Veg*n and Shedding Da Pounds!!!

[wytchywoman]

This is a thread for anyone out there who is not only trying to be healthier but trying to shed some weight as well. I'm on Weight Watchers and will be posting my successes, failures, tips and point counts along the way but everyone is welcome no matter what diet or meal plan you're on.

[wytchywoman]

Aside from being newly in the realm of losing weight, I'm also new to being vegan. I've been vegetarian for quite some time but really want to weed all animal products out of my diet. This is something that I've struggled with a bit because it seems like a lot of the vegan replacements have fat in them, vs FF dairy products that are available.
I was soooooooo excited to discover some coffee creamer yesterday that was non-fat. It's called So Delicious and it's made with coconut milk. One serving is a TBSP and it is a 0 pt food. I splurged a little and put 3 TBSP in my coffee this morning. SOOOOO yummy and it was only 1 pt! YAY!!!!!
On the down side I decided to make some waffles today and followed the recipe, just substituting vegan stuff like banana and almond milk. I poured in the canola oil and then after I was finished eating realized I could have saved a ton of points on this recipe by using applesauce instead of oil! Oh well, lesson learned, lol.
On a great note I've lost 2 pounds my first week. Given that my body is insanely weight loss resistent AND AF is in town right now, I feel like this is a huge success!

[Jenille]

Congratulations on the first week weight loss! And I'm so glad you discovered So Delicious coconut milk creamer. I love the stuff!

Have you discovered the vegan recipe for Weight Watchers Zero Points Garden Vegetable Soup yet? It's incredibly warming, filling, and delicious!

http://kitchen-parade-veggieventure....ro-points.html

[wytchywoman]

I love that soup! It's on the menu this week as a matter of fact, with baked falafel sandwiches.

[Kimber47]

I'm in!

I lost 80 pounds 2 years ago after being the heaviest I'd ever been using Weight Watchers at home. I've since slowly gained 30 back. Dang it! I was a very heavy vegetarian, a vegetarian who didn't plan or eat veggies for that matter. I have a very serous addiction to breads, pasta and at one time...cheese.

Now, as a vegan for these 2 years, I've started cooking every day. The food is so stinkin' good! I've got a problem with portion control, working nights, and I stopped exercising after I started working 2 years ago. Not good!

So here we go! We can do food diaries here to help us keep on track if you like! I forgot to weigh this morning, so I think I'll do my weigh in's on Tuesdays. Mondays are hard enough!

[MinneMom]

Hi!

I'm doing WW as well. I had a baby two months ago and am working on slowly losing the baby weight. I am not a strict vegetarian, but my husband and toddler are vegetarian and we eat solely vegetarian at home. I'd love to be part of this on-going thread!

[wytchywoman]

Welcome Minne Mom, we'd love to have you joins us!
Kimber, I have struggled with my weight for the very same reasons you listed. I've been a vegetarian for years, but really what I turned into was a meat free junkfoodarian. Donuts, pasta, bread, french fries....gee, all of those are vegetarian foods! lol!!!
Since I've started becoming serious about veganism I've had no choice but to eat fruits and veggies and skip most of the carbs unless I've made them myself. I think posting our food diaries is a good idea. It's helps me stay accountable plus sometimes other people can see stuff in our diets that could be problematic that we may not notice or know about. I agree with the Monday weigh in. I actually start my week on Sunday for that reason. Mondays suck! Why make it any worse by stepping on the scale?

[Anna06]

Hi, I would like to join. I've been a veggie for 5 yrs. And I too like to eat all the junk food! I really just want to be healthy.

Menopause is knocking on my door..... so I have a another set of problems. But it seems like I need to do portion control, and I think that would help. There is no room in my daily calories for junk...sigh....... lol

I have done WW before, and I'm even a lifetime member, but I do not go to meetings anymore. And I really would like to lose some weight before I go back to meetings.

BTW I love the WW veggie soup. I make a double batch and freeze some, it freezes well.

Subbing.....

Thanks for starting this thread

Anna

[Jenille]

Originally Posted by wytchywoman

I love that soup! It's on the menu this week as a matter of fact, with baked falafel sandwiches.

Mmm, baked falafel! That sounds yummy!

[wytchywoman]

Welcome Anna! Jenille we are having the baked falafel tomorrow. I'll post on Thursday night and let you know how it was. I got the recipe from the WW site.
Yesterday I ate my points plus 3 of my flex points. I seem to struggle with night time snacking. I do all the tricks, drink the water,chew some gum, wait fifteen minutes, ask myself am I really hungry...and I really am hungry. I don't know it it's becaause I am not eating enough calories for the day or what. Basically for breakfast I eat two pieces of fruit and oatmeal or some source of protein like a tofu breakfast burrito or such. For lunch it is a huge salad, another source of lean protein ( usually leftovers from dinner) and some snacky type thing like a 100 cal pack of oreo thins or crackers. Dinner is veggies of some type and a lean protein. By the time I eat all of this food I might have 2-3 points left over ( I only get 22). The munchies usually hit around 7 or so. I don't know what to do other than eat a ton of celery sticks at night, lol. Any tips?

[Jenille]

Lately, I've been eating popcorn if I get hungry after dinner. Newman's Own 94% Fat Free popcorn is not only really good, but it's organic, too. I think you can eat the whole bag, and it would still be less than 2 points. Sometimes I sprinkle nutritional yeast on it to give it a kind of cheesy flavor without adding any points. I also drink herbal tea in the evening, and that seems to help or if I have 2 points left, I'll make a cup of hot cocoa with Stevita Delight chocolate powder and a cup of soy or rice milk.

http://betterherbs.serrahost.com/Detail.bok?no=38

[wytchywoman]

Thanks Jenille for the tips. I've thought that popcorn might help but I haven't been able to find any microwaveable stuff that doesn't have butter on it. I'm strongly considering getting myself an air popper for Yule.
On a different note, I came here this afternoon to give myself a well deserved pat on the back. today has been horrendous and I wanted so badly to get a supersized something or other from Taco Bell or Burger King. Obviously neither fits in well with being a vegan or being on weight watchers but I was so stressed and I wanted junk food so bad.... but I didn't!!!! I ate my healthy lunch I brought for myself and resisted the urge to make myself feel better with fattening foods. I hate being an emotional eater though. it's so sticking hard to resist those impulses sometimes.

