I’ve cut back on meat (I'd like to eliminate it, actually), and am back into running (want to feel fit/strong again). What is something healthy that will fill me up (and is high in protein/low cal)?

Tofu.

Water packed tuna, cottage cheese, fish, lentils and kidney beans. Good for you for getting healthy!!

If you’re able to comfortably digest dairy protein and dairy sugars, Designs for Health brand “Whey Cool” whey protein is about as high-quality a concentrated protein supplement as is available. You usually need to work with a professional nutritionist to be able to order from them.

Soy can be good for some people, but it’s also one of the more common food allergens. My nutritionist tells me it’s basically impossible to avoid GMO soy in any soy protein product, so if GMO is of concern to you for health or ethical reasons, it’s best to steer clear. See how your body feels after eating/drinking soy protein before making this a mainstay in your diet. Fermented soy, like tempeh, is generally easier to digest than soy incorporated into packaged meat-imitation products (which I would recommend avoiding in general, after nearly a decade of eating them and suffering grave health consequences).

If you’re sensitive to the environmental impacts of meat production but do enjoy your occasional piece of meat, seek high-quality (and almost necessarily high-priced) grass-raised beef, free range/hormone-free/antibiotic-free chicken and eggs, or small fish from sustainably managed wild fisheries. Most people need 60–80 grams of protein per day for optimal health, and one 3-oz serving of fish or fowl will give you 25 g or so of that, so when you also count plant sources of protein (nuts and seeds and peanuts, quinoa and other whole grains, dairy like cottage cheese and yogurt, etc.) it adds up fast.

Also, if you’re going to eat some meat, bison is a good choice. Very lean, high in Omega 3s, and pretty much impossible to raise in any of the problematic ways cattle are raised.

No lentils and kidney beans or such at night!

Looks like beans, dairy and spinach(?!) are the winners in these lists.

Foods High in Proteins: Vegetables and Beans
http://www.fatfreekitchen.com/nutrition/high-protein-foods.html

Protein in the Vegan Diet
http://www.vrg.org/nutrition/protein.htm

If you plan on running a lot, it doesn’t hurt to carb up with pasta.

Quinoa.

Yep, I’m a big fan of the GNC Banana Creme whey protein powder.
20 grams of protein per scoop. Awesome mixed with OJ, apple or carrot juice!

Maybe a hard boiled egg on the side with another piece of fruit…keeps my engine revved for hours!

Soy milk, tofu, toast, salads…

I’ve done something similar for about a year and a half. Don’t want to give up meat entirely but have cut back to a few times a month. We do eat fish, but one of our favorites meals is channa – a chickpea curry made with chickpeas (natch), tomatoes and onions. It is very satisfying and good over rice. Other good meals are spinach and mushroom enchiladas, fish tacos and bean stew. For lunch at work, I often have either pb &j or hummus on pita with lettuce, tomato and English cucumber.

Mmmmmmm…you are maiking me HUNGRY now! lol

I just got back last week from 2 weeks in Teipei city and other locations on the island of Taiwan.

I sooo miss the hot pot meals, dumplings and they made the most amazing corn soup. My fantasy is to have an ethnic cook on standby 24/7

Spinache dumplings at midnight! lol

My favorites include quick oats, hard boiled eggs, spinach, tuna, mustard, casein protein, whey protein (larger quantities can upset your stomach), milk, and coffee (no additives) to curb appetite and keep my eyes wide.

I certainly hope you don’t “eliminate” meat. My dorg, my friends and I are all made from the stuff. And I like to eat it, too, sometimes.

We eat vegetarian 3 or 4 nights a week. Well shall I say no meat, we eat eggs at least once, the other nights something with beans, lentils and often cheese. I try to eat tofu but I just don’t like the stuff so I use soy milk (half of that with half skim). It keeps us lean and our bellies full. I run too and I always feel light. The meat meals consist of small portions of beef, one night, chicken one night and fish another. I usually make them into a stew so we fill up on veg and just have enough meat to satisfy. I always keep cut up pumpkin in the freezer, that is good to add to a stew, thickens it and gives flavor. I also use sweet potatoes instead of white. We have rice occasionally and bread rarely because I like to avoid white carbs. A friend just told me about ratatouille with a pie type crust on top, that is soooooooooo good. We don’t have it often because of the crust on top, but it is a treat when we do. There are a lot of Indian and Moroccan recipes that are vegetarian, some use chick peas for protein. Read the book, The Food Tree, it really opened my eyes and I feel so much better eating this way.

There are certain forms of very essential fat-soluble vitamins you can only get in animal foods. Eat plenty of fish if you cut out land animals only, but if you cut out all meats, eat plenty of eggs from chickens raised on pasture (not just “free range;” that doesn’t mean anything. you probably need to go to a farmers’ market or farm) and plenty of butter and dairy from animals raised on pasture. It’s not just about the protein; the fats are where the essential vitamins are stored.

@debs You can get those oils from flax seeds, or even just fish oil – It takes a little work, but we worked with a nutritionist to make sure we’re getting all the omega-3,6,9s etc, etc from non-meat sources.

Actually, flax seeds have the wrong kind of omega-3 fatty acids, if that’s what you’re talking about. They contain ALA. DHA is the omega-3 type commonly associated with brain function, reduced cardiovascular disease risk, and positive markers of mental health. The human capacity to convert one to the other is very, very minimal.

Animals like chickens, however, can convert ALA to DHA for us, which is why eating eggs from chicken fed flax seed is also a good idea.

The other vitamins I was talking about are vitamin D3, the animal form, as opposed to D2, the plant form (we synthesize D3 from the sun, but only in summer, and our capacity is limited if we’re obese or have other health problems); vitamin K2 MK-4, which is associated with brain function, bone development and a number of things we’re still learning about—and is different from the vitamin K2 MK-7 found in natto and gut bacteria; and retinol, the animal form of vitamin A.

But yes, fish oil is a good source of omega-3s. I take cod liver oil specifically because it’s also a fantastic source of vitamin D3.

@debs yep – that’s why you have to also take flax oil with DHA and hemp oil, specifically. But yes, you have to be careful. and I take a D complex with D3 – etc etc. Lots of supplements, but all doable.

Sounds like a perfect time to get reacquainted with all the lovely beans of the world! Though kidney beans and chickpeas are generally the most popular, other readily available ones are shown to have much higher cholesterol and cancer reducing properties. Make some red/black bean salad and keep it in the fridge for a quick carb and protein shot!

As a vegetarian who works out, you might want to look into some supplements. There is some evidence that creatine might help you out a lot, since you won’t be getting any in your regular diet without eating some meat.

@Smashley Very helpful. Thanks!

Beans, tofu, egg whites and whole grains. Check out Prevention Magazine to get a lot of great info:http://www.prevention.com/health/ and Vegetarian Times: http://www.vegetariantimes.com/