Gaining weight as a vegetarian??? Whyyyyyy?

Question

{I'm a 15 y.o. female, 130 pounds and 5'9"}

I became a vegetarian a little over 3 months ago, at the beginning of May. I usd to weigh about 112-115 pounds, but since becoming a vegetarian, have gained 15 pounds or so. I am very unhappy with this, as all of the fat has gone to the worst place - my hips (and of course, none could go to my chest or butt!)

My diet is reasonably healthy...

Breakfast - A few scoops of yogurt (low fat) with a bit of GoLeanCrunch mixed in

Lunch - Either a wrap with honey mustard and sprouts and lettuces/ or /A small serving of tortellini

Dinner - This depends...could be whole wheat pasta usually

I have only one snack a day, usually 2 small scoops of ice cream after dinner

And I usually have a coffee (skim milk, splenda) every day

I eat veggies with both lunch and dinner (a small salad or cucumber)

Take calcium supplements (I drink water with every meal)

And I run about 4 times a week and lift weights to get stronger and I play volleyball year round

I am just not happy with my body, and I am wondering if anyone else has had a problem like mine and how they fixed it...?

Any help would be greatly appreciated =]]]]]

Answer 1

You weight is fine, your diet - on the other hand - is awful, unbalanced and making you sick. I'm surprised you can lift and run with such a crappy, out of balance, diet. It has too many carbohydrates and it is probably spiking your insulin, making your body store fat despite eating less.

Contrary to what we've been told for the last 30 years, fat and cholesterol isn't the problem, refined carbohydrates and sugars are the problem. The high amount of carbohydrates you eat messes with your insulin levels and encourages your body to gain weight.

If you insist on remaining a vegetarian, eat a few eggs a day and get plenty of cheese, milk and dairy. Otherwise suck it up and start eating meat again. A low carb, fat and meat heavy diet like Atkin's or South Beach has been proven to be safe and effective for losing weight.

You don't need to lose weight, but you do need a more balanced diet. Humans cannot survive eating only starch, ice cream, vegetables and condiments. And ditch the splenda. Try eliminating sugar altogether or using raw sugar and honey instead.

Also check out the paleo diet. The theory is to emulate the diet a "cave man" would eat before humans developed agriculture.

Kudos to you for exercising, staying active and wanting to eat right. Unfortunately what we've been told about a good diet for the last 3 decades has been wrong.

Think about this. The obesity epidemic in the US started getting worse when Americans started adopting a low fat diet like the U.S. government told us we should. Coincidence?

Answer 2

Well, for one thing, you're growing, so you're obviously going to be getting heavier. For another thing, you are now a healthy weight. (You're at the lower end.) Even at your heaviest point before, 115, you would be considered underweight. I'm not making this up. Look it up yourself: http://www.nhlbisupport.com/bmi/

Trust me, you do not want to be underweight. If you get to be TOO underweight, you wind up having serious health problems, including reduced hair and nail health and growth. (Being underweight is an excellent way to have thinning hair, actually.)

You're also not eating enough. What part of your body are you unhappy with? Do your clothes fit okay? Are you getting flabby? It could be that you're putting on weight in muscle due to your exercise. I'd go to the doctor and see what she thinks. I'd also throw away my scale if I were you... it's a lousy judge of body shape. Go by how your clothes fit and how you feel... it's weird, but sometimes you're actually smaller when you gain weight (again, because of muscle). You also usually look better toned, even though you could be heavier.

Answer 3

It's not unusual to gain weight on your hips when you're a teenage girl.  You're growing, and that's a place women tend to get larger as they go through puberty.  130 pounds at 5'9 is a perfectly healthy weight too.

Being a vegetarian alone doesn't have any direct effect on your weight.  Gaining or losing weight is based on how many calories you are eating, and how many calories you are burning.  If you eat more calories than you burn, you will gain weight whether you are eating meat or not.

Answer 4

I'm a 15 year old girl (5'4) and a vegan.

Yeah i know what you mean, i'm gaining a lil weight too, I'm at 103 lbs now. The thing is that's just my body, im built slight, and i think i am healthy and not malnourished. Just the way i'm meant to be. Taking that into account, maybe that is just the healthy weight your body's meant to b at. You sound tall as well. Your diet seems superior to me, and your exercising so what else can you do really? Veggie diets are tricky, and veggie diet, diets are even harder. My advise, see if your weight increases rapidly, like unhealthy levels, or it just even out soon. But also you may want to see a dietition or ask your doctor, for all ik i'm wrong too.

Good luckk!!

P.S. do u take a multi vitamin? if u don't i would consider trying 1. You lack important stuff in a veggi diet. calcium is important, but since u eat dairy u do get a lot naturally.

also splenda? sugar is healthier since it's not processed. (my opinion)

=)

Answer 5

Typically, people who cut out meat, fill in the meat gap with dairy products.

Or perhaps you are not exercising enough.

See, meat does not digest very well.  It just sits in your digestive system and makes you feel full.  Since you stopped eating it, you are not as backed up, your digestion is likely better, and you can eat more.  But, you also need to exercise more.  You may also be gaining muscle too, which weights more then twice as much as fat.  Cut out the dairy, and exercise more (cardio) and there you go. Presto.

Answer 6

you shouldn't eat yogurt. apparently it has pigs' bone marrow in it.

Answer 7

some of it could be that you're growing, and some could be that you're getting more carbs with the pastas.

drinks tend to catch up with me, i'm a vegetarian and since i've become i've been drinking more soda, etc.

since noticing this i've started drinking tea and my weight has stayed about the same.

i wish i could help more but that's all i know and can think of at the moment.

hope things work out. (:

Answer 8

pasta -- carbs!!!

ice cream -- every day?! cut back, honey

Answer 9

Sweetie, 130 pounds at 5'9" sounds good. 112-115 pounds is  a bit under weight for someone who is 5'9". You may want to cut back on the carbs: pasta, etc. One problem your having is your age, at 15 your half way between being a girl and a women. Give it a few more years and you will fill out in the right places.

Answer 10

Probably too many carbs with the pasta.  You may want to try the pasta with inulin so you only absorb a smaller percentage of those carbs.

Answer 11

First of all, remember that you're young. You're probably still growing. 112 pounds at 5'9" is not healthy- it's borderline emaciated. 130 is at the lower end of healthy. I'm not sure why you're upset.

Answer 12

probably because vegetables don't fill you up enough, so you eat more to feel full.