[Nigal]

OK veggie-heads, what do you eat? What do you use as your main source of protein? Especially after a 50 mile ride and you feel like you could eat a whole cow head first?

I have gone for very long stretches without eating meat but I always end up in the carb heavy end of vegetarianism by eating too much bread and pasta. I do have one or two nights a week that are meat free. What do they call that; flexetarian? LOL!

[thecyclops]

Oh you done went and done it....

[thecyclops]

OK...After a long run or ride I usually have a protein (soy) shake or smoothie,and a sports drink 1st,as many elite athletes such as myself do.
As far as actually eating I will have (if dinner or lunch isnt in the very near future) any combination of peanut butter/jelly sandwich,fruit,or maybe some cereal with soy milk....Dinner? Well being a vegetarian is soooooooo much easier now than even just a few years ago.By that I mean things like veggie burgers used to be hard to find and not a lot of choices,now there are multiple companies,making a plethora of different veggie"meats" now.Everything from "ribs,burgers,hot-dogs,chicken,ground beef,corn dogs,bacon,sausage,and even deli meats",all 100% vegetarian,and 100% delicious.
So I'll have maybe a "hot-dog" with baked fries? "Ribs" and a baked sweet potato? "Chicken" fajitas w/chips and salsa? Vegetarian chili? The possibilities are endless,and to top it all off,its all 100% healthy,plus eating all those fruits and veggies all the time,Im so regular I can set my watch by my bowel movements

[Nigal]

Great, there's one vision I'll never be able to scrub from my Psyche...you sitting there setting your sports watch. LOL!

I remember years ago when the only meat alternatives was tvp and it was horrible. Now the meat alternatives have gotten much better. Morning Star makes a buffalo wings that I like more than the real thing. I've tried the Korn stuff but it's just too weird eating fungus meat. The veggie burger is unbelievable. I have Linda McCartney's last cook book and she has an enchilada recipe in there that is better than with meat.

Now, the dark side of fake meat. One of my big things is the amount of processing we put food through. I generally cook everything from scratch. The concerns I have with soy products is the amount of processing they use and what else is in there to get that soy to be meat-like? I also wonder what prolonged eating of soy does to the body in the form of estrogen production.

[thecyclops]

Originally Posted by Nigal

Great, there's one vision I'll never be able to scrub from my Psyche...you sitting there setting your sports watch. LOL!

I remember years ago when the only meat alternatives was tvp and it was horrible. Now the meat alternatives have gotten much better. Morning Star makes a buffalo wings that I like more than the real thing. I've tried the Korn stuff but it's just too weird eating fungus meat. The veggie burger is unbelievable. I have Linda McCartney's last cook book and she has an enchilada recipe in there that is better than with meat.

Now, the dark side of fake meat. One of my big things is the amount of processing we put food through. I generally cook everything from scratch. The concerns I have with soy products is the amount of processing they use and what else is in there to get that soy to be meat-like? I also wonder what prolonged eating of soy does to the body in the form of estrogen production.

Ive also heard the estrogen thing too,but have also seen it debunked so who knows? I am all man nigal,and I eat it all the time And yes the veggie stuff is really good! I mean does a veggie burger taste like a char broiled angus burger?absolutely not.But I can take a good veggie burger,put it on a whole wheat bun w/lettuce,tomato,ketchup,etc with fries or chips and I dont feel like Im missing a thing.But I do eat some dairy,just not milk,so I will get whey protein in my system from time to time,cheese and yogurt also.I also make sure to get other forms of protein like peas,peanuts and eggs.

[Nigal]

I eat a TON of beans. It's one of the few things I will eat from a can. Throw four eggs in a skillet over easy with half a can of chili beans and I'm good to go all day with out being hungry. I'm getting ready to jump back on The South Beach Diet (high protein-low carb) which usually means a ton of meat. Maybe I'll give the fake stuff a try and see how the cost comes out.

[thecyclops]

Originally Posted by Nigal

I eat a TON of beans. It's one of the few things I will eat from a can. Throw four eggs in a skillet over easy with half a can of chili beans and I'm good to go all day with out being hungry. I'm getting ready to jump back on The South Beach Diet (high protein-low carb) which usually means a ton of meat. Maybe I'll give the fake stuff a try and see how the cost comes out.

Not bad for losing weight,but your body needs carbs man,maybe not a ton but it needs it.Especially if you are riding or an active person,as you seem to be so just make sure you get enough carbs or your riding could get harder...But I run competitively and ride hard so Im a carb-aholic,lol

[Nigal]

Oh I get carbs, it's just not a lot and I try to be selective in their forms (nothing white). While I have always loved carbs I have never had the need for carbo loading during activities. Before I did today's ride I had a salmon patty on the 100 calorie Slimwich bread ( I can't discourage the eating of salmon patty before a ride enough. I was burping salmon the whole ride!), I did 35 miles straight through, got home and had a protein shake and Luna Bar. I feel great and don't have that "I wanna eat a whole pizza!" feeling. High fiber followed by protein seems to work best for me.

[Mountaingirl]

I'm a vegan so I can tell you what I basically have. I tend to have a vegan protein shake of some sort post-workout for the most part. I like Vegan Protein in chocolate or Vega products a lot. They both don't contain soy which is good since I think I have enough soy without consuming a soy shake.

Also, I have protein bars handy all the time like Vega, Odwalla, Luna, Clif and such. The Odwalla Super Protein has like 12g of protein which is great. If I need more protein than that, I will make some pasta or a burrito of some sort. The veggie burgers like boca are also good for a quick fix.

[Mountaingirl]

Also, I'm a big fan of oatmeal. I have it every morning which is usually about 45 minutes or so before I head out the door for my workout.