Has your weight changed since going vegan?

[Slowly I Awake]

No change, but I think that's because I was careful with my diet before becoming vegan. Plus I work out, so I suspect my body is at its natural weight.

My body composition has continued to change for the better, which makes me pretty happy. I was worried the vegan diet would negatively affect my weight training program. Instead I'm doing really well!

I can see how it would be easy to put weight on though. There is plenty of good food to eat, and I could go over my daily caloric intake without much effort.

[kuro]

Yeah, I've gained over 100 pounds...

[CurrantCottage]

I initially lost a lot of weight ....but its trying to find me again. I blame baking I love cakes, puddings, flapjacks etc !

[Vangrrl79]

I think as long as you’re not a "crap-atarian" and not stuffing yourself with pasta, bread and sugar you will lose weight on a vegan diet.

I've shed 6 lbs in 12 days and am feeling more energetic and vibrant than I ever have.

I have been working out for 3 hrs a week & have been working with a personal trainer for an additional hour a week for over 6 months and in that time I never saw the inches fall off as fast as they have in the last 2 weeks.

Nothing else has changes, just my diet.

And I feel amazing.

[apocalicious]

haha, well, i dont exercise much but yeah, ive been a vegan for about 2-3 months and have dropped 30 Lbs of fat, so im pretty happy with the whole thing.

[mecocat]

I can't say that i've noticed much change, though i do find that i don't seem to put weight on as easily as i used to. I've been a veggie for the past 16 years and became a full vegan Jan this year. Is it possible that i'm just the shape i'm meant to be?

[thegoob]

I can't say that i've noticed much change, though i do find that i don't seem to put weight on as easily as i used to. I've been a veggie for the past 16 years and became a full vegan Jan this year. Is it possible that i'm just the shape i'm meant to be?

A women happy with her weight? How did this happen? lol

Anyway, as far as myself, I did lose weight at first, but I figured out that if I just stopped eating animal products and didn't replace them with something I'd just waste away to nothing. So, I got that stuff worked out and gained weight as I grew taller. And, now i stay about the same weight all the time.

[Sarabi]

I'll read this whole thread later, but I just want to say... I did not lose or gain weight because of veganism. I had been slowly gaining weight for all my teenage years, which I simply continued to do at the usual pace after I became vegan. My diet then consisted of a lot of grains.

But now... I've been losing my appetite for grains. I guess I just ate too much of them. And eating veggies makes me feel oh, so much better! And, well... I don't have a huge appetite in general anymore for some reason. I don't know if I damaged my appetite meter or what. Like I am lying here right now pretty hungry, but not really bothered by it. I used to be unable to concentrate if I was hungry.

I still do eat probably more grains than I should out of convenience, so maybe that's why my appetite for them remains just barely enough to get me through the day, but veggies become my central meal of the day.

I was thinking... is it really the loss of animal products that causes many to lose weight with transitioning, or is it the centering of fresh fruits and veggies? I don't know how long this will last. I had lost appetite for Total cereal a few months ago, but I ate a bowl the other day and I enjoyed it pretty much... but the thing is... it doesn't make me crave it. It doesn't make me want to get up and fix another bowl. I'm hungry and don't feel like fixing a bowl. This is so unusual for me...

I don't know if something's wrong with me, or if this will be a good thing so I stop overeating bloody grains. I've been so stressed out lately and not exercising much, so that could also be related.

[Eat Y'self Fitter]

Drank a lot of Milk while I was omni, whole milk at that. Cutting that out dropped the amount of fat I took in significantly. I lost 10 pounds at least. I don't weigh myself that often so its hard to tell. I was 155 as an omi, 140-145 after going vegan.

