I know this was mentioned before here in the Vegans/Vegetarians forums and I wanted to maybe start this thread for all things pertaining to the book that Dr. Garth Davis authored, Proteinaholic. So far I'm on chapter 6 of it and I'm just amazed with how sound it is and all the studies that are out there to support why we don't need such a high amount of protein, and why it's a culprit of obesity, high blood pressure, diabetes, etc.... There's just so much to talk about if anyone wants to get into discussion. Now, this thread IS NOT going to be for debate. I do not want anyone coming on here advocating high protein and what they "know" and debating with any of us who are or evolving into plant based, vegans or vegetarians. I want to share the things I've learned from the book and if anyone wants to challenge those, READ THE BOOK FIRST, and then you can come and talk about it. If you don't or haven't read the book, feel free to read the things that will be posted...and do your own homework to find these facts/truths out for yourself. I literally don't have time to do a protein ping pong match...so don't start one. You will be ignored.

Okay, with that said and out of the way, the first thing I want to mention is that Dr. Davis actually dispels the myths about protein and why our bodies don't need so much. It is not an opinionated book, it's a science/fact book. It makes TOTAL sense. He is quite comical too. The parts where he plays out his doctor/patient dialogues hit me the most...because I can relate to how I was educated about protein being what we all need. I had the same mentalities as he did regarding it, but after I started watching documentaries on plant based diets for the past couple of years, I've slowly become open to all the health benefits of eating plant based. But now, even though I knew plant based is great for the health, I didn't know that the protein component was/is what was causing so many problems in my health, my husband's, etc. Now, I've got science and truth to understand the premise of protein. The history of why, what Dr Davis talks about, we western society pick apart whole foods and live based off of macronutrients. Now, it just boggles me why we do that. The other thing that rings true and is nice knowing, is that he is a bariatric surgeon too. He knows what he's coaching/telling his patients. He knows that he was not a nutritionist, didn't know a single thing, but the one hour of nutrition studies in his school days, but he took the time to dive into history, studies, reports, etc to bring light to why western society is so unhealthy, and most of it is based on animal protein.

Wow.

Read the book!

7 hours ago, Apple1 said:

I need to learn to cook without my olive oil. I am working on it.

This is a hard one. Same here.

I've been enjoying reading up on the Blue Zones.

Here's a pretty good article that explains the similarities pretty well:

https://www.consciouslifestylemag.com/blue-zones-diet/

An interesting note. Of the 5 Blue Zones, only one was Vegan, and the study showed that the Vegans that also consumed fish (Pescatarians) actually fared slightly better than the regular vegans. Even so, Big Macs and French Fries didn't feature in any of those Zones' diets

Whole, unprocessed grains, beans, nuts/seeds, fresh produce, fruit, red wine, purple veggies, very small amounts of dairy (averaging 1/2 cup a day or less), 2-3 eggs per week, meat featured at most once a week. Fish a few times a week. Olive oil is ok. No added sugar or white flour. A bit of honey is ok.

They drink coffee, tea, water, and wine. No fruit juices, vegetable juices, soda, etc. etc.

Sweets happen on special occasions... not daily.

I love this! I'm already all about the single-ingredient shopping, so of COURSE I'll like it! Lol! So many parts of this plan just seem right.

Now that I'm able to eat a bit more, I think I'll find I can meet my protein goals with 8oz beans, an ounce of nuts, and a 3oz serving of fish each day. They recommend no more than 12oz of fish a week, so that can take care of 4 dinners. The other nights can be eggs, cottage cheese, and meat.

The hardest thing is to stop putting milk in my tea and coffee...

1 hour ago, Berry78 said:

Now that I'm able to eat a bit more, I think I'll find I can meet my Protein goals with 8oz beans, an ounce of nuts, and a 3oz serving of fish each day. They recommend no more than 12oz of fish a week, so that can take care of 4 dinners. The other nights can be eggs, cottage cheese, and meat.

I am very happy for you @Berry78.

I would encourage you to try to have a couple days a week where you do not consume any meat or fish at all. You can get all the protein you need from whole grains, beans, and vegetables. I say this because if you want to receive the maximum benefit of eating WFPB the least amount of meat or fish you can consume and still be happy would be best. You can buy non-dairy vegan creamers for your coffee!! They are very good. I use the Trader Joe's brand.

My dh is eating one meal of salmon and one meal of either turkey or chicken per week. He has lost 5 lbs in the past 2 weeks and he told me tonight he feels very well with increased energy. The only issue he has had is a little insomnia on a couple of occasions. This might not be at all related to the diet change, but I thought it was worth mentioning. One thing that has happened is the guys in his shop (he is a diesel mechanic for the National Guard) have been giving him grief about eating a vegan diet..,men can be so childish sometimes...lol...

A cup of uncooked oats has 10g protein (makes more than a cup prepared).

2 cups of beans has 32g protein

1 oz nuts has 8g protein

I probably can squeeze that much food in... maybe...

But, honestly, I was hoping to get some nice veggies on board...

The thing is, that my hubby (normal sized stomach) can eat 2 cups of beans and a cup of spinach at once for dinner. No problemo. That's 35 grams of protein in one meal. He can eat all those oats for breakfast, plus an ounce of nuts in it.. that's another 17g. One more ounce of nuts for a snack and he has met his goal for the day. Lunch can be protein-free veggies and fruits.

But for me, it'll take 2 meals to eat the beans, and another 2 meals to eat the oatmeal. That's 4 meals, and I've only gotten in beans and oats, and possibly an ounce of nuts!!

Us bariatric folk HAVE to have more concentrated sources of protein. (And I can't do shakes).

21 minutes ago, Berry78 said:

Us bariatric folk HAVE to have more concentrated sources of protein. (And I can't do shakes).

I don't know if this is true unless you had a DS.

Here is a link where Dr. Garth Davis discusses protein.

Why can't you do a shake for breakfast? I am still drinking my Chike Mocha high protein coffee shake with unsweetened almond milk every morning. It is delicious and nutritious lol... I get 20g of protein in the shake and then I don't worry about the rest of the day. I easily get 47-55g a day. Really the 47g recommended for women is padded to cover 98% of the population.

NewMe I love your post about the myths and so on. Thank You for posting the info. Can you please tell me more about it?

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Apple thanks for your post. Where can I get the book?

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So I wonder what to go by...a vegan or a plant based???

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Apple can you please tell me about all the books you mentioned.

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Lol NewMe I am a vegetarian and had the sleeve in 2015. I was just tested and showed my good cholesterol was low and my bad cholesterol was high.

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5 minutes ago, SusanG81 said:

Apple thanks for your post. Where can I get the book?

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I get all my books on Amazon for Audible so I can listen to them on my 1 hour commute to and from work. This is the most efficient way for me to get through books.

Can you please tell me the titles to all the books? Thanks.

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If you read through the thread there have been several books mentioned.

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3 minutes ago, SusanG81 said:

Lol NewMe I am a vegetarian and had the sleeve in 2015. I was just tested and showed my good cholesterol was low and my bad cholesterol was high.

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Were you eating a lot of dairy, eggs, and cheese? Were you also still using vegetable oils for cooking?

I am curious because many vegetarians still eat these things and miss out on the low fat benefits of a WFPB diet.

1 hour ago, Apple1 said:

Why can't you do a shake for Breakfast?

One of those food intolerances.. mine is protein shakes....