Would you go Vegan?

 You can get all the essential amino acids if you understand how to combine your food (i.e., grains + beans).  It does take a lot more work.  If you are willing to eat dairy or eggs (lacto-ovo vegeterian), then it is no problem.  

Go rent the movie "Food, Inc." and you will be inspired to make dietary changes.

We dont eat much red meat in my houshold. In fact my daughter is a "natural" vegetarian meaning I did not raise her that way. She just doesnt like meat. She'll eat seafood though. So we eat a lot of seafood. Which I love too. And i'll eat chicken, poultry and occassionally pork. Actually I havent had any meat since my preop diet. But its no big deal. I could never be vegan. I also love milk eggs and cheese. I'll be so glad when I can have an egg!

But with that said I want to clarify that being a vegetarian or vegan does not mean you cant be fat. There are plenty obese vegetarians/vegans out there. Its all about moderation. Thats one thing wls teaches us, moderation.

Not vegan, but I could go lacto-ovo vegetarian in a heartbeat. The only reason I eat meat any more is so I can have a meal with my family most days of the week. Yesterday I had about 1 3/4 oz of chicken. I enjoyed it but would have been just as happy not too.

For folks with bigger sleeves, eating meat is critical to keep themselves feeling full -dense protein is the best for this of anything. I use protein shakes a lot, I enjoy eggs, dairy, yogurt. Because my tummy is so tiny, meat fills me up too fast to eat much of it.

I live with a vegetarian and he eats a lot of Beans,Tofu,meat-substitutes and still he is lacking on Protein, he is always looking for more ways to get in Protein.....Now me on the other hand I tried it for about a year 2 years ago I gained soooo much weight because I ate a lot of carbs....I didn't care for most of the meat-substitutes so for me it was an EPIC FAIL...I do not eat pork or beef at all just because I am not a big meat eater and never have been...I stopped pork and beef about 8 years ago,I eat chicken,Turkey and seafood and I am good with that.I tried it its not for me.

1) Humans are omnivores and complete protein we need is very rare in the plant world.  To get enough post VSG, you have to eat more than a sleeve can take in.

2) Grain and vegetable production kills more animals than slaughter houses.  Intensive row farming needed to produce grains, soybeans, etc., destroys habitats and kills plenty of animals in the process.  Discing and plowing fields chops snakes and fuzzy little critters into bits so that vegans can feel like they have no blood on their hands.  The most 'humane' food production is actually free-range, grass-fed cattle.  The amount of animal 'suffering that occurs to produce one pound of free-range beef is a fraction of that to produce one pound of TVP. 

3) I was a vegan for years, and it's really not a very fun lifestyle nor particularly healthy. There are plenty of fat vegans.  Philosophically,  it's a flawed world view, as I came to realize.  Even Peter  Singer, father of the modern Animal Rights movement suggests you have to weigh the sum of 'suffering' against 'happiness.'  A humanely raised animal killed quickly and painlessly  likely experienced more 'content' or equivalent of 'happiness' than suffering during it's life. 

We inhabit this planet, and while I'm a huge fan of being a good steward of animals, local, sustainable food, and eating healthy, there is no way for the human race to NOT cause animal suffering short of us all joining hands and leaping lemming-like into the Grand Canyon. Even then, we'd squash animals when we crashed to our doom. 

Best POV I've heard in a long time & dead-on (pun-intended.)

 Good GOD NO!  

Seriously though, some people love their vegan lifestyle.  I have many friends who are either vegetarian or vegan (they are not the same).  Some are militant about it, some are not.  I recently lost one "friend" who thought I was disgusting because I did not want to go completely vegan while he visited me in my home and I supplied the food.  If your friend can't accept your decisions and you for who you are, he may not be a real friend.

When I first went back to solid foods, I tried to incorpoate some vegan dishes into my meals as my protein source.  I learned that I really like the Boca Vegan Veggie patties.  Honestly, thats about the only thing I liked.  I tried many different products - didn't like 99% of them.  They all either had a texture I found unappealing or were way too peppery tasting (IMHO - it tasted like red pepper was the ONLY seasoning they used in them).

As far as tofu goes as a protein source.  I have had some I could tolerate, some (read:  Thousand Layer Tofu) was so despicable i launched it across the room out of my mouth.  I would rather eat a dirty dishwashing sponge.

I would say give some vegan foods a try - you may find stuff you like.  Most supermarkets have a good vegan section.  For me, it just didnt work out.

There are some vegetarian and vegan foods that I love, but I will never go vegan (unless if there was some medical reason I needed to).

I love meat!!  My main foods are chicken, beef, bacon, turkey, and various jerkies.  However, I also love morningstar and boca burgers, as well as stuff like beans and quinoa. 

Due to my eating issues (a binge eater who had a habit of self imposing eating restrictions that led to more boughts of binge eating), my therapist & nutritionist taught me to not deprive myself of anything- it just leads to bingeyness.  I love meat, so I'm not going to give it up, just to be a little healthier :)  Please note- just because I give myself permission to eat whatever kinds of food I want, it doesn't change the fact that I try to stick strictly to my plan 99% of the time (protein first at every meal, no grazing, 2-3 ounces protein at every meal followed by up to .25 cup fruits/veggies, 800-1200 calories a day, work out 5-6 days a week, 80+ grams of protein a day, 64+ ounces of water a day)

My son has recently started cooking only vegan meals and has lost about 25 pounds. A LOT of the food that he cooks is delicious but I can't eat it now.

Been looking for those tofu noodles every where and haven't been able to find any yet. I've read a lot of LOVE/HATE posts about them. Would love to try them one of these days.