Vegetarian, not this time

I have been eating vegetarian for a few months now and I am not getting the weight loss that I want. I think I'm going to throw in the towel and go back to animal proteins for now. I can get my protein from foods and not all protein shakes, like I've been doing.

Any opinions about vegetarianism and VSG?

pre vsg, the most weight I ever gained was while being vegetarian.

Pist vsg, I think it would be the same thing.

Like hollykim, I gain weight on a vegetarian diet. It ends up being too carby, and I struggle to get the protein in too.

Beans and such appear to be high in protein, but when I measure out the tiny amount I can eat, all of a sudden the protein has dwindled to next to nowt. LOL

I looked through your posting history, and you have a trend of never replying to people who take the time to comment on your posts and try to help you. I hope that you'll stick around and actually participate this time.

There are lots of opinions here about veg*nism and WLS, most of them are negative. It is possible, but it takes a lot of hard work.

Based on your history, it seems like you should work on focusing on the basics, not add in any additional dietary restrictions to the already restrictive post-WLS diet, and see a therapist to help you sort out why you keep falling off track so that you'll be able to stay on track this time and get to where you want to be.

Hi Gwen,

Thanks for the advice. I think you're right that I should stick to the basics and not complicate things. I have wanted to be vegan for a long time, but I don't think that way is going to work for me at this point. I see what the results are and I'm sure it will be better with the low carb version of a meal plan.

I think the recommended daily servings of fruit and vegetable is 5? I'm pretty sure I've gotten in my 5. Since surgery in 2012. That's about 1 serving a year. Seriously.

Honestly, sticking to a carnivorous diet has been immensely helpful for my weightloss and maintenance. Getting rid of carbs really helps burn fat and cut cravings.

Speaking as a vegetarian, it hasn't been hard for me to get in my protein goals. I'm 3 ish months post op, and have lost 50% of my excess weight as well. It's definitely not as easy as cooking up a piece of chicken to eat, but if you really want to succeed on a vegetarian diet, you need to make sure you're eating foods with the most protein. Plenty of veggie burgers and tofu options have lots of protein in them nowadays. I've been a vegetarian for over a year and have never felt better. It's possible!

If you can get in 80g protein per day as a vegetarian without excessive calories, then go for it. But I think it might be hard to do. Do you do eggs and dairy? Maybe use soy protein. GL

You should hook up with Dr. Alvarez on youtube. He's a WL surgeon and has gone vegetarian. I'm sure if you contact him, he'll give you some protein ideas.

Alvarez is good, and there is also Dr. Matthew Weiner on youtube who, while not strictly vegetarian, does promote a "vegetable first" approach to bariatrics which has a lot of merit, particularly for the long term.