[Black_Jesus]

Hey everyone, so a little background about my self first. I'm 27 years old and I've been lifting weight since I was 15. I'm currently 208lbs and around 12-14% body fat, back in my 21-23 years I was 221lbs and 6.8% body fat, but those days are over. I am married and I have a full time job, so crazy dieting and living at the gym just doesn't work for me anymore. Anyways, I noticed that the older I got the lazier I got and this was starting to bother me. I started doing some research and watching documentaries about food and exercise, and everything I've read was telling me pretty much "you are what you eat" which I already knew. The thing that stood out for me was the fact that I thought that animal meat (steak, chicken, fish, eggs, etc) was the best thing to eat and that it's healthy, well apparently not. Long story short, we are supposed to be eating lots of fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, beans and no animal products at all, so yesterday was day one of my "plant base diet" and so far so good, I feel great so far and I hope my muscles don't disappear.
Anyone else doing a plant base diet?
How did it go?

[ecw]

How will you get your protein?

[1MOREMOD]

i couldnt do it!

[Black_Jesus]

Originally Posted by ecw

How will you get your protein?

Beans, nuts, soy, tofu, and there's a bunch of weird seeds and nuts that I can't remember.

Here's an example:
Meal 1:
1.5 cups oatmeal
Protein shake with 1 serving of Plant Fusion, 1 cup soymilk, 1 banana

Meal 2:
1/2 block of extra firm tofu, scrambled with spinach and peppers
1 grapefruit
1 almond butter sandwich: 2 slices of whole grain bread, 2 tbsp almond butter

Meal 3:
Black bean chili with 1 can black beans, 1/2 pack seitan, and veggies
1 baked sweet potato
1/4 avocado

Meal 4 (post workout):
1 apple
Protein shake with 1.5 scoops SunWarrior protein, 1 cup soymilk, 1 banana

Meal 5:
1 large spinach salad
1/2 cup lentils, cooked with veggies and spices over 1/2 cup brown rice
1/2 pound steamed broccoli

Meal 6:
2 tbsp almond butter spread on celery sticks

Approximate totals for the day:
3384 calories, 207g protein, 512g carbs, 75g fat

[jon102034050]

That sounds terrible.

[1MOREMOD]

Originally Posted by jon102034050

That sounds terrible.

+1, will make for some healthy bowel movements I bet!

[Kafkaesque328]

my wife has been a vegetarian forever. Eats fish though, so not total veg. I'm used to it but I eat meat. It's possible to do what you are talking about but it's (a) a drag and (b) difficult to avoid substituting protein sources with soy or fake meat products. The jury is out on whether or not that is 'bad' for you as far as GMO related concerns etc.

Why not just exercise more and eat what you want? The benefits of regular exercise on your cardiovascular health and mental well being vs. being a slug on a plant based diet seem to be a no brainer to me. I'm married as well and work all the time but I find time to run/walk/hike 15 miles a week at least and hit the gym when I can.

[Bighorns]

I switched to a "whole foods" diet last year. No processed foods, fresh vegetables and fruit, organic chicken, wild caught fish, and pasture raised beef, no antibiotics. I still eat meat, I've just cut down a bit.

[Black_Jesus]

Originally Posted by Kafkaesque320

my wife has been a vegetarian forever. Eats fish though, so not total veg. I'm used to it but I eat meat. It's possible to do what you are talking about but it's (a) a drag and (b) difficult to avoid substituting protein sources with soy or fake meat products. The jury is out on whether or not that is 'bad' for you as far as GMO related concerns etc.

Why not just exercise more and eat what you want? The benefits of regular exercise on your cardiovascular health and mental well being vs. being a slug on a plant based diet seem to be a no brainer to me. I'm married as well and work all the time but I find time to run/walk/hike 15 miles a week at least and hit the gym when I can.

I go to the gym 5 days a week, the problem is not working out. I want to feel healthier inside, and live a healthy life style. Here's a picture of me to get an idea.

