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veggie transition advice

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2K views 10 replies 5 participants last post by  bearminator 
#1 ·
Hi, I´ve been vegetarian for 2 months now and I´m feeling ok but since the last week I´ve been sleeping around 4 hours, I´m in bed with my eyes open just thinking and thinking, falling sleep around 2 or 4 am, before I used to sleep at midnight.

I´m 6´1" 220 pounds, very active I play basketball on weekends, weight training 3 days a week.
I eat 4 or 5 times a day and drink plenty of water.
I eat through the week: beans, white rice, avocado, oatmeal, lettuce, onion, tomatoe, chickpeas, mushrooms, potatoes, fruits, a little bit of milk and taking multivitamin supplement.

now, I feel good I perform pretty much the same as before I went vegetarian, but I´m worried about sleeping that few hours.
I would apreciate some advice.
 
#2 ·
I don't think that has anything to do with vegetarianism...

Is there anything on your mind? Did anything happen in your life that's causing you to think so much?
 
#3 ·
I was thinking about that, but nothing has happened lately on the contrary the last month has been more boring between work and family, the usual stuff.
I used to take a nap on sundays after an exhausting basketball game, but now I´m just exhausted laying in bed with open eyes.
 
#4 ·
Make sure you are eating enough food, calories. My son is a big vegan guy and an athlete, and he has to eat a lot of food. 3 meals and a snack or two doesn't cut it when the calorie content is much lower in veggie foods than in meat stuffs.

Hunger interferes with sleep.
 
#6 · (Edited)
Ditto on getting enough calories. Remember that boiled rice only contains about 216 calories per cup: https://www.google.com/#q=brown+rice+calories . A medium potato only contains about 163 calories: https://www.google.com/#q=potatoes+calories .

As a large, active guy, you probably need 3000+ (or more) calories per day (here's a daily calorie-needs calculator: http://www.calorieking.com/interactive-tools/how-many-calories-should-you-eat/ ) .

If you have trouble getting all those calories on just rice and potatoes, you can try adding some fat-rich foods to your diet. One cup of peanuts contains 828 calories: https://www.google.com/#q=peanuts+calories . Other nuts and seeds are similarly rich in calories. Same with avocados.

If you decide to add nuts and seeds to your diet, try to include nuts/seeds that are rich in omega-3 fats (walnuts, flax seeds, chia seeds): http://nutritiondata.self.com/foods-012140000000000000000.html?maxCount=20 . Buy your flax seeds pre-ground, or they will not be digested.
 
#8 · (Edited)
Hi bearmintor,

I first try to fill up with starchy foods (beans, rice, bread). Then, later on, I mentally approximate how many calories I've eaten over the course of the day. Assume that boiled beans or grains are about 200 calories per cup, and that bread is about 100 calories per slice. Non-starchy vegetables (leafy greens, radishes, carrots) are low in calories, and you can pretty much ignore them in your calorie approximation.


If I'm falling behind reaching my daily calorie goal (about 2300 calories, for me), then I eat some nuts or seeds. Just assume that nuts/seeds are about 800 calories per cup. It doesn't have to be perfect, but just make sure that you get enough calories! Nothing sucks worse than being fatigued because you didn't get enough calories.
 
#9 ·
I think theres some good advice here. your should definitely log everything you eat for a little bit and plug it into a nutrition tracker. there is also some great calculators out there to get an idea of your estimated calorie needs. That would be a good starting point. You should defiantly cut out the little bit of milk you consume if you can.

I hope you get this figured out good luck!!
 
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