Losing weight and an appropriate vegan diet

[Classic]

I am 106 Kg (234 pounds) and 188 cm (74 inches). My diet is terrible. Though I have been trying to keep it vegan since last September (the 1st), I really really never cared about my health when it comes to what I eat, I ate a lot of unhealthy food, even more during the final exams period because I stayed home all day. It's time to fix that. Help!

Any advice is appreciated. I can get the stationary bike from the old apartment to my room here, how much shall I exercise? How many meals shall I have? And what exactly shall I eat?

Part of why I never regulated my diet is because I am a perfectionist, I have a false dichotomy, either it gets perfect or none at all. So as long as I know exactly what I should follow, I am sure I will adhere to it 100%, but please help me with that.

Peace out.

Edit: I am 22 (or will be in a couple of days) if that's of any use here.

[brimstoneSalad]

What's your daily food budget, and where do you live?

[Classic]

What's your daily food budget, and where do you live?

I live in Egypt. Here, teens remain dependent on their parents for a longer period, so yeah, just a reasonable middle-class budget.

[brimstoneSalad]

I really don't know what a middle-class budget means there. Unfortunately, I'm also not very familiar with the costs of food there.

A few things to start:

Only drink water, nothing with sugar in it, not even fruit juice.
No oil or processed foods.

Mainly just eat green vegetables and lentils, potatoes, onions, and whole wheat bread. Boil them (lentils and vegetables and potatoes, don't fry them). If you can find whole wheat pita, that's a good option.
Avoid very sweet fruits; tomatoes and eggplant are fine, and of course peppers (try to find red peppers that are not very spicy).

Use whatever herbs or spicy peppers you like to season.

You can eat walnuts for good fat. Avoid sesame tahini, it's very high in Omega 6 fat, which may not be great for your heart unless you can find enough Omega 3 to balance it out.

Do you have blackberries in Egypt?

[Viking Redbeard]

Not saying you have to go this way, but I'm doing absolutely marvelously on fruit for breakfast (4 or 5 bananas, blueberries, acai, pineapple, whatever I can find blended to make a smoothie with almond milk, maple syrup, cocoa powder, etc), fruit for lunch (again, loads of bananas, apples, kiwis, anything I can find) and a vegan whole foods cooked dinner (mainly rice dishes, or lentils, pasta, anything low in fat and salt, lots of greens). I eat on average 4500 calories a day, and I always eat until I'm completely satisfied. I go running twice a week, lift weights every week, work bloody hard, and I always have loads of energy.

My wife eats a similar diet, but less of it since she hates exercise. Even so, she's lost weight since starting it, and she says she feels great.

I don't calorie restrict because calorie restricting will do a number of bad things, including slowing down your metabolism (which will actually cause your body to retain fat rather than lose it) and making you a little screwed in the head due to lack of sugars like glucose. This is why people on calorie restrictive diets so often thin down, feel like crap, inevitably fall off the wagon, binge and blow out again. It's a vicious circle. So don't calorie restrict - just eat lots of good healthy whole foods, mainly fruit and veg.

You might want to check out this little app - it might help you see where you're going wrong and how to make your diet better: https://cronometer.com/

[brimstoneSalad]

I eat on average 4500 calories a day, and I always eat until I'm completely satisfied. I go running twice a week, lift weights every week, work bloody hard, and I always have loads of energy.

My wife eats a similar diet, but less of it since she hates exercise. Even so, she's lost weight since starting it, and she says she feels great.

That concerns me a little if your wife is eating these things in the same ratio as you are. The calorie to protein ratio in your diet is rather poor; it works great for you because you burn off all of the extra calories (carbs are the ideal energy source, after all). If your wife is eating the same thing but less of it, I would be worried about protein a bit because sweet fruits and rice are both very low in protein.
Lentils and greens are high in protein, but as I said, with the same ratio to your 4.500 calorie diet, she may not be eating enough of those. It's something to watch out for.

Vegans only have to worry about protein if they're eating a lot of sweet fruit, rice, and things like that.

So don't calorie restrict - just eat lots of good healthy whole foods, mainly fruit and veg.