Right now I fluctuate between 145-150 pounds. I'm 6ft tall right now and I'm trying to keep 145 pounds for cycling (power to weight ratio matters), but its getting difficult the more muscular I get...Weight for me is weird I fluctuate so much during the week

[RainInStarlight]

My weight actually went up when I became vegan, and pretty much stayed the same after it went up. The difference I noticed in my body was that I was able to build muscle a lot easier, and that attributed to the weight gain. I pretty much developed a policy that I would eat when I was hungry, and stop when I was full...
Apparently my body likes being at this weight...even though most of the charts that don't count for muscle say that I am on the verge of being overweight.

Ah well, charts don't mean everything. I do notice now a greater difference in feeling when I only gain about 3 pounds. I mean, I NOTICE it. It's odd how I never noticed it when I was an omnivore. :X

[karen_87]

After about 3 months of veganism now I've lost a bit of weight, maybe 5 - 6 pounds. I think thats because I dont eat so much junk, like chocolate and ice cream anymore, which was an easy quick fix, especially at uni or for a desert. Now its more fruit, yoghurt, and occasional home made cakes/biscuits.

[Annie M. Green]

Since going vegan almost 2 years ago I gradually lost about 8-9 kilos (don't have a scale, so can't give you any exact recent numbers). I think that can be explained with living on my own on a student budget as well as eating much healthier. I would've lost more by now, but when I go home for holidays and live with my mum I tend to eat a lot more as she loves cooking and it's all really tasty and homey and also end up drinking much more than I do in the term time, so I usually gain at least a couple of kilos every uni break. Going home for summer and promised myself to stay in shape, which is not going to be easy

[Dawny]

I have lost weight!! Though still have a long, long way to go before I get to my ideal weight for me & not for anyone else, if folks dont like me thin then they wont of been true friends anyway!

[megrainbows]

I can't be accurate with my answer as i'm a competive rhythmic gymnast, so my weight/figure is changing all the time!
In terms of weight, it has risen dramatically as i've gained a lotttttt of muscle. Im trying to loose a lot now, so im limiting carbs (of which I eat looaaads of, especially pasta and potatoes)
But overal i'd say my weight has dropped.

[MoonDance]

Hmm, I lost weight when I first became vegan (even though I was eating heaps) and my folks were getting quite worried. But now my weight seems to have stabilized and I've put on a tiny bit, mostly muscle, but it depends on how much exercise I do.

[Tishy]

I'm really happy. Since going vegan my weight has stabilised. I'm pretty small but my weight used to flucuate heaps but now it has reached a nice place which I am so happy with!

[alejandro:-)]

I started to be vegan after a 5 days fast, in the process I lost 7 kg, after that I keep this weight.
I feel much better now.
My feed is 80% raw now

[Morellius]

Lost couple of pounds, but nothing special really. I do still enjoy chocolate and all, so that could be the reason.

[miss_kiddy_kat]

since becoming vegan i've gained quite a lot of weight, but actually non of that was gained eating vegan food.

i've been a pretty poorly little bunny, and had to be fed up on (decidedly non vegan ) nutrisun medical feed cack. i wasn't able to object at the time. That combined with a rather potent combo of nasty drugs i now have to take has meant i've shot from an always underweight weed! to rather marshmellowy..

I have a dairy allergy, and i think as a young child that scared me from trying foods- obviously even a veggie, i didn't eat cheese or drink milk, and i just wasn't interested in trying alternatives. Now vegan i have discovered the delights of humdinger chocolate buttons, and nanas cookies, i also think that soya milkshake, and cereal are all now keeping me cuddly- and preventing me from dropping the drug induced weight gained.

I was probably healthier in what i ate as a veggie, even though i was definitely too skinny - ( i never ate any dairy (due to allergy) or eggs (due to the scrabbled egg wobble vomit inducing factor!), so really diet wise, my non vegan friendly foods were probably not that many anyway. I don't think i eat as healthily now, i used to eat mostly wholefoods, veg, fruit.

i do need to lose some weight - reading that back, i can see that it wasn't actually turning vegan which was the weight gainer - more my discovery of the world of yummy vegan.. perhaps also vegan junk food which is preventing me from losing it!

