any vegetarians?

It's been more than a year since I posted. I'm four years post op and have only lost about 20 lbs maybe a little more I think it might be 29. But anyway. My cholesterol is out of control and I want to go vegetarian and I was wondering if any of you have any tips on how to do this as a vegetarian? There are other reasons for becoming vegetarian too but I'm worried about my weight ventures with me not eating meat. I don't eat beans so How would I get my protein in?

If you use the search function at the top of the page and type in "Vegetarian food plans" you will get a lot of posts to read and an idea of who on OH is a vegetarian. I hope that helps.

There are a few. Some vegans too!

Dietary cholesterol does not cause cholesterol levels to increase. You're more likely to decrease your cholesterol with healthy diet and exercise. That said, there's certainly nothing wrong with a veg*n diet, just don't fool yourself about what it will accomplish.

If you are 4 years out and have only lost 20-29 pounds...in your own words....you need to examine what has gone on that you weren't as successful as you wanted.

Did you lose and regain? Still emotional eating? Not exercising? Not making goof food choices? Not drinking your water/fluids? Just said WTF and eating what I want?

I know there are many reasons why people choose to become vegetarian...my own experience of 5 years of strict vegetarianism- that is when I went from overweight/obese to Morbidly obese....and stayed MO for 20 years pre-WLS.

Even if you are eating healthy foods a vegetarian diet will be very carb heavy and lower protein...which goes against the recommendations for a post-WLS diet to be successful.

McDonald's french fries are still vegetarian...they won't help your weight loss or your cholesterol...so if you haven't dealt with why you didn't lose the weight in the first place...you probably will not be successful. That may seem harsh, but going vegetarian is not a magic wand, just like WLS isn't- it is an opportunity not a guarantee.

Many people here eat a protein forward diet- lots of meat and have low cholesterol, me included. Going vegetarian is not necessarily going to solve your problems there either...

Just some things to think about. Good Luck.

McDonald fries are not vegan! Their french fries contain beef flavoring (beef tallow). I'm pretty sure they plan to remove this in time because of a lawsuit, but their fries still contain beef flavoring.

A hint of beef in the fries? No wonder I loved them so much.

And oreos are actually vegan. Which makes me sad since my vegan bff can eat them and I can't (because of the HFCS). Which just seems wrong :P

I've done some research and starting to wonder if my cholesterol is med related not food related. I have been eating healthy but due to meds my weight loss never really came. I'm on psych meds that cause weight gain. They are vicious. The reason for wanting to stop eating meat is my cholesterol and because i'm newly practicing buddhism. Harm none which in turn means no meat. I can eat nuts and stuff like that but beans make me sick. I have a tempromental tummy it gets sick easily. Things that are too heavy make me sick. I can eat nuts but only in very small quanities or I get sick. I love nuts though so unless they make me vomit I'm not giving them up. I want my cholesterol to go down. I'm getting older and am more concerned about my health. The fact that I have a big belly is a bother also but that's not the reason for going vegetarian. I just want to live a simple and satisfying life. I'm doing a lot of salads with cheese and nuts and fruit in them. I'm using vinegrette dressing. My big calories for the day are my coffee creamer. I can't seem to kick the habit and I'm getting about 300 calories a day in creamer. It's crazy and ridiculous. I have to cut it some how.

My cholesterol is so low that they actually re-ran it thinking it was a lab error.

I am a strict meatatarian. I follow the rules of eating dense protein -- and rarely if ever, eat much else. Not only have I successfully reached my WLS goal, I am heading into my 4th year maintaining that goal.

Perhaps if you are strongly committed to becoming a vegetarian for religious reasons, you should consider waiting until you reach maintenance? That seems like a good compromise.

Jenni, my daughter is vegan (her name is Jenna!) and she gets most of her protein from lentils, tofu, quinoa, legumes, grains, nuts and she loves beans. But, she also has 1 protein shake (Vega Tropical Tango) every day. She adds flaxseeds and chia seeds. You have to be careful because some of the vitamins are not vegan, you'll need to do some research on that. I just read that Dr. Alvarez (Bariatric surgeon) has gone vegan too. You might check his stuff out on YouTube. Good luck.