I agree, but sub in non-brown-rice whole grains and nuts, and non-sweet fruits like tomatoes and peppers, instead of sweet fruits. Sweet fruits, aside from the rare exceptions like blackberries, are only a good plan if you're planning to burn through a lot of calories.

Calorie restriction can work if you actually stick to it and measure properly (most people do not, both guesstimating to overeat regularly, and binge eating), but it's usually unnecessary to count calories if you're eating a high fiber whole food diet. The sheer volume will make it harder to overeat.

[Viking Redbeard]

Yeah, she eats fewer calories than I do, and she goes a bit heavier on the greens and the grains, as well as soy and tofu. Plus she burns off a lot of calories at work (it's a Japanese company after all) so I think she's doing fine.

As for myself, I was rather shocked to find that when I started eating a very heavy fruit diet my muscles actually got bigger and my strength went up. This time last year I was going through my regular gym workout in about an hour - these days I can usually do it in about 50 mins. That's freaking ridiculous!

Sweet fruits, aside from the rare exceptions like blackberries, are only a good plan if you're planning to burn through a lot of calories

Yes, but since starting this diet I've found myself much more inclined to get up earlier and move my body, so maybe wanting to move around and exercise is a consequence of eating this way. I have no study to hand to back this up. However, I seem to remember Colin Campbell mentioning that the rats in his plant food diet used the exercise wheel significantly more than the ones on the animal protein diet. I wonder if rats (or humans) on a high fruit diet aren't even more inclined to be active.

[Jebus]

Hi Classic,

I worked in Egypt for six months back in 2002. It was before I turned vegan, although I was a lacto vegetarian at the time. It was hard to find mock meats and I don't recall ever seeing soy or tofu. However, I remember there were lots of nuts and grains available everywhere. I also remember eating foul (that's how it was pronounced but I don't know how it's spelled) which was basically crushed beans and was available everywhere I went. This would be a good source of vegan protein.

[Classic]

I really don't know what a middle-class budget means there. Unfortunately, I'm also not very familiar with the costs of food there.

A few things to start:

Only drink water, nothing with sugar in it, not even fruit juice.
No oil or processed foods.

Mainly just eat green vegetables and lentils, potatoes, onions, and whole wheat bread. Boil them (lentils and vegetables and potatoes, don't fry them). If you can find whole wheat pita, that's a good option.
Avoid very sweet fruits; tomatoes and eggplant are fine, and of course peppers (try to find red peppers that are not very spicy).

Use whatever herbs or spicy peppers you like to season.

You can eat walnuts for good fat. Avoid sesame tahini, it's very high in Omega 6 fat, which may not be great for your heart unless you can find enough Omega 3 to balance it out.

Do you have blackberries in Egypt?

Thanks a lot! Whole wheat products might be expensive, I will look for all of that. Boiled potatoes and carrots are very accessible around the house. Also, apples, cucumbers, and lettuce. I drink a lot of juice, I will stop that. Bananas are delicious, I hope that one is fine as a fruit. And grapes (blue and green).

The tahini advice is very valuable.

I need your thoughts on these as well, because they are very very accessible everywhere here: Foul and Falafel (maybe avoid the oil?), and hummus, Lupinus seeds (is that how it is called? It's yellow), Corchorus 'soup' or whatever its name (which we add on rice), also peas (same as the latter). I think that's it.

Also, protein as you mentioned, is a concern, so what is the main source of protein? I don't want to miss that. What about Iron? Dark vegetables or what? I can take Vitamin B tablets.

I don't remember seeing blackberries around unfortunately.

Sorry for the many questions!

Not saying you have to go this way, but I'm doing absolutely marvelously on fruit for breakfast (4 or 5 bananas, blueberries, acai, pineapple, whatever I can find blended to make a smoothie with almond milk, maple syrup, cocoa powder, etc), fruit for lunch (again, loads of bananas, apples, kiwis, anything I can find) and a vegan whole foods cooked dinner (mainly rice dishes, or lentils, pasta, anything low in fat and salt, lots of greens). I eat on average 4500 calories a day, and I always eat until I'm completely satisfied. I go running twice a week, lift weights every week, work bloody hard, and I always have loads of energy.

