Vegetarians and Weight

[Nupine]

I was a pescetarian for over 3 years, and less than a week ago I started eating meat again. I was at 4-H camp, and there wasn't much to eat, so I ate some chicken, and now I'm completely back to eating meat. My friends are all very happy, and so are my parents. My mom eats a lot of meat, so she was having to go out of her way and make fish for me almost every night. I've always had a hard time when we eat out, always having to get the same few things. So I'm glad as well. I became a pecetarian because of animal rights reasons I had at the time, but those have certainly faded. I raise meat birds, and I own lots of leather. Leather pants, belts, boots, vest, and TONS of leather horse stuff [chaps, saddles, bridles, halters, etc]. I know many vegetarians are VERY healthy, but it wasn't for me because I don't eat a ton of vegetables. I'm not very overweight. I'm in my teens, and I weight 140, and am 5' 5''. I have wanted to lose about 20 pounds for quite some time now. For those of you who were vegetarians [or the like], but went back to eating meat, did you notice that you lost weight, gained weight, or stayed the same?

 

[Nupine]

Anyone?

 

[Wifezilla]

I became very very fat on a vegetarian diet.

I didn't really lose the weight until I not only started eating meat, but also really limited my carbohydrate intake.

 

[onthespot]

So did I. I was talking to my friend yesterday. She said she has been using coconut oil for cooking instead of corn oil and stuff, and the weight just melted off her with no effort. She has a baby not old enough to walk, and last time I saw her she was packing an extra forty pounds or so, but that was many months ago. She rubbed some on my skin and it felt super soft afterwards. They have some with no coco smell. Doesn't change the flavor of food, or make you smell like a beach bum. I will ask her for more info about it if you want.

 

[CityChicker]

Pretty much ditto everything Wifezilla said. I read your post and at first wasn't going to post because I remember a thread like this going south before, so hopefully it won't turn to that. I was a vegan for a few years, followed by vegetarian for several. It wreaked havoc on my health and I was a pretty darn good vegetarian too that ate lots of veggies and always had a source of protein and tried to limit carbs. I gained a TON of weight and developed Diabetes. It was just *not* the diet for me, health wise. I gradually added meat back into my diet and these aspects of my health began to improve immediately.

 

[Wifezilla]

onthespot, coconut oil is a very healthy natural saturated fat. I use virgin coconut oil which does smell and taste like coconut. If I don't want that flavor, I use ghee.

Here is a great article on fats...
http://www.health-report.co.uk/saturated_fats_health_benefits.htm

 

[theoldchick]

Humans are omnivores. We need various sources of protein and do well on animal and vegetable proteins. Young active people require more calories than us old folks and need a good source of protein in order to maintain a healthy body. I know of several vegans who suffer from osteoporosis and are only in their late 20's.

Meat is not bad for you. How the meat is raised is a concern. Commercially grown meat products are horrifying in all aspects including housing, diet and slaughter. Absolutely appalling what we are offered by local stores not to mention fast food restaurants. And don't believe those organically grown products are absolutely pesticide free. The government does allow certain chemicals to be applied and still consider the product 'organic'.

Many folks find a meat/high veggie diet does help them regulate their appetite, and strict vegetarians do have incredible food cravings. Our bodies need a varied diet and tofu just does not make the grade. I've seen sickly vegetarians become healthier when slowly introduced to a 'clean' source of meat such as venison or buffalo. Since these people feel better, they became more active and were able to either lose weight or maintain their current weight. However, these people did look thinner because they were able to exercise at a higher level and increase muscle mass.

On the other hand I have seen vegetarian do well but these folks included peanuts, almonds and so forth in their rather varied diets. Remember, maintaining or losing weight is all about calories. Gotta count whats going in as to what is going out!

 

[Wifezilla]

Remember, maintaining or losing weight is all about calories. Gotta count whats going in as to what is going out!

Sorry, but it isn't. It SOUNDS good and looks good on paper, but it doesn't work that way in real life.

Your body does not treat all macronutrients the same way. Carbohydrates, fats and protein all use different metabolic pathways. I can gain weight on 2000 calories per day eating brown rice, whole wheat and non-fat dairy. I LOSE weight on 2000 calories eating meat, veggies, and plenty of full fat dairy...and I'm not the only one...

"A new study found that obese women that had insulin resistance were able to lose more weight on a low-carb (more of a reduced carbohydrate) diet compared to a low-fat diet of the same number of calories. The study was be presented at the The Endocrine Society's 92nd Annual Meeting in San Diego."
http://www.bestsyndication.com/?q=2...omen_with_insulin_resistance_pre_diabetes.htm​

 

[Nupine]

WOW! I'm really glad I asked about this! I have noticed that I have terrible food cravings, and I always have the urge to eat at night, etc. I also notice that I'm weaker and can't run as fast as most of my meat-eating friends. I really hope this works!

 

[Mattemma]

My friend would do no meat for a long while,but says she feels better when eating some meat. I gave up meat for about 3 months to do my cholesterol test.Maybe 3 months is to short of a time,but I still felt pretty good at that point on a no meat diet.I lost weiht fastest by skipping the meat too.Since my blood test I have eaten some meat.Feel the same but weight in yoyo-ing. I may do veg meals 5 days and add a meat meal 2 days a week to balance things out.