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Old 01-03-2012, 12:43 AM   #1  
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Default vegan, gluten free, and still FAT?!?

yep. i've been veggie/vegan for 10 years, currently vegan for 1.5 years, and gave up gluten very strictly 6 months ago. with cutting gluten, at first i lost a few pounds but then i gained it all back. my mom's pretty convinced my dad and i have celiac; neither of us have been tested, but all our signs/symptoms with gluten point straight to celiac. whatever it is, i ate at a new place a couple days ago while holiday travelling, and i gained 10 pounds and my stomach hurts immensely.

i'm constantly hungry still, and, while i'm not cranky as often, when i do get glutened, i'm miserable. i'm out of cheap, easy, and HEALTHY gf/vegan snack ideas. nothing seems to fit all of the criteria. my brother just saw me at christmas and remarked, 'how can you be fat still? all you can eat are vegetables.' help!

Last edited by bluestegosaurus; 01-03-2012 at 12:48 AM. Reason: clarification
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Old 01-03-2012, 12:59 AM   #2  
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If you haven't been tested, I'd urge you to first do that.

Then, if they find you do have a condition or a food sensitivity/allergy that you head to a Nutritionist with this information as they might be able to point you in the right direction of what you can eat without issue.

As to being an overweight veg*n, all it takes is eating more calories than what you expend. (Although your own situation is slightly different considering your possible Celiac disease. I know that certain conditions/allergies can cause weight gain or weight retention.) My own brother ate a vegetarian diet for many years and stayed well above 300 pounds. It's not only about what you eat, but it can also be how much. He may not have eaten meats, but he could take down a ton of creamy dishes, cheeses, sugars, pastas, etc.

Last edited by Lovely; 01-03-2012 at 01:05 AM.
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Old 01-03-2012, 01:36 AM   #3  
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Maybe you could track your diet over a couple of days and see what the calorie/macro nutrient profile is? That way you can experiment with something new within veganism.

I also believe that if you do have celiac disease, that body inflammation and water retention are related.
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Old 01-03-2012, 05:23 AM   #4  
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I really liked the honesty of your post. It made me giggle a bit (sorry, I know you are in distress).

I hate to say it, but it is a myth that is often perpetuated by the vegan community: a vegan diet makes you slim and healthy. There is also a myth propagated by the gluten-free community: eliminating gluten from your diet makes you slim and healthy.

As Lovely pointed out, what you are eating has more calories than what you are expending. Also, whatever you are eating is not helping your hunger - you said you are constantly hungry (too many carbs or sugar?).

You can definitely be slim and super heart-healthy with a vegan, gluten-free diet, if you eat the correct amount of calories and daily exercise.

So, good news: you are almost there!

I was also eating super healthily. I was still feeling fatigued and gaining. I found I was eating an average of 2500 healthy calories a day. Something that should have made me feel good had the opposite effect - too many calories were piling on the weight and making me feel lethargic.
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Old 01-03-2012, 12:26 PM   #5  
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so, what does getting tested for celiac involve and cost? go to gp, tell her i still feel lousy after cutting out all these things, then ??

also: i have pretty significant allergies to grass, trees, weeds, and other "environmental" allergens, most of which are plants. my allergist suggested that for things that aren't of the acutely life-threatening reactions to plants, especially gi type symptoms, allergy testing isn't likely to show food allergies.

i had been eating a lot of potatoes (mashed, boiled, roasted) because i found them to be an easy food that didn't hurt, was easy to prepare without cross contamination, and required little advance preparation. i since learned that potatoes have a high glycemic index and are likely spiking my insulin response and making me hungry again. so, now, no potato.
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Old 01-06-2012, 03:56 PM   #6  
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When I went gluten free, I started using beans and lentils in my foods a hundred times more often than I used to before. They fill me up fast because of the high protein content and I stay full longer than with pasta for example. Also, I don't get bloated that easily any more provided that the beans are well soaked and cooked. If I rely too much on vegetables only, I don't get enough carbs and will be craving for sugary food which is hard to resist and I certainly put on some weight. Tried and tested.

Lucky for me, I can digest oats very easily, so full grain rolled oats' porridge is my standard breakfast that I eat nearly every day. This is where I get most of my carbs. For the rest of the day I eat vegetable mashes (for example squash + potatoes or carrots + lentils), squash soups (add a potato and you won't need cream to make it "creamy"), lean meat (sorry, not vegan...) and some dairy. Also, I started making smoothies with added hemp protein (totally vegan and guaranteed to fill you up!) - a good blend of berries and banana is so packed with vitamins that you should get a quick "satisfied!" report from your tummy A nutrient packed smoothie is a good gluten free start for the day

Last edited by graatsia; 01-06-2012 at 04:01 PM.
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Old 01-09-2012, 10:05 PM   #7  
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Definitely start by visiting a GP and asking for a referral to be tested for food allergies. It's going to make knowing what you can and cant eat comfortably so much less stressful. If your digestive system is giving you grief, it can definitely affect your weight, particularly with bloating and constipation. But just being a gluten free vegan doesn't equal skinny. If you eat more calories than you use, it doesnt matter what you eat, you will gain weight. Like that professor who proved you can lose weight by eating twinkies and junk food as long as calories out > calories in.
If you are gluten intolerant its not the end of the world Google "gluten free vegan" and you will find a bonanza of blogs dedicated to xGFx recipes.
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Old 01-10-2012, 09:39 AM   #8  
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I'm gluten-free and eat mostly vegetarian/vegan meals and am overweight too. Even healthy foods can put on weight if you eat too much of them. I also have to avoid nuts, dairy and eggs, I'm nursing my son and he is allergic.

Brown rice, air popped popcorn, Udi's breads, quinoa and Tinkyada pasta are part of my grain intake. Too much of any of those also packs on the pounds. I have to really watch them.

I use Earth Balance for butter and that stuff has a lot of calories, so I have to really be careful with using it.

I also don't exercise enough, so I know that's another reason why I'm overweight. Watching nutrition/calories doesn't do much if you don't exercise. I have killer arthritis in my knees and even walking to the mailbox is painful, so I'm working on that obstacle.
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