How to become a healthy vegetarian?

So I have considered becoming a vegetarian for a long time and now I would like to know the basic things...what is the best things to eat so that you can get all the proteins needed? and how much calories do you need/day? and I would appreciate some other tips if you have :)How to become a healthy vegetarian?
Lentils and soy products are your best choices for protein from plants, but different plants have different combinations of the amino acids that are needed for you to be healthy. Tgus you need multiple beans to cover the different protein needed, and multiple other plants to get all nutrition. Search trusted sites like Medline Plus, Uptodate.com, Mayoclinic, and the USDA Site for Diet on more information about nutrition to start with (will be less biased and you will get more medical/scientific information) And then find a good book or two on the vegetarian diet.





As I mentioned, lentils and soy beans are the best, but making sure you get lots of other beans, and having a VARIETY of food is the best way to make sure you get as many of your bodie's essentials as possible. Other super healthy foods include spinach (replace iceberg lettuce with this if you can, Spinach is good and romaine letter is not as good but both better than iceberg) broccoli, canteloupe, berries, bananas, carrots, Whole grains (many good cereals have a good amount) and the list continues. Also, you will want to probably eat more nuts like peanuts and walnuts and almonds if you can, these are similar to beans in that they have special nutrients, but will also have important fats.



If you can I recommend keeping egg whites and fish in your diet, as they are both high in protein, fish has important fats, and lower amounts of bad fat, and will make not eating the other stuff a little easier especially when you go out.



Comment on becoming vegetarian... My parent's became vegetarian and I think as you get older you should definitely change your diet with age. But also at younger ages, your metabolism is different, and your lifestyle as well. It will be easier for you if you have a close friend who is also vegetarian so you wont feel like the odd one out or feel alone, or feel restricted, which is what being vegetarain kind of is, a restriction. People don't often last too long on restrictions.



My personal (I am a young adult) ideal diet for myself would be a modified diets, with an increase in vegetarian foods, but not a complete cut out of other foods. This plan too take discipline, to say I had too much meat for the week so I shouldn't eat this, or to actively select the healthier option (in this case, sometimes people do better with using the name vegetarian as an excuse or reason, instead of restriciton!, they can say oh im vegetarian so I wont eat that, which sounds more reasonable than "I have eaten my monthly alottment of meat already" )



Regardless, find your vege groove, and stick to it for life, you will be GREATLY reducing you chance of myocardial infarction/ heart attack... stroke/brain infarction (brain attack), atherosclerosis, which can cause both of the previous two, and other diseases like Diabetes... and with proper excercise you will feel GREAT! (as long as you are taking in what your body needs. Just cause you eat green stuff doesn't mean your doing everything you should. Make sure you understand your diet. In that regard, doing this will be hard but again its worth it!)



become a green machine! and stay informed,

--The Rainbucketer, a medical student
Im becoming a vego too.



You need to have lots of nuts instead of meat to get the same protien. You should still eat fish though...



Thats all i got =S Sorry. lolHow to become a healthy vegetarian?
You need about 1200-1400 calories to do your daily activities. You can have lentils for protein and rice or wheat for carb. Also, lots of vegetables and fruits for fiber and vitamins, minerals.



http://cookingfunfood.blogspot.com
Visit www.veggieboards.com for TONS of great advice on the subject- and sites like www.sparkpeople.com let you log your food intake to make sure you are getting enough calories/fat/carbs/protein in your nutrition! I love it! I have been a vegetarian for a month, and by planning balanced meals I have never felt more healthy in my life. I exercise heavily 5 times a week in addition to dance rehearsals (I'm an actor- always in musicals with hard dance choreography!) And I never feel weak. The only time I do is when I have gone over 3-4 hours without eating anything at all. Since becoming vegetarian and trying to eat mainly "whole" foods I find that I can listen to my body better. When I feel weak and have a while before I can eat a big meal, I eat something like a bit of peanut butter, fruit, piece of bread, and I automatically feel better! :)How to become a healthy vegetarian?
This website, run by the Mayo Clinic, has a copy of the vegetarian food pyramid on it. Use it when planing your meals.

Vegetarian diet: How to get the best nutrition

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/vegetar鈥?/a>



You will also want to get the Vegetarian Starter Kit from -

Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine

http://www.pcrm.org/health/veginfo/vsk/
grrrr stop giving me veg questions goddammit!!