I've never had to try to lose before! i'm used to be told to eat up! With just a few high calorie or junky items i can see how my totals add up! a handful of raisins, a chocolate bar, vegan ice cream, houmous - its like 'wow' its vegan! i can eat it! i think the child who had to sit through all her friends eating pizza and feeling left out feels really liberated! it is such a shame medication can do messed up things to your body, because then i wouldn't be in a position where ideally i need to drop a bit!!

[Johnstuff]

My weight has been fairly constant for years (also been vegan for years). About the 70Kg mark.

I got in shape (ish) form a couple of holidays (mtb and freedive) and was down to 66Kg about a month ago. Since then I have had an injury (now recovered) and my wieght has been goin up and up. It's now nearly 72Kg.

I've bought a chin up bar at the weekend, so I'm hoping to get more 'toned' even if not loose weight. I really must kick my crisp n flapjack habit

[Bartlebee]

I thought I was fairly constant weight wise for a while but recently I've been told I look guant and a few pictures of me have made me think they're right, no scales in the house but I'm looking to put on weight in a healthly way now :/

[suzanne]

Put on weight!....It's baking all the yummy cakes.

[Cupid Stunt]

No change for me.

Went vegetarian at 28, vegan at around 40 and am 50 now.

My weight has never fluctuated by more than 14lb, or so, in my whole adult life. At my heaviest ever now but that is entirely commensurate with being middle aged.

[Kimberlily1983]

Vegetarian at 17, gained weight when I fell in love with cheese, then went up and down for the next 9 years. Managed to hover around 135, generally - my highest was 155.

Went vegan in March of this year, and lost 15 pounds in the first couple of months, and have been stable at around 123 pounds since.

[ShadowTears]

I'm 5'4 and was around 170 lbs before I went vegan. Now I'm, well I haven't weighed myself in a while, I would guess around 130 lbs. Though I'll admit that was alot to do with my OCD centered eating disorder I had at the time. But since going vegan I have kept it off, which makes me feel super.

[veganina]

I was on the slim side before i turned vegan, and when i did i lost 6 lbs but then i stabilised there, with no more than 2 lbs fluctuation - so amazing (for a woman in particular). I eat as much as i like, whenever i feel like it, and i have totally stopped thinking about my weight because i always feel so much "the same", and sometimes i have to go and dust my bathroom scales.

[Kimberlily1983]

I eat as much as i like, whenever i feel like it, and i have totally stopped thinking about my weight because i always feel so much "the same", and sometimes i have to go and dust my bathroom scales.

That's the thing isn't, it, that's the big difference for me as well. It's not just that weight management is easier; it's no longer something I really need to think about. I no longer focus on limiting portions of my food; instead I think about all the things I want to eat to maintain my health, and enjoy incorporating those in. It becomes about what you do eat, instead of what you shouldn't eat (or what amounts you shouldn't eat).

[Sgable84]

I have been vegan for about 7 weeks, and have lost about 10 pounds just by going vegan alone. About 2 years ago when I went vegan for a bit, I have lost about 35 pounds in about three months, but I was working out along with that.

I come from a very italian/german family, so breads and pasta and lots of meats!! It was very hard growing up cause I was always a bit on the heavy side. I would eat alfredo pasta with garlic bread at least 2 times a week!!

But now as I do research on how fattening animal products are, I can see why I was soo large!

[emmapresley]

i've been vegan for 4 years and would consider myself to be the forum fatty here. over that time ive put on weight..im not thick but i may have slightly convinced myself over a subtly gradual period of time that if it was vegan i a) ought to try it, scoff, scoff on. and if there are loads of interesting looking things it seems an idea to try and then support the shops..the little shops.

i've changed my eating habits this last 5/6 weeks. i know, 4 years of scarfing to 5/6 weeks of mindful eating. just making a few changes have made a huuuge difference. joined a slimming world class, which is pretty fun in a way. the woman is a bit of a sing song loon, but very motivational, heh. well, sort of.it suits a vegan diet amazingly, pasta, rice, cous cous, endless veg and fruit all nom. ive stopped booze and bread, and limit nuts, seeds, stopped cooking with fat. its fab. have lost almost one and half stones in weight so far and feel much better. omg and i eat loads. ace.