[Kimber47]

wytchy ~ Great job holding strong today!!! You did so much better than I did!

I started out making mistakes! I grabbed a quick soy mocha at home realizing after it was 5 points, lunch was ok...but unprepared was I ordering a very yummy entree at Noodles & Company. I just came home to calculate and I'm still in shock! I guess I'll be counting my flex points this time around! Yipe!

And, I'm sure you guys already have this resource, but here is a great tool for me: Dottie's Weight Loss Zone: Restaurant List

As for water, I'm almost there. And as for exercising....I'm hoping that cleaning my townhouse and running up and down two flights of stairs counts for something!

[ambereva]

I've lost about 75 pounds since going vegan, although I credit my 100% whole foods diet more than the veganism for the weight loss. I still need to be aware of how much I'm eating, but I've had a much easier time losing on this 'diet' than any I've tried before, probably because my body is getting all the nutrients it needs so I don't get all bingey like I used to, lol. Good luck to you all, I'm cheering you on!!!

[Anna06]

way to go wytchywoman for staying on plan. That is always the hardest part for me. I get stressed, and I eat.

And boy was I stressed yesterday.......and I ate. So today is a new day and I'm going to try to do better.

I like the popcorn ideal for nights....thanks for passing that on Jenille.

I recorded The Biggest Loser last night for inspiration. Now I need to find time to watch it. LOL

[GoGoGirl]

Oh, I'll join!

DD is 8 months old, and I still have 30 lbs to lose from the SIXTY () I gained when I was pregnant.

I think I'm having a hard time losing weight because I'm eating too many desserts. I had this problem in grad school too--I ate way too much sugar just to keep myself going through the sleep deprivation and stress. Sigh. I wish I was the kind of vegetarian who really believes that fruit is nature's candy! I think, um, swedish fish are natures candy.

At least I'm pretty good about meals. Tonight I'm having leftover samosa wraps from Fat Free Vegan.

[wytchywoman]

Thanks Ambereva for your support and inspiration. Please share any tips or information you felt helped you along the way.

Anna and Kimber, how have you been doing the past few days. Hanging in there?

GoGoGirl, you and I are in the exact same boat. I make horrid decisions about food when I'm tired, usually sugar and fat laden foods. And if I'm stressed on top of it, that just increases the volume and quantity I eat. My biggest savior so far have been the 100 calorie packs. They have a few varieties that are vegan and they are sweet enough to give me that sense that I ate something naughty without being too far off track. The other thing I discovered is the Dole Mandarin Gel Cups. They are so yummy!!! And they're vegan and only 2 WW pts ( 90 calories, 0 fat, 0 fiber) I top it with just a smidge of soy whipped cream and that feels like a full blown dessert to me. Super tasty!

The ohter thing I struggle with these days is exercise ( sigh). I hate it! I'm also off my thyroid meds because they quit making them and I am waiting for my dr to see my latest lab results before he'll prescribe something different. I am so tired! I know I need to be getting some form of exercise, but it seems like I just can't get myself motivated. I even have a gym membership with my best friend but I can't seem to find child care at the right time to go with her. How are you all doing as far as sneaking in some work out time? What do you do when you exercise ( cardio, weights, swimming?).

[Anna06]

Hi Everyone

Well, I'm still hanging in there, but still dealing w/lot of stress.

I'm sure most of you are too. Some days are just worse than others.

wytchywoman
GoGoGirl, you and I are in the exact same boat. I make horrid decisions about food when I'm tired, usually sugar and fat laden foods. And if I'm stressed on top of it, that just increases the volume and quantity I eat. My biggest savior so far have been the 100 calorie packs. They have a few varieties that are vegan and they are sweet enough to give me that sense that I ate something naughty without being too far off track. The other thing I discovered is the Dole Mandarin Gel Cups. They are so yummy!!! And they're vegan and only 2 WW pts ( 90 calories, 0

'

Great ideal. Which 100 calorie pks are vegan? I seem to crave sweets terribly right now.

[wytchywoman]

Originally Posted by Anna06

Hi Everyone

Well, I'm still hanging in there, but still dealing w/lot of stress.

I'm sure most of you are too. Some days are just worse than others.

'

Great ideal. Which 100 calorie pks are vegan? I seem to crave sweets terribly right now.

The oreo crisps and peanut butter crisps are each vegan and 2 points. The wheat thins baked chips minis are vegan and 1 point each.Animal crackers are also vegan and you can have 15 for 1 point. The 100 calorie packs are also good for me because it helps me with portion control. I am horrible about grabbing a huge bag of chips or a box of cookies and eating until I'm satisfied. Bad, bad idea because I can easily put away a half of a pack of oreos without thinking about it.

[ambereva]

Originally Posted by wytchywoman

Thanks Ambereva for your support and inspiration. Please share any tips or information you felt helped you along the way.

My best and, really, only tip: be patient and gentle with yourself. It took me two years to lose the weight, I had lots of bad days, bad weeks, even bad months. I forgave myself when I screwed up and kept my eye on my goal, which was to live a healthier life. The weight came off gradually as my diet improved and I got more and more active. I didn't make any overnight changes, I let them happen organically and slowly.