Overweight & Obese Vegans

counting calories can be obsessive I guess, so aim for what feels right (which will change, so be prepared to adapt with what that is) but what really feels right...

the way society is  conditioned at the moment, hysteria is an "epidemic", esp when closely influenced with 'the American dream'.

heh.

I guess over eating and purging is just that your stomach hasn't adjusted yet to result of increased 'appetite'... so maybe put some time into making under-estimated amounts of really nice exciting food.. so you'l feel more satisfied and go on with putting your mind to other interests.

when I had acne I would always check the sugar content of EVERYTHING... I guessing counting calories is the equivalent... although energy doesn't always equate to weight.. though most commonly it does in the work being done with energy in muscle mass... but  rarely is it solely accountable for 'fat', which is a store of energy for less plentiful times.

so by that trend carbohydrates like pasta, potatoes, rice and cereal probably .. well I was going to say might be more of an impact... but thinking about it... having a food source that 'burns' for longer... and gives a slower release of energy... is probably better if you're looking to cut down on food intake.. you feel fuller and have less energy, but over a much longer and more sustained amount of time.

fruit is nice in the morning though

sorry for being useless, hope you find your balance with or without medication

Yea, I'm a chubby veggie

It is annoying when people say vegans are skinny. You can over induldge in veggies and pasta and ... anything.. too!!
Not to mention Sweet William's chocolates

I'm trying to lose 10kgs... but it's a slow journey. Rough calorie counting and more exercise.

I used to weigh close to 100kg now i'm down to 84 as of this morning.

I stopped myself from eating until i was full and started eating until i wasn't hungry anymore.

At work i used to eat 2 sandwhiches for lunch, now i eat one etc

When most people go vegan they lose weight and become healthier. I am the other way around though, I have never suffered with any kind of weight issues but I did put on weight when I first went vegan. I'm not sure how, maybe from eating more and exercising more because I felt I had more energy to do so. For me gaining that weight was a really good thing. I'm not sickly skinny by any means but it did put me up to a healthier weight.

I've had a real positive result going vego weight-wise. From what I've seen from other friends though, they fall into the pitfall of becoming "junkfood vegetarians/vegans". Here are a few tips to lose weight without calorie counting:

- Stay away from saturated fats and processed foods, fresh vegetables, fruits, legumes and wholemeal grains are best
- Cook as many of your own meals as possible
- Don't drink your calories (soft drinks, orange juice etc.) and drink water frequently (cold water can burn calories!!)
- Cardio EVERY DAY (no excuses!!), even a half hour walk will do wonders
- Have one or two "cheat" meals a week (yes, sadly cake is a cheat meal)
- Take it slow and don't beat yourself up if you have set backs (I have lost nearly 30kg but it took me 3-4 years)

If you can slowly start changing your diet and exercise habits in a sustainable way your success rate will be better. The other thing to mention is that I had more success when my goal was to become healthy instead of to become thin. Anyhow, good luck!

I have lost some weight as a vegan, however I am still overweight. If I lost 5-10kgs more I'd be happy, probably still in the 'overweight' category, but I don't care about that. I love my figure, I just need to lose a bit of extra fat.

I do have Sweet William problems. Lately I've been eating quite.a.bit, lol! I was off soft drink for a while which was helping my weight loss, however I have just started uni and now I am drinking V for all my late night studying.

It seems to be everyone else who is concerned with my weight though. I've been getting 'advice' from someone who is anorexic, pfft! Seriously, leave me alone.

I'm a chubby vegan! I did lose a bit of weight when I went vegetarian but I seem to have plateaued. My parents are both overweight which makes it harder, but I generally eat pretty healthy so I don't know what's going on. I think I need more physical activity but I hate doing sports.

Good advice!

I was in the same situation, but then I rescued my Kelpie. He has so much energy, he needs to be walked for a minimum of an hour a day. At one point he had so much energy that I was walking him for 4 hours a day. So, get a dog?