How to Avoid Vegan Weight Gain
Most people make the decision to go Vegan for a few reasons; usually they have moral concerns around consuming animals, environmental concerns, and possibly health concerns. While many people assume that choosing a Vegan lifestyle will automatically make them healthy unfortunately many times people consume the wrong Vegan foods and end up gaining weight from their new found lifestyle. If you happen to be one of those people who has transitioned to the Vegan lifestyle and found yourself heavier because of your food choices you have a couple of options. You can choose to add a natural supplement to your diet in order to control appetite and gain energy such as the one at this website or you can change the habits that caused you to gain weight in the first place.
Don’t Over Indulge In Pasta
While it’s very easy to grab a bagel for breakfast, a slice of pizza with dairy-free cheese for lunch, and a big bowl of pasta with some red sauce on top for dinner this is a great way to end up with extra pounds around your waist. Of course, complex carbohydrates are something that every healthy diet needs to include however; they shouldn’t be the main event of every meal. Go to the library and check out some cookbooks or browse the Internet to find interesting Vegan recipes. Begin to experiment with different dishes such as tofu scrambles, spaghetti squash “pasta”, and homemade veggie burgers. Or if you’re not interested in cooking there are some easy things you can do to keep breads and pasta from becoming your mainstays. Invest in a rice cooker and vegetable steamer so you can have a big pot of brown rice and a huge basket of vegetables cooked in no time and without having to oversee the process. Experiment with different herbs and seasonings and a simple meal of rice and vegetables can have many different flavors so you never get bored.
Eat Beans For Protein
Be sure you get plenty of beans and other sources of protein in your diet. If you’re focusing mainly on carbs and you don’t get enough protein you will probably have issues with feeling hungry much of the time. It’s really easy to get extra protein in your diet by following a few simple tips. Always add beans to your salads, it’s really easy to throw a handful of garbanzo beans on top of your salad, they’re tasty and provide extra protein. Another great tip for garbanzos is to roast them in the oven until they’re nice and crunchy. You can sprinkle them with just a touch of olive oil and seasoning salt and you have a great high proteins snack. The same goes for Edamame in the shell, they come in convenient microwavable packages now so when you are in the mood for a salty snack throw them in the microwave and in less than 5 minutes you’ve got a nice high protein healthy snack.
Vegans Must Eat Vegetables
Unfortunately, some people don’t really understand that to be a healthy Vegan one must consume vegetables that consist of more than French fries. Vegetables are full of fiber and will help make you feel full longer than empty carbs like bread.
Some easy ways to get vegetables at every meal would be to follow these tips. For breakfast try juicing some vegetables such as carrots and spinach then add a chunk of ginger and a couple of apples, delicious and healthy. Or make your usual smoothie and add a big handful of spinach as the final ingredient. For lunches soups and salads are obvious ways to get full servings of vegetables. And at dinner time try to add some sort of the green vegetable to your plate every night.
Steer Clear of Junk Food
While everyone is in a hurry these days sometimes vegans feel forced to buy foods that are particularly junkie. Fast food fries seem to be a staple for many vegans. You may need to plan ahead because grabbing drive through fries is never the best answer. Also you may notice there are very tasty Vegan snacks available in the grocery store such as soy-based ice creams, Vegan cookies and cakes, and chocolate that does not contain dairy products. Just be aware that these items still contain calories and they don’t contain the healthiest ingredients.
If you’re going to indulge in these vegans treats make sure it is occasionally instead of regularly.
