Your High Protein Vegetarian Diet Plan
There’s plenty of understandable reasons why people would want to stop eating meat. From the negative affect of red meats that only seem to happen to humans, to the sad and frankly brutal condition of our meat industry and the treatment of animals. One of the biggest roadblocks many people face before taking the leap, though, is making sure that they can meat their protein goals on a vegetarian diet.
Well, if you’re worried about getting enough protein on a vegetarian diet, you’ll be surprised to know that it’s not actually that hard. Most people believe that protein is only available from meat products, but unless you’re an athlete, pregnant, or a bodybuilder, you can likely meet your protein needs without too much extra effort, and to help I’ll list a few foods that are vegetarian friendly and high in protein.
Foods High In Protein
To start with, we have the often overlooked Buckwheat. Buckwheat isn’t actually type of wheat, but a relative of rhubarb. In Japan, they’re often consumed as soba noodles, but most cultures eat the seeds through grinding them into flour, or cooking the hulled kernels, called “groats”. Buckwheat is a very healthy food, having about six grams of protein per cup when cooked, it’s also been shown to lower blood cholesterol and help control blood glucose levels.
High Protein Vegetarian Legumes
Next we have some foods that are pretty widely known as protein power houses; beans, lentils, and legumes. All beans, lentils, and peas are great sources of protein for anyone who is vegetarian or even vegan. Black beans, vegetarian chili, split pea soup, chickpea hummus, or any variation of these foods are bound to be packed with enough protein for your meal. I recently wrote about the Ancient Greek Food sources and it is clear that the average citizen consumed far less meat than the Spartans or Ancient Olympians of that era. Yet they still had to navigate uneven terrain and had an active daily lifestyle.
Soy Protein
And while beans are low in certain amino acids, soy is a more complete protein and is the usual go to substitute for both vegetarians and vegans. Tempeh and natto are a few variations, but tofu is certainly the best known soy product. The rule of thumb is that the harder the tofu is, the higher the protein content. Firm tofu can have up to ten grams per half cup.
Rice and Beans
Of course we then have rice and beans. Simple, cheap, and a staple in any Hispanic household growing up. My Abuela’s black beans and rice is honestly one of my fondest memories from my childhood. And along with triggering my nostalgia mightily, rice and beans is one of the best protein go-to’s for anyone who doesn’t eat meat, as rice makes up for the missing amino acid in beans, and beans do the exact same for rice on the other end; leading to a meal that can hold about seven grams of protein per cup.
Increasing Protein as a Vegetarian
So while it may be slightly less easy to meet your protein goal while on a meatless diet, it’s certainly possible. You’ll just be forced to cook a bit more than otherwise, but you can look forward to the effort being rewarded with more than a few tasty meals that are just as healthy as they are delicious.
There are a few concerns to be aware of when going meatless.
Vitamin B12 can be hard to get on a strict pant based diet. Be sure to monitor your intake of this vitamin because some people feel that our daily recommended values are too low in the first place. You can take a look at the benefits of cyanocobalamin and if you feel that you need more of this essential vitamin, consider ordering B12 injections. They are cheap, only have to be done once or twice a week and will keep you in your vegetarian lifestyle.
If weight loss is your goal, higher protein meals combined with exercise have been shown to accelerate fat loss. Again, you have to be mindful of calories in, calories used and the protein ratio of your meals.
There are some excellent protein sources you can get in the form of bars, shakes and powders to supplement your diet. Aloha premium protein is highly rated, Vegan and Keto friendly and provides 18grams of protein per serving!
