Vegans?

[amytug 996]

Can a vegan get the sleeve?

[Pookeyism 1,143]

no.

jk! yes you can.

[amytug 996]

Lol you're silly.

I was just thinking that since sometimes its harder for a vegan to get their Protein especially, I didn't know if it would work with this, since we have to eat Protein first.

When I ate Raw vegan a couple years ago I had a lot of green smoothies. there is supposed to be a lot of protein in Spinach, but I don't remember exactly how much.

I can probably put a lot of Protein powder into my smoothies also, I love vanilla pea Protein Powder.

I'm not eating a vegan diet right now, but ultimately I would love to be sleeved and vegan

[PdxMan 4,292]

One day, this too, is my goal. I have done it before, but my relationship with food was so poor that I could not see it for what it needs to be, for me. With the sleeve, that relationship has changed and my confidence in being stronger over food allows me to think that I can do it.

Just like when I was first sleeved, I have to set myself up for success and be sure that I am mentally ready for that next step. I am not there now, but I can see a day when I will be.

As far as ability to get the needed Proteins, I think it would be difficult to do early out. But now, at 10 months out, I have learned what I can eat and how to work the sleeve to my needs. I'm pretty sure the average vegan is not a food gorger and now, neither am I, so, I know I can do this.

[Pookeyism 1,143]

I think you could do it if you were willing to be OK with supplements as a permanent part of your diet.

I just cannot see how this is better for you, but to each his own.

I guess I can recall the times my vegan buddies would get seriously injured and the first thing they had to do was go off the vegan path - or later wished they would.

I had a friend crawl, on-fire, out of a small plane about 5 years ago 3rd degree burns over 45% of his body - totally vegan and was told to eat meat or risk not healing for years...

[PdxMan 4,292]

Well, if I find myself on fire, I think I have other things to worry about. But barring that, I think there are other ways to survive and thrive than feeding on our fellow Earthlings. Yes, they are tasty, but I think they may object if they had a say in it.

But that is another topic for another thread.

[MegInNOLA 531]

Yes, you can definitely have the sleeve and be healthy as a vegan. It will require some planning and attention to detail--I'm moving that way right now. I've eaten vegan at several points in my life, once for a 2-year stretch (broken by an up-close encounter with bacon). After being sleeved and dropping the weight, I now realize that my goal wasn't/isn't just to be thin; it's to be healthy, and I'm starting an exercise program and looking for the most optimum nutrition way of eating that I can find. For me, since my sleeve is uber-picky and still really small, veganism is going to be a challenge simply from a volume perspective--and I suspect this is the case for a lot of us.

Protein is in almost every food in some form--you can read a lot about plant-based diets and Protein just from a simple Google search, so I won't bore you with that here. But the big issue is immediately post-op. You're going to want to find some quality Protein drinks that use soy-based protein (not hard to find, happily!) and avoid dairy and/or egg protein. After that immediate post-op period, you're probably still going to need to supplement with Protein shakes just because you won't be able to eat enough legumes/beans/nuts/tofu to cover your protein requirements as your sleeve heals. That being said, some of the best sources of vegetable protein can be soft/mushies (think Beans, tofu, nut butters).

At this point in my sleeve career (I'm 13-1/2 months out), I eat small, frequent meals--the challenge for me is going to be switching out of dairy into exclusively plant-based protein, as I have been relying pretty heavily on dairy as a protein source (my sleeve doesn't tolerate a lot of animal-flesh Proteins, except for shellfish and occasional lunch meat ham or turkey--and those sometimes don't work). I'm going to have to learn to be more proactive in eating beans/legumes at almost every meal in some format--happily, white Beans can be hidden in smoothies at Breakfast (sounds gross, can't really taste it, thank goodness)..... stuff like that. I'm going to have to plan my meals instead of just going with the flow; I'm not thrilled about that, but the trade-off is worth it.

Anyhow, keep us posted!

[Kiki Von Moonshine 53]

Yes. Lol to Pdxman's fire comment.

[JenniJune 79]

Beans, tofu, soy milk, and almond milk all are very high in Protein. If you stick with strict label reading, and maybe adding in a few extra scoops of protein powder into a Soup or bowl of beans, there should be no reason why a vegan can't be successful on the sleeve.

[thinmymind 107]

If you are already vegan, then you are probably used to planning. Start calculating things now to see how much of things you eat that will get you to your daily Protein needs.

[smallvegan 36]

I am vegan and getting sleeved (hopefully) this summer. My doctor and nutritionist tell me it is do-able, but difficult. The issue is that in order to get the Protein you need, you usually get too many carbs (tofu is like this) which can slow your weight loss. Most vegan Protein Shakes have the same problem. I am working closely with the nutritionist, but it is possible I may need to go vegetarian during the weight loss phase and back to vegan during "maintenance". I REALLY hope that isn't the case, but my health has to come first and I must lose this weight!

-Lauren

[LaValeHawk 0]

I am currently TRYING to transition. I won't say that I am totally shooting for VEGAN, because if things are made with eggs/milk (i.e. breads/crackers but not cheesy milky sauces), I'm ok with that. I was inspired by a few documentaries I watched recently. One is "Forks over Knives". It was very eye opening and really convicted me about changing my diet. Of course, the Protein challenge is my biggest hurdle. I am trying to tackle it daily and PRAYING that I don't set myself back in the process. I will say that I feel GREAT! I am 8 months post-op and have already experienced a "prolonged" plateau due to emotional eating of the "wrong" comfort foods. But, I am back on track now and doing what I have ALWAYS felt was best for me. Now just taking it one day at a time.