My wife eats a similar diet, but less of it since she hates exercise. Even so, she's lost weight since starting it, and she says she feels great.

I don't calorie restrict because calorie restricting will do a number of bad things, including slowing down your metabolism (which will actually cause your body to retain fat rather than lose it) and making you a little screwed in the head due to lack of sugars like glucose. This is why people on calorie restrictive diets so often thin down, feel like crap, inevitably fall off the wagon, binge and blow out again. It's a vicious circle. So don't calorie restrict - just eat lots of good healthy whole foods, mainly fruit and veg.

You might want to check out this little app - it might help you see where you're going wrong and how to make your diet better: https://cronometer.com/

Thank you! I have checked at least the almond milk, it is expensive.

Thanks for the app.

Hi Classic,

I worked in Egypt for six months back in 2002. It was before I turned vegan, although I was a lacto vegetarian at the time. It was hard to find mock meats and I don't recall ever seeing soy or tofu. However, I remember there were lots of nuts and grains available everywhere. I also remember eating foul (that's how it was pronounced but I don't know how it's spelled) which was basically crushed beans and was available everywhere I went. This would be a good source of vegan protein.

What a coincidence here, haha. Yeah, I've never seen soy or tofu. Exactly, a lot of nuts and grains everywhere!

It's spelled as "fool" and there's ta'meya (falafel).

Thanks!

[brimstoneSalad]

Also, apples, cucumbers, and lettuce. [...] Bananas are delicious, I hope that one is fine as a fruit. And grapes (blue and green).

Unfortunately, none of those are very useful.

Avoid lettuce, seek dark leafy greens: Kale, collards, mustard greens, and occasionally spinach. Broccoli is excellent. Any cruciferous vegetables are usually a good pick.
Also, allium vegetables. Garlic, Onion, green onion, etc.

Strawberries are not too bad, since as small berries they have some redeeming qualities.

I need your thoughts on these as well, because they are very very accessible everywhere here: Foul

I'll defer to Jebus on that one. But if you can get a recipe for it that's common there, I can give you more feedback. Is it oily?

and Falafel (maybe avoid the oil?)

Yeah, too much oil. Chickpeas are excellent, though, same with chickpea flour. If you have an oven, you can do it baked. Does anybody sell anything like baked Falafel there?

and hummus,

I love hummus, but it's made with sesame tahini, which is very high in Omega 6. If you can find some that's light on tahini and that nobody added olive oil to, you'll be good. The ground chickpeas, lemon, salt, pepper, cumin, and garlic are all fine.

Lupinus seeds (is that how it is called? It's yellow)

Lupin beans are fine.

Corchorus 'soup' or whatever its name (which we add on rice)

Corchorus leaves are fine. I don't know what else is in the soup though. However: No rice. Even brown rice is no good.
Black rice and wild rice are fine, but I don't know if you have them there.
Oats and buckwheat are fine too. There should be other grain options to replace rice, but I don't know what.
You could avoid grains entirely if you just can't find whole grains aside from rice.

Potatoes are pretty decent, as long as not fried.

also peas (same as the latter).

Peas are good.

Also, protein as you mentioned, is a concern, so what is the main source of protein? I don't want to miss that. What about Iron? Dark vegetables or what? I can take Vitamin B tablets.

You just need to take B-12, and vitamin D if you don't get much sun.

It's easier to tell you what protein is not in, compared to what it is in.

Only things like processed sugar and oil have virtually no protein. Protein is an essential part of every living cell, plant, animal, fungus, bacteria. Living things are made of protein, so it's only completely lacking when something is highly processed to remove the protein.

Protein isn't high in extremely sweet things. Most sweet fruit. Because they've produced a bunch of extra sugar, which raises the calories without raising the protein or other nutrients much.
Green vegetables are very high in protein, and so are most grains (except white/brown rice, and light colored corn, which have been cultivated to produce more starch at the expense of protein -- dark red/blue more 'wild' like corn is usually fine, like black and wild rice strains). Beans and seeds are all high in protein.

I don't remember seeing blackberries around unfortunately.

Sorry to hear it. Do you have any land? Maybe you can plant some. Blackberries are one of few sweet fruits which are actually pretty low in sugar, and still loaded with antioxidants.