Essentials of a Low Carb Diet Plan for Vegetarians

Diet plans are ruling the roost these days, and why not? What with people getting health conscious or just simply wanting to shed some unwanted pounds, it is actually not a very surprising fact. In fact, talking about diet, Atkins Diet plan reigns supreme when it comes to getting into shape in quick time. Atkins diet is based on cutting down on carbohydrates, as a result of which the stored calories are burnt, culminating in weight loss. Now this plan works just fine for non vegetarians. But for the vegetarians it could be a tight rope walk. Still it can be pulled off, because the energy loss after having low carbohydrates can be compensated by proteins very well. So, take a look at various essentials of a diet plan which has low carbohydrates and is for vegetarians.

Essentials
Proteins: The most important substance to focus on for keeping the energy and metabolism going is protein. Even the Atkins diet does not stop you from having butter, soy products, dry fruits, beans, cheese and so on. Hence, proteins can be obtained from many foodstuffs. Basically, you need 2 grams of protein per pound of healthy, normal body weight.

Fruits: Most of the low carb diet plans involve a lots of raw fruits. They are low on carbohydrates, low on calories and high on vitamins. As far as possible, do not add sugar or anything to the juice or the slices of the fruit. Strawberries, citrus fruits, pears and dry fruits are good options to have in your low carb recipes.

Vegetables: If you are not a vegetable freak, slowly add vegetables to your diet plan. Kale, lettuce, spinach and few other leafy vegetables are the best fare if you are aiming for lighter stuff. Have peppers, oregano and onions to spruce up the bland flavor of some of these vegetables. Amongst others, broccoli, cauliflower, green beans and turnip can be good for your diet. If you ask what does the Atkins diet mentions about this, I can say that normally Atkins diet puts no restrictions on vegetables except corn, peas and potatoes (Oh no!). But then, there is a myriad of choices to fill this void, isn't it? You gain some, you lose some!

Herbs and Fungi: A low carb diet plan for vegetarians can be made interesting with things like mushrooms. This is a food product made form fungi which can create an illusion of meat in the food substance. In fact, it is used as a substitute for meat in burgers, sausages, etc. Another thing is digging into herbs. Herbs hardly have carbohydrates and add flavor and variety to your meals. Garnish and dress the same old foodstuff with herbs and onion, garlic and chili and you get an absolutely mind-blowing dish!

That was all what you needed to focus on in a diet plan where you have low carbohydrates. Now here is a sample menu for such a diet plan. Check it out.

Menu for Low Carb Diet Plan
Breakfast

• Take a cup of organic soy milk.
• Add half a cup of uncooked organic oats to the soy milk and let it soak.
• Add 4 walnut halves (chopped) to the concoction.
• 1 Orange

Lunch

• Around 5 to 6 cups of salad, having lettuce, carrot, red cabbage, cucumber, celery, tomato, yellow or red bell pepper.
• 3 quarters or 3½ ounce of baked and marinated tofu with low carb oil (2 tbsp) and vinegar dressing.
• 0.07 oz of dark chocolate, having around 70 to 90% cocoa.

Snack

• Maximum 3 cups of unsweetened yogurt mixed with 1 chopped peach
• Handful of nuts (if you want to chuck yogurt)
• Just any fruit

Dinner

• Half cup brown organic rice
• A single, whole wheat tortilla
• Three servings of green vegetables cooked in approximately 2 tbsp of oil
• Dessert could be an apple and dark chocolate in the quantity as mentioned in the lunch.

This was an overview of a low carbohydrate diet plan. The menu could have variations according to your individual capacity and needs.

At the end, this plan is nothing to be skeptical about. You can easily make up for the reduced number of carbohydrates by eating other things and nutritious ones at that. Further, they also contribute to weight loss in a good way and are not like crash dieting or something.

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