[ssha440]

I went vegetarian a couple years ago for about a month and had no mental or physical energy. I went vegetarian again and the very first day I saw it happening again.. I took b12, b complex, ate cheese to see if it was the cholesterol..nothing fixed it.
Could it be the Iron?
I'm confused that if I'm getting enough veggies, protein, carbs, etc then why am I feeling like this..
Thanks in advance

 

[River]

You may not be eating enough calories.

What is a typical day of meals for you?

 

[no whey jose]

No vitamin deficiency could develop on your very first day. Could it be psychological?

 

[jessandreia]

I agree with the posts above. It's either lack of calories or psychological due to it having gone wrong the first time. Post what you eat in a day. That will help us help you.
By the way, cholesterol that comes from animal sources is bad cholesterol and cheese is quite unhealthy, and your cholesterol wouldn't drop much at all in a day anyway.

 

[Smileyface3364]

You're probably craving oil and salt from the meat, and diary doesn't fix it. It's like going through withdrawal from coffee. Your body is so used to the salt and oil that it wants it. Eat more carbs to fill in the calories, such as fruits, vegetables, starches like corn, rice, beans, or oats (don't rely on dairy!).

 

[runnerveggie]

Make sure you are getting enough calories and protein. Keep a clif bar or other source of protein with you in case you end up a bit hungry. Try some faux meats to help fill you up and replace the flavor and texture of meat. Check out theveganrd.com and veganhealth.org to make sure your diet is nutritionally complete long term. B12 supplements are definitely required, but beware of "B complex" as too much B6 can actually be harmful and vegetarians actually get plenty of B vitamins other than B12 from plant sources.

If that doesn't help and you are still having problems after one day without meat, I'm sorry to say but the most likely cause is psychological. I am not aware of any scientifically proven "withdrawal" from meat or any animal product. You can do this -- just think of the animals that won't have to suffer and die for your food.

 

[silva]

You're probably craving oil and salt from the meat, and diary doesn't fix it. It's like going through withdrawal from coffee. Your body is so used to the salt and oil that it wants it. Eat more carbs to fill in the calories, such as fruits, vegetables, starches like corn, rice, beans, or oats (don't rely on dairy!).

I know we shouldn't promote junk foods, but, this so reminded me of my early vegan days. Cheese most certainly did fix any and all craving, so I really wanted a replacement- and it's name is Fritos. Fritos were my go-to snack that kept from caving in to cheese.
They're also really filling and available anywhere.

 

[Tom]

You say that you're getting enough protein, carbs, etc, so I don't know why you would feel so run-down. It may be you're not eating enough, but eating too much is also possible, even on a vegan diet. Unless you give us more info about how much of what you're eating, we can't really say.

As others have mentioned above, there's no vitamin deficiency that could develop this quickly- so we can pretty much rule that out, at least.

I won't deny there can be stubborn psychological/habitual cravings for meat, etc, but even that shouldn't make you feel physically weak.

 

[Vegan Dave]

After I went veg*n, I got extensive blood work.....to make sure I had enough protien, iron, B12, etc. Maybe give that a shot, and talk to a dietitian about calorie intake, etc.

GOOD LUCK

 

[overcasst]

That's what I just did too^ my doc checked my folic acid, b12, vit d, and iron levels. I just found out I'm anemic yesterday. I don't think it's just from the vegan thing to be honest but that prob isn't helping. So I am trying out raw iron. You should see if you're lacking specific things with some blood work, you never know what it could be.


If things look weird, it's because this was... Sent from my iPod touch using Tapatalk

 

[LedBoots]

Eat moar food! Vegan food is low in calories, so eat more, people!

 

[imagineaa]

Put your intake into a food calculator. It will tell you what you need to improve.

"Withdrawals" is a misnomer in this sense.

 

[Travalanche]

I've been a consistent vegetarian for a year straight with no loss in energy although I do take a multivitamin just like I have all of my life. A single day will not derail any diet anyways so that's unlikely.

I'm a 5'10'', 170lb guy so I'm normal sized yet I eat around 1000 calories solid food and 1000 calories in drinks and do fine with no weight gain or loss with a moderately active lifestyle.

Seriously though, I can't recall many energy differences between a meat or plant based diet, I've noticed a massive skin improvement on the plant based diet as well as maybe a mild energy improvement (in spurts) but that's it. No negatives towards the plant diet at all and only positives, a B12, Iron, etc deficiency won't happen for at least a month anyways I believe after it starts becoming as such.

Give it a solid 1-3 month attempt at the minimum before reporting results.

 

[Vidal Pierre]

Probably not eating enough I haven't had that problem. Are you just eating Vegetables and no starches? Starches are very important and should take up half your plate.

 

[Jasminedesi16]

I think you maybe need to eat more and that you aren't getting enough calories. Your body wouldn't automatically become deficient in something in the first couple of days.