein, And once I put the headphones on I can jog all day. I was the thinnest I've ever been. Too thin for me. Plus I ate so much of that fake meat stuff, and it gets old fast, has way too much sodium and filler crap. Man, I tell you, I ate fake hotdogs and fake chili one day and farted non stop for 24 hours...swear to buddha

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How do you get enough protein as a vegetarian?

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