Being on a vegetarian diet or being a vegetarian essentially means abstaining one’s self from consuming meat. This process is opted for by a number of people for a multitude of reasons, a couple of them being: out of respect for the lives that some consider are being taken away, due to health reasons, at times in order to reduce weight, and so on and so forth.
No matter which philosophy of life one follows, the essence of truth remains that a human body requires protein in order to survive and maintain a healthy state.
What is protein?
Protein is a general term or synonym for meat. It is a macronutrient which is essential to building muscle mass. However, there are other ways as well via which protein substitutes can be consumed. Chemically, protein is made up of amino acids, which are basically organic compounds made of hydrogen, oxygen, sulfur, or nitrogen.
Why is Protein important for human body?
Protein is one of those extremely essential requirement of a human’s body. It provides human beings energy and helps us function properly and diligently. It is one of the three main and absolutely essential macronutrients in the body, the other two being: fats and carbohydrates.
How to substitute protein while being on a vegetarian diet?
In this day and age, i.e. the twenty first century, there is basically little to none that human beings cannot do. With the new and surpassing research, doctors and nutritionists have found a plethora of ways via which protein can be substituted while not deviating from one’s vegetarian diet. You just have to plan out your meals, and know where to look.
One can attain protein by consuming either meat or plants, even. Though people in general prefer consuming protein via meat, however, recent study shows that people who consume protein via plants have a low risk of heart diseases. This threats multiplies and becomes fatal if the consumer is a smoker, overweight, obese or does not exercise much, or drinks heavily.
How should vegetarians or people on vegetarian diet consume enough protein?
Vegetarians, due to obvious reasons, may have a risk of being protein deficient. Therefore, it is extremely essential for them to maintain a protein dominant menu. It is extremely easy to maintain a plant based protein diet, one just have to be slightly bit more vigilant.
Following are a handful of examples for you to base your plant based protein diets on:
- Beans: one can just have a party with beans. With a huge amount of variety to choose from, beans are a treat to those die hard vegetarians who seldom get the luxury to choose from a decent variety of things they can actually consume.
- Tofu: Tofu is number one source of protein for vegetarians, with more than 100% of RDA manganese tofu is rich in nutrient content and packed full of essential ingredients for re-fuelling. It also contains all of the vital amino acids for muscle replenishment, making tofu top of the vegetarian proteins for fuelling and muscle building.
- Green vegetables: Brussels, asparagus, spinach, basically any green that you can find in the market will aid you reach your protein mark quite sufficiently.
- Fish: If you happen to be a pescatarian (a vegetarian who consumes fish and shell fish) try having a slight mix of salmon, cod, tuna, and etc. as a part of your meal.
On average, consumption of protein suggested by USDA (Unites States Department of Agriculture):
As per the announcement of the USDA, on average, adult women should have an intake of five ounces of protein in a day, on the other hand, most adult men should have an intake of five point five or six ounces of protein intake. USDA suggests surrounding your meals around beans, lentils, and rice may help you get a step towards your goal.
Supplements
Using vegetarian protein supplements often has its benefits, firstly these are much easier for you to digest, making sure you can maintain your daily protein goals. Drinking protein is much easier than eating, as protein makes you feel fuller for longer and often it can be hard to consume large amounts of protein with eating and often people struggle to eat the correct protein levels they need for muscle recovery. Myself, I am currently on a fitness program that requires me to consume 2 grams per kilo, normally the average person will require 1 gram of protein per kilo, but athletes and bodybuilders require a lot more due for muscle recovery and rebuilding the filaments of the muscles.
Vegetarian protein comes in many sources, and most of the big brand supplements now use vegetarian whey protein. Other popular sources of protein for vegans are
- Pea protein
- Hemp protein
- Soy protein
- Rice protein
Bee pollen
How to measure one ounce: one egg, one tablespoon of peanut butter, and half an ounce of nuts or seeds equals to an ounce of protein.
