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How to get my protein

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worldtraveller

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I'm 115 lbs, prediabetic, and should be eating around 60 grams of protein. I'm still new to this low carb diet. I'm a vegetarian who eats cheese and yogurt but no eggs. I'm having trouble finding foods that will have that much protein. . I am eating way too much soy now and need to switch it up. Any suggestions?
 
worldtraveller said:
I'm 115 lbs, prediabetic, and should be eating around 60 grams of protein. I'm still new to this low carb diet. I'm a vegetarian who eats cheese and yogurt but no eggs. I'm having trouble finding foods that will have that much protein. . I am eating way too much soy now and need to switch it up. Any suggestions?
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Hello worldtravellor. I'm not a vegetarian myself, so I have limited knowledge, but I wondered if any of these could help at all?

https://www.mydomaine.com/low-carb-vegetarian-diet

https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/protein-for-vegans-vegetarians#section2

http://www.eatingwell.com/article/289961/top-vegetarian-protein-sources/

I'm sure others will drop by later to add some suggestions.
 
Hi @worldtraveller
How do you feel about "fake meat"?
If you are looking for soy substitutes then Quorn (contains egg in the veggie version not in the vegan version) is carb manageable and a decent source of protein. Naturli also contains decent protein levels. Linda McC stuff tends to have more carbs, but has wheat protein generally.
Otherwise veggie proteins such as mushroom, lentils and beans - you'd need to test to see how the pulses affect sugars.
 
For the time being, I'm going to take a protein or meal replacement shake for lunch. I was trying to stay off the lentils and beans. I'll google Quorn and Naturli. Yes, I've been looking at the fake meats but they are really over processed. I'm new to this forum and am still trying to figure it out! Hemp and chia seeds keep popping up on the internet for good sources of protein. I'm not a fan of either, but I'll give them a try. Thanks for the suggestions.
 
worldtraveller said:
For the time being, I'm going to take a protein or meal replacement shake for lunch. I was trying to stay off the lentils and beans. I'll google Quorn and Naturli. Yes, I've been looking at the fake meats but they are really over processed. I'm new to this forum and am still trying to figure it out! Hemp and chia seeds keep popping up on the internet for good sources of protein. I'm not a fan of either, but I'll give them a try. Thanks for the suggestions.
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Wroldtravellor, full disclosure here. I have never knowingly had a protein shake in my life, so can't give you any personal wisdon, but it's probably worthwhile looking at the ingredients and carb counts of the powder/shakes to take the overall shake into account with your daily plan.

I seem to recall, @Mel dCP mentioning a particular brand of protein powder she uses, but as I've been to sleep several times since then, I could equally be wrong!
 
DCUKMod said:
Wroldtravellor, full disclosure here. I have never knowingly had a protein shake in my life, so can't give you any personal wisdon, but it's probably worthwhile looking at the ingredients and carb counts of the powder/shakes to take the overall shake into account with your daily plan.

I seem to recall, @Mel dCP mentioning a particular brand of protein powder she uses, but as I've been to sleep several times since then, I could equally be wrong!
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Thanks for the tag - I use Pulsin pea protein powder as it’s the lowest carb non dairy one (I’m allergic to milk) with the highest protein content. I rarely use it for shakes as I don’t like them, but I do use it in cooking.

I don’t eat meat or poultry (more allergies) but I do eat fish and eggs so get plenty of protein there. I regularly have the Quorn vegan ham slices for lunch, as I need to grab and go in the mornings because I don’t get called for work until the morning. I also don’t get much time to eat and often have to drop what I’m doing anyway. Once or twice a week I’ll have a meat replacement product, for example last night I had a pack of Vivera vegan Shawarma Kebab (made with pea protein) fried until crispy with chilli&garlic olives and roasted broccoli. Was fantastic! There’s plenty of alternatives to meat, you don’t have to eat it if you don’t choose to. Have a look at the “vegan keto made simple” Facebook page, their pinned posts will give you loads of ideas on how to thrive without animal products.
 
You could try googling for a whey protein isolate powder. These have minuscule amounts of carbs in them, less than a gram per serve. The key is always, what's in it? Read the labels, choose plain and avoid the rubbish used to flavour it. I do get one that I use sometimes, but I think it's only available in Australia and maybe New Zealand. You can use them to make drinks and add to low carb desserts to get that extra protein you may be missing. I don't use them as meal replacements, but can come in handy if being out for long periods of time and you have to watch you don't lose too much weight while hiking and activities like that.