[Da_Meister_22]

Originally Posted by Black_Jesus

I go to the gym 5 days a week, the problem is not working out. I want to feel healthier inside, and live a healthy life style. Here's a picture of me to get an idea.

Watch the "Fork Over Knives" documentary. Pretty good IMO.

[Kafkaesque328]

Originally Posted by Black_Jesus

I go to the gym 5 days a week, the problem is not working out. I want to feel healthier inside, and live a healthy life style. Here's a picture of me to get an idea.

I don't personally think meat or animal protein is going to make a huge difference unless you are just eating tons of bacon and other fatty meats all the time. I try to avoid too many processed or cured meats because populations that consume high amounts of cured meats tend to have a higher rate of colon cancer. Obviously avoiding processed foods, high fructose corn syrup and food with lists of ingredients you can't pronounce is also a good idea. Instead of abstaining from meat you could just get all your meat from whole foods or wherever and make sure its all free range, free of hormones and antibiotics etc. But if you can pull it off, more power to you. It's going to be healthier if you can manage to find viable protein sources and not consume too many carbs or refined sugars and grains to fill up on.

Are you guys just casually standing there and drinking milk in that picture?

[Black_Jesus]

Originally Posted by Kafkaesque320

I don't personally think meat or animal protein is going to make a huge difference unless you are just eating tons of bacon and other fatty meats all the time. I try to avoid too many processed or cured meats because populations that consume high amounts of cured meats tend to have a higher rate of colon cancer. Obviously avoiding processed foods, high fructose corn syrup and food with lists of ingredients you can't pronounce is also a good idea. Instead of abstaining from meat you could just get all your meat from whole foods or wherever and make sure its all free range, free of hormones and antibiotics etc. But if you can pull it off, more power to you. It's going to be healthier if you can manage to find viable protein sources and not consume too many carbs or refined sugars and grains to fill up on.

Are you guys just casually standing there and drinking milk in that picture?

Ha! It's actually water, not sure why they came in a carton.

[kingofthedemo]

Originally Posted by Black_Jesus

Hey everyone, so a little background about my self first. I'm 27 years old and I've been lifting weight since I was 15. I'm currently 208lbs and around 12-14% body fat, back in my 21-23 years I was 221lbs and 6.8% body fat, but those days are over. I am married and I have a full time job, so crazy dieting and living at the gym just doesn't work for me anymore. Anyways, I noticed that the older I got the lazier I got and this was starting to bother me. I started doing some research and watching documentaries about food and exercise, and everything I've read was telling me pretty much "you are what you eat" which I already knew. The thing that stood out for me was the fact that I thought that animal meat (steak, chicken, fish, eggs, etc) was the best thing to eat and that it's healthy, well apparently not. Long story short, we are supposed to be eating lots of fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, beans and no animal products at all, so yesterday was day one of my "plant base diet" and so far so good, I feel great so far and I hope my muscles don't disappear.
Anyone else doing a plant base diet?
How did it go?

That's a difficult diet to maintain when you go for it all the way (meaning full vegan) I started a plant based diet last April, and it has made a huge difference in my overall health, and well being. I had really gotten out of shape from drinking high calorie beers almost daily, and eating out. Now I'm almost back to my ideal body weight, I lost over 80lbs since I started the diet. I'm 6'4'' 212 lbs as of today.

Have you read any of Dr. Joel Fuhrman's books? He has researched over 3,000 different nutritional trials, and studies, and he has written his take on the studies and their conclusions, in his book Eat To Live, which I strongly recommend.

I still eat lean meats and fish, but I try to eat them much more infrequently than I used to, and I often eat vegan meals. While going full vegan is the healthiest, you can still get a lot of health benefits from moderating your animal product consumption, and increasing your consumption of unrefined plant based foods.

Stick with it, and if you get a chance you really should read the book I mentioned earlier. Also if you get a chance you should watch, Fat Sick and nearly dead, it's a really interesting documentary (on nexflix) about a guy who goes on a plant based diet, and changes his health drastically.