[leedsveg]

Weight has remained around 168 lbs for the last 15 years ie as long as I've been vegan

lv

[RubyDuby]

I would like to change my answer from down to no change. I initially lost a lot of weight due to not eating much and having a very active job. Now that I'm eating normally and am much more sedentary my weight is back up. imo Veganism has nothing to do with weight.

[Korn]

I would like to change my answer from down to no change.

Done (added a vote to 'No Change', removed one from 'Down').

[RubyDuby]

Thanks!

[christinablue]

I lost 25lbs pretty quickly after going vegan, but have gained most of that back. I'm pretty sure it's because I went back to my old addictions of sugar, fried foods and bread. Vegan or not, that shit is bad for me. :P~ Oh well, when I move out of my current living situation and move back to vegan-friendly Austin, I think I will try a raw food cleanse for a few months.

[Dumile]

bad injuries a few years ago has made me gain weight, and then I would lose a little weight, and then gain since I wasn't strong enough to be as active as I was before. Since going vegan I lost 20lbs, but I think mostly because I am trying to do that. I find it a lot easier to change my weight they way I want being a vegan. If I want to maintain, I just eat a lil more, or a few different things. When I need to lose, I just eat normal, and work out more during the week. I think I can average about -2lbs per week.

[Andy_T]

I was Veggie for 20 years, but possibly a crap-a-tarian (eating lots of cheese and other unhealthy stuff), so my weight was always oscillating (did a diet to lose 10 kgs every few years, then it came creeping back), finally amounting to 95 kg, which corresponds to a not-very-healthy BMI of 28,4.

When I went from veggie to vegan about a year ago, I did not change much apart from cutting out the dairy, but picking up some 'fake' product instead. So no change to my weight occurred.

Since I read 'The China study' and 'The 80/10/10 diet' some 2 months ago, I have tried to watch my fat intake and adhere to an 80/10/10 ratio (energy from carbs/fat/protein), also cutting out items like coffee and alcohol. Since then, I am back to 87 kgs and hopefully on my way to a BMI in the healthy 'normal' reason.

So - to sum it up my limited experience - going vegan most likely will not necessarily change your weight, but watching what you eat will. Some news

Best regards,
Andy

[SugarPlumFairy]

I am down just over 20 pounds since Oct. To be totally honest, I was also doing Weight Watchers at the same time, and I walk 5-12 miles most days. I love being a vegand and would never eat any other way again. For the first time in my life, my heart, mind, body and soul are all on the same page.My health is improving in leaps and bounds as well. My resting pulse, blood pressure are down and my blood sugar has gotten so much better I no longer test in the diabetic range.

[Maranne]

I started fairly young when I was all nice and slim although I guess I wasn't always careful about the quality of the food I ate. Fried potatoes ARE their own food group, right? Fast forward to today...I could stand to lose about twenty or so pounds. Sigh.

[khadagan]

When I went vegetarian years ago I gained a bit of weight, probably all the cheese I ate I didn't know what to eat at the time. Going vegan made me lose weight, but very slowly. I think it's more about being careful with what you eat and making sure first of all that you eat a healthy and balanced diet that you're happy with and feel you can easily follow for years. This will keep you or put you on a healthy weight, your body will find it's natural weight after that automatically and will function better without highs and downs in your mood or feel you need to binge on something. Anyway, that's how it worked for me.