If you do, make sure it's not rubbish, most protein powders are absolute rubbish filled with sugar and additives, preservatives and fake flaours etc. You could easily reach your protein goals and not be using much at all. You don't need the full serves as directed on the container imo.
 
worldtraveller said:
I'm 115 lbs, prediabetic, and should be eating around 60 grams of protein. I'm still new to this low carb diet. I'm a vegetarian who eats cheese and yogurt but no eggs. I'm having trouble finding foods that will have that much protein. . I am eating way too much soy now and need to switch it up. Any suggestions?
Click to expand...
Try the Vegan and Vegetarian forum on this group they have lots of recipes here and will be able to help you with your food choices
 
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worldtraveller said:
For the time being, I'm going to take a protein or meal replacement shake for lunch. I was trying to stay off the lentils and beans. I'll google Quorn and Naturli. Yes, I've been looking at the fake meats but they are really over processed. I'm new to this forum and am still trying to figure it out! Hemp and chia seeds keep popping up on the internet for good sources of protein. I'm not a fan of either, but I'll give them a try. Thanks for the suggestions.
Click to expand...
I am not a vegetarian but I do not eat much meat I have mostly just chicken and fish but I do use Quorn quite a bit. I especially like the mince which I use for Chilli-Con-Carne and for Cottage Pie it can be made really tasty
 
Pinkorchid said:
I am not a vegetarian but I do not eat much meat I have mostly just chicken and fish but I do use Quorn quite a bit. I especially like the mince which I use for Chilli-Con-Carne and for Cottage Pie it can be made really tasty
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I’m not a fan of the texture of Quorn mince, personally - I find it a bit “squelchy” for want of a better word. I really like the Meatless Farm Co mince - looks very similar to proper minced meat in the pack, and I cook it the same way - brown it off first, then add the other stuff, mushrooms, peppers etc. It makes a great lasagne (I use thinly sliced aubergine instead of pasta, and GIO sundried tomato purée with almond milk for the sauce) and chilli - Sainsbury’s organic black beans make a lower carb sub for red kidney beans. But the texture of the mince is great, and with the right seasoning it tastes lovely too. It’s about three quid a pack in Sainsbury’s.
 
I love tofu - 1.9g carb per 100g. It is classified as a protein food and can be delicious and there are endless ways to prepare it - savoury and sweet. Tonight we're having teryaki tofu stir fry using masses of different veggies (eat a rainbow every day haha). We'll have some home-done garlic mushrooms on the side (there are loads of vegan fats around to make your own garlic butter), and I'll have about 50g of basmati rice. If I have room for dessert I'm planning blueberries with vanilla yoghurt (lots of vegan brands around).

All the supermarkets have loads of vegan/veggies choices - a large variety of main course substitutes with protein in them. I like the Cauldron Lincolnshire sausages chopped up in casseroles etc.

There are so many plant proteins available, and the various fake meats if you like them., There are an increasing number of products in the supermarkets now. I use Sainsburys and Asda and can vouch for their ever increasing range. Go to the Vegan Womble's site https://veganwomble.co.uk/supermarket-vegan-lists/ then there are lists of vegan produce which by definition is also veggie.
 
Mel dCP said:
I’m not a fan of the texture of Quorn mince, personally - I find it a bit “squelchy” for want of a better word. I really like the Meatless Farm Co mince - looks very similar to proper minced meat in the pack, and I cook it the same way - brown it off first, then add the other stuff, mushrooms, peppers etc. It makes a great lasagne (I use thinly sliced aubergine instead of pasta, and GIO sundried tomato purée with almond milk for the sauce) and chilli - Sainsbury’s organic black beans make a lower carb sub for red kidney beans. But the texture of the mince is great, and with the right seasoning it tastes lovely too. It’s about three quid a pack in Sainsbury’s.
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Might have to try that thanks
 
Thanks for all the replies. Quorn is not available in Canada. We have our various types of fake meat, most popular are the soya versions. We do have our plant based protein patties, etc. I'm now on a protein shake once a day and it has only 3 carbs. By the time I have one of them, along with some Greek yogurt, I'm more than half way to getting my protein. Yes, I will look at the vegetarian site. I didn't know that we had one until recently.
 
worldtraveller said:
Thanks for all the replies. Quorn is not available in Canada. We have our various types of fake meat, most popular are the soya versions. We do have our plant based protein patties, etc. I'm now on a protein shake once a day and it has only 3 carbs. By the time I have one of them, along with some Greek yogurt, I'm more than half way to getting my protein. Yes, I will look at the vegetarian site. I didn't know that we had one until recently.
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Blood Sugar 101 is a decent place to start. It allows you to define your goals and how active you are.

http://www.jennybrown.net/Calculators/DietMakeupCalcNew.htm

Whilst these macro calculators are helpful starting points, even if you are the same height and weight as I am, our needs to maintain could be quite different, so it's a case of deciding on an approach, recording what you're doing, alng with food, weight and blood glucose readings, trying it for a short while, reviewing and tweaking where necessary.

It can take a little while to juggle things into a balanced place, so be patient.
 
Yes, I am tweaking things example,as I go along. I did add more calories, got smarter about my carbs, etc. So far, I'm feeling pretty good about it. I'm over the initial shock of being pre-diabetic, and feel that I've got a grasp on what I need to do. Thanks!
 
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