[Black_Jesus]

Originally Posted by kingofthedemo

That's a difficult diet to maintain when you go for it all the way (meaning full vegan) I started a plant based diet last April, and it has made a huge difference in my overall health, and well being. I had really gotten out of shape from drinking high calorie beers almost daily, and eating out. Now I'm almost back to my ideal body weight, I lost over 80lbs since I started the diet. I'm 6'4'' 212 lbs as of today.

Have you read any of Dr. Joel Fuhrman's books? He has researched over 3,000 different nutritional trials, and studies, and he has written his take on the studies and their conclusions, in his book Eat To Live, which I strongly recommend.

I still eat lean meats and fish, but I try to eat them much more infrequently than I used to, and I often eat vegan meals. While going full vegan is the healthiest, you can still get a lot of health benefits from moderating your animal product consumption, and increasing your consumption of unrefined plant based foods.

Stick with it, and if you get a chance you really should read the book I mentioned earlier. Also if you get a chance you should watch, Fat Sick and nearly dead, it's a really interesting documentary (on nexflix) about a guy who goes on a plant based diet, and changes his health drastically.

Thanks for the positive feedback, I will get that book and check it out.

[bmw325i]

Originally Posted by ecw

How will you get your protein?

Hemp seeds are the best source of protein. You can also get hemp protein powder.

[P1]

For every piece of research that says something is bad, there's two that say it's probably OK. If you're happy only eating plants and nuts, then get after it.

[Saintor]

I am not a vegan but I drastically lowered my dairy/meat intake. I eat a snack in nuts every evening.

The results are spectacular on many aspects. I wish that I did it sooner.

[1MOREMOD]

Originally Posted by P1et

For every piece of research that says something is bad, there's two that say it's probably OK. If you're happy only eating plants and nuts, then get after it.

Can you find a report that shows, beer, pizza and burritos are a good diet so I can show it to my wife?

[P1]

Originally Posted by 1MOREMOD

Can you find a report that shows, beer, pizza and burritos are a good diet so I can show it to my wife?

All in moderation my friend. People tend to go guardrail to guardrail.

[1MOREMOD]

Originally Posted by P1et

All in moderation my friend. People tend to go guardrail to guardrail.

No worries here, still can eat what I like and am lean.

[Templar]

Originally Posted by kingofthedemo

That's a difficult diet to maintain when you go for it all the way (meaning full vegan) I started a plant based diet last April, and it has made a huge difference in my overall health, and well being. I had really gotten out of shape from drinking high calorie beers almost daily, and eating out. Now I'm almost back to my ideal body weight, I lost over 80lbs since I started the diet. I'm 6'4'' 212 lbs as of today.

Have you read any of Dr. Joel Fuhrman's books? He has researched over 3,000 different nutritional trials, and studies, and he has written his take on the studies and their conclusions, in his book Eat To Live, which I strongly recommend.

I still eat lean meats and fish, but I try to eat them much more infrequently than I used to, and I often eat vegan meals. While going full vegan is the healthiest, you can still get a lot of health benefits from moderating your animal product consumption, and increasing your consumption of unrefined plant based foods.

Stick with it, and if you get a chance you really should read the book I mentioned earlier. Also if you get a chance you should watch, Fat Sick and nearly dead, it's a really interesting documentary (on nexflix) about a guy who goes on a plant based diet, and changes his health drastically.

Food for thought, but I think your change in health doesn't have much to do with switching to a "plant based diet" and much more to do with dropping the empty calories from beer (daily, really?) and the processed junk in the fast food/dining out food. Dropping the beer alone will cause a drastic change, even if you didn't do anything else differently.

Lean meats are mostly fine, depending on the source, the animal's diet, and the lack of processing. Going free range with my meats instead of the cheap processed stuff has done wonders for me. I feel a lot better too.

[1MOREMOD]

^^ crazy talk beer is a main food group and essential.