Vegetarian and Starved for Protein? Try These Quick Tips

Looking at a possible vegetarian diet? Planning on making the vegan switch? For me I made the switch about five days ago and have started a forty-day vegetarian and all natural diet. Under which I can only eat fruits, vegetables, nuts, whole grains, and lentils. This has cut the majority of protein out of my diet. As a marathon runner and weight lifter the lack of protein during the initial few days of being a relative vegetarian made me wonder how on earth I was supposed to maintain this pace of life without some sort of protein to full me. Luckily I've stumbled upon some time-tested ways for vegetarians and even the pickier vegans to get strong sources of protein without compromising lifestyle choices.

The traditional vegan choices for protein include soybean, lentils, legumes, seeds, and nuts. Expanding upon this category Tofu has the largest base of protein and will get you the biggest bang for your buck. But surprisingly Broccoli also has a large amount of protein in comparison to its caloric amount. Swinging over towards the vegetarian side, skim milk tends to be a strong choice in protein for most vegetarians while the stricter vegans will have to resort to soymilk if proteins filled fluids are the desired intake.

Regardless of vegan or vegetarian the same rules apply when dealing with the majority of protein, which just so happens to be no meat! The result for active vegans or vegetarians wishing to maintain weight and muscle mass is to supplement meat intake with protein filled and yet tasty alternates such as tofu. For someone first starting out tofu may be slightly different or even unsatisfactory so for the beginner it is recommended that you "use browned tempeh croutons on top of salads and soups. Or Stir-fry extra firm tofu or tempeh with fresh veggies...in fact, stir-fried tofu with veggies in various spice levels and with garlic or egg sauce is a typical Chinese takeout menu item, so you can 'try it' commercially prepared and see if your mom likes it." suggests Gaelen from proteinpower.com

So the end result for athletes who have switched, are planning on switching, or are thinking about switching to the vegetarian or vegan diet is that maintaining a healthy weight and muscle mass is feasible depending on what your goals are. For the majority of athletes the vegetarian diet will soon become nothing more than healthy eating. Cutting out all the unnecessary fats and carcinogens found in red meat will show immediate effects, so long as the proper portion of protein (say that five times fast) is still being met through alternative sources such as those listed above or those listed on proteinpower.com. If you are trying to become the next terminator then the vegan way is probably not the best course for you, but for those trying to slim down a bit or lower their cholesterol then the veggie method may be a quick (but not easy) solution to your weight plan woes.