Becoming a Vegetarian is No Guarantee for Weight Loss

Some people become a vegetarian for ethical reasons but others may choose to avoid meat simply because they believe it will help them lose weight.  If you believe everything you read, vegetarians apparently have the ‘healthiest’ diets – but is that really true?  Below are some of the ‘rookie errors’ new vegetarians commonly make in their quest to become thinner:

Vegetarians can eat too many carbs

A lot of carbohydrate-concentrated foods tend to be vegetarian (think pulses, legumes, rice, pasta etc).  ‘New’ vegetarians tend to ‘fill ups on these carb dense foods in a desperate attempt to replace the ‘meat’ in a standard ‘meat and three vege’ evening meal.  The problem is that carbs, especially refined white varieties, don’t keep us full for long and we end up eating a lot if we don’t have protein with our meals.

The other issue with over-eating carbs is that they will cause considerable weight gain due to their ability to trigger instability in blood sugar levels via the release of excess insulin.  This instability definitely leads to feeling lethargic and (unfortunately) lead to uncontrollable cravings during these ‘low blood sugar’ times.

Vegetarians may not eat enough protein

In a typical Western diet, meat is often our go-to protein source so simply removing it from a meal – without replacing it with a vegetarian equivalent – could contribute to fatigue, anaemia muscle wastage and weight gain.  Vegetarians who are watching their waistline need to look at each one their meals and decide if they are having adequate protein – if not, they need make some changes to their plate pronto.  It is important when you are watching your weight to include protein at each meal as it keeps the appetite satisfied for much longer.

There are some great vegetarian sources of protein including nuts, eggs, seeds, tofu, cheese and other dairy products…and vegetarians need to include a variety of protein sources into their diet every day.

So if you think becoming a vegetarian is the answer to your weight loss problems, think again.  A vegetarian diet can only help you lose weight if you are just as careful with your food choices as you would be on your everyday diet.  This is where The Natural Way can help you – we do not expect you to ‘change your life’ to lose weight.  Instead we look at your lifestyle and the way you eat now and work on a plan that we know you will enjoy.  Basically, we modify & tweak your current habits to encourage weight loss.   After more than 38 years’ of helping people lose weight, we know that we have the expertise, experience and commitment to helping you achieve your goal.  Call The Natural Way today on 1300 SLIMMER (1300 754663) OR visit our website HERE

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