Hi all! I am thinking of going somewhat veggie because I am having a tough time with Atkins and my religious observance. Because of kashrut (dietary laws) I do not mix meat and dairy, and that mixing goes as far as needing to have about 6 hours between a meat meal and a dairy meal (or snack). So, I am pulling my hair out most days and ending up stuffing a piece of matzah or some other carby thing in my mouth because I am hungry.

So, I think it might be helpful if I go a partial vegetarian diet. I plan on still eating fish and eggsa, as though are considered 'neutral', that is, neither dairy nor meat.

Anyway, my real question is, how well does Atkins work if you cut out meat? Is the loss slower, no change, etc.?

Hi, Sarah, have you look into any health food store or health food sessions in regular markets? Now they have SOOOOO many, I mean SOOOOO many meat alternatives that taste like meats, lowcarb, and healthy! The drawback is that they are on the pricier side but no rip-off or anything. Tofu/nutts/protein powder are good for a change too. A good resource is www.vegsource.com there seem to be a lot carb-sensitive veggie folk there exchanging ideas

There are many of us that lost our weight veggie/low carb. The fact that you view fish as a neutral should make it a breeze for you!

Jenn

Oh I will add.. I lost about 40 lbs in approx 4.5 months. Although I am not sure if you consider that faster or slower than the average meat eating atkins.

I think Atkins is completely compatible with a vegetarian diet. Now when you go out to restaurants, they don't really seem to share that point of view but you win some, you lose some.

I don't think I have lost any slower than a meat eating person on atkins. I lost a high average for the first 60 lbs or so but things really do slow down for everyone.

Best wishes in whatevery you decide!

Wow! 60 pounds congrats! Etoilles, what type of vegetarian are you? Do you eat dairy or do you avoid it? Just curious, because I hear so many conflicting opinions. Some say dairy stalls you, some say it makes you lose quicker. Then some won't eat it at all due to other reasons. Just wondering what you did to make you so successful!

Yes I eat dairy, probably too much of it too. That is one of the reasons I wanted to try atkins instead of a low fat plan though because I love my cheese too much!! I am from WI!! Go figure!!

I think it just really worked out well and was a good plan for me from the beginning. Now at 90lbs the weightloss goes really slow so I have to try much harder. One thing I think helped is that I always drank a lot of water and exercised since day one with a day break every 10 days or so. I can see my leg muscles building and it's pretty exciting!!

90 pounds GONE! Who cares how slow it goes? You should feel so terrific about yourself! I'm lowcarbing, on a plan similar to Atkins and I think the ATkins plan is terrific. Too bad so many folks think you can't low carb on it!

Thanks for those nice words Spirit! I know when I started I thought I wouldn't really care how slow it went either this far along but when you're there it sure doesn't feel that way!

Hopefully though as more vegetarians try out these low carb plans they can spread the word that they are easy to follow for anyone.

I am a pesco vegetarian , get in the habit of counting your carbs the site fitday. om will help you with your food count. It is a free site!

I did a vegetarian induction with no trouble (except getting really, really tired of eggs for breakfast!). Tofu/soy products are not on the allowed foods list, so I didn't eat them, though I suspect I would have been OK if I had.

If I had one thing to do over, I'd have started using protein shakes with egg white powder sooner -- didn't discover those until after induction!

But you definitely don't need the meat. : ) Have fun!

great Idea/ I eat low carb yogurt , I am tired of eggs also! what is the name of your protein powder, I am looking for one high protein, yet low carb, mix with something other than water.

The powder I use is Rainbow Light Protein Energizer. It's made from rice and vegetable protein, so it's high in fiber (8 carbs, 6.5 are fiber). It's got spirulina/blue-green algae, which I really like the taste of, though not everyone does.

I mix with water for me or soymilk (Silk brand, the only one I've found that doesn't add sugar and junk!) and soy yogurt for boyfriend, and add powdered egg whites -- no fat, lots of protein -- and coconut cream. It comes out quite tasty and smooth.

If you want whey powder, I've found one organic kind, Paleomeal; it also has spirulina added, so not sure about the taste.

If you've ever had an Odwalla Superfoods drink (the green one) you'll know what spirulina tastes like. Try some before you buy a whole big can of powder! : )