will i lose weight?

[beautysensei]

New vegan here.. I need to lose weight.. specifically body fat. Right now i am 5' 5" and weigh 190 witha body fat percent of around 40 OUCH! so not healthy. Anyway.. I plan on sticking to staple foods such as fruits, veggies and beans for the next week or two before adding anything else in.. such as experimenting with tofu. will a vegan diet help me lose the weight i need to lose? I'm worried about having such a high fat percentage!

[meatless]

It may, but exercise is really important too. I found a million reasons not to exercise for years, but once I started I began dropping clothes sizes within a few weeks. I still don't like exercising, but I like being trim so it keeps me going. :)

[beautysensei]

i just bought a trampoline and it came with tons of workouts.. i love it.. reminds me of being a kid again and it's a total body workout.. highly reccommended!

but yeah, before this week.. 0 exercise...

[hopejoy]

You probably will, though it depends on your metabolism and also how much fat you are eating. My first few months I dropped a few pounds(not good because I was really thin already). I am in the process of gaining them back by eating more fattening veggie foods such as nuts. Vegans are, in general, thinner than non vegans, so I think that the diet might work for your weight loss. It might help to consult a nutritionist first so you don't become vitamin deficient which is easy to do on a low fat vegan diet... Good luck! =)

[smedley]

you can be heavy and vegan--many people are. it just depends on the foods you eat and the quantity of them. burn more calories than you take in and you will lose weight. good luck!

[Texaspice]

I hope you are becoming vegan for the animals too. Don't make a vegan diet so restrictive that you hate it and give up on it. Eating lots of fruits and veggies and beans etc is great for you and the animals but let yourself have a vegan treat once and awhile and just jump a little extra on the trampoline that day! :hamster:

Good luck!

[Astarte]

There's a good chance you'll lose weight if you stick mostly to whole foods as a vegan. Beans, veggies (especially dark green ones), fruit, grains, moderate amounts of nuts.. that sort of thing. Tofu, seitan, and tempeh for texture and protein. Meat analogs are good for protein, but they're very processed and best kept to a minimum in the diet. Drink mostly water and some unsweetened fruit juices, not pops or punches.

It sucks, but most convenience foods are really bad for us. Not to mention a lot of them aren't vegan anyway. Cut down on those and eat more real vegan food, and you'll probably notice a reduction in weight.

Unlike meatless, it doesn't seem to matter how much I exercise, I don't drop a pound unless I'm careful of my diet. I put on quite a bit if I'm lax even a little. It doesn't give me much motivation to exercise, unfortunately :( But if you do it and work on what you eat, you're very likely to notice changes.

[one8tgirl]

I am trying to add more vegan things into my diet as well for weight loss, but as everyone else has said previously.... exercise is extremely important for maximum weight loss. Cross training like aerobics, weight training (for toning) and pilates/yoga is very effective because you are working all of your muscles and getting your heart rate up. I cut out soda too. Before I started my exercise plan I lost 5lbs and kept it off for 5 weeks just from not drinking soda. I do have tea (green) with sugar, but just enough so you can barely taste it. I drink 60+ ounces of water a day too. Just remember that it took time for you to put on weight and it will take time to take it off. I cant tell you how many times I failed at losing weight until I realized that losing it wasnt going to be as easy as I wanted it to be. Good luck!

[RunsWithFoxes]

New vegan here.. I need to lose weight.. specifically body fat. Right now i am 5' 5" and weigh 190 witha body fat percent of around 40 OUCH! so not healthy. Anyway.. I plan on sticking to staple foods such as fruits, veggies and beans for the next week or two before adding anything else in.. such as experimenting with tofu. will a vegan diet help me lose the weight i need to lose? I'm worried about having such a high fat percentage!

A whole foods, plant-based diet (this means stuff that was yanked out of the ground or plucked off a plant or tree vs. stuff from a bottle, box, or can) in general has low caloric density and high nutrient density. The low caloric density (think calories per bite) will help your weight loss program - you'll fill up before consuming many calories. The high nutrient density has benefits that we're only now just beginning to understand. In any case, to lose weight you gotta consume fewer calories than you burn - it's just that simple. Forget the fad diets - just burn, baby, burn! :sweat:

[kyliemc]

I lost about twelve pounds recently but not because I went vegan. I was already, but I did cut way back on olive oil, olives, and just ate about five almonds a day, and then ate tons of sauteed (in "Pure" brand canola oil) veggies, mushrooms, and soy chicken. I also walked/jogged about an hour each night and each morning did weight and resistance training (switching each day between legs, butt...arms, abs...then a full cardio scuplting routine). But now I feel so good about how I look and feel and I continue to do what I do but have introduced more carbs and fat (healthy), and lowered the exercise daily. I have and continue to have a diet based all on plant foods. As for being vegan, I do it for the animals but the health benefits are nice also.

[sexyjacksparrow]

Going vegan won't automatically make you lose weight. I ate a rather junk foody diet when I was vegan and put on half a stone (7lb) in about 10 weeks!

However, if you stick to mainly whole foods, then yes, the foods will be less calorific so you should drop some weight. Having your protein from beans and tofu etc has less calories than meat or cheese. Nuts are quite high in fat but are good for you so enjoy in moderation. Plus exercise!

[healthnut32]

Are you exercising?

[LadyFaile]

as others have said, it depends on what you eat, there is such a thing as an unhealthy vegan. eat a balanced diet, make sure you get enough healthy fats and protein, drink lots of water, and excercise routinely. don't over-exert yourself mind you, but 15-20 minutes of moderate excercise every day will make a big difference. it can be easy if you stick with it, start taking walks after dinner, or do leg raises and crunches while you watch tv. get a balance ball