[VagabondVegan]

No change for a while but I think I am actually putting on a bit of weight and muscle mass right now which is great because I am RIDICULOUSLY skinny :P

[helgalush]

Veganism has really helped me to lose weight, I have lost 2 and a half stones since gradually going pescetarian, then vegetarian and 4 months ago vegan - the biggest weight loss has been since vegan and as I find it very difficult to exercise due to a health problem, I know that this is purely down to eating more healthily and thinking about what I put in to my body more

[GoodbyeGirl]

yes. it wasn't noticeable for at least a month but i really leaned out when i cut out meat & dairy. it also motivated me to exercise more once i started taking care of myself.

[beautyintheskyy]

I hear so many ppl say how they lose weight effortlessly on a vegan diet. In my experience, this was a huge misconception! I did not become vegan with weight loss as my motivation, but I certainly did not think I would gain 5 lbs. I have decided to cut out potatoes, bread, and try to lower my sodium intake and hope that helps. I previously followed a low-carb omni diet. Carbs definitely made me gain weight so I'm going to try to avoid high-carb foods. Will keep you updated.

[LuvAllLife]

I lost 20 pounds, but am now having a hard time losing the last 20! It feels good to be at a much healthier weight, and my bmi is 27 which is way lower than it has been in years. I am continuing to be active and just bought a bike yesterday, so we'll see what happens!

[beautyintheskyy]

i hav cut out some carbs and upped my exercise and the weight i starting to come off now. i think it was largely water weight b/c i was eating a lot of soup/ other prepared foods and now im eating more salad, a little soup, salsa and raw veggies, veggie quesadillas (which are AMAZING btw) and soy milk or juice.

[Eat Y'self Fitter]

Right now I'm pretty satisfied my weight. I look really skinny now, but ironically I weigh more than I ever have right now.

I dropped a couple pounds when I went vegan because I stopped drinking whole milk. I started cycling a lot and that caused me to drop the pounds. I'm 6ft tall and was down to 143 at one point in the summer. Now that I've gotten really into the sport of bike racing I understand training better and the importance of rest and recovery. I've gained nearly 12 pounds of muscle after a season of bike racing and lifting a little bit in the winter. I look thin now but I can hardly fit into any of my pants anymore cos my legs are getting huge.

So now I'm between 153 and 156, the point of this ramble is one can easily pack on a significant amount of muscle by being vegan.

[Firestorm]

My weight went up when I first went Vegan, it has gone down by a few pounds since taking a break from alcohol, so Im drinking again and eating more (which is very enjoyable).

[hbunting86]

I'm just starting on the vegan journey... currently weigh about 55kgs so will see how this affects me...! I should probably exercise more as I'm a bit lazy... but you know!

[OnInAt]

I've always been a pretty "normal"/average weight for my height, sometimes maybe a few pounds too light. The first few weeks I went vegan, I think a lost several pounds because I was still trying to get the hang of what was vegan and if I wasn't sure, I wouldn't eat it (I still won't, but now it's a lot easier to breeze through a list of ingredients or have already in mind what to eat, etc) and I ended up just not eating very much at all. But once I got the hang of everything, I think I gained the initial weight loss back and maybe an extra 2 or 3 pounds because I was finally eating foods that made me feel good, both physically and mentally, so I ate more than I had in the past. Now, after being vegan for a while, everything has kind of evened out and I think I'm probably a couple of pounds lighter than I was before I went vegan, but at what feels like a very healthy and comfortable weight for me. Disregarding the scale, I feel a lot lighter, which I think is cooler than any actual number of pounds that may or may not have been lost.

[VT Winter Veggie]

Initially I dropped from ~145 pounds, to 127 or 128, over about 4 months (I am 5'8 btw). Then I started weight training right around the time I reached my lowest weight. Since then I've gone back to 144-145 at a body fat percent of about 4 at the moment.

Gaining muscle and not fat is incredible on a vegan diet. Omnivores can say all they want about skinny vegans, but they usually have very high bodyfat, and are far from lean.